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Man Infected With Drug-Resistant Strain of TB Quarantined; The Fight for Iraq; Texas Mother, Children Hanged

Aired May 30, 2007 - 09:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Heidi Collins today.

You can watch events come into the NEWSROOM live on this Wednesday morning. It is May 30th. And here is what's on the rundown.

Attention Air France flyers. Some of you may need a TB test. A passenger with a rare and often deadly form of tuberculosis may have spread the illness.

HARRIS: May now the third deadliest month of the Iraq War for American troops.

Live to Baghdad this hour.

NGUYEN: A piece of Americana in India. Check it out. You can forget about a Big Mac, though, but yes, you can get fries with that, even in New Delhi.

McVeggies in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Quarantine. An Atlanta-area man infected with a rare and dangerous form of tuberculosis. Now health experts are scrambling to find airline passengers he may have put in danger with his global travels.

CNN's Anderson Cooper explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was frightening news for some airline passengers to hear. They may have been sitting next to a man with a potentially fatal form of tuberculosis. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the patient boarded Air France flight number 385 from Atlanta that landed in Paris on May 13th.

On May 24th, he flew from Prague to Montreal on Czech Airlines flight 0104, then drove back to the United States. DR. JULIE GERBERDING, CDC DIRECTOR: During these two long flights, the patient may have been a source of infection to the passengers.

COOPER: According to the CDC, the patient is a man who lives in the Atlanta area. They say he was diagnosed with TB some time ago, but they didn't know he had the highly dangerous drug resistant form of the disease until he was halfway through his trip to Europe. And they didn't know he intended to leave the country.

GERBERDING: If we had been aware that travel was imminent, we may have been able to act, if requested by the local health officials, but under the circumstances, I think we were surprised that the patient had left the country.

COOPER: Health officials say there's no evidence the man was highly infectious and that the risk of his spreading the disease is low. But that risk is still there. They've ordered the patient into isolation at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, a very unusual step for the CDC to take.

GERBERDING: Because this organism is so potentially serious and could cause such serious harm to people, especially those that have other medical conditions that would reduce their immunity, we felt it was our responsibility to err on the side of abundant caution.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And the latest now from Atlanta. CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is outside Grady Memorial Hospital, and that is where the man is getting treatment.

Sanjay, good morning to you.

First question...

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.

HARRIS: What is Extensively Drug-Resistant TB? What is this?

GUPTA: Well, tuberculosis is an infection that can occur in several different places in the body, but most commonly the lungs. Oftentimes, it is treatable with antibiotics. Those are medications that kill bacteria.

Sometimes, though, because of resistance, because bacteria becomes smart and they start to evade antibiotics, they become drug- resistant. And when you classify it as extensively drug-resistant, it means basically nothing works, for the most part. No antibiotics that we typically treat tuberculosis with works.

What you've got to do is try other antibiotics and see if something seems to kill some of this bacteria. Sometimes surgery might be an option to try and get rid of the bacteria, just literally cutting it out of the body, and then treating it with antibiotics. But that's essentially the sort of situation this man finds himself in.

HARRIS: How is TB spread?

GUPTA: You know, TB can be one of the most contagious bacterial infections out there. You know, you hear about it a lot in confined spaces. For example, in prisons. They can be hot spots for tuberculosis because of the confined quarters. Airplane rides, it turns out, could be a source of concern, as well, because you're in a confined space for a long period of time.

You know, this particular man, it doesn't sound like he was very sick. And it doesn't sound like he was coughing or sneezing.

HARRIS: Yes.

GUPTA: You actually put the bacteria out in the air and other people breathe it in when that happens.

HARRIS: Sanjay, is it true that air travel carries a relatively low risk of infection with TB of any kind?

GUPTA: You know, I think the right answer to that question is we're not sure. I mean, people will say, look, there's HEPA filters on planes, that makes it less likely for the air to circulate, for example. That could be a good thing, certainly for the other passengers.

But the reality is, Tony, you know, since the last time there was a quarantine in '63, which was for smallpox, the world is dramatically different. We have a lot of global air travel, and now you're starting to see larger numbers of people with things that are potentially contagious traveling around the world. So we're starting to get more data about just how contagious it would be on a plane. But you're right, because of the filters, it might be a slightly lower risk.

HARRIS: And I understand that while rare, I'm wondering, are you of the belief that we are likely to see more cases of this rare form of TB?

GUPTA: I think so. You know, if you look over the past several years in the United States, for example, the numbers sort of go up and down. Last year there weren't as many as the year before, for example, but I think several things have changed in our society.

One is that you have many more people who are immunocompromised either because of HIV-AIDS or because of something else, and they are particularly susceptible to getting this sort of infection. So I think the numbers might increase for that reason.

And also, remember, Tony, we're talking about the United States, with one of the most sophisticated health care systems in the world. Go to sub-Saharan Africa, and it's oftentimes TB and sometimes drug- resistant TB that is actually killing people with HIV-AIDS in those parts of the world. So those things are concomitant, they go together hand in hand in many places around the world. So I do think we're probably going to see an increase in numbers.

HARRIS: Yes.

Finally, what does an isolation room look like?

GUPTA: You know, an isolation room basically looks no different than most other hospital rooms at first blush. But a lot of it actually is in the ventilation. It's what's called negative pressure, so air is actually being sucked into the room as opposed to it blowing out. You don't want that bacteria floating around the hospital or into other rooms.

Another thing you're going to see with this particular gentleman's room is an armed guard. He has an armed guard. I guess there's still concern that he could potentially try and leave the hospital. And you see a lot of people wearing masks because masks are one of the best ways to and prevent TB from spreading and prevent yourself from getting infected.

HARRIS: CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, with us this morning.

Sanjay, great to see you. Thanks for the information.

NGUYEN: And this just in to CNN. The Politico is reporting this morning that Fred Thompson will announce that he is running for president over the July 4th holiday. This report also says that the former senator from Tennessee will announce a presidential exploratory committee on June 4th.

Again, he's going to announce that he's running on July 4th, but expected to announce presidential exploratory committee on June 4th, which is just a few days from now.

Again, Fred Thompson looking to run for president of the United States, according to The Politico. As soon as we get more information on this, of course we will pass it on to you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Well, President Bush is set to announce his choice for the next leader of the World Bank. It's Wall Street executive, Robert Zoellick, according to a senior administration official.

Now, Zoellick would replace Paul Wolfowitz, who is leaving at the end of June. Wolfowitz, as you'll recall, stepping down over a controversy involving a pay package for his girlfriend.

We have live coverage of the president's announcement. That is at 11:05 Eastern, right here on CNN.

HARRIS: Well, the World Bank not necessarily a household name for many Americans, but it does play a significant role. Based in Washington, the bank's primary goal is reducing poverty in developing countries. Part of that involves building schools and health centers, fighting disease and protecting the environment.

At last count, it provided more than $20 billion in 2004 for projects in dozens of countries. The bank started operating in 1946. By tradition, the United States picks its president.

NGUYEN: In Iraq today, coalition and Iraqi forces fan out, rounding up dozens of suspected insurgents, and this comes against the backdrop of the search for five kidnapped British men.

CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us from the Iraqi capital.

First, though, Paula, we hear there was a surprise visitor to Baghdad today. Tell us about this.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Betty.

Senator Lieberman made a fleeting visit this morning. We followed him around when he went to one of these joint security stations. These are the stations where Iraqi and the U.S. soldiers work side by side.

This is the real heart of the Baghdad security plan. And he went and wandered around those. He also went to one of the forward operating bases to see what was happening.

I briefly spoke to him. He said he was happy with the progress. He was devastated by the fact that May was turning into the deadliest month since November 2004, but he said he did believe that this surge eventually would pay off and it would start to break the insurgency.

Now back to those five British men who have been kidnapped. Now, we know that they were kidnapped just before midday on Tuesday by dozens of gunmen dressed as Iraqi police and army personnel. They were traveling in police cars.

Now, at this point, the British Foreign Ministry says they are desperately trying to find them. They're working with Iraqi authorities to try and find them.

We heard in a radio interview with the Iraqi foreign minister, Hoshyar Zebari, and he said that he thinks it could be related to the Mehdi army. Now, of course this is the militia that's loyal to the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. And we did hear from an Iraqi Interior Ministry source last night that it seemed as though the gunmen were heading east of Baghdad, heading toward Sadr City.

Now, we do know there were raids overnight in Sadr City. At least five terrorists, we're being told by the U.S. military, were picked up in that area. But they say it wasn't related to the search for these five British citizens per se.

So, fairly vague. But they say at this point, that was not related.

Now, of course, everyone is trying to find these five security guards. One computer expert who was working with the Iraqi government, and one brigadier general that I spoke to about this, this morning, said it's very concerning, the fact they were able to get hold of these uniforms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIG. GEN. VINCENT BROOKS, DEP. COMMANDER, MULTINATIONAL FORCE, BAGHDAD: It complicates our work, to be sure, and it complicates the relationship that the population has with their security forces. And I think they know that. That's why they choose to do things like wearing false uniforms or perpetrating those who are supposed to be protecting them, which gives them access.

This is something that's just going to take time. And again, the point of this, it has to be the government of Iraq and the Iraqi people to eject and reject such behaviors if there's ever going to be a lasting success here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANCOCKS: Now, there's also speculation that the kidnapping of these five could have been in retaliation for the killing of a Mehdi army leader a few days ago by U.K. troops. But of course, very sketchy information at this time. The authorities are not giving too much away in case it jeopardizes the search -- Betty.

NGUYEN: CNN's Paula Hancocks in Baghdad.

Thank you, Paula.

HARRIS: An update now on a story we brought you yesterday right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. A Texas mother and her children found dead in their home, hanged. Police say it appears to be a case of murder- suicide.

Janet St. James of CNN affiliate WFAA has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANET ST. JAMES, REPORTER, WFAA (voice over): What Alejandra Estrada witnessed when she opened the closet in her sister's trailer goes beyond words or explanations. "She was a very good person," is all Alejandra manages.

Family and friends say Berta was clearly overwhelmed with the responsibility of four young children. She worked at Wendy's to make ends meet, but it was never enough for this newly-single mother.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She needed to support her kids. She doesn't have child support in that moment. So...

ST. JAMES: Neighbors say none of those pressures showed on the outside.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They looked clean, fed, in the yard, not in the road, and taken care of. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She seemed like she was a very attentive mother. I mean, she was -- she was always smiling and everything. So, you know, I mean, like you wouldn't know anything was wrong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: A fourth child, an 8-month-old baby girl, also found hanging, is alive. She is listed in good condition this morning at a Fort Worth hospital.

NGUYEN: Well, in Minneapolis, fire engulfs a house. You have to see this. In fact, flames spread so quickly, firefighters wasted no time in getting out. And now watch this.

That's one way to make it to safety.

HARRIS: Yes.

NGUYEN: That firefighter dives headfirst down a ladder to escape the inferno. The 15-year veteran wasn't hurt, thank goodness. This technique actually is considered perfectly acceptable when every second counts. In fact, I think any technique when every second counts.

HARRIS: Yes.

And still to come this morning in the CNN NEWSROOM, who is visiting the vice president? It seems the VP doesn't want you to know.

Details ahead in the NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: And it's a tall order, but a Cleveland Cavalier says he is up to the job helping victims of Darfur.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We in the NBA are concerned at this tragic situation, and I just felt like, you know, I thought I could do something to help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: We'll have more on this good deed right here in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Remaking an American icon. So, what do they serve at McDonald's when beef is off the menu?

We'll take a look ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right. Will it be Fred Thompson in 2008? Well, the guessing game may be over. Former Tennessee senator and TV star Fred Thompson is reportedly planning to enter the 2008 presidential race. The Web site the politico.com says Thompson plans to announce his entry into that race over the July 4th holiday.

The report also sites advisers to Thompson. The Politico says Thompson has already raised several million dollars and is backed by insiders from three past Republican administrations.

HARRIS: Two top Democratic presidential candidates looking past Iraq, at least for now. Instead, focusing on pocketbook issues.

The story from CNN's Dana Bash, part of the best political team on television.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The Iraq War may be Democratic voters' top issue, but economic anxiety comes next. And Hillary Clinton came to New Hampshire to say she gets it.

SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: While productivity and corporate profits are up, the fruits of that success just hasn't reached many of our families. It's like trickle- down economists, but without the trickle.

BASH: Calling herself a modern progressive, Clinton promised to shrink the gap between rich and poor and do away with the president's so-called ownership society.

CLINTON: I prefer a "we're all in it together" society.

BASH: She proposed a nine-point plan, from eliminating tax incentives for companies to send jobs overseas, to reducing special tax breaks for corporations.

CLINTON: Fairness just doesn't happen. It requires the right government policies.

BASH: It's exactly the kind of talk Julie Hobbs (ph), an undecided New Hampshire voter, wants to hear from candidates.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I see a lot more money being pulled into the big corporations, and there's not a lot going to little families. We're working and working, and we're not reaping any benefit. It's getting harder and harder all the time. It's not perfect (ph).

BASH: She's a classic example of the middle class squeeze.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I make good money, but my expenses are huge. Because with children and gas prices, it's very, very difficult to make ends meet.

BASH: The 34-year-old single mom's biggest anxiety, she has no health insurance. Another Democratic candidate, Barack Obama, unveiled his plan to address that. A proposal to provide health care for all Americans by the end of his first term as president.

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you're one of the 45 million Americans who don't have health insurance, you will have a new plan after this plan becomes law. You will have health insurance that's available to you. No one will be turned away because of a pre-existing condition or illness.

BASH (on camera): The Obama campaign provided research showing his health care plan would likely cost between $50 billion and $65 billion. How would he pay for it? Probably by raising taxes, repealing President Bush's tax cuts on the most wealthy Americans.

Dana Bash, CNN, Nashua, New Hampshire.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And the candidates' debate in the first big battleground of the campaign live next week on CNN. The Democrats face off on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. The Republicans at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday.

And you will see it live only on CNN.

NGUYEN: Well, U.S. troops under fire. May the deadliest month this year. How does it square with the U.S. troop buildup?

We have that ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: A patient under quarantine. And right now the search is on for air travelers possibly exposed to a dangerous form of tuberculosis.

The man at the center of the scare is infected with a rare, extremely drug-resistant form of TB. He is under federal quarantine at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta. Officials are contacting passengers aboard two transatlantic flights the man took two and from Europe. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says they should be tested as a precaution.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GERBERDING: What we have learned is that the passengers who were seated close to the person on an airplane could be at a risk, and those are the people where the investigation will be concentrated. But just to be on the safe side, because it's such a bad bacteria, we will be contacting the passengers on the long flights to make sure that they know they can be tested for tuberculosis exposure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Health officials say the man quarantined with TB was advised not to fly, but he tells the "Atlanta Journal-Constitution" he was never told he couldn't fly. He says he flew to Europe for his wedding.

NGUYEN: Well, things are going pretty swimmingly. For those lost humpbacks, that is.

The whales have made good progress over the past 24 hours, moving into San Francisco Bay and closer to the open sea. And at last check, mother and calf were less than 10 miles from the Golden Gate Bridge.

HARRIS: OK.

NGUYEN: That is a mile marker for them, because that means they are close to being home free. They got turned around, as you'll recall, and stuck up river more than two weeks ago.

HARRIS: And still to come this morning, a near catastrophe over a condiment. An unhappy customer opens fire.

That story ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MARKET REPORT)

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone.

Welcome back to CNN.

Betty, great to see you again.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good to be back, Tony.

HARRIS: We are following this top story this hour -- isolated under government order. A man infected with a rare, potentially deadly form of tuberculosis triggers a global health alert. He is under federal quarantine at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta.

Officials are contacting passengers aboard two transatlantic flights the man took to and from Europe. The Centers for Disease Control and prevention recommends those who sat within two rows of the man be tested for T.B.

Health officials say the infected man was advised not to fly, but he told "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution" he was never he couldn't travel.

NGUYEN: Well, here's a closer look at this specific strain of tuberculosis and why it has health officials so concerned.

It is called XDR. That's short for extensively drug resistant. Some countries with excellent T.B. programs show a cure rate of only about 30 percent for patients with this strain. And there are several symptoms of T.B. -- weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats.

HARRIS: A U.S. Senator on the ground in Iraq right now. Senator Joe Lieberman is in Baghdad on an unannounced visit. After he arrived in the Iraqi capital, he visited a joint security station where U.S. and Iraqi forces are based. He also toured a forward operating base and a Baghdad market.

Lieberman says he is encouraged by what he is seeing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (I), CONNECTICUT: Overall, I would say what I see here today is progress, significant progress from the last time I was here in December. And if you can see progress in war, that means you're heading in the right direction.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Lieberman has mostly backed President Bush's Iraq policies.

NGUYEN: Well, more territory coming under Iraqi control. Iraqi police and soldiers taking over responsibility today for three provinces in the northern Kurdish region.

Take a look here. The security handover took place in Dahuk, Erbil and Sulaymaniya Provinces. It means seven out of 18 provinces will be under the control of Iraqi security forces. Now, the other 11 remain under U.S. or coalition control.

HARRIS: And targeting American troops, this May among the deadliest months of the Iraq War. There are concerns about what may lie ahead.

Here's senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cordette (ph).

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the new U.S. strategy puts more U.S. troops in the risky role of intermediaries in a raging civil war, President Bush's grim prediction is coming true.

GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We can expect more American and Iraqi casualties.

MCINTYRE: U.S. deaths in Iraq this month have now surpassed both April and December highs, to make May the deadliest month in almost three years.

The worst months were back in 2004, when in both April and November, the U.S. was fighting major offensives in Fallujah.

What pushed May over the top was another helicopter shoot down in deadly Diyala Province, which has become the latest front line, as insurgents and Al Qaeda militants are squeezed out of Baghdad by the U.S.-led crackdown.

Small arms fire brought down that Kiowa Scout helicopter monitoring a major supply route, killing two Army pilots. A quick reaction force in a Bradley fighting vehicle fell victim to a roadside bomb as it rushed to the scene, killing five more soldiers. A second vehicle also hit by IED resulted in an eighth death.

If, as President Bush predicts, fighting is even heavier over the summer, 2007 could well be the deadliest year of the war, with more than 1,000 deaths, compared to the previous high of 849 in 2004.

The high price is all to buy more time for Iraqi politicians to meet key goals aimed at fostering political reconciliation -- goals that appear more elusive by the day.

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: The only thing that will prevent it from happening, of course, is lack of will on the part of Iraqi politicians and the chaotic nature of that country's politics in general. And I'm afraid once you factor in those latter points, even if compromise is theoretically possible, it is not very likely.

MCINTYRE (on camera): Of the three broad benchmarks -- sharing oil wealth, bringing more Sunnis into the government and setting local elections, only the oil law seems on track. That's why the new focus is on brokering local peace agreements, even if the national government remains in disarray.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

NGUYEN: All right, so it may be almost June, right?

HARRIS: Yes.

NGUYEN: But it's feeling more like April, with those showers...

HARRIS: What a wild ride, huh?

NGUYEN: ... through so much of the Southern portion -- Chad, what's going on?

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Well, visitors are welcome at the home of the vice president, but Dick Cheney wants no public record of their comings and goings. Yes, a lawyer for Cheney is urging the Secret Service to return to the vice president any records of visitors to his residence. The letter was written last year, but just now made public. It was filed in court last week in connection with a lawsuit by a private watchdog group. That group, Citizens For Responsibility In Ethics In Washington, is seeking records of visitors to Cheney's residence on the grounds of the Naval Observatory in Washington.

HARRIS: Small town mystery -- an illegal immigrant dead and now police officers are at the center of the investigation. That story ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: You've heard the slogan -- special sauce, lettuce, cheese. Well, they're all OK, but not the two all beef patties.

So how exactly is McDonald's thriving in a place where cows are sacred?

I'm Don Lemon live in New Delhi, India.

I'll have the answer, coming up for you in the CNN NEWSROOM.

COMMERCIAL

HARRIS: Betty, did you enjoy pod casting yesterday?

It was a lot of fun.

NGUYEN: Oh, I loved it.

HARRIS: It was a lot of fun.

NGUYEN: I wouldn't want to do anything else at that time.

HARRIS: (LAUGHTER).

You're going to too far.

But here's the point. It was different. We do different things in the pod cast than what you see here

9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

And that is why we want to encourage you, of course, to watch us 9:00 until 12:00 p.m. Eastern time right here in THE CNN NEWSROOM.

But now you can take us with you anywhere, make us a part of your daily life -- hi, Tom -- right there on your iPod. THE CNN NEWSROOM pod cast available to you 24/7, again, right on your iPod.

Michael.

NGUYEN: Don't miss it.

Well, a fast food staple is remaking its menu, shall we say, to tap a new and bigger market.

HARRIS: That's right. CNN NEWSROOM'S Don Lemon is on assignment in India and he joins us live from New Delhi -- Don, great to see you.

Explain, please.

LEMON: It's good to see you, Tony and Betty, as well.

You know what?

I ordered one just for you. I don't know if you can smell it right here.

HARRIS: Yes. LEMON: They look like a Big Mac, a Quarter Pounder. They even smells like them.

But you know what?

They're missing that one key ingredient that made McDonald's a staple in the U.S. -- the hamburger part.

Why?

Cows are sacred here.

So what's McDonald's to do?

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON (voice-over): The foot traffic alone is to die for. But for McDonald's, the world's biggest fast-food chain, location, location, location is a double-edged sword.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I have one of these?

LEMON: ... in a place where most people don't eat beef and cows are sacred.

In 2001, Hindu protesters called for McDonald's to get out, claiming they used beef byproducts to enhance the flavor of their French fries. The company denies it.

From the very beginning, McDonald's jettisoned its staple two all beef patties. There is no beef or pork anywhere on the menu or in the kitchen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One Chicken McNugget is (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and one we don't like.

LEMON: Why work so hard in a place where it appears there's no demand for your product?

McDonald's owners in India say it's the economy, stupid. India's economy is booming and the population is four times bigger than America's -- and most of them are young.

From two restaurants in 1996, there are now 113. McDonald's says it grew 40 percent last year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One with cheese, one without cheese.

LEMON: The restaurants are cheap to operate by American standards, but the company pays its workers four times the minimum wage here. Nineteen-year-old Nichean Sharma (ph) delivers McDonald's by bike through the bustling Old Delhi streets.

(on camera): So do you get tired of this?

NICHEAN SHARMA: Yes, I'm getting tired. LEMON: Yes.

Do you ever crash?

SHARMA: I never have.

LEMON: You -- have you ever fallen down?

SHARMA: Yes, yes.

LEMON: Yes?

Like this guy. He's going to hit you back here.

(voice-over): American-style fast food is increasingly popular in a place where many worry about food poisoning.

(on camera): Why do you like it so much?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because of the two reasons. First, its taste. Second, the quality.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Grab it and go.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm loving it.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON: And she says I'm loving it, which is the McDonald's slogan.

Now, there is a very strict rule in the kitchen, Tony and Betty, because the two -- the non-veg and the veg can't touch. So the workers who are preparing the vegetarian food, they wear green aprons and they work on one side of the kitchen. And the workers preparing the non- vegetarian food, which is just chicken. Chicken is the only meat they have. They work on a completely different side of the kitchen and they wear red aprons.

And it appears to be working. Within the next year, owners here say they plan to open 40 new stores nationwide.

HARRIS: Wow!

NGUYEN: Wow! Forty new stores!

But let me ask you, can the folks there afford to eat, especially at those McDonald's prices?

I mean it doesn't seem like a whole lot here...

HARRIS: Right.

NGUYEN: ... but in a country like that, it might be a little steep. LEMON: Well, absolutely, Betty. I mean, you know, it's serious stuff, because the minimum wage here, on average, is about 52 Indian rupies, which averages out to just over a dollar a day -- a dollar a day, U.S. dollars a day.

Can you imagine that?

So most of the people who work in the McDonald's and most of the country here, they really can't afford to eat there. It's that growing middle class. Those folks can afford to eat here.

The meal that I ordered -- I ordered this meal today, which is a Happy Meal, which contains that burger that I showed you and the fries. That's about $2.50 U.S.

So you know, if you make a dollar a day, then you really can't afford it. But here's the thing. McDonald's here in this country says they pay their workers three times the average -- three times the average minimum wage, which averages out to about $4 U.S. a day.

That's still not a lot of money.

NGUYEN: Still, that's fine ding for some McDonald's.

HARRIS: Yes, but I'm a little concerned here. You mentioned, Don, that there is -- that the Indian economy is exploding. It doesn't sound like that is translating to everyone in the society in the country.

LEMON: It's not. And, as I said, it's not translating to every person in the society. There is probably less than 2 percent of the population here is part of that growing -- growing middle class. And the rest of the people are poor or they still depend on that agrarian economy to pay their bills and to make ends meet.

HARRIS: Don Lemon for us, New Delhi, India.

Great to see you, Don.

Thank you.

NGUYEN: Well, it's not just a game, but one NBA player has more than the playoffs on his mind. He is taking a stand on Darfur. That's in THE NEWSROOM.

COMMERCIAL

HARRIS: And as we told you at the top of the newscast, former Tennessee Senator and TV star Fred Thompson is reportedly planning to enter the 2008 presidential race. The Web site, thepolitico.com, says Thompson plans to announce his entry into the race over the July 4th holiday.

Senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is on the line with us -- Candy, talk to us about this decision and how the former senator came to this decision. CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the inner workings of his mind I don't know. But, you know, when you look at this race at this point, what you see, particularly on the Republican side, is a certain amount of dissatisfaction. About half of Republicans the last time we checked weren't all that satisfied with the choices they have.

So when is 10 enough, the current number?

Not when they're at about 50 percent.

So this would be the 11th entry into the race.

Fred Thompson, as you know, is seen as the conservative. He is very well spoken. Obviously, he can work the camera very well. So it just looks like a race at this point, that he can jump into, if he can raise the money, and that will be the first order of business.

HARRIS: Candy, talk to us about his conservative credentials.

What does he believe?

What does he stand for?

CROWLEY: Well, he is against abortion. He is against gay marriage. So on the social issues, he is in sync with party conservatives. He is a smaller government, less taxes Republican. So with the fiscal conservatives, he is in sync with that side of the party.

So he is very much, perhaps, the candidate they've been looking for. But we should note that there's been a recent spate of polls out there showing that John McCain is, in fact, the frontrunner in those early states of New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina.

So it's always better when you're not running. You look a lot better to people when you're not running. Once you get into the race, you're just another politician. But right now, people are looking in the sort of the grass is always greener outside the race.

HARRIS: Any health concerns for Fred Thompson?

I remember some reporting not too long ago (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

CROWLEY: Yes, that he has had a bout with cancer, but that he is cancer-free. That, as you'll recall at the time, we talked about as a kind of a drawing this thing, is getting it out there before it was revealed.

HARRIS: Yes.

CROWLEY: And he has been cancer-free, considers himself cancer- free.

So, as you know, there are a number of people in the race now and have been in the race in the past that have had bouts with cancer.

HARRIS: That's right.

Our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, with us this morning.

Candy, thank you.

CROWLEY: Sure.

NGUYEN: Well, he looks tailor made for the role. President Bush set to put Wall Street exec Robert Zoellick in charge of the World Bank. That announcement live here at 11:05 Eastern and you can see it in THE NEWSROOM.

COMMERCIAL

HARRIS: Can you believe this?

It's nearly June...

NGUYEN: Believe it or not.

HARRIS: And we're watching a hailstorm -- lightning strikes, tornado warnings. Parts of the country just getting pounded by bad weather. The latest for you, in THE NEWSROOM.

NGUYEN: Crisis in Darfur -- more than 200,000 deaths, millions homeless. President Bush pressures Sudan with new sanctions.

But an NBA player is making his point in China.

CNN's Larry Smith explains.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

LARRY SMITH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ira Newble's interest in Darfur started with an article he read in the newspaper about Eric Reeves, an English professor in Massachusetts whose mission is to stop the bloodshed. So Newble gave him a call.

IRA NEWBLE, NBA PLAYER: He never was expecting to receive a phone call from anybody, the NBA or an athlete period. He was excited about it and he was anxious to work with me. And I was anxious to work with him to help.

ERIC REEVES, ENGLISH PROFESSOR: Ira was good to go from the first moment. He saw the potential. He saw this as something that he felt morally compelled to do.

SMITH: For years, Reeves has been tracking the situation in Darfur and speaking out.

REEVES: Everything in this campaign has one goal, and that is to provide security on the ground for humanitarians and civilians in Darfur. If we don't protect these humanitarians, they'll leave. And if they leave, tens of thousands of people will die every month.

SMITH: China is heavily invested in Sudan, so Reeves believes it could exert its influence to get U.N. peacekeeping forces into Darfur.

So far, the Chinese government has been reluctant, so Reeves wants to pressure China, which is hosting the Summer Olympics next year.

That's where Newble came in. Together, he and Reeves wrote a letter of protest to China and Newble got 11 of his teammates to sign it.

REEVES: It is a much harder thing to do, to go to fellow athletes and say this is an intolerable situation. You may not have heard of it, you may not know where Darfur is on the map, but let me tell you, this is -- this is unsurpassably urgent.

NEWBLE: A lot of times when you're talking about issues like that, a lot of people were fighting it and it was more like a boycott. And I didn't want it to sound like a boycott, because it's just simply bringing a protest and just basically bringing awareness and trying to make China aware that, you know, we in the NBA are concerned about what's going on.

REEVES: It should be a letter that any athlete of conscience should be able to sign if suitably informed about the realities. And I think Ira is going to do his part to make sure that people understand what those realities are.

NEWBLE: I wasn't an activist. I just turned to it and it reached out to me. And it's a tragic situation. And I just felt like, you know, I felt I could do something to help.

REEVES: I have a very small pantheon of sports heroes. Until recently, it had one member -- Sandy Koufax. It now has another, Ira Newble.

SMITH: Larry Smith, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

NGUYEN: Well, good morning, everybody.

I'm Betty Nguyen in for Heidi Collins today.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris.

Stay informed all day in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Here's what's on the rundown.

The scramble to find air travelers possibly exposed to T.B. It is an extreme and often deadly strain of tuberculosis. The passenger who has it now under armed guard.

NGUYEN: Is "Law and Order" actor Fred Thompson ready to jump in?

Well, a report says yes, and he'll announce his presidential candidacy shortly. HARRIS: It's red, white and blue, but don't get the wrong idea. We ride the Tehran subway to track opinions of America.

It is Wednesday, May 30th, and you are in THE NEWSROOM.

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