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American Morning

Hamas, Fatah: Separate Control in West Bank, Gaza; Speaking Out: Obama One-on-One; Buying Foreclosures: Making the Best Deal

Aired June 15, 2007 - 08:00   ET

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


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): Second chance. A late- night deal gives immigration reform new life this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The silent majority wants a solution, and that's what the senators are responding to.

ROBERTS: Plus, off to war. A dad and his daughter set to deploy to Iraq together.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's one of my best friends, just means the world to me. He's my dad.

ROBERTS: Father's Day marching orders on this AMERICAN MORNING.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTS: And good morning to you, thanks for being with us. It's Friday, the 15th of June.

I'm John Roberts.

CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry.

Home foreclosures on the rise. It's bad news for homeowners, but can it also be an opportunity for you to become a real estate investor? Our Gerri Willis is going to be taking a closer look coming up.

ROBERTS: Also, an AMERICAN MORNING update for you. Rehab for a baby hawk who sparked a huge rescue scene in Midtown Manhattan earlier this week. Find out how he's doing now.

We've got these chilling new pictures for you from Gaza this morning. Masked Hamas gunmen in President Abbas' office, sitting at the president's desk, pretending to call Condoleezza Rice, the U.S. secretary of state. One of them said mockingly on the telephone, "Hello, Condoleezza Rice. You have to deal with me now. There is no more Abu Mazen." That's Mahmoud Abbas' other name.

Abu Mazen the leader of the Palestinian Fatah movement. Abbas is confined, by the way, to his Fatah stronghold in the West Bank right now.

We're also watching live pictures of Hamas celebrating their first full day in control.

CNN's Atika Shubert now is live in Jerusalem.

And what's the latest? It seems to be fairly calm there today, Atika?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is fairly calm in the sense that the fighting has stopped. And that's simply because Hamas has so thoroughly defeated the Fatah forces. But at the same time, law and order has not been imposed on the street yet, there's still quite a bit of looting. But it's clear that Hamas forces are now coming to terms with their new power. And you can see that in some of the still photos that come across.

The soldiers there are clearly reveling in their victory, mocking President Abbas. Hamas has so far rejected all of President Abbas' decrees to dissolve the government. But at the same time, Hamas seems to be wanting to negotiate with President Abbas, saying that some sort of a negotiation must come through.

So, it does seem that Hamas is coming to terms with its power. And a lot of residents in Gaza are wondering what's going to happen next.

ROBERTS: Atika, is there any interest, at this point, at least, in Fatah negotiating with Hamas? We heard stories that when they overran the police headquarters yesterday, that they took some members of the police force out and executed them in the streets.

SHUBERT: That's right. There had been reports of that. There had been reports of those killings as the violence was happening yesterday.

It seems unlikely at this moment that Fatah wants to negotiate with Hamas, but it's inevitable that eventually these two factions will have to come to some sort of talks, because the Palestinian territories are split in two. There is Islamic militants in control of Gaza, western-backed secular nationalists in control of the West Bank. And they've essentially divided the hopes and dreams of Palestinian people to have a united Palestinian state.

ROBERTS: Atika Shubert for us from Jerusalem this morning with the latest on what is going on there in Gaza and the West Bank.

Atika, thanks.

CHETRY: Well, the U.S. is going ahead with a missile shield in central Europe despite Russia's opposition and offer for a different way to do it. Defense Secretary Robert Gates delivered the news to the Russians just a few hours ago at a NATO meeting in Brussels. The Russians were offering radar in Azerbaijan, but Gates says that it will not be able to replace the system that the U.S. is planning to build.

ROBERTS: We're waiting this morning to find out what the new immigration bill is going to look like. Leaders from both parties agreed to a deal last night. It could make it to the floor of the Senate as soon as next week. The deal allows Republicans and Democrats to each have about 10 amendments. Not known yet what those amendments will be.

The Justice Department has announced an expanded investigation. It's going to look into a conversation between Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his former aide, Monica Goodling, asking if Gonzales used undue influence on Goodling. It goes back to her testimony that he met with her to recount his version of events in the prosecutor firings and then asked for her reaction. Goodling testified in Congress a few weeks ago that that conversation made her feel uncomfortable.

CHETRY: This morning flight controllers are troubleshooting computer problems on board the International Space Station. They have powered down the computer and they need to reboot it again.

Here are some live pictures.

Parts of the Atlantis shuttle also powered down to conserve energy in case it needs to spend more time docked at the station. Atlantis astronauts will also be doing a spacewalk today, where they will repair the thermal blanket that was damaged. A portion of it was damaged during liftoff. They're going to be using a surgical stapler to tack the blanket back down.

And an AMERICAN MORNING update for you now. That fallen baby red-tailed hawk that was rescued in New York City is now one step closer to returning to the wild. There he is, seven weeks old.

He's been going through some rehab. A rescuer caring for the hawk says he's stretching and exercising his wings. An office worker in Midtown Manhattan says he thinks he spotted the baby bird's nest and that the mother hawk has been waiting and searching the area ever since the little guy fell. The plan is to eventually get him back and get him reunited.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

ROBERTS: Fourteen minutes now after the hour.

A tuberculosis case in Texas tops our "Quick Hits".

Lamon Yoman (ph) is in protective custody in San Antonio this morning. Health officials say he stopped accepting treatment back in April, so they started looking for him. He doesn't have the drug resistant form of tuberculosis. But the guy who does, doctors plan to operate on Andrew Speaker.

He's got XDR, extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis. Speaker is going to have surgery next month to remove infected tissue from his lung. And starting today in Boston, you can text message the police anonymously if you have any tips about a crime. The police say that they got the idea by watching kids text message each other at crime scenes just by dialing crime and entering their text.

CHETRY: Well, Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama says that he likes to discuss the issues and give in-depth analysis. And he got a chance to do just that with CNN contributor Roland Martin.

Roland joins us from Chicago this morning, simulcasting on his radio show from a local McDonald's. How about that? Breakfast and the radio show all at once.

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Breakfast, radio show, doing TV. The trifecta of the (INAUDIBLE).

CHETRY: Hey, you had a chance to sit down with Barack Obama yesterday. Sharing some of the clips, and let's take a look at a few of them.

First, he talks about how he balances some of the pressures on him, the unique pressures on him. Let's look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTIN: How do you balance being an African-American and running for president?

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My general attitude is that whether you're white, black, Hispanic, Asian, whatever demographic you come from, we all have a stake in making sure that we don't have young people who are shooting each other on the streets. If I'm talking about those issues in general terms, then I hope that I'm not just appealing to the African-American vote when I say something like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: So, you know, he talks about being more inclusive racially, yet, at the same time, I think he does get some of the pressures from African-American leaders to touch on issues that are more typically considered African-American causes.

MARTIN: Well, absolutely. And that's one of the unique problems when you're a black politician running for office, because folks want you to advance their agenda. Again, you're running for president of the United States, not president of Black America.

And so when he's talking about AIDS, the face of AIDS today is a black woman. And so does he actually have to say, well, African- American and AIDS? No, because he's still talking about African- Americans.

So, it is a delicate balance that he has to play to appeal to broad voters, but also to be narrow minded to target African- Americans. CHETRY: And it is quite a challenge, I'm sure.

You also asked him about his debate performance, because he hasn't been getting the best reviews. And here's what he told you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: When folks say I'm boring, nobody thought I was boring at the 2004 convention. Nobody thought I was boring down in Selma when I made my speech.

You know, there are different times for different forums (ph). And when I'm in a town hall meeting, for example, I want to spend time listening and dialogue. I'm not going to get up in people's faces and deliver a sermon, because that's not my job.

In a debate, unfortunately, the formats are such where you've got 60 seconds. You can come up with some clever sound bites, but that's not going to inform. And my job right now is to inform.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: So, he's sort of, I guess, in a way, made excuses for himself.

MARTIN: Well, understand, he also was a constitution law professor at the University of Chicago. And so by his very nature, he likes to explain.

Remember the discussion Soledad O'Brien -- when she hosted. He gave a seven-minute response to a question about poverty. And when I was watching, I was like, man, this is a long answer. He had some great information.

I think what he's going to have to do, he is going to have to master the reality of the sound bite. And so, I understand his point and I agree, we should have more discussion, more in-depth analysis. But the reality is, we live in a 30-second, 60-second world. And so he has to be able to master that.

Out in the first debate, it was really Clinton, he did well. The second debate, all the talk was about Senator Clinton, Senator Biden and Governor Richardson.

And so Obama, if he is going to make the difference, he has to, again, nail that, find his spot, pick and choose them so he can be able to appeal to a lot of different people, because, again, the talking head, if you don't nail it, if you don't come up with that clever statement, people forget about you. And I think that's why you saw Clinton's lead increase in New Hampshire based upon her performance in that debate and the discussion with Soledad O'Brien.

CHETRY: Well, it's interesting -- yes, because the seven-minute answer is not going to work in some of the more traditional debates. But it's interesting that you mention a lead over Senator Clinton, because it looks like she's getting a 2-1 margin over him when it comes to female voters. But when you break it down a little more, he's getting more support among the higher income, both African- Americans and whites, and she is getting a little bit more support among the poorer, less educated African-American women, or women in general.

MARTIN: Well, I think part of that is also the appeal of Bill Clinton, because she has been on the stage for quite some time.

(INAUDIBLE) African-Americans have been looking for a candidate like Obama, someone that they can support. Remember, this is -- this is one of the few generations where you have a significant number of African-Americans making more than $50,000 a year...

CHETRY: Right.

MARTIN: ... who are looking to contribute to campaigns. That's one of the reasons why he's targeting them when it comes to those dollars. But again, the more he's on the stage, you might see that shift. But again, she's been there for 15, 20 years.

CHETRY: Right. But what's the appeal as it relates to wealth and education when it comes to supporting Obama versus Hillary?

MARTIN: Well, again, he's an African-American, he went to Harvard, he's a lawyer. And so, individuals, this post-civil rights movement generation, they are appealing to a candidate like him because they've been looking for someone like that -- someone who speaks their language, who represents a different sort of perspective than folks who came from the civil rights movement. That's why you're seeing that sort of support take place, and no doubt it's going to increase, because he's really targeted them in a major way.

CHETRY: All right. And he's doing well in the fund-raising, too, raising more money in those -- in those groups as well.

Roland Martin, great to talk to you. Good to see you.

Also in addition to being a contributor for CNN, Roland is a contributor to TV1. And that's where you're going to be able to see his interview with Barack Obama in its entirety. It's July 2nd, 10:00 p.m. Eastern -- John.

ROBERTS: Twenty minutes after the hour now.

Nearly five percent of all mortgages are delinquent in this country, with homeowners looking at foreclosure. That's according to a new survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

While foreclosures are bad news for homeowners, they could be good news for real estate investors looking to cash in.

Your money saver, Gerri Willis, is here with us this morning.

And Gerri, this all seems like a good idea. So, if somebody can afford to do it, should they run out there and try to buy up these foreclosures? GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, John, let me tell you the big attraction. The big attraction is that properties are priced 25 percent below market. They are inexpensive. And as you know, prices have not come down that much in this housing debacle we've seen.

So a lot of people out there see this as big opportunity, but there are downsides. If you're buying these at auction, you'll probably never see the house. So you won't be able to find out if it has got problems.

ROBERTS: You can't do a walkthrough.

WILLIS: You can't do a walkthrough.

ROBERTS: You can't have an inspection.

WILLIS: You can't inspect it. There may be tenants, there may be damage. A lot of things that would eat up that extra 25 percent.

ROBERTS: So, but if you want to go through the hoops, jump over the hurdles to do it, where do you find out about these properties?

WILLIS: Right. Well, there lots of information out there.

Your local newspaper is going to carry foreclosed property addresses, so you can find out about them. And there are a lot of great Web sites.

Check these out -- RealtyTrac, foreclosures.com, and Yahoo! is really into this as well. Also, go to your local county clerk's office because, you know, those foreclosures have to be filed there, as well.

ROBERTS: Now, you said that you can't do a walkthrough of the house, you can't have it inspected. If you're going to buy one of these foreclosures, what do you need to do?

WILLIS: Well, first of all, you want to check for liens on a property if you're actually going to bid for one of these things. You can do that by hiring a title agent to find out for you.

Check the local laws. It's different everywhere.

In some places, these things go through the courts. In some places they don't. So you need to know how things work in your area.

And one more very important thing you'll definitely want to know about, you may have to bring money to the auction table to buy the thing, as much as 10 percent to 100 percent of the purchase price. So, this is really for investors who have a long-term view, they really want to play, they've got some cash to work with.

ROBERTS: Right. So it's a good deal, but always caveat emptor, right?

WILLIS: Right.

ROBERTS: Buyer beware. All right.

WILLIS: Right. But if you're looking for, you know, a way to get an edge in this market, this is one.

ROBERTS: All right. Gerri Willis, thanks.

WILLIS: Thank you.

ROBERTS: Don't forget to watch Gerri on "OPEN HOUSE" this weekend. Creating curb appeal for your house. Also, a NASCAR dad who feels -- or who makes the fast lane feel like home.

That's all coming up tomorrow, 9:30 a.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

CHETRY: All right. Thanks so much, John.

Well, it's 22 past the hour now. Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business".

And we're already seeing the commercials out for the iPhone. It looks pretty cool.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Two weeks from today we have a launch of the iPhone. This is expected to do very well for Apple and for AT&T, which is the sole provider for the iPhone.

There is a little bit of an issue, though. I don't know if we can show you a picture of what the keyboard is going to look like. It's going to be a device that's a phone, and it's an iPod. And it's a messaging unit. But see the keyboard there? That's on the screen.

CHETRY: Right. It's not raised.

VELSHI: It's not raised. And for people who use raised keyboards, like on a Treo or a Blackberry, that's going to be unusual, because you won't have that sense of clicking it and registering that it's happened. I suppose if you've never used one of those, and you can get familiar with this like every 10-year-old kid can, it will be fine. But for people like us...

CHETRY: But we all got used to the click.

VELSHI: Right.

CHETRY: We all got used to track wheel on the Blackberry. So I think it's just...

VELSHI: So the good thing about the iPhone is, theoretically, you can replace your phone, your iPod and your little device, which are three devices I carry. I mean, some people combine two of them, but I carry three. So it would be fascinating to have one.

But the satisfaction level of how you type with your thumbs may be very different on an iPhone. So that's one of the issues they're talking about that might be a bit problematic.

CHETRY: And did you see the commercial yet?

VELSHI: I've seen it.

CHETRY: So a guy's watching video, you know, as if it's your TV now.

VELSHI: Yes.

CHETRY: And there's a line in there that mentions something about a restaurant. Hmm, I would like to go there, and how it instantly turns into this navigational system and then a phone call. So...

VELSHI: And you've got to give Apple credit. They have managed to understand how this works. But everybody is watching this very closely to see, will it take off quickly, or will the first generation be the typical people who buy the first generation? But it's coming out June 30th, and we will have -- I think I'm going to camp out at the Apple store.

CHETRY: We're not going to see you that week.

VELSHI: We're going to talk -- we're going to talk a little bit more about this, by the way, on the weekend on "IN THE MONEY, which you can see on CNN Saturdays at 1:00 p.m., Sundays at 3:00 p.m.

CHETRY: Sounds good.

Ali, thanks.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: A beautiful picture coming to us from Chicagoland TV in Chicago, Illinois, this morning. It is -- looks like it's going to be a nice day there.

ROBERTS: Beautiful, beautiful day.

CHETRY: Beautiful, clear skies.

ROBERTS: I'm heading just a little bit west and south of there today. Going up to Iowa. So hopefully we'll get the same weather out there today.

CHETRY: Smooth sailing for you, John.

Welcome back. It's Friday, June 15th. I'm Kiran Chetry.

ROBERTS: And I'm John Roberts. Good morning to you. Thanks for being with us.

Some stories on our radar this morning. Trouble in space: Powering down the International Space Station computers. But could the problem be worse than anyone thought? One report just out quotes Russian space agency officials as saying there could be a, quote, "fatal flaw" in the station's main computer. Which would be a serious problem.

CHETRY: Also on our radar this morning, as we look towards Father's Day that we're going to celebrate this Sunday.

Look at this little girl. This brave little three year old. Boy, she gave her father quite a scare when she climbed in the back of his pickup truck and unbeknownst to him hung on as he drove five miles reaching speeds sometimes at 45 miles per hour. She eventually fell off and another driver saw her and called 911.

And miraculously, besides a few scrapes -- I mean, she looks like she got a lot of brush burns there and a lot of scrapes, but other than that, she's OK. And she's just recovering in the hospital, changing the bandages, is proving to be a little bit painful for her, but other than that, she will make a full recovery.

ROBERTS: She bounced around a lot, according to eyewitnesses who saw her fall off the truck. She got up and started running after her dad, as the truck was driving down the road.

And weekend movies coming out, more summer blockbusters. Everybody is buzzing about the "Fantastic Four" with a new character out, the beautiful Jessica Alba.

Events are moving very quickly this morning in the Middle East. The split among the Palestinians is a serious threat to peace there. CNN has just confirmed that Fatah leader, Palestinian President Abbas has just appointed a new prime minister, replacing Ismail Haniya of Hamas. In Gaza, Hamas is in complete control. Within the past hour we have masked Hamas gunman in President Abbas' Gaza City office, sitting at the president's desk, pretending to call the U.S. secretary of State.

Apparently one gunman got on the phone and mockingly said, Hello, Condoleezza Rice, you have to deal with me now. There is no Abu Mazen anymore." Abu Mazen is the nom de guerre of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

They also took pictures of Mahmoud Abbas and Yasser Arafat down off the walls and trampled all over them, as well.

CHETRY: Right now, President Bush is finishing speaking at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast in Washington. And he talked about, at least some, about the immigration deal that came together last night.

Senators agreed to allow about 20 amendments to the existing bill, trying to split them evenly among Republicans and Democrats to debate. We're still waiting this morning to hear what those amendments are, and whether any of this means the chances of that bill passing, or looking any more likely this morning. Andrea Koppel is following all the latest moves from Capitol Hill. So what do you think, Andrea?

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kiran, you could say, like a cat with nine lives the immigration bill is now back from the dead and the breakthrough came just days after President Bush made a rare appearance up here on the Hill to meet with Senate Republicans.

Just a few moments ago he made clear the priority this bill is for him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Each day our nation fails to act the problem only grows worse. I will continue to work closely with members of both parties. Get past our differences. And pass a bill I can sign this year.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOPPEL: Now, one of the reasons the breakthrough came is that yesterday President Bush basically agreed to put his money where his mouth is and ante up immediately $4.4 billion for border security and increased immigration work site enforcement. That was a key demand of many Republicans, Kiran, who were concerned that might go by the wayside.

CHETRY: Then there is also talk, though, without trying to bolster up that touchback situation, where people who were the head of households would then have to go to their home country, at least stay there, awaiting, coming back. That's something that a lot of the liberals did not like in the first place, and any amendment trying to make that tougher might also be a problem.

KOPPEL: Exactly. This is one that was offered by Texas Republican Kay Bailey Hutchinson, that would require the head of household to go back home with within 18 months of the bill passing, to reapply then for the whole family to get that immigration status, that green card. Nevertheless, as you said, a lot of opposition on the left. Just because they've agreed to the amendments doesn't mean the bill will pass in the long run, depending upon which amendments ultimately get into the final copy of the bill.

CHETRY: Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill for us, thanks.

ROBERTS: Lyme disease is spreading fast, particularly in the Northeast. A report for the Centers For Disease Control says the number of Lyme disease cases has doubled since 1991. Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us now from Atlanta with more on this.

Is this an actually increase in the number of infections, Elizabeth, is this just an increase in reporting of the disease? ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: The doctors we talked to said it might just be reporting, but that they think this rise is real. And, John, one reasons they think that, is because they're seeing Lyme diseases in places they haven't really seen it so much before like Northern California.

So, wherever you are, if you're going to be outdoors this summer you really should think about these numbers. In 1991 there were 10,000 cases of Lyme disease reported. In 2005 that went up to 23,000, so, that's a lot of ticks.

ROBERTS: Right. So, you said that they're seeing cases now in Northern California, is there one particular concentration of reports of Lyme disease or is it spread across the country now?

COHEN: John, nearly every state in the country has reported Lyme disease to some extent or another, however, it does seem to be concentrated mainly in the Northeast.

Now, here is the Lyme disease top ten. Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Rhode Island, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. So, as you can see, nearly every one of these states is in the Northeast, that's where people need to be particularly careful.

ROBERTS: What can you do to try to prevent to the best of your abilities, an infection of Lyme disease?

COHEN: One thing you really need to do is wear long pants and wear long sleeves, especially when you're out in the woods. That's so important, use mosquito repellent that contains DEET, that's an ingredient you want to look for when you buy one of these cans.

And when you come out of the woods, do a full-body check, could be fun, depending on who you're checking, see if there's any bites and see if there's any ticks. And if you get that, doctors call it a bulls eye rash, and that's a bite with a rash around it, or bad headaches, or if you're feeling like you have the flu, go see your doctor.

ROBERTS: All right, Elizabeth Cohen with some tips for us this morning and some fun in doing buddy Lyme checks. Elizabeth, thanks.

COHEN: Thanks.

ROBERTS: Kiran.

CHETRY: There's some growing concern this morning about the International Space Station. NASA now looking into reports quoting Russian controllers about a fatal flaw possibly in the computers of the International Space Station.

Parts of the shuttle have actually been powered down to conserve energy in case the shuttle needs to spend more time docked at the station because of these problems. AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho joins us now with threat latest developments from space. ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, this is a big concern. This Russian space agency is just reporting now about potential fatal flaw in the space station's main computer.

Now, there are two problems, really here, Kiran. The computer glitch, which they have been trying to fix since yesterday and it could be a very big problem; and the thermal blanket, which is actually what protects the shuttle from the intense heat during reentry. We'll talk about that in a moment.

First, to the computer problem. Those computers have actually been powered down. We have just learned that the plan is to keep those computers off all day today as engineers try to troubleshoot on the ground. The space station's flight director talked about it this morning likening it really to pulling the plug. NASA is focusing on a bad power feed on the Russian side of the space station. That what caused the power failure in the first place.

Now, there's a bit of finger-pointing going on between the Russians and the Americans about who's at fault.

These are essential command and control computers. They control navigation, even oxygen production, so you can imagine how people are really concerned about this, this morning. This is the first time the International Space Station has had this type of massive computer failure. And, again, a lot of concern this morning, Kiran, because this Russian space agency is reporting there could be a fatal flaw in one of the main computers.

CHETRY: Hopefully we'll get more information on what that means, and whether or not they believe they can fix it. But meantime, we're getting word -- it's actually right this second -- that the astronauts are being awakened this morning.

CHO: That's right.

CHETRY: And hopefully they got a good night's rest because they have a big mission ahead of them as well.

CHO: They do, a spacewalk. A third space walk. And this was not planned. They will be conducting this later today, about 1:30 this afternoon. It will be a six and a half hour spacewalk.

One of the astronauts will actually staple down the thermal blanket using a surgical stapler, if you can believe it. Part of that blanket peeled back during last week's launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. This is essential, as well, It protects the shuttle from the intense heat during reentry. I talked about that a moment ago.

NASA, of course, is especially sensitive to any problems related to reentry because of the Columbia disaster back in 2003. Now, the shuttle mission has been extended from 11 to 13 days, just to fix that thermal blanket.

And, Kiran, because of the computer problems, we could see another extension of the mission going forward. But, keep in mind that this $100 billion space station has a 56-day supply of oxygen. So, they're not concerned really, at the moment, but it could be a problem down the line.

CHETRY: Absolutely. Alina, thank you.

CHO: Sure.

ROBERTS: It's 40 minutes after the hour now.

A three-year-old girl in Georgia is lucky to be alive this morning. Krista Witlow survived a wild ride clinging to the top of her father's pickup truck. Miraculously when she came off the truck, eventually, she only skinned her face, her arms and legs.

The little girl had climbed on top of the camper cab and her father, unaware she was up there, drove off down the road. Earlier on AMERICAN MORNING we talked with Krista's father, Kerry Witlow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I bent down to kiss her and she licks my face like, sorry, Dad. She thought she was in trouble.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Obviously, very emotional about it. Very happy to have her back in one piece. Doctors expect that Krista going to go home from the hospital today.

CHETRY: Some "Quick Hits" now. The wife of evangelist Billy Graham has died. President Bush and the first lady say that Ruth Graham was a remarkable woman of faith. She died yesterday at home in North Carolina with her husband and their five children by her side. Ruth Graham was 87 years old.

The Army is hiring some 200 psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers to help soldiers returning from war. Officials say the plan calls for spending $33 million to help soldiers who have post- traumatic stress disorders, as well as other mental health needs.

Usually when a child goes off to war the parents wait nervously at home, but when we come back we'll meet a father and daughter going off to war together. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING, the most news in the morning is here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: A mysterious reunion tops our "Quick Hits". Those 13 Haitian teenaged soccer players who disappeared while in New York on a stop over, well, they're back with their team this morning. The Haitian Consul says they were taken away by family and friends in what they called a, quote, "scheme". Not much other information is available and the players could not be reached for comment.

A family in England is hearing from their son for the first time in 10 years. He had a rare anxiety disorder called selective mutism; started after he was three after he had his tonsils taken out. His family says he took a confidence building course run by the fire department. And something about the firefighters inspired him to start talking again.

And the search is on for a suspected arsonist in Seattle. Firefighters say at least three fires were set deliberately last night. A fourth one is under investigation. Police say one of the fires caused $10,000 in damage to a church. It was torched while meetings were going on inside. No one was hurt.

CHETRY: That's good news, add least.

We're a heavy nation and we're getting heavier. The number of obese adult Americans increased 50 percent between 1980 and 2000, that according to the Centers for Disease Control.

What is causing that expansion? Some doctors say we are becoming addicted to food. Dr. Sanjay Gupta has more in this "Fit Nation" report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: For Jessie Roth-Cross, weight control is a vicious cycle.

JESSICA ROTH-CROSS, DIETER: I feel bad so I eat, so I feel bad, so I eat.

GUPTA: A year ago she lost 50 pounds, but the stress of a new job and her wedding took its toll.

ROTH-CROSS: You know, I've had a bad day and I really want something, you know, say, chocolate.

GUPTA: But does food bring comfort, or is it more of an addiction that people can't control? Obesity was once treated as a condition of the gastrointestinal track and now research is pointing to the brain.

DR. PETER MARTIN, VANDERBILT ADDICTION CENTER: That is fundamental for all addiction. How you turn drives, motivations, feelings and emotions into activity.

GUPTA: For obese people, that activity is eating.

MARTIN: What we are trying to determine in neuroscience research is how these different food agents modify the way the brain works.

GUPTA: Studies have also shown that certain people who undergo bariatric surgery turn to other addictive habits after their operation, trading one addiction for another.

DR. GARY FOSTER, TEMPLE OBESITY CLINIC: I think that people who turn to other addictions after successfully treating their obesity would suggest to me that they may have, quote, "an addictive personality." But to say all overweight people do, or that's the driving force for the cause of obesity, again, just isn't supported by the data.

GUPTA: Doctors like Foster believe that behavior modification is the way to fight obesity and that people like Jessie need to really think about what they're eating. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHETRY: You can follow Sanjay on his fight against obesity just ahead -- just head, actually, to cnn.com/fit nation. There you see it.

ROBERTS: It's 47 minutes after the hour. CNN "Newsroom" just minutes away now. Tony Harris at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead.

Good morning to you, Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Good morning to you, John. Good Friday to you. We've got these stories on the "Newsroom" rundown this morning.

Taking charge of Gaza, Hamas moves to consolidate its hold. We check the fallout after the fighting.

"If I Did It" going to edit, O.J. Simpson's accuser could become his publisher. We're following a hearing this morning.

And daycare outrage. You following this story? Boy brings candy to share, it turns out to be heroin.

Heidi is with me. We get started at the top of hour right here on CNN.

Have a great weekend, John.

ROBERTS: Thank you, you, too, Tony. That is some candy by the way.

HARRIS: Oh, man.

ROBERTS: Party time in San Antone. That tops our "Quick Hits". The San Antonio Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavs to win the NBA Championships. The Spurs took game four last night in Cleveland. Squeaker, though, 83-82. San Antonio's fourth NBA title in nine years.

Who is the world's most powerful celebrity? Oprah Winfrey replaces Tom Cruise as No. 1 on "Forbes" annual Celebrity 100 Power List. Oprah earned an estimated $260 million last year. Tiger Woods ranked second, followed by Madonna, Rolling Stones and Brad Pitt. Absent from this year's Celebrity 100, Paris Hilton. She couldn't make it, she's in jail, Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS (voice over): Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING:

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He just means the world to me, he's my dad.

ROBERTS: She didn't get her dad a tie this Father's Day, but she did get herself a pair of combat boots to follow in his footsteps all the way to Iraq. Their special plans for Father's Day ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Father's Day, of course, is this Sunday. You still have a couple more days to shop for dear, old dad. Maybe get him a nice tie, take him out to lunch, but one father and daughter, from North Dakota, have other plans for the day. They will be training together for deployment in Iraq.

Master Sergeant Jeff Barta has been in the Reserves for 26 years, and now his daughter, Heather, decided to follow in his footsteps. They join us this morning from Camp Shelby, in Mississippi, where they're getting ready to head over to Iraq.

Good to see you two folks. When are you deploying? Because it looks like you're ready to go.

MASTER SERGEANT JEFF BARTA, NATIONAL GUARD: The plan is we're leaving mid to end of August, sir.

ROBERTS: Specialist Barta, how is that father and daughter ended up in the same unit?

SPEC. HEATHER BARTA, NATIONAL GUARD: It was a lot of working. My dad was supposed to deploy earlier in March and it ended up there was a position in my company that he could fill, so he made a phone call, and he was lucky enough to get switched into that position so he was able to go with me.

ROBERTS: Master Sergeant Barta, what unit are you with and what will the unit be doing over there in Iraq?

J. BARTA: I am with the headquarters and the Headquarters Company 164 Engineer Battalion Sec (ph) 4 (ph), and we have a security mission.

ROBERTS: What will your daughter be doing?

J. BARTA: She is the same thing. She'll be with the security support mission.

ROBERTS: Excellent. So what does it mean to have your daughter going over to Iraq with you?

J. BARTA: Well, we're -- I'm very, very fortunate. Take half my family with me. Who wouldn't want something like that, sir?

ROBERTS: Right. And Specialist Barta, what does it mean to be going there with your father?

H. BARTA: It's nice to have somebody that you can depend on and that is going through the same thing and understand, and it's just nice to have family here.

ROBERTS: So, let me ask you, let me call you, Heather. How did you get in the military, Heather? Did you just want to follow in your father's footsteps?

H. BARTA: Basically, yeah, I remember from being little, when I was three and four, and watching my dad come home from his various trips to Honduras and Germany and just seeing when he would come home from Guard drill on the weekends. And just how the military has helped him become a great leader and shaped him as a person and I wanted that to be a part of my life.

ROBERTS: Master Sergeant you have been deployed, as we said, all over the world, but this is your first deployment to Iraq. And it's going to be your daughter's first deployment ever. Will you get a chance to see each other all the time? Will you be in proximity to each other?

J. BARTA: We'll be in proximity to each other, I don't know how much we'll see each other from day-to-day. But we're going to try to figure out some way we can at least see each other in passing, or something.

ROBERTS: Specialist Barta, let me ask you, what does your father mean to you as we look ahead to Father's Day on Sunday?

H. BARTA: I guess my strength, and my support. He's one of my best friends, he just means the world to me. He's my dad.

ROBERTS: That's a great way to put it. We wish you two a lot of luck over there. Do us a favor, be safe, happy Father's Day to you.

J. BARTA: Thank you.

CHETRY: Well, here's a quick look at what CNN "Newsroom" is working on for the top of the hour.

See these stories in the CNN "Newsroom". Immigration reform revived. Senators will take another shot at a key bill.

Prosecutor taking the stand, Mike Nifong expected to explain his actions in the Duke lacrosse case.

Fixing the blankets. Space walkers have repair work on the shuttle.

Wild ride. Dad drives off with daughter on top of the truck. You're in the "Newsroom", just minutes away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Well, it's a little something for everyone at the weekend box office.

ROBERTS: For adults there's "Evil Versus Shark" a romantic comedy, some oddballs meet at a costume party. Some are calling it the next Napoleon Dynamite.

CHETRY: That's right. There are also a few super heroes, as well as a super sleuth coming to the big screen. AMERICAN MORNING's Lola Ogunnaike joins us with a rundown.

So let's go through them, you can tell us what you like about each one, or why people should see it, "Eagle Versus Shark"?

LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: "Eagle Versus Shark", as you said before oddballs meet at a party, the girl is the shark, the boy is the eagle. Will they make it work or not? Out of New Zealand and so people are saying it has, you know, a little off the beat sensibility, but it's working. Word of mouth will really drive this like "Napoleon."

ROBERTS: What about Nancy Drew? Because I loved those books when I was growing up.

Sorry, that was your question.

CHETRY: I pegged you for the Hardy Boys.

ROBERTS: The what boys?

CHETRY: Hardy Boys!

ROBERTS: Oh, Hardy Boys, sorry.

OGUNNAIKE: Well, the series has been around for the past 78 years. There are Nancy Drew fans everywhere, but unfortunately, this film is not an adaptation of one of the books. This is an original and it's about Nancy Drew trying to track down who is behind the murder of a '70s screen siren.

CHETRY: How about that? All right, and then the one that a lot of people have been talking about, "Fantastic Four: The Rise of the Silver Surfer".

OGUNNAIKE: "Fantastic Four", it's going to be all the rage this weekend. And the only person who has managed to upstage Jessica Alba is this the Silver Surfer. I saw the screening last night, packed house, people were howling when the Silver Surfer came on. They were so excited about him. The lines are really cheesy. I'm talking about Velveeta here -- but the special effects are really great. And you will be entertained.

You still pick Jessica Alba, though, huh, John?

ROBERTS: Oh, yes. Absolutely.

OGUNNAIKE: Over the Silver Surfer?

ROBERTS: I'd have to be a real comic book fan to like him over her.

CHETRY: Thanks, Lola. ROBERTS: That's gonna do it for us here on AMERICAN MORNING. Have yourself a great weekend. I'll see you back here again on Monday.

You'll be back on Tuesday, right?

CHETRY: Back on Tuesday, right.

ROBERTS: Taking a long weekend.

CHETRY: A bit of a break. How about that? Well CNN's "Newsroom" Tony Harris and Heidi Collins starts right now.

HARRIS: And good morning everyone you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

COLLINS: Good morning to you. I'm Heidi Collins. Watch events come into this NEWSROOM, live, on this Friday morning. It is June ...

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