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Criticizing the General; L.A. Thoroughfare Reopens in Time for Rush Hour; Co-defendant to Testify Against O.J. Simpson

Aired October 15, 2007 - 11:00   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You're with CNN. You're informed.
Hi there, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

Developments keep coming in to the CNN NEWSROOM on Monday, the 15th of October.

Here is what's on the rundown.

A major thoroughfare reopens just in time for rush hour. Los Angeles commuters dodge a big traffic jam.

President Bush leads his Texas ranch behind today. His focus turns to money and his fiscal fight with Democrats.

A former Iraq war commander calls the fight a nightmare with no end. A blistering assessment.

Republicans react with anger, in the NEWSROOM.

It is 8:00 a.m. now in Los Angeles, and thousands of commuters are waking up to see their dream came true overnight. A few hours ago, crews reopened most of Interstate 5, a major north-south freeway in L.A. County, but drivers are still being urged to avoid it if they can.

The route between L.A. and Santa Clarita had been closed since a deadly crash inside the truck tunnel on Friday. A pileup of at least 30 vehicles ignited in an inferno. Two men and a baby were killed.

The fire actually reached temperatures of 1,400 degrees. Steel melted and concrete exploded. Winds whipped through the tunnel and fanned the flames.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEPUTY CHIEF JOHN TRIPP, LOS ANGELES FIRE DEPARTMENT: There were 20 people that were in that tunnel with the raging fire going as we were trying to get to them and they were able to assist each other. And I think that's very commendable, to how all those people were able to help each other without the first responders able to get there and assist them.

And we're, again -- very unfortunate that we did have the deceased, that we did. But at the same time, I think when we look at tunnel fires that have happen around the United States, let alone around the world, it's pretty miraculous that those people were able to get out like they were.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The tunnel portion of the roadway still is closed, but crews are working to replace several more supports in that structure.

Here is what we know about this thoroughfare. Interstate 5 is the major north-south route along the West Coast. State officials say that stretch of freeway around Santa Clarita carries up to 225,000 vehicles each day.

How vital is the roadway? Well, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an emergency declaration that allowed he states's Office of Emergency Services to help clear the roadway.

Is al Qaeda in Iraq finished? Some U.S. generals think so. "The Washington Post" reporting they want the administration to declare victory over the terrorist group.

The military says suicide bombings are down, dropping from more than 60 in January to about 30 per month since July. The Pentagon also pointing to the capture of several al Qaeda leaders this summer. Still, The Post reports the head of U.S. Central Command thinks it is not yet time to declare victory.

A former coalition commander calls Iraq a nightmare. Now some angry Republicans want to know why was he painting such a rosy picture when he was in charge.

Here now, CNN's Ed Henry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Retired General Ricardo Sanchez had his say on Iraq.

LT. GEN. RICARDO SANCHEZ (RET.), FMR. COALITION COMMANDER IN IRAQ: America is living a nightmare with no end in sight.

HENRY: But now top Republicans are getting theirs.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I'm astounded really.

HENRY: Senator Lindsey Graham notes that on multiple trips to Baghdad, Sanchez told him the U.S. had enough troops on the ground.

GRAHAM: The surge a direct result of having to make up for mistakes early on. And as far as I'm concerned, he was part of that mistake by being a commander who did not express now -- then what he's saying now.

HENRY: Republican presidential candidate John McCain also had face-to-face talks with Sanchez in Iraq and heard the strategy was succeeding.

JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: While he was in charge, he was supporting of a failed strategy.

HENRY: Indeed, back in 2004, Sanchez sketched rosy scenarios.

SANCHEZ: I think the current situation down in the south is moving very well forward. We have made some progress, as you all are well aware. Their morale is sky high.

HENRY: All of which make's Sanchez's current posture...

SANCHEZ: The best we can do with this flawed approach is stave off defeat.

HENRY: All the more galling to some.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: I think he's a little bit late on this.

HENRY: Even McCain, however, acknowledges it's difficult to buck the president. General Eric Shinseki took heat for saying early on the U.S. would need far more troops in Iraq than expected. And some retired generals defended Sanchez against charges he's lashing out to deflect attention from his own role as commander of U.S. forces during the Abu Ghraib scandal.

MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.): This is not a guy whining about not getting promoted or trying to throw blame on others. He spreads blame around and I really respect him for what he's saying and what he's doing.

HENRY: And not surprisingly, Democratic presidential candidates are praising Sanchez' candor.

SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: General Sanchez, who was our commander on the ground in Iraq starting in June 2003, made clear that George Bush's war policies have not worked and will not work.

HENRY (on camera): The Sanchez criticism raises an important question -- are there current military commanders who share the same concerns but are holding their tongues? It's a question that people with family members in harm's way would rather answer now than years down the road.

Ed Henry, CNN, Crawford, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Want to get back to the situation now that we've been telling you about all morning long, L.A. County and Interstate 5. There was a major fire and tunnel collision that happened on Friday night. A horrible situation there.

Something like 30 cars and vehicles -- you see the pictures now -- were involved in this. There were three fatalities, two adults and a baby, in fact. Several injuries as well.

We want to get the very latest coming to us now from the California Highway Patrol, Tom Marshall.

Tom, do us a favor and just update us on the situation today, because obviously with Monday morning and rush hour in full swing as we speak, wondering how people are doing out there on that roadway.

TOM MARSHALL, CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL SPOKESMAN: Well, the good thing for us is this happened in a remote area. It's not in the urban area of Los Angeles County, but it is the major north-south route throughout California that connects northern California and southern California. And even better news is we have both northbound and southbound lanes open, so the roadway is for the most part open. There are some transitional routes that take you from one highway to another that are not open yet, and, of course, the tunnel where the crash and fire occurred will not be open for some time.

COLLINS: Yes, I'm glad you explained that, because for people who are not real familiar with the area, they may not have understood that that tunnel is basically used for semi trucks, correct?

MARSHALL: Yes. It's a transition route for the trucks to go from a couple of the crossroads that merge in at this place. Anybody in southern California knows this area very well. It was severely damaged years ago during a couple of earthquakes, and in this case it looks like most of the structural damage, according to our transportation officials, Caltrans, most of the damage is at the truck tunnel itself.

COLLINS: What about the structure -- as you said, it was severely compromised after those earthquake events, but obviously had been rebuilt and passable. What about the structure now? We were seeing some reports that there is some work being done on supports inside.

MARSHALL: Well, I would have to defer you to our transportation department, Caltrans, but they did bring in their contractors that are shoring up some of the other areas. It is safe or Caltrans wouldn't have opened it. And frankly, this has opened a lot sooner than what many people could have expected because of the damage, and it was a Herculean effort by Caltrans, the CHP, and the fire department to get to where we are now.

COLLINS: Yes, but I think there is a question out there today and certainly over the weekend about escape routes. When something like this happens, no matter how rare, boy, that video that we have gotten in -- and I'm sure you have seen plenty of it as well -- just an absolute inferno.

How are folks feeling about those escape routes and maybe plans to look further into getting people out of situations like this?

MARSHALL: Well, there is no one plan that would fit all. Whenever something like this happens and it's in an enclosed area like a tunnel or, in this case, also a freeway cloverleaf, you just have to use your best judgment at the time to see which is the quickest way out of the danger area, understanding that the fire will be caused by spilling fuel. And you want to get away from the vehicles as fast as possible. Don't stop to get your belongings, just get out of the area and away from the fire and the danger as quickly as possible.

COLLINS: Hey, Tom, are there any restrictions on what type of cargo can travel through that tunnel?

MARSHALL: I don't believe so. It's pretty much open. It's the major route from northern California to southern California.

COLLINS: Yes. All right.

Tom Marshall, our spokesperson from California Highway Patrol.

Appreciate that very much. Thank you, Tom.

Parts of Colorado under snow this morning. As much of a foot of it in the mountains. Fun for the young and the young at heart, but for some drivers, no fun at all.

Several fender-benders reported on I-70 in the Rockies. Tow trucks called in from as far away as 50 miles. No reports though, thankfully, of any serious injuries.

Rob Marciano joining us now to tell us a little bit more about this.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Speaking of, precious water, but too little of it to go around. Trying to survive an extreme drought. More on that in just a moment.

Meanwhile, attacked by a hungry bear. A Boy Scout uses his training to survive.

You're getting screened, and the numbers bear it out. Cancer death rates take a big tumble. Progress ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: T.J. Holmes joining us now, telling us about some developments in the O.J. Simpson case.

Apparently, T.J., his co-defendant going to testify against him?

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, we often see this. There's often that one big player that prosecutors are after, and then you see people start turning on that main defendant. And O.J. Simpson seems to have some issues now.

One of those co-defendants, a man by the name of Cashmore, Charles Cashmore, has decided to plead guilty now in court to a felony and testify against Simpson. Now, the key here is that he will be able to testify and says he will testify that guns were used in that alleged armed robbery in a Las Vegas hotel room in which Simpson says he was going back in there to get some of his items, some of his memorabilia, sports memorabilia that were taken from him, that a couple of sports memorabilia dealers were trying to sell themselves. Simpson says no guns were used in that alleged robbery. This man now, one of the co-defendants, will be able to testify and will testify against Simpson and the others that in fact guns were used.

That is key because if there is any conviction in this case on the robbery, that certainly ups the ante and certainly ups the prison time if an armed robbery was the case instead of just, in fact, a theft or a robbery. So this certainly complicates things for O.J. Simpson.

And this man, someone who was actually in the room. His attorney says -- Mr. Cashmore's attorney -- says that in fact his client was simply a small player here who was enlisted at the last minute to just carry a few items. He didn't know anybody, didn't know what was going on, but he certainly was in there and was an eyewitness to all this, and can testify that in fact guns were used.

So, Heidi, that is the key and can certainly complicate things. And so we have somebody who was in the room who says now in fact there were guns in the room, and that will certainly make this a much tougher case for O.J. Simpson.

COLLINS: Yes, we'll be following it, too. All right. T.J. Holmes, thank you.

HOLMES: All right.

COLLINS: And rapper T.I., real name Clifford Harris, he's expected in court today on federal weapons charges. Harris arrested in a sting operation over the weekend in Atlanta.

Federal agents say he had a bodyguard buy machine guns and silencers for him. They say weapons also were found in the rapper's car and home.

According to court documents, Harris is a convicted felon. He's not allowed to own guns. His attorney says don't rush to judge.

A reported plot against Russian president Vladimir Putin not putting off his travel plans. Mr. Putin spoke at a news conference with German chancellor Angela Merkel today. He confirmed he will travel on to Iran.

Russian news reports quoted an intelligence source as saying terrorists had been trained to carry out an assassination attempt in Iran. Iranian officials reject those reports. Mr. Putin said if he paid attention to all of the threats against him, he would never leave home.

Cancer death rates dropping faster than ever. Why? Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen will fill us in.

And surviving an inferno. A massive tunnel fire raising safety concerns. Engineers now looking at new ways to escape.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Another attempt by Idaho senator Larry Craig to clear his name. He is filing an appeal today hoping to reverse a judge's decision to keep his guilty plea in place. Craig was a arrested in a police sting in a Minneapolis airport men's room. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct.

He tried to withdraw that plea earlier this month. Craig says he'll keep pursuing his legal options, and he still says he is not resigning.

The American Cancer Society is out today with its annual report. It shows death rates are declining for many types of cancers. Other cancers remain stubborn killers, though.

Earlier this morning, I spoke about the medical report with correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Americans can give themselves a pat on the back when it comes to preventing cancer. They say that all those messages -- don't smoke, get the right screening tests -- they're actually having some effect.

So, let's take a look at those numbers to see how these cancer death rates are coming down.

They've come down 2.1 percent. They went down from 2002 to 2004.

Especially striking are the decreases in colon cancer. That went down 4.9 percent for men and 4.5 percent for women. Those are big drops...

COLLINS: Yes.

COHEN: ... for just two years. And Heidi, the cancer society really credits people like Katie Couric, who have gotten the message out, get a colonoscopy, because when you catch colon cancer early, 90 percent of the people survive. It's just too often it's not caught early because people don't get colonoscopies.

COLLINS: Yes. That's an amazing statistic if you can catch it early.

COHEN: Right. It really is, right.

COLLINS: Ninety percent, wow.

All right. Unfortunately, we do have to hear the bad news, too. Any cancers just really not improving at all?

COHEN: Right. There are some cancers where the death rates are not going down.

For example, liver cancer is one of those. And experts say the reason for that is -- well, there are probably many reasons, but one reason is obesity. It's that when you are obese, you're more likely to get liver cancer.

And we all know that obesity rates for Americans are on the rise. Also, Hepatitis C is playing a role in this. But that's one where there's not quite so much good news.

COLLINS: Well, if you had to pick three things that we could all do every day to really improve our chances -- that's probably a weird question -- but what would they be?

COHEN: Well, there are three very specific things that people can do to prevent getting cancer. And the first one we just mentioned, which is keep yourself at a healthy weight.

A lot of people think that keeping yourself at a healthy weight is something you do to prevent heart disease, which is true. But it also can prevent getting cancer.

Another thing, don't smoke. You know, by now, that's just a no- brainer. Don't smoke.

And then, thirdly, get the recommended screenings. And the American Cancer Society, on their Web site, has a list of cancer screenings that people are supposed to get. But get those screenings and get them at the age that you're supposed to get them.

COLLINS: Very good. Helpful information, as always.

Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

COHEN: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: The Web address for the American Cancer Society is cancer.org. You'll find that screening information Elizabeth was talking about, plus a whole lot more.

Also, to get your "Daily Dose" of health news online, log on to our Web site. You will find the latest medical news, a health library, and information on diet and fitness. That address, CNN.com/health.

Water worries. Word that Atlanta's main drinking water source, Lake Lanier, could be tapped out in just about three months.

Here now, CNN's Susan Candiotti.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think this whole thing has made me realize how much water we waste.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Melanie Bluett (ph) is so worried about a record drought, she's watering her outdoor plants with bath water. She and her husband collect it in kitty litter trays whenever they take a shower. Going to that extreme might soon become the norm if water levels continue to sink at Lake Lanier, the main water source for Atlanta and Alabama. The Army Corps of Engineers manages who gets how much water.

ROB HOLLAND, U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS: The upstream folks think it should be held upstream and the downstream folks think it should be let go to come down to help them.

CANDIOTTI: There's no relief in sight.

HOLLAND: Our projections show that if these weather conditions persist through the end of the year, the lake will reach a new record low and go beyond that.

CANDIOTTI (on camera): Under normal circumstances I could not be doing this, walking across these rocks, because this pole would be under water, and the water level coming way up over my head to the bottom of that red marker.

(voice over): If the lake drops another 10 feet, it could severely limit the amount of water released downstream to supply residential and commercial customers. If an emergency is declared, the state is warning water-dependant companies like Coca-Cola they may face restrictions that could force job cuts. Landscapers and nurseries who so far escaped water limits and car washes also may be ordered to cut back.

Could this have been avoided?

CAROL COUCH, GEORGIA DEPT. OF NATURAL RESOURCES: We have not grown our way into this drought or consumed our way into it, as some would believe.

CANDIOTTI: Conservationists argue government's failure to regulate the area's explosive development and enforce conservation is to blame.

SALLY BETHEA, UPPER CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVERKEEPER: You can keep on wasting or you can keep on growing, but you cannot do both.

CANDIOTTI: If winter is dry as predicted, reservoirs and streams will remain low and Melanie Bluett (ph) will have to keep trapping waste water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If everybody would do it, it would make a difference.

CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Illegal immigrants on the run. As some states crack down, families move on to friendlier areas.

And Boy Scout versus bear. His tent bears out the evidence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see the scratch marks clawed. He was telling you that that is definitely not just a small bear. That's actually a very large bear.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: How a teenager used his training to survive.

HENRY: I'm Ed Henry with the president in Rogers, Arkansas, where he will slam Democrats on federal spending, but try to reach out to them on children's health. Can they cut a deal?

That story coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Bush arriving in Arkansas just moments ago. He'll talk about the economy and his fiscal fight with Democrats.

Ed Henry is live from Rogers, Arkansas, now. Ed, good morning to you.

What is the president expected to say about the budget?

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, he's going to be touring a packaging plant. This is basically Wal-Mart country. He's going to then have lunch with business leaders. And what he'll say is he'll tear into Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill for getting spending bills to fund a government to his desk too late. He's also going to reiterate those veto throats we've heard before. The president saying that most of these spending bills are far too expensive. He's threatening to use his veto pen.

But of course the president has diminished credibility on this subject. If you think back to when Republicans ran Capitol Hill, they were often late with their spending bills, getting them to his desk as well, and the president never once used his veto pen to veto spending bills passed by Republicans. As a result, federal spending, federal debt ballooned on the watch of Republicans on the Hill and President Bush. You heard Republican Alan Greenspan complain about that in his recent memoirs.

And so what this speech is going to be all about is the president trying to restore the mantle of fiscal prudence for Republicans -- Heidi.

COLLINS: There is another issue out there, though, that some people have been talking about. President Bush has pushed to find some common ground now possibly on the Children's Health Insurance Program?

HENRY: That's right. This is another program that you remember he vetoed the increase of $35 billion that Democrats want for this Children's Health Insurance Program, funded by the federal government, run by individual states. The president only wants to increase this program by $5 billion. Critics say, though, that a $5 billion increase is not enough to keep the program going at its current levels. You need at least $14 billion of an increase.

And there are a lot of nervous Republicans on Capitol Hill saying, why is the president drawing a line in the sand on fiscal conservatism over children's health? This is a very politically popular program. You know Democrats, like Speaker Pelosi, Senator Harry Reid, have really been hammering the president for vetoing this. The president now in these remarks, likely to try to find common ground, saying that he's willing to go to the negotiating table. Still hasn't said how far up he'll bring the price tag.

What's likely to happen after a lot of back and forth between the two parties is for the president to move closer to that $35 billion of an increase that the Democrats want -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Yes, because he wants $5 billion; they say $35 billion, but $14 billion might do it. So it seems like kind of a very wide margin there. I know you'll be watching it very closely. Ed Henry, thanks so much.

HENRY: Absolutely. Thank you.

COLLINS: In California now, most lanes of Interstate 5 year L.A. reopening this morning, pretty amazing considering the pileup and fire that threatened to make a serious mess of the morning rush.

CNN's Chris Lawrence takes a look at safety concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Reporter: A massive firestorm erupts inside this California tunnel. Eighteen- wheelers are incinerated, metal melts, and dozens of people are trapped inside. Caltrans' engineer Doug Failing took us right up to the opening, where the temperature soared well past 1,000 degrees.

(on camera): Did this tunnel have any sort of escape routes?

DOUG FAILING, CALTRANS DIR./ENGINEER: Both ends. This is a relatively short route, so really the escape route is either end of the tunnel.

LAWRENCE: Failing says to even consider installing ventilation systems, tunnels have to be at least a 1,000 feet long.

So in a tunnel half that size, like this one...

FAILING: I would prefer to be in the lane furthest to the left, so I'm the furthest away from the larger trucks.

LAWRENCE: If you were trapped in this kind of fire, Bailey says gets out of your car as fast as you can and stay low.

FAILING: And if you feel breeze on you, walk towards the breeze because the breeze is pushing the smoke, and the heat and the fire away from you.

LAWRENCE: But what about places like New York, with tunnels that run for more than a mile underground.

(on camera): If there's not time to run out one end or the other, is there anywhere you can go in the middle?

FAILING: New tunnel designs that's been developed since some accidents that have happened in Europe actually would call for us to put in a series of escape passages along the tunnel at various spots.

LAWRENCE (voice-over): Two years before this fire, state and federal transportation officials visiting five European countries to study their tunnels. They found size passages built every 500 feet. Some are like an insulated escape pod, with doors that shut, a place to hide from the fire until help comes.

FAILING: And the other one actually when you have twin tunnels, will take you from tunnel to tunnel, (INAUDIBLE) have to use the other tunnel then to evacuate.

LAWRENCE: Even the paint used in tunnels is being re-evaluated, to make sure it doesn't produce toxic fumes or accelerate fire. But it's unclear if any existing tunnels in the United States have been redesigned with these new soviet safety passages in mind.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Santa Clarita, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Attacked by a black bear. Fourteen-year-old Chris Malasics was camping with his Boy Scout troop when a bear ripped through his tent. Always prepared, the Boy Scout used his training. Today he talked to Kiran Chetr on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: You can obviously tell where the bear just ripped his way through. How did it start?

CHRIS MALASICS, SURVIVED BEAR ATTACK: My friend got pulled out from the other side, and he came in and woke me up. The bear pulled out the pad he was sleeping on, like a little mattress, and after a while he came and woke me up, and then the bear come over and stepped right here, collapsed the tent. The poles were all bent. These poles are from a different tent, and then he cut that open and grabbed me out.

CHETRY: And we have your jeans actually. You can see where he just -- he literally tore through the pocket, this part, and were you hurt?

MALASICS: Yes. I got a seven-inch and a four-inch mark on my butt.

CHETRY: How did you get you bear away from you? MALASICS: Well, I just played dead because that's when they told us in training, when I went to New Mexico.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: And he remembered. Some other campers heard the commotion, they flashed lights, banged pans, and the bear eventually went away.

Nomads in the United States. Illegal immigrants pull up stakes, as some towns become tougher to live in.

CNN's Ed Lavandera with the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The boxes are still packed, kids rummage for books. Only pictures make this feel like home. This is an illegal immigrant family on the run. They moved to Little Rock, Arkansas just a few weeks ago. They asked us not to use their names.

(on camera): Why did you move to little rock?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, because staying in Oklahoma was really stressful, yes.

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Oklahoma is one of dozens of states and local governments fighting illegal immigration on its own, like making it harder for illegals to rent property, and training local cops to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did she do?

LAVANDERA: Now thousands of illegal immigrants are scrambling for safer places to live, and that's usually in states with the smallest illegal immigrant population. This map shows are states with an unauthorized population of under 50,000.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think people are looking for places where that they're going to be fine, that you think -- maybe where the laws are not really strict.

LAVANDERA: Supporters of local immigration crackdowns say it's also caused some illegal immigrants to leave the United States.

MARK KRIKORIAN, CTR. FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES: The whole point is to make illegal life in the United States tenuous, and hard and unpleasant, so the people who are here leave and new ones think twice about sneaking across the border.

LAVANDERA: But this family is settling into a new home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want to be moving from city to another city and doing like that. We just want to be a normal family.

LAVANDERA: And that means playing in the parks and going to church, praying they won't have to pack up and move again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: CNN's Ed Lavandera reporting on that story. Meanwhile, O.J. Simpson's legal troubles may be getting worse. A co-defendant in the armed robbery case has told a judge he will plead guilty and testify against Simpson. A lawyer for Charles Cashmore reportedly says his client will testify that two of the men with Simpson were armed. Simpson and four others are accused of bursting into a Las Vegas hotel room and robbing two men of sports memorabilia. Simpson says the items were his, and there was no robbery. His lawyer says no guns were involved.

A Muslim soccer player hears a head scarf and gets the boot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I felt like I sort of let the team down because I didn't get to play.

(END VIDEO CLIP)a

COLLINS: That young lady's battle to get on the field, coming up in just minutes.

And hold on tight. It's a changing world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: South Korea is still a rookie in the fight, but armed with a people obsesses with new gadgets and a will that's helped this nation dominate the Internet world, South Korea plans to duke it out to the top of the robot arena.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A robot in every home by 2020? It's not "The Jetsons" anymore. South Korea's big push toward a robot world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Even the young can't escape the sting of war. Deadly attacks in Iraq today. Five people dead, two were children under 10, three were teenagers, all killed when mortars hit military bases in southern Iraq. Twenty-eight other Iraqis were injured, women and children among them. The violence follows attacks yesterday that killed 24 Iraqis. The deadliest was a car bombing in Samarra, north of Baghdad. And also two more U.S. soldiers have been killed, one in combat, the other in a noncombat incident. Those deaths bring the U.S. military death toll in Iraq to 3,829.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

COLLINS: South Korea making a big push in electronics.

CNN's Eunice Yoon reports on the country's efforts to go robotic. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EUNICE YOON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These kids are paying close attention to their new teacher. Is it because of her commanding presence? Hardly. But she is the latest kindergarten robot out of South Korea. One of the world's most wired countries, a place where people young and old are taking robots to heart.

HONG-SEOK KIM, SCIENTIST, KITECH (through translator): We have made it a goal to place one robot in every home by the year 2020, the same way there are personal computers in every home today.

YOON: Like in the Hollywood blockbuster "I, Robot" many futurists expect robots to walk among us and be a crucial part of our lives. The people and countries making these androids can stand to earn a lot of cash. South Korea is still a rookie in the fight, yet armed with a people obsessed with new gadgets and a will that's helped this nation dominate the Internet world, South Korea plans to duke it out to the top of the robot arena.

HONG-SEOK: It's name is SEROPI (ph).

YOON: The government is rushing to invest in what they call service robots, like this Service Robot Platform Initiative, or SEROPI.

HONG-SEOK: SEROPI is now checking human face, but it's checking features of human's eyes, and nose and mouth.

YOON: Reporter: The hope is these robots will serve as office assistants, or simply help out around the house for those feeling too lazy to dump that empty can into the bin.

Flying robots might also help the industry here take off. These models are aimed at fighting fires or aiding in search and rescue. Companies are even investing in robot sentries, armed to patrol the peninsula's heavily fortified borders.

Yet the biggest brain-twister -- how to get these machines to fit into our expressive society.

(on camera): This may look like a setting for the horror flick, but the gain goal is to create robots that look and act human. When and if robots become part of our daily life, they're bound to raise serious ethical issues.

PROF. DAE WON KIM (through translator), MYONGJI UNIV.: Humans could become too dependent on robots. Robots might malfunction and carry out the wrong order, or get hacked. Any of this could bring about disaster to humankind.

YOON (voice-over): Exactly the reason Kim is helping South Korea draft a code of ethics for robots, one of the world's first. It's a precaution that might mean more to these kids as they grow up in a culture fully embracing futuristic technology.

Eunice Yoon, CNN, Seoul.

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COLLINS: Sent to the bench. A Muslim girl not allowed to play soccer.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He looked at me, and he's like, you can't play with the head scarf.

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COLLINS: Did the referee go too far, or was he just following the rules?

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COLLINS: You already know to catch us weekend mornings from 9:00 to noon Eastern, but did you know you could also take us with you anywhere you go on our iPod -- your iPod that is? I have one, too. But anyway, the CNN NEWSROOM podcast available 24/7 right on your iPod. Pretty cool to download.

A soccer player sent to the sidelines. The referee didn't like what she was wearing. The story now from reporter Summer Smith. She's with affiliate Bay News 9 in Palm Harbor, Florida.

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SUMMER SMITH, BAY NEWS 9 REPORTER (voice-over): Fifteen-year-old Iman Khalil of Spring Hill is showing off her skills as she plays an afternoon of soccer with her Hernando (ph) Heat Teammates, skills she didn't get to use Saturday on this same field in Palm Harbor.

IMAN KHALIL: He looked at me, and he's like, you can't play with the head scarf.

SMITH: Khalil, who is Muslim, wears a head scarf everywhere she goes, even on the soccer field. But Saturday a referee said her head covering was a violation of the rules and ordered her to remove it or sit out. The decision shocked Khalil and her mother, Lisa Allen- Khalil.

LISA ELLEN-KHALIL, IMAN KHALIL'S MOTHER: We've never experienced anything like this before. Imam's has been playing soccer for many years, and what she wears is pretty consistent from one game to another.

SMITH: To add more fuel to the fire, after the referee made his decision, league officials told him the girl wasn't breaking any rules and he should let her play. But he refused.

According to U.S. soccer, players can only wear a start uniform, like their jersey, shorts, and shoes, and anything extra is not allowed. However, this memo was sent out in 2002, stating that certain religions that require members to wear head coverings have permission to do so -- a memo the referee might not have read.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This unfortunately was not available to the referee, and he was not aware of it.

SMITH: We were not able to reach the referee for a comment this weekend. In the meantime, Michael Gand (ph), vice president of the United Soccer Association, who oversees the league, says a referee normally has the final say on the field, but in this case he believes the referee was wrong and overreacted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The referees are expected to make discretionary calls. Unfortunately, sometimes they stick too far to the letter of the rule.

SMITH: Khalil says she just wants to put this behind her.

KHALIL: I felt really bad because I felt like I sort of let the team down because I didn't get to play.

SMITH: And says while on the field she just wants to focus on her love of soccer, instead of her religion.

In Pinellas County, Summer Smith, Bay News 9.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SMITH: Lost in a cave for 30 hours -- how three students helped rescuers find them.

And who wants the Russian president dead? Vladimir Putin goes ahead with a trip to Iran today, despite a report assassins are waiting for him.

"YOUR WORLD TODAY" starts at the top of the hour.

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COLLINS: Safe and sound this morning after being lost in a dark, cramped cave for 30 hours. That's what happened to three University of Texas students. They were rescued over the weekend from a 500-foot crawlspace. Look at these pictures now. Twisting tunnels, pretty easy to get lost, but the students made sure they could be found. They left behind a trail of leaves. They also left a message with friends -- send help if we're not back by midnight.

A fire official talked about the rescue on CNN's AMERICAN MORNING.

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D.J. WALKER, AUSTIN FIRE DEPT.: These folks were really a textbook example of what you should do when you're planning a trip -- tell somebody where you're going, take plenty of food and water. They left a bread crumb trail to find their way back out. They really did do a good job of trying to prevent this from happening. But accidents happen, and they got off their bread crumb trail and wound up in a mazy section of the cave and got lost.

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COLLINS: As you might imagine, the students were tired and hungry, but otherwise OK.

CNN NEWSROOM continues just one hour from now. "YOUR WORLD TODAY" is next with news happening across the globe and right here at home.

I'm Heidi Collins. I'll see you tomorrow everybody.

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