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American Morning
Thousands of Protestors in Pakistan Are Free; Government of Bangladesh Issuing a New Plea This Morning; How You Can Save Money This Season
Aired November 20, 2007 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Taking action.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
ANNOUNCER: The first thing that the nation takes on -- the toy companies with critical new reports coming out today.
Speaking out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I know what I saw and I think it's important that people know what I saw.
ANNOUNCER: A crucial witness to the Madeleine McCann case finally breaks her silence.
Plus, tough turkey. How the price of gas is putting the squeeze your Thanksgiving dinner on this AMERICAN MORNING.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: There you go. Thanks to the rising gas prices everything is going to cost you more including stuffing yourself silly on Thursday.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: It's the way of the world, isn't it?
CHETRY: Well, good morning to you. It's Tuesday, November 20th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
ROBERTS: And good morning to you. Thanks for being with us. I'm John Roberts.
We begin this morning with what's shaping up to be a big day for toy safety after millions of toys have been pulled from shelves over fears about lead paint. The state of California now is filing suit against the biggest names in the toy business like Mattel and Toys 'R Us, accusing them of selling toys with unlawful quantities of lead. There are also critical new reports coming out this morning.
Our Alina Cho following this developing story. She's at the national update desk for us. Good morning, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John, good morning. And we'll get to those reports in just a minute.
But first, the lawsuit. California's attorney general says toy companies and retailers knowingly exposed children to lead and failed to warn them about the risk. Now that warning is actually required under the state's Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement act, otherwise known as Proposition 65. It says that businesses cannot expose people to hazardous chemicals without posting a warning.
Among those named in a suit, 20 companies in all, including Mattel, the nation's biggest toy company, and retailers like Wal-Mart, Target, and Toys 'R Us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROCKARD J. DELGADILLO, LOS ANGELES CITY ATTORNEY: This lawsuit, I think, will allow us to put in place procedures, protocols that will work to keep our kids in a safe place and out of harm's way with respect to lead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Now the suit, of course, comes on the heels of what some have called the year of the recall. Millions of toys called back this year and parents say they are pleased with this latest action.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BETH COFER, SANTA MONICA, CALIF. PARENT: As a parent, you know, there's no level of safety that you won't take for your child. And so I think it's really good. I mean, the toy companies might feel like they're going a little bit overboard, but I think that it's absolutely necessary for the safety of our kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Now, CNN has reached out to toy companies. We have not heard back yet. But a spokesperson for Mattel, the lead defendant in the lawsuit, has reported said the company had been expecting this action and has already implemented a system of checks and balances. Retailers have said the same.
Now, if the suit is successful, the companies could each be fined $2,500 per toy sold per day. It could amount to millions of dollars. And also, John, we should mention that the Consumer Products Safety Commission and the consumer group will both release reports on safety tips for parents. It is something they will certainly need just 35 days away from Christmas.
ROBERTS: Oh, yes. An awful lot of parents worried about what to buy this year...
CHO: That's right.
ROBERTS: ...a question that came up in our presidential debate last week.
Alina Cho for us this morning. Alina, thanks. We'll check back in with you a little bit later on.
CHO: You bet. ROBERTS: Right now, let's go over to Kiran.
CHETRY: Also new this morning, the world market on a bit of a roller coaster ride. Japan's Nikkei fell to its lowest point in more than a year today before rallying to finish in positive territory. Then in Europe, the U.S. dollar hit an all-time low. One euro now worth about $1.48.
The market is also reacting to a steep drop on Wall Street. The Dow opens below 1300 today for only the second time since August. It closed at 12958. There are also some new numbers coming out on the housing market and the Fed releasing information on inflation. That's this afternoon. We'll be keeping an eye on that and watching the Dow futures, which are right now up slightly -- John?
ROBERTS: It could be the most important state of primary season. And with just a few weeks left until the Iowa caucus, it is tighter than ever.
A new "Washington Post"/ABC News poll shows Senator Barack Obama leading Senator Hillary Clinton 30 percent to 26. It's a virtual toss-up, though, if you will include the margin of error. John Edwards is not too far behind either, 22 percent now.
In the sign of the tightening race, yesterday there were more verbal shots with Clinton basically saying, "We can't afford to have a rookie handle the economy," and Obama firing back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is one job we can't afford on the job training for, and that is the job of our next president. That could be the costliest job training in history.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My understanding was that she wasn't Treasury secretary in the Clinton administration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Other polls, though, give Clinton a slight edge in Iowa, the crucial kickoff state, on January the 3rd.
New on the GOP side of the coin, Mitt Romney has extended his lead in New Hampshire, another key state. Romney leads the field with 33 percent. Senator John McCain second with 18 percent. Rudy Giuliani still back at 16. That's according to a new CNN/WMUR New Hampshire presidential primary poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire.
We may not know the candidates just yet, but we do know the locations for next fall's presidential debates. The commission in charged of the advantage picked Mississippi, Tennessee and New York to host the debates. The first one will focus on domestic policy, the last on foreign policy. Candidates will sit at a table with a moderator rather than stand at podiums for those debates. The second debate will be a town hall meeting format and include questions from audience members and the Internet -- Kiran?
CHETRY: Also brand new this morning, a California congressman at the center of a family crisis right before the Thanksgiving holiday.
Police say Representative Gary Miller's three grandchildren were reported missing last night from their home east of L.A. They may have been kidnapped by their mother, who police say does not have custody rights. Early reports say she might be headed to Minnesota or Georgia.
We'll continue to follow that story.
Also, a sex scandal rocking a suburban Atlanta church. Earl Palk, the church's 84-year-old leader, says he had an affair with his brother's wife and fathered a child with her. He made that confession after a court ordered he take a paternity test. Results show that his 34-year-old nephew D.E. Palk is actually his son.
Reports say this is not the first or even the second sex scandal Palk's been involved in, but this time he could be in trouble with the law for lying about that affair under oath.
There's about to be a drastic drop in the number of AIDS cases worldwide, but not thanks to any cure. The United Nations is admitting that it overestimated by millions the size of the AIDS epidemic. It turns out that new infections have been dropping since the mid-'90s.
The U.N. AIDS group says that around 33.2 million people are actually living with AIDS. That's down from the 39.5 million originally estimated.
AIDS, of course, still remains a major threat, though. More than two million people died of it worldwide last year alone.
Well, pay close attention to this one. It's a shocking new study this morning about women and heart disease. The American College of Cardiology says that more women under the age of 45 are dying of heart disease, clogged arteries specifically. That study says at least 100 more women in that age group under 45 are now dying every year.
Researchers blame the growing obesity problem in our country. The good news, though, is that the disease rate for men under 45, heart disease at least, is leveling off.
There's some funeral services that are planned today just outside of Oklahoma City for the mother of hip-hop star Kanye West. Donda West went to high school in Oklahoma City and her parents and brothers still live there.
West died a week ago after possible complications from plastic surgery. Kanye West is expected to take a break from his European tour and attend his mother's funeral today.
Donda West's plastic surgeon, Dr. Jan Adams, by the way, will be speaking out. It's his first television interview tonight on "LARRY KING LIVE" since the operation. His record has fallen into question. You can see the exclusive interview right here at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
ROBERTS: Seven minutes after the hour.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHETRY: Well, another writers' strike, and this one could create problems for CBS News.
About 500 CBS newswriters are represented by the Writers Guild of America and they are expected to strike today. The workers will walk off the job in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C. CBS says it will continue to put on news programming during that strike.
Well, they're considered non-lethal, and the first option to use for police, but at least three taser-related deaths reported this weekend. Now, some are calling for police to stop using stun guns.
We'll need a legal perspective from our Sonny Hostin ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: Today's "Weather Update" brought to you by...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back. Eleven minutes past 6:00 here on the East Coast. Some of the most incredible shots of the morning in your "Quick Hits" now. And this is a look at an entire town in Colombia under water. Hundreds of people homeless after a river overflowed. It's been an extremely active rainy season and it's just ravaged parts of the country with hundreds of reported floods and landslides.
Well, closer to home, this one in Miami, a car plunging into a canal and an incredible swim to safety. Police say an 18-year-old driver veered off of the Don Shula expressway in Miami. It happened early Sunday and then plunged into the water. He managed to pull himself out and swim to shore. And then a family found him 10 hours later.
Police have not said yet if speeding played a role in the accident. They do say the teen was driving fast enough to break through an aluminum guard rail and skid across 75 feet of grass and land on far end of the 50-foot-wide canal.
Well, a robber is messing with the wrong vet in Florida. This is surveillance video. And at the top right of your screen, you can see a 71-year-old security guard at a juice shop kicks the gun out of a guy's hand. There you see that going down.
He then pulls out his own gun and starts firing at three of the armed suspects. They all took off in a dark gray car. Police say that that guard has military experience -- John?
ROBERTS: Wow.
News overnight of another man dying after being tasered by police. At least three cases reported in the last week, the latest in New Mexico. A 20-year-old man was tasered after struggling with police as they tried to take him into custody. He died after being rushed to a hospital.
In Florida, a 21-year-old man died after being tasered three times. Jacksonville police stopped Christian Allen on Sunday night because his car radio was too loud. According to police, Allen got out of the car, pushed the officer, and tried to run away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ASSISTANT CHIEF RICK GRAHAM, JACKSONVILLE SHERIFF'S OFFICE: Physical confrontation occurred between Officer Hurley and Allen. During the struggle, Officer Hurley deployed his taser in an attempt to gain control of the suspect.
LISA JACKSON, ALLEN'S MOTHER: I'm not saying that he was, you know, innocent in any of it, but I think that they did use excessive force.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Allen was checked by rescue personnel and cleared, but during questioning he became unresponsive. He went into cardiac arrest and was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
And over the weekend, a 21-year-old man in Maryland died after police used a taser on him to break up a fight. The deaths come one week after a video surfaced of a Polish immigrant who died in the Vancouver airport in Canada after being tasered by the Mounties.
These stories are raising a lot of questions about the safety of tasers and how police are using them.
AMERICAN MORNING's legal analyst Sonny Hostin joins me now with more.
Amnesty International is saying, since 2001, more than 150 people have died after being tasered. Yet at the same time, there are other studies that say these things are, quote, "generally safe" for police to use.
SONNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALST: Yes. It's very confusing. But I think, when you look at it, certainly law enforcement officers need options. They don't -- you don't always want them to pull out guns.
But what we are finding is that many, many people are dying. I think, statistically, we have 300 taser-related deaths and there are a couple of things that need to be looked at. You see the deaths when there are multiple shocks. And some folks have been stunned three to 21 times.
Now, we're talking about 50,000 volts of electricity. We're not just talking about a little zip, John. We're talking about a lot more than that. I think what you're also seeing is taser-related deaths or tasers are a factor when you have someone that has poor health, someone that's intoxicated, someone that's maybe mentally challenged.
And so, law enforcement officers certainly need more training at the very least. There needs to be more research done because now we're learning that this is maybe not such a wonderful option because people are dying.
ROBERTS: Yes. Taser International, which is one of the world's leading manufacturers of tasers, say that people don't die from the taser. They -- die because of, quote, "other events" that may be associated with their physical health or perhaps the situation.
But you have to wonder, somebody like this 21-year-old in Jacksonville.
HOSTIN: Sure.
ROBERTS: Running down the street. Apparently, the person was armed, had a gun in his pocket.
HOSTIN: Yes.
ROBERTS: There was also cocaine found in the car.
HOSTIN: Although he didn't pull the gun.
ROBERTS: No, he didn't pull the gun. There's no telling whether or not there was an actual threat against the officers, just running away.
HOSTIN: Exactly.
ROBERTS: But would this person have died if he wasn't tasered? Would he have walked another three blocks and dropped dead?
HOSTIN: That's a wonderful point, John. This is a 21-year-old or, you know, a 20-year-old. And so, you would imagine probably in good health, maybe no history of heart-related issues. And so my guess is maybe multiple shocks in that case. And, again, it's something that really needs to be looked at.
Of course, the company that makes the tasers saying, this is a much better option than having someone shot 18 times. Yes, but we're still dealing with someone dying. We're going to see a lot of lawsuits. Families are going to come out and start suing civilly.
ROBERTS: And our police officers much quicker to pull a taser than they would a gun or a billy-club, as well.
HOSTIN: Absolutely. No question. ROBERTS: You know, the province of British Columbia after this death in Canada now looking for full public inquiry on this. Perhaps, it'll shed some light on all of this.
HOSTIN: I think so. I think so.
ROBERTS: Sonny Hostin, good to see you. We'll get you back a little bit later this hour for some of the legal news.
HOSTIN: Terrific.
ROBERTS: Apprecite your coming in.
Your 'Quick Hits." Rising energy prices could be the Grinch that forces you to spend less this holiday season. According to a report by two leading consumer agencies, 35 percent of you have promised to cut back on spending. That's up from 32 percent just a year ago. Rising prices in gasoline and heating oil were seen as the main culprits.
The Smithsonian is launching a public appeal for private donations. Officials say the money is needed to fill gaps in funding. The funds will also go to work hiring new researchers and bring new exhibits to the museum. This is the first time that the Smithsonian has launched such a widespread appeal.
A key witness speaking up for the first time about missing Madeleine McCann. Was she the last person to see the little girl before she vanished? We'll tell you what a new documentary has to say. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Welcome back to most news in the morning here on CNN. "Quick hits" now and a couple of stories that you're going to see throughout the day here on CNN.
New plans to keep your holiday packages on track. The Post Office is coming out later on this morning to let the public know how it's tweaking service to handle a surge in holiday mail. An estimated 20 billion cards, letters and packages will be delivered between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
And a holiday pass from the commander in chief. Later on this morning, President Bush will pardon two lucky turkeys from Indiana, saving them from the dinner table this Thanksgiving. These are pictures from last year's event. The White House says that you can help name this year's turkeys.
Possible names: Wing and a Prayer, Jake and Tom, and Wishing Bone. After today's Rose Garden ceremony, the turkeys will fly first class to Florida to serve as the grand marshals at Disney World's Thanksgiving Day parade. There's...
CHETRY: That beats the cargo hold.
ROBERTS: There's money well spent.
CHETRY: You think they even know they're in first class? Yes, they'll probably order the champagne right when they get on the plane.
Well, they say that right in the vows, right, richer or poorer? Will that includes when you hit the lotto? One Florida woman suing her soon to be ex-husband for half his lottery winnings.
Donna Campbell claims her husband kept it a secret from her. She says she had a hunch something was up when he shut off the TV and disconnected the phone line. She Googled his name and found out that her husband was one of 17 airline mechanics who hit a $10.2 million jackpot.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONNA CAMPBELL, SUING HUSBAND FOR LOTTO SHARE: I'd be telling that I am not going to let him walk away with what he has done to me. He's my husband. There's still some love left and I care about him. I certainly wouldn't like to see that he lose his job with American Airlines. I just want this to be resolved. You know, I just want justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Maybe he doesn't have to worry about his job at American Airlines anymore. Campbell says that when she confronted her husband, he said that he bought the ticket for his daughter from another marriage. She says she intends to get every penny of her share of the jackpot because he's been losing their money on the lottery and at casinos the whole time they were married.
Well, today's "Hot Shot" now and maybe he was applying for a spot in Santa's starting lineup. This comes to us from Missouri. Check it out, a deer bolting out of the woods. There you see it leaping right over the hood of the police car. What a hurdle.
He was safe. It was all caught on the dash cam. There you see it one more time. I don't know who's more surprised, the deer or the police officer. He said he hit the brakes in total shock. A couple of slow-mos as well.
Well, as we said, he cleared the hurdle, so nice job. Many deer aren't so lucky.
Well, if you've got a "Hot Shot," send it to us. The address AMHOTSHOTS@CNN.com, include your name, and where you're from, a little more about the picture and video. And one more thing, please make sure the image is yours and not someone else's.
ROBERTS: It's 23 minutes after the hour.
Ali Velshi, a little under the weather today. But if he were here, he would have his oil barrel with him because prices are on the rise again.
Jim Ellis of "Business Week" magazine in for Ali this morning, "Minding Your Business."
Jim, we got the oil prices going up again. Gas prices are going to be on the rise again soon. I mean, is there any place where it's going to stop?
JIM ELLIS, OPINION EDITOR, BUSINESSWEEK: No.
ROBERTS: Who knows(ph), say, $200 a barrel gas if we attack Iran.
ELLIS: Well, I mean, it's -- what we've got to worry about right now is that there's this big debate over whether they should switch from the dollar, pricing oil in dollars, which it's been for the last 20 years.
The thing is, though, a lot of people, whether they're Iranians or they're Venezuelans, they think this is the way to stick it to the United States. But I think the Saudis don't like that idea because, you know, they control what really happens in oil. The Chavez makes a lot of noise, but Saudis are the only people who have extra capacity. They can really sort of make prices go where they want them to do.
ROBERTS: And the Saudis aren't doing that because they're very good allies as far as we know.
ELLIS: No, no, they're doing it simply because it's in their own best interest. I mean, there is a problem with the dollar. The dollar has gone way, way up. I mean -- what's happened over the last couple of years is that the dollar, which has always been the price of oil, has now come down to where -- I guess now we've got about 50 -- that's about 40 percent drop in the dollar over the last seven years, and the dollar versus the euro has dropped about 10 percent this year.
A lot of people in the Middle East are saying that's really bad for them, and why should they price their main commodity in something that's a wasting asset?
ROBERTS: Right. So, what would happen if they switched oil to the euro?
ELLIS: If they switched the oil to the euro...
ROBERTS: What will happen about us?
ELLIS: What will happen to us is that there'd be demand for the dollar. U.S. interest rates would probably have to go up, and basically the U.S. economy would have to sort of slow down.
ROBERTS: Wow. Jim Ellis, thanks very much, sitting in for Ali this morning. I know it's a late night for you last night. Thanks for getting up early.
CHETRY: Welcome to the show.
ELLIS: Thank you. ROBERTS: Appreciate your coming in.
Black Friday right around the corner. That can only mean one thing for a lot of families: time at the toy store. But later on this morning, three consumer watchdog groups are issuing new safety guidelines and warnings about some of the hottest toys out there. This just after millions of popular Chinese-made toys were recalled this year over lead concerns.
Which leads us to this morning's "Quick Vote." Will the toy recalls change your buying habits this holiday? Cast your vote at CNN.com/am. We'll have the first results coming up a little bit later on in this hour.
CHETRY: Sure. We heard from Craig Hunter yesterday about the "Made in the USA" brand, how they're putting these big labels on some of the toys to make people aware that if they want to make that choice, they can. So, it was interesting to see if people's buying habits do change. So, please e-mail us about it.
ROBERTS: A look at a new story coming up on our next half-hour here that you just can't miss.
When it comes to paying for this year's Thanksgiving dinner, you're probably shelling out more than you did in the past, but how much more and why exactly.
CHETRY: Some say it's the high price of gas. Is there something else, though? Craig Hunter is at one of the busiest farmers markets in the country. He's going to explain that story in the headlines when AMERICAN MORNING comes right back.
ANNOUNCER: "Minding Your Business" brought to you by...
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Early morning look at the George Washington Bridge standing at the Hudson River in the upper part of Manhattan there this morning in New York. Forty-three degrees and cloudy right now. Not going to be a great day here in the Big Apple. Some showers and only a high of 49, but apparently it's going to get milder for the Thanksgiving Day parade. So, that should be good.
Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. It's Tuesday, the 20th of November. I'm John Roberts.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry.
To the world markets now where the Dow futures are up slightly. It's quite a wild ride, though, overseas. Asian markets plunged overnight and then recovered right at the end of the trading day. European shares are higher right now, too.
But all of the markets showed concern about big losses in the U.S. housing market. Fresh government housing numbers are coming out in just two hours. Also new this morning, thousands of protesters now in Pakistan are free. They were thrown in jail for opposing General Pervez Musharraf's reelection. Just hours ago, Pakistan's Interior Ministry said more than 3,000 lawyers and protesters were freed. But some opposition party leaders are still behind bars.
There's also word that the Pentagon wants to nearly double the amount of funding used to train guerrilla fighters in Pakistan. Officials say those fighters are more effective than the country's military.
And the government of Bangladesh issuing a new plea this morning for more foreign aid as the number of dead continues to climb in the wake of a devastating cyclone there. More than 3100 people are dead, and local relief groups fear that number could eventually climb as high as 10,000. They say this morning that the army has yet to deliver aid to at least 30 percent of villages that were hit five days ago, and there's anger growing among some of the villagers in the south coast who say they haven't gotten anything. No food, no water, and no medicine. Dozens of villages still completely cut off by the heavy damage and the floodwaters. Some of the survivors say they have not eaten in days.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Brand new details in a documentary about the disappearance of Madeleine McCann today. The British girl disappeared six months ago right before her fourth birthday. Her parents have been pegged the suspects. Now the one woman who could clear their names is speaking out. Our Emily Chang is live at the world update desk in London with more on this story. Good morning, Emily.
EMILY CHANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. Well, they've become known as the Tapas Nine, a group including Kate and Jerry McCann and their friends. For months they've refused to talk to the media. But now in a new BBC documentary, one of the Tapas Nine is finally talking.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE TANNER, MCCANN FAMILY FRIEND: And that is the scariest thing, you know.
CHANG: After more than six months, a woman who could be a critical witness in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann breaks her silence.
TANNER: And I know what I saw, and I think it's important that people know what I saw because, you know, I believe Madeleine was abducted, and if people are not taking that seriously, there could be people out there that see her, somewhere that could have evidence, you know, to give, and they think, well, I'm not going to give that because she wasn't abducted.
CHANG: Jane Tanner was dining with Kate and Jerry McCann and their friends at the resort Tapas Bar on the night of May 3rd. During the meal, Tanner says she left to check on her own child and saw a man carrying a young girl in the street, a description later depicted in this sketch. Since then, she's faced criticism she's not telling the truth.
TANNER: I think maybe I'm talking now because I've been called a liar.
CHANG: To her horror, Tanner says she didn't realize the significance of what she saw until it was too late. Madeleine's bed was discovered empty just 45 minutes later.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHENG: Now, Portuguese police have named Kate and Jerry McCann official suspects in the case though they have always insisted they are innocent and are doing everything they can to find their daughter. They do have a team of private investigators on the ground in Spain who can respond to sightings quickly. One of those investigators was also interviewed in this documentary. He said he believes Madie (ph) is still alive and they are, quote, "Very close to finding her." A McCann spokesperson said, however, while that is encouraging the bottom line is they still don't know where she is.
John?
ROBERTS: Well, those police in Portugal seem to have a different theory just about every week. Emily Chang for us this morning. Emily, thanks.
Kiran?
CHETRY: Drew Peterson wants reporters to just leave him alone. He's the newly retired police officer in Suburban Chicago. His current wife has been missing three weeks, and his last wife mysteriously drowned in an empty bathtub three years ago. Another ex recently said that he told her, he could kill her and make it look like an accident. But yesterday outside his home, he didn't seem to have a worry in the world, except for the cameras.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DREW PETERSON, SUSPECT IN WIFE'S DISAPPEARANCE: It's mind boggling. You know, just like people are looking at me under a magnifying glass and it's very upsetting. You know, what I had for breakfast is newsworthy. So it's crazy. Please go home. Thanksgiving's the next couple days. Please go home. Please leave me alone. Please don't get involved in my little world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: His lawyer said he doesn't expect Peterson to face any charges, but police have named the 53-year-old a suspect in the disappearance of his wife Stacy, the mother of their two young children. Authorities have also called to the case a possible homicide.
Polygamous leader Warren Jeffs could get life in prison today. Jeffs will be sentenced this afternoon in Utah. He was found guilty of two counts of rape as an accomplice for arranging the marriage of underage girls to older men.
ROBERTS: 34 minutes after the hour now. A push for safer school buses tops your "Quick Hits." Transportation secretary Mary Peters is proposing new rules that would increase the height of seat backs to protect kids in accidents. She also said that she would make federal funds available to schools who want to buy new buses with seat belts. Those buses cost about $10,000 more.
And a brain aneurysm apparently behind that deadly tour bus crash in South Carolina yesterday. Investigators say the bus swerved off of the highway after the driver suffered the aneurysm. He was killed. 30 others on board were injured. The bus was about 25 miles northwest of Charleston on its way to Miami, only about 45 miles from its point of departure.
ROBERTS: Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING, Thanksgiving dinner with a slice of your wallet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The prices have gone up about 15 percent to 18 percent.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Why the cost of your turkey and trimmings are rising. Greg Hunter investigates.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's more expensive, absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're seeing it on the grocery store floor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: How you can save money this season and what will cost you more ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 22 minutes now to the top of the hour. Welcome back to the most news in the morning here on CNN.
Smoke and flames in the streets of the west bank as Israeli soldiers take up positions at a Palestinian Refugee Camp. It's not clear what or who they were looking for, but several raids are conducted in the area in the hunt for Islamic militants.
Take a look at this. A car from the future coming soon. Terra Motors has unveiled a new three-wheeled ultra efficient ride. Almost looks like it's floating there because you can't really see the wheels at the bottom of it. The company says it's going to be available for under $30,000 in the U.S., and there's an all electric and a plug-in hybrid version that supposedly gets 300 miles to the gallon. They might be available sometime next year if you're looking to buy one.
Or if you're looking to replace some old and tired holiday decorations, why not go high class? This golden statue of Father Christmas could be yours for only $2 million. A jewelry store in Tokyo were selling it. Little bit more than a foot tall, weighs 44 pounds and has 23 diamonds in Santa's belt. Rob Marciano in the CNN weather center for us this morning, tracking snow in parts of the east coast. How did you like the little golden Santa with all the diamonds?
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHETRY: Taking a look at the "Political Ticker" this morning. Senator Barack Obama leads in Iowa. The "Washington Post"/ABC News Poll showing that Senator Barack Obama leads Senator Hillary Clinton 30 percent to 26 percent. John Edwards not too far behind at 22 percent. Taking a look at the numbers. Keep on rolling. When it comes to the two top candidates on the Democratic side hit the Hawkeye state and take shots at each other over experience and the economy.
Well, the Obama campaign is getting some high profile TV time. Michelle Obama, Barack's wife, is going to be co-hosting "The View" on December 5th. He could set up fireworks with the panel. Michelle Obama has been openly critical of Hillary Clinton in campaign speeches, and Clinton has made several appearances as a guest on "The View."
Republican Fred Thompson asking you to help him increases his TV time. He is asking supporters to donate money to pay for commercials to help keep him competitive in Iowa and South Carolina. A campaign e-mail suggests how much people should give such as $70 for a 30- second ad in Sioux City or get together with friends and pay $850 and get a primetime spot in Charleston, South Carolina.
There is another high level resignation at the White House; the president's top adviser of Homeland Security is leaving. Fran Townsend looking for a job in the private sector. President Bush praised her yesterday, saying she provided an integral role in anti- terror policy and America is safer because of her leadership. No word on who will replace her? But she'll going to be our guest, Fran Townsend joining us live at 7:30 eastern time.
And John McCain will be eating his turkey with the troops. The Republican presidential candidate is heading to Iraq for Thanksgiving. He'll be with a small congressional delegation. We're not releasing details on the itinerary for security reasons but this is his seventh trip to Iraq.
And you can find all the day's political news around the clock. Cnn.com/ticker.
ROBERTS: Well, I don't expect you'll be going to Iraq for it, but getting turkey dinner to your Thanksgiving table this year is going to likely cost more than it did last year. A lot of that due to the high price of gasoline. Just how much more will you be paying? Our Greg Hunter is looking out for you this morning. He is live at a place where they know a whole lot about food and moving it from place to place. The busy Hunt's Point Market in the Bronx. Hey, Greg.
GREG HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John. This is the biggest food market in the world. They do $2 billion worth of business. It's on 125 acres. There's truck after truck after truck, stall after stall. This is Katzman section, look down there. A quarter of a mile. Nothing but semi truck, semi, semi after truck. All lined up getting food and groceries out to the northeast. All the grocery stores in the northeast get their produce from here. Well, they're saying price increases and they're passing them right along to your table.
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HUNTER: At Manhattan's Garden of Eden Supermarket, the manager Nicholas Kotsianas says the mood among this year's Thanksgiving shoppers has changed.
Last year, this year. What's the difference?
NICHOLAS KOTSIANAS, MANAGER OF MANHATTAN'S GARDEN OF EDEN SUPERMARKET: In terms of perception in how they're feeling, just far more frugal this year, far more cautious. They want to get more bite for their dollar.
HUNTER: And that will be much tougher this year because prices have gone up on many Thanksgiving staples. The biggest increase, the bird.
KOTSIANAS: The prices have gone up about 15 percent to 18 percent. Depending on the brand.
HUNTER: Other must haves, yams and cranberries. Both...
KOTSIANAS: 10 percent increase definitely, compared to last year.
HUNTER: Kotsianas says food prices are climbing right along with fuel prices. You're seeing it without question, the price of fuel and shipping of, whether it's turkeys or vegetables.
KOTSIANAS: Anything, anything.
HUNTER: It's more expensive.
KOTSIANAS: Absolutely.
HUNTER: Some good news, root vegetables like potatoes and carrots are about the same as last year. Overall, Kotsianas says the cost of Thanksgiving dinner will far outpace inflation.
What do you think people are going to pay across America on average for Thanksgiving? KOTSIANAS: 10 percent more than last year.
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HUNTER: Well, believe it or not, Kotsianas says estimate of how much a Thanksgiving dinner would cost is amazingly close to the American Farm Bureau's recent survey. They do that every year. And according to the Farm Bureau, your Thanksgiving dinner this year will cost about 11 percent more. Now, listen, the underlying cost of food has gone up because of shipping, but when it comes down to the wholesale market, Mr. Katzman here tells me that there's a lot of other variables, for example, supply and demand. These asparagus, where he says yesterday were $15 for a box. He says he got a shipment in out of the blue, and now they're $8 a box.
Another thing is weather conditions. For example, yams. Down in North Carolina, they've had a lot of problems with rain. You've seen all the stories, the reservoirs down in Atlanta, you know dry. This drove up the price of yams this year. So, not just fuel. It happens to be other things like weather and supply and demand that cause things to go up. And this year, we've had a lot of bad weather, particularly droughts. That's why your yams are going to be more expensive.
Back to you, John and Kiran.
ROBERTS: Great. Did Katzman have any sense to whether or not people will cut back on what they prepare for Thanksgiving or will they cut back on other things to pay for that more expensive Thanksgiving dinner.
HUNTER: He's right here. Are they going to cut back on Thanksgiving dinner this year? C'mon over here. Are they going to cut back?
STEPHEN KATZMAN, PRESIDENT OF KATZMAN'S PRODUCE: No. Thanksgiving is a holiday that everybody -- no. Thanksgiving dinner is a big dinner.
HUNTER: Everybody's going to blow it out?
KATZMAN: That's what it's for. You got to take care of the holidays. It's just like Christmas and Thanksgiving is indeed an holiday, we'll be there for them.
HUNTER: OK, you heard it right here from one of the top wholesale guys in the country right here. All right.
ROBERTS: There you go. All right, Greg Hunter for us this morning at Hunt's Point Market out there in the Bronx. Greg, thanks.
Don't forget, we're going to be here for you on Thanksgiving morning on AMERICAN MORNING. If you've got any questions about your holiday feast, fear not because we're going to have the turkey experts in with us to help. We have invited Butterball University to our Thanksgiving here on AMERICAN MORNING. E-mail your questions to us, turkey@cnn.com, and we'll do our best to answer them live on the air and then be watching as we answer your questions, that's Thursday, Thanksgiving morning, here on AMERICAN MORNING.
CHETRY: We'll be here. I know one tip already. Take the giblets and the plastic stuffing out of the cavity before baking.
ROBERTS: I'm going to try doing the brine soak this year.
CHETRY: Me, too. I need to because the turkey is frozen and apparently it takes 20 days to thaw out. So if you soak it in the salt water.
ROBERTS: We'll see if it works.
CHETRY: All right. We'll see.
ROBERTS: We'll report back what happen.
CHETRY: We'll ask the lady when she goes on the show from Butterball University if we're doing the right thing.
Meanwhile, we have some dense fog delaying flights in Southern California. Let's take a look right now at this picture. Wow, that's a beautiful shot actually of L.A.X. Not beautiful though if you're going to be stuck in it. They say that heavy fog shut down one or two runways for arrivals at L.A.X. Also delayed some departing flights. The fog expected to lift though by 9:00 A.M. local time.
We also want to hear your stories of flyer frustration. Send your I-reports pictures, video and email it to us. Email address, am@cnn.com. A lot of people are going to be traveling, so we're expecting to hear a lot of stories. And we want to hear them and we're going to be sharing some of the best ones with you all week long.
And still ahead, the holiday shopping season is almost upon us. But with all of the toy recalls this year, how do you know what's safe or not? Internet correspondent Veronica De La Cruz has been scouring the web. She has some tips to help take the stress out of your toy search this holiday season if you're heading online to do some shopping. We're going to have more on that after the break.
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ROBERTS: Coming up now to eight minutes to the top of the hour. If you're just joining us, here's a look at what's making headlines this morning.
Concerns about the U.S. housing crisis and stocks in a wild ride overnight. Asian markets initially plunged in reaction to a 218 point loss on Wall Street yesterday, but those markets finished higher this morning, and the Dow futures are up right now. New government housing numbers are coming out in less than two hours, but the Dow does open today below 13,000. A congressman's three grandchildren have been reported missing. Their grandfather is California Representative Gary Miller. They may be with their mother, who may be guilty of kidnapping since she reportedly does not have custody of the kids.
And a shocking church sex scandal. Archbishop Earl Paulk, the leader of a suburban Atlanta church admits to having an affair with his brother's wife. And the man for 34 years he thought was Paulk's nephew is actually his son. The revelations came out as part of a lawsuit against Paulk and the church by a former church employee who claims she was manipulated into having an affair with Paulk.
The funeral for Donda West will be held today in Spencer, Oklahoma. That's just outside of Oklahoma City. She was raised in Oklahoma City, and her parents and brothers still live there. Tonight on "Larry King Live," an exclusive interview with DR. Jan Adams who performed cosmetic surgery on Donda West just before she died.
Now, let's go over to Kiran.
CHETRY: Tyson Foods trying to fix its labels after a letter from the USDA. The Department of Agriculture, saying that it made a mistake in allowing Tyson to sell chicken with a label that said, quote, "Raised Without Antibiotics." The dispute rose over a feed additive which USDA does classify as an antibiotic. Tyson will try to get approval for a new label that still says raised without antibiotics but then includes an explainer about that additive.
Well, the state of California is now suing some of the worlds biggest toy companies, they say, for knowingly selling toxic toys made with lead. So, the holidays are here, and we've been hearing about all the recalls, toys from China, problems with magnets and lead paint. It can lead to a lot of frustration, when you're trying to figure out what to buy your kids for the holidays. And our Veronica De La Cruz joins us now with some tips. You've checked out some of these websites, and you're going to help us, Veronica, please.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I know you're looking for some help.
CHETRY: You don't want to take everything back two months later because of the concerns with the safety of these toys.
DE LA CRUZ: And running out of time now. 34 days until Christmas. Black Friday right around the corner. Also, cyber Monday just days away and like Kiran mentioned, the State Attorney General of California is suing some major toy manufacturers and retailers about 20 in all. So, I'm sure lots of people are extremely confused when it comes to getting proper information on this recall. But the good news is there are lots of great websites that are easy to use.
This one that were going to take a look at, it's called recalledtoyalert.com which has pictures of all the toys deemed unsafe. You can click on the images, get product information, and find out why the toy is being recalled. You can also sign up for e-mail alerts, Kiran, for future recalls when toys are added to that list. CHETRY: It's a little bit more helpful than the Consumer Products Safety Commission...
DE LA CRUZ: Exactly.
CHETRY:...And they don't show pictures on that site.
DE LA CRUZ: And it's so frustrating. You know, we checked out the CPSC, Consumer Products Safety Commission website, and like Kiran was saying, it's a little hard to navigate. I mean, looking at the page, you can tell it's cluttered and when you get to the main recall page, basically, its one giant page of lots and lots of links. There are no pictures. Lots of parents have no idea what the name of the toy is half the time.
CHETRY: The government might put it together, not a web designer, right?
DE LA CRUZ: Exactly. So, again, there are lots of great places that you can go online. And as we continue to get closer to holidays, we are going to give you lots of great holiday shopping tips, lots of great tips from the web. So, you know, you can always e-mail us am@cnn.com if you've got a tip of your own that you would like to share.
CHETRY: And you had one more neat site to check out some toys.
DE LA CRUZ: Do we have time?
CHETRY: Go for it.
DE LA CRUZ: OK, toptoyskids.com. This is a great one. It's basically an aggregator of a bunch of different retailers. You can break it down by boys, girls, dolls, video games. There's even a link that highlights toys made in the U.S. and Europe, Kiran. So that's an important thing. Also, you can click on the toy itself, and that's going to take you to the retailer so you can buy it right then and there. I mean, really, its one-stop shopping that's going to make it really, really simple for you. As you just saw that took you directly to amazon.com. So, it saves you a lot of time. You know, we're trying to cut down on the frustration here.
CHETRY: Especially knowing you don't have to send them back for a recall notice.
DE LA CRUZ: I know that's what you're looking for so...
CHETRY: Veronica, thanks a lot.
DE LA CRUZ: Of course.
ROBERTS: It has long been considered a killer of older men. But now it appears that more young women are dying from heart disease. A startling new link between heart disease and women under the age of 45. Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has got the details that you need to know. That's coming up in our next hour of AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHETRY: Neck and neck. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama toe to toe in the fight for Iowa. The tight new polls and talk new talk.
Landmark lawsuit.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want to protect our kids, that's what's about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Why one state is taking the toy giants to court.
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