Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Pope Addresses United Nations; Earthquake Hits Southern Illinois; Gender Gap Leaving Men Behind at Black Universities; Judge to Wrap Up Massive Child Custody Case Today
Aired April 18, 2008 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR: You're seeing something that's only happened three times before: a pope addressing the General Assembly at the United Nations.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And get this. An earthquake seven miles underneath Indiana is felt for hundreds of miles in all directions. And now the aftershocks. How can something so far underground be felt so far away?
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon live here at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
I'm in the severe weather center with Chad Myers and I. We'll take a closer look at that thing, whatever it was, that went bump in the night -- Melissa.
LONG: Yes. Quite an earthquake overnight. And I'm Melissa long, in today for Kyra Phillips.
And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
When the pope speaks, the world listens. But only rarely does a pope appear on a truly global stage, as Benedict XVI did just a short time ago in New York City. And as you may have watched here on CNN or perhaps on CNN.com, the pope addressed the U.N. General Assembly, just as Pope Paul did, the sixth -- the Sixth did in 1965. Pope John Paul II did twice, as well.
We're going to hear some more from Benedict's remarks coming up in just a moment.
But first, more about yesterday's extraordinary and unannounced private meeting with victims of pedophile priests. It took place in Washington, D.C. At Benedict's request, a number of sex abuse survivors who are now adults came down from Boston with Cardinal Sean O'Malley. For almost 30 minutes they talked, they prayed, some cried.
This morning two relive the experience on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FAITH JOHNSTON, SEX ABUSE SURVIVOR: I had so much I wanted to say. And then I got up to him and I just started -- I just burst into tears. But I think my tears spoke louder than words. And in a way, I think in that moment I almost felt like that 14-, 15-year-old face, the victim's face.
And then he -- the pope just started talking to me just so kindly, so lovingly, congratulating me about my upcoming wedding.
OLAN HORNE, SEX ABUSE SURVIVOR: I talked to him about my hate toward the church. I talked to him my hate toward the administrations and the bishops and all that needed to be done. I asked him to forgive me for having such hate.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And how did he respond?
HORNE: He was amazed. He just couldn't believe it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Today a different city, a very different venue and a different focus. The United Nations visiting, helping to mark that one anniversary -- 60th anniversary of the universal declaration on human rights. And human rights were really the cornerstone of the pontiff's speech.
CNN U.N. correspondent Richard Roth joining us live from New York now with more -- Richard.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. The pope is making his way through U.N. headquarters at this moment. He's been in the building for several hours. You might say the joint is jumping. They don't get this type of visitor often. And the U.N. has kind of been sidelined on several world crises going on.
The pope is moving to the visitors' lobby. He's going to meditate in this private meditation room established there and get some flowers on the way. He just finished addressing the United Nations staff, which gave him a standing ovation, as the pope thanked them for his efforts.
Earlier he met with the U.N.'s chief diplomat, U.N. Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon, who had invited the pope one year ago today on a visit to Vatican City. The secretary-general welcoming him to his office with a tour of the facilities. The secretary-general showing where he meets with delegates.
The U.N. gave the pope some U.N. stamps. The Vatican gave the U.N. a map of the old Vatican City state.
Later, the pope had some stern words regarding human rights as he addressed the 192 member countries of the General Assembly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POPE BENEDICT XVI, LEADER OF CATHOLIC CHURCH: Human rights, of course, must include the right to religious freedom, understood as the expression of a dimension that is at once individual and communitarian -- a vision that brings out the unity of the person while clearly distinguishing between the dimension of the citizen and that of the believer. (END VIDEO CLIP)
ROTH: The pope also warned of the mighty powers here at the U.N., in effect, taking advantage of those smaller countries, which would be music to the ears of many of the countries here inside the U.N.
But his words could also be interpreted as criticisms of policies in the Middle East and maybe in Asia regarding the failure to respect human rights.
The pope now making his way through the visitors' area of the United Nations surrounded by staff. As he'll meditate, and then he will depart into the streets of Manhattan in a motorcade.
LONG: Senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth. And I love what you said earlier: the joint is jumping, something we don't normally see at the U.N. Richard, thanks so much.
And still ahead in the NEWSROOM this afternoon, the U.N. ambassador to the Holy See, better known as the Vatican. It's been a big week for her.
We continue, also, our conversations with black America. Today, religion on radio and African-American Catholics, a growing presence in a multicultural church -- Don.
LEMON: Melissa, this out. Check out this video. Shattered bricks on street corners, a collapsed porch and rattled nerves. That's about the extent of it after a 5.2 magnitude earthquake rocks the Midwest.
Folks are still shaking from the aftershocks, including one that measured 4.5. Only minor injuries have been reported. The quake was centered in southern Illinois near the Indiana border. But it was felt as far away as Iowa and south, actually into north Georgia.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
LEMON: I'm here in the weather center with Mr. Chad Myers.
And Chad, you know, we've heard about earthquakes before. But not -- very rare in this region.
MYERS: Correct. We all knew about that New Madrid potential years ago.
LEMON: Right.
MYERS: Threw hundreds of thousands of dollars, millions, probably, of dollars into this area in case of this New Madrid Fault quake. That was 1990. Well, this is not a New Madrid fault. This is a Wabash Valley Fault, a little bit farther to the north.
LEMON: OK. MYERS: Kind of part of the whole -- the same system. But here is the New Madrid area that we're so very familiar with here. And then a little bit of a break into the Wabash Valley Fault area.
They're thinking that there's been about seven big quakes in the Wabash Valley area in the last 20,000, 25,000 years. They know that, because they can go back and look through the sediment. And when the sediment of the Mississippi River or the Wabash River has been moved, they can figure out when that move happened, why it happened and how big that fault was.
Here is New Madrid. We hear all about that word, New Madrid. And New Madrid West Fault, and the Reelfoot Fault -- you've heard of the Reelfoot Lake, probably. New Madrid North, also Bootheel Lineament, and also the Blytheville Arch. That's all part. And that's all said and done; that's all great.
But we move up. We have to slide ourselves up to the Wabash Island Fault, up into the Wabash Valley. And here is the town of Belmont. This is only five miles from the town of Belmont. And so Belmont, I'm sure, got a really good rattling. But so did everybody else with this system, Don.
And the reason that happened is because this -- this piece of crust is actually more put together than a California crust. California crust is broken up into a bunch of different faults. This is one big fault. And then they -- it rang a hammer on the bell. And this bell went bang. And it went out and out and out. Where, in California, you ring the bell and it only goes as far as the next fault.
LEMON: We've been hearing about this from you guys and seismologists, saying you know, that the Midwest is due for a big earthquake.
MYERS: Absolutely.
LEMON: And this -- you know, when is it going to come? They're due. But you said anywhere.
MYERS: There were three big earthquakes, 1811 and 1812. And those actually -- the earthquake that happened in 1811 rang the bells in Boston.
LEMON: But when you say due, that could be now and thousands of...
MYERS: Within the next 10,000 years.
LEMON: OK, well...
MYERS: I think we're probably OK. But you know, I mean, it's like winning or losing the lottery, depending on your point of view.
LEMON: We'll see.
MYERS: I'm probably not going to win it.
LEMON: Yes.
MYERS: But someday I might.
LEMON: And they didn't expect this. So...
MYERS: Absolutely.
LEMON: All right. Chad Myers, we'll be checking back with you. Thank you much for it. Thank you very much for that.
We also want to talk about more weather stories. Take a look at this golf-ball-sized hail. It's slamming into Dallas, the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. That happened last night.
The hail dented cars, and it broke some windows, as well. Winds were also fierce, about 60 miles an hour. But perhaps the most frightening part of this storm was just west of Ft. Worth.
The National Weather Service says a tornado was reported on the ground for about seven minutes. But there were no reports of damage; no reports of injuries, as well.
LONG: A courtroom artist saw this in San Angelo yesterday. Here's the sketch we want to share you: men and women from a controversial religious group watching a judge and attorneys discuss custody options for more than 400 kids removed from a polygamist ranch.
The hearings went late into the night and then resumed again this morning. At issue, whether young girls and young boys were being groomed for a polygamist lifestyle and if underage girls were sexually abused. A church member says those who believe that are 100 percent wrong.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAN, FLDS MEMBER: I hear it a lot in the newspapers and hear people talking about it: sexual abuse, problems of that kind. And it's the furthest thing away from what we do here. There's nothing that's more disliked and more trained against than immorality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: That's from one church member. In a few minutes we'll be talking to an attorney, one of many, many volunteers working on behalf of the more than 400 kids whose fates are really up in the air today.
LEMON: The pope at the United Nations. Benedict XVI is only the third pope to address the General Assembly. How much weight does he carry with the world body? We'll ask the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See.
LONG: Plus, a key member of Bruce Springsteen's band dies at 58, a victim of the deadly, rare, but treatable form of cancer. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: In San Angelo, Texas, one judge for a second day is hearing arguments for and against returning hundreds of children to a polygamist sect where state officials believe kids were forced to grow up way too fast.
We're understanding there is some new information, some developing news coming out of that courtroom as it concern -- concerns those children and the judge. New information to the CNN NEWSROOM. We're working on getting that for you.
Also working on getting someone who was in the courtroom, Tom Vick, a part of the proceedings, a lawyer who arranged legal help for those 400-plus children. He's going to join us in just a moment in the CNN NEWSROOM with this developing news.
LONG: Also, you may have noticed, of course, fares are up if you've been trying to book a flight. Flights have also been canceled. But there's another problem with air travel that has gradually developed. So gradually you may not have even noticed. We're going to tell you what it is, coming up.
And a renegade fuel truck. Could this be a sign of the times? We have the story behind this picture, as we take a look in a moment at another broken record of the price of gasoline.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. This just into the CNN NEWSROOM, and I mean just off the printer as we were coming out of this break. We have some major endorsements to announce when it comes to Senator Barack Obama. And it's from some really big power players in Washington.
It's coming from Senator Robert Reich -- it's from Robert Reich and former senators Sam Nunn and David Boren. Now, here's what Robert Reich is saying, and I'm going to read it just from the text that just came over the wires here.
It says, "The formal act of endorsing a candidate is generally and properly limited to editorial pages and elected officials, whose constituents might be influenced by the choice." And then he goes on to say why he did not want to endorse someone until now, because he didn't want to affect any friendships.
So Robert Reich goes on to say, "I believe that Barack Obama should be elected president of the United States. Although Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible policy proposals, Obama's -- Obama's strike me as even more so." Meaning his proposals and his policies.
So again, Robert Reich and former senators Sam Nunn and David Boren today just announcing, just moments ago, that they plan to support and endorse Barack Obama for president. We'll get our political people on top of this and bring you more details as they come. LONG: Now, if you've been watching regularly, perhaps you've noticed over the past couple of Fridays we've been taking a special look at the black experience. With Pope Benedict XVI currently on tour in the U.S., today seemed like as good a day as any to focus on religious attitudes in black America.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you're part of a religion, it's going to make you naturally biased. I mean, to me, that's just the nature of religion. Not to give any thought to religion or anything like that, but you're going to be naturally biased.
I think to be political and maybe president and stuff like that, you have to be as broad-minded and open-minded as you can possibly be. And religion tends to put people in a box, so to speak.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Faith and religion, another in our series of conversations with black America. We're talking about black Catholics and about African-Americans of other faiths, as well. We'll hear from some top radio personalities here today in the NEWSROOM.
Now, is the gender gap creating a graduation gap at the nation's historically black colleges and black universities? Possibly, and it's men who are being left behind.
Here's CNN's Chris Lawrence with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It takes ten seconds on campus to see what's missing: men. They're outnumbered by women nearly 2-1 at Howard University and historically black colleges nationwide.
(on-camera): Do you see the gender gap on campus?
JANAY WILSON, HOWARD UNIVERSITY JUNIOR: I definitely notice the gap on campus. In all my classes I have maybe two males, if anything.
LAWRENCE (voice-over): We gathered some Howard students to talk about the gap.
JAMES GARRIS, HOWARD UNIVERSITY SENIOR: I'm in the School of Communications. Some of those classes, it's me -- maybe me and another guy.
LAWRENCE: To be fair, white women outnumber white men in schools across the country, too. But the gap is wider among black students. Howard recently graduated 863 women and 339 men.
(on-camera): What are black women on campus doing that black men aren't?
DR. ALVIN THORNTON, ASSOCIATE PROVOST, HOWARD UNIVERSITY: I think they're more academically focused.
LAWRENCE (voice-over): Dr. Alvin Thornton says black men accepted to Howard have higher SAT scores than the women.
THORNTON: It suggests that once she gets into the educational environment, she studies harder and she works harder.
LAWRENCE: Overall, out of 100 historically black colleges, only eight graduate more than half their students.
LOREN HULEN, HOWARD UNIVERSITY JUNIOR: You start out with a class of maybe -- randomly, like 1,000 end up with 500, because half the people couldn't make it.
LAWRENCE: By contrast, UCLA graduates 73 percent of its black students, and at elite schools like Harvard and Yale, black students graduate at nearly the same rate as whites: well above 90 percent.
But those schools have huge endowments that can erase students' financial need. And money matters. Seven out of 10 black students who enroll but didn't finish college say they dropped out because of high loan debt.
Experts say the key to keeping more black men in college can be found in the elementary schools they attended.
THORNTON: Let's go back 12 years and see what's the size of this class and if they have a certified math teacher. How many male teachers were there? What after-school programs did they have?
LAWRENCE: The graduation rate for black men is improving, just not as much as black women.
WILSON: I'm focusing on the positive of it. I think it's great that so many women are in college, because for so long it was the opposite way.
LAWRENCE: And for its part, Howard graduates more black male doctors and lawyers than nearly any school in the country: public, private, white or black.
CALVIN HADLEY, HOWARD UNIVERSITY SENIOR: Let's start making this thing like, "Oh, there are no black males coming to college," because you have three, four black males here, one that's graduating in two days and will be going to law school.
LAWRENCE: The question is, how many more will join him?
Chris Lawrence, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Chris, thanks for that.
Now back to our developing news in San Angelo, Texas, where one judge for a second day is hearing arguments for and against returning hundreds of children to a polygamist ranch where state officials believe kids were forced to grow up way too fast.
Tom Vick was in that courtroom. He's part of the proceedings, as a matter of fact. A lawyer who has arranged legal help for those 400- plus kids.
I'll get right to it. When I was talking to you a second ago you said we have some breaking news when it comes to this. What is it?
TOM VICK, ATTORNEY: Well, a couple of really interesting developments. We went until 9:00 p.m. last night. The judge announced this morning that she was going to give CPS, the state, until about 2:00 p.m. to finish making a presentation of their case. And then she was going to wrap up the rest of this case by 4:00 p.m. this afternoon.
So she's got inherent power under the Texas rules of civil procedure to limit testimony and to limit the time that happens in her court. And she's taken hold of these proceedings and said, "You know what? We're going to be done today." So that's the first important development. That means we'll be out of here before 9:00 p.m. tonight.
The other interesting development is they called, CPS called now their fourth witness, Dr. Perry, who's a psychiatrist. And he's the witness who was connecting the dots. A lot of people say, "Well, we can understand, if there's pregnant teenagers out there, that we need to take those out, that they're in danger. But how about young men and how about these other kids and these other demographics? Why would it be important to take those out?"
And he testified about that today. He was just finishing his direct examination when I came out here to talk to you. So the cross- examination of him will start by the mothers, the fathers and the attorneys for the children; is probably going on now.
LEMON: OK. So lawyers, they have to wrap it up by 2:00 p.m. And then by 4:00 she said she is done. Four hundred -- more than 400 children, is this possible, you think?
VICK: It's entirely possible. Remember that this is not the final hearing. This hearing has a very narrow focus. And the focus of this hearing is did the state and does the state now still have sufficient evidence under the family code for the continued -- that would warrant the continued removal of these children? And it does.
LEMON: Do you think at this point, from what you've been -- what you've been witnessing here, does the state have the compelling evidence?
VICK: Well, the state's put on their case. Now, we haven't heard any rebuttal from the parents. So it would be a little premature. I mean, any time you've only heard one side of a trial, it's easy to say, "Well, gosh, sounds like they're winning." It's a little premature to say that.
It will be interesting to see what the fathers put on. My anticipation is you won't see many of them want to testify, because a lot of them are facing criminal liability.
LEMON: OK.
VICK: And then the mothers could offer testimony, and they might get up there and testify.
LEMON: OK, Tom. Last night on "LARRY KING," an attorney for one of the children spoke out.
And I want you to listen to her, and I want to get your response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY LOU ALVAREZ, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING FIVE YFZ MOTHERS: Right now I haven't heard any allegations to defend against.
LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": In other words, the state has presented nothing against the particular five women you are representing?
ALVAREZ: I have been in the hearing all day, and I haven't heard any evidence to support the removal of my clients' children.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Do you agree with that, Tom?
VICK: Well, that's not a surprising statement. I've never been involved in a CPS removal case where the mothers or the fathers agreed with what was going on. And obviously...
LEMON: But she's talking about evidence. She's talking about evidence.
VICK: Yes, she -- she probably doesn't have any legal training. And she doesn't really -- I mean, she's looking at this through her own vision. She would be less than independent. And, you know, the judge is looking at all of the evidence. A skilled and a very careful jurist. I think reasonable minds could differ about what the evidence showed yesterday.
LEMON: OK. So if the judge says she's going to wrap it up by 4:00 p.m., are we going to hear any sort of decision from her by 4:00, or is it premature?
VICK: It's possible that she could do that. In a case this size, it's entirely possible that she could say to the lawyers, "I'm going to take this under advisement. I'll issue a ruling on Monday morning." She could do it in writing. She could come back to the bench and do it. So we'll just have to see.
LEMON: Hey, Tom, we have to go. But was this move surprising to you, real quickly?
VICK: Not really. I mean, she gave everybody a chance to talk. Everybody's position is actually being heard, despite what some people would tell you. And so she's got to control this. You know, if she let it be a free-for-all this could go on three or four weeks. And there's really not any reason to do that, because it's such a narrow issue and because it's a temporary issue.
LEMON: Tom Vick, a lawyer, arranged for some of the legal help for the 400 kids on that polygamist ranch. We thank you so much for joining us. Thank you for the breaking news on this, as well.
LONG: Now as the pope visits U.N. headquarters in New York, it's worth pointing out he is a head of state. His state is Vatican City. And the U.S. has an ambassador. We will meet her, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
LONG: And hello. I'm Melissa Long, in today for Kyra Phillips.
And you, again, are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(NEWSBREAK)
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
LONG: The centerpiece of Pope Benedict's first papal visit to America was his speech today, this morning at the U.N. General Assembly. The United Nations invitation is what brought the pope to the U.S. to begin with. He warned the world of violations of human rights can have more than spiritual repercussions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POPE BENEDICT XVI: The promotion of human rights remains the most effective strategy for elimination inequalities between countries and social groups and for increasing security. Indeed, the victims of hardship and despair, whose human dignity is violated with impunity become easy prey to the call to violence. They can then become violators of peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: The papal visit there certainly shining moments, pretty much regardless of the circumstances. But This one will likely be a high point in the diplomatic career of Mary Ann Glendon. She is the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, a position she has held, by our accounts, for what, about two months and a few days now.
MARY ANN GLENDON. U.S. AMB. TO HOLY SEE: Since February, yes.
LONG: Well, welcome to your new position. Of course, it is a new position for you, but the pontiff has been in his position about three years now. so why now is he making a visit to the U.S.?
GLENDON: The impetus for the visit, as you voted, was the invitation from the United Nations. I think that it's understood in the context of other papal visits that this is the 60th anniversary year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. And John Paul II visited the United Nations on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. So there are certain occasions where it's appropriate to reflect on the founding principles and their implications for contemporary conditions.
LONG: Ambassador Glendon, certainly the pope is touching on many important topics during his six-day visit in the U.S. Among them really starting on the flight on route to the U.S., talking about the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. Yesterday he made history by talking to several victims.
Let's share one sound clip with you right now, share with our viewers as well, but someone who was in that important and historic meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERNIE MCDAID, SEX ABUSE SURVIVOR: I shook his hand, told him when I was an altar boy in the sachristy I was abused, sexually abused. A 12-year-old boy, a sacred moment, praying with his heart and soul, that this wasn't just sexual abuse, this was spiritual abuse.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Hearing this victim, hearing the other victims that we have heard from during the pope's visit, do you think the pope is reacting the way the Catholic population wants, the Catholic congregants want to hear him react?
GLENDON: Judging from the reactions we've heard so far, the pope's words of healing have been very much appreciated. We've heard very moving accounts from persons who were victims themselves, saying that their hearts melted at the words of the pope.
But I really think the most important thing the pope said that is relevant to this whole matter was said on the White House lawn, when he, in praising America, nevertheless, warned us that a great country has to attend to its moral foundations. And there he was clearly referring to the deterioration of moral foundations that took place with the great social and sexual upheavals of the '60s, '70s and '80s, and warning us that children and other really won't be safe until we address the underlying cultural conditions that made this epidemic of abuse -- really which priests participated to a much lesser extent than other persons who had privileged access to children. As we all know, the ...
LONG: Pope John Paul II did not address the sexual abuse scandal in the church. Pope Benedict has certainly made it a conversation, he has it (ph) daily throughout his visit thus far.
A lot of people are drawing comparisons, or trying to find comparisons between the two leaders. Do you think Pope Benedict is connecting with American Catholics since he is so different from Pope John Paul? GLENDON: I think he has connected in his own way with enormous success. We just have witnessed in Washington and now here in New York this tremendous outpouring of affection for the rather shy, scholarly pope with the beaming smile who seems to have won the hearts of millions.
LONG: And with, of course, the fancy red shoes, Prada shoes that we have all come to know as well.
And we're out of time. I just wanted to say one other thing, though. You are new in this position. You were just confirmed in December, sworn in February. This has been quite a week for you.
GLENDON: It's been a great privilege to be here at this historic moment.
LONG: Ambassador Glendon, thank you so much for your time and sharing your expertise. We appreciate it.
GLENDON: Thank you.
LONG: And we'll be following the pontiff throughout the weekend. Perhaps you want to jot this down. We're going to bring you live coverage of the papal mass at Yankee Stadium. That's at 2:00 in the afternoon this Sunday.
LEMON: Bruce Springsteen called him one of the pillars of the E Street sound. Today, the boss and fans mourn the loss of keyboardist Danny Federici. More on that. It was cancer that took his life, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right, in political news today, the big political news just happening now out of Washington. Some very major endorsements for Senator Barack Obama. This just into the CNN NEWSROOM about five, 10 minutes ago. We're told that Robert Reich is endorsing Barack Obama, as well as former Senator Sam Nunn and David Boren. That's coming out just moments ago.
And the information that we have on it, all that -- the note from these three men will say is that, I believe that Barack Obama should be elected president of the United States. And the letter that they wrote went into an explanation about why they hadn't endorsed anyone so far. But they didn't want to ruin any friendships or any relationships or what have you in this very contentious race.
They also mentioned Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. They say although Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible policy proposals, Obama strikes me as even more so.
So again, Robert Reich who actually served under Bill Clinton, so, this is kind of surprising that he is endorsing Barack Obama. He served under Bill Clinton. So, we'll see where that -- what happens with that when we talk to our political people on this in just a couple of minutes. Let's talk now about some polls. Four days left until the Pennsylvania primary and the new CNN Poll of Polls is holding steady with Hillary Clinton in the lead over Barack Obama. Our latest survey of four different Pennsylvania polls gives Clinton 48 percent to Obama's 43 percent. Senator Clinton has held a five-point edge among likely Democratic voters for most of this week.
LONG: Now, from prices at the pump, prices at the supermarket, the economy is a hot topic, obviously on the campaign trail.
CNN's Josh Rubin is listening to voters on this week's "Election Express Yourself."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSH RUBIN, CNN ELECTION EXPRESS PRODUCER: As the Election Express travels the country, we eat in a ton of different restaurants. And you know what? Food is getting a lot more expensive. So, we asked restaurant owners coast-to-coast what's going on?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I really worry about when or if I need to raise my prices. I don't want to have to raise them. But the economics of everything else, I won't make a profit, I'll lose money if I don't.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, every day, it's food from my suppliers is getting higher.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right now, it's affecting the prices. We're fixing up to go up on prices because of the cost of gas is causing our delivery cost to go up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your to-go boxes, the styrofoam and the cups and the straws and the napkins, all of that is also getting raised because that also has to be delivered out here by trucks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're seeing less people coming in. On the weekends, it's been slower. So, none of us are making as much money as we were.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, everybody's raising their prices, eventually I'm going to have to raise mine, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, well, join "Rick on the Road" this weekend. CNN's Rick Sanchez will be live in Philadelphia for a two-hour special on the Pennsylvania primary. He'll be talking with the state's top political movers and shakers and regular folk in coffee shops about this make-or-break contest. That's "Rick on the Road" Saturday and Sunday night from 10:00 p.m. until midnight Eastern time.
LONG: All right, yes, I know, it's slightly warm, it needs a little TLC, a little Shout, but what do you want? Would you take this shirt, Mr. Lemon? No?
LEMON: Would I take that shirt?
LONG: Yes, why not. It's got a history to it.
LEMON: No, I don't want the shirt. But I'd have it for -- buy it for charity, you know what I mean.
LONG: Right, right. Well, actually, we're going to talk about that coming up. Because, I mean, it's understandably a little torn, it was buried under some concrete at Yankee Stadium, right. And if the price is right, it can be yours, Don, so check your wallet.
LEMON: I'd get in trouble if I wore that on the air.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Bruce Springsteen has postponed the next couple of concerts and rightly so. It's after the death of Danny Federici, the long-time E-Street Band keyboard player. He died yesterday after a three-year battle with melanoma. Federici played with the band as recently as last month. He was 58-years-old.
Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta has more on this type of skin cancer, what to look for and how to avoid it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, melanoma is the most serious and deadly form of skin cancer. Most people know that by now. Thankfully, it is one of the rarest, as well.
Part of the concern about melanoma is that it can actually spread from the skin to other parts of the body. And in fact, melanoma comes from the cells that make melanin, which can occur in all sorts of different areas of the body, including for example your eyes, even your small intestine. So, this is something that needs to be watched.
Melanoma has been in the news quite a bit lately, most specifically with Senator McCain. Remember that he has had melanoma in the past in 1993 and 2000. His tumor was 2.2 millimeters deep. I tell you that because depth matters. That's how doctors stage or grade the melanoma. In his case, they say they found his staging, he has a 10-year survival of about 66 percent.
Now, the first sign of melanoma often can be a change in the mole. So, as the weather gets warmer, you're showing more skin. Make sure to look at those moles. Some specific things to look for: irregular shapes or borders, uneven colors, larger than one fourth of an inch, some itchiness or bleeding.
People that are at risk of course, are people who have fair skin. We know that. Also, if you've had a lot of sunburns, especially as a child, you're going to be more at risk. Sunny, high altitude climates and a family history.
It is very treatable if caught early. In fact, melanoma overall, five-year survival is 99 percent if caught early. Best bet of course, try and limit your sun exposure as nice as the weather may be.
Back to you for now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: Thank you, Sanjay. Now, the David Ortiz Red Sox jersey that nearly cursed the Yankees, it could be all yours. it's up for auction on eBay and the best part is the money goes to charity.
LEMON: I still can't believe this story.
LONG: I think it's a great story. It's my favorite story of the week, in fact.
A construction worker -- in case you aren't familiar with the story -- buried it in wet cement at the new Yankee Stadium. He was trying to, of course, curse the Yankees. A little payback for the curse of the bambino, but he was found out. The eBay proceeds will benefit the Jimmy Fund. It supports adult and pediatric cancer research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute based in Boston. And in case you might want to put in a bid, well, the bids today already topping $33,000.
LEMON: Well, that's a good part of this story. It took something that was potentially bad, at least for New York ...
LONG: Potential curse, absolutely.
LEMON: ...potential curse, and they turned it into something good, they're raising money for charity.
LONG: Yes, I love this story, too.
LEMON: Yes.
LONG: Yes, and it's nice that they've been able to turn it into that positive, as well.
LEMON: Yes, that is a good story. But then the guy, it sounded like a good idea at the time. They're still considering whether or not they can prosecute him or file charges against him. So, we shall see. We shall see.
LONG: We'll follow, we'll keep you up-to-date.
LEMON: OK, looking for a really slick ride, Melissa? Something really cool?
LONG: Depends on the price.
LEMON: All right, what about a Ferrari?
LONG: I can't afford that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The same lights, same fenders, most of the results (ph) is the same. Very well, well done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Real or fake Ferrari? You be the judge.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Don, what kind of watch are you wearing?
LEMON: I can't tell you.
LONG: It's not a fake Rolex? No?
LEMON: What do you call it, a Faulex (ph)? A fake Rolex?
LONG: (INAUDIBLE).
LEMON: Actually, I do cheaper ones because I bang them up like sunglasses.
LONG: OK, well, you can buy a fake one ...
LEMON: I'll buy a fake (ph) one, yes.
LONG: ...you know that. You can buy a fake Prada bag, Louis Vuitton luggage, and now a fake Ferrari?
Here's CNN's Alessio Vinci.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: So, these are the photos of the fake Ferraris. What do you think of it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The glass ...
VINCI (voice-over): At first glance and from a distance, even an expert could be fooled.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very good replica. Same light, same fenders. Most of the results (ph) is the same. Very well, well done.
VINCI: Well done, but down right fake and available to buyers on the Internet at a fraction of the cost of a real Ferrari that would set you back around $130,000. The fake runs closer to $30,000. They are replicas that have impressed even Italian police who say they recently broke up a ring of rogue mechanics able to shape fiber glass and turn a Toyota or a Pontiac into what could look like an authentic dream car.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Also, the side is very well made.
VINCI: And take a look at the result. If you are not a Ferrari expert, the fake and real Ferrari may look just the same, at least from the outside.
(on-camera): What about the inside, the carpet?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The interior, too, are different.
VINCI (voice-over): But a closer inspection of the dashboard, the steering wheel, the gear shift and the brakes reveals substantial differences.
(on-camera): Now, what -- can you tell which car is this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't know.
VINCI: But it's not a Ferrari?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no. Not Ferrari.
VINCI (voice-over): Ferrari says the phenomenon of copying their cars is still small and the brand isn't really suffering.
DAVIDE KLUZER, FERRARI BRAND MANAGEMENT: What is scaring us is that we may have people driving around those, let's call them cars, that nothing have to do with our cars. And so, they do not have the technology, the safety features of our cars.
VINCI: But as with every knock-off, the secret is in the detail. And when it comes to a Ferrari, the detail is under the hood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the biggest difference, the engine.
VINCI (on-camera): The engine?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The engine is the biggest difference.
VINCI: This may look like a real Ferrari, it's red, it's slick, it looks like a million bucks, but there is something about a real Ferrari that simply cannot be copied. Take a look or rather listen up.
(voice-over): Now, that the sound of authenticity.
Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: There's something about looking at Alessio Vinci in that vehicle. He pulls it off better than other people.
LEMON: Well, I know why we ran that story. But anyway ...
LONG: I mean, it's a tremendous story. I love that story.
LEMON: Yes, it's good. It's very interesting though, that they can replicate them.
LONG: Well, I wouldn't know. I don't have a trained eye. But I'm sure someone that really knows cars would know.
LEMON: Yes, I think it's pretty easy to figure out. The quality's not there.
OK, talk about rocking and rolling in the morning, huh? Well, they were doing it in the Midwest. The latest on the earthquake that shook several states.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
