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Raging Wildfires in Southern California; Fallen Soldier: Ballpark Funeral for Long-Lost Reservist; Assassination Attempt on Hamid Karzai; The Next Big Show: Primaries in North Carolina, Indiana; Children of the Sect: A Community Reaches Out
Aired April 27, 2008 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Next in the NEWSROOM, gunfire erupts at a ceremony in Afghanistan, sending President Karzai and a host of dignitaries scrambling for safety.
Plus, raging wildfires in southern California. These are pictures from last night and live pictures right now of the smoldering there.
Hundreds of acres destroyed. Hundreds of homes being evacuated. We'll take you there live.
And a disturbing story in Austria today. A father is accused of locking his daughter in a cellar for more than 20 years, and that's just the beginning.
Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
A wildfire is consuming hundreds of acres and spreading toward neighborhoods in Sierra Madre, northeast of Los Angeles. Families are being forced out of their homes, and now officials say it appears the fire was manmade.
Our Thelma Gutierrez joins us from Sierra Madre, California.
And why do they believe this was manmade?
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, this fire started in Santa Anita Canyon. This is an area that's very popular with picnickers, hikers, that kind of a thing. It began yesterday afternoon in an area that would be populated with campers and people. So, right now, they're still looking at what exactly may have caused this fire, but believing, though, that it may have been manmade.
Now, you take a look right behind me, what the fire chief said is going on right now. You have 400 firefighters who are on the ground hacking away at dry brush that hasn't burned in about 40 years. Also, you take a look at the homes right on the ridge, the fire chief says they actually have engines positioned right in front of those homes.
They're creating a line of defense so that if the fire comes down that ridge, they will be in position to protect those homes. The canyons are very steep, and so they're having to fight this fire by air, as well. So they're very aggressively attacking this fire. So far, though, 400 acres have burned and there are mandatory evacuations going on. Five hundred and 50 people have been evacuated from this area.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have new reports of a wedding party approximately 50 people, 3.5 miles from the Tantry (ph) ranger station. Fire officials are looking at ground evacuation. If this is not possible for some or all of the wedding party, people will be flown out. All of the people -- all members of this wedding party will be out of the area by noon today.
Sierra Madre Search and Rescue is in on this operation, coordinating with L.A. County sheriffs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUTIERREZ: Now, many of the streets in this area, here in the Sierra Madre, are closed. They're making sure that people don't venture off into the area that is burning right now. And I can tell you the bad news is that it is expected to be a record hot day, with temperatures soaring up around 100 degrees. The good news, however, is that it is not windy, so firefighters are not having to contend with those very dangerous Santa Ana conditions.
Fredricka, back to you.
WHITFIELD: All right. We'll continue to check back with you.
Thelma Gutierrez, thank you so much from Sierra Madre, California
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Meantime, overseas, an assassination attempt against Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Taliban militants opened fire today during a military ceremony packed with Afghan officials and foreign dignitaries, including the U.S. ambassador to Kabul. Three people were killed, including an Afghan lawmaker and a 10-year-old boy.
Karzai escaped unhurt. He later appeared on television calling for calm.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN (through translator): Today, during the commemoration of the 16th anniversary of Afghan jihad, the enemies of Afghanistan, the enemies of peace and development of Afghanistan, tried to disturb the ceremony. Fortunately, the Afghan military surrounded them and arrested some of the suspects.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: A Taliban spokesman said six militants took part in the attack. Three people, again, were killed. And we'll of course have more information on this story as we get it.
Well, meantime, this is not just another Sunday at the Cincinnati Reds' home ballpark. It's a day to remember fallen U.S. soldier Matt Maupin.
Thousands are gathering right now at the funeral of the Ohio reservist. Maupin's remains were found in Iraq last month, four years after he was kidnapped.
On April 9, 2004, Maupin was 20 years old when insurgents attacked his fuel convoy. He disappeared. And less than a week later, a videotape surfaced showing Maupin surrounded by several armed masked men. Then two months later, Al-Jazeera aired what appeared to be Maupin's execution.
For his family, four painful years would pass before Maupin's remains were found last month. It was a long journey home for Maupin, who was born in 1983 in suburban Cincinnati. Maupin was a high school football player. Family members included two brothers and a sister, and his parents, Carol and Keith Maupin.
Well, the people of Ohio have been turning out all weekend to honor Maupin's return. Richard Chiles of our Ohio affiliate WCPO has been following the procession.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD CHILES, REPORTER, WCPO (voice over): The pipes sang their sad song, a wail about grace, amazing and sweet, joining with the throaty rumble of motorcycles and a voice to welcome home a hero. As the sun broke through the morning, the tristate paused to welcome home our own fallen son.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really sad. Just -- I didn't know him, but I have a little boy and you never know.
CHILES: Keith and Carolyn Maupin's boy came home. People who may have never met Matt Maupin stood shoulder to shoulder with those who had known the Claremont County soldier their whole lives, all to welcome him home one last night.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Me and my girlfriend (INAUDIBLE), we used to babysit Matt Maupin and Mike from Willoville (ph) Elementary. And it's just neat to see everybody come together like this and stand out on this rainy day.
CHILES: The rain wouldn't stop anyone who waited for Matt to come home. After four years, this community watched this journey come to its final mile.
Honor guards received the body of Staff Sergeant Maupin. The men who would carry him, served with Matt in the 724th, they kept their promise to one another -- never leave a man behind.
Old soldiers saluted. Young ones held their heads high with pride. And children watched unsure but aware of the life lived and celebrated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a story to be told here. And it is that people need to be reminded why they got their freedom. This guy gave the ultimate sacrifice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Friends and buddies and relatives that he gave his life for this country. It will help bring a closure to his life and it will give the others maybe an incentive to keep help defending our country for our freedom.
CHILES: Matt is home from his long journey. Perhaps making us all a little better along the way.
In Claremont County, Richard Chiles, 9 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: In Montgomery, Alabama, another homecoming.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here's daddy. There he is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: This one happy. Nearly 150 Marines returned to Montgomery after serving seven months in Iraq. They returned yesterday to some very thrilled family members. The returning troops are from the 23rd Marine Company.
And now back to a top story of the attempted assassination of President Hamid Karzai in Afghanistan. A Taliban spokesman said that six militants took part in the attack. Three people were killed, including a lawmaker. Hamid Karzai was unhurt.
Joining us by phone from Kabul with more, journalist Tom Coghlan.
So Tom, this took place during a gathering of many dignitaries and country leaders. Exactly what was the occasion?
THOMAS COGHLAN, REPORTER: Well, this was the biggest military parade of the Afghan year. This was so-called the Mujahideen Day, the day that celebrates the victory of the Afghan mujahideen freedom fighters over the Soviet Union back in 1989.
Now, this is a hugely important day for ordinary Afghans, and this parade is an annual event. It goes across the main stadium in Kabul City, across the president, and in that -- on that podium with President Karzai was perhaps the densest concentration of VIPs that you could get in Afghanistan. You had the entire Afghan cabinet, most of the Afghan parliament, and most of the big western figures in Afghanistan, including the U.S. ambassador and the commander of NATO forces here.
WHITFIELD: And Tom...
COGHLAN: So it was a big, big event.
WHITFIELD: And Tom, while the Taliban is claiming responsibility, or at least having some of its militants involved in this attack, have they gone as far as to say that Hamid Karzai was, indeed, their target?
COGHLAN: No, they haven't. And that's an interesting point. They haven't actually said that the president himself was the target, or not in any of the remarks that I've heard attributed to Taliban spokespeople so far.
The actual attack itself was conducted from quite a distance. The gunmen were several hundred meters away from the podium, and they were using weapons that really weren't that accurate. They were mainly Kalashnikovs, ordinary AK-47s, and heavy machine guns.
Now, at that sort of range, those are not terribly accurate weapons. And really, it appears that they tried to hit as many people in that podium as they could.
It's a miracle actually that they didn't hit somebody more important. They killed one Afghan MP, one significant tribal leader, and injured 11 other people. But given the density of the VIPs on that podium, it's a great surprise that somebody more significant wasn't hit.
WHITFIELD: And Tom, we know that Hamid Karzai has been targeted, has been threatened many times before. Has he been receiving a particularly high number of threats as of recent? In other words, did his folks know that any kind of public event that he would be involved in, he certainly was in particular jeopardy?
COGHLAN: Well, there's absolutely no question that everyone knew that he was going to be at this event. And that's why we have had enormous security around Kabul for the last few days.
I believe that the exact number of security personnel deployed ahead of this parade was 3,000 security personal. There were snipers up on rooftops last night. There were a huge number of police posted around Kabul City.
Everyone knew he was going to be there, but the authorities were banking on the fact that they had blanketed the area with security and that was going to be enough. Now, that proved not to be the case.
WHITFIELD: All right. Journalist Tom Coghlan, thanks so much for that update from Kabul, Afghanistan.
Well, NATO is leading the international war effort against the Taliban in Afghanistan. Right now there are 47,000 NATO troops deployed there, 28,000 of them are American forces. That number is expected to rise to 32,000 over the summer. Four hundred twelve U.S. troops have been killed so far in the war in Afghanistan.
Well, a man who decided to do away with anything and everything to do with oil in this country, including electricity, here's part of his story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOUG FINE, AUTHOR, "FAREWELL, MY SUBARU": We're having -- actually having a solar moment here right now. We had this big storm here last night, and the -- oh, hello, goats. And the...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Taking it all in stride. The author of "Farewell, My Subaru," he's later in the NEWSROOM.
And John McCain's wife loans the presidential candidate her plane. Flying in dangerous territory? We'll tell you next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Just two weeks to go before the big Democratic primaries in Indiana and North Carolina. Hillary Clinton in North Carolina, challenging Barack Obama to debate without moderators.
In Indiana, live pictures -- not right now, actually. Sorry. That's tape. Obama brushing her off, saying he has debated enough.
Our Jim Acosta is live and is following the campaigns in Indianapolis and joins us right now.
All right. Well, this is an intriguing format. Clinton's folks say bring it on, and Obama's folks say, no, forget it.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Saying, no we can't, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: No, we won't.
ACOSTA: Barack Obama was issued this challenge yesterday by -- that's right, no, we won't. Hillary Clinton really threw down the gauntlet yesterday here in Indiana, challenging Barack Obama to a one- on-one-style, Lincoln Douglas-style debate with no moderators. All of this hearkening back to when Steven Douglas and Abraham Lincoln were engaging in those one-on-one debates. I think they might have been standing on tree stumps back then in the 1850s running for the Senate in Illinois.
Abraham Lincoln, by the way, ended up losing that campaign, went on to win the presidency. But the Barack Obama campaign is saying, no way.
We talked to David Axelrod, the chief strategist for the Obama campaign, yesterday, and he said that the senator from Illinois has debated 21 times, we don't need a 22nd time between now and these primaries in Indiana and North Carolina. As for Senator Obama, he told one of the Sunday talk shows that he would like to spend this next nine days concentrating on getting his message out directly to voters without the filter of a debate. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm not ducking one. We've had 21. And so, you know, what we have said is, with two weeks, two big states, we want to make sure that we're talking to as many folks as possible on the ground, taking questions from voters. You know...
CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS: No debates between now and Indiana?
OBAMA: We're not going to have debates between now and Indiana.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Now, as for the Illinois senator, he spent this morning in Indianapolis, attended church here in the capital of Indiana. And is essentially trying to change the dynamics of this campaign, Fredricka.
He spent much of the time that he had in Pennsylvania campaigning there, basically having a confrontation with Hillary Clinton. And what the Obama campaign seems to be doing is to, use a sports analogy, trying to use this game back to his side of the court, whereas they would like to see more of those big, splashy rallies that get a lot of attention on the local newscasts.
And we also saw Barack Obama playing basketball over the weekend, attending the -- or going to the Illinois -- excuse me -- the Indiana high school basketball hall of fame here in Indiana. Trying to get that impression across to voters that he's a little bit more than that confrontation that he had with Hillary Clinton there in Pennsylvania. Trying -- trying to change the nature of this campaign from Hillary Clinton defining him to Obama going back to defining himself -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Jim Acosta, thank you so much.
ACOSTA: You bet.
WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk about the Republican candidate, John McCain, who is right now campaigning in Florida. And apparently he's taken a little heat because he borrowed his wife's plane to make some of his campaign stops.
It's not illegal, but "The New York Times" reports that McCain took advantage of a loophole in campaign finance legislation to save money. He's being asked those questions right now in Coral Gables. Let's listen in.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
QUESTION: How do you...
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What we did was perfectly legal and appropriate.
Yes?
QUESTION: Can you follow up on the ad question?
MCCAIN: Yes.
QUESTION: Have you called the North Carolina Republican Party yourself?
WHITFIELD: All right. Quite simply, he says it's perfectly legal and appropriate to have borrowed his wife's plane there. Live picture there out of Coral Gables. He doesn't look like he wants to talk about it any further, but of course if there are any other questions that I guess encourage him to expound a bit on his point of view and the reason why he did borrow his wife's plane, then of course we'll be able to bring that response to you.
Meantime, a little bit more information about the Democratic contenders, particularly Barack Obama.
His controversial former pastor, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, today giving a Sunday sermon today in Dallas, and is expected to speak to the NAACP tonight in Detroit. Well, he's become something of a political lightning rod since his sermons denouncing the U.S. appeared on the Internet.
And CNN will of course continue to cover that speech scheduled for Detroit, and you'll be able to see it and a comprehensive report 10:00 tonight in the NEWSROOM.
Well, of course we want you to go beyond the 20-second sound bites. Join CNN's "BALLOT BOWL." That's today, 4:00 Eastern. And keep in mind, CNN is the place for the 2008 presidential campaign. Next up, Indiana and North Carolina. That you know by now.
Well, guess what? A reminder. Just a week from Tuesday, right here on CNN, your home for politics.
Well, all they see is a group of children who need help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We wish the best for these kids and these moms.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Up next in the NEWSROOM, a community looks past any dislikes of the polygamist lifestyle, choosing instead to focus on the kids in need.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
WHITFIELD: A lawyer says two boys taken by authorities in a raid on a Texas polygamist compound are unaccounted for, but child welfares says no children have been lost. More than 460 of the kids are settling into group homes across the state of Texas this weekend, while their families and the government fight over what exactly is best for them.
Kevin Peters of affiliate KHOU looks at how one Texas community is trying to ease the transition for these children.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Baby clothing, a lot of diapers, kids' toys.
KEVIN PETERS, REPORTER, KHOU (voice over): The Liverpool City Hall may be just a tiny shack, but today it's warehousing something much bigger than these walls can hold.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We believe in community. We believe in these kids. We believe in helping each other.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lots of diapers.
PETERS: One after another...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everybody has to come together, and especially in Houston.
PETERS: ... people stop by to donate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's your first name?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brenda.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Brenda. Thank you so much.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
PETERS: A caring gesture to ease the lives of three dozen children at the nearby Kidz Harbor.
(on camera): The children spent their first night at this shelter. And workers tell us they're adapting as best they can.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to keep it as close to what they were doing at home as possible.
PETERS (voice over): Kidz Harbor says the children are playing with toys, with each other, and are adjusting to their new surroundings.
As far as their demeanor...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really quiet right now, but lots of smiles, which lets me know that they feel comfortable.
PETERS: The shelter is preparing to house these children for several months, if not longer. That will depend on what the courts rule. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to be here every day.
PETERS: One protester camped out in front of the shelter. He says the state wrongly separated the children from their parents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have no evidence, no physical evidence whatsoever. And if they do, they should bring -- do it through the rules. Nobody is above the law.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We wish the best for these kids and these moms.
PETERS: People who donated have their own questions about the state's investigation. But the focus now...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If each person was to just give a little, think of everything that they could have.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where did that bag of socks go?
PETERS: Must (ph) be on taking care of the children.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And we mentioned earlier to you that in Cincinnati, a very somber occasion is taking place. This is the funeral service for a soldier who went missing for four years. His remains were just recently found last month. His body returned to his family there in Cincinnati, Ohio.
I'm talking about soldier Matt Maupin.
Well, today, a funeral is taking place there right at Cincinnati Reds' stadium. You see the pictures right here. And just moments ago was a military fly-over paying honor to this fallen soldier.
And our hearts go out to his friends and family who are now laying him to rest today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Well, meantime, in North Africa yesterday, pretty scary moments, and tragic, as well. And now a search for more bodies continues in Morocco, one day after a massive fire at a mattress factory.
Fifty-five people are confirmed dead in the blaze in a poor industrial neighborhood in Casablanca. One hundred people were in the building when the fire broke out. The Red Crescent says the windows of the four-story building were covered with iron bars and an emergency exit was blocked. So many people just simply could not get out.
And another rough run for the Olympic torch trying to make its way around the world. The chaos this time in South Korea.
You're looking at video sent in to us by CNN iReporter Frank Ottaviano. He was near the start of the relay in Seoul there. Thousands of China supporters waved red national flags as they took to the streets to defend the torch. They clashed with anti-China demonstrators calling for improved treatment of North Korean defectors in China who were forced to go back.
A shocking and very disturbing story out of Austria now. A woman tells police her father repeatedly raped her while held captive in a cellar for almost 24 years. She also says that while in captivity, she gave birth to at least six children.
Our Fred Pleitgen is in the Austrian town of Amstetten.
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka. Yes.
The only way they found out about this is because one of the children that was fathered by this man who's now 73 years old had to go to hospital because of a serious ailment. And the doctors there started asking questions about where this woman might be from, who her parents might be, and that's how police found out what was going on.
And as you said, this woman, who is now 42 years old, was allegedly in captivity for 24 years. And we just found out from the Austrian police that the man has showed them to a series of rooms, of secret rooms underneath his house that you could only reach via an electronic lock. These are secret rooms that he just showed them where these people had been held captive. The woman and three of her children -- three other children that she also had were taken away from her and three were still with her in that room for 24 years -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Oh my God. This is so disgusting.
All right. So, Fred, what kind of condition were these young people and this woman, the daughter, in?
PLEITGEN: Well, it was terrible condition, is what the authorities are telling us. She says -- they say that she was very, very pale. She looks much older than her 42 years.
And you have to imagine, she's down there for 24 years. And she says she never saw the light of day.
WHITFIELD: Oh my gosh.
PLEITGEN: And her children, three of her children, never saw the light of day.
She taught them how to speak. They were never in the school. They only got food from the 73-year-old father/grandfather. They only got clothes from him. They never came out.
They say they're in terrible condition physically and mentally, of course. There are a bunch of experts that are now trying to work with them to get them to cope with all -- what's been happening -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And Frederik, as we're looking at the images of this property, it does look like a pretty sizable building and property. So it's conceivable here that these secret rooms or compartments in this cellar or basement are so soundproof that no one could have heard these people for so many years?
PLEITGEN: Right. yes, well, that's something that the authorities here are asking, many in Austria are asking. And one thing that you have to realize is that the three children that were taken away from this woman, they were legally adopted by the 73-year- old man. So they were playing outside in the yard as their mother and three of their siblings were in that cellar.
WHITFIELD: So there was an opportunity to tell people.
PLEITGEN: Well, absolutely, yes.
WHITFIELD: Oh gosh.
PLEITGEN: And nobody in that area says that they saw anything or knew anything. And this man also had a wife who also says that she did not see or hear anything for 24 years -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Oh my God. This gets more and more extraordinary and disturbing.
Frederik Pleitgen, thanks so much. I know you'll continue to follow up on this story throughout the day here and into the week, as this is disgusting.
All right, Frederik. Thank you.
Well, he decided to get rid of anything and everything having to do with oil and the energy it produces in this country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FINE: Well, we are having -- actually having a solar moment here right now. We had this big storm here last night and the -- oh, hello, goats. And the...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And then guess what? He decided to write a book about it. It's pretty extraordinary. The author of "Farewell, My Subaru" -- there he is right there -- he's coming up next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Well, going green, so many of you trying little things to help the environment. Can you imagine totally changing your life? We're talking eating, driving, overall living, with the ultimate goal of using no oil.
Well, our next guest gave it his best shot. He's still doing it and he wrote a book about it. The book is called "Farewell, My Subaru."
Doug Fine is the author, and he is with us now from Seattle.
As you are crisscrossing the country, trying to inform everybody about doing the lifestyle that you are carrying out.
Good to see you, Doug.
FINE: Thank you. It is my pleasure.
WHITFIELD: Well, you really, you know, are going out on a limb. You have completely topsy-turned your lifestyle. You've moved out to New Mexico, living in the desert. Committed to growing or raising your own food.
And your vehicle -- I love what you call it -- your ROAT, an acronym for a ridiculously oversized American truck. You still have your truck, but it runs on oil from a nearby Chinese restaurant, right?
FINE: Right. Vegetable oil. That's it.
WHITFIELD: All right. So why did you decide to do this before I get to how you're doing this?
FINE: Well, I really wanted to see whether or not a regular American who enjoys his creature comforts could get oil out of his life. Because, you know, as you mentioned, you know, everybody's kind of thinking about going green, but many of us are busy, we have full- time jobs.
WHITFIELD: Right. And you want to know, how do you do it?
FINE: Yes. And so I wanted to see, can a regular person do it?
WHITFIELD: And so the answer is yes.
FINE: Absolutely. I mean, anybody can do it.
I hardly noticed that almost all oil is out of my life. You mentioned the ROAT, the ridiculously oversized American truck.
WHITFIELD: Really -- yes.
FINE: I'm on this carbon-neutral book tour right now where I'm filling up with vegetable oil from restaurant fryers. I'm driving around and not stopping at the pump.
WHITFIELD: Oh my gosh. But it really seems like it's hard work. I mean, we're looking at a fun picture of you and one of your goats -- which, by the way, your goats have kind of become your friend, right? But it means that, you know, as you live out in the desert in New Mexico, simple things like, you know, water in order to grow all these beautiful vegetables or feed your ducks, your animals, even that takes, I don't know, some creativity, because you are living in the desert, right?
FINE: It's true. No, you're right.
There's sort of a -- what you might call a learning curve. And a lot of "Farewell, My Subaru" is really readers laughing at me at all the mistakes I made, going to solar power and driving on this vegetable oil, coyotes trying to eat my goats and chickens. So, there were definitely a lot of mess-ups on my part, but hopefully the readers of the book will see, OK, if this guy can do it, I can do it.
WHITFIELD: Wow. And, you know, you really do -- I guess you're facing danger all the time. You talk about those coyotes that are constantly going after your animals, but mountain lions, too.
FINE: Yes, that's true. I mean, a lot of times I get asked the question of, well, what if I want to go green and I can't live on a ranch in the middle of New Mexico?
WHITFIELD: Right.
FINE: In truth, almost everything I attempted in the book people can do anywhere. If you can get yourself a diesel vehicle, which is why I had to say farewell to the Subaru and got this giant truck, is -- a diesel-powered vehicle. And it doesn't have to be a giant truck, I just got one because my roads are so bad on my ranch.
Anybody can do it. Anybody can move their electricity to solar, although there is a pretty big initial financial investment.
WHITFIELD: Yes, that's the other thing. You really can't go green and it be on a dime, it be cheap. You have to make a significant investment.
But what if you can't do that?
FINE: Well, it does pay itself back. There is a large initial investment, but keep in mind -- say solar panels for the average home, they'll pay back your initial investment after, say, five or 10 years. And they're warranteed, the panels, usually for 30 years. So, eventually you're actually saving money, but, yes, you either have to kind of write it into your financing or be able to write an initial check and try to benefit from tax rebates and stuff.
WHITFIELD: So you're in it for the long haul? This is it? This is the only way you want to live?
FINE: As long as the mountain lions don't get me, yes.
WHITFIELD: OK. Good job. All right. Well, the book is called "Farewell, My Subaru." It's very fun, cute reading, and instructive, too.
Doug Fine, thanks so much for sharing your story. Folks can hear you or are probably familiar with your voice from NPR, but now they can also kind of see you on the Web, too, in you're very cool little diary there.
FINE: Thank you, yes.
WHITFIELD: What is the Web site?
FINE: WWW.DougFine.com. Easy enough.
WHITFIELD: Simple enough. All right.
Doug, thanks so much. Happy trails.
FINE: My pleasure. Thanks so much.
WHITFIELD: All right. Well, a great moment this week overshadowed by everything else that was news.
Dr. Michael DeBakey, a pioneer of open heart surgery, received the highest congressional award any civilian can actually receive. You see him there. That inspiring now from CNN's Michael Schulder.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL SCHULDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Before you hear this 99-year-old legend of modern medicine tell you an unforgettable story, a little background on Dr. Michael DeBakey.
By the time this film was shot in the 1960s of Dr. DeBakey making his morning rounds at the hospital with his medical students close behind, he already had a global reputation. DeBakey developed new types of surgery that saved the lives of countless people with clogged arteries.
He invented a battery-powered device that keeps dying hearts pumping long enough to wait for a heart transplant. He helped develop the Mobile Army Surgical Hospitals known as MASH units.
President after president has sought his advice, and Dr. DeBakey's talent became so recognized around the world that when the rich and powerful needed major heart surgery, it Dr. DeBakey they sought out. In 1965, the duke of Windsor, the one in the dark glasses, was a pretty typical case of someone with access to any doctor in the world.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why did you come to Houston?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dr. DeBakey. There are a lot of -- you have surgeons in Ukraine here who do it all over the world, as well.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's true. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But I come to the maestro.
SCHULDER: This week, as the maestro of cardiovascular surgery received Congress' highest civilian award, he could have regaled us with stories of his professional accomplishments. Instead, he chose to explain how his parents helped shape the man he would become.
DR. MICHAEL DEBAKEY, CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL RECIPIENT: The most important thing our parents thought we should have was a good education. And, for example, they urged us to get any book from the library at least once a week and read it.
I came home one day and told them that I found a very good book but they wouldn't let you borrow it. You had to read it in the library. And my father wanted to know what it was. And I said, "It's called the Encyclopedia Britannica."
He promptly bought a set. And both my brothers and sisters and I would rush through our lessons to get a little time with the Encyclopedia Britannica, because -- a new adventure and we enjoyed it so much.
And I, as well as my brothers and sisters, had read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica by the time we got to college. So when I got to college at Tulane, I was probably the best-educated freshman on the campus.
SCHULDER: And so, Dr. Michael DeBakey continues to carry with him lessons learned from his parents as he approaches his 100th birthday.
Michael Schulder, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Well, President Bush auditioned last night for a possible career after the White House -- standup comedian.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Please excuse me if I'm a little sleepy. At 3:00 a.m. this morning the red phone rang.
(LAUGHTER)
BUSH: It was a (EXPLETIVE DELETED) wedding planner.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: That's funny.
Just next month his daughter will be getting married. Well, the annual White House Correspondents Dinner was last night. We'll give you more of it coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: So when he leaves the White House, President Bush may want to consider a career in comedy. He stole the show at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner. And here's some of the highlights from last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRAIG FERGUSON, HOST, CBS "THE LATE LATE SHOW": You know, a lot of people told me -- a lot of people told me -- they said, you know, when you're doing this, this is a very tough -- a lot of American comics said it to me. They said, they're a tough room. It's full of angry men and disappointed women and disappointed women and angry women, a lot of surly drunks.
I'm thinking, this is perfect. It's like a family reunion. I'll do it.
JENNIFER LOVEN, ASSOCIATED PRESS: Richard and I are well aware that this is the part of the dinner where no one pays any attention.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So we would like to introduce to you some of our scholars who are here tonight. Please join us if you can stop yacking.
BUSH: I want to talk about serious issues such as...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Here it comes. Nuclear proliferation. Nuclear proliferation. Nuclear proliferation.
BUSH: Nucular proliberation.
For eight years as vice president, Dick has ridden shotgun -- that's probably not the best analogy.
(LAUGHTER)
3:00 a.m. this morning, the red phone rang. It was (EXPLETIVE DELETED) wedding planner.
I have to say I'm kind of surprised we don't have more presidential candidates here tonight -- like any. Senator McCain's not here. He probably wanted to distance himself from me a lit bit.
You know, he is not alone. Jenna's moving out, too.
The two Democratic candidates aren't here either. Senator Clinton couldn't get into the building because of sniper fire, and Senator Obama's at church.
I love the band. And so I'm going to say my farewell to you by doing something I've always wanted to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: A little fun had by all there. And of course we want to send out a huge congratulations to one of our own being honored last night. Our White House correspondent Ed Henry picked up the top journalism award for White House reporting under deadline, pressure.
Way to go, Ed.
Got a nice little picture with the president there.
All right. Fun night.
I'm Fredricka Whitfield at the CNN Center in Atlanta.
"YOUR $$$$$" is coming up next, and then "BALLOT BOWL."
We'll be right back after this.
