Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Explosive Charges From a Former White House Press Secretary; Crude Oil Prices Through the Roof; Gas Prices Hit Another Record; A Debate Over Cuban Embargo
Aired May 28, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: What is the status of the investigation with regard to those allegations of corruption involving all types of bribery?
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It's still under investigation. We're actually still the early stages of this case. Yesterday, we heard testimony from a Jewish-American businessman Morris Talanksy. He said that he gave more than $150,000 in cash to Olmert and his aides not just for campaign funds but for personal expenses -- luxury hotels, first-class tickets, first-class hotel rooms -- and these are the allegations that Barak is referring to in that press conference.
In the headlines today, we can see angry reaction from the public. Many people saying they're disgusted to hear about these allegations. We'll have to see if that's enough to force Olmert from office.
PHILLIPS: We'll follow it. Atika Shubert out of Jerusalem. Thanks.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Just crossing the top of the hour now. Explosive charges from a former White House press secretary. In a new memoir, Scott McClellan, the face and the voice of the Bush White House for nearly three years said that president relied on propaganda to sell the war.
He also hammers the administration over its handling of Hurricane Katrina saying it was in a quote, "State of denial." McClellan also wrote that he unknowingly passed along false information regarding the CIA leak case. Now, the administration is hitting back.
CNN's Elaine Quijano is live at the White House. And Elaine, to say that White House officials, former and perhaps current are throwing McClellan under the bus would be an understatement.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, an understatement. Here is the book, John, by Scott McClellan called "What Happened?" In it Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan does, in fact, let loose on the Bush administration for among other things, as you noted, Iraq.
On that point, McClellan writes, quote, "He and his advisers talking about the president here confused the propaganda campaign," -- he says -- "With a high level of candor and honesty so fundamentally needed to build and then sustain public support during a time of war. In this regard, he was terribly ill served by his top advisers, especially those involved directly in national security."
Now, no official comment from the White House, but last night former homeland security adviser Fran Townsend fired back on "AC 360."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRAN TOWNSEND, FORMER BUSH HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISER: People need to understand that as an adviser to the president, I or Scott have an obligation, responsibility to voice concerns on policy issues. Scott never did that on any of these issues, as best I can remember, and as best I know from my White House colleagues. So for him to do this now, frankly, strikes me as self-serving, disingenuous and unprofessional.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: Now, we should mention that McClellan's spoke to my colleague Ed Henry last night and said he stand behind the accuracy of the book. But the bottom line here as you know full well, John, it is not just what is being said in this book but who is saying it. That is such a huge part of this story. A formerly staunch Bush loyalist dating back in 1999, the days in Texas when President Bush was then governor of Texas, now coming back and not holding back anything in this new memoir.
John?
ROBERTS: I got the sense talking to him after that CIA leak incident that he really felt badly burned by the White House. Did you get that sense as well?
QUIJANO: Yes. And it's absolutely interesting to see the reactions from people like yourself, folks who have known Scott McClellan for a very long time, who say they didn't see this coming. Certainly, the White House is not at all pleased about this. We have yet to see what the official comment is going to be.
But there was a lot of back and forth as you well know during that time, not only on camera but behind the scenes as well. It is very clear in this memoir from what we've read so far that he certainly feels his credibility was damaged and he was trying to sort of set the record straight, if you will, in this memoir.
John?
ROBERTS: Well, we hope to be able to ask Scott those questions himself. He's supposed to be on the show and might be later on this week. Elaine Quijano for us this morning. Elaine, thanks.
PHILLIPS: And new overnight, the United States accused of being among the world's top abusers of human rights. Amnesty International points to the treatment of detainees in Guantanamo Bay and other secret detention centers. The group also criticizing China saying it's not living up to promises to improve human rights before the Olympics and censorship of the press. And Russia cited for suppressing political descent and human rights abuses in Chechnya.
The big-world powers also called to task for not doing enough to stop the atrocities in Darfur. John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton releasing a joint statement. That's right. They'll all agreed on the genocide issue in Darfur.
And State Department correspondent Zain Verjee has more on this unusual alliance from Washington.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT: This is amazing unity by the three presidential candidates. Even they admit that calling it an uncommon step. People are waking up just now to see this very, very rare newspaper ad that says this -- "We stand united and demand that the genocide and violence in Darfur be brought to an end."
Now, it's really striking. You can see the signatures of Senators McCain, Clinton and Obama on the same page in agreement. According to rights groups, hundreds of thousands of civilians have been massacred in Darfur with the government's green light.
Now the three candidates, Kyra, are calling the killings unacceptable and they're warning the Sudanese government that it would be a huge mistake for the Khartoum regime to think and this is what they say that they will benefit by running out the clock on the Bush administration.
They say whoever becomes president will keep up the heat. According to one political scientist of the University of Virginia, Kyra, this extraordinary show of unity by presidential candidates in this way hasn't actually happened since the 1940s when foreign policy advisers of the candidates back then issued a joint statement and they resolved to end World War II. So this is a pretty big deal.
Kyra?
PHILLIPS: All right. Zain Verjee, thanks so much. And new reports show that dark cloud is still hanging over the housing market, but there may be a silver lining. Gerri Willis explains, coming up.
ROBERTS: Crude oil prices through the roof, and that has America clamoring for new sources of oil. When we come back, Ali Velshi takes a look at drilling for oil offshore.
PHILLIPS: Plus, an aggressive type of cancer has the experts stumped. Doctors say it seems to target specific groups of people. Our Sanjay Gupta joins us ahead to let you know if you're at risk, when AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: And welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. Right now, the average national price for a gallon of regular unleaded now more than $3.94. That's the 22nd straight increase. With those high prices come some unbelievable stories of people actually stealing fuel.
Police say that thieves are now stealing the fuel by, get this, drilling holes in your gas tank. Pickups and SUVs are the easiest targets because of the tank's height. And it's not just gas. Some restaurants say that old cooking oil is also being swiped.
ROBERTS: Well, those gas prices hit another record, oil prices happened to drop almost $5 a barrel. Could there be some relief at the pumps? Might be if they find some more sources of oil as well.
Ali Velshi has got that more.
Good morning.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. We do have another record for the price of gas, $3.94, as you can see in the bottom right corner of your screen. But the price of oil now below $127 a barrel. Can you imagine that we're actually talking about that as a good thing? The price of oil is only about $126 and change.
Here's what happened yesterday. Oil settled at just a little under $129, which was quite a drop -- $3.34. And then it dropped substantially more today, almost another $2. So we're well off $5 in one day.
A big percentage of the oil that we drill in the United States -- remember, the U.S. imports most of the oil that it uses. But a big proportion of the oil that we drill comes from offshore. There you're looking at a rig there in the Gulf of Mexico.
Most of it is in the Gulf of Mexico that we drill. And oil that comes out of relatively shallow water, under 10,000 feet, costs between $20 and $60 a barrel to retrieve. There's a lot of depends and because of, that's why the range is so big. But 27 percent of U.S. production comes from offshore.
It's estimated that there are 86 billion undiscovered barrels in terms of offshore drilling in the United States or in land that's controlled -- water that's controlled by the United States. So it should give you some sense of the fact that oil at 126 bucks a barrel is still very profitable. Oil at $60 a barrel is generally profitable. Certainly, $80 -- you can get an oil out of any source that you need to.
ROBERTS: We can get it from you.
VELSHI: You probably can get it. Just squeeze me really hard. You got to squeeze really hard, you might get a diamond out of me.
ROBERTS: All right. Ali, thanks.
Right now, powerful storms moving through the Midwest bringing the threat of more tornadoes. We're going to hear the story of a man who watched his house fly away last weekend.
Plus, Rob Marciano tracking today's extreme weather threat. That's coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN VRANYES, TORNADO SURVIVOR: I never thought in a million years that oil would save me from, you know, certain impending death.
DAN MCKEAGUE, TORNADO SURVIVOR: There's no possible way that he should be around and he knows it, too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: That first man that you saw there grabbed onto some siding to save his life in Hugo, Minnesota as he was staring down a twister. Check out the damage from the tornado over the Memorial Day weekend. A 2-year-old boy was killed by that storm. The National Weather Service says this is on track to be the deadliest year for tornadoes in a decade.
PHILLIPS: Rob Marciano tracking the extreme weather for us this morning.
You're talking about how many -- a record number this year.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, so far, we're well past what we would average for the entire year whenever we're in a hurricane season, which usually spawns more tornadoes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: A new Bond novel debuts in London with the help of, what else, a model in a cat suit. The new book called "The Devil May Care" hits bookstores today, marking the 100th birthday of Bond creator Ian Fleming.
Bond lovers can also look forward to a new film, "Quantum of Solace," which is due out later on this year. It's actually -- it's a sequel to "Casino Royale." It picks up the story an hour after Daniel Craig shoots Mr. White. Got that villain like (INAUDIBLE).
PHILLIPS: He's quite a stud.
ROBERTS: Yes. Did I say that? He's a handsome fellow.
PHILLIPS: I said that Daniel Craig is a stud.
ROBERTS: A handsome fellow, yes.
PHILLIPS: Not that I know (INAUDIBLE) in the Bahamas. And anyway, you're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
Cuban dissidents fighting for freedom. They want the embargo lifted and talks to start. So, what should the next president do? The debate with strong feelings on both sides, coming right up.
ROBERTS: And new reports show that the housing market still in a slump. So, if you're looking to buy, is now the time to seal the deal? We'll ask our Gerri Willis, coming up.
PHILLIPS: Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING, bringing sexy back. "Sex and the City."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARAH JESSICA PARKER, ACTRESS: Come, its birthplace, source material.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Lola hits the pink carpet for the big premiere.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: What is the sexiest part of "The City"?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: One-on-one with the stars, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CHIEF TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hubie Van Meurs is taking a lot of pressure off the folks in Levittown, New York.
HUBIE VAN MEURS, ALURE ENERGY: With all the other windows and doors closed, we can find out how leaky the house is.
O'BRIEN: He's plugging leaking and insulating attics all over this long island town, where the sprawling of America began more than 60 years ago. Levittown is the country's first planned suburb.
TOM SUOZZI, NASSAU COUNTY EXECUTIVE: We thought it made history back in the 1940s, and we could make history again to be the first suburban community to go green.
O'BRIEN: Nassau County executive Tom Suozzi launched the campaign to encourage everyone in Levittown, 17,000 homes, 52,000 people, to do something green, from changing light bulbs to installing a new furnace. Several local companies have ponied up special deals and financing. Just about every household is taking part. Levittown homeowner Tom Lasusa found the program easy to love.
TOM LASUSA, LEVITTOWN RESIDENT: Whatever a little bit will help us and whatever a little bit will help the environment.
O'BRIEN (on camera): We think if you can do it in Levittown, you can do it anywhere.
(voice-over): Could be this place is still a trendsetter after all these years.
Miles O'Brien, CNN, Levittown, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 19 minutes after hour. New this morning. A New York judge ruling Dell computers engaged in a massive bait and switch scheme saying customers were lured into buying products with promises of no interest, no payment financing. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo sued Dell on behalf of hundreds of customers. Earlier, I asked Cuomo what the ruling means for Dell customers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW CUOMO, NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL: What the judge said was he'll give us until December 1 to assemble all the complaints to determine the class that deserves restitution. So, we'll be spending the next couple of months saying to people, if you have a bona fide complaint, if you believe you were victimized by these actions, contact us. We'll put together a class that represents the people that need to be reimbursed and now it's going to be a question of damages and the amount of those damages with Dell.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Dell computers says it is confident that when all the proceedings are completed, the court will determine that only a relatively small number of customers have been affected.
PHILLIPS: Record-high gas prices going to the grocery store is getting a little more expensive each day, and a new report actually says that the slump continues in the housing market as well.
ROBERTS: So, are you depressed yet? Well, there may be a silver lining in all of this. Our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis joins us now with the bright side.
We have two very different figures from two different bodies. What are these figures telling us?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: That's right. Well, a two different stories as you're saying. First, the Commerce Department out yesterday with numbers about home sales. They were up, up. Yes, it's surprised everybody -- 3.3 percent in the past month. This is a big surprise for Wall Street. They were expecting negative numbers. And the further you drill down in this report, the more good news you saw.
Three out of four regions posted big increases in sales including the northeast where sales were up 42 percent, inventories down. Now, the flip side of that, the S&P/Case-Shiller numbers are not looking so good.
You know, they take a look at 20 cities across the country. They're looking at sales prices. They have very good numbers on that. And here's what you see. 14 percent plummet in home sales in some of the biggest markets in the country. You can see Vegas here down dramatically, 26 percent. You know, bad news for the Sun Belt, really, as you can see.
Only one city in their group of 20 performed better. That was Charlotte. It was still positive. They have an incredible economy down there. But you know, the question is can it last for even Charlotte.
PHILLIPS: Well, good time to buy homes in certain areas but still a lot of people are buying what they can't afford.
WILLIS: Well, that's a great point because let's look at some of those prices over time. We saw in some of those marketplaces prices went up over 100 percent. So the fact that they're down 25 percent, those houses are still expensive in those markets.
I think right now is a great time to start thinking about buying if you've been waiting a long time to put the money down for a house, but you've got to make sure that you can afford it. Only spend 30 percent of your income and get pre-approved for that loan before you start shopping. Lenders are really stingy right now. You want to make sure that you can get the money that you need and you don't overspend.
ROBERTS: All right. Gerri Willis with some good tips for us this morning. Gerri, thanks. We'll see you on "ISSUE #1" at noon today, by the way.
WILLIS: That's right.
ROBERTS: CNN health alert for you. An aggressive form of breast cancer targeting a certain group of women. The medical experts say they are stumped. We're paging our Dr. Sanjay Gupta just ahead.
PHILLIPS: And a group of dissidents in Cuba believe that if Barack Obama becomes president, it will bring about changes in their country.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are some of President Raul Castro's harshest critics in Cuba. Taking a personal risk to demand political prisoners be freed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A debate over Cuban embargo. Should the next president lift it? Take a closer look on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Barack Obama has said that if he's elected president he'd be willing to meet with Cuba's new president, Raul Castro. That's drawn sharp criticism from John McCain, but in Cuba, Obama's position is welcomed by one dissident group. CNN's Shasta Darlington has their story from Havana.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are some of President Raul Castro's harshest critics in Cuba. Taking a personal risk to demand political prisoners be freed. Every Sunday, they march in silent protest along one of Havana's main avenues. Miriam Leiva is one of them and she's in favor of Senator Obama's policy of direct diplomacy with friend and foe alike.
MIRIAM LEIVA, LADIES IN WHITE: If he can have talks with the Cuban government and start a process of negotiation, I think that the first step for change is the release of the political prisoners.
DARLINGTON: Leiva's husband, Oscar Espinoza, was arrested in the notorious crackdown on dissidents in 2003. He was released for health reasons a year and a half later.
He is no fan of either Castro brother, but he backs Obama's proposal to ease restrictions on family travel and money being spent to relatives in Cuba.
OSCAR ESPINOSA, CUBAN DISSIDENT (through translator): The proposal that our brothers in the U.S. could travel with complete freedom is very positive, he says, from a humanitarian perspective but also from a political point of view, because it would be an injection of democracy in Cuba.
DARLINGTON: The Cuban government denies there are political prisoners on the island, calling them mercenaries on Washington's payroll. And it's not impressed by Barack Obama's policies. Noting that, like Senator Clinton and McCain, he's in favor of continuing the U.S. trade embargo.
(on camera): Fidel Castro, himself, has weigh in. In a newspaper column this week he said Obama is a talented figure, but, he said, his offer to ease restrictions on travel and money being sent to Cuba would just be an opportunity for U.S. propaganda. Shasta Darlington, CNN, Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: So, what should the next president's policy be towards Castro and Cuba? Will there be a more open engagement or will Cuba remain isolated? Joining us now two congressmen who have been very vocal about this. With me here, New York Democrat Charles Rangel and in Fort Myers, Florida, Congressman Albio Sires, Democrat from New Jersey. Both have endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, by the way.
Glad to have you both. Congressman Sires, I actually want to begin with you. You lived in Cuba for 11 years, you were born there. You're saying look, until Cuba does something about human rights, then those sanctions should not be lifted.
However, you heard from the dissidents' right there saying no, there needs to be negotiations, free our husbands, it's the only way to move forward.
REP. ALBIO SIRES (D), NEW JERSEY: Well, that's just one of the groups. I think that we have to have a Cuban people agenda on the table before we move on anything. You're listening to asking for the political prisoners to be released. I'm asking the same thing. I'm asking for freedom to assemble. I'm asking for freedom of speech or freedom of participation. I think those are basic human rights that we should put on the table before we move hastily to making any changes. I have not.
PHILLIPS: Yes, go ahead.
SIRES: I have not known a dictator in modern history to move forward with these changes without any pressure.
PHILLIPS: Your reaction, congressman. What is your feeling?
REP. CHARLES RANGEL (D), NEW YORK: I respect his beliefs. The truth is that our foreign policy should not be dictated by Miami and it has been a political issue. It hasn't worked for 40 years and it seems to me to be disingenuous to tell us that we cannot travel to Cuba. Americans cannot travel to Cuba and we're allowing people to spend billions of dollars in communist China and North Korea and in Vietnam.
So, it's inconsistent. It's an emotional issue, but it should not be a foreign policy question.
PHILLIPS: And Congressman Rangel brings up a good point. Congress Sires, I mean, the fact that the U.S. has engaged with China, North Korea, Vietnam, a communist country that the U.S. has went to war with. All the relationships continue, so what makes Cuba so different?
SIRES: Well, because of the -- if you have people traveling to Cuba, the benefits to the Cuban people are going to be minimal. You're going to have a government putting terrorist, putting surcharges and just basically taking the money of people that are going to Cuba to prolong the government in Cuba. If the money and the people were able directly to go to their families --
PHILLIPS: But what is the difference between that and Vietnam?
SIRES: What's the difference between Cuba and Vietnam? You have had a repressive government in Cuba for 50 years. Vietnam is moving forward to some changes. I have not seen, although not enough --
PHILLIPS: You have Raul Castro saying, hey, you can have personal computers, cell phones. Raul Castro has been more progressive than Fidel Castro has been through nine U.S. presidents.
SIRES: I think that is the biggest indicator of how repressive this government has been. Can you imagine after 50 years somebody standing in front of 4 million people and say now you can have cell phones, now you can have computer, now you can spend a weekend on a resort in your own island? That's how repressive this government has been. I don't look at that as a positive change.
PHILLIPS: What do you think, Congressman Rangel? Is it a step in the right direction? Is there still a long way to go? And who's going to be the candidate that's going to be able to develop those relationships with Cuba?
RANGEL: Any candidate has -- I'm not sure of McCain. But any Democratic candidate would recognize it's time for normalization. The whole concept of not allowing Americans and especially Cuban-Americans to visit their loved ones, whether they're sick, whether they're dying, is absolutely inhumane. And it's like the human thing to do. If people are poor and you've got them in Cuba to send the money, we banned that. So, all the American things - the right to visit, the right to talk, the right to study, the right to even go to churches and synagogues there - we said no. But this change is taking place in Miami. These ideas of 40 years ago, younger Cubans now understand that you've got to talk to those people who have different policies than we do. It's going to happen. It's going to happen early next year.
PHILLIPS: It will be interesting to see the next president.
RANGEL: That's not only changes.
PHILLIPS: Go ahead. Final word there, congressman.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's not only changes taking place in Miami. There are changes - changes in Cuba, also. People want the freedom of expression. People want the ability to express themselves. People want human rights to be respected. And the government knows that they have people that the same thing is going to happen like in Poland where it changed. Czechoslovakia, the same thing.
PHILLIPS: Congressman, thank you. Charlie Rangel, appreciate your time.
RANGEL: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: John.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: 31 minutes after the hour. This just in to CNN on the political fight for Florida and Michigan. A new analysis of Democratic National Committee rules says those states must lose at least half their delegates for holding their primaries too early. This is a lawsuit filed on behalf of Florida voters heads to court this morning. Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley joins us on the phone with some new details on all these issues at Mc Carran Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Candy, this can't be good news for the Hillary Clinton campaign, really, this is their last-ditch effort to try to win the nomination is to try to get as many of these delegates seated as possible.
VOICE OF CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Now, the Clinton campaign wanted to seat all the delegates in accordance to the proportionality of how they voted and Hillary Clinton won in both Florida where neither candidate campaigned and in Michigan where Barack Obama wasn't on the ballot. Now, what this memo tries to do, and it doesn't really - it does not reach any conclusions. They sort of deliberately tried to lay out for the rules and bylaws committee which will meet this Saturday and make a decision on these delegates. And one of the things it found that this is under the Democratic Party rules that either half of the delegation will be seated or the whole delegation will be seated and each will get half a vote.
So, but what the Clinton campaign is looking for here, because it is known pretty much all along that these delegates from Florida and Michigan, states that were punished for holding their primaries too early, that these delegates would not be seated in a way that would change the decisions of elected delegates from the other 48 states. So, the Clinton campaign knew that Florida and Michigan couldn't put them over the top in elected pledge delegates. What they are hoping to do is fortify their contention that she has won the most popular votes. They feel like verification from the Democratic Party this Saturday that those elections were valid and that those delegates will be seated, she can then add, obviously the popular vote from both Michigan and Florida, again, to strengthen her argument that she's won the most popular vote.
ROBERTS: You know, a formula proposed by Lanny Davis on the air about 35 minutes ago would give Hillary Clinton enough delegates that it could put her within striking distance of the finish line, maybe make an arguable case the superdelegates to side with her instead of Barack Obama. But I talked with a member of the rules committee last week, and this person indicated to me that neither campaign is going to be happy with what they decide. Have you heard anything from inside that rules committee, Candy?
CROWLEY: Yes. I mean, what they're trying to do is strike this balance between what the Clinton camp wanted, which was full seating of these delegates and their pledge votes going in proportionality to the final results. What the Obama camp wanted was that they be seated but not in a way that gives her an advantage. Now, likely, if you are looking at a seating where it doesn't change the pledge delegate outcome of all of these elections we've gone through, the Obama campaign clearly will accept that. But it really is up to the rules committee and the bylaws committee to sort this out.
But there are Hillary supporters on this committee. There are Barack Obama supporters on this committee. So, they will come to something, all of them are sure. But as you say, will please them both and displease them both.
ROBERTS: OK. Candy Crowley for us this morning, on the road with the Obama campaign there from the Mc Carran Airport in Las Vegas. Candy, thanks very much.
Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan blasting his former colleagues, including President Bush in a new tell-all memoir. McClellan says the Bush administration relied on propaganda to sell what he calls an unnecessary war in Iraq. He also sharply criticized the White House for its handling of Hurricane Katrina, calling it one of the biggest disasters in the Bush presidency. The President's top advisers also in the crosshairs in the book. McClellan writes they knowingly gave him false information.
Doctors are trying to unravel a cancer mystery. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is working on that story coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 22 minutes to the top of the hour. Doctors are looking at a rare type of breast cancer that seems to target African- Americans. They're wondering if the cancer is biologically different for different races. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta has got more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHERYL REED, BREAST CANCER PATIENT: It's like I didn't want to listen to anything else that was negative where they told me that this is, you know, the deadliest of all.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: In 2006, Cheryl Reed learned she had triple negative breast cancer, a rare, fast-moving cancer that has experts like Dr. Funmi Olopade stumped.
DR. FUNMI OLOPADE, UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO: One, we don't know the risk factors for it. Two, we don't know how best to screen for it. And, three, we don't know how best to treat it.
GUPTA: 15 percent of women diagnosed with breast cancer will have the triple negative type, which doesn't respond to many of the common breast cancer drugs. And Dr. Olopade has found another thing victims of the triple negative cancer have in common.
OLOPADE: The African-American women also have a rate that's much higher than young, white women. We just say that if you feel that your ancestry is more African than European, then you can get triple negative breast cancer.
GUPTA: Though black women are at lower risk of developing breast cancer overall as compared to white women, nearly 50 percent of black women diagnosed under age 55 are triple negative. The five-year survival rate is 15 percent lower compared to other breast cancers. Researchers think a gene mutation is one factor putting black women at higher risk. But right now, research is preliminary and clinical trials like the one Cheryl Reed is in at Emory University are trying to develop drugs specifically targeting triple negative cancer cells. Despite the grim statistics, Cheryl's doctors say early detection is key.
DR. RUTH O'REGAN, EMORY, WINSHIIP CANCER INSTITUTE: If you have your screening mammograms done and you get the cancer picked up at a very small stage and it's going to have a good prognosis.
GUPTA: Which is why Cheryl remains optimistic.
REED: It never occurred to me that I'm going to die from this. It's like - you know, I have breast cancer, let's take care of it. (END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Chemotherapy does remain the most effective way of dealing with this, but, John, what triple negative means, a lot of people think that's good, it's all negative. But what that means is there are certain receptors on the cell wall of tumors, and with triple negative, none of the common receptors exist. The drugs don't work. They have no place to attach. That's what makes this so difficult, John.
ROBERTS: All right. Sanjay Gupta for us this morning. Sanjay, thanks.
GUPTA: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: From Wall Street to Congress, more women hold top jobs. But today's young girls are aspiring to be different types of leaders. Our Polly Labarre joins us now ahead with what it means for the future of women in business and politics.
And cheering fans lined up outside Radio City Music Hall last night to see Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda walk the pink carpet.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Vivian Westwood, a British designer.
SARAH JESSICA PARKER, ACTRESS: First place. Source material. So, it's really just about the most privilege a person can feel, honestly.
PHILLIPS: What gets better than this? Lola Ogunnaike and "Sex And the City" straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Young girls are dreaming big, but according to a new study, they don't want the Oval Office or the corner office. Instead, they're embracing a new type of leadership. Our Polly Labarre joins us now with more. What is it saying?
POLLY LABARRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Girl Scouts just released a study of 4,000 girls aged 8 to 17 and some boys as well. And the numbers are interesting. So, 52 percent of girls, we got a full screen here about this, do not want to become leaders. 9 percent flat out rejected it and 39 percent are interested in leadership. But what's more striking than the numbers is the definition of the kind of leadership these girls aspire to. They're not interested in the top job, being the boss, having power. And it's really interesting because the conversation about leadership today in women is break the glass ceiling, Hillary is running for president.
PHILLIPS: Right. So, what's going on? Because there's all these great female leaders out there and we are. We're seeing the first female actually run for the president of the United States. LABARRE: That's our conversation, but what girls are saying, they don't see the models that they aspire to be out in the world. When they do see models of people like Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Oprah. So, their definition of leadership is social change, altruism, can I stand up for my values, change the world, bring people together to make a difference. And that's really how they're thinking about leadership.
PHILLIPS: And looking forward, that's not such a bad thing. I mean, we want our daughters to be charitable and - how great would it be to say, yes, she's like Mother Teresa. That's the way she thinks. That's her mentor, who she admires.
LABARRE: We went to a Girl Scout troop last night in suburban New York. Let's see what they had to say about leadership.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MALORIE MENDOZA, 18 YEARS OLDS: There is the leader that bosses people around and gives them orders, and there's the leader that motivates people and encourages them to do their best. I think the second leader is what the best leader is.
PATTY LUECKEN, 13 YEARS OLD: I feel that being nice is a really important part of being a leader because then you get the respect of others in your group.
SAMANTHA SCHICK: I want to be a leader by being a role model. I don't want to - I don't know if I necessarily want to be, like, a leader, like the president or something like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Why not? That's what I want to say.
LABARRE: Interestingly, boys wanted power, money, and to be in charge while girls wanted to help other people. It's really important here to understand that the message isn't girls don't want to be CEOs or presidents, they all want to join the peace corps. I think the message is that increasingly good leadership is as much about doing good as being in charge. So, it's integrating both of those things.
PHILLIPS: That's what we want. That would be the perfect young lady.
LABARRE: That's true.
PHILLIPS: Polly Labarre, thanks so much.
LABARRE: Thanks, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: John.
ROBERTS: CNN NEWSROOM just minutes away now. Our Tony Harris at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead. Good morning to you, Tony. HARRIS: John, good morning to you. Good morning, everyone. Book buzz in Washington in the NEWSROOM. A former White House Press Secretary's explosive allegations. Scott McClellan says the president and his staff played loose with the truth to sell the Iraq war. Just shocking charges from the aid agency "Save the Children." U.N. peace keepers accused of sexually abusing kids, some as young as six.
And a CNN "Special Investigations Unit" reports soldiers electrocuted in Iraq by improperly grounded equipment.
President Bush at the Air Force Academy today. Live coverage of the commencement address ahead. NEWSROOM, top of the hour on CNN. John, back to you.
ROBERTS: Tony, we will see you then. Thanks very much.
He was ready to make a high-flying attempt, only to see his giant ride float away without him. The record-breaking leap busted by the breeze.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No such jump for Michel Fournier, which brings us to the question, has the French skydiver's dream been permanently popped?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: All right. Jeanne Moos takes a look at what's next for the record-seeking skydiver as only she can. Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING - bringing sexy back. "Sex and the City."
PARKER: It's calm. It's first place, source material.
PHILLIPS: Lola hits the pink carpet for the big premiere.
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What is the sexiest part of the city?
PHILLIPS: One on one with the stars, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARRIE BRADSHAW, "SEX AND THE CITY": So, the other night, Biggs and I we're talking about, you know, moving in together and, you know, our future and you know, what makes sense is we move forward. Well, I thought, well, we decided to get married.
(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Oh, come on. Carrie's wedding is at the center of the "Sex and the City" movie, which opens nationwide on Friday. The movie hit New York last night with a star-studded premiere at Radio City Music Hall. And of course, our own Lola Ogunnaike has the story of the fab four and the effect of the movie on the city.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Vivian Westwood, a British designer.
PARKER: It's calm, it's birthplace, source material. So, it's really just about the most privileged a person can feel, honestly.
OGUNNAIKE: Sarah Jessica Parker is happy to be back and fans of "Sex and the City" are elated. But the people with the biggest smiles are New York City merchants. Who loves the show?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALES: whooo!
OGUNNAIKE: Business is up 20 percent at on-location tours which takes hundreds of obsessed fans to the spot where Carrie lived, ate and party.
BRADSHAW: Here's to us without men.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you remember when Carrie and Biggs argued about the back and the front of the building, they miss each other for 45 minutes.
OGUNNAIKE: New York City's other Mr. Biggs says the series has done wonders for tourism, which is up 9 percent.
MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK CITY: When we see people having a good time. They think if I was there, I would have that much of a good time.
MATINA PORGORSKI, CROATIAN TOURIST: I think those girls with the love for New York, I said, I've got to go there.
OGUNNAIKE: Hotels aren't missing out, either. Many are now offering "Sex and the City" packages. $3,000 at the Mandarin Oriental gets you a premier suite with lots of perks like your own trivia game.
ANGELA ALLEYNE-GRANNUM, GUEST RELATIONS, MANDARIN ORIENTAL: At the fashion show, who called Carrie fashion road kill?
OGUNNAIKE: Stanford Blatch.
ALLEYNE-GRANNUM: Wow, you are good.
OGUNNAIKE: Ding, ding, ding.
Bars are expecting Cosmo sales to skyrocket and Magnolia Bakery, the girls' favorite dessert spot, is hiring. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're just making sure our people can ice cupcakes as fast as they can.
OGUNNAIKE: And the shoe company Manolo Blahnik which became a household name because of this series is also gearing up for an onslaught of Carrie Bradshaw wannabes, including me. You'll see these $835 satin pumps in the upcoming film. Oh, my god.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are they the most beautiful you ever made?
OGUNNAIKE: Five inches of fabulous.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
OGUNNAIKE: One business that isn't booming, Mayor Bloomberg's acting career. So, I heard that you were in the movie. Talk to me about that.
BLOOMBERG: Well, I think they got together and they decided they wanted more sex and less city, so they cut out my scene. I was devastated. It was my big chance.
PHILLIPS: It must have been a good move. Leave it to Lola to find the cosmos, the cupcakes and the beautiful shoes.
OGUNNAIKE: I'm an intrepid reporter. I have to do my research.
PHILLIPS: Hey, you got to partake. What did you think of the movie?
OGUNNAIKE: I actually really enjoyed it. I have to say, I loved it.
PHILLIPS: And you're not just saying that.
OGUNNAIKE: I'm not just saying that. I'm a huge fan of the show. So, I actually went in there with low expectations and I was pleasantly surprised. It's sort of a subversive romantic comedy and I think it delivers, I think women across the country, across the world are going to be really happy.
PHILLIPS: So, are the men going to dig it? What are they to do?
OGUNNAIKE: I don't think there will be a man in the house unless of course, he's the gay best friend like Stanford Blatch. I don't expect many straight men. I think they'll still be at "Indiana Jones." But the Four Seasons actually offers a male package for $2,000 a night.
PHILLIPS: The low price of two grand.
OGUNNAIKE: For a minimal fee of two grand a night, the men can actually get a round of drinks at the bar, anything but cosmos, a DVD movie library with movies like "Rambo" and "Die Hard" and a big old steak dinner. So, if you're bored and your wife or girlfriend is out, you can head over to the Four Seasons.
PHILLIPS: What do you think, John Roberts?
ROBERTS: Were you talking about something? I was -
PHILLIPS: See? Exactly my point.
ROBERTS: I was checking out the line on next week's Belmont stakes here.
PHILLIPS: See? Case in point.
ROBERTS: Carrie Bradshaw said hello, by the way, John.
PHILLIPS: Now all of a sudden he's going to want to see the movie. That works.
ROBERTS: Now I've got to meet "Big Brown" and Carrie Bradshaw. All right.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Lola.
ROBERTS: Heartbreak for the daring skydiver. He watched his balloon float away yesterday but says he's going to try again. Our Jeanne Moos takes a unique look at the big blunder coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Well, despite watching his giant balloon fly away yesterday, daredevil Michel Fournier will make another attempt at a record-breaking skydive maybe as soon as August.
PHILLIPS: Let's hope it's not on 8-8-08. There's the whole controversy about how lucky that is now. Jeanne Moos actually got thinking about the downside of up, up and away.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the early morning darkness, it looked like a beating heart, beating and expanding. The skies lightened. This was the balloon that was supposed to carry the French skydiver to the edge of space so he could jump. Talk about the fifth dimension.
FIFTH DIMENSION: Wouldn't you like to fly in my beautiful balloon.
MOOS: But the beautiful balloon wasn't yet attached to the capsule that Michel Fournier was already waiting in, suspended from a crane.
FIFTH DIMENSION: Up, up and away.
MOOS: The chase helicopter went up and away. A CTV reporter chased the story over his shoulder. Watch as the balloon becomes untethered. UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Oh. What just happened?
MOOS: What happened is the balloon took off without its intended passenger.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Oh, my god.
MOOS: There it was like some sort of airborne amoeba.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Like a child, you know, at the circus and the balloon gets away from them.
MOOS: Only this balloon cost several hundred thousand dollars. If only it could have been like the famed red balloon that faithfully followed its young owner around Paris, at least until its head was turned by a blue balloon. The red balloon obeyed and came. When the boy said "come." but this balloon wasn't coming. It was being whipped around and torn to pieces as the helium inside escaped.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Oh, what a tragedy.
MOOS: A tragedy for skydiver Michel Fournier, who came out of the capsule and hugged his wife. At one point he waved away the cameras. This is what his skydive might have looked like. This was the record Fournier was trying to beat.
Joe Kittinger jumped from nearly 20 miles up as an Air Force experiment of how the body reacts to high altitudes. It took him almost 14 minutes to get back to earth. He arrived intact. From air force experiment to YouTube thrill seeker, watch this student skydiver smack into a blimp. And live not just to tell about it but to celebrate it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did you think of the jump, man?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was excellent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whooo!
MOOS (on-camera): No such jump for Michel Fournier, which brings us to the question, has the French skydiver's dream been permanently popped/
MOOS (voice-over): Unlike Dorothy, stranded on Oz by a balloon that got away --
DOROTHY: Please come back!
I can't come back. I don't know how it works.
MOOS: Michel Fournier seems to be stranded on earth. Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Maybe he'll just click his heels three times and somehow get up there.
PHILLIPS: It must be a lot easier.
ROBERTS: Final check of this morning's "quick vote" question. We ask, do you believe that using cell phones causes cancer? 51 percent of you said yes but 49 percent of you don't think so. Thanks very much for voting. We'll do it all again tomorrow.
PHILLIPS: And thanks much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ROBERTS: We will see you again tomorrow morning. CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris and Heidi Collins starts right now.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody.
