Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

High School Pregnancy Pact; Assessing Flood Damage; Candidates' Economic Plans

Aired June 21, 2008 - 16:00   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. Flood damage in the Midwest. At least $3 billion worth. Families do what they can to keep the might Mississippi at bay. We'll take you there live.
And a group of teenage girls reportedly making a pact to get pregnant. What were they thinking? Plus this -

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course, I suspected it all along, but I had no proof.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: An Olympic athlete who says she is unfairly linked to the steroid scandal, now her chance for a comeback.

Well, depending on where you live along the Mississippi River, the worst of the flooding is over. It is happening right now. Still to come or perhaps you thought it was over, but it's not. Here's what we know. The worst is definitely over in Iowa, but the damage will be around a long, long time. The agriculture secretary estimates that crop losses there could hit $3 billion. A dozen more Iowa counties have been declared federal disaster areas. That brings the total to 69. Only 30 Iowa counties escaped serious flooding. In Missouri and parts of Illinois, Mississippi River levels dropped when levee failures upstream diverted some of the water. Well, now they're headed up again. It won't crest for a day or two. Some places expect high watermarks near the record set in 1993.

Well, water is still rising in Old Monroe, Missouri, northwest of St. Louis. At last check, CNN's Reynolds Wolf was up to his hips in water. So, Reynolds, where is it now? Are you in the same place?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We've moved a little bit. I just want to show you a few things. Right behind you got the CNN live truck and if you happen too look down this way, well you're looking down toward the tracks to Winfield. That's the way to Winfield. Now this way, this happens to be the way to Old Monroe. And then if you follow me this way, well this is the way home. The way home for a lot of people, hundreds of homes right down this road, which now covered completely in water. The waters in many places continue to rise, but the good news is the forecast, as you mentioned, not quite as extreme as we originally anticipated. In fact, a few feet lower. But still a major flood, a major flood that's affecting millions of people up and down this river. You know, the Mississippi River happens to be the largest river on the continent. When you have a major flood, all that water that we have up in parts of Iowa, that water has got to go somewhere. That water happened to feed its way through tributaries and certainly those tributaries went back to these berms, back here these levees you see way off in the distance. The water has worked its way around as we've been telling you. IT made its way right up through here, where you see the flood waters at this point. And this water, thankfully I have the safety of these (ompa-loompa)ph pants, but I'm telling you this water is kind of dangerous. You've got a lot of chemicals in here. There's still a lot of petroleum, a lot of farm chemicals, all various kinds of junk.

And at the same time, I hate to say it. I hate to talk about it, but you've got a lot of carcasses in here too from animals who have perished in these floodwaters. Good news that we've been talking about. The waters will not rise as much as originally forecast. That's the good part. The bad part is when these waters do recede when we get into next week, we're going to be left with one heck of a mess. And it's a mess that's going to be felt in a variety of ways. We've been talking about the emotional stress it's going to have on people. We've been talking about the physical stress of the cleanup. But, of course, you have to deal with well the financial issues that many people, many small mom and pop businesses like this one you see behind me and for some people it's going to be a total loss.

To give you an idea about the loss and to give you an idea on how deep those waters are. You'll see right off here, looks like a couple of - almost looks like salt spreaders. And then below that, Fredricka, you have a container crate. That's almost 12 feet high. Then you see the water not far from the top of it. Kind of gives you an illustration what they're dealing with here and what they're going to be dealing with for a couple of days. The waters, as I mentioned, are going to recede, but it's going to take a while. It's not going to happen overnight. You're not going to it drain out, you're not going to see it evaporate. That's for sure.

And when it finally does pile away, people are going to be heading back to their homes. They're impatient to do so. They want to see what's left. Certainly hard to see when they're standing here on dry land and out there things that matter so much to them are just a long reach away. Let's send it back to you.

WHITFIELD: Yes. All right. It's going to take some time, and the water has to go somewhere, after all. All right. Reynolds Wolf, thank you so much. Let's check in Jacqui Jeras. She's in the weather center, find out a little bit more about what we have at hand here. Still a lot of water in a lot of places. Still some potential cresting as well.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Absolutely. You know, you don't want to be fooled because some places have crested - the levees broke so the levels dropped down, but some of the levels are going to go back up here because you know, the big bubble of water from upstream hasn't made its way all the way down just yet. All right. Let's talk about the big area here of concern. And you know, all these little purple dots that you see on that map behind me there, all of those dots are river gauges, which are what we call in major flood. We still have major flooding going on in many, many of these cities. Now, when is the crest going to be taking place? Well,, Canton and Quincy are already cresting as we speak. It's going to be kind of a long crest. You're going stay at this level probably through tomorrow. Then, Hannibal is looking for a crest sometime tomorrow. Clarksville is looking for a crest sometime on Monday a.m., and then St. Louis, you're kind of staying at that steady crest level right now as we speak.

Now, I'm going to go back to google earth and I want to show you one of these river gauge stations which really kind of help tell you what's going on here. You can see that the river has crested on Wednesday already at more than 36 feet. There you see the drop in the level once the levee broke and now it's going to start to go back up. And we're going to see a secondary crest near what the previous level was sometime on Sunday night and into Monday morning. And this is in the town of Clarksville. But the good news is, the original forecast, brought the levels up here, past the record stage. And now you can see that even though we're going to see another high crest, still in major flood, we're staying shy of many of these record stages. So, it is helping out a lot of folks downstream, but it's still going to be one big ugly mess.

And something else too to think about, Fredricka, you know places like Des Moines and Cedar Rapids and Iowa City crested a week ago already. You know, they're done with their crest river levels are going down, but they're still in major flood. They haven't gone below flood stage. And that could still be, you know, another three, five, six, seven days from now. So this is a really long event for a lot of folks.

WHITFIELD: That's going to be a painful three days to a week. Thanks so much, Jacqui.

JERAS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Well, the crisis unfolding up and down the Mississippi has many recalling the so-called great flood of 1993. A tragedy that forced an entire town and its people to relocate. CNN's Ed Lavandera joins us now from Valmeyer, Illinois, which is sitting pretty now, but about two miles away and 400 feet higher from where it used to be?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Fredricka. You know, if this were happening 15 years ago, the floods we've been covering for the last couple of weeks, the folks of Valmeyer would have been incredibly nervous. As you mentioned, in the floods of 1993, this town was devastated, almost every home was destroyed. This town of about 900 people essentially washed off the map. So there were great questions. And in the weeks after those floods - and it took more than two months for this city to dry out, city leaders decided the only way for the town to survive was to move and find higher and drier ground. And that's exactly what they did. And they've turned a city into a 300 acres of cornfield. They turned it into their brand new city. We'll have much more coming up on what has happened here and how it all worked out next hour.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ed, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

All right. Jobs and the economy getting a lot of play on the campaign trail. Today at the U.S. conference of mayors in Miami, democrat Barack Obama accused republican John McCain of focusing on tax breaks for corporations and wealthy Americans and ignoring the budget deficits many U.S. cities are facing. Obama detailed his ideas to boost the economy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's no better place to start than by investing in the clusters of growth and innovation that are springing up across this country. Because what we found time and time again is that when we take the different assets that are scattered throughout our communities, whether it's a skilled workforce or leading firms or institutions of higher education and bring them all together so they can learn from one another and share ideas, you get the kind of creative thinking that doesn't come in isolating. And that can lead to more innovation and entrepreneurship and real economic benefits like new jobs and higher wages.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, republican candidate John McCain is taking a day off in his home state of Arizona. Yesterday, he was in Canada talking trade. McCain defended NAFTA, a controversial free trade agreement that most businesses support but many unions oppose. Well, McCain says the deal created 25 million jobs in the U.S. and more than 4 million in Canada. Senator Obama has called the pact a mistake and wants it renegotiated.

Other stories you can find on cnn.com, political ticker, the latest election polls suggest that Barack Obama is widening his lead over John McCain. In the new CNN poll of polls, an average of several surveys, Senator Obama has 46 percent of the vote. That's six percentage points above John McCain and a two-point gain over the last poll of polls. 14 percent were uncommitted.

Well the race for campaign cash is not quite as one-sided as it used to be. White Senator Obama has raised nearly $175 million more than Senator McCain over the past year and a half, in the month of May, Obama slowed down a bit, raising $22 million. His slimmest fund raising month of the year. Well, McCain raised $21 million in May, a larger than average take for him.

And Senator Hillary Clinton is returning to the campaign trail, this time to promote her former primary rival. She and Senator Obama are scheduled to hold talks with Clinton's top fund-raisers next week. The two were also scheduled to campaign together.

Well, the latest campaign news is right at your fingerprints, just go to cnnpolitics.com. We also have analysis from the best political team on television. It's all there, cnnpolitics.com. Casualties are rising in Afghanistan where the war against the Taliban is far from over. In fact, June has emerged as the deadliest month of the year for U.S.-led coalition forces. There have also been 32 deaths so far, including 12 Americans. Among the casualties are five troops killed today in two separate roadside bombings, six others were wounded.

And 12 were trampled to death during a police raid. On a nightclub in Mexico city, police went to the club to investigate reports of drugs and alcohol being sold to underage teens. Well, they say the owner of the club then caused the stampede by announcing the raid on the public address system. Among the dead, two teenagers and three police officers.

So is it just a public relations ploy, or is it a real effort to lower the price of oil? Saudi Arabia and the oil barons there are meeting this weekend. The story is coming up next.

Plus - here's a different place for a prayer service. The gas pump becomes the new amen corner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A pipeline breach has forced Chevron to suspend its onshore oil production in Nigeria. Nigerian media reports that militants sabotaged the pipeline in the Niger Delta. Chevron says it shut down production to protect the environment. Well, oil industry officials say the loss could be about 120,000 barrels a day.

Now to the oil summit in Saudi Arabia. The meeting hasn't even started, but the finger pointing has. CNN's Wilf Dinnick is in Saudi Arabia with the story.

WILF DINNICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Delegates from 36 nations have started to arrive here at this energy conference in Jeddah. Now, there are oil ministers and executives from oil companies and ministers from just other companies whose people are feeling the pinch from the high price of oil. Now, all these people are coming together to try to create some sort of consensus to bring down the price of oil.

Now, here in Jeddah, the security is very tight. The Saudi king is making an appearance as well. The U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown will also be joining this conference. Now, all of them with very divergent views here. We spoke to the U.S. Secretary of Energy a short while ago. And he says really the situation is just about supply and demand. There needs to be more oil out in the market and that could solve the problem and bring down the price. We also have the chance though to catch up with the Deputy Minister of Oil here in Saudi Arabia and says that it's something much different and much more complicated.

HAH PRINCE ABDULAZIZ BIN SALAM, SAUDI DEPUTY OIL MINISTER: What we are ideally seeking is to put together a mechanism for how people can - the industry, the producers, the consumers, the relevant international organizations, all of them, we're just interested in putting together mechanisms of first sourcing or figuring out the causes in details and put together an action plan progressively of how to attend to this.

Our endeavor certainly is to bring about tranquility and stability to the oil market. But it would be totally unfair to attend to this problem in such a quick-fix approach. I don't think a quick-fix approach is a welcome thing anyway.

DINNICK: Now, the Saudi government has made it very clear one of the reasons they brought all of these people here is they'd like to see the mud slinging and they want this closed-door session tomorrow where they're going to be creating a working paper to create a consensus where there will be mid to long-term solutions where all parties, both producers and consumers and leaders of nations can follow to help try and bring down the price of oil. But almost everyone is saying there's no short-term solution. And so for consumers, really, no relief at the pump just yet. Wilf Dinnick, CNN, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

WHITFIELD: All right. So you've heard of pain at the pump. Well, here's praying at a pump. At a station in Toledo, Ohio, if the deity didn't have enough on his plate, these folks are requesting divine intervention to cut the cost of gasoline.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The idea was striking to me that it's so simple that we would turn to god. I mean, it's always the last thing we do sometimes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It seems like a political move to me, but, no, I think when you pray you pray to the father in secret and he will bless you openly.

UNDIENTIFIED MALE: It's fine that we pray at home and in our churches. But we need to be out here that people see us.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Well, it's the pray at the pump movement, says CNN affiliate WTOL. The group is said to hail from the D.C. area. But why are they in Toledo? We're not sure about that one yet.

All right. Well, if filling up is making your blood boil, you're not alone. An EMT checked drivers blood pressure in Cincinnati where gas is nearing $4.10 a gallon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: $4.09? Are you serious? We're not going anywhere no more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, in the meantime, she did fill up her car and the woman's blood pressure, well it rose ten points. Another customer suffered an eight-point spike. And CNN affiliate WLWT reminds us to test conditions were far from scientific.

Well, you have seen the devastating pictures from the flooding in Iowa. Now comes a call for help. The Red Cross swamped and running out of supplies and money.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: On this first full day of summer, another scorcher in California. Just a short time ago, Palm Springs hit 109. Yesterday, in Burbank, the mercury topped out at a record 108 and a small-scale blackout struck in L.A.. The heat is being blamed for at least one death. No immediate relief is in sight.

A fast moving fire north of Monterey is just about fully contained. The blaze erupted mid-afternoon on Friday. It burned several homes and triggered about 2,000 evacuations. More than 600 firefighters have labored in the heat to try to contain it.

Jacqui Jeras is in the weather center. Boy, extremes of all levels, but this triple-digit temperatures kind of sweep across California is intense.

JERAS: Yes, it's rough for a lot of folks too. We always talk about, you know, the temperatures out west. It's a dry heat, it's not all that bad. But it really is that bad. And it's going to last through the weekend, into the early part of next week. So, summer really kicking off with a bang. Today is the first full day of summer, by the way. The summer solstice took place about 8:00 p.m. Eastern daylight time yesterday. Some folks in the U.K. celebrated the first day of summer. There you can see a picture from Stonehenge. About 30,000 people came out to celebrate, despite the cloudy, gloomy, cool weather.

Look at all the jackets on all those folks. People would love to have weather like this in California today. Let me tell you. Check out the heat index, right now. It's feeling like 105 in Vegas, 108 in Phoenix, 94 degrees in Cedar City and 93 degrees in Salt Lake City. We've got heat advisories in effect in the San Francisco bay area down toward San Jose as well. It's going to feel like 100 to 110 inland, 90 degree conditions the coastal areas. Southern California, much worse for you. This spreads over through Arizona, Tucson as well, 109 to 118 degrees. That's the temperature your body is going to be feeling.

High pressure in place here. We've got an upper level ridge. That's bringing in that southerly to southeasterly flow, bringing in hot, dry conditions. But as long as that ridge stays in place, it continues to stay excessively warm. But we think it will start to break down as we head down the early part of the week. Take a look at your forecast here over the next five days for example. In phoenix, you'll get out of the 110-plus. We also have a little severe weather to talk about. Some hail-makers have been moving across parts of Ohio, looking at hail, probably about three-quarters of an inch. So, maybe the size of a quarter so it's something to watch out if you plan to head outdoors this evening. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll be watching. Thanks so much, Jacqui.

All right. This year's tornadoes, wildfires and floods have put the Red Cross in the red. The Red Cross says its national disaster relief funds are depleted and it has had to take out loans to keep it going. CNN's Kate Bolduan reports now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Like so many homes in Iowa, Josh Clemens' house was under water.

JOSH CLEMENS, RESIDENT The downstairs is pretty much a complete loss. Our kitchen ceiling has collapsed.

BOLDUAN: Now, Clemens begins the painstaking cleanup, thankful for the food and supplies the American Red Cross has offered.

CLEMENS They've already been here up a couple of times here already. They're doing whatever they can to help.

BOLDUAN: But that very organization needs help itself. Red Cross officials say they're out of cash and working on borrowed money.

SUZY DEFRANCIS, RED CROSS SPOKESWOMAN: It started with tornadoes throughout the central U.S. We had wildfires on the coast. Now we're having this very significant flooding. And the important point is it's only June.

BOLDUAN: Red Cross spokeswoman Suzy Defrancis says this is only the second time in its 125-year history the Red Cross has needed a loan to cover operations.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We actually need to clean up. We need a shovel.

BOLDUAN: 3,500 personnel on the ground in the Midwest and about 2,000 people coordinating everything from its Washington headquarter. This is the nerve center of Red Cross disaster operations with daily conference calls like this one to get the latest information from the hardest hit areas. Now, when all is said and done, they estimate their efforts in the Midwest alone will cost $15 million. The Red Cross says the struggling economy is also to blame for sluggish donations.

DEFRANCIS: This is a difficult time for people with gas prices and food prices going up. And so, they have less disposable income.

BOLDUAN: But critics say this may be more about credibility than tough economic times. They point to rapid turnover at the top of the Red Cross which has had five CEOs in just six years.

PAUL C. LIGHT, PROFESSOR, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY: Americans have lost confidence in the Red Cross to spend their money wisely so they're holding off until the next disaster until they can actually see where their money is going.

BOLDUAN: Red Cross officials know they face a long and threatening hurricane season ahead. Image problem or not, they just hope their financial forecast improves quickly. Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And of course, if you'd like to make a contribution to the Red Cross, here's how. Go to redcross.org and click on the donate tab. You can also call 1-800-help-now.

And we have a special page on the midwestern flooding at cnn.com. There you can also find the link to aid agencies helping with disaster relief. It's a chance for you to impact your world.

Well, impacting American dinner tables, Salmonella-tainted tomatoes. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says the current outbreak has made some 552 people sick in 32 states. FDA investigators are en route to Florida and Mexico, following possible leads to how the produce may have been contaminated. Inspectors are checking farms, packing sheds and warehouses.

Well, it's perhaps the "Can you believe it" story of the week. A possible pregnancy club at a high school in New England. How do you explain it? A psychologist tries coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Teen pregnancy often an unintended consequence of young love but people in Gloucester, Massachusetts suspect a rash of them at one high school was no accident. CNN's Randi Kaye reports as inconceivable as it may sound, girls may have chosen to get pregnant together.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: High school is hard enough so why would a group of girls from Gloucester, Massachusetts, a fishing village outside Boston choose to get pregnant. In all, 17 girls are having babies, some as young as 15, not one of them is married.

It's profoundly disturbing.

KAYE: High school administrators are reeling after learning that they may have in some sort of pregnancy pact. Even more shocking, the superintendent believes at least one girl had sex with a 24-year-old homeless man, just to be part of the group. The pact is so secretive we couldn't even find out the girls' names. This man told us the girls tried to convince her stepdaughter to get pregnant too.

TED SORENSON, STEPFATHER OF GLOUCESTER TEEN: There was tremendous amount of peer pressure, naked peer pressure for as many girls as possible to join in this pact. Luckily, my stepdaughter was smart enough or scared enough to say no.

KAYE (on-camera): School officials first began to take notice October when so many girls started showing up at the nurse's office to find out if they were pregnant. The nurse reportedly gave as many as 150 pregnancy tests. The superintendent says the girls went back over and over until they got the results they wanted. SUPERINTENDENT CHRISTOPHER FARMER, GLOUCESTER SCHOOL DISTRICT: There was talk of high-fives and that kind of thing.

KAYE: Amanda Ireland who just graduated from Gloucester High, had a baby her freshman year. She knows one of the girls in the alleged pregnancy pact.

AMANDA IRELAND, GLOUCESTER H.S. GRADUATE: I asked her if she was keeping the baby, and she said yes.

KAYE: The superintendent says a handful of the girls have already delivered. Ireland can't understand why anyone would choose to get pregnant so young.

IRELAND: It's definitely not all peaches and cream.

KAYE: The superintendent say the men who fathered the children are not students. They're older, in their 20s. If the girls agree to name them, he says, they could face statutory rape charges. And there's more, the school's doctor has resigned after coming under fire for handing out contraceptives. It's against district policy.

DR. BRIAN ORR, CLINIC'S MEDICAL DIRECTOR: We were on our way to try to do things that any parent, any adult, any community would want, decreasing the initiation of having sex and decreasing the number of sexual partners.

KAYE: Also, sex education is only taught freshman year. Why isn't it offered beyond that?

FARMER: Well, we're very poorly funded by the state of Massachusetts.

KAYE: Plus with the economy so weak here and parents scrambling to make money, this mother of five says children may not be getting enough attention at home.

SHEILA HORGAN, GLOUCESTER RESIDENT: I think parents are so busy trying to make money to survive that in this economy that they're not focused on their children.

KAYE: Others blame Hollywood movies like "Juno" that glamorize teen pregnancy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're pregnant?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. And if it's any consolation, I have heartburn that's radiating in my kneecaps and ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't even know you were sexually active.

HORGAN: Everyone their whole lives that affects these children. Who's going to take care of these children? You know, who's going to be responsible for these children for the rest of their lives?

KAYE: It's a question many here wish the girls in the pregnancy pact had asked themselves nine months ago. Randi Kaye, CNN, Gloucester, Massachusetts.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. What could drive teenage girls to get pregnant on purpose? Susan Bartell is a psychologist specializing in tween and teen issues. She is also the author of the book. "Dr. Susan's Girls Only weight loss guide." And she's live now from our New York studios with more on this. Good to see you.

SUSAN BARTELL, PSYCHOLOGIST: Good to see you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Boy, this is so completed because I guess the big question that everyone wants to know, why would a group of teens want to go in on such an agreement? What's your guess on the psychology behind why a group of girls would want to do this?

BARTELL: It is complicated. I think what's most fascinating probably most telling about it is they did it as a group. And that teens are very prone to group activities and to pacts in general. Teens make suicide pacts. Teens make pacts to go out in groups to do all sorts of things together. And some of them are very destructive. And this is one of those pacts. Most likely they did it because they were compelled by the group to do it together and they did it in numbers at that made them feel strong. Likely, not only did they want to have a baby to make them feel loved, but they wanted the group to have the sense of love from the group and perhaps even to get their parents' attention. But the group aspect of was most important, not the getting pregnant part of it. I really think that that's sort of what's most fascinating and most important. And you know, what's most interesting is that the school did not have any education about contraception and in fact was against it. So, this was an easy pact for them to make because they weren't being taught anything else.

WHITFIELD: So, you talk about potentially destructive pacts and this was is a potentially destructive pact because there's no assurance that all of these girls are really prepared to be a parent. But clearly if these girls went into this pact, likely it's because they were looking for love.

BARTELL: They were looking for love. Teenagers don't think much beyond the current time and I'm sure the idea of having a little baby, a little tiny baby to love and that was then in their minds would grow up to love them unconditionally was something really wonderful. But even more than that, the idea that they have this group that, in their minds, they would all grow up together, the fantasy that they would all grow up together and stay together and maybe even hold onto the men who gave them these babies, they would have this sort of idealistic sense of family that perhaps, because maybe they didn't have it at home. They would really have together maybe in sort of a commune sense, that they would sort of enforce their sense of love for themselves, from their baby, from the man, from each other more than anything else. Maybe they didn't have friends, maybe these were girls who were almost to a sense that could guarantee a friendship from this pact group and they would solidify friendships with each other by having babies together, kind of like, you know, if we all dye our hair red we'll all be friends together. If we all have a baby, we'll be friends forever. You know, like that kind of a thing.

WHITFIELD: Boy and sad, too, clearly a lot of these young girls have no idea that the real hard part is coming. That pregnancy is going to be a cake walk compared to what's going to happen as a teenage mother.

BARTELL: Well, that's very true. And teenagers don't think that. You know, they don't cognitively have the ability to think much beyond the here and now. So, they are not thinking beyond certainly maybe to the even of their pregnancy and having a baby. But they certainly not thinking about having a child, having a teenager. I mean --

WHITFIELD: So what's the take-away now? I mean, you've got parents, you've got young people who are hearing about this story. And hopefully it's also provoking a lot of conversation between parents and young people. What are you hoping parents are telling their teenage daughters and sons?

BARTELL: First of all, it should do that. Parents who are watching this with their kids, it's really a teachable moment for tem. And they should be having conversation about not getting pregnant because it's going to get you attention, being very careful, using contraception if you are going to have sex. And also prepare to spend time with your kids, to know where they are, to have those family dinners which we know are important, talk to their kids not only about sex but about all sorts of intimate things in their lives and to know where their kids are, what their doing, where they're going, ask questions. You know, even if it's annoying to your child, know what's going on in your kid's life and talk to them about intimate things like sex. Don't be afraid to do that.

WHITFIELD: Psychologist Susan Bartell, thank you so much for joining us from New York. Appreciate it.

BARTELL: Thanks, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And of course, if you want to weigh in on that story or anything else that you've seen here send us an e-mail, weekends@cnn.com.

All right. Summer, finally it's here, and so is the summer sun. CNN's Judy Fortin has some tips that will save your skin in today's health for her report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDY FORTIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Officially, summer is here, but are you ready? Well, you might be, but what about the skin you're in?

RUTLEDGE FORNEY, DERMATOLOGIST: The easiest way to protect yourself is just through your clothing. I'm a big advocate for hats, wide- brimmed hats are the fastest way to protect yourselves in the sun, long-sleeved shirts, long pants or a long skirt.

FORTIN: But summer skin shouldn't mean smothered skin. So, if you want to lose some of those layers, do the next best thing and block it out. Although the labels on sunblocks or sunscreens can be confusing, the American Cancer Society recommends wearing a lotion with a sun protective factor or SPF of at least 15. Fair-skinned folks might to go higher. But regardless of the numbers, it's the amount that counts. Studies have shown that most don't apply the recommended one ounce required to not feel the burn.

FORNEY: The point is you probably only put on the quarter to a half of the amount of sunscreen that they would put on you if you were in the lab. So, an SPF 80 maybe a 20 or 40 depending on how liberal you put it on.

FORTIN: And to keep skin safe, timing is everything. Sunscreen needs to be applied at least 20 minutes before you go outside so your skin has time to soak it up. And once outside, depending on what you're doing, the time between applications may vary.

FORNEY: If you've got a waterproof or sweat proof sunscreen and you're outside sweating, you can wait about an hour and a half. If you don't have a waterproof sunscreen on and you're outside, you better think reapplying very frequently or changing to a waterproof one.

FORTIN: And don't forget your lips. They need protection, too. A lip gloss, lipstick or lip balm with sunscreen is the best defense against sun burned lips or, even worse, lip cancer. So when it comes to sun protection, where your skin is concerned, less is definitely not more. Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and the government in her bedroom. All topics for Dr. Maya Angelou

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. The supermodel whose behavior apparently is neither. It's not super and it's not model behavior, get it? A judge sentenced Naomi Campbell to 200 hours of community service Friday and fined her nearly $5,000 for profane performance at the London Airport's baggage claim area. And that was just last April. Well, Campbell apologized to the two police officers that she reportedly spat on and kicked but not to British Airways. She accuses them of racism. Well, Campbell's outburst reportedly prompted by a lost piece of luggage. She was stomping mad as she is doing a little catwalk right there. All right, well Tony Harris is coming up next with more in the NEWSROOM. You see he's like biting his tongue and his lip because he wants to comment about Naomi.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And I won't. Hello, everyone. We are talking about flood insurance coming up at 5:00, more specifically, the lack thereof. Why are so many people in the midwest not covered? It is sad but there are a few lessons we have learned in our research that we want to pass on to other homeowners out there. Because whether you realize it or not, you could be eligible for flood insurance even if your insurance company says you're not. Then, again, tonight at 10:00, you've heard a lot of drilling for oil off of America's Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Those have been off limits for 26 years in this country. Makes you wonder, how do the oil companies know what's out there and could it hold the answer to America's problems right now? We have got some information you will want to have before you make up your mind on this issue. That is tonight at 10:00. Good to see you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you as well this weekend. All right. We'll be watching this evening as well.

HARRIS: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Coming up, a conversation with Dr. Maya Angelou. She's a poet and educator. The former poet laureate and - who famously read her poem rather on the morning at Bill Clinton's inauguration. Well, today, she delivers a keynote speech at the National PTA Convention in San Diego. Earlier, I talked with her about poetry, politics and the role of government.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAYA ANGELOU, AUTHOR, POET/FMR. POET LAUREATE: I don't want government in my bedroom. I don't really want government in my kitchen very much. Just make sure that the - that I buy in the store are fresh and healthy. I don't want government in my living room to tell me who I can and cannot entertain. But I do want government when it comes to help.

WHITFIELD: When we talk about the presidential candidates, your good friend Oprah Winfrey has been very clear that she is campaigning for Barack Obama. But I understand you have been a strong Hillary Clinton supporter.

ANGELOU: That is true.

WHITFIELD: So now that it is Barack Obama who is the presumptive democratic nominee, are you putting your full support behind him or still out?

ANGELOU: Absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely behind him. I was with Hillary Clinton with all I have because I believe in her. And I think - I love the fact that she lasted until the very end. I want a president to be that strong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Much more with my conversation with Dr. Maya Angelou tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. Eastern. Don't want to miss it.

Also coming up, she says she's unfairly linked to the Olympic steroid scandals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course I suspected it all along, but I had no proof.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Up next, another chance for a former Olympian.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. By the looks of things, the Olympic torch made a triumphant pass through Tibet today. But looks can be deceiving. In a triumph of stage craft, the Chinese government cleared the route of locals, lined it with handpicked spectators, filled it with soldiers and police and kept reporters on a very short leash. The almost six-mile course connected to the former palaces of the Dalai Lama who fled Tibet in 1959. This past March, you'll recall Tibet was the scene of bloody demonstrations protesting Chinese rule.

Well, gold at the summer games in Atlanta, that was 1996, bronze at the 2000 games in Sydney and then the Balco steroid scandal. Chryste Gaines ended up being banned from her sport for two years based solely on accusations. Well, now she's looking forward to next weekend's track & field trials hoping to clinch a spot on the team.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD (voice-over) Chasing a place on her third U.S. Olympic team at the senior age of 37, Christy Gains says it's this pursuit that might mean the most. Having never failed a banned substance test, in 2005 she was still banned from competing for two years after fellow teammate, admitted doper Kelly White, along with famed Balco laboratory owner, Victor Conti, alleged Gains used a performance enhancing drug, THG.

So then fast-forward this moment.

MARION JONES, FORMER OLYMPIC CHAMPION: And so it is with a great amount of shame.

WHITFIELD: She comes out in front of the courthouse and says -

JONES: I have betrayed your trust.

WHITFIELD: Were you angry? Did you suspect it all along? Not quite a surprise? What happened for you at that moment?

CHRYSTE GAINES, OLYMPIC MEDALIST: I mean, of course I suspected it all along, but I had no proof.

WHITFIELD: Just fight to keep that medal from Sydney, how do you fight that? The Olympic Committee says, you know what, we've got one of the members here who admits to cheating. That means all four have to give it up. Because holding on to it symbolizes what?

GAINES: Well, it symbolizes the hard work and struggle that I went through the year prior to it to get there.

WHITFIELD: Even if it means one of your team members cheated to help the team cross the finish line.

GAINES: That's what people don't understand. They think she helped us. She only joined us in the finals.

WHITFIELD: Meticulous about anything she ingests, Gaines is back on track, training with runners half her age, competing again on the world stage. At first, anticipating whispers of disapproval.

GAINES: I was leery of that, how will people treat me? You know, will there be the whispers?

WHITFIELD: Did it do anything to your confidence?

GAINES: It boosted it. People welcomed me with open arms. Those who I wasn't friends with I still wasn't friends with so it didn't matter.

WHITFIELD: This sounds like this is a vindication, too, and trials, the games, vindication?

GAINES: Definitely. Definitely. Because not only is this a stage for me, it's a stage for anybody and perseverance, to show that you can go through it and come out on the other side. Pure gold.

WHITFIELD: Making the team, being an Olympian, that's - that is good enough.

GAINES: That's good enough.

WHITFIELD: You don't need to medal.

GAINES: I need to.

WHITFIELD: You're in it to win.

GAINES: I'm in it to win.

WHITFIELD: Right. To compete.

GAINES: Because I don't have an individual medal from the Olympic games.

WHITFIELD: Is there any one other competitor that you think of for any other team or U.S. team where you say, I want to see them on the mark? Alongside me and I want to help prove a point, or I'm better -

GAINES: Than everybody. Because, like you said, at 37, that's all they're going to talk about. Balco is all they're going to talk about. So, for me, just lining up, that's vindication because when I line up and when I win, then what?

WHITFIELD: At that point, it won't be Balco anymore. It will be 2008 Olympian. End of story.

GAINES: Point blank. And then it will be 2008 Olympic medalist.

WHITFIELD: Chryste Gaines, a two-time Olympian, proving she can overcome any obstacles. Now, tenaciously striving for Beijing and beyond.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And right about this time next Saturday we may know if Gaines is indeed headed to the summer Olympic games in Beijing. She must place in the top three in the 100 meters to make the U.S. team. And of course, we'll keep you posted. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Tony Harris is up next in the NEWSROOM. We'll have more on the act of terrorism that's affecting the flow of oil this weekend. And I'll see you tomorrow. More from the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I remember finding out one person was pregnant. That was, like, incredible. 17?

HARRIS: Boy, what an amazing story. Reading, writing, and raising babies. Why would a group of high school sophomores get pregnant on purpose? Photo I.D.s required, you used to have the right to refuse. But not anymore. A new TSA policy starts today.

And more misery in the Midwest. New damage estimates out today, and more disaster declarations.

And hello, everyone. I'm Tony Harris, in for Rick Sanchez. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. The muddy Mississippi is rising again north of St. Louis. These pictures shot today in Lincoln County, Missouri, where up to 350 homes have flooded so far. After dropping several feet, the river has risen higher than expected today as it nears a crest below record levels, a bit of good news there. Crop damage assessments are far from complete.