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Heatwave in the Midwest; K-2 Claims More Climbers; Female Amputee Qualifies for Olympics

Aired August 03, 2008 - 16:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

RICHARD LIU, CNN ANCHOR: Next in the NEWSROOM, a scorcher in the south and midwest. Temperatures there breaking triple digits and taking lives with them.
Also, they got to the summit OK, but the trip down killed them. A deadly avalanche on one of the world's most dangerous mountains.

Plus, she's already a winner. Meet the first female amputee to qualify for the Olympics and the Para Olympics.

All right. Good afternoon. We got a lot going on for you. I'm Richard Lui, in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Dangerous heat first bringing absolute misery to parts of the U.S.. Heat warnings are posted from Texas to Mississippi. In Texas, the high temperatures have proven fatal with at least three heat-related deaths in the Dallas area this summer. Today the mercury could hit a record 107 degrees there. Well, this oppressive heat is a big problem in many other states, as well. And it's not going away any time soon. Let's now turn to CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras with more on that. Jacqui, what have you got?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, I wish I had good news actually for you, Richard, but I certainly don't. You know, this heat is really gripping the nation's midsection and it's going to continue to do that for at least another two full days. Relief is coming, but it's going to be kind of minor. We are talking about a drop of maybe five plus degrees. Now, the big issue here is the humidity combined with the heat. And that's really making things feel so much worse.

Look at this across parts of Texas into Oklahoma. It feels like 104 right now in Oklahoma City. 109 in Dallas, as well as Shreveport. Look at Houston. Feeling like 103. And it's not just confined there. To the deep south of the lower Mississippi River valley, look how this spreads all the way up through tomorrow, into Minnesota, Wisconsin. Chicago is going to be seeing temperatures about ten degrees above average. And Kansas City and St. Louis will be on the brutal heat with temperatures about 15 degrees above what the average high is for this time of year. We are talking well into the 90s for many folks, into the triple digits for many. And this has already been going on for days and days.

And many areas of the nation's midsection. Dallas-Ft. Worth, for example, has been particularly brutal. We've had a number of consecutive days where temperatures have been in the triple digits. We are going to get some more detailed information on what's going on in the Dallas area. At least three people have died now due to heat- related illnesses. Fred Barnhill, he is a meteorologist for us. He works at KDAF-TV. And Fred, what is the latest? How significant is this heat wave for Texans?

FRED BARNHILL, METEOROLOGIST, KDAF-TV: I tell you what, this is a major heat wave for our local area. The reason why, our average high temperature should be like in the mid 90s. This over the past several days, we've seen temperatures topped the 100 mark. So far for this summer we've seen at least 24, 100 degree days. The all-time hottest summer her was back in 1980, we had 69 100 degree days.

JERAS: And how are people coping with the heat? Are people staying inside and heeding the warnings?

BARNHILL: Yes, Jacqui. It's a very big news story here. All you hear folks asking about the heat. How high is the temperature going to be? People are beginning to try to find ways to keep cool out there and keep in mind, of course, they need water to keep the body cool, as well. So a lot of people are drinking a lot of water out there and going to perhaps a library, a local movie, a local shopping mall. Just trying to find ways to keep cool out there.

JERAS: Yes, Fred, you know, cooling centers have been open to help people who don't have a place to escape?

BARNHILL: Yes. They do have some shelters open for some of the folks out there, perhaps those who do not have AC or perhaps even a fan. So, this is a dangerous heat wave. We've seen high temperatures again topping 100 degrees for the past several days. And if you factor in the high humidity, we've seen our heat index with temperature as high as about 112 in parts of the metroplex.

JERAS: And what about that big break we are looking for. Maybe middle of the week?

BARNHILL: Yes. Middle of the week we are keeping a close eye on the tropics. But right now, You can see we have a sunny sky up there. There are a few clouds and they are trying to develop into thunderstorms. But we have a big bubble of high pressure and upper levels keeping the weather stable so these clouds cannot form thunderstorms. It's going to be high and dry at least for the next two days. But again we are watching the tropics and maybe by mid week some of our local counties could see a stray shower or thunderstorm.

JERAS: All right. Fred Barnhill, thanks so much for joining us. Hope for you and the rest of the Texans stay cool there. Fred was just talking a little bit about the tropics there. We've got a little something brewing in the Gulf of Mexico which could be heading towards the lone star state. And we'll talk a little bit more specifically about what could be developing, coming up when I see you again. Richard.

LIU: Great stuff. Thank you, Jacqui. Tragedy on the world's second highest peak. 11 climbers are believed dead after an ice avalanche on K-2 in Pakistan. The climbers reached the summit fine. Their descent was a far different story though. Jim (Wickwire) know the danger of K2. He's one of the first Americans to ever climb it. Jim, thanks for joining us today.

I want to start with what has been said as to what may have been the problem with regard to when they chose to come down. Was it too late in the day?

JIM WICKWIRE, AUTHOR "ADDICTED TO DANGER": Well, Richard, I'm not sure of the exact timing of the avalanche, but typically the climbers will head down in plenty of time to reach their high camp. From what I understand, timing here is not a factor.

LIU: OK. It was said by one of the rescuers they should have gone down a little bit earlier. That was what I was alluding to. Another thing that this rescuer had said was they had too many people in the group, 17. You in your book describe many expeditions you had had with smaller groups. Is 17 too many?

WICKWIRE: Well, these days it's climbed differently. There are a large number of expeditions on K2 at any given time. When we were going 30 years ago, we were the only team on the mountain. So today when you go up, they put in what are called fixed ropes, which means they attach the rope to the ice. This allows a larger number of climbers to move up and down the mountain at roughly the same time.

Now, of course the accounts thus far are a little bit fragmentary. But I think we have to understand that this was an unprecedented event on K2. There's never been anything like this happened in the entire climbing history of the mountain where you had a huge section of this ice cliff collapse while climbers are beneath it. That's the primary cause of most of these 11 fatalities.

LIU: In your 35 years of climbing, is there anything they could have done to have been more safe based on this unprecedented incident you just described?

WICKWIRE: No. I don't think so because most climbing accidents on K2 are the result of storms, fatigue, where a climber will slip and fall. But from what I understand, the weather here was very good for climbing to the summit of K2. So this was a completely unpredictable event. It's what sometimes are referred to as an act of god, where the climbers really, no matter what they've done, they are just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

LIU: The wrong place at the wrong time. It's called the dead zone. That's where they were at. They were trying to move through the bottle neck. Where you in this area? What do you know about this section of the mountain?

WICKWIRE: Yes. In 1978 this was our route of ascent. We went right up the bottle neck. And as you climb up towards this ice cliff which is about 250 vertical feet high, you are wondering whether it's going to stay put, but it did for us and it's done for every other expedition that's gone up there since. So as you come up to the base of this ice cliff you are climbing at about a 45 degree angle. And then it goes vertical. So you are forced to traverse out to the left on a very steep traverse, like going across a steep roof. And once you get around the end of that ice cliff then you are on better ground, but these climbers that were hid by this avalanche obviously were somewhere on either on that traverse or a little bit lower down so that the debris from the avalanche, which is just, you can imagine the weight of that debris came roaring down on them.

LIU: Jim, we've got to go. But one last quick question, is there any hope that they could still be alive?

WICKWIRE: I think the reports are fairly conclusive that they've now confirmed that there are 11 deaths. And of the 11, two are people who went up, other climbers who went up to rescue the climbers that were stranded. There was a Pakistani and a Nepali Sherpa.

LIU: OK. Thank you very much. We appreciate you stopping by today. Jim Wickwire who is very experienced when it comes to climbing, 35 years in the business. And was one of the first Americans to get up on K2. Appreciate it again.

WICKWIRE: Thank you, Richard.

LIU: You bet.

And next hour, Josh Levs will have more about what makes K2 so dangerous. He's also got and details about where the avalanche had happened.

The death toll is climbing in India after a stampede at a Hindu temple. At least 145 people are dead in the northern Indian state of Hemachal Phadesh. Witnesses say a temple railing collapsed and panicked worshippers began to flee. Things got worse when police reportedly hit them with canes to keep them moving. Police say the stampede began because there were rumors of a fight. Thousands of till brims are at the temple for a religious festival there.

It's an amazing story about a girl named Grace who fell more than 13 stories and lived.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIU: A sociopathic homicidal killer. That's how a therapist described the government's chief suspect in the deadly 2001 anthrax attacks. Bruce Ivins' social worker was in court last month trying to get a restraining order for her own safety. CNN's Brianna Keilar is live in Washington with the latest for us now. Hey, Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Richard. Well, Jean Duley, that therapist went to a Maryland judge on July 24th. This was just days before Bruce Ivins killed himself earlier this week and she told that judge that she was scared to death by Ivins. In court, tapes obtained by the "New York Times," Duley explained to the court how she had recently started the process to have Ivins involuntarily committed to a health facility after he talked about a murder plot during a group therapy session.

(BEGIN AUDIOTAPE) VOICE OF JEAN DULEY, IVINS' THERAPIST/FROM "THE NEW YORK TIMES": As far back as the year 2000, the respondent has actually attempted to murder several other people, either through poisoning. He is a revenge killer. When he feels that he's been slighted or - has had especially towards women. He plots and actually tries to carry out revenge killings. He has been forensically diagnosed by several top psychiatrists as a sociopathic homicidal killer.

(END AUDIOTAPE)

KEILAR: And I apologize because that is not actually the sound bite that we wanted to show to you. That is actually Duley talking about the diagnosis of him being a homicidal killer. And we have to mentioned as well that CNN has not been able to confirm those diagnosis but I believe we do have another bit of this court proceeding where she is trying to basically make her case for getting a retraining order and she details this plot that she said Ivins laid out during a group therapy session. Let's listen to that.

(BEGIN AUDIOTAPE)

VOICE OF JEAN DULEY: He proceeded to describe to the group a very long and detailed homicidal plan and intention to that he had bough a bullet proof vest, had obtained a gun, a very detailed plan to kill his co-workers, that because he was about to be indicted on capital murder charges, he was going to go out in a blaze of glory. That he was going to take everybody out with him. That he has been roaming the streets of Frederick trying to pick a fight with somebody so that he could stab them.

(END AUDIOTAPE)

KEILAR: Now, Duley's earlier descriptions about Ivins' being a homicidal maniac and someone who is trying to kill people, acting out murder plots over the past several years, those are descriptions that are very surprising to people who knew Ivins. They really can't believe that he was responsible for the 2001 anthrax attacks.

But even so federal investigators seemed sure that Ivins was responsible. The FBI though it has not publicly detailed its case against Ivins. CNN has learned there is scientific evidence, I should say, DNA evidence, linking the anthrax used in the 2001 mailings to a flask used in the army laboratory where Ivins worked. That is according to a source familiar with the investigation, Richard.

LIU: Brianna Keilar in Washington, D.C., thank you so much for the latest there.

Now, checking some stories for you "Across America." In Knoxville, Tennessee, a day of love and recovery for a church hit by violence. Members of the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church say they needed to reclaim their sanctuary after last Sunday's shooting. One week ago today, a gunman opened fire inside killing two members of the congregation and wounding several others. Drunk driving charges are expected against a man who crashed into a parade crowd in Wisconsin. Four people were hurt in this accident. The crash ended a high-speed drama that had deputies chasing the suspect from a highway into downtown Sheboygan. Bystanders had the driver pinned on the ground when officers arrived there.

Will Brett Favre get back with the pack? The NFL has announced it's re-instating the unretired quarterback to the league as he asked. Favre and his old team, the Green Bay packers had been locked in a standoff. It all started when Favre announced he wanted to come out of retirement. The packers do not want him back as a starter, but don't want him playing anywhere else either. They are calling for amazing Grace. 12-year-old Grace Bergere survived a fall down the chimney of her New York apartment building on Thursday. She landed in a pile of ash and soot that likely saved her life. The story from Tim Fleischer of our affiliate WABC.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not only was it miraculous that this young lady fell 180 feet to the bottom of this shaft but that she same out relatively unscathed.

TIM FLEISCHER, REPORTER, WABC (voice-over): As surprised as anyone, the firefighters with ladder 12 and Engine Three finding at the bottom of this chimney, the victim of a miracle fall. A 12-year-old girl who had made her way to the roof of her apartment building climbing a ladder, but then falling 15 stories to the bottom.

LT. SIMON RESSNER, NEW YORK FIRE DEPARTMENT: As I reached down to open the door a girl's hand popped out from the opening in the doorway and we jumped from surprise. Because we assumed we didn't have a surviving victim.

FLEISCHER: Firefighters found Grace Bergere deep in the basement in a portion of an old boiler room in the West Beth Artist Building. Not only conscious but talking.

JOHN TALIERICO, NEW YORK FIRE DEPARTMENT: The first thing she said to me, broke my leg, I broke my leg. She was kind of sitting down and I wanted to really stabilize her neck, first. That was my main concern.

FLEISCHER: And quite surprising was her condition. The best firefighters can figure, two feet of ash and soot at the base of the chimney.

RESSNER: The ash and soot is powdery and soft. We just think she hit soft surface and was able to break the fall there.

FLEISCHER: Neighbors who did not want to appear on camera were also surprised she made it out on to the roof. The door leading to it they say is alarmed. Back down in the basement firefighters were able to stabilize Grace covered in soot, as she was, enough to move her out of the chimney base, rushing her up to the street and into a waiting ambulance.

TALIERICO: I just told her you are going to be all right. You've got a lot of good help here. we're going to get you safe. RESSNER: I'm amazed she survived even with that powder. But that's the only way to explain that she made it. You know, she had no scrapes, no cuts. So she didn't impact the chimney going down.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIU: Grace injured her hip and back in that fall. She's recovering in the hospital.

Well, scorching temperatures aren't the only weather issue wearing the south. There could be a storm brewing in the Gulf right now. Jacqui Jeras, a busy Sunday for you today. What do you got?

JERAS: It's certainly is, you got a big cluster of showers and thunderstorms. And as we speak, Richard, the hurricane hunters are flying into it. We'll show you some of that data and bring you the latest forecast on it coming up.

LIU: All right. Looking for that. Thanks, Jacqui.

Plus, an Olympian who doesn't know the meaning of the word can't.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIU: The Olympic opening ceremony happening in just five days. And the torch is on its way. Today torch bearers took off through an area of China, about 200 miles from the epicenter of the violent earthquake in May. President Bush heads to Asia tomorrow. He will be the first sitting U.S. President to attend the Olympic games on foreign soil, but the first stop on this Asia trip is South Korea.

Another Olympic first at the Beijing games for you. A South African swimmer who lost her leg in a motorcycle accident. She is the first female amputee to qualify for both the Olympics and the Para Olympics. And she will do it in swimming's most grueling event, the 10-km or 6- mile race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATALIE DU TOIT, OLYMPIC SWIMMER: When I had my accident and lost my leg, you know, I started from scratch. I started, you know, have no endurance, have no muscles. I lost sort of everything. So, for me, it was difficult. I stayed with the same coach. And just working my way up lane by lane to the fastest lane in trying to reach my dream of going to the Olympic games.

KAROLY VON TOROS, DU TOIT'S COACH: She is very stubborn. It could be good and bad. Good for swimming because she never gives up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIU: Well you can follow the summer Olympics on our special website. Amazing stories like that. CNN has teamed up with "Sports Illustrated" on the fan zone. All the latest results and the most compelling angles at Cnn.com/fanzone. OK, if you are in the south you know about this. Scorching temperatures are creating dangerous conditions for parts of the country. Monitoring the heat wave from the CNN Weather Center, our own meteorologist Jacqui Jeras. And Jacqui, more of yesterday and that's just not good stuff.

JERAS: It's not good stuff. A little bit of help is on the way, however, Richard, and it may come in the form of tropical weather. Get some showers and thunderstorms in there and some cloud cover and that will be cooling things off. Now, we are a little concerned about this big blob that you see here in the Gulf of Mexico. We had a stationary boundary parked here for a day or so. it brought a lot of heavy rain into parts of Florida yesterday. Today all that activity is over open waters. But we are starting to see a little bit more organization here. We are seeing more of a closed circulation and certainly with water temperatures in the middle 80s, plenty of heat, plenty of that fuel that you need to help this thing build. And that is going to be a likely scenario over the next couple of days.

Now the hurricane hunters have been flying in this storm. Here you can see our pattern left from Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, has been flying this pattern here. And now you can see this present location. And it's flying back up to the north and likely heading on its way home. Now, it continues to take observations as it flies into this system. And current estimated wind speed now is 22 miles per hour. Has to be up there at 39 in order for it to become a tropical storm with a close circulation.

So as we continue to get this data together if we do get something out of this, of course, we'll break in and bring that information to you. Now, the computer models have a pretty good consensus on where it's going. Bringing it down towards the southwest. And then westerly possibly towards Texas. And we only have a couple of days here so landfall will likely happen on Tuesday. And the good thing about that is that if it stays at more of a rapid speed, Richard, it doesn't have as much quite time to strengthen. Does seem certainly that everybody along the Louisiana coastline on westward, you should pay very close attention over the next couple of days.

LIU: All right. Jacqui, thanks for that. And we do hope as you were saying at the top of that report that that will help the folks down the south at some point.

JERAS: We want to get some heat relief, that's for sure.

LIU: All right. Thank you, Jacqui. Great stuff.

You know, Iran's president's tone is a little different today when it comes to the nuclear power standoff. Plus Christina Applegate's new real life role as a breast cancer patient.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIU: News that's happening right now for you. Disturbing revelations from a therapist who treated Dr. Bruce Ivins. He is the government scientist who killed himself as prosecutors prepared to indict him for the deadly anthrax attacks in 2001. In court tapes obtained by the "New York Times," therapist Jean Duley says Ivins claimed he was planning to kill his co-workers.

(BEGIN AUDIOTAPE)

VOICE OF JEAN DULEY: Because he was about to be indicted on capital murder charges, he was going to go out in a blaze of glory. That he was going to take everybody out with him.

(END AUDIOTAPE)

LUI: Duley was trying to get a restraining order against Ivins. She says he made threatening phone calls to her after she had him committed to a mental facility.

Eleven climbers appear dead on Pakistan's K2 Mountain, the world's second highest peak. A mountaineer at base camp says an ice avalanche knocked down the sixth rope the climbers had used to reach the summit, making it impossible to get down.

In northern India, at least 145 people have been killed in a stampede at a religious festival. Witnesses say worshippers began to panic when a railing at a mountain top temple gave way. The police say rumors of a fight triggered that panic.

Iran's President Ahmadinejad is talking about his country's nuclear standoff with the west. His message and tone this time are down right diplomatic. Today's date may be the reason for the change in rhetoric. Joining us live from Tehran, CNN's Reza Sayah with that story for us. Hey Reza.

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: On Sunday Tehran President Ahmadinejad said Iran is pleased with the nuclear talks and Iran is willing to talk some more. Here is the problem, the U.S. and five world powers are saying enough with the talks. They want Iran to respond to the latest pleas for freeze proposal. On Saturday Tehran was the deadline for that proposal. Iran responded by saying they were never aware of the deadline. That freeze for freeze proposal offering Iran a six week delay in added sanctions if Iran would agreed not to expand its uranium enrichment program.

This weekend in Tehran a visit by Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. There were some reports that perhaps French President Sarkozy asked President Bashar to come to Iran to perhaps try to persuade President Ahmadinejad on Sunday. President Ahmadinejad made it clear that he was not here bringing a message for anyone. Either way, no agreement on this proposal. Here was President Ahmadinejad on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD, IRANIAN PRESIDENT (via Translator): We welcome the idea. For some time now we have said that we are always ready to negotiate to talk but the issues that need to be discussed are numerous.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SAYAH: Certainly a number of issues that need to be resolved and without question the sticking point is the subject of uranium enrichment. Iran is saying they are doing it for peaceful purposes for electricity, but the U.S. and the world powers fear they want to use it to eventually build bombs. Richard the U.S. and the world powers have a fourth round of sanctions on the table. They say perhaps the toughest round of sanctions yet.

LUI: You know Reza, many diplomats wondering if Iran will ever answer to the latest set of proposals with a clear yes or no.

SAYAH: Richard, there are all sorts of indications that Iran is very pleased with dragging this process out. Many analysts point to the fact that they are getting many concessions from the U.S. and the five world powers. Keep in mind the U.S. had previously said they would not sit down with Iranian officials unless they stopped enriching uranium. A couple of weeks ago in Geneva they did send a U.S. diplomat. Previously they said the only way to reach a deal was for Iran to stop enriching uranium. This latest offer on the table only asks them not to expand. Many analysts point to these many concessions and say Iran is perfectly fine with dragging this out.

LUI: Reza Sayah live in Tehran, thank you.

According to Iraq's Islamic Website Al Qaeda is confirming one of its top weapons experts is dead. The terror group's statement says Sheikh Abu Khabab al-Masri was killed recently along with three other commanders, A Pakistanian official had told CNN last week al-Masri died in a U.S. missile strike in Pakistan's tribal region. U.S. officials say al Masri taught other terrorists how to make chemical and other biological weapons.

There is some VP talk on the campaign trail today. A new name pops up in the McCain VP stakes. Plus the candidates in their own words about energy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LUI: Now to the campaign trail. Neither candidate has any public event scheduled today. There is news on the VP stakes front. Virginia Congressman Eric Cantor has surfaced on John McCain's short list. The GOP force tells CNN that Cantor is getting a thorough vetting. Cantor represents a heavily Republican district in Richmond, Virginia.

Barack Obama is back home in Chicago today. The campaign has sent a letter to the commission on presidential debates excepting the (ph) for three presidential debates, plus one vice presidential debate. The letter says the short political season makes it unlikely that Obama will accept John McCain's challenge for a series of joint town hall style debates.

We are going to play more of what the candidates are saying in their own words. Want to give you the tools to make an informed choice in the presidential election. Here are McCain and Obama on the campaign trail talking about energy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The fact is that we are gridlocked in Congress. We are gridlocked because the Democratic leadership refuses to reach across the aisle and work with the Republicans. We are gridlocked on virtually every single issue. So I want to assure you when I'm president I will reach across the aisle. We will sit down, we will work together and do it in a bipartisan fashion and solve the issues that confront the American people.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Senator Obama today expressed plans, a bipartisan plan that would allow oil drilling 50 miles off the coast. I would like your reaction to that.

MCCAIN: We need oil drilling and we need it now offshore. We need it now he is consistent. We opposed it. He has opposed nuclear power. He has opposed reprocessing. He has opposed storage. The only thing I heard him say is that we should inflate our tires. He has no plan for addressing the energy challenges that we face. We need drilling everywhere that the states and the governors such as the state of Florida approve of.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Please tell us the thinking behind this new web ad (INAUDIBLE).

MCCAIN: Having some fun with our supporters that we sent it out to. We are going to display a sense of humor in this campaign. I noticed a couple of days ago that Senator Obama challenged me to a duel. Light Sabre is my weapon of choice. Seriously, if we have differences, we should have appeared at the Urban League Convention today. I asked him time after time to appear with me on the same stage so we can discuss the issues that are important to the American people.

I look forward to people across this country saying appear together, appear in town hall meetings and discuss the issues that are important to the United States American people.

Kelly.

KELLY: A political video today, some people might have questions about that. Where is the line for you (INAUDIBLE)?

MCCAIN: This is a very respectful campaign. I repeated my admiration and respect for Senator Obama. That clip is Charlton Heston, it is a movie, and it is a film. I really appreciated the movie and appreciated Charlton Heston's magnificent acting skills as I saw it. It's a movie.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): Are you going to steal our governor for vice president?

MCCAIN: I think that your governor has earned a place in the Republican Party, not just in the state of Florida, but nationally. He is a great leader and I think that obviously he has a major role to play. The Republican Party in this nation and the future. We aren't talking about the process, but everybody knows the respect and appreciation I have for him. (END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This wasn't really a new position. What I am saying is that we can't drill our way out of the problem. That every energy expert that I've spoken with every scientist, every engineer will tell you that with 3 percent of the world's oil reserves and 25 percent of the world's oil utilization we can keep on drilling all we want, but the long-term trend is for flat or decreasing oil supply and increased consumption. So what that means is that if we want to have true oil independence, if we want to have true energy independence then we are going to have to become much more efficient in terms of how we use energy.

What I said was that the gang of ten bill, what I've seen so far and we haven't seen final legislation, has some of the very aggressive elements that I've outlined in my plan to move us in the direction of genuine energy independence. A good example is their goal that in 20 years 85 percent of the cars on the road are not, are no longer petroleum based. That I think is the kind of bold step we need. The fact that they are willing to put in $7 billion to help the auto industry retool so that those new energy efficient cars are made in America I think is a positive step.

So there are a whole bunch of good things that have been proposed by this bipartisan group. I remain skeptical of some of the drilling provisions, but I will give them credit that the way they crafted the drilling provisions are about as careful and responsible as you might expect for a drilling agenda. And what I don't want to do is for the goodness. If we can come up with a genuine bipartisan compromise which I have to accept things I don't like or Democrats have to accept some things they don't like and change for actually moving us in the direction of energy independence, that's something I'm open to.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LUI: And remember for the very latest on the presidential race log on to our Website. That is CNNPOLITICS.com, the most politics on the Web.

Straight over to Jacqui Jeras right now. Jacqui you are watching news coming out of the tropics right?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That's right. We've been tracking that disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico. Now it's officially a tropical depression declared by the National Hurricane Center. This has been picking up some strength and some organization. We think it will continue to do so. Go ahead and take a look at the satellite picture and show you exactly where this thing is at. It is south now, through see about south of the Pensacola area. We are expecting it to continue to move on a westerly track. We are going to continue to get our information here together. There you can see it developing into a tropical storm. We have complete details coming up at 5:00. We have tropical storm watches and warnings have been posted across parts of Texas and Louisiana coastline. We'll have those coming up for you at 5:00 Eastern. LUI: All right. Thank you so much Jacqui.

Christina Applegate and a breast cancer diagnosis. Thankfully the disease was caught early.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LUI: Actress Christina Applegate is fighting breast cancer. A statement from the star reads, Christina Applegate was diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer benefiting from early detection through a doctor-ordered MRI. The cancer is not life threatening. Christina is following the recommended treatment of her doctors and will have a full recovery. No further statement will be issued at this time. Applegate is 36 years old and probably best known as the ditsy teen on "Married with Children."

The government is now saying it underestimated the Aids epidemic in this country for over a decade. Better tests and new statistical methods show there were more than 56,000 new HIV infections in 2006. A fairly typical year according to the Centers for Disease Control. That's much higher than the CDC's previous estimate of about 40,000 new patients annually.

According to the Black Aids Institute, blacks in our country are eight times more likely to become infected with HIV than whites. In this "Impact Your World" segment, CNN's Abbie Boudreau introduces us to an African-American woman who has been living with the disease for more than 20 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Up, dressed and heading out. Linda Felix is driving to yet another meeting. It's a hectic schedule. For a woman who never thought she would be alive today, every day is, well, one more day she never expected.

LINDA FELIX, HIV POSITIVE: I was first diagnosed in 1986. So I believe that I probably was infected several years before that.

BOUDREAU: Linda is HIV positive. One of the many faces in an epidemic that is plaguing the black community.

PHIL WILSON, CEO, BLACK AIDS INSTITUTE: Sadly Aids in America today is a black disease.

BOUDREAU: Phil Wilson is the CEO of the Black Aids Institute.

WILSON: No matter how you look at the epicidemic, from the minds of gender, socioeconomic class, region of the country, where you live, black people bear the brunt of the Aids epidemic.

BOUDREAU: But this is especially true for black women. Aids is the number one killer of young black women between the ages of 25 and 34 and blacks account for more than 60 percent of all new HIV cases among women in this country. "Essence" Magazine covered this extensively. Angela Burt-Murray is editor in chief.

ANGELA BURT-MURRAY, EDITOR IN CHIEF, "ESSENCE" MAGAZINE: I think that one of the biggest concerns that keeps attributing to the increased rate of infection for black woman is the idea that the African- American community has not embraced the idea of really teaching about safe sex. Black women in particular have not taken on the role of responsibility in their relationships and demanding that their partners wear condoms. That that be a non-negotiable issue.

We've got to have people certified to do the testing.

BOUDREAU: But it's not all doom and gloom. Today Linda Felix is a long-term survivor and she helps others struggling with HIV Aids.

FELIX: What I say to them is that this is not a death sentence. You can live and you can learn to thrive with this disease, but you have to take control of your life.

BOUDREAU: Advocates like Phil Wilson are also encouraged.

WILSON: People are changing their behavior. We see couples that are now going in to get tested together. We are starting to see young people talk about HIV Aids more.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): Acquired immune deficiency sedrum.

BOUDREAU: Despite its devastating impact on the black community, experts say things are getting better when it comes to HIV and Aids.

Abbie Boudreau, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LUI: One hopeful sign is improved access to information about preventing HIV. One place to start is our "Impact Your World" page. You will find out more about the Black Aids Institute report and ways you can get involved with groups raising awareness about this disease. That's all at CNN.com/impact.

No one said the presidential race would be a cakewalk. That doesn't mean the candidates have to wear cheap shoes. One of them has a pair of loafers that will knock your socks off.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LUI: Campaigning can be rough on the candidates' bodies from head-to- toe. Maybe Senator John McCain has a secret weapon here. He's been making the rounds with pricey Italian loafers. As Jeannie Moos found, he may be the shoe-in for the title most elite feet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANNIE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): We don't expect John McCain to be on a shoe string budget, but when it comes to shoes $520 Pregiato Moccasin loafers? That is right up there in there and John Edward's $400 haircut. I feel pretty It wasn't pretty when a liberal "Huffing ton Post" style section revealed Loafergate, riddles of McCain wearing the same $520 Italian shoes on a golf cart ride and on a stroll in a grocery store. Feragamo narrowly missed getting buried in an apple sauce avalanche.

Neiman Marcus carries the Feragamo shoes. You can experience what it feels like to walk in John McCain's shoes. Check out that buckle. The author of "The Perfect Fit" what your shoes say about you had this to say about what the senator shoes say.

MEGHAN CLEARY, SHOE EXPERT: I would say flashy. I wonder if McCain fancies himself a little bit of a fashion plate.

MOOS: Maybe the senator had some help with the shoe-shopping department from his fashion plate wife. Wasn't Senator Obama the guy being called elitist?

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): Looking too much like a "GQ" cover who is aloof.

MOOS: There he is. But Obama got a dressing down by his family.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): These pants he probably had 12 years.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): And that belt.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): Don't pan down to the shoes. We talked about getting new shoes for him.

OBAMA: I have four pairs of shoes.

CLEARY: That is a typical average guy count on shoes.

MOOS: Unless you think voters don't notice foot wear.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Would you tie your shoes so you don't trip over?

MOOS: She did. Holes in the sole seemed to in part campaign trail trend. In 1952 Addalee's (ph) shoe led to a campaign jingle.

(UNIDENTIFED FEMALE): I would rather have a man with a hole in his shoe than a hole in everything he says

MOOS: I would rather a man with a hole in his shoe rather than a man with a hole in both socks. Former World Bank president Paul Walton (ph), some were using shoes to both campaign and entertain.

Presidential candidates McCain was spotted wearing his $520 Italian shoes when he met with the Dalai Lama. It was hard to notice their feet what with all the hand holding. The Dalai Lama was wearing sandals, so should they meet again perhaps this simple $275 Prada sandal might work for Senator McCain.

Jeannie Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LUI: With that, the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM that starts right now.

Some climbers claimed the world's second tallest mountain is actually more dangerous than Everest. This weekend K2 lived up to its fearsome reputation.

And new details in the anthrax case. Bruce Ivins' therapist with some interesting words about her client.

Deep in the heart of Texas, they are feeling some big heat.

I'm Richard Lui, you are in the NEWSROOM. First off before we talk about the heat we will go to Jacqui Jeras. A tropical depression to talk about just this hour right Jacqui?

JERAS: Yes, it just happened before the 5:00 hour there that the National Hurricane Center has issued watches and warnings because we've got a tropical depression. Hurricane hunters have been flying into it. They found what we call a closed circulation which means the wind has been around counterclockwise and they found wind strong enough to support that. We think more strengthening will be very likely here in the next 24 to 48 hours. We've been watching this disturbance over the last couple of days. Conditions becoming more favorable for further development here.

There is a little bit of wind shear on the northern side of this storm which is why it looks lopsided here on our satellite picture. Here is where we have the watches and warnings.