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American Morning
U.S. Nuclear Submarine Leaking Radioactive Water Since 2006; Anthrax Case Closed; Pres. Bush Chastises China; Could Karl Rove Be Jailed in the U.S. Capitol?; What the Candidates Are Saying on the Campaign Trail; Race for Veepstakes Continues
Aired August 07, 2008 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Sitting on billions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They can write a check to reimburse us.
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CHETRY: Iraq, sitting on an oil field fortune while you pick up the rebuilding tab.
Plus, lucky ducks.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're off!
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CHETRY: A sea of yellow in the East River.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're doing it simply to be athletes.
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CHETRY: Which rubber ducky is the one on this AMERICAN MORNING?
Oh, goodness. We just had a --
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: A debate as to what the date was.
CHETRY: A debate. But we've now cleared it and confirmed it is, indeed, Thursday.
MARCIANO: Thursday, August 7th.
CHETRY: Glad you're with us this morning.
MARCIANO: 6:00 a.m., I'm Rob in for John. Lots going on today.
CHETRY: Yes. We do have a lot going on. In fact, we have some breaking news this morning to talk about.
MARCIANO: We do. We start off with that.
The U.S. Navy says a nuclear submarine, the USS Houston, was leaking radioactive water during port calls in Japan and other Asian countries as far back as 2006.
Navy officials say the attack sub made port calls of three Japanese bases between 2006 and March of this year. But Houston also made stops at ports in Malaysia and Singapore while leaking the radioactive fluid. Officials say the leak was discovered last month while the sub was in dry dock.
And right now, the search is on for eight firefighters and a crew member missing and presumed dead after their helicopter crashed in flames. It went down Tuesday shortly after picking up firefighters battling a blaze in a northern California forest. Three other firefighters and a pilot were hospitalized with severe burns. Rescue efforts for nine missing were hampered by the remote location.
The FBI is closing the books on the 2001 anthrax investigation that killed five people and terrorized the nation right after 9/11. The Justice Department says advanced DNA testing allowed it to determine that the anthrax used in the letters came from Army biologist Bruce Ivins' lab. Ivins committed suicide last week as prosecutors prepared to file charges against him. His attorney claims the government's evidence would not have held up in court.
CHETRY: Breaking this morning, the Chinese government hitting back after President Bush said that Beijing needs to let its people speak and pray freely. The communist ruler said outsiders should not interfere in its affairs.
The remarks come as President Bush is right now on his way to China to Beijing for the opening of the Olympic ceremonies. And as you can see from these new pictures, his criticism of China comes as police crack down on people in Tiananmen Square for protesting the country's human rights record.
CNN's Elaine Quijano is live in Bangkok with more for us this morning. Hi, Elaine.
ELAINE QUIJANO, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Kiran. Well, it was tough criticism delivered from a distance as President Bush tried to walk a fine line on China.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO (voice-over): Just ahead of his visit to Beijing, President Bush tried to maintain a respectful but firm tone in chastising China for its dismal record on human rights and religious freedom.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: America stands in firm opposition to China's detention of political dissidents and human rights advocates and religious activists. QUIJANO: His speech in Bangkok had been reported on almost a full 24 hours before. After the White House, in a move guaranteeing increased news coverage, took the unusual step of releasing the entire address to reporters ahead of time. The president sticking largely to the prepared text, aimed carefully crafted China remarks at a dual audience. First, activists and some U.S. lawmakers who argue his Beijing visit allows China to whitewash human rights abuses.
BUSH: I have spoken clearly and candidly and consistently with China's leaders about our deep concerns over religious freedom and human rights.
QUIJANO: The president's second audience? China's government.
BUSH: We speak out for a free press, freedom of assembly and labor rights not to antagonize China's leaders, but because trusting its people with greater freedom is the only way for China to develop its full potential.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: Now, in giving his speech here in Thailand, not China, the president intentionally blunted the force of his own criticism, allowing China its big moment, the Summer Olympic Games. Now, the president's next stop, of course, Beijing, where his first day will include the opening ceremony -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Elaine Quijano for us live in Bangkok, thank you.
MARCIANO: The "Most Politics in the Morning" now. Energy and the economy will be front and center once again as John McCain campaigns in Ohio today. Speaking in Jackson, Ohio yesterday, McCain blasted Congress for taking a long summer recess with Americans facing an energy emergency.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: In the face of a severe energy crisis, the Congress decides to go on a five-week vacation. When I'm president of the United States, I will call the Congress back into session and tell them to act and not to leave town, to take their vacation or their pay raise until they address this energy crisis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: McCain also compared his economic plan to the successful troop surge in Iraq, saying the country needs an economic surge to deal with the housing crisis and boost the job market.
For months, the McCain campaign has complained about the amount of news coverage Barack Obama has been getting. And a new Pew Research poll suggests Americans may agree.
Forty-eight percent of those surveyed say Obama is getting too much media coverage. Just 10 percent say they were hearing too little about the presumptive Democratic nominee. Thirty-six percent say there's not enough coverage of John McCain. Twenty-six percent think there's too much.
CHETRY: There's a new federal health report that says patients are waiting nearly an hour on average to see a doctor in an emergency room. The CDC says the wait time has grown steadily with 38 minutes back in 1997 and now 56 minutes in 2006. Officials say that it's a supply and demand problem.
There were 119 million emergency room visits in 2006. That's a 32 percent jump over a 10-year period. And many hospitals are actually closing their emergency departments because they're simply not profitable.
Well, the month-long cat and mouse game between Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers is now over. The Packers making a deal last night to trade their legendary quarterback to the New York Jets.
Now back in March, Favre announced he was retiring then last month he decided he still wanted to play. The Packers though weren't so receptive. After 16 years the team decided to part ways with Favre clearing the way for that trade.
And from deals in the sports world to deals in the car world, Ali Velshi is here now with more. You're also wearing some sort of paper beard on today. I take it management called?
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
CHETRY: Told you to shave it off?
VELSHI: Yes. The man told me to take the beard off. The man hasn't won just yet.
All right. Well, we have reports of a potential deal between Nissan and Chrysler. Now, this is just being reported right now by "The Wall Street Journal" but it does make some sense and I'll tell you why.
Right now, we've got the U.S. automakers who have really, really been suffering over the last year. Chrysler in particular has had a rough time. Take a look at the numbers that we've got over the last year.
Chrysler sales have dropped compared to a year ago, 29 percent. General Motors down 26 percent and Ford down 15 percent. So while we talk a lot about Ford and GM, it's because they're public companies and Chrysler has been taken private, if you recall about a year ago.
So under the deal that's been reported, it's not a deal but they're in talks where Nissan would make a small car for Chrysler that would be distributed in the United States, and Chrysler would make a full-size pickup for sale in Japan.
Now, again, very preliminary, and these are just reported discussions but that's what we're hearing right now about those two. We'll continue to keep you posted on that. We know that Chrysler has had an interest in making a deal with a U.S. company for some time.
By the way, today, again, we've got the radio show "ISSUE #1" radio at 11:00 Eastern. The number is there on the screen. We'll have it on the Web site. 1-877-266-4189.
Christine Romans will be back with me today. She's going to be co-hosting. So call us. Tell us what you think about all sorts of things in the automobile world or what you think about the beard.
CHETRY: And I just want to say in your fight against the man, you got solidarity from the floor crew.
VELSHI: Right. You don't mess with this crowd.
CHETRY: And me, too, Ali.
VELSHI: There you go.
MARCIANO: Oh, that is hot.
VELSHI: Thank you, Rob.
MARCIANO: What a motley bunch that is. In the end, we all do answer to the man. So nice work, guys. Look it, that's cute.
Oil outrage. Barack Obama says Iraq's $79 billion budget surplus is an example of the president's failed energy policy. Hear what the presumptive nominee is saying in his own words.
CHETRY: Capitol crimes?
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JONATHAN TURLEY, CONSTITUTIONAL LAW PROFESSOR: What you have is a game of constitutional chicken.
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CHETRY: A look at the Capitol's little known jail where some people want to lock up Karl Rove? You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
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CHETRY: And we're following some breaking news right now. This just in to CNN.
Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, could be out of a job soon. "The Associated Press" is reporting this morning that the country's ruling coalition will ask Musharraf to seek a confidence vote in parliament or face impeachment. Musharraf has been challenged since his allies lost the February election. The coalition challenging him has a majority in the national assembly so he could have a tough time winning a confidence vote. We will continue to watch this story and bring you up to date as the situation in Pakistan, a key ally in the U.S. fight in the war on terror, unfolds.
MARCIANO: The standoff over the firings of those federal prosecutors has Congress and the White House on a constitutional collision course. Some lawmakers have threatened to put Karl Rove in what's called the Capitol jail to force him and other Bush administration officials to testify. Well, is there really a Capitol jail? CNN's Jim Acosta takes a look.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran and Rob, with the president refusing to allow certain members of his administration to testify on Capitol Hill, some in Congress have threatened to turn back the clock and bring back the legislative branches arrest powers. Just think, some on the left say, Karl Rove, in the Capitol slammer.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): When Karl Rove refused to testify before a House committee last month, Democrats in Congress started thinking creatively.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The claim of executive privilege is really not a valid one.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And congressman, I just want to clarify, there is a jail in the U.S. Capitol.
You want Karl Rove in that jail.
ACOSTA: A jail in the U.S. Capitol? Has the Congress ever done that?
JONATHAN TURLEY, CONSTITUTIONAL LAW PROFESSOR: It would actually arrest people, try them, and even jail them in the Capitol.
ACOSTA: Constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley says the House has the little known authority to put administration officials on trial when they fail to testify. The charge? Contempt of Congress.
TURLEY: The defendant is brought forth by the sergeant of arms. Now, in the case of Mr. Rove it shouldn't be difficult. He's a consultant with FOX News, a block away from the House floor.
ACOSTA: As for that jail?
DON RITCHIE, ASSOCIATE SENATE HISTORIAN: The great majority of people who tour the Capitol building never see this area.
ACOSTA: We went deep into the bowels of the Capitol with Senate historian Don Ritchie. The closest thing to a jail, Washington's tomb, an area once considered then rejected as a final resting spot for the first president.
RITCHIE: Well, a lot of people who've seen it have assumed, well, this must be the Capitol jail.
ACOSTA (on camera): But it's not the Capitol jail?
RITCHIE: No. It's never been used as the Capitol jail?
ACOSTA (voice-over): The last time Congress detained an administration official? 1934, when a member of the Hoover administration was temporarily held in the Willard Hotel.
RITCHIE: When he refused to cooperate, then he was turned over to the district courts. He was convicted of contempt of Congress and he was sentenced to 10 days in a real prison.
ACOSTA: He was convicted?
RITCHIE: Yes.
ACOSTA: Technically, Congress has a holding cell over the Capitol Police Department. Jonathan Turley wonders whether it will ever get that far.
TURLEY: What you have is a game of constitutional chicken.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: With Congress off on its August recess, there's still time for both sides to end their showdown. But if that doesn't happen, don't be surprised if some Democrats start calling for high noon, Capitol Hill style -- Kiran and Rob?
CHETRY: Jim Acosta for us. Hopefully he'll stay out of the Capitol jail.
MARCIANO: Hopefully.
CHETRY: Well, dangerous weather on the move this morning. Powerful winds already wreaking havoc in parts of New Jersey. The East Coast not out of the clear yet. CNN's Reynolds Wolf is tracking the latest threat for us.
MARCIANO: Set for life.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We certainly won't have money problems in the future.
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MARCIANO: The small town where the oil and potential millionaires are everywhere you look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm fairly certain that if they drilled a well here, they would have oil. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right where we're standing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. We're looking at a beautiful shot this morning coming to us from WPRI, Providence, Rhode Island, where right now it's cloudy and 65. Can be a high of 75 today with scattered thunderstorms. Not the best day, but not bad.
MARCIANO: No. Yes. If you don't want to be outside, the chefs at Johnson & Wales culinary institute may want to bring us some (INAUDIBLE). That would be nice.
CHETRY: Shout out to the peeps.
MARCIANO: All right. Time now. It's a quarter after the hour. Time now to check in with Reynolds Wolf. He is in the CNN weather center tracking what's going on in the East Coast.
Rough storms last night. Hey, Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Oh, you're absolutely right. In fact, in Harrington Park, New Jersey, we've got some video for you from just yesterday where we had some straight line winds causing all kinds of damage. You see some power lines knocked over here. Some trees in the area were knocked over. Big convenience but there is the potential that you could see more of this happen again later on today. Forty percent chance of storms for much of the northeast.
Let's go right back to the weather computer. As we do so, we're going to zoom in a couple of key locations at this time. The average (ph), say, tuning in from Rochester, maybe even Elmira (ph), not much for you for the time being but your friends over in Buffalo southward to Jamestown have been dealing with a few scattered showers and storms. Also in Oil City, along parts of I-80 near Butler (ph) where you can have some storms there, too.
Now back into parts of the Carolinas into Virginia, we're seeing some development there. Pulaski and Blue field, you've got some thunderstorms. And later on today that big possibility of storm is really going to be centered on parts of the southeastern United States.
Now, in fact, it's going to be this frontal boundary. It's going to drop its way right towards the gulf coast. As it does, so it's going to interact with quite a bit of moisture coming in from the gulf and the Atlantic.
And then as we get to the late afternoon hours, (INUDIBLE), say, 3:00, 4:00, 5:00, getting into the early evening, that's where we could see some strong storms through parts of central Alabama back into Atlanta and perhaps even the Carolinas. So be ready for some thunder boomers into the afternoon hours.
Normally you're also going to be dealing with some extreme heat in places like, say, South Carolina and coastal Georgia with high temperatures going into the 90s. But when you pound the humidity, it's going to feel like triple digits for you.
Atlanta with a high of 80, 90. For New York, 84. Boston with 74 degrees and Denver with 78. That is your forecast. Let's send it back to you in New York.
MARCIANO: Thanks, Reynolds.
CHETRY: Reynolds, thanks.
CHETRY: Well, tire gauge --
MARCIANO: What are you eating? Can you go 10 minutes without eating?
CHETRY: Can we do 10 minutes without talking --
MARCIANO: I've got it. Let's talk about politics. Barack Obama --
CHETRY: Let's talk about the tire gauge. It continues.
MARCIANO: Yes.
CHETRY: The back and forth on whether or not you should inflate your tires.
MARCIANO: They just won't let it rest, will they?
CHETRY: No. In fact, Barack Obama's now saying that John McCain has changed his tune when it comes to it. So are we finally going to get the last word on the tire gauge politics?
Also, case closed. Prosecutors drop the investigation into Heath Ledger's accidental drug overdose. So what does it mean for actress Mary-Kate Olsen? They wanted to question her in connection. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the "Most Politics in the Morning." As part of our commitment to help you make an informed decision on the presidential election, we're playing longer versions of the candidates in their own words, so you can hear them talk about the issues on the campaign trail.
Here's Barack Obama. He's addressing supporters in Indiana on Republican attacks and also the need for a new approach on energy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you need one more example of what's wrong with our energy policy or George Bush's policies in general, there's a new report today. Some of you may have read in the newspaper. Iraq has been getting a windfall because of rising oil prices. They have a $79 billion budget surplus.
At a time when we're spending $10 billion a month in Iraq, they've got almost $80 billion that's not being invested in services for suffering Iraqis or reconstruction. Some of this money is sitting in American banks in New York on Wall Street collecting interest while you, the taxpayer, are paying for reconstruction efforts in Iraq.
That's why we've got to bring about fundamental change. Because if we're going to solve the problems of the American people, then we've got to have somebody in Washington who is fighting for the American people and listening to voices of the American people, and that's why I'm running for president of the United States of America.
I know that Senator McCain likes to call himself a maverick. And the fact is there have been times where in the past he did show some independence. But the price he paid for his party's nomination has been to reverse himself on position after position. And now, he embraces the failed Bush policies of the last eight years, the politics that helped break Washington in the first place.
While we're on the subject of Senator McCain contradicting himself, just a few days ago somebody asked me what they could do personally to help America save energy. So I said something that some of you have heard, which is all of us could get better gas mileage and save oil in the process just by keeping our tires inflated.
Turns out the experts agreed. Turns out that we could save three to four percent on our total oil consumption just by keeping our cars tuned up, inflating our tires.
Senator McCain and the Republican National Committee, though, mocked the idea. They've been going around sending tire gauges to reporters saying, Barack Obama's energy plan. Well, the -- you know, that sounded clever except last night after all that, Senator McCain actually said he agreed that keeping our tires inflated was a good idea.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Now, in just about 20 minutes we will hear what John McCain says on the energy crisis and creating jobs.
MARCIANO: New clues this morning in the race to pick a VP. A possible pick for John McCain, praises Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton makes a return.
Plus, the U.S. Navy admits a nuclear attack sub was leaking radioactive water for years while it made ports of call in Asia. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) MARCIANO: By political standards, it's among the most closely guarded secrets -- the list of people both Barack Obama and John McCain are considering for vice president. And this morning, we're taking a closer look at one of those contenders.
Joining me now from San Diego is Dana Milbank. He's the national political reporter for the "Washington Post" and a CNN political contributor. Hey, thanks for getting up early for us, Dana. Good morning to you on the West Coast.
DANA MILBANK, "WASHINGTON POST" REPORTER: Good morning, Rob.
MARCIANO: Well, let's start off with Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty who was campaigning for Senator McCain in Washington yesterday. He gave a couple of speeches, said some interesting things. Let's take a little listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOVERNOR TIM PAWLENTY (R), MINNESOTA: Say what you will about Barack Obama and I say a lot of negative things about him. And we need leaders, and John McCain is positive as well. But people gravitate when you've got something positive to say.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: That sounded like a compliment to Barack Obama. You're saying you're calm this morning the governor is uncommonly forthright. Is he too outspoken and this kind of chatter is going to hurt him?
MILBANK: Well, he really is too forthright. He once actually went on a radio show and complained that he wasn't getting sex from his wife. So this is the kind of candor we journalists love to see in our politicians.
You know, a lot of people criticized what he said yesterday saying maybe he's not going to be the attack dog that typically the running mate is. But let's give him some time. He's a young man, 47 years old. And even Dick Cheney wasn't quite so mean and nasty when he started out. You've got to sort of grow into the role. But he's clearly auditioning.
I think if he were, you know, begging for the job any more openly people would start tossing coins in his coffee cup. But he's talking about his youth, talking about his conservative credentials, and even presented a potential slogan to John McCain yesterday. He was talking about Sam's Club Republicans as opposed to the country club Republicans. So he's got a little populous thing going too.
MARCIANO: He's not the only person begging for a vice presidential role on both sides. She may not be begging but hasn't completely taken her name out of the mix. Senator Clinton, she's expected to make her first solo appearance on behalf of the Democratic Party tomorrow in Las Vegas. And there's rumors out when the convention comes she may very well still put her name on the ballot. What's going on there?
MILBANK: Well, this has become sort of a recurring bad dream for Barack Obama. Each time he thinks he's left the whole Clinton episode behind him, first, Bill Clinton will pop up in Africa saying something unhelpful. Hillary Clinton had done the same at a fundraiser.
This creates some lingering bitterness there. Obama's on a relatively good job picking up sort of the Clinton base. Has not necessarily picked up the Clintons themselves. They're going through the motions, doing what they need to do, but it does not appear that they really have their hearts in it. And they're sort of running out of time and they're really getting passionate about this.
MARCIANO: It doesn't. And don't they need to come -- don't they need to heal before the whole party needs to heal?
MILBANK: Well, it appears they may be the last to heal. You wonder if they sort of have his and hers cups of bitterness that they're drinking out of each morning. I mean, as Hillary Clinton said at an event that it's hard to turn the thing off just like that. It's presumably within the Obama campaign and the Democratic Party. Generally, there's some patience being lost with that. At some point you've just got to suck it up.
MARCIANO: Well, we'll wait for her speech tomorrow. Meanwhile, the veepstakes continue. We thank you for your insight. Dana Milbank, from the Washington Post. Thanks, Dana.
MILBANK: Thanks.
MARCIANO: Kiran?
CHETRY: Bottom of the hour now, and some of the big stories we're following for you this morning.
The Chinese government pushing back saying no one should interfere with its own internal affairs. The remarks come after President Bush criticized China for its human rights record.
The president is expected to touch down in Beijing in a little more than two hours, or he will attend the opening ceremonies tomorrow.
Osama bin Laden's former driver is expected to ask a military jury to spare him from life in prison at his sentencing hearing today. Jurors delivered a mixed verdict in the trial of Salim Hamdan. They gave him -- they found him guilty of providing material support in the September 11th terror attacks, but not of conspiracy to aid a terrorist organization. He's the first Guantanamo detainee to be convicted at trial. Hamdan's lawyers say they will appeal the verdict.
In Northern California the search is on for eight firefighters and a pilot missing and presumed dead after the helicopter they were in crashed in flames. The chopper went down Tuesday shortly after picking up firefighters who were battling a blaze in a California forest. Three other firefighters and a pilot were hospitalized with severe burns. Recovery efforts have been hampered by the remote location.
And we're following breaking news this morning. The U.S. Navy saying the nuclear submarine USS Houston was leaking radioactive water during port calls in Japan and other Asian countries as far back as 2006.
CNN's Barbara Starr is live in Washington to tell us what the Navy is saying about it, and why they are figuring this out just now.
Hi, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran. Well, Japan now says it wants a full explanation of what happened, what went wrong. The U.S. Navy now acknowledging one of its nuclear submarines had been leaking trace amounts of radioactive water for years rather than just a period of months as that submarine made port calls in Japan and across Asia. Last week, the navy officials told Japan that the USS Houston had made only one port call in March 2008 while it was leaking the contaminated fluid.
But after reviewing records of the sub, the Navy now says the Houston had been leaking water much longer since June 2006. And it made several port calls in Japan to Sasebo, Yokosuka and Okinawa. Also, they are now telling the governments of Malaysia and Singapore that the sub made port calls in those countries while it was leaking the radioactive water. All this according to what Navy officials have told CNN.
The Houston also made stops in Guam and Hawaii. The problem was discovered last month when a build up of leaking water popped a valve and poured water on to a sailor's leg while the submarine was in dry dock. It was very low level trace amounts. But still these governments across Asia want to know what happened, and why they are now just being told about it.
Kiran?
CHETRY: Yes, understandably so. Barbara Starr for us live in Washington today. Thank you.
MARCIANO: Alina Cho now joins us with other news stories of the day. You've got a little black and white party you guys got going on?
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: I know. Can you believe that? We coordinate this type of stuff.
(CROSSTALK)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We talk every morning.
MARCIANO: Hi, Alina. CHO: Good morning, guys, hey. Good morning, everybody. New this morning, federal authorities including the FBI and the secret service, I believe that I've got a bit of an issue here with my -- it's on. Here we go.
Authorities and the secret service now involved in the case of a Maryland teen. The 18-year-old boy accused of making pipe bombs, stockpiling assault weapons. And authorities say they also found a map of Camp David. Police say the map found in Collin McKenzie-Gude's home also included a presidential motorcade route. They also say they found counterfeit I.D.s including one from the CIA, and a document that appears to show how to kill someone at a distance of 200 meter. Good is in jail on a $750,000 bond.
U.S. prosecutors have closed the criminal case into Heath Ledger's death without filing any charges. They were trying to find out whether the painkillers found in Ledger's body were obtained without a legal prescription. Prosecutors reportedly had a subpoena to try and convince actress Mary Kate Olsen to speak about Ledger's January overdose. But they apparently never served it.
You may remember, police said Ledger's masseuse called Olson three times after she found his body inside his apartment before dialing 911. Agents have wanted to ask the 22-year-old actress if she knew how Ledger got the drugs that killed him.
And body image. Not just a concern for women, apparently. Researchers say men are just as likely to be unhappy with the way they look, especially when they saw pictures of muscular men. A review of 15 studies found men became more anxious about their own bodies and self-esteem when they saw pictures of guys like that, Matthew McConaughey.
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: Exactly, he doesn't. Always seems to be a shot of him running on the beach. But get this. This is really interesting. Images of attractive men apparently who were not muscular had no effect on a man's body satisfaction. So, apparently, what we're learning is when we open up an U.S. Weekly and we see a picture of a shirtless Rob Marciano, other men get jealous.
MARCIANO: Yes, that's not going to happen. No, I can't make them jealous that's for sure. (INAUDIBLE), you know, you feel insecure when you see Matthew McConaughey with a shirt off, you know.
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: (INAUDIBLE) to be Rob Marciano.
CHETRY: That's why you were doing push-ups behind the floor there.
MARCIANO: I like to get pump up before the show, get a little flow going. CHETRY: And this is all steroid free, ladies and gentlemen. He does it the natural way. By the way, I just heard that Sanjay Gupta is going to be interviewing Matthew McConaughey.
MARCIANO: Is he?
CHETRY: Yes. How about that? Alina is still laughing. Tomorrow.
MARCIANO: Thank you, ladies.
CHETRY: We'll ask him how he does it. Alina, thanks.
MARCIANO: A five-week congressional recess? Forget that. John McCain says Congress should be hard at work dealing with the energy crisis. Hear what the candidates are saying in their own words.
Easy street.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, you're talking hundreds and hundreds of wells.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Meet the average folks and farmers making millions off high gas prices.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't get no better.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Inside the tiny boom town transformed by oil. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you looking so miserable about? There's a whole ocean of oil under our feet. No one can get at it except for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, much like that scene from "There Will Be Blood." One town in North Dakota quietly sits on top of an ocean of oil. It's been there for decades. It's sandwiched between shale. Oil companies didn't have the technology to drill until now. Here's CNN's Thelma Gutierrez.
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, Rob, just a few years ago when the rest of the country was experiencing a real estate boom, the economy here in North Dakota was flat, just barely enough for people to get by. But now thanks to the discovery of oil, the economy in Montreal County is booming, and folks here say it was about time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUTIERREZ (voice-over): Stanley, North Dakota, a farming town of about 1,000 near the Canadian border.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Drive by Stanley, you'll blink, you'll miss it.
GUTIERREZ: It's hard to miss what's happening here now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, you're talking hundreds and hundreds of wells.
GUTIERREZ: Everywhere we went, the talk was about black gold. Oil, two miles beneath the surface.
KEVIN FREDERICK, GEOLOGIST: The continual amount of oil we find in North Dakota is as much as three times as much as in Texas.
GUTIERREZ: It's called The Bakken Formation. A vast 200,000 square mile area rich with more than 3 billion barrels of crude.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oil field has blessed us. We're making lots of money.
GUTIERREZ: Are you in the six figure range or?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
GUTIERREZ: Hauling water?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hauling water. Don't get no better.
GUTIERREZ: That promise of money is bringing hundreds of workers in.
MAYOR MIKE HYNEK, STANLEY, NORTH DAKOTA: The economic health of Stanley is just fantastic at this point.
GUTIERREZ: The town's mayor is still reeling from the boom that started just eight months ago.
HYNEK: I'm fairly certain that if they drilled a well here, they would have oil.
GUTIERREZ: Right where we're standing?
HYNEK: Yes.
GUTIERREZ: So how many potential millionaires did we run into? 24-year-old Aaron Scarsguard (ph) now has a well on his farm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My family has three. And so -- and there's more and more getting staked out every day.
GUTIERREZ: How many mineral acres do you have?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Enough that it would make me wealthy. You know, it's my family's wealth, I should say.
GUTIERREZ: 48 years ago, you were working on these rigs. Now, it looks like there's going to be one on your property. Could you have ever imagined that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Not in a lifetime.
GUTIERREZ: Robert Western is 74. He took us to his farm and pointed out a stake right in the middle of his canola field. A sweet sight for a man who grew up during the Depression.
ROBERT WESTERN, GRAIN FARMER: We certainly won't have money problems in the future.
GUTIERREZ: Do you wish it would have happened sooner?
WESTERN: It would have been nice.
GUTIERREZ: Better late than never for a farmer who could become an oil baron in a brand-new boom town.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUTIERREZ: The mayor of Stanley says the town desperately needs doctors, nurses, electricians and plumbers. He says just about anyone who works hard would have no trouble finding work here.
Kiran?
Rob?
MARCIANO: Thank you, Thelma. John McCain says the surge has succeeded in Iraq. Now he says we need a surge to boost the U.S. economy. Hear McCain's plan to create more American jobs in his own words.
CHETRY: Paris Hilton's parody. You've seen the beauty. Now meet the brains.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've pretty much straight up gave her a call. She called back. We told her our idea and she was into it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Jeanne Moos introduces us to the creator of Paris's political ad. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHETRY: Welcome back to the "Most Politics in the Morning." As part of our commitment to help you make an informed choice in the presidential election, we're playing longer versions of the candidates in their own words so that you can hear the issues they're talking about out, out on the campaign trail.
Senator John McCain was in Ohio yesterday. He was talking about jobs and how to create more of them and also pushing solutions for the energy crisis. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Energy prices are too high. We're losing jobs. Our housing market is on the decline, and the cost of everything is going up, and in the face of this, Washington is on vacation. In the face of a severe energy crisis, the Congress decides to go on a five-week vacation.
When I'm President of the United States, I will call the Congress back into session and tell them to act and not to leave town, to take their vacation or their pay raise until they address this energy crisis. And now is the time for action.
We need an "all of the above" plan to address our energy crisis with alternative energy, drilling and nuclear power. That means drilling here, drilling now in the United States of America and off the United States of America's coast.
Everybody knows that drilling is a very vital part of bridging our gap between our dependence on foreign oil, which is transferring $700 billion a year to countries that don't like us very much, and we have the resources to be explored and exploited and we could obtain some of the benefits of that within months.
My opponent, Senator Obama, opposes both storage and reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. He opposes offshore drilling immediately, and he's out of touch.
And we need to take action to support American businesses so that we can stop jobs from going overseas and create more jobs here at home. America has the second highest business rate in the entire world. It's any wonder that jobs are moving overseas. We're taxing them out of the country.
Unfortunately Senator Obama's plans would raise taxes on businesses even more. He's promised tax increases on income, tax increases on investment, tax increases on small businesses. That's exactly, exactly the wrong strategy. Raising taxes in a bad economy is about the worst thing you can do because it'll kill even more jobs, and what we need are policies that create jobs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Coming up in our next hour, Barack Obama in his own words. MARCIANO: Let's talk wine and the environment. Shafer Vineyards, not only one of Napa Valley's premier wine makers. It's now one of the first wineries in the U.S. to be almost fully sustainable and organic.
And its commitment to find simple solutions to improve the environment is a driving force behind nearly everything done there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO (voice-over): At the Shafer Vineyards, one of Napa's premier wineries, grape growing just isn't what it used to be.
DOUG SHAFER, OWNER, SHAFER VINEYARDS: Because back then, the idea of a beautiful vineyard was nothing but dirt and just flat as a pool table.
MARCIANO: Doug Shafer enjoys showing off the overgrown vine roads, the dead and dry remnants of the winter's cover crops. You see, instead of herbicides, Shafer plants, clover, oats, peas and mustard as a natural way to control weeds. These plants also become a natural fertilizer, helping add essential nutrients to the soil.
SHAFER: We're making more natural product here. And we're making better wines.
MARCIANO: And to control the population of rodents attracted to the cover crops, well, Shafer has a chemical-free solution. He enlists the help from hawks and barn owls.
SHAFER: And it's a matter of just putting out perches in the vineyard and they would eat these gophers and moles.
MARCIANO: But one of the most striking features of the vineyard is the vast array of solar panels covering the many roofs and hills that help Shafer reduce its energy consumption.
SHAFER: We used to pay maybe $40,000 or $50,000 a year on power. And basically we pay $1,500 now.
MARCIANO: And on very sunny days, the meter even runs backwards.
SHAFER: This arrow here means we're producing more than we're using. So, anything extra is going out to the grid.
MARCIANO: Reducing the vineyard's carbon footprint by farming sustainably has its benefits. Shafer says his wines have improved and his customers appreciate it. And that is good for business.
Rob Marciano, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: That's Paris Hilton's own song. MARCIANO: There she is. Oh, is she singing that? Come on.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: Stars Are Blind, yes. Can I get a yes?
MARCIANO: Multi-talented.
CHETRY: That's Paris' own song. Yes it is. Stars Are Blind.
MARCIANO: If you watched yesterday, you know now she's running for president.
CHETRY: She sure is.
MARCIANO: It all started with a John McCain ad mocking Barack Obama as the Paris Hilton look alike celebrity, or at least like celebrity.
CHETRY: That's right. And then she decided that she was going to jump on that bandwagon, and she responded with a campaign ad of her own. It's actually getting rave reviews, believe it or not. CNN's Jeanne Moos talked to the creators of "Paris for President."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thanks to these two jokers, a funny thing happened to Paris Hilton.
PARIS HILTON, ACTRESS: Then that wrinkly white hair guy used me in his campaign ad, which I guess means I'm running for president --
MOOS: She did a parody response ad to John McCain's real ad.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's the biggest celebrity in the world.
MOOS: And the response to Paris was good.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I'm going to bump it up to maybe a seven.
HILTON: I'm just hot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nine out of ten.
MOOS: This could be Paris Hilton's come back. Among the inteligencia, sort of.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did she ever have something to come back from?
MOOS: Now she does. These two made her a political star.
ADAM MCKAY, FUNNYORDIE.COM: Yes. We called her. We pretty much straight up gave her a call. She called back. We told her our idea, and she was into it. MOOS: Adam McKay and Chris Henchy -- Chris happens to be married to actress Brooke Shields -- are the brains behind Will Ferrell's comedy Web site Funny or Die. They wrote the parody and shot it out in The Hamptons with Paris contributing lines.
CHRIS HENCHY, FUNNYORDIE.COM: Paint the White House pink, wasn't that hers?
MCKAY: That was hers.
PARIS: I'll see you at the White House. Oh, and I might paint it pink.
MOOS: But it was Paris' energy policy --
PARIS: Why don't we do a hybrid of both candidates' ideas?
MOOS: That went over big even with real pundits.
JOE SCARBOROUGH, HOST, "MORNING JOE": Her energy policy if you just look at the words, really better than Barack Obama's and John McCain's.
MOOS: Her biggest laugh line included the word that rhymes with witches. Even Jay Leno was impressed.
JAY LENO, HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": Paris Hilton making sense. Wow!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's a plunker.
MOOS: A what?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A plunker. She's an idiot.
MOOS: Now, if you think Paris Hilton is such an air head, consider this. She wasn't using a teleprompter like I am. She memorized all that and did it in about four takes. Yes, she can.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning. Paris for president?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And Paris for president?
MOOS: T-shirts are already available. Vote Paris, not old dude.
PARIS: Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go pick out a vice president. I'm thinking Rihanna.
MOOS: Though there were other potential running mates.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We considered the 40-pound cat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was one we talked about. The Montauk sea creature was mentioned. MOOS: And speaking of sea creatures, what's with the leopard cut out swimsuit.
MCKAY: Classic Paris.
HENCHY: That was classic Paris.
MCKAY: She answered the door in that suit.
MOOS: As one person posted, just be glad it's Paris talking politics and not McCain releasing a sex video.
That would wake up this faker.
PARIS: I'm Paris Hilton and I approve this message, because I think it's totally hot.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: Iraq's $80 billion surplus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They could write a check to reimburse us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: An oil boom as America pays for reconstruction and $4 a gallon gas.
Plus, iced coffee. The bikini baristas told to cover up or close down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's just pasties that's covering them, barely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Where will the drivers get their kick now?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) very good coffee and they all seem to be pretty good here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Sitting on billions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They could write a check to reimburse us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Why Iraq's oil money is earning interest while you pick up the tab.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We will have a long-term ally.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
MARCIANO: Maybe you are supposed to be up at 7:00 a.m. Eastern. You've got two minutes. Top videos right now on cnn.com, most popular, the smoking -- or smoggy skies over Beijing. Videos of the city skyline show the pollution actually getting worse leading up to tomorrow's opening ceremonies.
Also, no more baristas in bikinis. A county in Washington State closed them down after ruling stand erotic entertainment. An Espresso Gone Wild is still open down the road, so don't worry. It has pasty Tuesdays and is planning a bikini car wash. God bless them.
And 50 foot flames destroying a building in Oklahoma City. Firefighters dumped thousands of gallons of water per minute on the inferno. Look at that. But they were forced out of the building when the walls collapsed and propane canisters exploded. The owner was out of town on vacation. One worker made it out OK. And that's what's most popular on cnn.com right now.
CHETRY: How about this one. Thousands of ducks racing along New York's East River. It sounds like a joke, but the contest was very real even though the ducks themselves were not.
Our Richard Roth went down to get a bird's eye view.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR UN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Forget those over-hyped, corporate Olympics in Beijing. On New York's East River there's a different Olympics race, the Million Dollar Duck Race.
(voice-over): The ducks were ready to be dumped. I got closer to the starting line. They're off! Thousands of rubber ducks pouring into the water. Each with a financial backer somewhere.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've got five ducks in the race.
ROTH: Five ducks in the race?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. And I'm going to win, actually.
ROTH: The duck race is as competitive as any event of the summer Olympic Games. These ducks, though, are swimming to raise money for the special Olympics to help the disabled with training and care.
Tell me what the ducks mean to you.
RONALD WEINTRAUB, SPECIAL OLYMPIAN: The ducks mean it makes money for special Olympics. It makes money for our program.
ROTH: The excitement rivaled the Beijing Olympics. With the currents moving fast, this race is going much quicker than ducks and analysts expected. The ducks capture the spirit of the special Olympics.
NEAL JOHNSON, PRESIDENT, SPECIAL OLYMPICS: There's no doping scandals in special Olympics. No one has any endorsements. They are doing it simply to be athletes.
ROTH: Somewhere in that duck pileup were six golden ducks which could have meant a million dollar jackpot.
Looks like the winner is being coach to the finish line here.
But a yellow duck won the race.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I loved it.
ROTH: Don't you feel any sympathy for all of these losers, 24,000 or so?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not when I have to pick them up.
ROTH: Better duck next time.
(on camera): They're taking away the losers right now. Not a pretty sight, but these Olympics, unlike the ones in China, were not affected by pollution or government security crackdown -- Rob and Kiran.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: How about that. Richard Roth and the ducks.
Well, it costs $5 each to sponsor one of those little duckies and the event raised a lot of money to help with the Special Olympics.
