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American Morning

Public Health Emergency Declared on Swine Flu Virus; Swine Flu Shuts Down NYC School; Former Vice President Cheney Wants More CIA Memos Made Public; Analyzing the First 100 Days

Aired April 27, 2009 - 06:58   ET

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


JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: We're coming up now to the top of the hour. It's Monday morning. It's the 27th of April.

Good morning to you.

John Roberts along with Alina Cho who is in for Kiran Chetry this morning.

Good morning to you.

ALINA CHO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, John.

Good morning, everybody.

A lot of people waking up this morning with a lot of questions about swine flu.

ROBERTS: Sure, they are.

CHO: How do I get it? How serious is it? What are the symptoms? We're going to try to break down all of that for you this morning.

It's 59 minutes after the hour.

And we do begin with our global swine flu outbreak. Letting you know how to keep yourself safe? How do you spot it? When can you expect next.

We have our global CNN team coverage on the story in Mexico, where the outbreak started.

The number of deaths there has climbed to 103 people. Soldiers there have handed out some six million face masks so far, trying to stop the virus from spreading.

Plus, airports are taking extra precautions. Employees on the lookout for sick passengers using infrared cameras in some cases. Also, public areas being clean and sanitized as much as possible.

Major airlines are waiving fees for travelers who want to change their tickets to and from Mexico. So far, airlines are using their own guidelines to deal with sick customers - John.

ROBERTS: Alina, right now, there are confirmed cases of the swine flu in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. As we just mentioned 20 confirmed cases in the U.S. so far.

The CDC confirming at least eight students at a high school in Queens here in New York are infected. On the West Coast, there are seven confirmed cases in California. Also two each in Kansas and Texas, and one in Ohio. Canada has confirmed six cases of swine flu all of those said to be mild. But the epicenter is Mexico where the virus is now suspected in 103 deaths.

Those eight confirmed cases here in New York City had prompted quick reaction. New York Governor David Paterson put the state on high alert.

Our Jason Carroll is live at the city's Department of Health with the very latest for us this morning.

Well, what is it, Jason? What's going on there?

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we are expecting an update from officials here at the health department later today. So far, the cases that we've seen in the city have been mild cases. New York's governor coming out with a statement trying to ease concerns saying he does not believe there is any real danger ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice-over): After days of speculation and worry, health officials confirmed what many had feared.

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), NEW YORK: Today we can tell you that as we anticipated, the CDC has confirmed the diagnosis of swine flu in children whose samples we sent them.

CARROLL: Governor David Paterson put New York State on high alert. To mobilize resources to deal with any future outbreaks, New York City health officials tested eight of the more than 100 students from Saint Francis Preparatory School who exhibited flu-like symptoms this past week. All eight tests coming back positive for swine flu.

Some of the students from the school just returned from a spring break trip to Mexico. Officials were quick to point out none of the sick appear to have a serious case of the virus.

BLOOMBERG: Every case of illness we have reviewed and we've spoken with 130 families, has been mild and many of the students are already improving.

CARROLL: Officials expect the number of confirmed swine flu cases to rise as testing continues on the students. As a precaution, the school's administration has chosen to sanitize the entire school and remain closed for the next two days.

BROTHER LEONARD CONWAY, QUEENS, NEW YORK: Now that they're talking swine flu, we wouldn't want to spread it any further and having kids in small room areas like classrooms could spread it.

CARROLL: New York's mayor says some of the six students' family members have come down with flu-like symptoms as well, but also said they have no evidence of swine flu spreading beyond this cluster and tamped down fears of a city-wide outbreak.

BLOOMBERG: The city's public health Dramex surveillance system which captures and analyzes 60,000 data points a day has not shown evidence of a city-wide increase in flu-like illness.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: Well, there have been several other suspected cases in the city as well, John. Six children from a day care center in the Bronx were tested. Five of those tests came back negative. One came back undetermined, but they believe that test will come back negative as well.

In addition to that, two families in Manhattan believe that their children have the virus. All of those tests came back negative -- John.

ROBERTS: I'm sure we're going to see a lot more people going to the hospital even if they've got just a sniffling nose in the next few days, Jason, just to make absolutely sure, which is most likely, I think a good thing.

Jason Carroll for us this morning. Jason, thanks.

We now have at least one confirmed case of swine flu overseas. The "Associated Press" reporting today Spain has confirmed at least one case of the virus. There are suspected cases in Israel and New Zealand. Neither of those confirmed. Some health officials are fearing a global pandemic could kill millions of people.

CHO: This morning we're telling you everything you need it know about the swine flu, including potential symptoms, what to be on the lookout for. Here's a checklist for you.

Fever, coughing, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and in some cases, fatigue, diarrhea and vomiting. You should see your doctor, of course, if you have any of these symptoms. And you're probably wondering how someone actually catches the swine flu.

Well, it spreads the same way the seasonal flu spreads, from person to person through coughing or sneezing. And that's what's got people so concerned that it's transmitted person to person.

People can become infected by touching something with the flu virus on it, and then touching their mouth or nose. And some are wondering is it safe to eat pork. My friend was asking that this morning.

The World Health Organization says so far no evidence swine flu is transmitted through food.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. KEIJI FUKUDA, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR-GENERAL, WHO: Right now, we have no evidence to suggest that people are getting exposed or getting infected from exposure to pork or to pigs. And so, right now, we have zero evidence to suspect that exposure to meat leads to infection.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: All of CNN's global resources tracking the swine flu scare this morning. Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, on the ground at the outbreak's epicenter live in Mexico for us.

Sanjay, this is certainly shaping up to be somewhat of a medical mystery. We've got 20 relatively mild cases in the United States, 103 confirmed fatalities in Mexico. So why is it so much more serious in Mexico, Sanjay?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is hard to answer that question right now. I've been asking that same question, Alina. Doctors aren't sure. It could just be that it's early in this whole disease.

This has been very fast moving over the last couple of days. We've been talking to the doctors who've been treating the first patients. If Mexico City is the epicenter of all of this, then the hospital behind me is where a lot of those sick patients were first treated. We've been investigating. Here's what we found.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice-over): Two weeks ago, Mexico City, a young woman is rushed to the hospital.

DR. ALEJANDRO MACIAS, SENIOR ADVISER, FEDERAL MINISTRY OF HEALTH: She goes to the hospital. She doesn't feel well. She's febrile. She feels short of breath. She goes to the hospital.

In a very short time, she develops failure to take a good breath. People in our hospital had to put the patient in the machine.

GUPTA: A medical mystery. What no one could have known at the time, the patient had a brand new virus - H1N1, swine flu, and it was about to spread around the world. So we decided to fly to Mexico City to investigate.

(on camera): We have arrived in Mexico City. The plane ride was sort of unremarkable. A lot of people talking about the swine flu, somewhat concerned. But as soon as they got here, there was obviously something going on here.

Just take a look at all the people. A lot of people wearing masks. A lot of people have concerns. Adults and children alike, very concerned about the swine flu.

We're here in Mexico City because we want to go to the hospital where this all started to see if we might establish some clues as to where this is going.

(voice-over): And clues started to emerge. At first it was thought to be a late season flu, but something didn't make sense to us. It wasn't the very young and the elderly that were dying, it was people mainly between the ages of 20 and 50.

MACIAS: No doubt about it, this is terrible. I mean this is a new disease, a new virus. No people have defenses against that virus. That's not good. Not for Mexico, for the whole world.

GUPTA: And there was something else. It was very contagious. Swine flu is normally spread from pigs to humans, but here it can live anywhere and hand to mouth contact is the biggest concern. ATM machines, computers, all potentially holding the virus.

MACIAS: Most efficient way of prevention is your hands.

GUPTA: This doctor doesn't even bother wearing a mask and no one seems to understand why Mexico has been so hard hit. It is a mystery which we will investigate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: And we are at the largest public hospital here in Mexico City. Some of the first cases of swine flu, that when they had no idea what it was that they were dealing with were patients that were brought here.

Alina, there were large crowds that were gathered out here over the last couple of weeks. The patients would come in and they would say another patient has come in. The hospital is pretty full, and this is a public hospital.

What I can tell you, Alina, is that you have armed guards outside the front. The gate is closed. That is not the typical scene of a public hospital, but they are very concerned about this.

Also these masks that you refer to, about four million have been passed out here in Mexico City. That's about half the population, for example, of where you are in New York City. Imagine walking around your city and every other person wearing a mask like this. This is what it's like down here right now.

CHO: Yes, I mean, especially when you consider Mexico City, one of the largest cities in the world.

Sanjay, a lot of people wondering this morning, you know, when is a sore throat just a sore throat, or when is it potentially a swine flu? Stick around because we're going to be talking to you in the next couple of minutes about all of those questions. You're our go-to guy for that.

And Dr. Gupta will be on Twitter all morning long from Mexico City. He's answering your questions about swine flu and how to protect yourself. Just follow us at twitter.com/amfix. Send in all of your questions and concerns. We'll try to get to them.

ROBERTS: And just in to CNN. A warning from the health commissioner. The European Union urging Europeans to postpone nonessential travel to both the United States and Mexico because of swine flu. That comes just as Spain confirms its first case of the virus in Europe.

The swine flu outbreak is the first potential health crisis for President Obama and a public health emergency has been declared to deal with the threat. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano explained the decision.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET NAPOLITANO, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: This is standard operating procedure and allows us to free up federal state and local agencies and their resources for prevention and mitigation. It allows us to use medication and diagnostic tests that we might not otherwise be able to use particularly on very young children. And it releases funds for the acquisition of additional antiviral.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: And our Homeland Security correspondent, Jeanne Meserve, joins us now live from Washington.

Good morning, Jeanne.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.

One sign of how serious the administration is taking this, Secretary Napolitano has put a trip to Europe this week on hold in order to quarterback efforts to prepare and respond to this outbreak.

Federal officials are putting a big emphasis on medical surveillance. They very much want to get a better handle on who is sick, how many are sick, where they are and how sick they are. Secretary Napolitano announced that one quarter of the antiviral medication in the Strategic National Stockpile are being released to the governors. Ohio, where there is a confirmed case of swine flu, has already made a request.

ROBERTS: You know, Jeanne, General Russel Honore came out with a book in the last couple of weeks called "Survival," creating a culture of preparedness in the United States. It basically illuminates how woefully unprepared we remain for things like, you know, national disasters like hurricanes or a terrorist attack.

What about this on the medical front? Is the nation prepared for a much bigger, more severe outbreak if it develops?

MESERVE: It certainly is better prepared than it was. There is now a pandemic flu plan that was developed. The capacity to manufacture vaccines has been improved although it's far from perfect.

There's been a big beef-up of laboratories and public health. So we're better off than we were, but are we positioned for a major pandemic? A lot of people would say we still have some distance to go on that regard. ROBERTS: All right. Jeanne Meserve for us this morning from Washington. Jeanne, thanks so much for that.

MESERVE: You bet.

CHO: We want to take a look at some other stories new this morning.

Chrysler has reached deals with both the United Auto Workers and the Canadian Auto Workers. What's more, Fiat was heavily involved in the UAW negotiations, a sign that the Italian car company is seriously considering taking a 20 percent stake in Chrysler.

Police in Athens, Georgia, still searching for a college professor accused of shooting and killing three people at a community theater. The suspect is 57-year-old George Zinkhan, and works for the marketing department of the university. Police say one of the victims was the professor's wife.

Plus, U.S. officials race to get the country ready for a possible coast-to-coast outbreak of swine flu. Are we ready and what comes next? The acting director for the Centers for Disease Control, the CDC, just -- will join us live coming up.

It's 12 minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Fourteen minutes after the hour. Now to Mexico City, the epicenter of the swine flu outbreak and home to almost 20 million people. Many of them undoubtedly frightened this morning.

CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, is there live for us with the very latest. And we've been getting lots of questions for you, doc, on Twitter this morning. So why don't we run over a couple of those.

First question to you, do antivirals have any effect on this new flu?

GUPTA: Well, you know, the way that they figure this out is they have to test the new virus and expose it to some of the antivirals. It's a pretty simple test. The problem, John, is that this is a brand new virus. It's a virus the world hasn't seen before except over the last few weeks.

What we can tell you based on our conversations with the infectious disease doctors is that Tamiflu, one of the antivirals, may reduce the severity of symptoms and may reduce the duration. But it's not like an antibiotic treating a bacterial infection where it's actually killing the bacteria. This is just more of a temporizing sort of measure, so not a full-on treatment.

CHO: Sanjay, as you might imagine, a lot of people waking up this morning with very basic questions. Maybe they weren't keeping track of the story over the weekend. So another question we came across on Twitter, how can I protect myself from the swine flu, Sanjay? So how do you protect yourself?

GUPTA: Well, one of the things you keep hearing over and over again is this idea of staying away from public gatherings and trying not to contaminate people just through contact face to face. That has been sort of the staple here in Mexico City. They've canceled a lot of public events because they don't want things sort of spreading. But protecting yourself in the first place really does come down to the basics.

So this mask I have one around my neck, this is a better view of it. This is the N-95 mask. It is a good because it's good at filtering out very small particles and this virus obviously is a small particle. But even more than that, when we're talking to the doctors here, they say look, everywhere in the city is a potential vector for this.

You use an ATM machine, you take money out. The virus can cling to the money. It can cling to the keyboard. You shake hands, you give somebody a greeting by kissing them on the cheek -- all of that is potentially a way of transmitting this virus. So simply washing your hands over and over again, we talk about this a lot in terms of staying healthy overall but is probably never been more important than it is now.

We're carrying this around with us. This and the mask really is our best defense. As far as the mask goes, when you're within six feet of somebody, as a general rule, they say to be concerned.

We're outside this hospital. This is where some of the sickest patients in the city have been, so there's even a heightened level of concern out here, Alina.

CHO: I find it interesting because, you know, you mentioned kissing on the cheek that is customary in Mexico City and government officials are actually advising people not to do that, try not to have a lot of human to human contact.

Sanjay, thanks so much. We'll be checking with you throughout the morning.

Dr. Gupta, by the way, will be on Twitter all morning long as well from Mexico City. He is answering your questions about swine flu and just how to protect yourself from it.

Follow us at twitter.com/amfix and send in your questions and concerns. A lot of people asking a lot of basic questions this morning. Also, you can e-mail us CNN.com/amfix or call the show hotline 877-my-amfix.

ROBERTS: The swine flu is an emergency in America and beyond. We're going to find out what's being done to stop the spread here at home. We'll get answer from the acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Richard Besser.

Seventeen minutes now after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: It's now 20 and a half minutes after the hour. We've been telling you about the swine flu crisis, and this morning it is a nationwide emergency. Now 20 confirmed swine flu cases in this country in five different states and officials expect that that number is going to rise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. RICHARD BESSER, ACTING DIRECTOR, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL: What we know about this virus is it looks to be the same virus as is causing the situation in Mexico. And given the reports out of Mexico, I would expect that over time we're going to see more severe disease in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Dr. Richard Besser is the acting director for the Centers for Disease Control. He joins me this morning from Atlanta.

Dr. Besser, you probably heard the warning from the health commissioner of the European Union just in the last few minutes warning against all nonessential travel to the United States. Given the fact that we've had 20 mild cases in this country, is that a prudent warning?

BESSER: You know, it's very important that people look at travel in a situation where there's an outbreak taking place. We've posted recommendations regarding travel to Mexico and notified people about an outbreak taking place there. And we'll continue to look at those.

You know, it would be my recommendation to a family member if they had nonessential travel to Mexico that they really reconsider that at this time.

ROBERTS: Right. But the health commissioner is warning against travel. The EU health commissioner warning against travel to the United States. That could have a huge economic impact. Is that the right warning to send at this time?

BESSER: I don't think that's warranted. At this point, we've identified 20 cases of swine influenza in this country. Thankfully all of those people have recovered. Only one of those people has required hospitalization.

We are looking very hard for cases of swine flu. I expect we're going to find some and we'll find some of increasing severity and more of the mild cases. At this point, I would not put a travel restriction or recommendation against coming to the United States.

ROBERTS: So when we look at the history of these outbreaks, epidemics or pandemics, you know, a couple of reference points in history come to mind. 1976, where it created a small cluster, created huge concern and prompted a nationwide vaccination program. And then there was 1918 where you had 20 million people die worldwide. Is there any indication whether this is going to be 1976 or whether it might be 1918?

BESSER: You know, that's a great question. Every outbreak of disease is unique and as it progresses we learn more. One of the critical questions is why are we seeing such a different spectrum here in the United States than what they're experiencing in Mexico, wherein Mexico is part of a tri-national team. We have scientists on the ground who are working with the Mexican government and the Canadian government to try and answer that specific question.

ROBERTS: Now what is the United States doing to protect and prepare at least for the potential of an epidemic in this country.

BESSER: You know, we've been planning for years for the potential of a pandemic, focusing on avian influenza, and that has left us much better prepared than we would have been a decade ago. There are things that have been taking place at the state and local level, but it's very important. Some of the points that were made earlier about personal preparedness, what you can do with simple hand washing or use of alcohol hand gels, that can greatly reduce the likelihood that you will get sick.

ROBERTS: Now we talk about preparedness in terms of potential treatments and our Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who you know well, has been on this morning talking about Tamiflu and Relenza and the fact that those don't actually cure, they don't actually kill the virus but they do shorten the duration of disease.

But I've read some recent literature that suggests that Tamiflu or at least strains of even the normal winter flu have become resistant against Tamiflu. So just how effective are our antivirals, the ones that are now being put out there in the system to potentially combat any epidemic in this country?

BESSER: That's an important question. We did see during the seasonal flu season strains that were resistant to Oseltamivir or Tamiflu.

This strain of swine flu is susceptible. It can be treated with Oseltamivir or Zanamivir. And we will continue to monitor those strains and let people know if there's any change in that. But for now, early treatment with those drugs is effective.

Well, we would expect it to be effective. We'll do studies to make sure that what we're saying about effectiveness is correct.

ROBERTS: All right. Dr. Richard Besser, head of the CDC, some good information for us this morning.

Doctor, it's good for you to take the time. We really appreciate it.

BESSER: Thank you.

ROBERTS: All right - Alina.

CHO: A lot of people have a lot of questions this morning, so we're going to try to get to all of them for you.

Swine flu also shut down a school right here in New York City. Classes are cancelled. The school is being scrubbed down. What officials are doing to keep the virus from spreading. That's just ahead.

Plus, former Vice President Cheney wants more memos out on the CIA's harsh interrogation program. Why? And the White House may just grant the request and then some. We'll explain.

Twenty-five minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

When the White House released Bush administration interrogation memos, former Vice President Dick Cheney fired back saying there are more documents which prove those tactics actually got results. But now the White House is signaling this could just be the first round in this political back and forth.

Our Jim Acosta has the latest from Washington. He's joining us live this morning.

Hey, Jim, good morning to you.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. How are you?

CHO: I'm well. So, what is the latest in this back and forth?

ACOSTA: Well, this could drag on for some time now, Alina. Now that the White House has released a handful of memos revealing interrogation methods used during the Bush administration, former Vice President Dick Cheney wants more made public. But as it turns out, Cheney was apparently interested in these memos weeks ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The OLC memos that were released reflected in my view us losing our moral bearings.

ACOSTA (voice-over): Two weeks before President Obama released those Bush administration memos of harsh interrogations used on suspected terrorists, Vice President Dick Cheney had already submitted a request to the National Archives calling for the release of other memos. Cheney says the requested memos will prove Bush era interrogation practices which critics have called a torture program worked.

DICK CHENEY, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I haven't talked about it, but I know specifically of reports that I read, that I saw, that lay out what we learned through the interrogation process and what the consequences were for the country. ACOSTA: The White House is signaling it may honor Cheney's request and even go further. ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I think one of the things that will have to be examined, David, is whether there are additional memos that have to be released that give a broader picture of what's going on in enhanced interrogation techniques. ACOSTA: The almost daily revelations are dividing Democrats between those calling for a full disclosure.

SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: We don't just turn the page without reading it. We want to make sure what the mistakes were so that the Obama administration doesn't make these mistakes.

ACOSTA: And those urging caution.

SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: All of this on the front burner before the public does harm our intelligence gathering. It does harm America's position.

ACOSTA: Across the aisle, Republicans are insisting the Justice Department drop any investigation of Bush administration officials who authorized harsh interrogations.

SEN. KIT BOND (R), MISSOURI: I think that would be a stab in the back. I think he has already demoralized the CIA, put them in a CYA (ph) mode.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Will not be prosecuting people who gave legal advice.

ACOSTA: As President Obama approaches day 100 of his administration, some in Washington caution the torture tug-of-war could be a costly distraction.

SEN. JOE LIEBERMAN (I), CONNECTICUT: The reality is it will poison the water here in Washington. It will achieve nothing. It will make it harder for the president to do some of the big things he wants to do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: In the meantime, key U.S. allies are also making up their minds about the use of extreme interrogations. Jordan's King Abdullah now says based on accounts he has seen, he believes the U.S. used torture on suspected terrorists - Alina.

CHO: Jim Acosta live for us in Washington. Thank you. John.

ROBERTS: It's 30 minutes past the hour. Here's a look at our top stories this Monday morning.

Twenty confirmed cases of swine flu across the United States now in New York, California, Kansas, Texas and Ohio. Spain has also confirmed at least one case. The European Union's health commissioner is urging Europeans to postpone nonessential travel to the U.S. and Mexico. However, the acting head of the Center for Disease Control says he disagrees with that travel warning. It's unwarranted, he says. Taliban militants have suspended talks with local government leaders in northwestern Pakistan. The spokesman for the group allied with the Taliban says because of military strikes against militants in the area, the Taliban won't restart talks until the military operations stop. Pakistan's military confirmed that the strikes are on-going.

And Chrysler has reached new deals with both the United Auto Workers and Canadian autoworkers. Fiat was heavily involved with the UAW negotiations. A sign the Italian company is seriously considering taking a 20 percent stake in Chrysler. Chrysler still needs to secure more government aid and get banks to swap billions in debt for equity stakes.

Real fears of a global outbreak this morning. Here's what we know right now about the swine flu. Here in the United States, the federal government is declaring a public health emergency. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano is stressing that it is "standard operating procedure."

In Mexico, there had been 103 deaths linked to the virus. Here in the United States, 20 confirmed cases across five states. Some schools have shut down in New York, Texas and California. Officials across the globe are on high alert today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. WILMA WOOTEN, SAN DIEGO COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICER: We're not trying to frighten people, we're just trying to inform them and give them the tools that they need to practice preventive measures to protect themselves from becoming infected.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As you now know there are six confirmed cases of human swine flu in Canada. There are four in Nova Scotia and two in British Columbia.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If there's a great majority of people who might be developing symptoms like this, they've just got a cold or flu. They just need to deal with as they normally would.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: One of the schools that closed down is right here in New York City. In Queens, more than 100 students back from spring break in Cancun, sick with flu-like symptoms. The CDC confirms eight of them have swine flu. Our Susan Candiotti reports that cleaning crews are working on the school as fast as they can.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Masked workers spent the weekend scrubbing down desks and floors at the St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens. There will be no classes here for the next two days. The health department ordered a temporary shut down now that eight cases of swine flu are confirmed. THOMAS FRIEDEN, COMMISSIONER, NYC DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & MENTAL HYGIENE: When you have a large outbreak in a school, there is a risk. This is a large school, 2,700 kids, a large number of staff. There's a risk if you send people in, there will be a more rapid spread of infection at that school. That's the reason why we're closing and we'll play it day by day and decide how long it should stay closed.

CANDIOTTI: Worried parents have been calling the school, wondering what to do?

CONWAY: The parents are concerned, rightfully so. There are students that are just developing symptoms today. There are students that had the symptoms on Thursday and they seemed to be getting better.

CANDIOTTI: As swine flu fears rattled New Yorkers, New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg tried to offer encouragement. He said of the 130 high school families interviewed, no one was hospitalized and most are improving from mild symptoms. Yet the illness isn't sitting still.

BLOOMBERG: Some family members of ill children have become ill, suggesting that it's spreading person to person at this time. We don't know if this spread will be sustained. What's heartening is that the people who tested positive have only mild illnesses unlike in Mexico.

CANDIOTTI: More encouraging news, about 30 children who took ill at a Bronx day care center tested negative for swine flu, but caution is advised, anyone sick should stay home. As a precaution, New York's governor declared a public health emergency to free up any necessary resources.

GOV. DAVID PATERSON, NEW YORK: We want to assure everyone that this is a situation that we're monitoring, but we do not see any real danger ahead.

CANDIOTTI (on camera): But for parents with children at this prep school, it's not over. The principal says students are still getting sick. If they stay home to recover, classes could resume later this week.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, Queens, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: A lot of people still have basic questions still this morning, how serious is this, how do I know if I have it?

ROBERTS: Yes, you get the sniffles, or you wake up with the sniffles or sore throat, you're thinking to yourself, oh, is this seasonal allergies or maybe it's the beginnings of swine flu.

CHO: My best friend's boyfriend yesterday was saying, you know, I ate pork, should I be concerned. So we're going to break down...

ROBERTS: No evidence we should say...

CHO: No evidence, that's right.

ROBERTS: That you can contract it from eating pork.

CHO: That's right. And also, we should point out that this is the president's first major public health crisis, so how is it being handled so far? A surprise challenge as President Obama hits 100 days in office.

And in weather news, tornadoes touched down in Iowa, Oklahoma and Kansas. There's more on the way. Rob Marciano tracking severe weather right now for you.

Almost 36 minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

Just days before President Obama marks a major milestone, his 100th day in office, a worldwide scare erupts over swine flu. The first health crisis for the new president.

To talk about this, I'm joined by Jim Vandehei, executive editor of politico.com.

Jim, good to see you. Listen...

JIM VANDEHEI, CO-FOUNDER, POLITICO.COM: Good to be here.

CHO: We're approaching the 100-day mark and more than a dozen key posts in the Obama administration remain unfilled, including head of the CDC and surgeon general. Certainly not something you want to hear in the midst of a potential health crisis.

So, how unusual is this and how will it impact the administration's ability to deal with this?

VANDEHEI: Well, it's not that unusual to have top posts unfilled at this point in a presidency. But given sort of the rush of problems that Obama is having to deal with it, it is a little more problematic than it might be in the past.

And so, what the Obama administration did yesterday, they put together this briefing on a Sunday for reporters. Basically, got Janet Napolitano, the acting head of CDC, out there to be talking about the response, declaring this a serious problem, putting federal resources into it.

You know in emergencies like this, that's all the government can really do. It can prepare. It can monitor and then get ready if this thing were to spread and get worse. And I think as a political proposition, that's often how they're judged. Were they fast? Was the response smart and swift? CHO: Let's talk about this 100 day mark that is coming on Wednesday. You know, as recently as a week ago, senior adviser David Axelrod was quick to point out that this is a hallmark holiday.

VANDEHEI: Right.

CHO: And yet, now, what we're looking at is a prime time press conference with the president on Wednesday night and the White House releasing some key photos of the president looking very presidential. So, now, it seems they're embracing this. I suppose that they look at this now as an opportunity really to highlight the president's accomplishments, right?

VANDEHEI: Right. It's a hallmark holiday that they're happy to celebrate and to embrace. You know, by doing that press conference, they're doing briefings with reporters. You know, we sat down with Axelrod, Gibbs, Emanuel, the whole crowd to talk about the 100 days.

They're doing with this most news organizations because they're smart when it comes to communication. They know that you want to shape these stories, they're going to happen whether they belittle the 100 day mark or not. And they think it's a good time that really try to shape public opinion.

So, what we did last week is we did a piece trying to grant them and give people an idea of what they want those stories to say. And that is they want to portray Obama as sort of cool under pressure, in total control. But most importantly, that he has a plan to make all of this government spending and all these intervention fit together into a plan that restores the economy, that keeps government, you know, stable in operating and also improves the lives of ordinary Americans.

That's a tough task, because there's been so much stuff thrown at the American people over the first 100 days, it's hard for people to put that stuff together...

CHO: That's right.

VANDEHEI: ... and see that he has an overall point.

CHO: I want to jump in here with a final question. I mean, I think we need to have a gut check here. I mean, keep in mind, this is the 100 days out of 1,461 days of his term. Are we in the media a bit being unfair? Or, is this actually a good benchmark in terms of what we might see in the next 100 days?

VANDEHEI: I mean, obviously, it's arbitrary. It's been going on since FDR. Can you really take stock of how well someone is doing in 100 days? No. But I do think it's a good time to step and see, OK, what has Obama done so far? How does this stuff fit together? Has it been successful? What have we learned about his leadership style and his operational style? And I think those are important clues to how he might handle upcoming crisis, like this one now with the swine flu and anything else that lands on his plate. So, there's no way we are going to know today how good of a president Obama is going to be. But you do want to look for those clues to figure out what kind of president is he, how is he different today than he looked to us 100 days ago when we really didn't know how he would act as the head of the government.

CHO: I can tell you how he looks different. He's grayer.

Jim Vandehei of politico.com. Jim, thank you for your perspective.

VANDEHEI: I enjoyed it.

CHO: Wednesday night marks President Obama's 100th day in office. So Wednesday night we'll have a special coverage here on CNN. And join us at 7:00 p.m. Eastern right here as the best political team on TV analyzes his job performance. Then at 8:00, President Obama will hold a live news conference.

We also want to know how you think he's done so far. Make your voice heard on cnn.com/reportcard. And you can actually grade him.

ROBERTS: As President Obama closes in on 100 days in office, we're kicking offer our special series "Memo to the President," breaking down the issues to see if he is living up to his campaign promises.

And a wild crash at NASCAR sends car parts airborne. Fans in the stands are injured. We'll show you the crash from three angles.

It's 43 and a half minutes now after the hour.

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ROBERTS: Forty-six minutes now after the hour. And let's fast forward the stories that will be making news later on today. President Obama starts the day at 9:00 a.m. Eastern with a speech at the annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences where he is expected to address the swine flu outbreak.

We're keeping an eye on reports out of South Korea saying that Kim Jong-Il may be grooming his third son to be his successor. South Korea's Yonhap news agency is reporting Kim Jong-Un has been assigned to the country's National Defense Commission and that could be indicative of a greater role for him in the future.

And today marks the first day that same-sex couples will be able to marry legally in the state of Iowa. The Iowa Supreme Court reached the decision allowing gay marriages last month.

Time to go down to Atlanta and check in with our Rob Marciano. He's tracking all of the extreme weather across the country.

(WEATHER REPORT) CHO: Rob, John, stick around for this. You've got to see this. The dramatic finish on the final lap of Sunday's NASCAR race.

Take a look at this.

Driver Carl Edwards literally had the finish line in sight when that happened. Car slammed right into a fence, sending debris into the grand stand. It injured eight fans as well.

Yes, one more look at it from another angle.

The track's medical director said none of the injuries were life threatening. It's always amazing that these guys can walk away from it, right. Edwards literally climbed out of his mangled car. He ran across the finish line to the delight of the crowd.

Is that alcohol or water?

Obviously, Edwards didn't win. Brad Kozlowski won for the first time. But boy, that was one for the books.

ROBERTS: I was sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to board and there was a sports bar across the aisle.

CHO: Where you were drinking water?

ROBERTS: I wasn't even there, I was sitting at the gate. And all of sudden, we heard this noise from the sports bar. Everybody turned around, what the heck and then we saw them roll the tape, big crash.

CHO: It's amazing, these guys just walk away from it. You know, they got heavily fortified cars.

ROBERTS: Yes. Very much so. Thank God for that retaining fence, too.

CHO: No kidding.

Coming up, as President Obama edges closer to that 100 day mark in office, we're kicking off our very special series, "Memo to the President." We're breaking down the issues to see if he is living up to his campaign promises.

And some call him the cool president. He goes on Leno, he dances old school, as he likes to say. He posts videos on YouTube, the hip commander in chief. So does it help him or hurt him?

Fifty minutes after the hour.

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ROBERTS: President Obama is about to hit 100 days in office. So we're kicking off our special series, "Memo to the President." Today we begin with race. It became a major issue during the campaign but have race relations been quietly put on the back burner? Our Allan Chernoff asks the experts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mr. President, during the campaign you eloquently addressed the problem of racial tension in America.

OBAMA: Race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now.

CHERNOFF: But is it being ignored now that a black man is president of the United States.

JULIANNE MALVEAUX, PRESIDENT, BENGUET COLLEGE: Nobody sprinkled dust over America. Having a black president doesn't mean you got rid of racial injustice.

BARRY PETERSEN, STUDENT: The things that are troubling in terms of race relations in the country are still there and still need to be talked about.

CHERNOFF: Americans are embracing Barack Obama as a celebrity like Oprah Winfrey or Bill Cosby. African-Americans who transcend race in our society but who may have limited impact on race relations. In fact, historian Beryl Satter who volunteered for Obama says some feel the president doesn't truly represent black America.

PROF. BERYL SATTER, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY, NEWARK: They sometimes say, look, we got a black president. Case closed. All race relations are fine now. We don't have to do anything about school segregation and economic discrimination.

CHERNOFF: A national dialogue must begin says Eric Holder, our first black attorney general. If ever there was a president well positioned to lead that conversation, it is Barack Obama.

LAWRENCE HAMM, PEOPLE'S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS: He has the bully pulpit of the president of the United States and when Barack Obama speaks, everybody listens.

CHERNOFF: So far, Barack Obama has been talking about the economy, far more than race. But given the deep recession and the financial disparity between blacks and whites, focusing on the economy may be the most effective approach to easing racial tension.

HAMM: The economic concerns are the greatest concerns of people right now.

CHERNOFF: And there is no illusion among members of the People's Organization for Progress, a group committed to racial equality, that Barack Obama alone can change hundreds of years of inequality.

RONELLA HARGRAVE, PEOPLE'S ORGANIZATION FOR PROGRESS: We are the change that we seek, so if things are still wrong, when you point the finger, you got the finger pointing right back at you. So what are you going to do about it?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHERNOFF (on camera): In his first 100 days, Mr. Obama has yet to tackle the race issue. He has had to deal with the troubled economy. The more success he has putting Americans back to work, the more likely it is that President Obama will be able to move the country towards racial equality and harmony - John, Alina.

ROBERTS: Allan Chernoff reporting for us this morning.

Tomorrow's "Memo to the President" stopping corruption inside the Afghan police force. We will have an exclusive one-on-one with a local police chief in Kabul. Alina.

CHO: It's airborne and spreading fast but just how serious is swine flu? A nationwide emergency as this new strain of flu infects more people in the U.S., and around the world. Is the nation doing enough? How do you know if you have it? We're going to talk to an outbreak expert.

It's 55 minutes after the hour.

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CHO: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.

New developments now with the swine flu outbreak. Twenty-two confirmed cases right here in the United States including eight in New York, 103 deaths in Mexico. And the virus has apparently hit New Zealand as well. Health officials there reporting this morning that 10 students have tested positive for influenza A.

We get more now from CNN's Phil Black.

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, Alina, I'm at the Rangitoto College in Auckland, New Zealand. Students, nine of them, and one teacher from this school fell ill and were diagnosed with influenza A, after returning from a school trip to Mexico.

They are all now said to be doing well, making progress, although officials suspect they are suffering from the new swine variant of that flu. They still don't know for sure. They are waiting for final test confirmation from the World Health Organization's regional office that's in Melbourne, Australia.

In the meantime, they are in isolation. They are being treated. And as I say, they are said to be making a positive recovery.

In the meantime, the New Zealand government here is stepping up its screening of everyone who has come into contact with those sick people in recent days. It is also stepping up its surveillance and screening of people flying in to Auckland Airport, from countries in areas where they may have potentially been exposed to the flu.

The government here says it does not want the New Zealand people to panic and says that procedures are in place and they are working. They designed these procedures a few years ago when this country feared that it could be caught up in a severe outbreak of the bird flu - John, Alina?

CHO: Phil Black for us.