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Mexico Health Secretary Declares Swine Flu "Now in Declining Phase"; One Left Injured in Dallas Cowboys Practice Facility Collapse; McCann Family Says They Will Never Give Up Hope of Finding Missing Daughter; Rep. Eric Cantor on What Republican Party Must Do to Survive; America Being Left Behind as Rest of the World Capitalizes in Cuba; Houston's Restaurants Being Sued by Employees Fired Over MySpace Comments
Aired May 04, 2009 - 07:00 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 crossing the top of the hour. Thanks very much for joining us on the Most News in the Morning on this Monday, the 4th of May. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kiran Chetry, as you look at the stories we're going to be breaking down for you over the next 15 minutes.
Mexico's health secretary says that the outbreak of swine flu in his country is "now in its declining phase." Right now, the number of cases across the world standing at just below 1,000. Twenty-six people died related to the swine flu. Officials say the jump in cases is mostly from lab tests that have confirmed the virus, not a surge in new infections.
Dallas Cowboys scouting assistant Rich Behm was left paralyzed after the Dallas Cowboys practice facility collapsed this weekend. A thunderstorm just pulled the roof down on top of around 70 players and staffers. The Cowboys special teams coach and assistant trainer were also seriously hurt. They are expected to recover.
And the parents of missing British toddler Madeleine McCann sat down with Oprah Winfrey two years after their daughter disappeared. Kate McCann telling Oprah that sometimes she does allow herself to think that the worst has happened, but the parents say they are not giving up. You'll hear much more just ahead.
And we begin the hour with some encouraging signs on the swine flu outbreak. Schools are reopening this morning across the border, and the shutdown of many public schools could end by Wednesday. Health officials are confirming 226 cases here in the U.S. across 30 states, but the U.N. is warning that a second wave of the H1N1 virus could "strike with a vengeance."
A sentiment echoed by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, U.S. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: There is some cautious optimism right now in terms of what is presenting itself in America, but it's early. We know that even if this doesn't present itself as a very virulent strain right now, it could come back with greater force in the winter and fall when we get into full flu season, so this is no time for complacency. We want to stay out ahead of this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, one school reopening this morning after swine flu forced students to stay home, Saint Francis High School in Queens. Our Deborah Feyerick is there live for us this morning.
So, what's the mood like as the kids get ready to head back in there?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as a matter of fact, we've seen a couple of teachers so far trickling back into the school. It's reopening after 10 days.
You have to remember that this is the school which had the original cluster, 45 of New York City's 63 confirmed cases. The air has been purged 100 percent according to the school. Also, the entire school has been sanitized.
The big concern, of course, is nobody wants this to reoccur, to reappear. That's why they kept the school closed for as long as they did. They also wanted to tamp down on how many people got infected. And because they caught it a little bit late, there are hundreds of students and teachers and faculty members believed to have had swine flu even though all of them weren't tested.
Now, the principal did send out a letter to all parents, a very supportive letter about how they dealt with this throughout this ordeal. He says, "It is still important to remain vigilant. Students and faculty and staff members should return to school only when they are healthy. So again, big concern.
They don't want anybody reintroducing the flu back into school especially since so many people did get sick. And again, one of the big reasons, Kiran, why they did this is to try to tamp down on how many people ultimately did get infected. But the mayor is supposed to be here.
We see a couple of people already arriving. The teachers, the staff members, signs saying welcome back. And they really want to focus on getting the kids back on track. They did have some assignments while the school was closed, but they said do the best you can -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Deb Feyerick for us this morning. Thanks.
And the swine flu outbreak and the question of whether or not to close our border with Mexico still a hot topic on our AMFix hotline. Viewers are coming down on both sides of the issue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CALLER (via telephone): These border crossings should be closed, not necessarily because of immigration issues but because of the spreading of the flu. I don't feel it has anything to do with immigration at this point.
CALLER (via telephone): It would just be good judgment to close down the border temporarily from Mexico and not just close down the border but not have people flying back and forth to and from Mexico unless it's absolutely necessary.
CALLER (via telephone): Closing the border is completely silly at this point and people are complete fueling a debate that has nothing to do with the outbreak.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: And you can join the conversation, too, just give us a call at 877-MY-AMFIX. You can log on, follow us at Twitter as well. Twitter.com/amfix.
ROBERTS: As we just mentioned, a staffer for the Dallas Cowboys has been paralyzed after the roof over the team's practice field collapsed. The whole terrifying accident was caught on camera.
Wow. People are running for the sheltered solid structures there.
Our Alina Cho has got the latest on this tragic story for us. She joins us this morning.
My goodness, as the air came out so fast...
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just awful.
ROBERTS: ... it all came crashing down.
CHO: It did. It did. One photographer who was inside said it was like somebody put a stick pin in a balloon and it just popped.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHO: And the question is, what caused it? You know, there were powerful thunderstorms in the area. But John, as you mentioned, the Cowboys have announced that scouting assistant Rich Behm is permanently paralyzed from the waist down. He broke his back in the incident and that severed his spinal cord.
Now Behm was just -- is just 33-years-old. He was one of three Cowboys staffers seriously hurt when the roof of the practice field collapsed. It happened on Saturday. Teammates and staffers quickly rushed in, trying to rescue anyone who was trapped.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anybody over there?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: You can imagine the chaos.
In all, 12 people were hurt. A total of 70 people were inside, including about two dozen of the team's rookies when the roof came down on top of them.
Now weather reports cannot confirm that a tornado struck the roof but take a look at this picture here.
CNN iReporter Rick Seno said that he took pictures of the field just after it happened. Cannot be sure but that certainly does look like a funnel cloud. You can really see the devastation from above as well.
Take a look at these aerial shots. The entire structure as you see was destroyed. One journalist who was on the field during the storm says the wind was so strong it was impossible to escape.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICKEY SPAGNOLA, WRITER, DALLASCOWBOYS.COM: When we got to the door, the wind was blowing so hard. When we opened the door, it was like the wind was sucking us back in and we couldn't get out the door.
And I think, finally, enough people had gotten there and we were all pushing. Now we pushed the door open and just when the door opened, then the whole thing started coming down and everything was just falling right around us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Cowboys owner Jerry Jones issued a statement about Rich Behm, saying in part, "Rich is a courageous member of our family and someone for whom we care deeply."
And as I mentioned, two other Cowboys staffers also seriously hurt in this incident. Special teams coach Joe DeCamillis fractured a vertebrae. He was not paralyzed. Also assistant trainer Greg Gaither. He broke two bones in his right leg and he is expected to be released from the hospital later in the week.
But 70 mile-an-hour winds, guys, you know, not sure, of course, that it was a tornado but no other buildings in the area were damaged and, you know, that's typically what happens when a tornado hits. It sort of hop-scotches from place to place.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHO: And so, but either way, just an awful, awful incident.
ROBERTS: And the way he described it, too, as not being able to get the door open, but indicated maybe there was some low pressure that was pulling on the top of that thing.
CHO: Right. ROBERTS: And it popped it all open like that.
CHO: Just incredible when you look at the pictures.
ROBERTS: Unbelievable.
CHO: Yes.
ROBERTS: Thanks, Alina.
New this morning, "The New York Times" tells "The Boston Globe" make big cost cuts or else. "The Times," the parent company of "The Globe" threatened to file notice to shut down the paper if it doesn't get $20 million worth of union concessions.
Former presidential candidate John Edwards may be in hot water this morning over how his campaign funds were spent. Investigators are looking into more than $100,000 in PAC money that was paid to the video production company of the woman he admitted having an affair with.
Edwards released a statement saying that no campaign funds were used improperly. His wife, Elizabeth, who was terminally ill with cancer, is writing a book that includes details about her husband's affair.
And it's been two years since toddler Madeleine McCann vanished on vacation with her family. Hear what her parents just told Oprah about the search and your first look at the missing little girl's age- enhanced photo. We got that for you.
It's nine minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Coming up on 11 minutes after the hour now. Let's fast forward to stories that will be making news later on today.
President Obama kicks of the week talking taxes. At 11:05 a.m., he's going to deliver remarks on international tax reform including plans to close loopholes for overseas tax havens and end tax incentives for creating jobs overseas. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner will also be on hand for that.
At 10:00 a.m. Senator Arlen Specter will hold a town hall meeting in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It will be the first opportunity for the senator to talk face to face with its constituents since changing parties. Specter made the switch from Republican to Democrat last week.
And at 11:00 a.m., former Amtrak commuter, now Vice President Joe Biden will attend the official kickoff event for the restoration and renovation of the Wilmington train station in Wilmington, Delaware. The vice president will discuss how the recovery act funding is helping to repair and update the nation's infrastructure.
And that's what we're following today.
CHETRY: Well, President Obama is predicting that the role of Wall Street in the nation's economy will be shrinking after this recession is over. Christine Romans is "Minding Your Business" this morning with more on that.
Hi, Christine.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: You know, we've heard for years that Wall Street, you know, well, the heyday of Wall Street is over. But this time, you know, the president and others are saying things really are going to change because of good morning, because of what's been called the great recession and how things are going to look like afterwards.
The president, you know, has been on the campaign trail and now as the president making comments again and again, remarkably consistent with his view of how things are going to be and now in "The New York Times" talking about the role of the financial sector.
He says, look, we don't want every single college grad with mathematical aptitude to become a derivatives trader. He says that he would like to see engineering, technology, innovation become the places where we have the smart, mathematically inclined and that Wall Street will not be the huge role that it was over the past 10 or 15 years. He said that that's simply is not sustainable.
He also talks about what things are going to look like for you and I in the labor market once this thing is all done. He said that construction and manufacturing jobs are not going to go away. They will not vanish, he says, but they also will not be as big a part of the overall economy as they have been before.
And he talks about education. He says that everyone needs to have -- in this country, everyone should have at least one year of post high school education.
He's not saying that he wants to be rigid, that everyone should have a four-year degree in this country, but he said that more training, more education is necessary.
And here's an interesting statistic to bring to you along those lines. In this country right now, look at this, you guys.
If you have a high school degree but no college, the unemployment rate is nine percent. But look, a bachelor's degree and higher, 4.3 percent. That is essentially full employment in this country right now for people who have a college education. Think of that.
And we're talking about all this dislocation in the labor market, but look at the odds. If you have a college degree, you are doing much, much better than the rest of society.
What the president is trying to do right now and what Congress and frankly everyone -- economists as well are trying to figure out what is this economy going to look like going forward for those people who don't have a high college degree and for those people with college degree, frankly, who are also seeing jobs outsourced and the like. So a very big tall order for this president.
He's really consistently laying out what things are going to look like -- education, energy, health care. This financial crisis giving him some political cover to do some big things that other presidents maybe wouldn't have the chance to try to fix altogether at the same time.
CHETRY: All right. Christine, thanks so much.
ROMANS: Sure.
CHETRY: Well, it's been a little more than two years since Madeleine McCann disappeared. She was on vacation with her family. Well now her embattled parents are speaking out on "Oprah." We've got a preview.
And our next guest says the swine flu may not have as much to do with Mexico as people seemed to think. She says a teenager in Wisconsin caught the H1N1 virus a couple of years back. Were some warning signs ignored? And are we learning how to handle pandemics better?
It's 14 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Seventeen minutes past the hour on this Monday. Some of the top videos right now on CNN.com.
It's the world oldest profession, but Pakistani officials are beginning a new crackdown on prostitution and "immoral entertainment." Even singing and dancing are being banned in the new crackdown which some say is meant to appease Taliban hardliners.
United Nations ambassadors trading their suits for soccer uniforms this weekend. They are playing a soccer match for a charity that uses the game to promote peace in countries ravaged by conflicts. Even U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon suited up for the match.
And diehard soccer fans in Mexico City banned from attending games because the swine flu could not be kept away completely. They gathered outside the stadium. One woman saying "the virus doesn't matter, we'll die cheering on." Authorities say the ban on crowds may be relaxed soon if the H1N1 is reined in.
And those are some of the most popular videos on CNN.com right now.
ROBERTS: The case that has riveted the world. The mystery of Madeleine McCann, the little toddler who disappeared two years ago while vacationing in Portugal with her family. Her parents were scrutinized, even labeled as potential suspects, and then cleared. Now, they're opening up to Oprah. Jason Carroll is here now with a preview. And they're provide a new photo of the child, too, something digitally enhanced.
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is correct. Her parents not giving up. That's part of the reason why they released this photo.
British investigators say the answer to Madeleine's disappearance still lies with someone at that Portuguese resort where she disappeared. Her parents have released a digitally enhanced picture showing what she might look like today if she was still alive at age six.
Her mother told Oprah, some days, she is simply overwhelmed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPRAH WINFREY, TV TALK SHOW HOST, "THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW": And do you let yourself go to the worst sometimes?
KATE MCCANN, MOTHER: I mean I do. I think it's natural and, you know, I know people mean well when they say don't let yourself go there. And it's not going to help going there. As a mom, I have to be there at all times and I do. And they're the times I kind of get down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: And Madeleine's father went on to say that despair over his daughter's disappearance has strained their marriage but says it has also made the family closer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GERRY MCCANN, FATHER: A child abduction, I think, could destroy any family. There's no doubt about it. It's one of the most devastating things. And if you look at what's happened just subsequently, that we -- we've been supported tremendously well and I think that's helped us stay strong and stay together. And obviously, we're really united in our goal and our love of Madeleine and showing our love (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Portuguese authorities closed the case last July. Detectives found no reason to charge any of the three people previously named as suspects.
Madeleine's parents and a local man all had strongly denied any involvement and won libel awards for newspapers suggesting otherwise.
Madeleine's mother says she still visits her daughter's room twice a day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WINFREY: Do you talk to her?
K. MCCANN: I do usually. I mean I tend to open and close the curtains morning and evening and say hello, really. Tell her we're still going and, you know, we're going to do everything we can to find her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Madeleine's mother says it makes her sick to think that someone may have been watching the family and planning her daughter's abduction. They are hoping someone will come forward and help them find here. But at this point, Portuguese investigators have no leads, so case is closed. They come up with a lead, they'll reopen it. But as of now, nothing.
ROBERTS: As the father of a daughter, I just can't imagine the hell that they're going through.
CARROLL: Unbelievable.
ROBERTS: It would definitely be enough to make you completely insane and yet they seem to be hanging it together.
CHETRY: Right.
CARROLL: And again, though, not giving up. Right?
ROBERTS: Yes.
CARROLL: Coming out with a photo.
ROBERTS: How could you ever give up?
CARROLL: Yes.
ROBERTS: You know, unless you get some definitive word, how could you ever give up hope? Amazing.
CHETRY: But they did acknowledged also what a strain it's been on their relationship. I mean, most oftentimes, when a child is abducted, a marriage doesn't last. You know, it's just too hard.
CARROLL: Yes.
CHETRY: Jason, thanks.
Well, with the party's numbers dwindling on Capitol Hill, fewer Americans calling themselves Republicans. What can the party do to reboot, so to speak? We're asking Congressman Eric Cantor who has some big ideas, next.
Also, an expert on pandemic, here with new flu details. She wrote the cover story for "Newsweek." We're going to see what she says about making an effective vaccine now.
It's 22 minutes past the hour. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. We have more now on our developing story this morning, the swine flu virus.
As the number of case grows worldwide, health officials here in the U.S. and Mexico are now saying that we may have turned a corner. So how does a deadly virus die down or pick up steam around the world?
Laurie Garrett has been investigating pandemics for year. She's a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations and the author of "The Coming Plague." And she also wrote this week's cover story for "Newsweek," "Fear & the Flu."
Laurie, thanks for being with us this morning.
LAURIE GARRETT, SENIOR FELLOW FOR GLOBAL HEALTH, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Thank you.
CHETRY: So we've seen the CDC acting director, Dr. Besser, make the rounds again this weekend and one of the things he said this weekend is that there are encouraging signs. We're not out of the woods yet, but we've learned about the virus itself and they say that it doesn't seem to contain some of the factors they've seen on some of the more severe flu strains. So what does that mean to you and me and to people at home?
GARRETT: So what we now know is this is a virus that's been circulating in pigs for a long time. It's undergoing some slight changes in permutations as it's been moving around.
It started out in the United States. It is an American virus that we exported unwittingly to Mexico. And in Mexico, this initial explosion of cases that we thought we saw, now with better laboratory reagents and equipment, we can see that a lot of them were not actually the swine flu, or the H1N1 flu. They were actually other infections, or what have you.
So we had a real noisy background of infection and concern in Mexico. And the other piece of this that helps us tone this down is recognizing that within the genomics, the actually RNA, genetic material of this virus are missing the key things that make a virus a supervirulent rapid transmitter between you and I. So I can safely cough here, you can safely cough here. I might give you a cold. I might give you something, but we're not going to have a situation where both of us need to wear masks.
CHETRY: So that's good news.
GARRETT: So that's the bottom line.
CHETRY: That's certainly is good news.
GARRETT: Absolutely.
CHETRY: Will we see more deaths though in Mexico if it wasn't this supervirulent deadly strain?
GARRETT: Well, first of all, we're not seeing as many as we thought. More careful lab work has confirmed that many of the suspicious deaths were deaths due to other causes.
The second thing is that again, there was a large background of infection going on in Mexico and so what we are seeing as this apparent large death toll is actually a very small fraction of all the people in Mexico who got infected.
CHETRY: That's certainly better news than what we were looking at the possibility of last week between fast tracking a vaccine and on and on.
GARRETT: Yes. Absolutely.
CHETRY: But it's interesting that you said we know it started in the United States. You talk about this case of H1N1 affecting a teenage boy. He was on a pig farm in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Right? This dates back to December of 2005. We fast forward four years later and we're in the midst of talking about a global outbreak. So what happened there in that situation and how did that go undetected for so long?
GARRETT: Well, what we saw was that -- you know, here's a kid who works in a pig slaughter situation. He's helping out his brother- in-law slaughter some pigs. Somewhere along the way, he gets infected with the virus that been circulating in the pigs. He gets sick but not terribly ill the way people are getting sick now with this strain. Fairly mild infections.
And the only reason it really drew attention was there happened to be some vigilance there in Wisconsin keeping an eye out for transmission from pigs. The real bottom line that I keep trying to underscore to people is we're looking at a very fluid ecology. That means is that we're looking at a situation where we raise animals a certain way.
We have masses of animals stacked together in huge farms whether we're talking chickens in the case of bird flu, or pigs in the case of swine flu, ducks, whatever they may be. And humans are interacting with their animals. We give them illness.
This just happened in Canada. A human worker transmitted this new virus to a pig herd in Canada. It's a fluid two-way street. And as the viruses move around, particularly influenza in these environments, they change. They adapt. They pick up little bits of genetic material from one cell to the other. A swine virus could pick up some bird genes.
CHETRY: Right.
GARRETT: Someday, if we don't fix this ecology, if we don't make it a safer ecology, someday, a really dangerous killer virus will come out of it. CHETRY: So you think bottom line we need to rethink how these animals are raised? We need to rethink, you know, the cleanliness and how much space they're given in order to...
GARRETT: I think this is the shot across the bow. Thank goodness this warning signal came in the form of a very benign virus.
CHETRY: Right.
GARRETT: Let's hope the next time we take preparedness seriously and prevention.
CHETRY: All right. Well, you wrote the cover story for "Newsweek" people can check it out.
Laurie Garrett, thanks for being with us.
GARRETT: Thank you.
CHETRY: John.
ROBERTS: Coming up now at 29 minutes after the hour, and here are this morning's top stories.
President Obama will unveil a brand new tax plan this morning. The White House is targeting U.S. companies that exploit tax loopholes that currently allow them to legally avoid billions of dollars in taxes. The president will be joined by the treasury secretary when the announcement is made.
Malawi's highest court is again taking up Madonna's latest adoption bid. That's this morning. The singer was not at today's hearing. Last month, a lower court rejected the singer's initial adoption request. Now a man who says he's the child's father says he wants to take care of the 3-year-old girl. Madonna's spokesperson tells the "Associated Press," there is no proof that the girl is his biological daughter.
Plus, more bad press for the most expensive player in baseball. A new book by journalist Selena Roberts about New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez is making the case that A-Rod likely used steroids as far back as high school and may have taken human growth hormone as a Yankee. Roberts paints A-Rod as an insecure man trying to cope. That book hits the stores today.
Republican leaders have launched a new effort hoping to take back some of the support that they lost in the last election. GOP numbers are dwindling on Capitol Hill, and former Florida governor and brother to the former president, Jeb Bush, says he doesn't like what he's seeing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEB BUSH (R), FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: From the conservative side, it's time for us to listen first, to learn a little bit, to upgrade our message a little bit, to not be nostalgic about the past. But what I've seen in the last few years is really troubling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: For more now, we're joined by House Republican Whip Eric Cantor. He is also a member of the National Council for a New America. That group there that's hoping to remake the Republican Party.
Congressman, it's great to see you this morning.
Let's just take a look at how Republican fortunes have changed since 1995 when the Contract with America swept you to power. In 1995, you had 230 seats in the House, now you've got 178. You had 52 Senate seats, now 40. That's a pretty serious erosion. What happened?
REP. ERIC CANTOR (R-VA), HOUSE REPUBLICAN WHIP: Well, John, clearly, we've had some setback, no question about it. Could we have done better in many areas? Absolutely. That's why we've launched the National Council for a New America.
And as Governor Bush just said, it is very important at this point that we go back out across the country, bring in as many people as possible to begin a conversation about the direction of this country.
And the National Council for New America is meant to be a forum for folks to gather to come, to discuss the issues confronting them in their community and frankly to rally around the principles that we know have made this country great which are liberty, opportunity and devotion to the individual and free market.
ROBERTS: Governor Bush also said you've got to give up nostalgia for the heyday of the Reagan era. Every time you go to these republican conventions, it's all about Ronald Reagan, every candidate that runs for president wants to be Ronald Reagan. How are you going to give that up?
CANTOR: John, I don't think giving up Ronald Reagan. The brilliance of Ronald Reagan, his leadership, was his ability to identify the challenges that really were impacting people's lives back in the day that he was elected in 1980. We've got a similar challenge today.
We're 25 years later, the same issues that may have resonated then may not be the issues that are resonating today but it is the principles around which Ronald Reagan formed his solutions that are still alive and well.
ROBERTS: Right.
CANTOR: Again, those principles of limited government, free markets, faith in the individual, faith in god, those are the things that made this country great.
ROBERTS: During your meeting over the weekend, you didn't talk at all about abortion, gay marriage or immigration. Those are big republican social issues, there were republican conservatives who were protesting outside of the pizza parlor where you held this meeting. Why were those issues left off the table?
CANTOR: Listen, the National Council for New America is meant to be a wide open policy debate. There is no exclusion about what we'll talk about, who can be involved. Again, this is about going back out...
ROBERTS: Yes, you shied away from those particular issues. And I'm wondering why.
CANTOR: Well, John, there was - again, this was a free flowing conversation. The traditional family values are a part of everything we do. The value system that we hold, raising our children, educating our children, delivering health care, these issues permeate everything. So there is absolutely no intention to veer away from discussion of any of that.
Again, this trying to go back out to the people and say, look, what's going on in Washington right now is not reflective of the main stream of this country. Let's take this country back. Let's make sure that the direction that we are headed is one that meets the expectations of the American people and is not imposed on them by a special interest lobby that seems to have a lot of momentum in D.C.
ROBERTS: At the same time, you're making that argument though, some former republicans are making the argument that hey, the problem is not so much Washington, the problem is the republican party. Arlen Specter who was a republican for 29 years says you clearly lost your center. Let's listen to what he said yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (D(, PENNSYLVANIA: The republican party has gone far to the right since I joined it under Reagan's big tent. When I came to the senate, you had a roomful of moderate republicans, Heinz and Weicker and Stafford and Chafee and Danforth and on and on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And of course we all know what Olympia Snowe, the senator from Maine, said that it's true being a moderate republican is like being a cast member of "Survivor," you're presented with multiple challenges, you often get the distinct feeling you're not longer welcome in the tribe.
Has the party moved too far to the right? It's not the big tent of Ronald Reagan anymore?
CANTOR: Well, John, first of all, let's just call Senator Specter's decision what it is. It is what he admitted it being, when he announced he was switching parties, it was for political survival.
ROBERTS: Right.
CANTOR: Obviously...
ROBERTS: But again, Olympia Snowe says you've moved too far to the right, you're not tolerative of moderates, even Lindsey Graham said the same thing, so it's not just about Arlen Specter.
CANTOR: John, let me tell you something else. There's no question that the republican party needs to be more inclusive at this point. We shouldn't be an exclusive small bunch, satisfied with the minority because what we want to be able to do is put back in place those principles that that party was built on and what this country was built on.
Look, in the northeast, in New England, we've certainly taken our licks and we have got to go back out to the people and talk about the things that are facing them, come up with solutions, talk about the solutions that we've got. That economy in many parts of the North East, upper Midwest, manufacturing bases eroding, we've got solutions, we've got the ability to talk to people to bring them in to discuss the future.
But there's no - there's no sense in saying that somehow the republican party and our principles cannot work for people. We know they can. That's why we've started the National Council for a New America.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll keep watching it very closely. Congressman Eric Cantor, minority whip of the House, thanks for being with us this morning. It's good to see you.
CANTOR: Thank you.
CHETRY: Italian carmaker Fiat is in talks to buy most of General Motors' European operations while still in the process of taking over Chrysler. Chrysler is hoping to sell most of its assets to Fiat but must gain approval from the New York bankruptcy court first. Fiat says evaluating, spinning off its auto business to form the core of a new company which would have $105 billion in annual revenue.
And we're just days away from getting the results of the U.S. Treasury Department's bank stress test, but billionaire Warren Buffett says he doesn't think the government should rule out the failure of most of the banks being tested. He said all but the four biggest banks could be sold and should not be considered too big to fail.
America's biggest competitor is suing a healthy business in Cuba, Washington watching from the sidelines. We're live in Havana to find out what the relations may be changing.
It's 36 minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Thirty- nine minutes past the hour now.
We've heard President Obama talk about a new beginning with the relations with Cuba. And while Washington tries to improve ties with the communist island, the rest of the world is already cashing in.
CNN's Jim Acosta is live in Havana right now with a look at how this is really a tourist Mecca for much of the world except us.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kiran. And on our journey to Cuba, we've seen some stunning examples of how America's biggest competitors are investing heavily in Cuba from European hotels to Chinese oil drilling operations but because of the U.S. embargo on Cuba, the Americans can only watch from the sidelines 90 miles away.
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ACOSTA (voice-over): If Americans are wondering what it's like to travel to Cuba, just ask a Canadian.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a mystique about Cuba, let's be honest here.
ACOSTA: Or an Australian.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just great, beautiful country.
ACOSTA: Or South African pro golfer Ernie Els, the star attraction at a Cuban golf tournament aimed at turning the island into the sports next destination.
ERNIE ELS, PRO GOLFER: It's a great tourist destination. It's unbelievable, that those can open up. Maybe it's time for it to open up.
ACOSTA: Every year, foreign travelers escape to Cuba's exotic shores and Spanish colonial streets, pumping an estimated $2 billion into the island's economy. So it was no surprise when Cuba's deputy tourism minister told me the island is ready to welcome back its neighbor to the north.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Our country has always been open. They are the ones that haven't been able to come.
ACOSTA: Tell a Cuban, take me to the beach and they'll take you here, Varadero Beach, the sand belongs to the Cubans, the resort partially owned by a Spanish company. That's why a growing number of U.S. senators want to end the U.S. travel ban on Cuba and consider scrapping the 47-year embargo on the island.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't limit the right to travel to China or Vietnam, communist countries.
ACOSTA: But there may be more than travel at stake. China is now a player in Cuba, selling the island these tourist buses. The Chinese are getting more than cigars out of Cuba, they're tapping into the country's oil reserves.
When it comes to business, Cuba is changing its tune. Once known for its classic cars, the island is no longer just a time machine to the past, leaving the U.S. with a choice, shift a decades-old policy or let sleeping dogs lie.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Now, the next chapter of U.S.-Cuba relations won't be easy as a former ambassador from Canada to Cuba told me. It's complicated. As both sides start talking, old controversies are going to rise to the surface - Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes, that's always the case, isn't?
All right. Jim Acosta for us in Havana today, thanks so much -- John.
ROBERTS: Deadly storms strike at Alabama. Authorities still working to figure out whether any tornadoes touchdown. Our Rob Marciano tracking things from the extreme weather center, that's just ahead.
Plus, students going back to school after a swine flu scare shut down their school. We'll take you live to Queens where New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is on hand to welcome them back this morning.
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ROBERTS: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
Severe thunderstorms rolling through Georgia and Alabama causing several possible tornadoes. At least one person has been killed, thousands still without power this morning.
And it's not over, more on tap for today. Rob Marciano tracking all of the extreme weather from the weather center in Atlanta.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHETRY: And a horse named Mine that Bird took the biggest trophy in all of horse racing. The long-shot thoroughbred won the 135th Kentucky Derby. It sure killed down Saturday by several lengths.
Ahead, we're talking to Mine that Bird's trainer and jockey. That's in our next hour here on the Most News in the Morning.
Also, most know not to vent about the boss on company e-mail, right? But what about on a MySpace or Facebook website? Well, just because it's at home doesn't mean the company is not watching. And one woman found that out the hard way.
Also, war games at sea. The U.S. Navy training with nearly a dozen nations using new technologies to fight pirates, smugglers and terrorists. How are they doing it? We'll take a look.
It's 48 minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. The U.S. Navy is at sea this morning with the 11 other allies for some high-tech training. The goal is to use the latest technology to fight 21st century threats, like the pirates.
Our Ed Lavandera has the story from off of Florida's coast.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Kiran, we're cruising through the Atlantic Ocean onboard the Mexican naval ship called the Wahaka. It's one of 27 warships taking part in an international military training exercise off the Florida coast.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA (voice-over): As we helicopter on to the landing deck of the Wahaka, the aerial view offers a glimpse of the ferocious fire power gathered in the ocean's waters near Jacksonville, Florida, but this training mission is less about old school warfare and more about fighting modern day enemies, like sea pirates, terrorists and drug smugglers.
COMMODORE RUDY LACO, U.S. NAVY, UNITAS TASK FORCE: What we're doing is building partnerships with all the navies that are here.
LAVANDERA: Commodore Rudy Laco is the task force commander of this mission called UNITAS.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Delta 4, whiskey, over.
LAVANDERA: It brings the U.S. and 11 other countries together, mostly Latin-American nations. In its 50-year history it's never been held in U.S. waters and it's also the first time the Mexican Navy has joined.
Efren Gomez Luis is the commander of the Wahaka. The commander tells me this experience will bolster his sailor's ability to patrol the Mexican coast. The battle for drug smuggling is intensifying and that means cartels look for new ways to move drugs. He says in recent years Colombian cartels started using these sleet submarine-like vessels. Only a few have ever been captured. Many more believed to have made it through undetected. Commander Gomez Luis says quick reaction is needed to catch them. So the Wahaka is uniquely equipped with this rapid strike force team that can slide right out of the back of the ship and attack.
Should we get into contact received?
Multi-national forces are currently battling piracy off the Somali coast. The Navy commanders say if those problems continue to spread, international navy units must learn to work together.
LACO: Some of the things we're doing with this exercise is kind of sharing ideas how to use that particular mission and how do we work together to be able to share the information?
(END VIDEOTAPE) LAVANDERA: This multi-national training exercise was born during the cold war, but now they train to fight terrorists and drug smugglers on the high seas. John and Kiran.
ROBERTS: Ed Lavandera, reporting for us this morning. Ed, thanks so much.
Here's what we're working on for you this morning. Warren Buffett giving the presidents props for his efforts to revive the economy. And Warren Buffett says we no longer have an economic Pearl Harbor on our hands.
It's 53 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: We're back with the Most News in the Morning.
Most of us now realize that any e-mail or computer exchanges at work are fair game for the boss' prying eyes, but you might be surprised to learn that "shop talk" at home on your own computer could also land you in big trouble at work.
CNN's Alina Cho is following it for us this morning.
The first question that we all have, is this legal?
CHO: Well, that's the big question. You know, two restaurant workers are suing over this. An incredible stories, guys.
Good morning, everybody. You know, we do all know that if you're sending an e-mail from work, pretty good chance the bosses are watching you, or at least they could if they wanted to.
But what if you were at home on MySpace. Home computer, guys, you're not responsible for what you say there, right? Wrong. It cost two restaurant workers in New Jersey their jobs.
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CHO (voice-over): Did you ever in your wildest dreams think that making a comment like this on MySpace would get you fired?
DOREEN MARINO, FIRED FOR COMMENTS ON MYSPACE: Absolutely not. Never in a million years would I have thought that this is going to get me fired.
CHO: It did. Doreen Marino says she was blindsided when in 2006 her boss at this Houston's restaurant in Hackensack, New Jersey fired her. Not for bad performance or calling in sick, but for allegedly making derogatory comments about one of her managers in a private discussion on MySpace -- members only, password required, created specifically so she and other co-workers could gossip.
CHO (on camera): You went to vent? MARINO: Better to vent there, in my opinion, take it somewhere where no one's going hear you.
CHO (voice-over): Marino was wrong. She says managers at the restaurant got a hold of the password, didn't like what they saw, and as a result, according to Marino, fired her and another worker.
(on camera): Did you feel it was a violation of your privacy?
MARINO: Absolutely. They weren't invited. They were not members of the group. In my opinion, I felt they had no business being there.
CHO (voice-over): She's so mad she and the co-worker are suing for owner's of Houston's for invasion of privacy.
The parent group of Houston's would not comment about the lawsuit, but in a statement to CNN said, "This is not a case about cyber snooping, the first amendment or privacy. It's about two staff members who are let go for unprofessional conduct. Including," says the company, "disparaging comments about our guests and sharing a product knowledge test before it was administered. This misconduct was voluntarily brought to light by a member of the online group."
(on camera): Is it reasonable, it is really reasonable to expect that you're writing things on MySpace they're not going to see it?
MARINO: Where do you draw the line? We have the right to say what we want in a private environment.
CHO (voice-over): Or do they?
NICHOLAS THOMPSON, SENIOR EDITOR, "WIRED" MAGAZINE: Technology is changing faster than the law and faster than our social norms. The law and the courts don't really know how to handle this. It's not like they'll catch up.
CHO: Marino says she's hoping to set a precedent.
MARINO: There has to be some sacred space in our lives that where we can feel comfortable speaking our minds.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: That is at the heart of the debate now.
As you heard from our Internet expert, there are no laws on the books to deal with this. The problem, no surprise, is that the Internet is changing, so fast that it's faster than the laws can be written. The experts says, today, there's a lawsuit on MySpace. Tomorrow, there will be a similar case on Twitter. The norms have changed.
And if you think about it guys, you know, you cannot be fired for race, religion or gender. What about free speech, right? Well, that means, according to our Internet expert, the government cannot criticize you for saying something disparaging about the government. But according to this expert, if you say something disparaging about your corporation that you work for, potentially you can be fired.
But it opens a lot of questions. How far is a corporation go? It's your home computer.
ROBERTS: To find where what you're seeing.
CHO: That's right.
ROBERTS: We'll see. An interesting case to follow.
CHO: It goes to trial in June.
ROBERTS: All right. Alina, thanks very much for that.
