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Suspects to be Arraigned in 18-Year Kidnapping Case; Thousands Pay Respects to Ted Kennedy; Better Days Expected on Wall Street Soon

Aired August 28, 2009 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Tony, thanks.

Years of torment, layers of delusion. We're pushing forward on the story that gets more twisted with each revolution. An 18-year kidnap drama is over, two suspects in jail and a missing girl from 1991 is a mom.

Every lawmaker has constituents. Ted Kennedy had friends, and they're coming out by the thousands to say thanks, farewell and Godspeed.

Don't tell the Pentagon there's no such thing as bad publicity. When it comes to getting access to war zones, what reporters write can be used against them.

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Some stars (sic) we hardly know where to begin. So, let's push forward. A California girl -- California woman who was kidnapped in front of her own house in 1991 is free and finally getting reacquainted with her family.

Her name is Jaycee Dugard, and the secret world she inhabited for 18 years, a secluded backyard where she bore and raised her alleged kidnapper's two daughters. Well, she's now exposed to the world, and the world is repulsed at what happened to her.

The suspects three hours from now, Phillip and Nancy Garrido, will go before a judge to face charges relating to kidnapping and sexual abuse.

This whole story broke when Phillip Garrido brought Jaycee and both children to a meeting on Wednesday with his patrol officer.

It's hard to even imagine what Jaycee's parents are going through. Her stepfather witnessed her kidnapping and for years was a suspect. On CNN's "American Morning," he says Jaycee's reunion with her mother was a shocker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARL PROBYN, JAYCEE'S STEPFATHER: Jaycee told her that she had babies, and my wife asked her, "Babies? How many babies?" And Jaycee said two babies. And it was a real shock. I didn't know the babies were 15 and 11. I was expecting, when I saw the news released, nobody told me that they were 15 and 11. So, it was kind of a shocker.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And we have correspondents and producers working every aspect of this case, beginning with Dan Simon in the Bay Area suburb of Antioch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Phillip and Nancy Garrido expected to be arraigned at 1 p.m. local time. Behind me is the home that they lived in, in Antioch, California. Yesterday, authorities searched it all day long, removing a ton of evidence.

Of course, the big focus is on the backyard. That is where the victim in this case, Jaycee Dugard, spent the last 18 years living with her two children, fathered by the suspect.

Authorities describe what that back yard looked like.

UNDERSHERIFF FRED KOLLAR, EL DORADO COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: The search of residence revealed a hidden back yard within a back yard. The hidden back yard had sheds, tents, and outbuildings, where Jaycee and the girls spent most of their lives. There was a vehicle hidden in the backyard that matched the vehicle originally described at the time of the abduction.

SIMON: The victim, Jaycee Dugard, and her two children, ages 15 and 11, are at a motel here at Antioch, California. Jaycee has been reunited with her mother.

Meanwhile, there's been some question in terms of whether or not neighbors here were suspicious. We talked to one neighbor who told us that a couple of years ago he actually called the local sheriff's department because he thought that there were a couple children living in the backyard of this home. He said authorities came out, had a brief conversation with the Garridos, but nothing happened.

Dan Simon, CNN, Antioch, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: So what kind of person could do the things that Phillip Garrido is accused of? He ran a printing business, but he also formed a corporation called God's Desire and had a Web site where he claimed to control sound with his mind.

Yesterday. Garrido spoke from jail with our affiliate, KCRA. He talked about a document that he says he gave the FBI, and you won't believe what comes next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP GARRIDO, SUSPECT: Wait until you read that document. I -- my life has been straightened out. Wait until you hear the story of what took place at this house. You're going to be absolutely impressed. It's a disgusting thing that took place with me in the beginning. But I turned my life completely around and to be able to understand that, you have to start there. And you're going to find the most powerful story coming from the witness, from the victim. You wait. If you take this a step at a time you're going to fall over backwards and in the end, you're going to find the most powerful, heartwarming story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, next hour the KCR reporter who did that interview, Walt Bray (ph), is going to join me right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Now, as for Nancy Garrido, authorities say that she was part of the plot from day one. That prompted this insight from criminal profiler Pat Brown, as a guest on CNN's "CAMPBELL BROWN."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: There's always that little sick spouse to go along with these situations. When we look at the Austrian, remember the Austrian guy who kept his own daughter imprisoned in his little jail cell down there in his house. His wife also cooperated. And she claims she didn't know anything, but I mean, she had to actually know something.

You usually find that these people do have somebody to help them, somebody to help them kidnap. And one of the reasons the women do these things is, first of all, they're pretty sick themselves. But they get tired of the demands of that husband, and they're told, you know, "If you help me out then you don't have to struggle so much. You don't have to suffer so much with all the things I want to do with you. You just help me get a sex slave. I'll relieve you of those duties."

She goes, "Hey, that's a great idea." So she goes along with it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Phillip Garrido was a registered sex offender and on federal parole for rape and kidnapping in the 1970s. His neighbors may or may not have known. And do you know who lives in your neighborhood? Next hour, we're going to show you how you can find out.

A live look now at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. Thousands of people from all walks of life are flocking to pay their final respects to Senator Ted Kennedy. They're passing by his flag-draped casket. And museum officials called the turnout extraordinary.

The time is running out for people wishing to see the lion of the Senate one last time. The museum extended last night's public viewing until 2 this morning, due to the sheer number of people that were waiting. They can't do the same this afternoon, keeping with the tightly-scripted schedule. Our Deb Feyerick is live with the latest now.

Deb, JFK Library officials say that 12,000 visitors paid their respects within just the first hour of the viewing yesterday? What are you seeing now?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's pretty incredible, as a matter of fact. The actual line stretches more than a quarter mile, and the buses are continuing to come.

And again, as you mentioned, time is running out because they're going to close this place at about 3 p.m.

What I want you to see behind me, this is at the end of the parking lot, the museum and library, people signing these condolence books. And they're not just writing one or two lines. Many of them are actually writing half pages full of thoughts and memories, things that they want to be able to share with the family.

And you can see the lines here. Multiple books. Folks taking a couple of moments in reflection to write out the things that they either felt or experienced when they saw the casket.

One of those people who was able to do that is Celina Shay (ph). Now, you are a doctor, and so there is a lot of connection with Senator Kennedy. Tell me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I believe Senator Kennedy was the greatest force behind health-care reform in this country. And I think that we owe it to him, you know, to kind of get health-care reform passed in this country.

As a medical professional, we see so many patients who come in who are uninsured, who come in when the disease had progressed too far. And we know they could have come in earlier if they just had health-care insurance. And so I feel like, like Senator Kennedy said, we have to get it passed; we have to get it passed now.

FEYERICK: Your family came here many years ago, and they felt a connection to the family, as well?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, they did, actually. My mom and her whole family always followed the senator's family very closely in the newspapers. They were devastated when they heard that JFK had been assassinated.

And they've always been very dear to our hearts. From afar, we've always watched them and observed them and admired them. And they were able to come, you know, partly because of the immigration act that Senator Kennedy was able to push forward. My mom was also disabled, and so she also benefited from the American Disabled Act. And so they've helped our family in so many ways. And they've helped the American people in so many ways. And their family will always be remembered in this country.

FEYERICK: Celina (ph), thank you so much. We'll let you get back to work. We really appreciate your sticking around.

And that's one thing that really we're learning here today, Kyra. And that is that you look at these people. So many of them have personal stories about ways in which the senator helped.

And very, very quickly, Samuel from Liberia. I've spoken to people from Uganda, Liberia, West Indies. And all of them very connected to the senator.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we're very connected to him. The senator has been an advocate for our cause and has done a lot for Liberians and for Liberia as a whole. When Liberia went through a civil war, the senator was there. His son, Patrick Kennedy, Congressman Kennedy, works a lot in our community and does a lot of work and is one of our brothers.

FEYERICK: All right, Samuel. Thank you so much.

Again, Kyra, that's what really is so incredible. So many lives touched by this one individual who had such a huge impact on them personally but also their communities -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: True example of all the Kennedy brothers there, that issue of diversity.

Deb, thanks so much.

We hope that you join us tonight and tomorrow for our special coverage as we remember Senator Ted Kennedy. His memorial service begins this evening at 7 Eastern. That's followed by special editions of "LARRY KING LIVE" and "ANDERSON COOPER 360." Plus our special live coverage of the funeral service begins at 10 Eastern tomorrow, including President Obama's eulogy. Then live coverage of the burial at Arlington National Cemetery. That's set for 5 Eastern tomorrow evening.

Hundreds of people in Southern California are on the run right now from wild fires. And some buildings have already burned to the ground.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Kyra, what's even more amazing is that smoke from these fires actually getting picked up by upper level winds and actually moving over into parts of Nevada, where they have smoke advisories. That's happening in the Southwest.

Now, in the Southeast, we see this storm, Tropical Storm Danny, getting ever closer to the coast. We're going to give you the very latest in that forecast, coming up right here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, in Southern California, hundreds of people are on the run from wildfires right now. The situation is getting worse by the hour. Right now, several big blazes spreading near Los Angeles. This fire, the Rancho Palos Verdes on the Pacific coast, has damaged homes. We still don't know how many. And then up to 1,500 people have gotten an order to evacuate.

Now, a blaze in the San Gabriel Mountains has scorched at least 2,000 acres. Right now it's about 60 percent contained.

Wildfires on the West Coast, a tropical storm to worry about on the East Coast. Reynolds, you are busy.

WOLF: You know, you really can't have more of a difference from what you have in parts of the southeast parts of the U.S., then out to the west. In the Southeast, it's all rain. Out West, it's all dry, and of course, they're dealing with fires.

And we're now going to be getting some scattered showers in parts of Southeast. We, of course, have got Danny. Here's the latest from that storm.

I'll tell you, Kyra, this thing is just an absolute mess. I mean, you take a look at the structure of the storm, you've got a deep convection just to the right of the center of circulation. But a little to the left, far to the west, you've got absolutely nothing.

Now, you still have that closed center. The storm is still about 356 miles from Cape Hatteras. Winds are at 40 miles an hour. It's gusting to 50 miles an hour. It is expected to continue its march to the north.

But I want to show you something else. Let's take a look at where it's been in the past. Take a look at that jagged trail that we have this thing going. This thing has been wobbling like a ship without an oar. It is now going to continue to march its way to the north -- or a ship without a rudder.

And the forecast brings it right along the Outer Banks, still as a very weak tropical storm, bringing some enhancer of some heavy rainfall, also. But then as we get into Saturday and into Sunday, winds are at 45 miles an hour, possibly making landfall into Nova Scotia.

We're going to watch it for you very carefully. Right now, we do have a tropical storm watch in effect from Duck, North Carolina, southward to Cape Lookout. Expecting heavy surf action.

And keep in mind, Kyra, you've got a lot of people that are heading to the coast this weekend. This is one of the last big weekends of summer. Because after this weekend, virtually everyone heads off to school.

Meanwhile out to the west, we've been talking about the fires. If you look at this from Monterrey County to about San Luis Obispo County, and of course into places like, say, Santa Barbara and L.A. County, we've got this fires we're going to be dealing with.

But the strong winds have been coming through and actually carrying some of the smoke as far as parts of Nevada, where they've been dealing with the really smoky conditions. So anyone who happens to be tuning in from that part of the world and you have respiratory problems, you certainly want to watch out for that, because the smoke certainly isn't going help matters.

A lot to talk about, as always, Kyra. We're going to stay on top the best we can. Let's send it back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll keep talking.

WOLF: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Reynolds.

His mission: find out New York's weathering the recession. We're going to check in with CNN's Richard Quest as he wraps up his trip to America's biggest city.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Top stories now.

In California, an emotional family reunion. A bizarre ordeal. A woman kidnapped as a young girl 18 years ago has met with her birth mother and sister, and the word is the reunion went well. Jaycee Dugard's suspected kidnapper is a registered sex offender. He and his wife are charged in the case. They'll be arraigned under three hours from now.

A grim record reached in Afghanistan again. The death of an American soldier in a roadside bombing raises this month's death toll for U.S. troops to 46. It's the deadliest month for U.S. forces in Afghanistan since the war started eight years ago.

Police outside Atlanta are investigating a deadly shooting rampage. A suspect is in custody after four people were shot to death in a home. A 4-year-old child was wounded. Police say the suspect was apparently the boyfriend of one of the people who lived in that home. He was arrested when he returned to the scene and asked the cops what they were doing there.

On the economic front, as the week draws to a close, CNN's Richard Quest is wrapping up his trip to New York. He's there to search for signs that the recession has bottomed out.

So Richard, what do you think as you wrap up your trip? Your thoughts?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's quite clear, having been in Hong Kong, as a part of this NY-Lon-Kong odyssey, that I'm going to from Hong Kong to New York to London. Hong Kong there was unbridled optimism.

What's fascinating and what I'm seeing here in New York, and if you look at the economic numbers, is that everybody is pretty much aware something is happening. It is as if the ocean liner is turning. It's very slow.

But those people who are still in work, who have still got jobs, still earning money, are still starting to spend. And Kyra, I know this sounds almost perverse when you've got people out of work with problems, but there is an optimism brewing. Now that's the keyword that I'm using. Brewing. It's not fully fermented. It's not unbridled optimism but somewhere under beneath all of this, optimism is starting to be created.

PHILLIPS: So could we say that optimism -- you've been overseas. You've now been here in the U.S. Are you thinking -- because they've been a lot more optimistic, I think, overseas than we have for a while. So is this all coming together? One happy world?

QUEST: No. Absolutely not. No, no, no. No, no, no.

PHILLIPS: Then why are we talking? I need some positive news.

QUEST: No, no. I was asked -- how would you square this circle? I was out for dinner last night in a restaurant that costs more than $2.50 a head. And the place was heaving to the doors. They almost had to shoehorn the patrons in.

And there was less -- there was almost no embarrassment about some of the prices on the menu. I've spoken to chefs who now say that it's more difficult to get tables in their restaurants. I've spoken to architects who say that they're starting to see orders. You've had cash for clunkers.

The question is what is holding it all up? I mean, is it a corset with whale bone that's keeping it all in but it will expand at the first sight? Or is it simply, is it just simply government expenditure? That's what we don't know.

What I can tell you as I leave New York this week is things are looking a lot better than I expected. I am pretty certain when I get to London and talk to you next week from London, it will be a far more depressing environment.

PHILLIPS: OK. Well, I don't like depressing. So, we're going to have to try to rework that conversation.

QUEST: Hey...

PHILLIPS: I see -- I see Roland Martin got a hold of you. You've got a pocket square.

QUEST: This is my fourth tie. Remember my ties, the four dollar for six-dollar ties.

PHILLIPS: Yes.

QUEST: This is the tie Roland Martin I saw walking through took one look at me and insisted that I had to have one of his pocket squares. Unfortunately -- how's this for meanness? How is this? So he puts it in, right? He tucks it in, the pocket square. And then he says to me, "Don't forget to leave it before you go."

PHILLIPS: He's a little cheap. You got look out for that Roland Martin. You know what I say? I say take it and run.

QUEST: I thought he was giving me -- I thought he was giving me -- he was giving me a present. He wasn't. Beware of anchors giving free pocket squares.

PHILLIPS: Richard Quest, we look forward to talking to you next week. Hopefully, it won't be as dismal as you say.

QUEST: (INAUDIBLE)

PHILLIPS: All right, Richard.

Well, she says that she can sell anything. She loves to work, and she's willing to relocate. So you'd think the job offers would be piling up. But our next guest has been unemployed for the better part of a year now, laid off from her gig as a pharmaceutical sales rep.

Sue Condrin-Shields is this hour's 30-second pitch. She joins us via Skype from Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.

So Sue, I've been looking at your resume, all your experience. What happened?

SUE CONDRIN-SHIELDS, JOB SEEKER: Hi, Kyra. How are you? Well, last October, Novartis went through what they called the customer centric initiative. It was -- in other words, a corporate downsizing. It's a fancy way to say, "We need to get rid of people."

And I was doing well, loving my job, and it was like a kick in the gut. It was tough. It was a great walk (ph) through my life. But I looked at it as an opportunity to also change my life and move on to a different direction. However, nine months later, I'm still unemployed.

PHILLIPS: Has it impacted your family? I mean, I was reading through your kids and how everybody has been trying to pitch in and you -- and you lost your mom, too, not long after you lost your job. This has been a rough haul for you.

CONDRIN-SHIELDS: Yes, it was a rough year. My mother passed away, and a few months later I was -- found myself unemployed. My family and friends have been quite supportive. My sons, however, are at the point now, "OK, Mom. What's wrong? What are you going to do next?" They're afraid I'm going to be a street person.

And I'm very fortunate. I did have a severance from Novartis. And -- but I'm not one of those people to sit back and do nothing. I want to work. No. 1, I need to work. And I enjoy working. And, I've just been unable to -- well, let's look at the reality. November, December, January, February, March. Not good. When we look at the unemployment numbers in this country.

PHILLIPS: Well, I'll tell you what. We want to -- and I've got a question for you. I'm trying to figure out it's on our end or your end. And maybe Andreas can answer this for me over there. He's looking at the Skype. There's something up on the screen. Is that your -- is that you? There's something, like, right in the middle of the screen. I believe that's on our end.

That's OK. We'll try and get it fixed. I know they're trying to work on it. Meanwhile, I don't want it to be distracting to our viewers. But are you ready to give your 30-second pitch?

CONDRIN-SHIELDS: Sure.

PHILLIPS: All right, Sue. Here we go. We're going to start the clock. Take it away.

CONDRIN-SHIELDS: OK. Hi. I am a persistent, seasoned sales professional with over 20 years sales experience in a variety of areas: pharmaceuticals, advertising, business to business.

I'm looking to be employed by a company that can utilize my greatest assets, which is instituting, developing, and maintaining successful business relations.

And additionally to that, I have a wealth of untrainable skills which I believe is more important than any kind of a resume or education. I have an inner strength, I have a motivation, I have a will to win.

(BUZZER)

CONDRIN-SHIELDS: Persistence. Strong presentation skills, communication skills, and I get the job done. Most importantly I'm persistent. If I wasn't persistent, I wouldn't be on CNN today.

PHILLIPS: You're darn right. And that wraps up the 30 seconds there. SueCondrin@yahoo.com. We apologize for the little technical thing on our side. We can still see your beautiful face.

Keep us posted, Sue. All right? SueCondrin@yahoo.com. Let us know what happens.

CONDRIN-SHIELDS: Nice to meet you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: My pleasure.

All right. We're going to get all her info, her pitch. We're going to post it on our blog: CNN.com/Kyra.

If you'd like to be considered for a 30-second pitch, leave a comment there or on Twitter at CNN -- or KyraCNN, rather. Our regular pitch day is every Thursday, by the way.

And the story that we can't stop talking about: the kidnapped girl from 1991 now in a free woman in 2009. How do you put 18 years of captivity and isolation behind you?

One of the few people who can empathize has some advice. Remember Elizabeth Smart?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: An 18-year mystery comes to a sudden end, and it could take forever to understand it. Let's update the stunner of a news story out of California now.

The husband and wife accused of kidnapping Jaycee Dugard in 1991 are due for a court appearance this afternoon. Jaycee was 11 when she vanished. Investigators say her kidnapper fathered two children with her: two kids who never went to school or even saw a doctor. Their lives, confined to shed and outbuildings in the backyard.

The accused are Phillip Garrido and his wife, Nancy. Phillip is a registered sex offender.

So how do you carry on after something like that? Elizabeth Smart and her family know more than most about how it's done. Remember Elizabeth? She was taken from her bedroom in Utah when she was 14 years old and held captive for nine months before being reunited with her family, and her captors were arrested.

Smart and her father told CNN how they dealt with life after that ordeal. Elizabeth also had a message for Jaycee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH SMART, KIDNAPPED IN 2002: I would tell her to just relax and enjoy her family and spend some time reconnecting. And I don't know -- 11 years is such a long period of time. But maybe if it's possible to think back and think of things that she used to enjoy being with her family and maybe going out and doing them again and finding new things she would want to do with her family.

Continuing on with your life and not letting, like, this horrible event take over and consume the rest of your life, because we only have one life. And it's a beautiful world out there. And there are so many things to learn and to see and to grow in. And I just would encourage her to find different passions in life and to continually push forward and learn more and reach more for them and not to look behind because there is a lot out there.

ED SMART, ELIZABETH SMART'S FATHER: We did not have her out at all. We did not have her in the public sight for a period of time. I think that, you know, there was one way from the police station, but we really tried to let her, you know, come to terms with what she wanted to do and how we could reconnect with her before, you know, she stepped out into the public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Smart was held captive for nine months, Jaycee Dugard for 18 years and had two children. To say the family has a lot of issues to sort through would be a gross understatement. An expert talks about those next hour.

One thing we may now know that we didn't have in 1991 when Jaycee Dugard was kidnapped: real-time information at our fingertips telling us if there is a sex offender living next to us. We're taking a tour of your neighborhood next hour and looking for the red flags and how you can, too.

Another live look at the JFK Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, where public viewing for the late Senator Ted Kennedy wraps up in about 90 minutes. Thousands of people are paying their last respects to the man known to many as Teddy.

And a reminder for you to join us tonight and tomorrow for CNN's special coverage of Senator Ted Kennedy. A memorial service begins later this evening at 7:00 Eastern. That's followed by special editions of "LARRY KING LIVE" and "ANDERSON COOPER 360." Plus our special live coverage of the funeral services beginning at 10:00 tomorrow morning, including President Obama's eulogy. Then live coverage of the burial at Arlington National Cemetery set for 5:00 tomorrow evening, all Eastern Standard Time.

What an incredible show of respect, support and solidarity right now in Buffalo, New York. Some 10,000 firefighters from across the U.S. and Canada at St. Joseph's Old Cathedral. That's where funeral Masses are being held for two Buffalo firefighters that were killed on Monday when the floor of a burning corner store collapsed under them.

Lt. Charles McCarthy's services were this morning, and right now they're under way for Jonathan Croom. Governor David Patterson is also there at that service.

They think the government's too big, too intrusive and spends too much. Only one thing to do -- road trip. CNN all-platform journalist Jim Spellman is in California's capital. It's Point A in the Tea Party Express tour. Point B, well, that's the nation's Capitol, with a lot of stops planned in between -- Jim.

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN ALL-PLATFORM JOURNALIST: Hey, Kyra. Yes, this is the first of 33 events in 16 days. People are pouring in. There's already several hundred people here. People are making signs that come from over in Napa Valley, down in Bakersfield.

And what the organizers really want to do with this is try to take all the sort of smaller, you know, tea party protests that have popped up across the country and kind of maximize on them and get them more organized and sort of move towards getting some more political action. Here's what Mark Williams, one of the organizers, told me about their hopes earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK WILLIAMS, ORGANIZER, TEA PARTY EXPRESS: After the 15th of April, which was a big focal point, with huge rallies all over the country, because we are grassroots, because this was organic, everybody went off in, like, 14 million different directions. And it looked like it was in danger of perhaps fizzling and the message not being heard.

We decided that somebody had to run to the front of the parade and say, follow me. And that's what we're doing. We're trying to herd all these cats together into a semi-coherent single message. And as you're seeing here in different areas of the country, different priorities will be at the top of the list.

But the underlying message is the same: too much government, irresponsible spending, government not listening to us, working at odds with the working-stiff Americans who pay the bills.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SPELLMAN: So, what they're trying to do here is get everybody around in kind of almost a rock band tour kind of atmosphere. They've got two big tour buses here. And there are a couple of RVs with them as well as they go from place to place. You know, what they really want to do is just try to on each stop get more people. They're going to pick up buses along the way until we get to the final event in Washington D.C., when Congress is back in session. They're going to make a really big impact. That's their hope -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll track it with you. Thanks, Jim.

She's not old enough to drive a car down the street, but sail a boat around the world alone? Hey, Mom and Dad, say bon voyage. Court says, not so fast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Top stories now. Another grim milestone for the U.S. military in Afghanistan. Today's death of a U.S. service member by a roadside bomb is the 46th American fatality this month, making August the deadliest month for U.S. troops deployed there in a nearly eight- year battle.

New proof that pirates off the coast of Somalia are still in business -- risky business, like firing upon a U.S. military chopper. This is the video from the Navy of that incident Wednesday off the Somali coast. The Navy says that's an armed pirate on the deck of that seized ship firing on a U.S. helicopter. Luckily, the pirate isn't the best shot.

Then there's the incredible but equally disturbing story out of California. Jaycee Dugard, as you see here, 11 years old in that picture, she was kidnapped 18 years ago. But Wednesday, she was found along with her two children, allegedly fathered by her captor. Police say DNA testing will prove their suspicions of the prison parolee and registered sex offender Phillip Garrido and his alleged victim. Garrido and his wife are being held on child sex and kidnapping charges.

A lot of parents are so overprotective. Laura Dekker's are so not. They were just fine with her setting out on a 'round the world sailing trip solo. And I should mention, Laura's 13. Well, a Dutch court just stepped in, and CNN's Phil Black has the rest of the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Laura's Dekker's dreams are so extraordinary, the Dutch government chose to fight them.

"I haven't even sailed a single meter," she said after her first court appearance. "It's all a bit over the top."

The 13-year-old's goal to conquer the world's oceans alone has inspired strong opinions in the Netherlands and beyond. Mike Perham has just accomplished what Laura aspires to. Aged 17, he is the youngest person to sail solo around the world, a voyage that took nine months. He doesn't believe age alone should decided if Laura Decker is ready for such an adventure.

MIKE PERHAM, SAILED SOLO AROUND THE WORLD: For me, age is only a number. It's whether she's got the physical strength, the mental strength and the technical ability. You know, can she strip an engine, you know, blindfolded? You know, can she build boats? You know, is she an electrician? Is she a mechanic as well. Because you can't just be a sailor to do a trip like this.

BLACK: Robin Knox-Johnston was the first person to circumnavigate the globe alone without stopping. It was 1969. He was 29 years old. He'd prefer Laura to wait a little longer. That, he believes, strength of character is more important than age.

ROBIN KNOX-JOHNSTON, FIRST TO SAIL SOLO NON-STOP AROUND THE WORLD: It's really more a question of, is that person, that young person mature enough to be able to look after themselves and deal with everything that's going to come at you when you get out alone at sea?

BLACK: This Dutch woman is qualified to comment as a sailor and a mother. Judith Reeve (ph) sailed around the world with her two children five years ago. She says there's no way she would let her daughter do it alone.

Laura Dekker says she dreamed of sailing around the world since she was 10, and her parents are determined to help her achieve it.

Phil Black, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: One of the nation's top money minds in the midst of a personal financial crisis. Just what happened to the Fed Reserve chair?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Think I.D. theft can't happen to you? Not even the Federal Reserve chairman is immune. Ben Bernanke and his wife have been targeted in an identity theft scheme. Yes, the Ben Bernanke. CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis joins me to talk more about this.

So, Gerri, how did it all go down?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: This is just a crazy story, Kyra. Yes, Ben Bernanke's wife, she's at Starbucks in Capitol Hill last summer, has her handbag stolen. She had it sitting on the back of her chair, like we all do, right? Well, here's what was taken: her checkbook, drivers license, four credit cards and a small amount of cash. Now, according to "Newsweek's" version of this story, the criminals went to the bank only days later and tried to cash checks. They were part of an organized crime ring that was selling IDs all through the middle Atlantic states. So, this actually helped the cops bring these people to justice. But at the end of the day, what it proved is, it doesn't matter who you are or how well connected or how well educated you are. You could be a victim of identity theft -- Kiran.

PHILLIPS: Or Kyra. It's the same thing.

WILLIS: Sorry about that.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: You're used to doing...

WILLIS: I meant to say Kyra. It's Friday.

PHILLIPS: You're used to doing the morning show. It's Friday. And that's a compliment. She's a beautiful gal.

WILLIS: Sorry. Sorry.

PHILLIPS: So, here's my question, though. I mean, there's a lot of lessons in this. I guess nobody is immune. Number one, I think what we learn from this is, we don't leave our purses hanging on the back of our chair. That's number one, right?

WILLIS: No, you don't do that.

PHILLIPS: But you know, you've talked so many times about preventive measures that we can do, or at least a way to be proactive because if we see that our stuff is stolen, then aren't there things we can do right away to try and prevent that?

WILLIS: Yes, well, there are things you can do right away. But I have to tell you, there's no one solution to identity theft, right? I mean, there are things you're going to do as preventative measures.

You're going to take all those letters you get from the bank, from financial institutions. You're going to put them through a shredder.

You're going to reduce the amount of mail you get. And this is mail from banks and lenders, everybody who sends you mail. Look at those statements online instead of in the real world.

And of course, this is all about protecting your Social Security number. Because that's the big kahuna when it comes to your identity. That one little number opens the door to everything -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Gerri.

WILLIS: My pleasure. PHILLIPS: All right.

WILLIS: And next Friday, I will get it right.

PHILLIPS: And you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to buy us both those kind of purses you wrap around your shoulder and you hold right in front. See you at Starbucks, girlfriend.

WILLIS: Or maybe a fanny pack. Let's get fanny packs.

PHILLIPS: There we go. Let's bring the fanny pack back.

WILLIS: They're so cute.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Have a great weekend, Gerri.

WILLIS: You, too.

PHILLIPS: All right, two stories that we're pushing forward next hour. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Stars heads to Arlington and Senator Kennedy's final resting place. Insight and memories from the cemetery superintendent.

And the masks are coming out. The students are staying home, and hopefully your boss is making plans to deal with swine flu. We'll talk to an HR lawyer about what employers should do right now.

Microsoft, they do Windows, and apparently they do Photoshop, too, badly. The company's coming under some heat now for a picture that it posted on its Web site. Check this out. U.S. visitors clicking on the page saw a picture of a racially diverse boardroom. But if you clicked from Poland, the African-American guy that you saw in the middle there, boom, magically replaced by a white guy.

And it's a pretty sloppy editing job to boot. Interestingly enough, given Microsoft's an IT company. Microsoft has pulled the image, apologized and said it didn't mean to be racist.

Hundreds of Chinese kids poisoned by toxic air bringing you their stories, landed our reporter in the grips of a government crackdown. We've got the "Backstory."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right, well, each Friday, we call on our colleagues at CNN International to give us the "Backstory." Actually, we call in Michael at the "Daily Show" on CNNi, hosted by Michael Holmes, who's joining me now. What you got for us today?

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Yes, it's great. I don't think we can top the cow birthing of last week.

PHILLIPS: That's right, Deb Feyerick, and you know, becoming a mother of a calf. HOLMES: Oh, yes, yes, she said, I had a cow.

(LAUGHTER)

Anyway, you know, essentially, our motto on the show is, you'll see on Backstory what you don't see anywhere else. The aim sort of is to go behind the headlines. We give witnesses to the news time to tell their story, try to give people even a sense of how things work in this crazy old business. You know, sometimes, as you know, the process of getting the story can be as interesting as the story itself.

PHILLIPS: And there's so many things on the (INAUDIBLE) that people would love to see, and we'd love to tell, and you're the first one to actually do this.

HOLMES: Yes, and it's really taking off as an idea. And today, what we've got, Beijing correspondent Emily Chang, she was out doing a story, reporting on a really serious story, hundreds of children in China being poisoned by the air they breathe, the land they walk on by a lead and zinc smelter in this part of China.

Now, Emily also show "Backstory" video showing the things crews go through sometimes when they're reporting in China. You know, the eye of the government always on foreign correspondents, as we know. In this case, Emily telling the story of those poisoned kids led to a pretty hairy road trip. Have a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY CHANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: According to government test results, the lead content in the air near the plant is more than six times higher than it is at monitoring stations in surrounding areas. It doesn't look any different or feel any different or smell any different. And that's why this is so dangerous.

And what is really surprising is how close these homes are to the plant itself. All these people were supposedly going to be relocated before the plant opened, but the relocation got stalled and all of these people are still living right here.

As soon as we got out of the car to shoot the smelting plant, several police drove by, as well as a black car. Someone got out, took down our license plate. They may have been a government official, a plant official. We don't know. But they started following us.

And now we're inside the village. We're trying to get access to the families here who've already agreed to talk to us and do have sick children. And hopefully, none of these officials will stand in our way.

More and more parents keep coming up to us wanting to show us the test results for their children. This man has two daughters. Both of them have tested positive for abnormally high levels of lead in their blood. This is (INAUDIBLE). She's 9e years old. And her test results show 506 micrograms per liter, which is by far the highest we've seen so far. And she is quite small. And her father says she actually stopped growing last year, and he believes it's because of the lead poisoning.

So, we've gone several miles now. And they are definitely still following us. They didn't show any badges. They're in a plain car, plainclothes. So, we don't know who they are. They could be with the plant. They could be with the government. We just don't know.

We do have another interview with county officials, so we're trying to get to that as soon as possible. And hopefully, we'll be safe with them. Definitely, these guys aren't giving up.

Still don't know who they are, just driving in a plain black car wearing plain clothes. And now just hanging around. So, we don't know how long they're going to be following us. We don't know what they want. But they're not going away. That's for sure.

So, we worked it out with government officials, and now they are cooperating with us. And that involves following us around and watching everything that we do, listening to what we say and critiquing us. The government car is right up there behind our van. But luckily, we've shot our last shot. We are heading out, and we are going to go to the airport and get out of here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And you know what's amazing is that still she could tell us the story. She was still...

HOLMES: Oh, yes, they just kept rolling.

PHILLIPS: ... right. And you kind of wonder what would happen. I guess there is only a certain point they can go to, right?

HOLMES: Yes, exactly. And we've seen it before, haven't we, with John Vause and that in Beijing.

We did an interesting thing once on "Backstory." We had a John Vause piece about China and the authorities and how they, you know, keep an eye on them. And we actually put up the Chinese feed of CNN on one of the monitors behind me. And we said to viewers on "Backstory," we said, you know, watch this. We're going to start talking about China now. Just see what happens to the feed. And, bang, it went black.

PHILLIPS: It went black.

HOLMES: Yes.

PHILLIPS: And you know, we have to remember, this is a country we have a lot -- a tremendous relationship with.

HOLMES: Absolutely. PHILLIPS: You know, and it's that controversy back and...

HOLMES: But you can't just wonder around with a camera.

PHILLIPS: Yes. Interesting.

HOLMES: Got to say, "Backstory," CNN.com/backstory for viewers in the U.S. who don't see the show. You know, otherwise, I don't what we're doing here.

PHILLIPS: All right. That's true. Otherwise, they just tune in every Friday, and...

HOLMES: Yes.

PHILLIPS: ... they see you here...

HOLMES: We'll do it again.

PHILLIPS: ... and you give them the scoop. We'll see you next Friday, right?

HOLMES: Nice to see you.

PHILLIPS: OK, have a great weekend, Michael.

HOLMES: OK, see you later. Bye.

PHILLIPS: OK, thanks.