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Obama Visits China; GM Paying Back Taxpayers; Father of Daniel Pearl Talks About NY Terror Trials

Aired November 16, 2009 - 10:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Today we have a positive constructive and comprehensive relationship that opens the door to partnership on the key global issues of our time, economic recovery and the development of clean energy, stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and the scourge of climate change, the promotion of peace and security in Asia and around the globe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama in Beijing, and searching for common ground. He arrives facing a far different balance of power than his predecessors enjoyed. The U.S. economy is battered. China's economy is surging. And Washington's longtime leverage is largely gone.

CNN's John Vause is in Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Next comes the hard part, U.S. President Barack Obama face-to-face with the three most powerful communists in China -- President Hu, parliamentary leader Wu and Premier Wen.

Most analysts believe U.S.-China relations are good but have shifted in the last 12 months with global issues taking center stage, the economic crisis, climate change, nuclear proliferation.

KENNETH LIEBERTHAL, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: So it isn't a matter of there being a lot of friction over them at this point. The issue is we're figuring out whether we can work together on that, and there's a lot riding on that.

VAUSE: With the U.S. government continuing to run huge budget deficits, mostly financed by China, in a way, President Obama will be meeting with his bankers and will need to convince the Chinese government that their huge holdings of U.S. dollars and debt are both safe.

While the U.S. wants China to allow its currency to gain in value, believing right now it's deliberately undervalued to give Chinese exporters an unfair, competitive edge. There is no support for that at a weekend economic summit of 21 Asian leaders in Singapore. And then there is the issue of human rights. OBAMA: And the United States will never waiver in speaking up for the fundamental values that we hold dear.

VAUSE: U.S. officials say it will be raised even though Mr. Obama did not meet with the Dalai Lama in Washington last month to avoid a backlash while visiting Beijing.

MIKE CHINOY, CHINA ANALYST: Obama has sought to put to the side a number of issues that were major irritants over the years, particularly human rights, Tibet, and so on. The calculation, I think in Washington is that the previous approaches to these issues have been counterproductive.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: And tomorrow, the president will hold another meeting with his Chinese counterpart and go to a state dinner. His Asian trip will wrap up with a visit to South Korea.

It could be a good sign for the holiday shopping season, retail sales jumped higher than expected last month. According to the Commerce Department, retail sales were up 1.4 percent in October, that's half a percentage point higher than estimates. Compare that to September when retail sales dropped more than two percent.

General Motors ready to pay back some of the bailout money it took and earlier than expected. The reason, GM had a much better third quarter this year, and by that we mean it lost only $1.2 billion this time. GM says it will pay back $1 billion to Treasury next month, that's just a fraction of the $50 billion it took.

Quickly, we want to take a look at the Wall Street numbers right now. Big board for you there, up triple digits, about 110 points for the Dow Jones industrial average. That's coming off two straight weekly gains. The big question, of course, will that rally continue throughout the day? We'll be watching that closely for you as we rest at 10,382.

Thomson, Illinois could be the new home for Guantanamo Bay detainees. Homeland Security officials are checking out a prison there today. Our Elaine Quijano tells us why the idea has support in the village.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): About 150 miles west of Chicago, sits the farming community of Thomson, Illinois, population 600 where the biggest building in town, a 145 million state prison sits mostly empty. And just down the road at Sunrise Restaurant...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

QUIJANO: The talk is all about how to fill it.

ARDEN WEAVER, THOMSON, ILLINOIS RESIDENT: I, myself, I have no objections.

QUIJANO: Like others in Thomson, Arden Weaver (ph0 has heard the concerns about security and bringing terror suspects from Guantanamo to U.S. soil. But he's not worried.

WEAVER: I don't feel with the modern technology in this prison, I can't picture anybody escaping.

QUIJANO: Neither can restaurant owner Zendel Zendeli. His take that it doesn't matter who's being held at the prison.

ZENDEL ZENDELI, RESTAURANT OWNER: All of the prisoners are in there for a reason. They won't make serial killer less dangerous than anybody else. They'll be bringing all kinds of prisoners there.

QUIJANO: The Thomson Correctional Center reportedly houses only 144 minimum security inmates but the state of Illinois is jumping at the chance to fill more of the prison's 1,600 cells.

SEN. RICHARD DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Make no mistake about it, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. We have a chance to bring more than 2,000 good, paying jobs with benefits to this region.

QUIJANO: Back in Thomson, the shuddered businesses on Main Street tell the story of the toll the recession has taken on the town and its people.

(on camera): Federal officials are touring the prison today and meeting with local officials as well. In the meantime, Illinois Republican congressmen are voicing their opposition to the idea, saying they understand full well the economic picture here in Illinois, but believe national security concerns trump everything else.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Thomson, Illinois.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Fallout from the Ft. Hood massacre reaching Capitol Hill today. The White House asked Congress not to look into it until federal and military authorities wrap up their own investigations, but the Senate Armed Services Committee is going ahead with a closed door briefing on it today. The Senate Homeland Security committee has a hearing this Thursday.

Meanwhile, a radical imam who had contact with the alleged shooter is speaking out to the "The Washington Post." He says he never encouraged Major Nidal Hasan to hurt Americans.

Reynolds Wolf standing by in the Severe Weather Center, once again, because we're talking about the Pacific northwest and some storms going on out there, right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: All right. Very good, Reynolds. We'll check in later, thanks.

They are some of the most popular prescription drugs on the market, but doctors may soon be prescribing less of them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Politics, religion, and abortion, always an explosive combination. And today some religious supporters of abortion rights are demanding changes to the House health care bill. Last hour the religious coalition for reproductive choice asked the Senate to alter language in the House bill that places restrictions on federal funding for abortion.

Millions of Americans take medication to help lower their cholesterol. Well, it turns out, that medication may not be helping much at all.

CNN's senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here now with results of a new study.

So what is this study, and what did it find?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a little bit confusing. So I'm going to walk you through it slowly. Millions of Americans when they have high cholesterol take a statin drug, Lipitor, Zocor. Those are terrific. They don't always do everything so doctors sometimes, in addition to the statin, will prescribe a drug called Zetia, which is kind of like Vytorin, very popular, very expensive.

So some doctors said, is it really worth all that money? And so they did a study comparing these expensive drugs to niacin, which is a B vitamin to see which would be better. And you got to take a look at this because it's really pretty incredible what they found. What they found is that niacin lowered plaque. They can actually see the artery walls getting thinner when they did ultrasounds.

However, Zetia, there was no change in plaque making many say why are we prescribing this expensive drug when people could be using niacin. Now I do want to know here, this study was paid for by a company that makes a prescription form of niacin. Actually drug may be not the right word but it's a prescription form of niacin.

COLLINS: OK. Very good point, always to keep that in mind. If niacin then helped unclog arteries, did it actually go so far as to keep people from having heart attacks or people who are likely to have heart attacks actually have them?

COHEN: It's in this group which has almost 300 people, they divided them in half, half took niacin and half took Zetia. The folks who took the niacin were less likely, there were fewer heart attacks in the niacin group.

Now this is a relatively small study and some people would say. Well, those numbers don't mean a whole lot but you can argue there were fewer heart attacks, it was statistically significant in the niacin group.

COLLINS: Well, you have to wonder what Merck says about all of this, they're the company that makes Zetia and Vytorin.

COHEN: Vytorin. Right. Exactly. So they have looked at the study and they said look, all of our study show that these two drugs lower bad cholesterol. They said it's very clear, Zetia and Vytorin are effective in reducing LDL, that's the bad cholesterol. No one is really arguing with that so much, but they said, well it might lower cholesterol in a lab test but if your artery walls aren't getting thinner, what's the point?

COLLINS: Yes. Exactly. As the consumer, you're really confused because you always have questions whether or not you should be taking anything to begin with. This isn't really the first time that niacin has been shown to help lower cholesterol, right? Why aren't more people taking it maybe even preventatively?

COHEN: You know what, a lot of people would say marketing. Studies show that when a company like Merck markets a drug, doctors prescribe it. There hasn't been a whole lot of marketing for niacin, it's just a little old vitamin. So there hasn't been a lot of marketing.

So some people would say it's just doctors hear about the drugs and so they prescribe them. Now you're right, there is probably going to be a lot of confusion. I think the bottom line is if you have high cholesterol, and a statin is not doing it for you, talk to your doctor, what else could we do is niacin a possibility? Is Zetia a possibility? Your doctor has to make that decision. It's actually not even your decision.

COLLINS: Yes, you know...

COHEN: It's you and your doctor together.

COLLINS: And maybe we can do a story on this sometime because we talk about it all the time at home and that is all of the commercials that you mentioned. The marketing of these different drugs. You know, I don't know anything about these drugs. I'd like to have my doctor tell me. But do I need to see the commercials at home? It's really fascinating that we're seeing so many of them now.

COHEN: But they work. Because when patients see a commercial, guess what they do? They go to the doctor, they ask for it, and doctors often say yes.

COLLINS: How do they know if they really need that?

COHEN: That's right.

COLLINS: The people at home.

COHEN: They go to the doctor and they ask for it and doctors often say yes. Doctors do not like to disappoint patients.

COLLINS: Yes. Interesting. All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

COHEN: (INAUDIBLE) that story next time.

COLLINS: Appreciate it.

COHEN: OK.

COLLINS: Well it is the question we've been asking all morning long, asking you at home, should Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other 9/11 detainees be tried in a federal court in New York? Now, we'll also ask the father of one of his alleged victims, the father of Daniel Pearl, coming up in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Our top stories begin in North Carolina. The mother of a missing five-year-old girl is accused of selling the child into prostitution. Antoinette Davis is due to appear inside a Fayetteville, North Carolina courtroom this morning. Shaniya Davis was reported missing last Tuesday. The girl was last seen going into a hotel room with a man charged in her kidnapping. Right now, police are searching for the child's body after getting information that she may be dead.

In Cleveland, the rape crisis center has a special hot line open today, it's hoping to hear from any women who might have survived meeting with convicted sex offender Anthony Sowell. Sowell is in jail, accused of murder. 11 bodies were found inside his home and yard.

A body found floating in a Chicago river this morning. Local media saying it is Michael Scott, the president of the city's Board of Education. Investigators reportedly found his car near the scene. His family reported him missing over the weekend. No word on the cause of death.

Among the crimes Khalid Sheikh Mohammed will be tried for in New York Federal Court, the murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl. Pearl, who worked for "The Wall Street Journal," was kidnapped in Pakistan in January 2002. He was held captive for several weeks before he was killed. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed confessed to the killing in 2007.

Daniel Pearl's father, Judea Pearl, is joining me now from Los Angeles to talk more about this.

Judea, thank you so much for being with us today. I'm sure this is something that you have been thinking about for a very long time. Now that we have the information about how this process, at least, will begin, I'd love to know what your thoughts are.

JUDEA PEARL, FATHER OF DANIEL PEARL: I thought the decision is ill advised and essentially handing a victory to the terrorists, telling them in essence you have defeated us with our own weapons, the weapons of free society. But I'm not so much concerned about the message to the terrorists as I am concerned about the message to would-be terrorists which essentially invites them to continue their activity and their aspirations, knowing that they will be given the day in court. They will be given an opportunity, a stage, a platform, to broadcast their perceived grievances and this is - there's nothing more enticing to would-be terrorist than this prospect.

COLLINS: So you're saying that this obviously gives them an opportunity to promote more about their way of think, their ideology, and gives them more attention than they deserve?

PEARL: That is what I'm concerned, yes. I'm concerned that once you bring a criminal like KSM to New York court, immediately his rhetoric will be broadcast all over the globe. Once it's picked up by "Al Jazeera," for example, which is today the greatest producer of combustible anti-western anger among youngsters, that will be a great mistake.

COLLINS: When you talk about what should happen to these terrorists, to these suspects, I know you have some ideas about how you think it should all happen and they don't necessarily involve civilian courts or military tribunals.

PEARL: Correct. I think there is an opportunity here with the United States to assume leadership of the free world and to define a new category to deal specifically with the new threat to open society. I do not...

COLLINS: But how would that look? What would that court system look like?

PEARL: The category can be called either terrorist or it can be called ideological murder, whatever the linguistic name is not important. What is important is that we classify it into a unique category that has its own dealing, its own backing in the law and because we have to deal with every epidemic on its own term, every epidemic has its own method of propagating and its own response to medicine and that is how we should treat this new phenomena that is threatening open society.

If you look through history, civilized society has constantly adapted and changed its legal framework to deal with new threats. Invention of gun powder called for one, the invention of poison gas, piracy. It was a menace, was eradicated in less than 10 years by the international community, getting together and proclaiming piracy...

COLLINS: Right.

PEARL: ... to be a crime against mankind, not against a single owner of the ship.

COLLINS: Understood. We have to obviously be an international effort. Very quickly, before we let you go, Judea, will you be following these legal proceedings whatsoever when they happen in New York?

PEARL: I will be following them and I hope that the administration finds a way of conducting them in closed session. COLLINS: All right. Very good. We certainly appreciate your thoughts today. And obviously, very sorry for your loss all that time ago, eight years it's been now. Judea Pearl, the father of Daniel Pearl. Thanks so much for your time.

PEARL: Thank you.

COLLINS: And we do want to take a moment now to read some of your reactions to whether you agree with the idea to bring some of these 9/11 suspects to federal trial in the state of New York.

First, we want to get to Shirley. She writes this, "I do not care if they get a fair trial or not. It should be done the cheapest way possible, these people have already cost us enough both emotionally and financially."

Bill writes this, "Politicians continually play games with us, both sides. This is a military situation. Let the military tribunals deliver justice without opening up wounds."

Mary writes, "These crimes were committed against the American people on our old soil. I appreciate the fact we get the right to sit on a jury ourselves."

Remember, we always want to hear from you. Just go ahead and log on to Cnn.com/heidi. Let us know what now think there.

A billion dollars back to taxpayers. GM says it's ready to hand over the first payment on its loan.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.

COLLINS: It's payback time. General Motors will begin repaying its government loan starting next month and will have the loan paid off ahead of schedule. CNN's Gerri Willis is joining us now from New York with more details from a GM news conference that ended just a bit ago.

So Gerri, the company seems to be making progress, right?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Progress, but not profits. You actually said it exactly right. The company today announcing third quarter results, a loss of $1.2 billion but when you compare that to previous quarters, it's actually a very good result.

The CEO Fritz Henderson saying today that he sees signs of stability and some progress of what's go on at the company. The company release saying we have a healthier balance sheet and we are competitive on structure. As you know, the company had very high costs.

Of course, the big headline today is that GM is going to repay their government loan early. That is pay $6.7 billion loan from us, taxpayers. That is only 13 percent of the $50 billion that GM owes taxpayers in this country. They say the company says, it will begin repaying before the end of the year. They will spend $1.2 billion for both domestic debt to the federal government, the Treasury here, and also to Canada (ph), who they also owe money to and then they'll pay $1 billion every quarter to bring that debt down.

Now, the most astonishing thing in all of this that is they are -- they're going to use money from the government, money that they borrowed, money we gave them to pay off some of the debt. So, I think a lot of people are surprised by that today. It's certainly not illegal. According to terms and covenants of the loan, they can do that. But I think a lot of people out there saying, "Hey, you're taking our money to pay us back? Why did we loan it to you if the first place?" And, you know, the CEO saying "We're committed to repaying it back." Lots of questions out there how much they can pay back and when. Heidi?

COLLINS: Yes, and I know there's that GAO report that actually said it was, you know, doubtful that taxpayers would recoup all of the money that was given to GM. I don't know if anyone's surprised about that?

WILLIS: Well, no, I don't think it's surprising. A lot of people have said that. But today, Henderson, the CEO, said "It's my mission to disprove the GAO." He says he's committed to paying down that debt. And of course, a lot of that, Heidi, is actually money invested in ownership of the company, a 60 percent equity stake. And that will only be valued when the (AUDIO GAP). doesn't IPO maybe at the end of next year.

So, you don't really know what that stake is going to be worth until it's valued by the marketplace. But the CEO here saying he's committed to boosting the company's share price by managing the company well. So, we'll definitely be watching that.

COLLINS: All right. Very good. Gerri Willis, appreciate it.

New report shows the big jump in auto sales boosted retail sales last month, and that is helping GM and Wall Street, of course. Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange now with details. I'm looking at those numbers there. The Dow Jones up about 127 right now, Stephanie.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, numbers are pretty to start off the week, Heidi. No doubt about it.

COLLINS: Indeed.

ELAM: I like it. This is a nice shade of green to start the day . Wall Street is seeming to be in a buying mood, and that may be because Americans are as well. Take a look at retail sales. They were around 1.4 percent last month, and that was better than expected. The main reason for that a big rebound in auto sales. That's a good sign because it came after the Clunkers stimulus program ended.

But there are still some signs of concern about consumer spending. Take a look at what showed a decline in sales last month. Things like furniture, electronics and appliances, building materials and sporting goods all saw a decline. But Wall Street deciding today, you know what? We're going to focus on the positive and the overall numbers.

So, you've got the Dow building on last week's gains. Right now up 125 points, 10,396. NASDAQ (INAUDIBLE) by about 27 at 2,195. All three of the major indices are up more than a third -- one and a third percent. So, strong start to the day.

COLLINS: Yes, very strong start. Hope it stays that way until it closes. But back to the retail sales quickly, we were all pretty prepared for a not-so-great holiday shopping season. Does this change things a bit, or at least the prediction for it?

ELAM: I don't think we're going to see a change here. Consumer spending is still expected to be weak. Unemployment is still rising. You have consumer confidence falling. That means stores are working extra-hard to get shoppers to open up wallets, pull out some money and spend. Expert says some of best deals will be on HD TVs, believe it or not, smaller...

COLLINS: Fantastic.

ELAM: I know. People will get excited about it. Especially if you're looking for the smaller ones. Smaller, 32 inch TVs are priced under 400 bucks. Some online retailers are offering free shipping, in fact a lot are, look out for that. Experts say to buy when you see a deal. Stores are stocking fewer items this year because they got burned last holiday season. So, the product you want could be sold out if you wait too long, Heidi. So, all of you out there thinking maybe getting the gift, get it now. By the time you really want it before the holidays, you might be left out there in the cold without a gift.

COLLINS: That's right. And ou don't want to miss Stephanie Elam on your new TV in HD, that is for sure.

ELAM: I think that would be a happy thing. Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: Stephanie, thank you. We'll check back later.

ELAM: Thanks.

COLLINS: Detroit's struggles have been well-documented, as you know. Soaring unemployment, massive foreclosures, even and dead bodies piling up at the morgue. Last month, we told you how the county had run out of money for burying its unclaimed dead. That story prompted one CNN viewer to take action. CNNmoney.com's Poppy Harlow has our follow-up report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Paul C.L McGrath passed away September 16. The age of 61. CROWD: May he rest in peace.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM (voice-over): Six people buried in Detroit. At a local funeral home, those who never knew them mourn them.

BETSY DEAK,, PERRY FUNERAL HOME: No one's alone. You know, we feel like islands but not one of us is. A loss of someone who died three years ago is everybody's loss.

HARLOW: In a city of abandoned houses, abandoned factories and abandoned people, a record number of unclaimed bodies piled up at the Wayne County Morgue.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is our freezer.

HARLOW: Their next of kin unable or unwilling to pay for their burial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have to believe that's because of the economic problem that we're having.

SHANTI DAS, FOUNDER, MAY WE REST IN PEACE: They were stacked up like my shoes in a closet.

HARLOW: Shanti Das, a former Motown music executive, was moved by our first story on Detroit's unclaimed dead and decided to do something about it. Her own family had struggled to find money to bury her father.

DAS: It was a lot of things that kind of hit home for me, and I just immediately went to take action.

HARLOW: And she did. Das started a nonprofit called May We Rest in Peace. She's raised thousands of dollars to bury these people.

DAS: I thought, "Oh, my God, we have to try to help restore some dignity to these families."

HARLOW: For six families, there is now dignity in death. Their father, sisters, mothers, brothers, laid to rest because of the kindness of strangers, making a difference in a town that could not on its own. The county had run out of funds to bury the unclaimed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly. There you go.

HARLOW: For the McGrath family, there is now closure.

MICHAEL MCGRATH, FATHER BURIED THROUGH DONATIONS: My father had requested that he be buried, not cremated. So, this is really something that's going to help me sleep at know, knowing he received what he actually asked for.

DAS: Wow. That makes me a little emotional right now. It's a good feeling. MCGRATH: It's going to be something that we can always look back and think that somebody was there to help us when we needed it or helped my father when he need it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Poppy Harlow's joining us now from New York with more on this. So, Poppy, six families have at least some closure. But what about the rest of Detroit dealing with these unclaimed, dead loved ones?

HARLOW: That's a great question. Detroit's not the only city. When we first reported in October, you had Las Vegas, Los Angeles, other countries facing a similar problem. In Detroit, I can tell you the morgue said to us they think the worst is over. That's good news for this city.

They said the county's 2010 budget, Heidi, has been approved so they've got $22,000 set aside to handle these. It's not enough for, probably, all of the unclaimed but that's where Shanti's foundation comes in, and hopefully will bring in thousands of dollars to bury these bodies.

I think the really important thing here is that where the county at the time could not step in to give the funds, an individual from here in New York stepped in to help folks she doesn't even know in Detroit. You can see the full story on that here on our homepage today, CNNmoney.com. Heidi.

COLLINS: Great. Good for her. Appreciate that. Poppy Harlow, thank you.

Forty weddings in 40 hours, only for $40 a person. A marriage marathon in Atlanta. We'll tell you how it worked.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: At this hour, President Obama is in Beijing, the likely highlight of his trip to Asia. Meeting with China's president and other government leaders. Their discussions focused on economic issues and other shared interests between the two countries about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Surely, we have known setbacks and challenges over the last 30 years. Our relationship has not been without disagreement and difficulty. But the notion that we must be adversaries is not predestined. Not when we consider the past. Indeed, because of our cooperation both the United States and China are more prosperous and more secure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The president will meet with his Chinese counterpart again tomorrow and go to a state dinner. His Asian trip will wrap up with a visit to South Korea. A new court battle may be looming over photos that apparently show the abuse of terror detainees in U.S. custody. The Pentagon is blocking public release of photos and want to take the fight to the Supreme Court. According to court documents, the Pentagon wants the Supreme Court to dismiss a lower court ruling, and that ruling ordered photos be publicly disclosed.

Homeland security officials visiting a prison in Illinois today that could be the new home for terror suspects from Guantanamo Bay. The site is a maximum security prison in the town Thomson. Some like the idea because it could bring in new jobs, but others worry this could pose a security threat.

The United Nations rethinking its approach to wiping out hunger around the world. For years, it's relied on handouts from wealthy nations to fight starvation, but that hasn't worked. Now it's considering providing technology, seed, and other resources to help the hungry help themselves. The U.N. Food Summit is happening now in Rome.

Well, we are all looking for ways to stretch our dollars a little bit further, and those dollars don't stretch much further than this. Listen to this now: for $40 each, 40 Atlanta couples were able to get married, have a reception with cake, music, flowers, the whole shebang, and help a local children's shelter all at the same time.

All of that, the idea of wedding planner Sylvia Wavfer-Clark. She is joining me now to talk more about this. Yes, when we started talking about this in the NEWSROOM, Sylvia, we were like, "How on earth is she doing that?" The first thing you said to me when I came over and introduced myself was, "I'm tired."

SYLVIA WAVFER-CLARK, CERTIFIED WEDDING PLANNER: I'm tired.

COLLINS: Tell me how it went.

SYLVIA WAVFER-CLARK, CERTIFIED WEDDING PLANNER: It was great. It was -- it was more than I had imagined. Forty straight hours. I woke up Saturday morning at 5:00 a.m. I did not get back into bed Monday morning, this morning -- about 1:00 a.m., back up at 6:00 to come here.

COLLINS: You look terrific for going through all of that. First of all, I'm dying to know. Any bridezillas you had to deal with?

WAVFER-CLARK: One. Just one.

COLLINS: Just one. OK, not bad. We'll hear more about that, maybe off-camera. But tell me where the idea came from. This is something, it's terrific. It's going to help out kids.

WAVFER-CLARK: Oh, it's great. Well, I originally thought of -- you give a dollar here, dollar there to local charities, people looking for money. The Atlanta Children's Shelter, they provide a safe haven for 40 children every day. That's not enough.

COLLINS: Yes.

WAVFER-CLARK: So, 40 that number, we can increase that number, but it all came from that number 40. Forty weddings in 40 hours for $40.

COLLINS: To help 40 kids. All right. How did you go about picking the people, or how did they find out about you? What was the process here?

WAVFER-CLARK: Just through local advertising. We were on a few radio stations, and we did show a little favor to the ones that had more adversity. We had one patient that had kidney problems, another patient had a brain tumor -- another bride, I should say. It was basically on a first-come, first-serve basis.

COLLINS: Looking at video right now from over the weekend weddings. What was your favorite story? what was your favorite moment, after going through all of this, maybe getting a few hours of sleep? when you look back at it, what do you think of?

WAVFER-CLARK: I think of the -- we were full. We had all 40 participants. And we had a woman call in, married for 45 years, never had a wedding, never experienced the wedding gown, the cake. Her husband has Alzheimer's, and she wanted to renew her vows before his condition progressed. She was beautiful. He walked down the aisle with his walker, they did the first dance. It's a moment I'll never forget.

COLLINS: That is fantastic. Looking at several of the pictures. Quickly, did they -- they didn't get all married at same time, right? I mean, there were separate weddings?

WAVFER-CLARK: There was a wedding every hour. We had the 8:00 wedding, the 9:00, the 10:00. Forty straight hours, 1:00 a.m. In the morning, 2:00 a.m., 5:00 a.m. Nonstop.

COLLINS: Wow. What a blast. Did you have a headset so you could talk to all your people and everything?

WAVFER-CLARK: No. My feet are sore. I ran from the ceremony room to reception room. And we just had a great amount of volunteers. We probably had 75 volunteers.

COLLINS: Really? And people donated. We talked about a lot about the cakes and the music.

WAVFER-CLARK: Flowers, deejays, videographers. We had officiants who would come out and perform eight straight weddings. It was incredible.

COLLINS: It's such a fantastic idea. I'm really happy that you're helping all of these people out. The big question, going to do it again next year?

WAVFER-CLARK: We're going to do it next year, and I'm wearing socks. (LAUGHTER)

COLLINS: Socks or a good pair of flats.

WAVFER-CLARK: There you go.

COLLINS: All right. Thanks so much for be with us. 40, 40, 40 weddings. Sylvia Wavfer-Clark. Thanks so much for being here.

An airliner hits a flock of birds after take-off. Passengers describe the sight, sounds, smells as the plane descended.

(COMMERICAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Some tense moments aboard a Frontier Airlines passenger jet. Flight 820, en route from Kansas City to Denver Saturday hit a flock of birds shortly after take-off. One of the passengers on board remembers exactly what he was doing at moment of impact.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

SAM WEISGAL, PASSENGER: We were talking about the airplane that had gone down in New York and how it survived and all of a sudden, the plane fell like it hit something. I mean, you could feel a shudder. The plane shuddered, okay?

The first thing that happened, as the plane shuddered was, out the right side of the windows of the airplane on the right side, you could see flashes of light, sparks and flames. Smoke immediately started to come into the cabin. You could smell something that was burning, obviously something out of the engine.

And the plane immediately canted, okay? Immediately started going down to the right, like that, and I think everybody in the plane thought we were going down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Heard this rumble, bang, boom, boom. And then saw kind of like a flash. And then you saw smoke and then, you know, we started decreasing in altitude.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

COLLINS: The plane had 129 passengers and crew on board. It landed safely back at Kansas City International Airport. An airport spokeswoman said two of the plane's engines did suffer damage, but only one actually lost power.

Reynolds Wolf standing by to talk more about the severe weather and where it is. Talking about some snow, right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: I like the suns when you put them up. Hopefully that's where they'll go.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I think one is enough, though. COLLINS: Probably. Hey, we're reminding everybody about the countdown. It's underway for the space shuttle Atlantis, right?

WOLF: Absolutely. I think it's going to be a go. I think they're expecting low clouds, mostly cloudy at times on and off. Not expecting thunderstorms, and that's one of the big things that can stem the launch altogether. But I think it's a thumbs up. I think they're going to launch. Things will be picture perfect about. Always a sight to see.

COLLINS: Yes. It is. Looking at live pictures now. As you said, 90 percent chance. That's pretty good. We'll continue to watch that and hope it lifts off. Thanks so much, Reynolds Wolf.

WOLF: You bet.

COLLINS: It's a case of family versus family in Missouri. Some people are accusing older relatives of sexual abuse. But now, others are coming forward their defense.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A Missouri family tree in splinters over child sex abuse allegations. A sixth relative is now in custody in a case that reaches back decades. But as Martin Savidge tells us, those closest to him don't believe he was involved.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Speaking outside the jail in Florida where their father is behind bars, the family of 72-year-old Daryl Mohler says he is not the child predator he's made out to be.

JEFF MOHLER, SON OF ACCUSED: I know that my father's innocent of these charges made against him.

SAVIDGE: Mohler's arrest is part of a dark secret authorities believe they have uncovered in the rolling hills of western Missouri buried for decades. One that has shaken the nearby town of Bates City to its core.

HOLLY JOHNSON, BATES CITY BARBEQUE: Since it's such a small town, it's the talk of the town right now. Everybody's talking about.

SAVIDGE: The accusations are awful and include sodomy and bestiality carried out on children, girls mostly, some as young as 5. In some cases, the girls were allegedly forced to take part in mock marriages to older men.

SHERIFF KERRICK ALUMBAUGH, LAFAYETTE COUNTY, MISSOURI: These are Class A felony -- forceful rape of a child less than 12 years old. And we believe that there are other victims out there.

SAVIDGE: Most of the alleged crimes taking place in and around this farm just south of town. All, according to investigators, carried out by members of the same family against their own children.

(on camera): And it was one of those children, now 26, that came forward after she says suppressed memories of the sexual abuse reemerged. Since then, investigators say other siblings have backed up her claims.

(voice-over): On Thursday, 77-year-old Burrell Edward Mohler and his four middle-aged sons shuffled into a Lafayette County courtroom where the charges of incestuous horrors were read against them. None appeared to have an attorney and didn't enter any plea.

Friday, a sixth family member arrested in Florida, 72-year-old Darryl Mohler, the brother of Burrell Mohler, Sr. On the surface, all of the men seemed to be anything but what they're accused of. The senior Mohler is a retired firefighter. Forty-seven-year-old Roland Mohler a paramedic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was a good medic. He had an outgoing personality.

SAVIDGE: Three of the men even served as lay ministers in the local church.

LINDA BOOTH, COMMUNITY OF CHRIST CHURCH: Immediately, I went to the rolls and had their priesthood suspended.

SAVIDGE: For now, authorities say the case is based mostly on the words of children turned adults. But they also believe there may be physical evidence. Late in the week, investigators began digging on the farm.

(on camera): Reportedly, they were looking for jars like these in which the young victims had years ago placed notes about the bad things that were happening to them. Hiding them, after being told if they did, the bad feelings would go away.

(voice-over): Allegedly, burying their messages just as they did their memories of the horrors from long ago.

Martin Savidge, CNN, Bates City, Missouri.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: I'm Heidi Collins. CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.