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American Morning

Barton Backpedals After Apology to BP; Gulf Spill Health Risks

Aired June 18, 2010 - 08:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Friday, June 18th. I'm Drew Griffin, in for John Roberts today.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Kiran Chetry. Thanks for being with us on AMERICAN MORNING.

We have a lot to talk about. Let's get right to it.

An apology for apologizing -- Texas Congressman Joe Barton getting skewed by Democrats and Republicans alike for apologizing to BP's CEO at yesterday's hearing on Capitol Hill. Fellow Republicans said take it back or else.

We're going to have more on the fallout from yesterday's apology-fest.

GRIFFIN: Tornadoes rolling through parts of the Midwest, killing two people, injuring many more. Could this area be facing another round of rough weather? Our Reynolds Wolf is going to have that for you and the weekend forecast.

CHETRY: And calling all Muggles -- the wizarding world of "Harry Potter" opens today at Universal Studio's theme park in Orlando. This was highly anticipated. And a little bit later, we're going to be speaking live with "Harry Potter" actor, Daniel Radcliffe.

GRIFFIN: And, of course, the amFIX blog is up and running. Join the conversation right now. Why don't you send us a question for Daniel? Just go to CNN.com/amFIX.

CHETRY: First, our top story: Texas Congressman Joe Barton would like everyone to know that he's not sympathetic to BP, even though he did feel the need to apologize to the oil giant's CEO yesterday in front of the entire nation. Well, now, Barton is apologizing for that apology.

GRIFFIN: Keep track of this one. The Republican lawmaker's career was being threatened by party leaders if he didn't apologize for the apology.

Listen to what Barton said to BP's Tony Hayward at yesterday's hearing on Capitol Hill, followed by his backpedaling apology afterward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOE BARTON (R), TEXAS: I'm ashamed of what happened in the White House yesterday. I think that it is a tragedy of the first proportion that a private corporation can be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown.

I want the record to be absolutely clear that I think BP is responsible for this accident, should be held responsible, and should in every way do everything possible to make good on the consequences that have resulted from this accident. And if anything I have said this morning has been misconstrued in the opposite effect, I want to apologize for that misconstrue -- misconstruction.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

CHETRY: Misconstrue, misconstruction, there you go.

GRIFFIN: Misconstruement (ph).

CHETRY: Well, other than a few dozen apologies and a smattering of "I don't recalls," there really wasn't much else that came out of yesterday's hearing.

GRIFFIN: We want bring in Candy Crowley, CNN's chief political correspondent, also the host of "STATE OF THE UNION," which you can see every Sunday on CNN.

Candy, it's always great to have you here -- especially after such a confusing day on Capitol Hill.

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, yes. And I -- I don't think it was that confusing because if you look at BP's position, the U.S. Justice Department is looking into whether there are any criminal charges. They are looking at one can't even imagine the number of civil suits that might come out of this oil spill.

And so, to expect that the CEO would go up there and cop to a lot of things I think is naive in terms of the way jurisprudence works. I think we can expect that congressmen legitimately angry as well as in a political year, this was time to beat up on BP. Certainly, they deserve being bee up upon. But it seemed to me that the dynamic was fairly predictable going into it.

CHETRY: The thing, though, is, you know, he had a question ahead of time is what, you know, Bart Stupak and others had said about this. And when they brought in the other heads of the oil companies, I mean, they seem to be a lot more forthcoming, I guess, because they weren't under the gun perhaps criminally. Is that why? And if so, what was the point then of bringing Tony Hayward out there?

CROWLEY: Well, he was called to come testify. That's probably -- I don't he did a -- too voluntarily. I -- you know, one can't defend Tony Hayward the best public spokesman for BP. He's made a number of mistakes.

But they are trying to -- they brought in some sort of heavy- duty P.R. people to try at least to get back on track. I think it's going to be difficult while in the screen, sort of to the left of the testimony, is that spewing oil. So, I think that the simple answer to your question is he was called up there to talk. He is the CEO.

But at this point, they just fell that there were questions that: A, they couldn't answer, because the investigation is ongoing. He didn't know what went wrong.

But it was frustrating to lawmakers who as you say had given him those questions. I think they look at him and said, we either don't know or we have to be careful about these answers.

GRIFFIN: Candy, there may have been a subplot especially for Democrats who try to take the heat off President Obama through this crisis and put it back on BP, or legitimately on BP. We got a new poll out that talks about how the president is handling this crisis and what Americans think about how he's handling this crisis.

CROWLEY: We do. And what is interesting to me is -- he's well below 40 percent on this crisis in particular. Not on his overall approval rating.

And the poll we took was after the president gave his Oval Office speech. And he dropped -- six points, perhaps eight points, after the Oval Office speech -- was kind meant to reset the impression of the Obama administration and its handling. We should add, though, that the president's overall approval rating, how is he doing as president to approve or disapprove, remains at about the country just sort of split right down the middle, about 50/50.

CHETRY: What's coming up on Sunday, Candy?

CROWLEY: We're going to talk Afghanistan, actually. We'll obviously talk some oil, what's going on, when we can expect it to end, some of the political ramifications.

But we thought -- I was interested in a statistic that one of the staff said to me was that since the 11 men were killed on the oil rig, 60 days ago, 65 U.S. military personnel have been killed in Afghanistan. It's now the longest running war for the U.S. There are now more troops in Afghanistan, U.S. troops, than there are in Iraq.

So, we want to talk about it. Where is it going, is it really going to end, when we think it is going to end, how tough the road ahead is.

We have Dianne Feinstein and Richard Lugar, both senators, one from Indiana, one from California, who are going to help sort of walk us through what's going on there.

GRIFFIN: All right. Candy Crowley.

Be sure to catch Candy's show, "STATE OF THE UNION" on this Sunday morning. That's 9:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

Thanks, Candy.

CHETRY: Meantime, storms expected across much of the country today, including the chance of more tornadoes.

Our Reynolds Wolf is tracking all of it from the CNN weather center for us this morning.

Hi, Reynolds.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi, guys.

You know, it is kind of hard to miss on radar. We see two distinct areas where we may have some rough weather. Yesterday was pretty much kind (INAUDIBLE) into parts of the Midwest, mainly into parts of, say, Minnesota and even Iowa. But, today, it looks like the Great Lakes.

Let's go right there and show you where the heavy storms happen to be. We see one line sweeping across parts of Lake Michigan. You see it there moving into portions of Michigan, as we speak. And that could give as a pretty rough morning there.

Another spot of concern for us happens to be a little bit farther to the southwest. And that is right near the Corn Belt where you see intense line of storms moving just north of Omaha, some heavy rain, possibly some large hail and lightning can be expected. More of the same into the afternoon hours, and that's certainly going to cause some backups in places like St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit and possibly Kansas City before the day is out.

That is a quick snapshot on your forecast. We got more coming up straight ahead.

Let's send it back to you in New York.

GRIFFIN: Reynolds, thanks.

It's been an all-night party in Los Angeles after the Lakers beat the Boston Celtics, 83-79 in the seventh and the deciding game of the NBA Finals. Second straight for the Lakers, fifth for the team star player Kobe Bryant.

After the game, fans going wild. Rowdy, breaking bottles, street lights, and even setting one car on fire. Police in L.A. had to arrest about a dozen people.

CHETRY: Well, still ahead, anxiety is adding to the cleanup of workers. Health concerns on top of everything else. We're going to be speaking with the head of OSHA, you know, tasks with making sure these workers are safe -- how is the progress as the clean-up continues on the Gulf.

GRIFFIN: And we're also going to be speaking with, hello, Harry -- Harry Potter. Daniel Radcliffe joins us as the Orlando opens up the new Harry Potter Hogwarts exhibit. And we're going to have Harry Potter right here -- David Radcliffe live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: We got new developments this morning in the Gulf oil leak. We told you yesterday the Coast Guard sidelined a fleet of 16 of these Louisiana-owned vacuum barges over safety concerns. They were working just fine to suck up some of the oil along the coast, at a rate of about 4,000 gallons of crude every 90 minutes before red tape got in the way.

Yesterday afternoon, all 16 vessels, we're glad to say, got the green light to go back on the water.

CHETRY: You know, they are having a lot of questions, though, raised about the health of workers that have been cleaning up this massive oil spill: in whether they are prepared for the risks out there, from wearing the proper protective gear, to some of the chemicals that they're using, to working in extreme heat.

Our next guest is in charge of making sure that these workers are safe out there on the job.

David Michaels is the assistant secretary of labor for OSHA, the Occupation Safety and Health Administration.

Thanks for joining this morning, David.

DAVID MICHAELS, ASST. SEC. OF LABOR FOR OSHA: Hi, Kiran. Thanks for inviting me on your show.

CHETRY: Well, I know that at first you were extremely critical of some of the things that BP was doing early on in terms of workers' safety. You sent out a letter, I believe, the last week of May to Admiral Thad Allen. Give us an idea of where we stand now and whether some of your concerns were addressed.

MICHAELS: Kiran, OSHA has 20 to 25 inspectors on any given day going from staging area to staging area, observing what's going on, making sure workers have proper training and proper equipment.

As you said, a few weeks ago, we had some serious concerns. We weren't seeing the safety procedures that we required being followed. We got that information from BP and, more importantly, Admiral Allen. Admiral Allen, on behalf of the Coast Guard, the incident commandant, communicated that to BP and since then, things have been much better.

The things that we insist on are being done. And as a result, we think workers are being protected.

CHETRY: All right. And y talked about it in that letter. You said it was a general systemic failure on BP's part. I mean, it wasn't just a couple of problems cropping up here and there.

What were some of the biggest concerns?

MICHAELS: Well, a concern we had then and continue to have is around heat. It is very hot down in the Gulf right now. Workers are working in the sun and they're working wearing chemical-resistant clothing, gloves, boots, these HVAC suits that keep the heat off.

And so, we want to make sure workers are protected. That they work the right work schedules, that they have plenty of liquids, plenty of shade.

The systemic problem we saw, though, was that when we raised issues, they weren't dealt with immediately. And now, we find, they are being dealt with immediately. So, that's -- we're happy about that.

CHETRY: One of the things that you're not seeing on the workers, you talked about the protective equipment as respirators. And as I understand it, you guys deemed that respirators were not necessary for the health and safety of workers. How did you guys make that determination?

MICHAELS: Well, the determination actually is specific to the job.

So, on the beach, where workers are cleaning up oil that's already been in the air and water for days, the volatile chemicals have disappeared and those workers who were doing the shoveling have to be very concerned about skin contact, but breathing chemicals is not a real problem on the beach. On the other hand, those workers who were out in boats, close to the burn or the source of the oil are actually getting some exposures and they do need respirators.

So, we made the decision based on the specific hazard of each type of work.

CHETRY: You know, it's -- not everybody agrees with you. And Riki Ott is a marine toxicologist. She did a lot of research in the wake of the Exxon Valdez. She was also down there in the Gulf as well. And here's what she said about -- about that issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. RIKI OTT, MARINE BIOLOGIST: We have people who are literally passing out. You see those pictures in the marshes now where workers are leaning over boats to mop up with absorbent pads and material. The oil and their faces are two feet from the water. And they're literally passing out from fumes.

I mean, clearly people need respirators. Clearly. And they're not getting them.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: One of the things that she raised is just why no err on the side of caution and just require respirators if you're working to clean up oil regardless of where you are?

MICHAELS: Well, I'd like to invite anybody who suggests that -- to put on a respirator in 100-degree temperature and the high humidity that's down there. When we tell BP to put people with respirators we also require medical examinations and pit testing because when one puts a respirator on, unless you put it on right, it doesn't really work.

Respirators are very hard on the heart and lungs in the hot weather. We can actually be doing some real damage. So what we do for every specific job we go and measure. We go out to the marshes and we do the measurements. And if we find people are exposed we would require respirators.

But right now we're actually doing measurements. Every where we're sending workers and those places where there's chemical exposure we're asking people to wear respirators.

CHETRY: I got you.

MICHAELS: But it's very important to -- look at the specific job.

CHETRY: I was -- you know, anecdotally when we were down there, there were some who were being hired, you know, contracted, and they were saying that they were being told that, you know, it just doesn't look good to have people out there skimming the oil, having respirators on because it makes it seem like the areas are extremely toxic.

I mean, is some of that concern on the part of the company and the part of the government that it just is -- bad for, you know, optic's sake to have a respirators on.

MICHAELS: We don't care about optics. In some ways, we would look better if we said everyone has to wear a respirator because they would look protected. We know, in fact, that if they did wear respirators on the beach in that sort of temperature, we'd be hurting people. And so we have to weigh out the exposures and the concerns for each specific job.

CHETRY: I got you. I want to ask you about some of the training issues. Some of the criticism that these workers are perhaps not getting enough hazmat training, training with dealing with hazardous materials. That they should usually get 24 hours. But they're getting four hours.

I mean is part of it, you know, responding to a disaster that requires urgent attention? Or are people going to be trained long term for longer periods of time in dealing with hazardous material?

MICHAELS: Well, it's both. Obviously we need to get people out there quickly. But OSHA's concern is make sure people do the job safely. Not promptly. And so right now what we're doing is we said, again, specific to the job, if you're on the beach and you're exposed only to weathered oil and the hazard really is just the skin hazard, you only need four hours of training.

But once people are on the boats and exposed to different sorts of oil, we're saying eight-hour training is necessary. There are other workers who are actually near dispersants and other things that require more training. And so it depends again on the situation.

CHETRY: Bottom line, do you think that the -- that the health situation of the oil cleanup is going to be handled well? Or do you think down the road they are going to be questions about the safety and the health of these workers?

MICHAELS: Well, we take this one day at a time. We've very vigilant and every day we're looking at the situation and making decisions on that basis. At this point I think we're doing fine. But the situation is very fluid. It could change at any point.

CHETRY: All right. David Michaels, great to talk to you this morning. Thanks for coming on to talk to us about it.

MICHAELS: Thank you so much for inviting me.

CHETRY: Sure. Well, here's a chance to help the Gulf Coast if you'd like. Larry King is hosting a special two-hour all-star telethon happening Monday night for people whose lives have been devastated by the oil spill. It starts at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

GRIFFIN: And there is good news coming out of Detroit for the three big automakers there. Their quality is improving. Christine Romans is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY LENO, HOST, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": Authorities investigating 40 human heads found on a Southwest Airlines flight. Forty human heads in a box. Yes. Southwest Airlines were first alerted after the heads complained about the lack of legroom.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Part of that story is disturbingly true.

CHETRY: The legroom part?

(LAUGHTER)

GRIFFIN: Free bags on Southwest. Christine Romans, "Minding Your Business," joining us now with good news out of Detroit. Good news.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Detroit, Detroit. And the JD Power and Associates' initial quality survey, a survey they've been taking for 24 years. For the first time ever Detroit has topped its rivals in quality.

What is this survey? There are a lot of quality surveys, right? What's this one? It's a survey of how people feel about the first 90 days of owning their new purchased or leased vehicle. And look at this. Ford jumped up to fifth place. Toyota fell down sharply to 21st place. Ford moving up this list pretty quickly here. And Ford, I will point out, as we always do, did not have to take your bailout money during the whole collapse of the American auto industry.

So that's interesting there. So the quality survey, the top brands, the Porsche is number one, Acura, number two. The Mercedes is number three.

CHETRY: It was just funny that I really think -- you said that it's based on the first 90 days. Well, if you can finally afford a Porsche, of course, you're thrilled the first 90 days.

(LAUGHTER)

CHETRY: What happens after that?

GRIFFIN: You haven't changed the oil yet.

ROMANS: You'd be surprised, new cars, there are little things that go wrong. And they chart how these things -- how many things go wrong on brand new cars. And they found, Porsche has the fewest, Acura, Mercedes. The Lexus is the next one. And then comes Ford after that.

The Ford Focus, Buick, Enclave and the Ram 1500 LD all got pretty good ratings. They're moving up the list here.

All the GM and Chrysler products, though, are below average. But they're above Toyota. But they're below average. And one of the things --

GRIFFIN: Who owns them?

(LAUGHTER)

ROMANS: One of the things that --

CHETRY: Minivan owners.

ROMANS: Exactly. Yes, I was -- how many cars that's going to get in a Porsche. That's what I was --

CHETRY: Yes, right?

ROMANS: Well, I think they do have -- I'm told they do have a model that you can get a couple of car seats in but -- Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, all -- general.

(CROSSTALK)

ROMANS: That's really funny, wouldn't it? But, you know, look, so moving up. Detroit moving up on this list. But Ford, the real standout here. Ford, the standout. And Toyota, the standout for obvious reasons.

The survey was taken during a time when Toyota was having an awful lot of problems. I mean (INAUDIBLE) people bought the 2010 --

CHETRY: Toyota had to turn around and take it back to the dealerships. So that will certainly make you move down the list on the -- on the satisfaction line.

GRIFFIN: Absolutely.

ROMANS: Exactly.

CHETRY: Well, go, Detroit. Thanks, Christine.

Still ahead, millions of visitors are expected. Harry Potter, the theme park, Universal, opens today. And we are going to be speaking with Daniel Radcliffe live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Time for our top stories this morning. At least two people dead in Minnesota. There is a vicious outbreak of tornadoes there. Widespread destruction.

Seventy miles southeast of Fargo is where it happened. Homes destroyed. A roof off of a high school ripped off. And officials say more than 20 people hurt. Today the Minnesota governor, Tim Pawlenty, plans to visit some of the hardest-hit areas.

CHETRY: Convicted killer Ronnie Lee Gardner executed over night by firing squad in Utah. His death carried out just hours after the Supreme Court denied a last-ditch appeal.

It was the first such execution in 14 years. And only the third time a firing squad has been used since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty back in 1976. Gardner was convicted for murdering an attorney back 1985 during an attempted courthouse escape.

GRIFFIN: And there's going to be a parade of champions Monday in Los Angeles. The Lakers took their second straight NBA title beating the Boston Celtics last night. Game seven. Final. It's the fifth championship for the MVP, Kobe Bryant.

As to the game, it was -- of course fans going wild. Usual stuff in L.A. Rowdies, breaking bottles, street lights, setting one car on fire. Dozen people or so were arrested.

CHETRY: Well, it used to be there was only one way to take a trip to Hogwarts, the wizarding school in the world of Harry Potter. You have to close your eyes, imagine yourself on platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross Station in London and then take a running leap.

GRIFFIN: Now you just take a flight to Orlando. That simple. Today Universal Studios Theme Park is opening the wizarding world of Harry Potter.

Joining us live from the park, within a park, to tell us all about it, I can't believe it, the boy wizard himself who is now a man. The star of "Harry Potter" films. Daniel Radcliffe. Good morning. You look -- you're perched up there like you are flying.

DANIEL RADCLIFFE, ACTOR: Thank you very much. Top notch British accent there, by the way.

(LAUGHTER)

GRIFFIN: What's your pick in the England match? Let's get right to it?

(LAUGHTER)

RADCLIFFE: What are you talking about? 3-0, England, absolutely.

GRIFFIN: All right.

CHETRY: Three-nothing. It's going to take a lot for anyone to score three goals in this World Cup.

But by the way, you have played this character. It's so funny. You've been in these films since you were 11 years old. And -- so that means basically you have been almost nothing but Harry Potter for about half your life. And now this theme park is opening.

I mean is it something that you're super-excited about or something that you're thinking oh my gosh, when is this going to end?

RADCLIFFE: No. You know what? It's kind of amazing. We wrapped the film -- finished, we finished filming the last movie on -- last Saturday. So it's kind of a bit of a whirlwind few days. And it's kind of been amazing. But what's been wonderful is kind of -- Ttis has been a wonderful kind of punctuating full stop to the last ten years of our lives. At the end of that we get to come to an amazing part.

It really is amazing. When I was first told it was going to be a "Harry Potter" theme park I was thinking well, that can -- you know, one of two ways. I was slightly trepidation, because when you have been with something ten years, you are desperate and don't want anything to take that legacy.

I promise you, I would not be here today if I did not think this was place was absolutely phenomenal, which it really is.

GRIFFIN: I always wanted to ask you a question. You know, you probably get these same questions over and over again. But when you were a kid, little kid, and the book came out, because the book came out before the movie, were you glued to that book? Did you start reading this and did you ever think one day hey, I will be this guy?

RADCLIFFE: Not particularly. To be honest, I wasn't -- I wasn't a big reader when I was young. There were -- it was actually -- when I got the part it was a bit of a deal that I was -- the part hadn't gone to an avid "Harry Potter" fan but -- I only read the first two books. I think the first four had come out by the time the first film was started.

I really enjoyed them, but I wasn't an avid fan like everybody else was. Then I got the part. But I started rereading them and got completely sucked in and obsessed.

CHETRY: That's amazing, because you said you weren't a big reader, and the whole "Harry Potter" series is credited with getting kids to read, especially books and to be engaged in a way that in this internet world kids aren't as much anymore.

RADCLIFFE: I mean, I am absolutely a case in point about that. I was not a big reader before "Harry Potter," and since that it has given me a love of books. That's what I think is amazing of "Harry Potter" is that it produced a generation of incredibly thorough, literate kids, which is something it must be thankful for decades and decades to come.

GRIFFIN: Let me ask you a question about you. You have been in this business. You probably made a ton of money. I know you are an actor in other parts. You have gone on to some adult roles, et cetera.

But haven't you made enough money, Daniel, where you could just kick back and do something crazy with your life, do anything you want to do, like disappear and become a Caribbean boat captain or something?

RADCLIFFE: I mean -- if money was the motivating thing for me -- I'm in a very fortunate position where I -- I have a job I absolutely love and get paid incredibly well for it. So I'm kind of amazingly lucky.

And I think it is -- if you are in this position, and -- you know, I obviously want to continue acting. I think if you are in a position where you can afford to pick and choose very carefully what other parts you take and what are the films and plays you do, I think you have a duty, because you I'm in a position where I don't have do things just for the money.

So, you know, I'm going to enjoy being selective for the next few years of my career. I won't gamble it all away or.

CHETRY: Or as a Caribbean boat captain.

GRIFFIN: Hey, Daniel, open the Hogwarts casino. I'm telling you. It will be a blast.

RADCLIFFE: That's going to happen.

CHETRY: So if -- you know, tell us about -- walk us through what it will be like for people that go to universal. This is highly anticipated and tons of "Harry Potter" fans want to get out there and see it. What will they get when they go there?

RADCLIFFE: It is -- it is kind of amazing. First of all, I don't know -- you can probably see a little bit of the castle behind me, which is pretty amazing. It is about 700 foot of rock and castle.

My personal favorite thing here is the dragon challenge. It is my -- a roller coaster I find terrifying. I plan to go a couple more times today.

And there is also a ride called "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey." It is a wonderful kind of adventure simulator ride. It is fantastic.

Other than that, you are immersed in the word of the village from the movie. For any kids out there who were like me when I was a kid who would go and see a film and live in that world in my head the next two weeks of my life, anybody that did that thing, you can now just come here and live the movie pretty much, but without all the danger involved.

GRIFFIN: All right, Daniel Radcliffe, you know, personally, my kids loved those movies. I have really loved those movies. Thanks a lot for a gray acting job. I enjoy those books, too. Thanks for being with us.

RADCLIFFE: Thank you very much for having me.

CHETRY: We can't wait to visit. That looks like it will be great. Daniel Radcliffe, thanks so much.

Still ahead, we are talking about the hearings. There have been 33 and counting so far on the oil spill. Are they accomplishing anything?

GRIFFIN: No. Well, that's my opinion. But we'll see what Carol Costello has to say. She's up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: It's 38 minutes past the hour. Well, there's one rule that Congress has been sticking to, and that is, you know, scheduled hearings, schedule lots of them.

GRIFFIN: Dealing with the environmental disaster, order a hearing. If that doesn't accomplish anything, you call another one.

CHETRY: Carol Costello has been tracking all of this and joins from us the nation's capital with the gut check. Of course, yesterday was the creme de la creme of the hearings because you had BP CEO Tony Hayward not answering questions.

CAROL COSTELLO CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was the mother of all hearings that turned into kind of a bust. If you are wondering just how many hearings there have been, I have been keeping track so you don't have to -- 33 and counting. It has only been two months.

So we wondering are 33 hearings hurting, helping? Do they matter? A gut check this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) COSTELLO: (voice over) It was perhaps the mother of all hearings so far.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is one of the most important hearings this Congress will ever have.

COSTELLO: The man many consider BP's top villain, Tony Hayward, on the hot seat along and silent for more than an hour while lawmakers let him have it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Hayward, I'm sure you will get your life back and with a golden parachute back to England.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want to know whether you are distraught.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think you are insulting our intelligence.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is unconscionable.

COSTELLO: It isn't the first hearing in which a BP executive has been, as Congressman Bart Stupak described it --

STUPAK: Sliced and diced.

COSTELLO: On Tuesday it was BP America's CEO Lamar McKay's turn.

REP. JOSEPH CAO, (R) LOUISIANA: Mr. Stern asked Mr. McKay to resign. Well, in the Asian culture we do things differently. During the samurai days we just give you a knife and ask you to commit hara- kiri.

COSTELLO: As in suicide. It is the sort of thing you heard after Katrina. There were 24 hearings in the months after the hurricane. In the two months after the BP disaster, there have been 33.

LARRY SABATO, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: A big piece of the congressional hearing process is about attracting attention, getting congressmen and senators on television, especially in an election year.

COSTELLO: But it can backfire. Pure politics is why one lawmaker apologized to BP at a hearing held to figure out why oil is still spewing into the Gulf.

REP. JOE BARTON, (R) TEXAS: I'm ashamed of what happened in the White House yesterday. I think that it is a tragedy of the first proportion that a private corporation can be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown.

COSTELLO: Republican Congressman Barton is talking about BP's $20 billion escrow account for jobless claims, orchestrated by the White House. Barton is from oil-rich Texas and feels the Obama administration should be on the hot seat, too. He later retracted his BP apology. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You cut corners to save money and time.

COSTELLO: Still, there are those that insist these hearings do matter. Lee Hamilton, who served as vice chair of the 9/11 commission, told me the process is messy and imprecise, but it is important lawmakers put witnesses on the spot. They are doing their job.

And lawmakers did do that, although their star witness continued to maintain that safety is number one, and he didn't really address those specific examples of when BP allegedly ignored safety for profit.

TONY HAYWARD, CEO, BP: I can't possibly know. I don't recall. It is impossible for me to answer that question. I can't recall that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's clear to me you don't want to answer our questions.

COSTELLO: Maybe he and BP will respond differently at the next congressional hearing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: As you can bet, there will be one. Under this, though, law makers not take immediate action. It takes a while to pass a law, and there are 34 bills in the House and Senate, many drawn up thanks to information coming out of all those hearings.

We want to know what you think about this today. You can post your comment on my blog, CNN.com/fix. Most of the comments so far is that there are too many hearings.

CHETRY: Although consider this -- what if there were none? Would people be complaining that Congress isn't doing anything?

GRIFFIN: I see Lee Hamilton's point, but it seems like too early. You have the attorney general threatening all these lawsuits. They are in the room. What's the guy's supposed to tell them? Carol, I just don't get the point.

COSTELLO: I couldn't help but think that because I watched the entire hearing. I'm thinking to myself, they are asking him all these questions. He's not going to answer those questions. BP is facing a criminal investigation.

GRIFFIN: "Don't you agree your company illegally polluted the Gulf?"

COSTELLO: Sure.

CHETRY: There was a lot of them sorry, and lot of -- let the investigation see how that plays out.

COSTELLO: Exactly.

GRIFFIN: Thanks, carol.

CHETRY: Carol, thank you.

COSTELLO: Sure.

CHETRY: We're still dealing with some lingering storms in the northeast that could spell travel delays. Reynolds Wolf will be joining us in just a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY FALLON, HOST "LATE NIGHT WITH JIMMY FALLON": Earlier tonight, the Lakers played the Celtics in Game 7 of the NBA finals. They're excited about that. That's NBA finals, that's basketball's annual contest to decide whose city will be set on fire by drunks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: And the winner is --

GRIFFIN: And it was Lakers. And Lakers fans, who set L.A. on fire -- well, just one car. Right?

CHETRY: Yes, but a dozen arrests?

GRIFFIN: A dozen arrests. You know. Kind of tame Reynolds, really.

WOLF: Yes.

CHETRY: Good thing they won. What would have happened if they lost?

WOLF: Yes, exactly. I mean, you have to wonder.

You know, the thing about the -- about the NBA, I mean, it certainly was a great thing to watch. But don't you think it kind of goes on a little bit too long, the playoffs? It's like an (INAUDIBLE) gestation period; it just never seems to end and maybe a few shorter games. But still, a great series.

And right now we are seeing a series of storms that have been moving across parts of the Great Lakes. The first installment brought some rough weather to parts of Chicago this morning. Rattled a few windows then all of the rough weather is driving its way off towards parts of Michigan. And this is scattered showers but that may reform later on today.

We've got also some heavier storms that are developing near parts of the Corn Belt as we make our way back to Fort Dodge, back north of Omaha. Some stronger storms that may sweep their way across parts of not only Iowa but also portions of Missouri and St. Louis, in fact it maybe even in Kansas City before the day is out. You know, another big weather story and not just some thunderstorms but the intense heat that we are feeling along parts of the Gulf Coast where high temperatures today are going to soar back into the 90s. But when it you cap (ph) on the humidity and you know the drill. It's going to feel much warmer. Some places as well above the century mark. So very rough conditions out there in terms of the heat for the people who trying to contain all of that oil.

Ninety degrees is the expected high in Raleigh; 86 in New York. But again, humidity there is going to be a factor. Back out towards Denver and into Salt Lake City mainly into the 80s.

Look for a few delays in places like Chicago, perhaps even St. Louis and Kansas City before the day is out.

That is a quick look at your forecast. Let's send it back to you in New York.

CHETRY: All right, so your official commentary of the day is NBA, keep it to three games?

WOLF: A little, no, no, no. I mean, just the whole playoff thing, is just a little bit shorter. It just goes on forever.

CHETRY: Five games?

WOLF: Well, maybe so. Something like that.

GRIFFIN: Just not mid-June.

WOLF: Yes, exactly.

GRIFFIN: I'm with -- I'm with you, Reynolds. It's baseball season.

WOLF: There you go guys.

CHETRY: All right, thanks so much.

WOLF: You bet.

CHETRY: Well, I know you saw this one, Reynolds. And so did a lot of other people. But if not, you've to see it.

Is this real? Is this real? I mean, this baby has rhythm. I mean, you can't teach that? Can you? I guess you can. He's dancing a Brazilian samba by the way. The hips don't lie. There you see him.

This toddler perched safely on the kitchen table. As mom and dad think viral video, live video but why couldn't they give the little guy a new diaper? Look at that thing. This is a week's worth of milk in there.

GRIFFIN: Yes, man, ok. Wipe that table before they have dinner. Whoo lordy.

CHETRY: Look at the moves. You know what? All the other little baby girl toddlers are lining up to get --

(CROSSTALK)

GRIFFIN: Hey, look at you, big daddy. You can't get enough of this guy.

CHETRY: And if you can't get enough, you should watch it. Because I think it's seven minutes long.

GRIFFIN: Well, there you go.

CHETRY: He danced for a long time.

GRIFFIN: Speaking of slow -- no, watching slow. Kickoff, soccer -- soccer is next and our soccer guru, Richard Roth.

CHETRY: Richard Roth.

GRIFFIN: He's going to tell us why this time soccer is catching on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Welcome back to The Most News of the Morning. You never know how far cash tips can get you. In the case of this week's CNN hero, they are helping transform an entire country. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PONHEARY LY, CNN HERO, CHAMPIONING CHILDREN: In the countryside in Cambodia, some children they come to school, but not very regular because the family needs to have them on the farm. The school is free but they don't have any money. How can they have the money for uniforms and supplies?

My name is Ponheary Ly, I help the children to go to school. The education is important for me, because my father was a teacher.

During the Khmer Rouge times, my father was killed and if we tried to study we could be killed. My soul always go to school.

At the beginning I got only one girl; after that, 40 children and now 2,000. After several years, I see the change because they know how to read and write. And they borrow the books from our library to read for their parents.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because when we study we gain knowledge and understand other issues and it leads to a good future.

LY: I need them have a good education to build their own family as well as to build their own country. My father, he has to be proud of me here, in heaven, and in my heart.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHETRY: Well, to nominate someone you think is changing the word go the CNN.com/heroes.

GRIFFIN: That was a great story.

CHETRY: Yes. Wonderful.

GRIFFIN: Well, we have a story about soccer coming up next; our soccer guru, Richard Roth currently in the house with his entourage. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: They rocked the house yesterday and the kids had a blast.

GRIFFIN: Literally.

CHETRY: Yes, they did.

GRIFFIN: I'm glad. Anticipation. Just about an hour away. Can we get that live shot I called for? We're searching for the one person in our booth -- they are not going to give it to us. We do have somebody in our booth who's waiting for the soccer match.

CHETRY: Yes, counting down breathlessly, along with Richard Roth here. You know, we are talking about the U.S. and Slovenia, second world cup soccer match. And of course, the tournament is in full swing. Some of the things that we always say, every four years America gets a little bit into soccer, but the rest of the world always into soccer.

So is it going to catch on this season?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: I think it is catching on. I'm frankly tired of those doubters and opponents picking on our show, producer and others who like soccer. It is coming. You may not like it --

GRIFFIN: It is directed at me. I feel the tension here between me and you.

ROTH: The sport is based on anticipation. And in this society which everyone wants to pull a slot machine and get a victory in an instant, games and sports with the buildup, that seems to be suffering with the Americans. But the demographics are changing and it is a great team sport.

But you know all this already. Every four years we have this World Cup fever. And I'm asked why does soccer not catch on? I'm often asked by this the network to do a report on it.

I calmly explain the reason why, eventually will but there are doubters. Why just two hours ago after my last report, CNN's Roland Martin sent me an e-mail at 6:40 a.m. I've never received an e-mail from Roland Martin at 6:40 in the morning.

(CROSSTALK) ROTH: Soccer inspires passion. He wrote me saying soccer doesn't got a chance in the U.S. It is coming, it is coming. "No, it is not," he wrote. CNN -- but youngsters are playing -- I was in Harlem the other day. And there were these youngsters on a new field there at the Children's Aids Society. These children are playing.

They are -- you know, this is the sport and it's coming. You may not like it, it's happening. Yesterday CNN asked other Americans about their lack of interest in the World Cup.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think probably more every four years, more people probably watch. Our team is getting better. It is just a cool international event.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm interested in the games, but not fever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We watched a couple but, still glad --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're too preoccupied with basketball. And then --like the championship for basketball is going on and all other sports, like football and baseball, the American pastime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is odd. You have to kick a ball with your feet and your head and you can't use your hands. That's a biological oddity.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The rest of the world though loves it. The rest of the world --

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The rest of the world is nuts. What are we going to do about it?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: The new reason why I think soccer is going to catch on is this, this vuvuzela. That's what's going to change it all. You know, another reason, Diego Maradona, the coach of Argentina, a big -- former superstar, he says he's going to run naked through the streets if his team wins.

U.S.A. against Slovenia, one hour away; favored Germany losing to Serbia now, one - nothing or one - nil. The vuvuzela, love it, use it.

And the weekend -- you can spend your weekend with it.

CHETRY: I've got two at the house now.

GRIFFIN: That doesn't sound right.

Hey, thanks for joining us.

"CNN NEWSROOM" with Fredricka Whitfield is going to start right now.

CHETRY: Right now. Have a great weekend.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)