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CNN Live At Daybreak

Airport Delays; Unmarried Pregnant Teacher Fired, Fighting; Fish Aquarium Opens in Georgia

Aired November 23, 2005 - 06:30   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Thank you for waking up with us. Jacqui will be along with your Thanksgiving Eve forecast in just a minute.
Also coming up this half-hour, we'll have more on the teacher who was fired for being pregnant. Her attorney will join us a little later.

And while we try to head home for the holidays, it may also be time to test your patience. We'll get a live look at travel troubles.

But first, "Now in the News."

Fears over bird flu could lead to new rules aboard airplanes. Under the CDC's plan, airlines would be on the lookout for ailing passengers, and they would be required to report any possible problems. The airlines would also keep a passenger database just in case future problems pop up. Any such rule change is at least three months away, though.

FEMA has had a change of heart just in time for the holidays. The agency has extended the deadline for thousands of Hurricane Katrina evacuees to move out of hotels. Evacuees how have until January 7.

Country star Tim McGraw and girl group Destiny's Child were all big winners at the American Music Awards. Both took home at least two awards. Mariah Carey won an award for favorite soul R&B female artist.

To the forecast center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: I have more facts and figures for you right now, because I know despite the weather, you've got to get away for the holidays. Lots and lots of travelers have the same great idea to get their trips to grandma's house going early.

In Atlanta, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport counts close to 290,000 passengers. That was just yesterday.

Drivers getting out of St. Louis on I-64 say they would make the trip home anyway, but gas prices dipping below a buck 90 doesn't hurt matters; $1.89 on the pumps at some Missouri stations. That's the cheapest in the country. AAA reports gas prices are down 32 cents per gallon from just one month ago. A wide look at St. Louis there for you.

And check out Chicago, Illinois, this morning. You see the snow coming down? It really is snowing. It's not fuzz on your TV set. That will make the roads dangerous. So do be careful out there.

At New York's LaGuardia Airport, delays and more delays. Many flights are behind by at least three hours already. You can blame it on the weather.

Alina Cho is at LaGuardia.

Alina, good morning.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning to you.

Yes, that was the case yesterday. There were three-hour delays. It does not appear as though weather will be a big problem this morning. That, of course, is in the Midwest.

I spoke to a woman at the security checkpoint this morning. She told me that, however, the lines are still very long, about five times longer than normal to get through the security checkpoint. And it stretches for as far as the eye can see.

Remember, this is traditionally the busiest travel day of the year. And it will be busy here at LaGuardia and elsewhere in the country.

So, of course, the best advice, Carol, is get here not one hour before your flight, but two hours. And bring some reading material.

COSTELLO: Will do. Alina Cho reporting live from LaGuardia.

"The Week of Giving" continues on "AMERICAN MORNING." Soledad joins us now for a look at what's coming up.

Good morning.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Carol, good morning to you.

As you know, we are continuing our special series. We've been running it all week. It's called "The Week of Giving."

Today, you're going to meet a mother of three. I mean, she's already incredibly busy. But she turned her home into a makeshift shelter for people who have suffered losses, as she did in Hurricane Katrina. She's got 11. Eleven. Look at this dining room table. Eleven Hurricane Katrina victims living with her. (INAUDIBLE) 15 people in their house, all of them, every single one a stranger. She's also taken in some pets as well.

We're going to hear her story, because she is truly a remarkable woman, and she's got lots of people saying thank you to her today.

We're going to meet a Louisiana couple as well. They have lots to be thankful for. Look at this. We were going to show a picture. They won a $420,000 -- there's the key to their $420,000 dream home in a raffle. Who more needs a home than people who lost homes? Look at this home. Of course, they need the furniture now. But after Hurricane Katrina wiped out their home, she paid 100 bucks for a raffle ticket. And this is what she's walked away with, a $420,000 home.

We're going to get a tour inside this home and, of course, talk about her spate of good luck ahead this morning.

COSTELLO: Oh, that's more than good luck.

O'BRIEN: Yes.

COSTELLO: That's a blessed event.

O'BRIEN: Yes. That's neat, huh? What a beautiful home.

COSTELLO: It is beautiful. And good for her. Thank you, Soledad.

Following up now on that weekend shooting at a Tacoma, Washington, mall. It seems even one of the victims -- even one of the victims had a gun. Brandon McCowan (ph) lies critically wounded in a Tacoma hospital. He might be paralyzed. An assistant store manager, McCowan (ph) carried the gun legally.

Family members say McCowan (ph) was 20 feet from the gunman, but was shot before he could pull out his own weapon. McCowan (ph) and five others were wounded, four people taken hostage during that four- hour ordeal. Dominick Maldonado is charged with assault, hostage- taking and illegal weapons possession.

Unmarried and pregnant. A New York woman is fighting the Catholic school that fired her. Michelle McCusker was dismissed after telling school administrators she's pregnant and did not plan to marry. The school says it had no choice. McCusker has filed a federal complaint with the EEOC.

Attorney Cassandra Stubbs handles reproductive rights cases for the New York Civil Liberties Union. And Cassie joins us this morning.

CASSANDRA STUBBS, NYCLU: Thank you so much.

Good morning.

COSTELLO: You know, a lot of people have been e-mailing CNN about this story, and a lot of them are saying that she signed a contract saying that she would follow the morals of the Catholic religion, and the school was right to fire her.

STUBBS: Well, she did sign a contract. And she did agree to follow the morals of the Catholic religion. And, of course, the Catholic Church is free -- or, in this case, the Catholic school is free to define what those morals are.

But what the law says -- and you can never make an illegal contract. What the law says is that you can't contract for discrimination. And we believe that in this case the church is enforcing a policy only against women and only against Ms. McCusker (ph), because she was pregnant.

COSTELLO: But how do we really know that? I mean, if a man got a woman pregnant -- a male teacher, let's say, got a woman pregnant, I mean, the school would probably fire him as well.

STUBBS: Well, the issue is not what the school would probably do. We deal with real facts and what's happened in this case. What we see in this case is that the school has no policy of enforcing whatever the Catholic doctrine is. I assume that the Catholic doctrine here is a prohibition against premarital sex.

But assuming that that's the doctrine in play, we see no evidence that they enforced it in any way except to wait and see who gets pregnant.

COSTELLO: So, in other words, they don't...

STUBBS: And, of course, a man is never going to get pregnant.

COSTELLO: Right. But, I mean, using birth control is against the Catholic religion, right? So, you're saying the school doesn't check on those kinds of things, correct?

STUBBS: Right. And even the contract itself doesn't say, for example, you can't use birth control, you can't have premarital sex. It doesn't define any of the policies that the school is going to consider later for whether you are hired or fired.

We think that this is just because there is actually a sign, a physical sign. And, of course, that's pregnancy.

COSTELLO: This is what the Diocese of Brooklyn had to say about this case. And we're going to put the quote up on the screen now.

It says: "This is a difficult situation for every person involve. But the school had no choice but to follow the principles contained in the teachers personnel handbook" -- which we've discussed.

But I suppose that some parents might say when they send their child to a Catholic school, they want them to learn about morals. And they want them to adhere to perhaps the Catholic faith. And to see a single woman pregnant in the classroom would defeat all of that.

STUBBS: Well, I mean, I don't know whether a 3-year-old -- because that's how old these children are. These are pre-kindergarten children. They're 3 and 4. I don't know to see a pregnant teacher defeats Catholic morals.

But I do know that the Catholic schools, like all schools, have to follow the law. And the law says you can't discriminate. And so, parents can't sign up to send their kids to school that discriminates. COSTELLO: I also want to -- William Donahue, the president of The Catholic League, was on Anderson Cooper "360" last night. He was quite fiery. So, I want to play a bit of what he had to say about this last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM DONAHUE, THE CATHOLIC LEAGUE: I mean, why is it that it's incumbent upon the church to change a contract when she who violated it? If they violated her salary agreement, oh, boy, that would be different. But here in this situation, she's the culprit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: "She's the culprit."

STUBBS: Well, clearly, Ms. McCusker in this case is a four-month pregnant woman who is unemployed. To call her the culprit is really to go beyond what the Catholic school itself has said, which is that this is a difficult situation.

I think everyone has a human response. And we have seen an incredible outpouring of support behind Ms. McCusker in this case.

COSTELLO: So, where does the case head now? What can we expect to happen next?

STUBBS: Well, we filed with the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission. So, they'll investigate. And we expect that they will find that this policy -- and the trick is they'll have to define what the policy is. But assuming the policy is an anti-premarital sex, we think -- we expect them to find that the school is enforcing a policy in a discriminatory way.

Remember that Ms. McCusker was already pregnant when she began working. She hasn't done anything during the period of her employment that violates Catholic doctrine as far as we're aware of. And we haven't heard otherwise from the church.

COSTELLO: All right, Cassie, thank you very much. We'll be following this case. It's very interesting.

STUBBS: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Still to come on DAYBREAK, some people are getting cheap oil this winter, and it's not thanks to Uncle Sam. But you can thank Uncle Hugo instead. Why is Venezuela interested in Massachusetts and vice versa?

Plus, we unlock some of the secrets of the deep in Georgia's amazing new underwater world.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: It's time now for a little "Business Buzz."

Some Massachusetts residents are getting help from an unlikely place this winter. Carrie Lee is here to tell us where the cheap oil is coming from.

This is hard to believe.

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It's -- I know. You're never going to guess this, right? People are going to be very surprised to hear. Thousands of low-income Massachusetts residents are going to be receiving home heating oil this winter at a 40 percent discount. Where is it coming from? Venezuela.

The country's national oil company has a U.S. affiliate called Citgo. And they are providing the oil.

Now, politicians and Citgo representatives made the announcement yesterday on the front lawn of the Kelly (ph) family. Here's a look. They're the first to receive oil through the program.

Citgo operates about 13,000 U.S. gas stations. And it will sell about 12 million gallons of the discounted heating oil over the next four months. Recipients will be screened for financial need.

Now, some see this gesture as a political move by Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez. He's a political adversary of President Bush. Chavez brokered the deal with Representative William Delahunt of Massachusetts. Chavez says he wants to bypass the middleman to reduce costs for the American poor, a group he claims is ignored by the Bush administration.

Well, political leanings aside, Carol, it's certainly good news for the families of Massachusetts. Don't see a response from the president on...

COSTELLO: So, the state legislator in Massachusetts is a Democrat, right?

LEE: I believe so, yes.

COSTELLO: Hugo Chavez has called President Bush a terrorist. But everybody says, oh, no, politics has nothing to do with this.

LEE: But, you know, the point is that oil companies here are not state-run. So, he's using this as an opportunity.

COSTELLO: Yes. I actually heard Delahunt's press conference, news conference, yesterday. And he said this is about people who really need help in paying their heating bills this winter. You know, they have to choose heat over food. And so, why not?

LEE: Exactly. So, you know, some could say a smart political move, but certainly these thousands of Massachusetts families are accepting the offer.

COSTELLO: Well, other states are thinking about it, too. So it will be interesting.

LEE: We'll see. It sure will be.

COSTELLO: Thank you very much, Carrie.

The world's largest aquarium officially opened its doors to the public in Atlanta. Actually that will happen today a little later than this.

There is a lot to see, including the biggest fish in the world, whale sharks Ralph and Norton.

Reporter Daniel Sieberg is live at the Georgia Aquarium with more on these enormous creatures.

Good morning, Carol.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there are a lot of interesting creatures here. In fact, some of them you can probably see swimming behind me here.

It's an amazing facility, but the man behind this mammoth project is hoping that people will get something more out of it than just a chance to walk near the whale sharks.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BERNARD MARCUS, CO-FOUNDER HOME DEPOT: My favorites are the whale sharks without a question. They're the biggest fish in the world. They are so graceful, and they're so beautiful.

SIEBERG (voice over): Ralph and Norton are just teenagers now, about 18 feet long. They could grow to the size of school buses. These rare sharks from Asia now live in six million gallons of water at the George Aquarium. It's the largest tank in the world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I see him! Yea!

SIEBERG: Bernie Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot, has sunk $200 million into the Atlanta project. There are more than 100,000 fish, about 500 animal species, including a couple close to the heart of the home improvement guru.

MARCUS: I'm a hammer and tool guy, although we have shellfish and we have hammerheads.

SIEBERG: From the sleek somewhat ghostly Beluga whales to the grouper who never travels without an entourage, it's a nonstop performance of the colorful and the mysterious.

MARCUS: Those are the actors, all those fish. Aren't they fascinating?

SIEBERG: But beyond the entertainment...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Gracie, up. SIEBERG: ... Marcus wants to convey some lasting lessons.

MARCUS: If we can teach them about the oceans and how important the oceans are, so we're hoping to educate the children early on so that they can appreciate it and understand it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIEBERG: And Ralph and Norton, they make their home in this tank behind me here. In fact, we see one of them going by right now, if we can catch a shot of him.

Incidentally, the names, Ralph and Norton, when they got these whales sharks, they were thinking they were going to have a male and a female. So, they were going to name them Ralph and Alice from "The Honeymooners." It turns out that Alice was a little more Norton than Alice, so they went with Ralph and Norton.

Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: It makes perfect sense now. Thank you very much. Daniel Sieberg live at Atlanta's new aquarium.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, the pies, the turkey, the stuffing. Oh, my! Did we mention the pie? How in the world can you cut some calories out of your feast? It can be done. Stick around. You're watching DAYBREAK for a Wednesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Now that is a beautiful scene this morning. Good morning, Chicago. Even though it might be snowing, at least it's snowing only lightly right now. You're taking a look at Michigan Avenue, the Magnificent Mile, where I'm sure there will be shoppers aplenty on Black Friday.

Good morning to everyone.

During the holidays, many of you love to feast on all of that fabulous fatty food, the countless office parties and family gatherings you'll no doubt be roped into attending or hosting.

Lisa Drayer of "Women's Health" magazine is here with a heaping portion of guilt for you. Actually, she's got tips on how you can curb your holiday weight gain. And they're pretty good tips.

LISA DRAYER, REGISTERED DIETICIAN: Yes, and actually good news, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good news?

DRAYER: Yes. One recent study found that we only gain about one pound on average during the six-week period between Thanksgiving and New Year's.

COSTELLO: That doesn't seem possible. DRAYER: It absolutely is. That was the average amount. But we don't tend to lose it during the following spring and summer months. So...

COSTELLO: So it accumulates.

DRAYER: There you go.

COSTELLO: Otherwise I could just eat whatever I wanted and feel fine about it, right?

DRAYER: Exactly. But we wish that were true.

COSTELLO: Yes, we do, and that's why you're here, so that we can, like, temper our eating habits and not gain that dreaded one pound.

DRAYER: Exactly.

COSTELLO: OK. So, you have suggestions on what we should be eating. So, let's start with hors d'oeuvres.

DRAYER: Sure, right. There is no need to sacrifice flavor. We just want to make smart choices. So, looking at hors d'oeuvres, if we have 12 large shrimp -- that's a pretty large portion -- with a quarter cup of cocktail sauce, 160 calories and hardly any fat. But if we have a crab cake, we're talking almost 300 calories and 19 grams of fat.

COSTELLO: Really?

DRAYER: Yes. So, look at the savings there, Carol, 125 calories and 19 grams of fat just be making that simple choice. And your portion is much bigger with the shrimp.

COSTELLO: That's true, but I like crab cake so much better. OK. So, this is the holiday dinner that you suggest we should eat.

DRAYER: Exactly. Four ounces of turkey breast. That is the white meat without the skin over the dark meat with the skin. The skin is the big source of the calories and the fat here.

COSTELLO: Yes.

DRAYER: Also, mashed potatoes, two-thirds of a cup, or sweet potato, just a plain sweet potato. You save calories by not having all of those marshmallows and brown sugar, although I admit that is pretty tasty. Turkey gravy, a quarter of a cup of turkey gravy. But what you can do is get a gravy separator, and it skims the fat off of the gravy. So, you're getting the rest of the gravy that...

COSTELLO: Well, how excited you are about the fat trimmer and...

DRAYER: Gravy separator.

COSTELLO: One dinner roll. Just one. DRAYER: Exactly. One dinner roll. A half a cup of corn. Cranberry sauce, just one slice. And a mixed salad with light balsamic dressing. We're talking only 640 calories, 44 grams of protein, 87 grams of carbs, and only 14 grams of fat. So that's about half of the calories compared to a traditional Thanksgiving feast.

COSTELLO: I know you have no stuffing in here, I noticed. You can't eat the stuffing.

DRAYER: If you want to do the stuffing, just watch out. The sausage and the butter is really what adds the calories.

COSTELLO: OK.

DRAYER: So, I would say omit the sausage.

COSTELLO: Dessert. I kind of like this, because I love pumpkin pie.

DRAYER: Yes. And pumpkin is a great source of beta carotene, very nutritious, and you're saving about 400 calories by choosing pumpkin pie over pecan pie.

COSTELLO: No pecan pie, as I like to pronounce it.

DRAYER: Or a tiny slice.

COSTELLO: Yes. I can't believe the calorie differentiation, 220 calories for one slice of pumpkin pie, 610 for one slice of pecan pie.

DRAYER: Exactly. And the pecans contribute to that, because even though they're a healthy fat, they're high in calories. And nuts add up very quickly.

COSTELLO: OK. So, do we have time to ask Lisa some tips on, you know -- yes?

DRAYER: Correct.

COSTELLO: Yes, we do. OK. Some tips to make us eat less.

DRAYER: OK. I'm going to run through these quickly. Have a small snack before you go. That will prevent you from over-indulging at the party or feast later on. Wear fitted clothing.

COSTELLO: Oh, yes, that works.

DRAYER: You'd probably feel less likely to overeat if you're wearing...

COSTELLO: You're tightest pair of jeans.

DRAYER: There you go.

COSTELLO: So you feel like you're about to explode already before dinner. DRAYER: Well, it can help you curb your intake. Mingle one on one during the cocktail hour. Research shows that we tend to eat less when we're surrounded by fewer people. Also watch the nuts and cheese. Up to 400 calories for half a cup of nuts, about 100 calories for one ounce of cheese. Make only one trip to the buffet, and scan the table first before you fill your plate.

COSTELLO: Oh.

DRAYER: Also fill up half your plate with vegetables and salads. Then take smaller portions of the higher fat foods. Wait 20 minutes before having seconds. It takes 20 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that it's had enough food. So, you want that to register. Focus on socializing, not eating. That takes the focus off of the food and on to the people. Alternate the alcohol with water. And go for a small portion of dessert. Don't deprive yourself, but do go for small portions.

COSTELLO: You have that centimeter sliver of pie. They're great tips. They really are. And thanks for coming in. We appreciate it.

DRAYER: Sure.

COSTELLO: And happy Thanksgiving.

DRAYER: Yes, you too.

COSTELLO: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: We're having far too much fun this morning, Jacqui.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You're giggling.

COSTELLO: I know.

JERAS: I'm missing out on the joke here.

COSTELLO: And it's a good thing, because we can't say it on television.

JERAS: All right.

COSTELLO: It's time to give away a mug, though.

JERAS: OK. Let's do that. From yesterday, we have the answers to the mug quiz. Who is the new German chancellor? The answer is Angela Merkel. And what town elected an 18-year-old mayor? The answer, Hillsdale, Michigan.

The winner, Trace Livengood from Rockwood, Pennsylvania.

It's time for today's questions. We're running out of time. What's the nickname for one of the busiest days of online shopping? And what are the names of the whale sharks that at the Georgia Aquarium?

Submit your answers to CNN.com/daybreak. And since tomorrow DAYBREAK is off, you'll have to tune in on Friday for our last day.

COSTELLO: That's right. We have Thanksgiving Day off, and then Friday is our last day.

JERAS: Yes.

COSTELLO: Thank you, Jacqui.

JERAS: Thank you.

COSTELLO: From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Carol Costello. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

O'BRIEN: Thanks, Carol. I'm Soledad O'Brien.

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