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Jesus Sells Well, but How Long Can These High-End Profits Last?; A Police Investigation That Spans 6,500 miles
Aired April 08, 2007 - 22:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are looking for something beyond themselves. And you know, our biggest fear is that this is just a short window.
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VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN ANCHOR: Bobbleheads, book, bibles, Jesus sells well. But how long can these high end profits last?
Plus, two men dead, another shot in the face but living to tell about it. The alleged shooter sits in jail but only after a long and twisted journey.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's just illogical. There isn't anything that we can say.
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DE LA CRUZ: Mentally ill and in prison for 22 years.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would never do that, but it's all over now.
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DE LA CRUZ: DNA sends this man home just in time for Easter dinner.
Plus, this little boy was born hating food. Why dinnertime is a matter of life or death. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. A very good Easter evening to you. I'm Veronica De La Cruz.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Rob Marciano. Rick Sanchez has the night off.
We begin with a police investigation that spans 6,500 miles. And it has almost as many twists, turns, and questions. Take a look at this man. If you've seen John Joseph Delling last month, police want to hear from you now. Delling is locked up in Nevada. But tonight, police want to know if the crime rampage he's accused of is much larger than anyone imagined. DE LA CRUZ: Right now we know of three investigations. Delling is not talking, but police say he went to high school with two of the victims. Jacob Thompson survived. We spoke with his mother.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He knew the name and remembered him as a Timberline student and that's all. He wouldn't have been able to put a face with him. He doesn't recall any interactions specifically with John Delling. It's bizarre.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Jacob Thompson may not remember John Joseph Delling from high school, but he says he recognized him in a photo lineup as the man who lured him out of his home in Tuscon, Arizona, on March 20th, and shot him in the face, neck and arms.
Delling isn't talking, but police are. They say Delling also killed another classmate, David Bos on March 31st in Moscow, Idaho. Then on April 2nd, police believe Delling shot and killed 25-year-old Bradley Morse, as he was leaving work. His body was found in a pond close to the job site. Morse attended a high school in Boise around the same time as the other three, but he didn't go to Timberline.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Often crimes are a matter of who did it. This is not so much a who did it, but a why he did it. To give you just an overview, in the month of March, Mr. Delling traveled over 6500 miles in the western states of the U.S., most of it with no apparent reason.
CRUZ: Police believe Delling would drive more than 500 miles in a day, only to turn around and head elsewhere. He was arrested Tuesday in Sparks, Nevada, driving Morse's car and carrying a gun. Delling has waived extradition and as soon as Tuesday, he could be sent to Idaho to face murder charges. But police want to know are there more victims out there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had to eat, he had to sleep, he had to stop and get gas, he had to talk to people. And we believe those people can help.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DE LA CRUZ: Well, like we've been saying, he is the only one to survive. And despite being shot in the face, Jacob Thompson joins us now tonight from Tuscon, Arizona.
Jacob, thank you so much for being with us tonight. We appreciate your time.
JACOB THOMPSON, SHOOTING VICTIM: Thank you.
DE LA CRUZ: We're going to start here with the obvious question. How sure are you about who shot you?
THOMPSON: I'm not sure. Obviously, the police haven't released the evidence as to the link between myself and John Delling. And I can't put a face to the shooter in my case. So you know, the police are fairly confident, it seems, so -- but I couldn't tell you who the shooter was.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, despite all that you've been through, shot in the face, below the eye, shot six times, once in the shoulder, once in the neck, how are you feeling tonight?
THOMSON: I'm feeling good. Recovery is going very well. I'd like to start out by, you know, just saying that feel very lucky to be in this situation right now, and that my heart really goes out to the two other families that were involved in this situation. I know how my friends and my family have dealt with the whole thing. And I can only imagine how the other families are feeling and what they're having to deal with. So my heart goes out to them. And I feel blessed and very lucky to be here right now.
DE LA CRUZ: I'm sure it's been a really, really tough time for all of you. And again, we appreciate your time tonight.
I know you say that you don't remember everything specifically, but tell us what you do remember. Describe what happened.
THOMSON: The night started. I was woke up around about 1:30 by my roommate, who said there was someone outside complaining about my truck being in the way and that it needed to be moved.
At that time, we kind of hung out in the living room and listened outside for a while. When you know, the commotion died down, we went outside with some flashlights and looked around.
No one was out there. And I decide that I was going to move my truck just in case someone did come back, so that I wouldn't get vandalized. I was going to put it in the garage.
And as I was moving it, I was going around the block. And I noticed a person on a bike, drove up to that person, and asked them if they were, you know, the person that was in front of my house. The person on the bike then rode to the back of my truck, came back up to the driver's side window, and started shooting through the window.
The only thing that I remember really is the first shot. And then I woke up, I'm not sure how much long later, to realize that I was in pretty bad shape. I then reclined my -- the chair in my truck and started honking the horn, hoping that somebody would or had already called 911.
DE LA CRUZ: Wow. I'm really, really sorry to hear. We are so happy, though Jake Thompson, that you could be with us here tonight to share your story. We do appreciate your time. Thank you so much.
THOMSON: Yes, no problem.
MARCIANO: Speedy recovery, Jacob.
Well, as that case begins, another ends. An innocent man is finally free. For the past 22 years, Anthony Capozzi has enjoyed Easter Sunday well in jail. And now finally he's with his friends and family in New York. Claudine Ewing from our Buffalo affiliate WGRC has more on a day so many people thought would never come.
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CLAUDINE EWING, WGRC NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Anthony Capozzi is a free man. He spent 22 years in jail for a crime he did not commit, yet he is not bitter.
ANTHONY CAPOZZI: I'm glad to be home.
EWING: And home is where Anthony is spending Easter Sunday with his parents, his sisters, and other relatives.
CAPOZZI: I've served too long, 22 years in jail for being -- convicted wrong for the rape and being innocent of rape.
EWING: Capozzi was convicted of raping two women in Buffalo's Delaware Park. He maintained all along that he did not do it. His defense attorney believed him and his family did, too. But eyewitness testimony proved strong enough for a jury to convict Capozzi.
CAPOZZI: When I was in court, I never defended myself in court. I didn't defend - I didn't go up to the stand to defend myself, to tell the judge I didn't do this. This is impossible, I would never do this. I was a young man. But I sat there...
EWING: Twenty-two years later, old rape kit slides at a hospital were tested for DNA. It revealed that Capozzi was not the Delaware Park rapist, but t was the suspected bike path rapist, Altinio Sanchez, a man who resembles Capozzi.
CAPOZZI: See, I heard of Sanchez, but I don't know nothing about Sanchez.
EWING: What Anthony knows is that he is free. He suffers from schizophrenia, a condition he was diagnosed with before he was put in jail. Since his release, he returned to an old store to buy candy, but just what has he missed over the years besides his loving family?
CAPOZZI: Smoking cigarettes and drinking beer. Cheers.
EWING: Society has changed since he was incarcerated. There are now cell phones, something that Capozzi is still trying to grasp.
CAPOZZI: No wires, no batteries. I don't understand.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there any place you want to go?
CAPOZZI: I'd like go on my own, be a bachelor and go on my own.
PAM GUENTHER, SISTER: I want h him to have a lifestyle that he is able to be happy. Just like we've made a life for ourselves, he deserves a life, too.
CAPOZZI: I served the time they wanted. And now it's just follow the yellow brick road. Follow the yellow brick road.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Capozzi served 20 plus years of a 35 year prison term. The family's attorney says he's prepared to sue the state of New York as a way to ensure he'll always be able to get treatment for his schizophrenia. Certainly has a good attitude about it.
DE LA CRUZ: A great attitude. Follow the yellow brick road.
Well as you know, it has been the talk of the week and the weekend. And it all started with this comment.
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IMUS: Well, some rough girls from Rutgers. Man, they've got tattoos and some hard core hos. That's some nappy headed hos there I'm going to tell you that.
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DE LA CRUZ: Tonight, more reaction on Imus' racy comments, this time from a preacher's pulpit.
And we'd like to know what you think. Should Don Imus be fired for his comments about the Rutger's womens basketball team? So far, more than 23,000 people have voted. 53 percent say yes, 47 percent say no. Go to cnn.com right now to cast your vote.
MARCIANO: Plus, a high speed case with an unbelievably tragic ending.
DE LA CRUZ: And the captain of this sinking cruise ship gives us his side of the story. We won't leave you high and dry, we promise. Stay with us right here in the NEWSROOM.
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TIME STAMP: 2212:22
DE LA CRUZ: Well, among the most popular stories that you are checking out on CNN.com tonight, the captain of this cruise ship, which sunk off the coast of Greece, is blaming strong currents. Two French tourists are still missing from Thursday's accident. More than 1,000 passengers, many of them Americans, were rescued. The captain and other crew members are accused of negligence.
MARCIANO: And in Florida, two co-workers liked each other so much, they decided to make it legal. We're not talking about marriage, it's adoption.
A judge in Citrus County officially made 62-year-old Robert Wilke the adoptive father of 41-year-old Darlene Bean. Wilke says he always wanted a daughter and often found himself offering Bean fatherly advice. DE LA CRUZ: One way to spend your Easter. On your mark, get set, catch. This pig, a pig catching contest kicked off in Thailand today. Here's the challenge. The guys have to grease up their arms and then try to hold on.
MARCIANO: Definitely a tough way to get your Easter ham.
DE LA CRUZ: Oh, Rob.
For these stories and much more, just log on to CNN.com.
MARCIANO: Well, always low prices, that's the slogan of one super store you may know.
MARCIANO: But it doesn't mean free. This guy right here apparently doesn't want to stop and pay. We're going to show you much more next in the NEWSROOM
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TIME STAMP: 2214:55
DE LA CRUZ: All right, pay attention here. This is a terrible story with a senseless tragedy, but police want you to see it.
MARCIANO: Yes, it's the worst case scenario of what can happen when a suspect runs from the cops.
Here's Chris Haas from our affiliate in Dallas, WFAA.
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CHRIS HAAS, WFAA NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sometime around 5:30, police say Amy Rizza (ph) started driving this SUV so dangerously in Somerville County that other drivers called 911. The chase was on. There was a race east.
EARL GILLUM, TROOPER, TEXAS PUBLIC SAFETY DEPT.: We used the spike system to take out a couple of tires on the SUV.
HAAS: But she kept going, ripping what was left of the tires to shreds, careening along U.S. 67.
GILLUM: She speeds over 100 miles an hour up to 110 miles per hour.
HAAS: It ended here in Opereno.
GILLUM: She started weaving back and forth, struck the center median.
HAAS: The SUV flipped. A baby was thrown from it. And that's when this trooper says everyone realized Rizza's (ph) infant daughter had been inside the entire time. Medics tried to save her, flying her to a Fort Worth hospital, but doctors there pronounced her dead. She was just nine-months old. Chris Haas, Channel 8 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Across America tonight, Massachusetts troopers to the rescue. This jeep flipped and landed upside-down, under water in a marsh south of Boston. Luckily, an officer watched it all happen, he cut the woman out of her seatbelt, and pulled her to safety. Nobody was hurt.
DE LA CRUZ: Not much left of this church in Wilson North Carolina today. The Easter morning congregation arrived to find the chapel in flames.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Several of the firefighters were actually in the process of getting ready to go to their own church. And a lot of them sacrificed that visit to be able to help somebody else.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We praise God anyway on Easter, just for being alive.
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DE LA CRUZ: And there is another thing to be thankful for on this Easter. Nobody was hurt in that blaze.
Get you now to Florida. All right, take a look. Watch the guy on the left of your screen. He grabs a diamond ring, and then he is out the door. This is a Wal-mart store in Hileah. Police know this man well. They say that he has hit four other Wal-marts. He got away this time, but police are on his trail. In his defense, he's probably just doing something nice for his girlfriend.
MARCIANO: Yes, that's right.
DE LA CRUZ: You can't fault him for that.
MARCIANO: Got his number. All right, out of Houston, Texas, last week, a fast moving fire ravaged an office building that did kill three people. But now, it looks like it wasn't an accident. Police took they took a woman into custody. She is a nurse. Her name's Misty Ann Weaver. Police say she admitted starting the fire because she was behind on a project for her boss and she needed to stall for more time.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, Equal, the artificial sweetener is hoping to get some sweet revenge in court tomorrow. The company is suing main rival Splenda, claiming its advertising is misleading consumers. Equal's makers say Splenda should not be allowed to use the slogan made from sugar so it tastes like sugar, but Splenda says its products sucrolose is actually synthesized from table sugar.
MARCIANO: Well, you may not recognize his name, but you know the award winning characters he put in the funny papers. Johnny Hart has died. He created the syndicated comic strip "B.C.," the adventures of a bunch of wisecracking and politically minded cave men. Hart also co-created "Wizard of Id" with another artist. "B.C." appeared every day in more than 1300 papers. That's one of my favorites. Johnny Hart had a stroke while sitting at his drawing board at his home in upstate New York. He was 76.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, you have heard one warning after another after another. And I know that you've definitely have when it comes to global warming.
MARCIANO: There's a lot out there to talk about it. And we're going to talk about what's real, what's not, and you know, what's a lot of hot air. We're going to talk to an expert.
But first...
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our biggest fear is that this is a short window and that people, you know, in New York or Hollywood will say, you know, Jesus sells right now. But as soon as it levels out, we'll move on to something else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: Statues, crosses, books, even video games. The almighty needs the almighty dollar when Jesus sells.
MARCIANO: And he's known for mouthing off. So what did Don Imus say this time to get himself in a bunch of trouble? Keep it right here in the NEWSROOM.
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TIME STAMP: 2222:12
DE LA CRUZ: Well, Christians the world over are celebrating Easter today. About 3500 people braved near freezing temperatures at Arlington National Cemetery for a sunrise service. The unseasonably cold weather kept people away from traditional outdoor services across the south and the Midwest.
MARCIANO: In the Persian Gulf, American military men and women took in Easter services at this camp in Kuwait. The chaplain's message was one of hope for troops who have lost comrades in battle. Ten U.S. troops were killed this weekend in Iraq.
Well, Easter weekend is the holiest weekend on the Christian calendar, even more so than Christmas, though not nearly as commercialized. But don't think for a moment that the image, message, and legacy of Jesus is lost on those trying to make a buck. CNN's faith and values correspondent Delia Gallagher reports.
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DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jesus was once a docudrama...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bringing forth bread from the earth.
GALLAGHER: ...that didn't bring much bread to its creators back in 1979. But behold today's Jesus, the Christian son of God has become a darling of the marketplace. For even a movie in Aramaic, ""The Passion of the Christ"" grossed $371 million and was a box office hit worldwide.
PAUL LAUER, MOTIVE MARKETING: Forty-two percent of the population goes to church on Sunday. And they're everywhere. It's every age, every gender, every ethnicity.
GALLAGHER: It's not just Jesus selling these days, its his mother, his icons, his spirit.
JERRY JENKINS, THE "LEFT BEHIND" SERIES: It's due to a spiritual hunger. And people are looking for something beyond themselves. And you know, our biggest fear is that this is a short window and that people, you know, in New York or Hollywood will say, you know, Jesus sells right now, but as soon as it levels out, we'll move on to something else.
GALLAGHER: Not all retailers out there are in it for the love of God, though. Some see the Almighty as a way to the almighty dollar. The Association for Christian Retail estimates that their members sell $4.2 billion of products each year.
RANDALL BALMER, PROF., RELIGION DEPT., BARNARD COLLEGE: I'm not sure if we take the whole package of Jesus teachings that Jesus himself would have been very comfortable with that sort of commercialism.
GALLAGHER: Many Christian retailers say that the difference between profiting from a profit and simply spreading his good word can sometimes be close.
BILL ANDERSON, CHRISTIAN BOOKSELLERS ASSN.: We live in a capitalistic society. And this is really driven by an open marketplace. And today's American consumer is a pretty tough judge and jury when it comes to what they're willing to lay their money down for. A Christian logo'd golf ball or a golf ball with a message might be something that a golfer shares his faith - uses to share his faith on the golf course.
GALLAGHER: International groups like Campus Crusade for Christ, which created the Jesus docudrama, say marketing products is just one form of funding. They have $560 million in revenue this year, mostly from members.
JIM GREEN, THE JESUS FILM PROJECT: Our goal is to simply make the story and life of Jesus available to everyone in the world in his own language, near to where they live. So our goal is not to make money.
GALLAGHER: The Jesus docudrama didn't make millions back in 1979, but it's reached three billion viewers worldwide in languages as diverse as Dari, Ganju, and Dutch, teaching its makers that marketing is just one modern solution to an age-old problem, how to speak to the faithful in a language they can understand.
Delia Gallagher, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DE LA CRUZ: Interesting.
MARCIANO: Definitely a gray area. Now where can you make money? But whether you're religious or not, you know, the stuff that we've been showing on "CNN PRESENTS" this whole weekend is fascinating stuff.
DE LA CRUZ: It is. It really is.
MARCIANO: And I think we'll rerun it a couple of times over. Of course, we have commercials, which we make money off of. So there we are.
DE LA CRUZ: Well, speaking of money, let's stay on that topic.
MARCIANO: Yes.
DE LA CRUZ: Money is something that really matters, especially for troops fighting the war on terror.
MARCIANO: So why is the White House accusing Congress of penny pinching? We'll take an in-depth look at that next.
DE LA CRUZ: Plus, the numbers are staggering. Dogs and cats put to sleep so their owners can go war. Then this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We give you 20 minutes playing on your Playstation if you just take one bite of green bean or one bite of carrot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: You heard him. He rewards his child for eating just one bite. Find out why, coming up.
DE LA CRUZ: But first, after being called names on a high profile radio show, the Rutgers women's basketball team has their say. You don't want to miss it, coming up next on the NEWSROOM.
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TIME STAMP: 2229:49
DE LA CRUZ: Well, Don Imus has apologized, but the criticism over his racial remarks about the Rutgers women's basketball team keeps getting louder. MARCIANO: Imus is scheduled to appear live on the Reverend Al Sharpton's radio show tomorrow. Sharpton's been one of Imus' biggest critics lately. And as our Jim Costa reports, the controversy just keeps growing and could even affect presidential candidates...
... Sharpton has been one Imus' biggest critics lately. And as our Jim Acosta reports, the controversy just keeps growing and could even affect presidential candidates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a restrained form of protest on Easter Sunday as Rutgers women's basketball coach Vivian Stringer sat in church and let her pastor make the case for talk radio host Don Imus to step down.
REV. DEFOREST B. SOARIES JR., FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF LINCOLN GARDENS: We intend to, at the very least, demand the resignation or termination of Mr. Imus.
ACOSTA: That followed louder criticism from the Reverend Al Sharpton, who warned of continuing protests outside the broadcaster's studios.
REV. AL SHARPTON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: If he still has a job next Saturday this time, we are going to lead this rally and we will head down to that station and we will picket that station. And we will picket that station as long as Don Imus is on that station.
ACOSTA: Imus ignited the firestorm that now threatens his 40- year career last week when he and his executive producer ripped into the Rutgers women's basketball team.
DON IMUS, HOST, "IMUS IN THE MORNING:" That's some nappy-headed hos there, I'm going to tell you that now.
ACOSTA: It took two days for Imus to apologize.
IMUS: Our characterization was thoughtless and stupid and we're sorry.
CLARENCE PAGE, CHICAGO TRIBUNE: I'm just disappointed.
ACOSTA: Columnist Clarence Page was understandably disappointed. Six years ago, he had asked Imus to ask him to stop making racist humor a part of his program.
PAGE: I had him hold up his hand and take a pledge like an AA or a 12-step program. And he went along with it. Unfortunately, as we could see now, he has fallen off the wagon, which I think is unfortunate.
ACOSTA: If Imus survives, the big question is whether his show can still draw political heavyweights, such as presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, and John McCain, who is a frequent guest.
PAGE: I think that any candidate who goes on his show now has to answer for it just like if they belong to a country club that discriminates.
ACOSTA: CNN tried to contact several of the major presidential candidates over the weekend. So far only one "no comment" from Mitt Romney's camp.
Jim Acosta, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Well, we've been asking you to vote online. Should Don Imus be fired for his comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team?
DE LA CRUZ: Taking a look at these numbers right here. The answer not so clear cut, that is according to the almost 27,000 of you out there who have voted at cnn.com, 53 percent of you say that Imus should be fired, 47 percent are saying that he shouldn't.
MARCIANO: Thanks for taking part in our non-scientific poll tonight. You can watch more of this story tomorrow on "AMERICAN MORNING."
DE LA CRUZ: You can place your vote at cnn.com as well.
MARCIANO: And we're not done. We're still tallying the votes.
DE LA CRUZ: We're still counting votes, cnn.com.
MARCIANO: Right up until 11:00 tonight. And then tune in tomorrow at 6:00 a.m. Eastern for CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."
DE LA CRUZ: At this hour in Baghdad, 5:00 a.m. local, a total ban on vehicle traffic is taking effect. The ban is part of a security crackdown for Monday's fourth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad to U.S. forces. Earlier Sunday Iraqi officials said a car bomb south of Baghdad killed at least 17 people and wounded 26 others. The bomb exploded near a hospital.
Here in the U.S., the president and Democrats in Congress are on a collision course over funding for the Iraq War.
MARCIANO: The latest war spending bill has stalled because of Democratic demands that the money come with some strings attached. Most favor a deadline for U.S. troops to start leaving Iraq, something the president says he will not accept. We get more from our White House correspondent Ed Henry. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Two presidents named Bush posing with a female sergeant at Fort Hood in Texas.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a rose between two thorns.
HENRY: The current president was joined by his family for Easter Sunday services with troops at the Army base.
BUSH: I had a chance to reflect on the great sacrifice that our military and their families are making. I prayed for their safety. I prayed for their strength and comfort. And I prayed for peace.
HENRY: A far more diplomatic version of the blunt attack in Saturday's radio address, accusing Democrats of jeopardizing the safety of troops by stalling the war funding bill with provisions calling for withdrawal.
BUSH: This emergency war spending bill is not a political statement. It is a source of critical funding that has a direct impact on their daily lives.
HENRY: The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee insisted Democrats will not cut off funding for the war, but will continue to try and find levers to force the president's hand.
SEN. CARL LEVIN (D-MI), CHAIRMAN, ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Well, we're going to fund the troops. That's not going to be the issue. The question is, what -- how can we put pressure on the president to put pressure on the Iraqi leaders to reach a political settlement?
HENRY: But that contradicts the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, who has now signed onto legislation that would cut off most funding for the war next year.
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: I do not believe there should be a single drop of American drop -- additional blood, shed in Iraq.
HENRY: The maneuvering is drawing fire from independent Democrat Joe Lieberman, who wants General David Petraeus to get a chance to succeed.
SEN. JOE LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: This is particularly wrong to call for a withdrawal now, as the new plan under the new general with new troops is beginning to show encouraging signs.
HENRY: The president meanwhile has problems in his own party. Some of his supporters in the funding fight are growing weary about a lack of progress in Iraq.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R), PENNSYLVANIA: Congress is not in a position to micromanage the war. But we do not have any good alternative. Right now, you can't see the end of the tunnel, let alone a light at the end of the tunnel.
HENRY (on camera): The president is playing hardball, charging that if he doesn't get the money soon, the Army will have to cut back funding for critical equipment and training needs. The Democrats insist there's enough money to last at least until July. The only thing that's certain is that the clock is ticking, and neither side wants to give in.
Ed Henry, CNN, with the president in Crawford, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Republican presidential hopeful John McCain is backing away from his recent remarks about safety and security in Baghdad. McCain has said more than once that parts of the city are so safe people can walk around freely. But on tonight's "60 Minutes," McCain said he misspoke.
He acknowledged the heavy security surrounding his own trip to a Baghdad market, but he insists the recent U.S. troop increase is making the city safer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "60 MINUTES")
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I understand why they would provide me with that security. But I can tell you if it had been two months ago and I had asked to do it, they would have said, under no circumstances whatsoever. I view that as a sign of progress.
There is no unarmored Humvees. Obviously, that's the case. I'm trying to make the point over and over and over again that we are making progress, and there are signs of progress, it is long and it's hard and it's tough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: Senator McCain is a strong supporter of the White House policy in Iraq. He has made that policy a centerpiece of his own presidential campaign.
DE LA CRUZ: Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has called on his followers to stop killing other Iraqis. Instead he wants them to focus on resisting Americans. The announcement comes as U.S. commanders report the deaths of six U.S. troops. Four died south of Baghdad, the other two in provinces outside the city.
It is also a deadly day for NATO forces in Afghanistan, two roadside bombs killed seven troops. Canadian officials say six of them were from Canada. Well, for U.S. troops, the emotional toll of shipping out on active duty is hard enough.
MARCIANO: And for those who have pets and nowhere to place them, there are no real easy answers. CNN's Gary Nurenberg reports on a group that is stepping in to help save a soldier's best friend.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AEYNE ANNE DIZICKSA, U.S. ARMY RESERVE: I'll always be so grateful for everything all you did I have my family back. I have my family back.
GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Army Reservist Aeyne Anne Dizicksa was deployed abroad in 2005 with little time to find homes for her pets like Sweet Magnolia.
DIZICKSA: Eight days, all I kept thinking is my cats, my cats, and my dogs.
NURENBERG: For American troops with no one to care for pets left behind, it is a problem that began getting attention during the first Iraq war, Desert Storm in 1991.
STEVE ALBIN, NETPETS.ORG: During that period of time, a minimum of 25,000 pets of the military was put to sleep.
NURENBERG: With no options years ago, Dizicksa had to put three of her beloved cats to sleep.
DIZICKSA: I had that done. It ripped me apart.
ALBIN: In order to serve and protect our country, we wind up -- they wind up having to put their pet to sleep.
NURENBERG: Because that didn't seem right to Steve Albin, he founded the netpets.org military pets foster project.
ALBIN: It has actually become my life because we have successfully fostered well over 9,400 pets for the military so far.
NURENBERG: A similar project, Operation Noble Foster put Dizicksa in touch with Susie Hagrelius who fostered Sweet Magnolia while Dizicksa was abroad.
SUSAN HAGRELIUS, PET FOSTER MOM: I know I would never make it. This would be -- I would be the worst one in the world. But it's something that I can do to help out military people and help out our country.
NURENBERG: The problem is, it was hard to give Sweet Magnolia back when Dizicksa came home.
DIZICKSA: Tears are streaming down our face and they are crying, oh, I'm going to miss you. And oh, my kitty. But I was still like, I don't care how much you are crying; I'm taking my kitty back. I'm getting my dog back. Mine.
NURENBERG: But seriously...
DIZICKSA: I'll never be more grateful for anything in my life.
ALBIN: Until we say good-bye.
NURENBERG: Good-bye, Julie.
Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DE LA CRUZ: Chili (ph) is such a cutie, aww.
MARCIANO: Beauty.
DE LA CRUZ: Beauty.
MARCIANO: What's up next?
DE LA CRUZ: All right. What a difference a few degrees makes.
MARCIANO: Ah yes. We talk global warming, melting ice, rising oceans, climate change, the experts say it's happening for sure and the effects in the long run or not so long run could be horrendous.
Plus, you know, speaking of global warming, we could use some right now. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is in the CNN Weather Center. We have had the Easter snow, most of you are hoping for it to go away.
DE LA CRUZ: There she is, hard at work. Jacqui Jeras right next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Critics say that global warming is an overblown myth, but a major new study from the U.N. says it's dire and something needs to be done right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO (voice-over): February's report from a United Nations panel on global climate change was just the tip of the iceberg. It concluded that global warming is real. It's getting worse and that human activity is driving it. And a follow-up released Friday in Brussels offers new details on the devastating effects climate change will likely bring to bear on humans, animals, and the environment.
MARTIN PARRY, IPCC CO-CHAIRMAN: We're no longer arm-waving with models that this may happen. This is what we call empirical information on the ground. We can measure it.
MARCIANO: Perhaps the most troubling finding is that by the end of the century, floods will permanently displace hundreds of millions of people as low-lying coastal areas are swallowed up by rising sea levels.
ROBERT CORELL, CLIMATE SCIENTIST: With a meter or two of sea level rise, we're likely to see hundreds of millions of what we will call environmental refugees, people who no longer can live where they have lived for maybe thousands of years. MARCIANO: The report predicts that where it's wet and hot, insect-borne diseases such as malaria will explode. Where it's dry, it's likely to become much drier. And some water supplies will vanish, notably the glaciers in the Himalayas, the key water source for hundreds of millions of Asians. And the deserts will expand.
JAMES HANSEN, EARTH SCIENTIST: Already we're beginning to see in the western United States that it is becoming drier and hotter. And if we go down the path of business as usual, we can expect basically permanent drought in the western United States.
MARCIANO: Another grim finding is that the world will see a spike in endangered species with a wave of extinction from coral reefs to polar bears.
CORELL: Our study in the Arctic suggested that the polar bear is on its way to extinction during this century in the most likelihood. And the reason for that is that they live on the ice. They get their food off the ice. They snatch the seals through small air holes. And now most of that ice is no longer there and will disappear.
MARCIANO (on camera): Joining me now to further discuss this hot topic is Jim White, climatologist at the University of Colorado.
Jim, I assume that you agree with most of what this report says. But is it too late for us to avoid some of these nightmare scenarios?
JAMES WHITE, CLIMATOLOGIST, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO: I think the time has passed unfortunately for us to avoid any kind of consequences of climate change.
MARCIANO: Well, I mean, we're talking potentially 30 percent or more of species becoming extinct. And you're saying we're past that point already? That's probably going to happen?
WHITE: Well, I don't know that we can say exactly what percent is going to be extinct over what period of time. The reality is that temperatures will change. We're not 100 percent sure about exactly how much. But they are going to go up and some species will go extinct, whether that is 20 percent or 30 percent I think is difficult to say. But does it really make a difference?
MARCIANO: Now we're judging these predictions quite a bit on computer models, I think there is, I don't know, 15, 17, 19 of them. And they seem to all agree on a warming of the globe. How much warming have we narrowed this range down to?
WHITE: I think we have got it down to where it is plus or minus a few degrees Celsius. Unfortunately, the models aren't perfect. And probably the biggest unknown in all of this, Rob, is what are we going to do? If human beings adapt and start changing our ways, then we can radically alter the future. If we don't, then even the most dire predictions are not going to be dire enough.
(END VIDEOTAPE) MARCIANO: Well, the critics make several points against human- caused global warming, which include the fact that carbon dioxide is less than 0.1 percent of the gases that are in the atmosphere, very small, so any changes really don't make that much of a difference. And also that they say the climate of course goes through these natural cycles and we have been far warmer than we are now or will be in the next 50 years in the past, and we have survived.
Well, if you believe in global warming and you want to help, well, the third installment of the IPCC report will come up next month and it will discuss just that. What can we do? What can industry do? And what can governments do to help slow down global warming?
You wouldn't think global warming is happening with all of the snow that is happening right now.
(WEATHER REPORT)
DE LA CRUZ: Well, straight ahead, we all know kids are afraid of a lot of things, the dark, monsters, taking a bath. But what if they're afraid of food?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIM KAY, PATRICK'S FATHER: It was so far beyond being picky, it was psychological, physical.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: This boy refused to eat. What's a mom or dad to do? Find out next in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Eating meals with our family is something most of us take for granted. But for thousands of parents, it's only a dream because their children suffer from severe feeding disorder.
DE LA CRUZ: We're not talking about eating disorders like anorexia, instead, these are feeding disorders. Here's CNN's Allan Chernoff to explain.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Eight weeks ago, Patrick Kay was afraid to eat nearly all foods. This is Patrick now, after two months of feeding therapy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's unbelievable.
CHERNOFF: It's nothing less than a miracle for Patrick's parents, Anne and Tim. For the first time in their son's life, he's getting all the nutrition he needs by eating.
T. KAY: We're pinching ourselves. We just can't believe it. CHERNOFF: Patrick's lifeline was a feeding tube that delivered liquid nutrition directly to his stomach. He would wear a backpack holding a pump to keep formula flowing all day.
Patrick was born with an esophagus that didn't connect to his stomach and a small intestine that wouldn't properly digest nutrients. Scars on his stomach are reminders of surgeries during his first days of life that corrected the problems, but Patrick still wouldn't eat.
Developmentally, he was normal. Yet, even after entering grade school, Patrick would eat only morsels of a select few foods like chicken nuggets.
T. KAY: It was so far beyond being picky, it was psychological, physical.
CHERNOFF: Two months ago, Patrick and his mom traveled from their home near Detroit to Baltimore's Kennedy Krieger Institute, which has the nation's foremost program for pediatric feeding disorders.
(on camera): Most parents might assume that eating is instinctive. But it's not. It's actually a learned process. And here at the feeding rooms of the Kennedy Krieger Institute, therapists teach children how to eat by rewarding them for every bite they take.
(voice over): The typical patient here is a toddler who may get rewarded with a toy for taking a bite.
Patrick earned time on a PlayStation.
BRIAN DUDLEY, FEEDING THERAPIST: We said, well, we're going to give you 20 minutes of play on your PlayStation if you just take one bite of green bean or one bite of carrot.
CHERNOFF: The incentive worked. One bite eventually led to a full meal.
DR. CHARLES GULOTTA, DIR., PEDIATRIC FEEDING PROGRAM: And what our program ends up trying to do is getting the child basically to trust food again and recognize that food is a good thing and not a bad thing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who's turn is it?
CHERNOFF: Kennedy Krieger believes 3 percent of all toddlers who are otherwise normal have a feeding disorder, either refusing to eat or selecting from an extremely limited menu.
Behavioral psychologist Charles Gulotta says the cause of a feeding disorder can be a complex combination of early physical trauma and severe acid reflux, making it painful to eat, which in turn can lead to a psychological block. A child will see eating as something to fear.
GULOTTA: You actually have a child that winds up learning that food is not a good thing, is not a pleasurable thing. It's actually a painful experience.
CHERNOFF: Now, at age 10, Patrick has learned eating isn't all that bad.
PATRICK KAY, KENNEDY KRIEGER PATIENT: I like oranges, apples, peaches, green beans.
CHERNOFF: If Patrick keeps eating properly, doctors will soon remove his feeding tube. That's another big incentive for baseball player Patrick, because that will allow him to slide head first into second base. One of his little league dreams.
Allan Chernoff, CNN, Baltimore.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DE LA CRUZ: Good for him. Well, thank you so much for spending some time with us this Easter Sunday. I'm Veronica De La Cruz.
MARCIANO: And I'm Rob Marciano. This week on CNN, the American dream, you want it? Well, wake up with "AMERICAN MORNING," because they're going to take on mortgages, loans and renovations. Before you're in too deep, we'll tell you what you need to know about your American home all this week starting at 6 a.m. Eastern.
DE LA CRUZ: Also, a nation buried in debt, bankruptcy, repossession, and foreclosure, who's at most risk and how will their debt affect you? Paula Zahn's "Debtor Nation" all this week at 8:00 Eastern. Thanks, again, for joining us. The news continues on CNN. Have a happy Easter.
MARCIANO: Happy Easter.
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