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Body Found Could Be Missing Soldier; Pentagon Working on Plan B in Iraq; Bush Shares Intelligence on al Qaeda Threat in Iraq; White House Liaison Testifies about Attorney Firings; FAA Works to Curb Travel Delays

Aired May 23, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CO-HOST: Hello. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in today for Kyra Phillips at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
DON LEMON, CO-HOST: And I'm Don Lemon.

Search and rescue in Iraq. The mission hasn't changed, but a grisly discovery diminishes the hope of the rescuing three missing soldiers.

WHITFIELD: Three soldiers' families suffer and wait while the military scrambles to identify a body. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: In Iraq today, part of a mystery may be solved but not in the way anyone hoped. A man's body found in the river, western looking, wearing pants that appear to be U.S. Army issue. It turned up in the same general area where a frantic hunt has been underway for three U.S. soldiers.

To Baghdad now and our bureau chief there, Cal Perry.

Cal, still no identity on the body?

CAL PERRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good afternoon to you, Don.

What we understand is that at about 11 a.m., a body was extracted from a canal near Hillah. That's a town just south of Baghdad. And as you mentioned, it appears as though they were wearing camouflage pants that would be consistent with those issued to U.S. military soldiers.

Now we understand that the body was found by Iraqi police. It was shortly then handed over to U.S. military personnel, where they are looking at that body. They are trying to identify that body.

We even understand from Arwa Damon, our correspondent who is embedded down with soldiers on the search, that there's a high likelihood that that body will be transferred to Dover so that they can make absolutely sure as to the identification of that body.

As you mentioned, there is a massive search under way. Some 4,000 troops sweeping through an area called the Triangle of Death. It is a very difficult area. It's an area in which al Qaeda is known to be operating. So while one body perhaps found, the U.S. military wants to be absolutely sure and positively identify that body before they release information to the press.

We heard from Major General Caldwell, they want to notify families fist in the case that this is a soldier, continue the search, and move on from there. So that is the situation as of right now -- Don.

LEMON: So, Cal, as you're speaking, we're looking at some of pictures of the river, folks going into the river and checking it. Can you tell us a little bit more about the search area?

PERRY: This is a very, very difficult area to conduct a search in. It's based on a series of canals south of Baghdad. They run into the Euphrates River.

It's a place in which the U.S. military has taken heavy casualties in the past. In fact, the unit that preceded this unit, the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment took some of the highest casualties of any unit in this war. There is thick brush that surrounds this area along those canals.

So it is a very difficult place to conduct a search. It is a very difficult place to conduct combat operations. And for the U.S. military, it's been an ongoing concern sifting through various intelligence.

They put out a $200,000 reward for any information leading to these three soldiers. And they've received thousands of tips. Some have come to be not true; others have been true.

We've heard from General Petraeus on Friday, saying that there are four people detained, they believe, directly involved in the search. He also added that he believes he knows exactly the al Qaeda leader who was involved in the attack. And he said, quote, "We've dealt with this man before."

So they are really trying to sift through various pieces of intelligence. They're looking for any evidence. Anything that they find in these canals or in the surrounding area, they're sending off for forensic testings.

But, again, this is a massive search, 4,000 troops, and it's actually expanded recently into an area in which U.S. troops are not used to operating in.

But, again, they have found this one body. But, again, they want to be absolutely sure that this is one of the missing soldiers before making any public announcement.

LEMON: All right, absolutely understandably. Thank you so much for that, Cal Perry.

The military reports nine more U.S. troops killed in roadside bombings and gun battles across Iraq. That raises this month's death toll for American forces there to 81.

The total number of U.S. service members killed in the war so far now stands at 3,423.

WHITFIELD: And now new developments out of the Pentagon on the plans of carrying out this war in Iraq. Our Barbara Starr is there.

Barbara, what is the latest?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, myself and our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, have just spoken extensively to an official very familiar with what is now being called the redesign team of the campaign plan in Iraq. Now, that all sounds like a lot of bureaucratic jargon. But let's tell people what exactly is going on here.

When you talk about the context of the war, essentially it's referred to as a campaign plan. What the military does, what the diplomatic side does. There's been a lot of chatter in Washington about Plan B, about redesigning the war, new options and what to do to make this all work.

We can now confirm to you that there are a team of military and State Department officials working on a redesign of the conduct of the war. This has been confirmed.

It is expected that General Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, and Ambassador Ryan Crocker will sign off on this rewrite by the end of the month. They are the ones that have ordered all of this up. They have a team of officials now working on the details.

What we have learned is there are both political and military elements to this.

One of the central things is to try and focus, we are told, on political accommodation with insurgent elements in Iraq. What they're going to try and do is, as this official says, is identify those leaders they can reconcile with and those that they cannot.

Security forces, the military, will continue to go after those that don't want to come into the political process. But what they're going to try and do is negotiate, essentially, cease-fire arrangement in key places around Iraq with the Iraqi elements, the Sunni extremists, the Shiah militia movements that they feel they can talk to; offer them political incentives and try and use this carrot and stick approach around the country and see if they can make these elements of progress then spread further across Iraq.

And again, Fred, the bottom line, there's a lot of urgency to this because, as this official told us, they don't believe they can keep these higher U.S. troop levels in Iraq past the early spring. It's too much of a strain on the military. It's going to be very tough to keep those higher levels.

So this rewrite of the conduct of the war is an effort to try and make it work and try to make it all work as fast as they can -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So, Barbara, when you say it is the hope that key players would sign onto this plan by the end of the month, how quickly thereafter would this kind of plan be executed?

STARR: Well, you know, I think it's fair to say that they're trying to do some of that as we speak. But this is partially, I think one can assume, also a domestic political issue. They want to put something together, put it in writing, put it down on paper, and be ready to demonstrate to Congress and to the political leadership in this country that they have a way forward.

General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have now, we know, been working on this for some time. They had assembled a group of people several weeks ago to begin to develop the initial recommendations on how to redo this. Now it's being formalized.

The report -- the final report, essentially if you will, will go to Crocker and Petraeus at the end of the month. They will sign off on it.

The real question, I think, is what's really going to start looking different? And what they hope is going to start looking different is this political emphasis. Getting negotiated cease fires around the country with key leaders that are willing to sign on to it will be the beginning of trying to make this spread across Iraq.

Whether it works, to use the cliche, remains to be seen. But this is now being discussed at the highest levels as that key phrase, a campaign redesign or a campaign rewrite. So now an open acknowledgment that they are trying to change course, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Very interesting. All right. We'll talk more about this later on. Barbara Starr, thanks so much from the Pentagon.

For two years, some key intelligence reports on Iraq and Osama bin Laden have been classified documents. Well, today, they figured into a commencement speech at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. The speaker, President Bush. He outlined a number of alleged plots.

And White House correspondent Elaine Quijano has details now from New London, Connecticut -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Fredricka, President Bush talk about plots that we have heard about before. But President Bush today, as well, sharing intelligence that he said essentially bolsters his assertion that, if the United States were to leave Iraq too soon, that in fact, al Qaeda would use that country, he believes, to launch attacks on American soil.

Now, in the commencement address just a short time ago here in Connecticut, the president said that in 2005, Osama bin Laden planned to do just that. President Bush said that the al Qaeda leader was working to set up a unit inside of Iraq to focus on attacks outside of Iraq. Now the president's revelation of that intelligence comes as the White House and lawmakers are locked into a fight, trying to reach an agreement over war funding, and amid continued calls by some Democrats for U.S. troops to leave Iraq.

Now on that point, interesting to note, President Bush today had some new language and rejected any comparisons between Iraq and Vietnam.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The enemy in Vietnam had neither the intent nor the capability to strike our homeland. The enemy in Iraq does. Nine-eleven taught us that to protect the American people, we must fight the terrorists where they live so that they don't have to fight them where we live.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, on that intelligence on Osama bin Laden, the White House rejects any suggestion that the revelation was used for political purposes.

As for the war funding bill, a White House spokesman today said that officials were cautiously optimistic, Fredricka, that President Bush will have a bill on his desk by the end of this week -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Elaine Quijano in New London, Connecticut. Thanks so much -- Don.

LEMON: She was a White House liaison for the Justice Department, but Monica Goodling says she was not involved in deciding which U.S. attorneys would lose their jobs.

Goodling is on Capitol Hill today, testifying under oath with legal immunity. At issue are the reasons eight U.S. attorneys were fired and the role politics played or didn't play in those decisions.

In her opening statement, Goodling said her role has been exaggerated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MONICA GOODLING, FORMER WHITE HOUSE LIAISON FOR JUSTICE DEPARTMENT: I wish to clarify my role as White House liaison. Despite that title, I did not hold the keys to the kingdom, as some have suggested.

I was not the primary White House contact for purposes of the development or approval of the U.S. attorney replacement plan. I've never attended a meeting of the White House judicial selection committee. The attorney general and Kyle Simms attended those meeting.

To the best of my recollection, I've never had a conversation with Karl Rove or Harriet Miers while I served at the Department of Justice. And I'm certain I never spoke to either of them about the hiring or firing of any U.S. attorney.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Our Justice Department (sic), Kelli Area, has been watching today's hearings, and she's standing by in Washington.

Kelli, with these type hearings, we are always waiting for the sort of "aha" moment. That hasn't happened so far with these -- in this hearing, has it?

KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it depends on who you talk to. I mean, yes, it is true that she said she didn't play a major role in the firings of those prosecutors. She says she did give her opinion. She made some suggestions, but she was not involved in putting the final list together.

She also said that, even though she was White House liaison, she never spoke to key White House officials. So we have that.

But I'll tell you, for a woman who was expected to cry during her testimony, she came out of the gate with a really strong accusation. That was targeted right against Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty.

Goodling says that McNulty's testimony before Congress was, her words, "incomplete, inaccurate," and she says she's not to blame.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOODLING: I didn't believe he was fully candid. And the point that I was trying to make is that I did give him some information. I didn't withhold information. I gave him a lot of information. And he had some of that information and didn't use all of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: And on another matter, Goodling did provide Democrats with some fuel for their consistent allegations that the Bush administration has politicized the Justice Department.

Goodling admitted that, when she hired some career employees at justice, she did take politics into account. And that's when it got messy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it against the law to take political -- those political considerations into account? You've got civil service laws. You've got obstruction of justice with any laws that you could have broken, by taking political considerations into account, quote, on some occasions.

GOODLING: The best I can say is that I know I took political considerations into account on some occasions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was that legal?

GOODLING: Sir, I'm not able to answer that question. I know I crossed the line.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What line? Legal?

GOODLING: I crossed the line of the civil service rules.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: The committee right now took a break for lunch. They are expected to resume. And this testimony is expected to go on through the end of business today. So, she will have been there talking for a long time, Don.

LEMON: For a long time. And we'll be checking in on that. Thank you so much, Kelli Arena.

Planning to fly on your summer vacation? Well, stick around to hear how the FAA plans to improve -- they want to improve your chances of getting there and back on time.

WHITFIELD: And this drug treats ADHD, but some doctors are using it to treat something else. Good idea or bad medicine?

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Storms roll in, and your flight is delayed. It happens to all of us. But federal aviation experts have a plan now to reduce the time you sit at the airport.

Let's check in with CNN's Kathleen Koch in Washington.

Because oh, my gosh, is it frustrating, Kathleen, when that happens?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, Fredricka. And as you said, we've all experienced it. And this year looks like it's going to be a pretty bad year.

Last year, the FAA said was, indeed, the worst ever for airport delays. And the FAA today said this year is looking even worse. Among the problems: a long-range forecast for a very hot summer with lots of thunderstorms and more flights on the schedule than last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARION BLAKEY, FAA ADMINISTRATOR: We're doing everything we can to keep delays from increasing this summer. But I think the traveling public needs to know that we're braced up, because we do fear that we will see a more delayed summer this year than last.

It's partially a function of the fact that traffic is up, particularly traffic from airports that are dealing with international destinations and some of our very large airports.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: The FAA is trying to counter that by expanding a program that it tried in seven northeastern cities last year. The so-called "airspace flow" program basically changed the rules.

It only delayed flights whose routes sent them through bad weather and thunderstorms instead of shutting down an entire airport, as the FAA did in the past. And basically, if you can fly around the storm, you were good.

Now, that cut delays in those areas by 9 percent. So this summer, 11 cities in the South and the Midwest will try the program.

Another change: the FAA is rolling out new software to ensure that slots that are left open by delayed or canceled flights will automatically be filled by the next available flight. And, Fredricka, the agency hopes that that will speed things along, as well.

WHITFIELD: So Kathleen, what does that mean for many of us who have all these great summer plans of getting on a plane and going somewhere?

KOCH: Well, it means we may need to pack some patience. And also check a web site. Take a look at one that's run by the air traffic controllers. It's called www.AvoidDelays.com.

It has one section in particular that I think is really helpful. It has useful tips from controllers about specific airports, for instance, Denver's. There, they tell you avoid the late afternoon and evening flights. They are often delayed by summer thunderstorms. But they say, well, those tend to pass quickly in the mountain areas, gone in about 15 to 30 minutes.

So you've got to also do your best to help yourself, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Kathleen Koch, thanks so much. Great advice. Happy trails this summer.

LEMON: Happy trails. Good.

Also on our air travel radar, testing for liquid explosives. The Transportation Security Administration has been reviewing technology that screens sealed bottles. The scanners already are in place in at least five of the nation's major airports.

WHITFIELD: And coming up, it's meant to treat one condition but has a side effect that could treat another. Straight ahead in the NEWSROOM, using an ADHD drug to treat childhood obesity. Is that safe?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange where the Dow and S&P 500 may close at record highs. And gas prices are at records, too, with yet another negative milestone. I'll have the numbers next on NEWSROOM. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Adding insult to injury -- I love that music. Adding insult to injury, sky-high gas prices reached a new degree of pain for drivers.

Let's check in with Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with the latest negative milestone, shall we say, Susan?

LISOVICZ: Yes, that's right, Don. Kind of getting used to it at this point.

LEMON: Yes.

LISOVICZ: Not only are gas prices at all-time highs, this is the longest streak of record prices, well, on record.

AAA says the price of self-serve regular rose today to an 11th straight record, $3.22 a gallon for those of you who are watching this. That's up a penny from yesterday.

The national average has now been above the $3 mark for 20 days in a row, which passes the 19 days gasoline was above $3 last August following Israel's invasion of Lebanon, which sent oil prices higher.

And AAA says prices aren't likely to come down anytime soon. We haven't even gone to Memorial Day weekend, although it's fast approaching.

LEMON: Yes. And you said a penny, you know, since yesterday. But every day it keeps going up a penny. It's going to be a lot of money.

LISOVICZ: That's right.

LEMON: Yes.

LISOVICZ: I mean, it's really -- we're seeing all sorts of anecdotal evidence of what it's doing to consumers and companies alike, Don.

LEMON: Yes. One company's trying to ease the pain, though, a bit while at the same time sort of helping the environment? What's going on there, Susan?

LISOVICZ: Well, it's UPS, which is the world's biggest package delivery service. So obviously, fuel is one of its biggest expenses. Brown is getting greener.

UPS says it's rolling out 50 hybrid electric delivery trucks. The so-called package cars are expected to cut fuel use by 44,000 gallons each year. UPS already has around 20,000 low emission and alternative fuel vehicles on the road. Hybrids, of course, a growing trend for businesses that consume a lot of fuel. Just yesterday, you remember, we told you about New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg requiring the city's entire taxi cab fleet to go hybrid within five years. And it's about 13,000 cabs here in New York.

(STOCK REPORT)

LISOVICZ: In the next hour of NEWSROOM, paying for a home with plastic. I'll tell you about what one company that's letting customers charge their monthly mortgage payments.

See you in the next hour. Don and Fred, back to you.

LEMON: I guess it's a nice way to get some, like, points; you know, travel points or miles or whatever, but...

LISOVICZ: Yes. With the interest rates on credit cards.

LEMON: Yes.

LISOVICZ: Yes. It's a double -- a double-edged sword on this one.

LEMON: Looking forward to that one, Susan.

LISOVICZ: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: We'll see you in a bit. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Meantime, three bank robbers still on the loose in Chicago. A massive manhunt is under way. The latest on the deadly heist in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello everyone. I'm Don Lemon live from the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

WHITFIELD: I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Desperate days turn into excruciating hours for the families of three U.S. soldiers who disappeared May 12.

We're still waiting to hear if a body found today in the Euphrates River is one of those missing men. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

A body found in a river near Baghdad today. Iraqi police believe it is one of the three missing American soldiers. U.S. military has the body now and is trying to identify it. It has been 11 days since the army unit came under fire south of Baghdad and four U.S. soldiers were killed. A huge search has been under way ever since. CNN's Arwa Damon is embedded with U.S. search teams.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. military sent a representative down to a Tanzania air base to try to positively identify a body believed to be that of one of the three kidnapped soldiers. The body was recovered from the Euphrates River by Iraqi police, some 18 miles south of where the attack took place. The U.S. military telling us the body was bloated and disfigured. There are a certain number of tests that can be run in country to try to positively identify the body. But it's highly likely that it will be sent on to Dover Air Base for further DNA testing. The name of the deceased will not be released until the family has been notified.

This has been a very difficult day here for the men of the fourth battalion, 31st infantry regiment. This is one of their soldiers, as they always say, one of their brothers. These men have a bond that they equate to being a bond stronger than family. The troops here have been conducting relentless searches for the last 12 days since the attack that took place that left four soldiers dead, one Iraqi soldier dead and those three soldiers kidnapped. They've been conducting around the clock missions, doubling up, in fact some times even tripling up on normal operations that they would be conducting. Everyone here trying to keep a strong face but this news has really deeply impacting this entire unit. Arwa Damon, Yusifiya, CNN, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And the heartache only deepens because the military reports that nine more U.S. troops have been killed in roadside bombings and gun battles across Iraq that raises this month's death toll for American forces there is to 81. The total number of U.S. service members killed in the war so far now stands at 3,423.

LEMON: The deadlines are out and the battle is done -- we think. A measure to fund the war in Iraq through September will likely pass Congress this week and be signed into law now that Democrats have stripped out any sort of timetables for pulling out troops. Instead, the measure includes security goals for the Iraqi government to meet or face cuts in reconstruction aid. The House is expected to vote tomorrow, the Senate on Friday.

WHITFIELD: A new red flag on Iranian nukes from the International Atomic Energy Agency. The U.N.'s nuclear oversight office confirms Iran has expanded its uranium enrichment program despite Security Council demands to scrap it. The IAEA also says its knowledge of Tehran's program has deteriorated. The new findings are expected to trigger new sanctions. The White house meanwhile is calling the report, quote, a laundry list of Iran's continued defiance. Later on in the NEWSROOM, we'll get some reaction from CNN's Aneesh Raman, the only U.S.-based TV reporter in Iran.

LEMON: In the waters off southwest Iran, a flotilla of U.S. warships is conducting unannounced naval exercises, taking part the Nimitz and John C. Stennis carrier groups and (INAUDIBLE) strike groups. They're doing air and sea maneuvers in international waters in the strait of Hormuz. About two-fifths of the world's oil shipments travel through that narrow passage. The war games come just days before the start of direct U.S. talks with Iran in Baghdad. WHITFIELD: Palestinian refugees meantime on the run in northern Lebanon. They're hurrying out of the line of fire by foot, car, van, any means necessary. This comes after three days of fierce fighting between Islamist militia men and the Lebanese army. It's not clear how many civilians were killed or wounded in the sprawling refugee camp. A member of the Palestinian Fattah movement tells CNN the refugees are traumatized. They don't have food, running water or electricity. The al Qaeda-inspired Sunni militia says it will abide by a unilateral cease-fire it declared on Tuesday but vows its militants will not turn themselves in.

LEMON: A manhunt is under way in Chicago for three bank robbers who killed a teller yesterday. Two other people were wounded in the shootout between the robbers and the bank security guard. Authorities are offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the trio's capture. They found the getaway car yesterday and have been going over it for forensic evidence. The three robbers are also suspected in a bank heist May 10th.

WHITFIELD: Buses in the motor city are stuck in neutral right now. Detroit bus drivers staged a wildcat strike today leaving 120,000 people looking for rides. The drivers say they're protesting dangerous conditions on their routes. They want sheriff's deputies riding shotgun. The city's says it's working to get the buses rolling again. Union leaders say they're waiting for a city council vote before they call off the walkout.

LEMON: Sixty six dogs taken from a Virginia home owned by Atlanta Falcons quarterback, Michael Vick and they likely will be put to sleep. The pit bulls are at the center of a high-profile dog fighting investigation. The Humane Society says some of the animals are injured and none are susceptible for adoption or suitable I should say for adoption since they were bred for the purpose of killing other dogs. Vick owned the Virginia property where the dogs were found, but no charges have been filed in this case. Authorities met earlier this week to evaluate that evidence. Dog fighting is a felony offense in Virginia.

A psychiatric drug to treat attention deficit disorder. Some doctors are using it to help kids lose weight. A prescription for controversy? That's straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, women, listen up. A new birth control pill is headed for your pharmacy. The Food and Drug Administration OKed the drug, Lybrel. The manufacturer says it will stop a woman's menstrual cycle indefinitely. The downside, possible spotting and breakthrough bleeding. The company plans to start selling the pill in July.

LEMON: A drug called Adderall is designed to treat attention deficit disorder. Some doctors though are prescribing it for weight loss. Critics say that could be a prescription for trouble. Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us now and why are doctors doing this, Elizabeth? That's the question. ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's a well known side effect Don that these ADHD drugs often make people lose their appetites. If you ask many parents whose kids take drugs like this, they'll say, gee, my child just didn't want to eat so much anymore. The result of that is weight loss. Well we talked to one pediatrician in Chicago who noticed the side effect, like many have and he decided to start prescribing it just for weight loss. So the kids who did not have ADHD, he put them on Adderall. He said that he got very good results when he did this. Alex Veith is a high school student who I talked to and he lost quite a bit of weight on Adderall. He was 30 pounds overweight when he went on Adderall. You can see him here working out and playing outside and he's now a normal weight. So he went from being 30 pounds overweight to being normal weight. He was on Adderall from ages 11 to 16. When I sat down and talked to him, he had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: That must have been pretty surprising to have your appetite change like that.

ALEX VEITH, TOOK ADDERALL FOR WEIGHT LOSS: You should have saw everyone else when I went back to school that next year. Everyone didn't believe it was me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: Now critics say that no matter how much weight someone loses when they're on this, that it is a bad idea to describe a drug that's supposed to be for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder to lose weight. They say the FDA never reviewed it for that purpose. They certainly never approved it for that purpose. These drugs do have side effects. They can have psychiatric and cardiovascular side effects. So they say, really these critics - this is a lot of doctors saying this, saying, you know what, maybe it does help you lose weight but who cares. You still shouldn't take it. It was never approved for this and it has side effects.

LEMON: I got to tell you though, it's very tempting and just a little transparency here. I took anti-depressants once and it mad me lose a lot of weight. That was the side effect. You look great but it's really not what it's supposed to do.

COHEN: And everyone tells you you look great. Exactly.

LEMON: I went off and I gained it all back. But it's approved for one thing, is it legal for doctors to prescribe it for something else?

COHEN: It is and this happens all the time in medicine is you have a medicine that's approved for one condition but doctors start noticing that it helps another condition. And in many cases, it's very legitimate and there are lots of drugs that are routinely used and have been for decades for a purpose other than which they were originally intended. In this case, when we spoke with many pediatricians about this, they really felt that there was not a good case for using this off label, that's the term that's used. They said, it's just if you want to lose weight, there are other ways to do it besides taking a drug that could have side effects like heart problems.

LEMON: So Alex lost weight. I assume he's doing better. Were his parents happy that he took Adderall?

COHEN: His parents were happy. They didn't want him to stay on it forever. He was on it for five years to lose weight. They said, look, we didn't have any problems. Now of course if God forbid Alex had had problems, if he had had some of the psychiatric problems or if he had developed heart problems, they would of course be saying something quite different. They may not be so happy that this doctor gave it to him.

LEMON: All right, Elizabeth Cohen, thanks as always. I want to tell you, Elizabeth, we'll have more on the controversy tonight on "Paula Zahn Now." That's at 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

WHITFIELD: All right, where are we going next, folks? All right, more of the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's about 13 minutes before the hour. Here are the stories we're working on in the NEWSROOM this hour. The military is working to identify a body found in Iraq that may be one of those three missing U.S. soldiers. Iraq civilians discovered the body today in the Euphrates River. CNN has confirmed within the last hour or so that a team of military and State Department officials are working on a redesign of the war plan in Iraq. The plan is said to contain both political and military elements. We'll have more details on this developing story later on in the program. And cleanup efforts are under way this hour in Denver where a train derailed before dawn, 34 cars, some of them filled with beer, crashed into a pair of parked locomotives. No one, thankfully, was injured.

LEMON: Oh, I am so glad that was not my car. Can you imagine that being your car? Even worse than that, Fred, standing outside in it? Well --

WHITFIELD: Yeah, that would hurt.

LEMON: This Kansas highway was pounded late yesterday along with much of the northwest part of the state. Some storms produced hail the size of tennis balls!

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh.

LEMON: We heard of golf ball-sized hail, but not a lot of tennis balls.

WHITFIELD: If only folks could have seen your expression because that's what made me laugh.

LEMON: Oh, absolutely. Where there are severe storms -- you can often see those funnel cloud dropping from the sky. A storm chaser spotted this one in Grant County. Fortunately, no one was hurt and damage was only minor.

WHITFIELD: And if Okefenokee (ph) burns, can the Everglades be far from behind? The southeastern drought that is fuelling devastating wild fire on the Georgia-Florida border now threatens America's largest subtropical wilderness, not that drought isn't a big enough problem by itself. CNN's John Zarrella reports from south Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In some spots, the water was more than a foot deep. Seven inches of rain fell on parts of Miami this past weekend. But rain needed to fall over Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades, primary sources of water for five million people. None did. This is bad -- about as bad as you've seen it?

FRED SKLAR, S. FLA. WATER MANAGEMENT DIST: Just about, yes.

ZARRELLA: We flew over the Everglades' water conservation areas with Fred Sklar, chief scientist for the area. In places, the river of grass is barely a trickle. The brown and white patches below are completely dried up.

SKLAR: This time of the year, normally what I would find would be at least half a foot of water over this area and we would be surrounded by wading birds.

ZARRELLA: There are no birds, no water. During most dry seasons, 600 billion gallons of water a day would be pumped from this area eastward to coastal well fields. There it would keep water flowing. This year, with water to pump, the fields are being shut down to prevent salt water intrusion. An even biggest concern out here is fire.

SKLAR: This could go up at any minute.

ZARRELLA: The ground is not dirt but organic material, 100 years of decomposed vegetation. A fire out here in this peat could last weeks. There are already fires burning along the fringes of the glades. You can see them as you drive along alligator alley where forestry crews are setting backfires to keep flames from reaching the road. John Zarrella, CNN, in the Florida Everglades.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Serious drought and the repercussions in the southeast and then there are other problems to worry about out west. Jacqui Jeras is in the severe weather center. What's on tap?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We're looking at severe storms starting to develop right now across parts of the plains states Fredricka. It's been quiet all day and just in the last half an hour we see this line starting to fire here and also some spotty showers and thunderstorms up in Minnesota and in Iowa. This is the one we're most concerned about right now. It is producing a lot of lightning at this time. Large hail and damaging winds as these thunderstorms continue to grow and we expect them to become more wide spread and become more intense throughout the rest of the afternoon.

We're also concerned about the heavy rainfall they're going to be putting down so a flood watch has been posted for much of central parts of Kansas extending on into central parts of Nebraska, could see a good couple of inches of rainfall with some of the heavier showers and thunderstorms. A severe thunderstorm watch will likely be issued in that area of central Kansas and also from Minneapolis down towards Des Moines in the next hour or so. The storm prediction center says so and they're monitoring that situation very closely as we speak. The moderate risk that we had today for severe weather, what does that mean to you? It means we're going to have a great concentration of severe storms, likely to see 30 or more reports of large hail, one inch or more in diameter. The tennis ball sized that you're talking about there, Don, possibly, six to 19 tornadoes or numerous wind damage events with winds of 60 or more miles per hour.

As we head into tomorrow, the severe weather then pushes farther to the north and off to the east. From east of the twin cities over towards Green Bay into Milwaukee and down towards Chicago, that's where we'll have the best chance of seeing severe thunderstorms, though isolated thunderstorms are possible from St. Louis extending all the down towards the Gulf coast. Back to you guys.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much Jacqui.

LEMON: The changing of the guard, the Coast Guard, that is.

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KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Did you know how many other women were going to be joining you as cadets?

JAYNA MCCARRON, COAST GUARD CADET: I didn't know what the percentage was or anything but I knew that it was a place I wanted to try and it would be hard. But the percentage did not matter to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: CNN's Kiran Chetry has details on how life has changed at the Coast Guard Academy straight ahead at the CNN NEWSROOM. But first as we head to the break, let's take a look at the big board. You can see the Dow is up 46 points. An official check of the markets with Susan Lisovicz in just a bit. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Take a live look. Look at that, New York harbor. Guess what that is?

WHITFIELD: Lady liberty?

LEMON: Lady liberty, the statue of liberty. It is fleet week. Brace yourself, New York City. It's officially fleet week beginning today. I've been reading the wires, one wire said, the boys are back for the annual fleet week, U.S. sailors, Marines, members of the Coast Guard descend on the city for some rest, relaxation.

WHITFIELD: Women in there too, you know?

LEMON: OK, women as well.

LEMON: And the big apple style hospitality. After the traditional parade of ships, the navy will throw open the doors of its visiting vessels for guests and tourists. This is the 20th, wow, annual fleet week in New York City and (INAUDIBLE) won't be there. It's being repaired. Heidi Collins was out there, took it across the river. It will be back in the fall (INAUDIBLE) big part to play in fleet week, but not this year.

WHITFIELD: Speaking of men and women, they've come a long way, baby and now they're making military history. "American Morning's" Kiran Chetry tells us why the 2007 class of the Coast Guard cadets is so special.

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CHETRY (voice-over): In New London, Connecticut, they still carry out the drills of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy the same way they did 131 years ago but with a few notable exceptions. Jayne McCarron is one of 77 women graduating from the academy this year. A homecoming queen and high school track star from Massachusetts, McKaren says she was more interested in making the grade than making the point.

JAYNA MCCARRON, COAST GUARD CADET: I applied thinking why not? It's an hour and a half from my house. It's free education.

CHETRY: Do you know how many other women were going to be joining you as cadets?

MCCARRON: I didn't know what the percentage was or anything, but I knew that it was a place I wanted to try and it would be hard, but I knew. But the percentage didn't matter to me.

CHETRY: Roughly one-third of the graduates are women and that is a milestone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You all have the highest number of women graduates ever.

CHETRY: What drew you to the Coast Guard over some of the other branches?

MCCARRON: It was the mission. They're much more demanding (ph) and I like that. We have search and rescue and drug interdiction.

CHETRY: About 2,000 active duty members of the Coast Guard are in Iraq. There's always the possibility that you may be asked to go to Iraq. Would you go if they needed you? MCCARRON: I would, absolutely. It did cross my mind going to the military academy. But and the Coast Guard you mostly do stay on the coast here in the United States.

CHETRY: And now in the post-9/11 environment, that means protecting U.S. borders against possible terror attacks. How fast are we going right now?

MCCARRON: 14.5.

CHETRY: Cadets train in hands-on labs such as this ship simulator where cadet McCarron piloted us through a mock storm. (INAUDIBLE) Is there anything about your four years here that's different than what you expected coming in?

MCCARRON: I didn't even know when I showed up that (INAUDIBLE) Honestly I wasn't expecting it. There's definitely a higher volume of leadership.

CHETRY: Kiran Chetry, CNN, New London, Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And this Memorial Day weekend turn your frequent flyer miles into hero miles. Fisher House will use those miles to transport service men and women wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan and their families to treatment centers around the country. It's so simple. You can just begin by going to fisherhouse.org. Donate your frequent flyer miles ...

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