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Larry Craig Sees Little Support in Washington; Bush Visits New Orleans on Anniversary of Katrina; Gulf Coast Still Hurting from Hurricane; Leona Helmsley's Will Favors Dog Over Grandkids

Aired August 29, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

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KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: With silences and bells, anger and peace, despair and determination, the Gulf Coast marks the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. A look back and ahead with General Russel Honore this hour.

And the legal system may be done with Larry Craig, but the Idaho senator still faces his colleagues in Congress, the voters back home, and a scandal-weary nation. They may be much tougher judges.

Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN headquarters in Atlanta. Don Lemon is off, and you're live in CNN NEWSROOM.

Idaho Senator Larry Craig says that even though he was arrested, even though he pleaded guilty, he did nothing wrong.

Craig, as you now know, was picked up in June at the Minneapolis airport, arrested in a sting targeting lewd behavior in men's restrooms. Yesterday, Craig said his decision to plead guilty to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge was a mistake.

He's not getting a lot of support from his colleagues back in Washington, even fellow Republicans. The White House reacting to Senator Craig just moments ago.

Our congressional correspondent, Jessica Yellin, on Capitol Hill now with more -- Jessica.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, well, we understand that a White House spokesperson, Scott Stanzel, said to the traveling press pool that, regarding the Larry Craig incident, "We are disappointed in what's going on. It's a matter for the senator and Senate Republican leadership to address."

I have to say, I covered the White House for 2 1/2 years. They are not shy about saying no comment when they don't want to weigh in on something. And it is meaningful that the White House is now adding their disappointment to the chorus of voices expressing disturbance with the Larry Craig situation. There are no calls here on Capitol Hill for him to resign or retire, put I can tell you he's certainly not getting the warm embrace of his peers. As you know, Senate Republican leadership has called for the Senate Ethics Committee to launch an investigation into the incident and into his guilty plea.

Presidential candidate Mitt Romney has called Craig's actions disgusting. Well, Craig was the co-chair of his Idaho campaign, but has since resigned.

And in Idaho, there is one outspoken voice calling for his resignation. The head of the Idaho Values Alliance says he was giving the senator a chance to explain himself, but after listening to him yesterday, he's just not satisfied what he had to say.

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BRYAN FISCHER, IDAHO VALUES ALLIANCE: I was unsatisfied. I thought his explanations were unpersuasive, and the bottom line is that the senator really left us with no option but to accept the fact that his guilty plea really did represent an acknowledgment on his part that he was engaged in inappropriate behavior.

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YELLIN: And to be sure, Senator Craig still has the packing of some supporters. The junior senator from Idaho and the head of the Idaho Republican Party both say they stand by him.

Senator Craig's term ends next year, and he has yet to decide whether he will seek re-election. He's served in Congress for more than 25 years. But one political analyst I spoke to said it might actually be easier for the Republican Party to field a brand new candidate than try to defend Larry Craig with this charge hanging over him -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Jessica Yellin on Capitol Hill. Thanks, Jessica.

And if you'd like to read the full arrest report, you can just go to CNN.com. You can see all the details as they were filed. You can see it now on CNN.com.

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PHILLIPS: Memorials and mourning. Progress and frustration. It's two years to the day since Hurricane Katrina crashed into the Gulf Coast in what FEMA calls the most catastrophic natural disaster in U.S. history.

The scene was beyond belief: 80 percent of New Orleans flooded. Homes demolished. Thousands of people stranded without food or drinkable water. By the time the waters receded all along the Gulf Coast, more than 1,800 people were dead.

President Bush is back in the region today, remembering the heartbreak, the struggles, and the triumphs. It's his 15th trip to the region since Katrina. He began his day at a school in the lower Ninth Ward, the section of New Orleans all but obliterated when the levees broke.

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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This town is coming back. This town is better today than it was yesterday. And it's going to be better tomorrow than it was today. And there's no better place to find that out than in the school system.

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PHILLIPS: We expect to hear from Mr. Bush next hour in the still struggling Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux has been traveling with the president.

Suzanne, two years and billions of dollars later, we're still seeing a region in recovery. What's the president saying about it all?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, this is a chance for the president to really try to prove or at least convince people here that he was good on his word when he made that promise two years ago at Jackson Square that he was going to bring this city back, back than better before.

There are a lot of people, however, here, as you know, who see a lot of this as one big show here. Now, this is his 15th visit. We saw him earlier today, offering a moment of silence for those who died in the storm. Actually painting a rosy picture at this school, this Ninth Ward school, that charter school that is coming back.

Even yesterday, hugs and kisses with some of the Louisiana officials. But there are a lot of people who look at the federal government, state government and insurance companies and say it's a big mess. The recovery has been very slow.

White House aides and the president pointing to the federal dollars, essentially, saying we've offered more than $114 billion here. More than 80 percent of that is available through state and local officials to get to the people.

But the bottom line, Kyra, is it has not gotten to a lot of the people here, and there's a great deal of frustration -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, a lot of frustration, not only for people that lived there, but for journalists. Obviously, we're staying on the investigative front and trying to pursue where those dollars are going and when so many people will eventually get those checks.

And Suzanne, this is also close for you personally. This is where you grew up. You have relatives that still live there. How are they doing and have you had a chance to talk with any of them?

MALVEAUX: I spent all day yesterday with my relatives here. You may recall the story we did on Vernon, the artist, the painter, who lost much of his life's work inside the house, under eight feet of water. They have been since restored. It's in a dry garage at one of his brothers' place.

But we got a chance to see how they are living there. The frustrating thing about this is the cousins, brothers, all say that they are doing the right thing. They are working hard here.

Adrian (ph), who's a middle class home, four-bedroom home that was completely destroyed, is living in a FEMA trailer in the front yard. The other brother's in the backyard here. And that is because they have put forward their applications for this Road Home program, money to rebuild their homes that they just haven't received. And they are one of just thousands of people here, Kyra, who are still trying to be patient.

It is a very difficult thing to live here in New Orleans, but clearly this is their home. They want to stay. They want to make it home again -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And I understand that we have -- do we still have a bit of that interview? OK, Suzanne. This is Suzanne's cousin. OK. Yes, let's take a listen. Let's take a listen. This is Leo.

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LEO DOBARD, SUZANNE MALVEAUX'S COUSIN: My main purpose is to get back in a home. The trailer is wonderful, you know, and all my brother Adrian (ph) has done for us, I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No problem.

DOBARD: But the main thing is for me to get into a place where I can call home, and I can, you know, start my life and that's -- that's what I look forward to. To get anyplace just so I can, you know, call it home.

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PHILLIPS: Now, Leo is keeping a positive attitude, Suzanne, and I know that your cousins are very close. And I'm going to go ahead and ask you this. With regard to your cousin who's the painter, are we able to buy any of his art? Is he selling it?

MALVEAUX: You can't buy it yet. You'll see him. He's touching up some of these paintings, and what he's doing, actually, is making them bigger. He's making them larger. A lot of the art was destroyed, so he is trying to renew that, if you will.

There was a group from -- a gallery in Florida that helped him do that, to get those paintings back to him. Nothing's on sale yet, Kyra. You'll be the first one to know. But obviously, that is the goal here, is to move forward, to be able to find a place that he can work and that he can go ahead and share his paintings with -- with many other people.

PHILLIPS: Well, you know how much I love local art, and I would love to buy something from your cousin. I know a lot of other people will.

MALVEAUX: Get in line.

PHILLIPS: There we go.

MALVEAUX: Get in line.

PHILLIPS: A lot of people are wanting to read about your family. Go to CNN.com and learn more about Suzanne's cousin, the artist, and also a lot of the other people struggling just to, you know, get by day to day.

Suzanne Malveaux, traveling there with the president. Suzanne, thank you so much.

MALVEAUX: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: And coming up at the bottom of the hour, Lieutenant General Russel Honore live in the NEWSROOM. He's going to join me from New Orleans for a look at then and now.

Well, the Gulf Coast of Mississippi was demolished by Katrina, and parts are still decimated today. CNN's Kathleen Koch is in Waveland, a town in which she has more than just a professional interest, as well.

Kathleen, that's what's been, I guess, one of the powerful parts of covering Hurricane Katrina in the years since then: people like and you Suzanne Malveaux are from the area. A lot of us have been worked there, lived there, and have been touched by this, not only professionally, but personally.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. And -- and that's what makes it so difficult to come back here and to see so little progress.

As a matter of fact, President Bush just drove behind us, just about ten minutes ago down the Waveland beachfront, and he saw what we saw when we came back here a couple of days ago. Empty slabs, columns where homes used to be. For sale signs popping up as quickly as the weeds all around the area. And just a handful, just a sprinkling of new home construction, particularly along the waterfront.

That's the area, the waterfront and a couple of blocks back that just is not coming back for a variety of reasons.

But this morning here in Waveland we spoke to a couple of residents. One had had eight feet of water in his home. One woman, her home on the beach is a slab like the home that I grew up in a couple of miles down. She's still living in a FEMA trailer, but amazingly, they are still just so optimistic and so resilient.

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MIKE SMITH, WAVELAND RESIDENT: It seems like it's been forever. But it seems like only yesterday if that makes sense. But my thoughts are, as it has been the whole time, I mean, from like the second day. The amount of volunteers that have showed up down here. Of course, we consider ourselves ground zero, and everything south of our railroad tracks is pretty much gone, but the volunteers, still here today, continuing to -- to rebuild.

JUDEE ENGLISH, WAVELAND RESIDENT: We're strong down here. We're dealing with it every day, and we're progressing forward. You know, we've done a lot as far as moving forward and getting things open again. And it just takes time. Like they say, Rome wasn't built in a day.

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KOCH: So not surprisingly, right here in Waveland on the waterfront this morning, they had a memorial celebration looking back over the last two years, but they called it, again, a celebration, because they are very thankful. They still think they've made a lot of progress, even though there is a long ways to go.

And even though people are starting to feel the exhaustion of the last two years and the frustration over the lack of progress, but you just can't keep these people down, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And we've seen that through a number of your reports. Kathleen Koch, we'll continue to check in with you, obviously, throughout the day on this two-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

And if you're looking for a way to make a difference for the victims of Katrina still suffering, impact your world by logging on to CNN.com/impact. You can learn how to just become a part of the solution. Already so many of you had.

Now, just a few minutes ago, we brought the live report from our Capitol Hill correspondent, Jessica Yellin, with regard to reaction from the White House on the Senator Larry Craig scandal.

We're just now getting a statement that was handed to us from White House spokesman Scott Stanzel. He says, quote, "We're disappointed in what's going on. It's a matter for the senator and the Senate Republican leadership to address." That's coming from the White House just a few minutes ago.

Well, straight ahead, a career soldier who's faced some of his biggest challenges in the Big Easy, and it's not a battlefield. Lieutenant General Russel Honore, in the NEWSROOM.

Plus, caught in a sex sting. Senator Larry Craig denies the charges and says he's the victim of a newspaper witch hunt. We're going to actually talk to the "Idaho Statesman" reporter who's been on this investigation for months. And beyond indigestion, what does stomach trouble signal about something serious? You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

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PHILLIPS: One sixteen Eastern Time right now. Here are three of the stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Pittsburgh area police are hunting for an 18-year-old. He's accused of stabbing his 11-year-old twin brothers. One of the twins is dead, the other seriously hurt. There's no word on a motive, but police say the suspect may have emotional problems.

In Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr says that he's ordering his Mehdi Army to halt operations for up to six months. The anti-American cleric blames rogue elements for yesterday's deadly battles with a rival Shiite faction.

Wildfires spreading in central Idaho; 1,400 homes are being evacuated near the resort town of Ketchum.

The floods are long gone in New Orleans, but not all the devastation, nor the frustration, especially with city leaders accused of not doing enough to rebuild.

Our special correspondent Soledad O'Brien joins us now from the Crescent City.

So Soledad, what's it like to be back there two years later?

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I've got to tell you, it's a little strange. Right now, we're right in front of the convention center. And of course, you and everybody else remembers the convention center. It's starting to rain on us. Where tens of thousands of people were milling around here, hoping for food and for water, et cetera.

Now, they've got a bandstand set up, because today is going to be the day of presence and remembrance, begins in about two hours. They're expecting celebrities to come. It's -- what they're calling it is a national -- day of national outcry, a day of outrage, a day of protest and prayer and possibility.

There's a call, also, to redirect tax dollars for more. They say and create a Marshall Plan that restores New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

But for most people, we remember this as that terrible location where tens of thousands of people stood, virtually ignored by the government. And for me personally, Kyra, I've got to tell you, this was a sight where, just over there, after we had taken a tour of the convention center, we came out and found a guy, a body. A guy had been shot, and he'd been sort of propped up right over there in a chair covered with a blanket. When we came back just two days later, still there. Nothing had changed. And that to a lot of us was an indication of just how dire things were here in the city, that the dead guy on the chair who'd been shot didn't merit anybody's attention.

So they're hoping today that this will be a call to bring attention to the fact that the area has been -- to a lot of people's minds very much ignored. We'll see how many people come out in support again, as the drizzle has started. That certainly could put a damper on some of the plans.

The bandstand folks are kind of running off it, because we're seeing sort of a little bit lightning in the sky, as well -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: I don't want to hear lightning and live shots. So I'll save questions for the next time we talk. All right.

O'BRIEN: That does not work together very well at all, and I appreciate the brevity.

PHILLIPS: Soledad O'Brien, thank you so much.

We'll catch up again with Soledad once the rain subsides there, specifically the thunder.

Meanwhile, straight ahead, he denies the allegations and the implications, but Senator Larry Craig isn't even getting the benefit of the doubt from fellow Republicans. CNN's Candy Crowley has more on whether he can save his political career. That's straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Where there's a will, there's a way, a way to get even, if you're Leona Helmsley. Straight ahead in the NEWSROOM, even in dog years, her pooch is set for life.

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PHILLIPS: While they walked the earth, she earned the nickname Queen of Mean, but even from beyond the grave, Leona Helmsley has managed to deliver one last gotcha.

Today's "New York Post" says it all. Helmsley's will sets up a $12 million trust fund for her pampered pooch, Trouble. Meantime, two of Helmsley's grandkids just get just $5 million each and only if they visit their father's grave at least once a year.

But here's the real rub (ph). Two other grandkids get bupkis from Helmsley's huge estate for, quote, "reasons that are known to them."

Like a dog with a bone, I guess, we just can't stop chewing on this story, but neither can anyone else, especially at Helmsley's former stomping grounds, New York City.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, I love my dog, but that's a little bit ridiculous.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what's wrong with that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You don't think there's anything wrong with that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely not.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She left nothing to her two grandkids. Nothing. And she left money to the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The grandkids must have been worse than the dog.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's my personal opinion that there are so many poor people. There are so many needy people. There are so many below the poverty line. Why not help human beings?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would leave it to my kids or to charity or something. That's a little bit much for an animal, oddly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know how realistic it is either, though. I mean, the dog's not really going to see that money. She should have left it to her grandkids.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it's very fair. But you know, anyone can do whatever they want with their -- with their money.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trouble should stay out of the sub prime trouble and the hedge fund market. That's piece No. 1.

Piece No. 2, is Mom and Dad, you better not do that to me.

Piece No. 3, is $12 million. This is New York. Not so much money.

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PHILLIPS: Susan Lisovicz, live from the New York Stock Exchange. Twelve million bucks to a dog.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I've got that "New York Post" right here.

PHILLIPS: Do we dare see -- say that headline? Are we able to say that headline on CNN?

LISOVICZ: There you go. I didn't say a word. I didn't say a word.

PHILLIPS: She was just evil.

LISOVICZ: She was controversial -- yes, controversial in life and in death. She was the woman who apparently uttered the phrase "only the little people pay taxes." Did not sit well. Did not sit well with all the people who frequent in the Helmsley hotels. And well, the dog is doing well.

PHILLIPS: Wicked, wicked, wicked. That's all -- that's all we can say.

LISOVICZ: Well, you know the story that I'm talking about is going to -- a lot of people going to be...

PHILLIPS: CEOs and their big paychecks?

LISOVICZ: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Yes, talking about -- speaking about a lot of money, right?

LISOVICZ: Yes. This is something that has really skyrocketed in recent years, Kyra. We all know that CEOs make more than we do, but 364 times more? Well, it's true, according to one study.

The average Joe, making just under 30 grand a year. Compare that to CEOs at large companies, who pull in nearly $11 million a year.

Break it down. The CEOs have to just work one day to make what the rest of us do for the rest of the year. And that doesn't include the perks they get on top of salary and stock options.

But even a CEO's pay is dwarfed when compared to private equity and hedge fund managers. Average salaries for those guys and gals top $650 million per year.

These numbers, by the way, compiled by a liberal think-tank.

But you know what? The CEOs' salary, actually, that ratio actually went down from 2005 when the gap was even greater, Kyra. So that, at least, is improving.

PHILLIPS: That is true. Now, a lot of those private equity and hedge fund people live in New York. But I understand New York is not the richest state, correct?

LISOVICZ: No. No, in fact, it's closer to you, but not that close to you.

New York is not even in the top ten, according to the most recent census data. The richest state is Maryland. It surged past No. 2, New Jersey, my home state. The median household income in Maryland, more than $65,000. That's nearly double the household income in the poorest state, Mississippi.

Plano, Texas, a suburb outside of Dallas, the richest city, with more than a quarter million residents.

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LISOVICZ: Coming up in the next hour of NEWSROOM, the plan to turn the blue skies green. What one airline plans to put in its fuel tank may be growing in your backyard. Check it out, Kyra, next hour.

PHILLIPS: Sounds good. Susan Lisovicz, see you again soon.

LISOVICZ: You got it.

PHILLIPS: Well, New Orleans got hit by a force of nature, but I don't mean Hurricane Katrina. I mean that John Wayne dude. Lieutenant General Russel Honore joins us with an update from the field, coming up next.

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PHILLIPS: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. A three-star general with category- five presence. When New Orleans collapsed into post-Katrina chaos, Russel Honore was charged with restoring order. How does the battle two years on? You'll hear from him, coming up in CNN NEWSROOM.

But first, it's a personal crisis and a potential career killer. Senator Larry Craig is facing a possible ethics investigation and some tough questions from fellow Republicans and his Idaho constituents. And now the White House is weighing in with a statement. The president is disappointed in what's going. Craig himself read a statement yesterday, denying he did anything wrong when arrested in an airport men's room back in June and regretting pleading guilty to disorderly conduct weeks later.

Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley updates the case and the potential damage to Craig's career.

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CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Senator Larry Craig denies the allegations against him and the underlying implication.

SEN. LARRY CRAIG (R), IDAHO: Let me be clear: I am not gay.

CROWLEY: Craig was arrested in June at the Minneapolis Airport for alleged lewd behavior in a men's bathroom known for sexual activity. The police report describes in excruciating detail Craig's alleged actions, including two minutes when the senator stood outside, peering into the stall of a plainclothes policeman working on a sex sting.

"Craig would look down at his hands," the officer wrote, "fidget with his fingers, and then look into the crack in my stall again." The officer says Craig then went into the stall next to his and, "At 12:16 hours, Craig tapped his right foot. I recognized this as a signal used by persons wishing to engage in lewd conduct."

The report says Craig also made several hand motions beneath the stall partition. The policeman responded by showing his badge. Once inside the police operations center, the officer says Craig protested that his actions were misconstrued. Then, the report says, "Craig handed me a business card that identified himself as a United States senator, as he stated, 'What do you think about that?'

The senator eventually paid a fine and pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, a plea he now says is a mistake.

CRAIG: I did nothing wrong at the Minneapolis Airport. I did nothing wrong.

CROWLEY: The senator says he pleaded guilty to "make it go away," and because he was stressed by a newspaper investigation into his sexual orientation.

"The Idaho Statesman" looked into allegations and rumors that have cropped up in the senator's quarter century in Washington. In 1982, during an investigation of charges that lawmakers were having sex with underaged congressional pages, Craig, whose name never surfaced publicly, nonetheless denied it publicly, a statement aired on ABC News.

CRAIG: Persons who are unmarried, as I am, by choice or by circumstance, have always been the subject of innuendoes, gossip and false accusations. I think this is despicable.

CROWLEY: The newspaper probe began last year after a gay activist said Craig was gay. One of the sources of that story told "The Statesman" he had sex with Craig in a bathroom at Union Station in Washington. The paper found the source credible, but there is no proof of the event, nor of similar stories from two other men, and the senator has denied it all. In Washington, that may not be enough to save his career.

JENNIFER DUFFY, MANAGING EDITOR, "THE COOK POLITICAL REPORT": I think it's very damaging. There is a lot of smoke here. And the truth is that, in politics, smoke is as deadly as the fire sometimes.

CROWLEY: Craig's crisis is exacerbated by his own record. He is one of Capitol Hill's most conservative members from one of the country's most conservative states. He is a family-values Republican who favors a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman. He voted for the Defense of Marriage Act, a bill defining the institution of marriage. He opposed a bill to prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation.

JAMES CARVILLE, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: In a way, if he wouldn't have been just such a god-awful, big hypocrite, part of you just wants to -- you feel sorry. I mean, the guy's got family. He's got kids. You have got to feel sorry for him. But...

CROWLEY: Politics is not an arena rich in sympathy. Craig is out as chairman of the Mitt Romney team in Idaho. Romney compared Craig's problems to Bill Clinton's "It's disgusting."

Fellow Republican leaders, already fearful of getting hammered in 2008, scrambled for distance. They called for an Ethics Committee probe. Whatever Larry Craig did and didn't do, politically, he is toxic now.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: The senator also said the "Idaho Statesman" newspaper has been on a witch hunt investigating him. Well, we're going to talk to the reporter that wrote that investigation coming up later in the hour.

Well, more people being chased out of their homes in Ketchum, Idaho. A wildfire there has burned up the west side of Bald Mountain, moving ever closer to that resort town. Fourteen-hundred homes are being evacuated this hour. So far firefighters have been able to protect all of the homes there, as well as the ski resorts. The fire burned more than 35,000 acres.

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PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, not feeling well. Maybe it's something you ate, or it could be something more serious. We're going to have some tips on how to tell the difference.

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PHILLIPS: A burning sensation, maybe pain in your chest, maybe heartburn or something more serious. As Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us here with a little bit more. What are we talking about?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, we've all sort of felt that feeling, maybe you ate the wrong thing. You get a little bit of pain.

PHILLIPS: You think it's stressed out -- you're stressed out.

COHEN: Right, and you think it's some strange thing you ate maybe at some new restaurant or whatever. And sometimes that's the right approach, just to say, oh it's not a big deal. But sometimes that is the wrong approach, and you should not dismiss those symptoms you are having.

The reason for that, is it might not just be heartburn, it might be something called gastric reflux, which could put you on the road to having cancer of the esophagus, and other more important and -- diseases that really do need to get treatment. The big question is, how do you know when it's just occasional heartburn and you don't need to worry?

And, how do you know when it's something you really should be worried about? Well, there is a five point test that gastroenterologists have developed that you can give to yourself. Do you have chest discomfort, throat burning, and a better taste? Do these occur mostly after meals? And, do you get this heartburn two times or more a week?

That last part is crucial. In other words, this is not just an occasional problem. And then the other two points are that antacids that are given over the counter, they do actually give you temporary relief, but then symptoms come back, and that the symptoms persist despite prescription medications that your doctor gives you. So, if you answer yes to two or more questions, that means you really need to go see your doctor.

PHILLIPS: OK. What can do you to treat it?

COHEN: Well, what you would do is, you would go to the doctor, and the doctor may give you some advance tests, like for example an endoscopy that would tell you whether it is something that is more crucial. Now, in the meantime, before they would do a test like that there are some things you can do at home to try to get rid of your heartburn.

For example, you can think about what foods are triggering the heartburn. And then you would want to avoid those foods. You also can try elevating your head about six inches when sleeping, I know that sounds strange but basically gravity would be working in your favor, so that those gastric juices don't come back at you.

PHILLIPS: Trigger foods. Because there are certain things that ignite this, right?

COHEN: There are. Many people have similar trigger foods. So, it's worth thinking about those in advance. Spicy foods, greasy foods, and chocolate. Those often will give people heartburn. So, that's the first thing you should think of. Are you having -- are you eating some of those foods? And if so, get rid of those foods that might be the answer for you.

PHILLIPS: All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much.

COHEN: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We're just getting pictures in now from one of our affiliates, WABC out of New York. Apparently this is at a New Jersey construction site. There's been some type of accident. These pictures coming in to us from the helicopter for WABC. We're told that a worker is trapped on this site.

It's Woodbridge, New Jersey. As we get more details, we'll bring them to you. Right now, rescue workers on the scene trying to figure out how their going to get that trapped worker from that area in this construction site. Happening right now.

Two years since that horrible storm. Not long enough for those striking images of post-Katrina New Orleans to fade from memory. The aftermath wore many faces, the vulnerable, the shocked and sad, the desperate. But, we also saw the face of strength and leadership.

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LT. GENERAL RUSSELL HONORE, UNITED STATES ARMY: Weapons down, weapons down, damn it. Put the weapons down.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: You probably all remember that clip. We sure do. It's been played about 1,000 town. Lieutenant General Russell Honore taking charge of the search, rescue and humanitarian mission in the city of New Orleans. General Honore is back there today. He joins me live from New Orleans. General, good to see you.

HONORE: Good afternoon. How are you?

PHILLIPS: Well, I'm doing well, and glad to have you and talk about -- boy, I can't believe it's been two years since I walked the streets of New Orleans with you. Watched you in action. I'm curious, two years later for you, you're walking those same streets, you're looking around the same neighborhoods. What's going through your mind? What do you remember the most?

HONORE: All of the people, and the water. Because of the water, the people suffered greatly. Which was caused by this great storm that just devastated and destroyed the infrastructure in and around the Gulf coast, and particularly here in New Orleans. So those often come back to mind.

I can almost stand on the edge of the Superdome and hear the people and their cries for us to get them out of there as soon as we could. And those thoughts still come back, and hopefully this will never happen again.

PHILLIPS: Do you -- did you ever think that you were going to be in for that big of a mission? I mean, you trained men and women to go to war and here you were in an area that looked a lot worse than a lot of battle fields.

HONORE: Well, we don't get to pick our missions, as you know, and when we -- we joined a great team on the ground in New Orleans, the first responders and the National Guard, and working with the other federal partners, FEMA, and the other team. Everybody wanted to get the job done, so it was a cooperative effort with everyone pulling resources together to get people out of city.

But I think your observations are good when you asked are you prepared, ever prepared? You'll know when you get to it, but I -- I hope we came here with the -- to project the confidence and the capability to get the job done. And, that's what we tried to do.

PHILLIPS: Well, there's one thing that I realized about you and that is, that you are a man of your word. And you came in there, and you headed these operations, rescue, humanitarian, military operations. You also told the people you were never going to leave, that you would stay in that city, whether it be the New Orleans area or Mississippi.

You did just that. One example is Warren Easton High School. You actually gave the commencement address I believe at that high school. Why did you stay so involved with that particular school?

HONORE: Well, there are thousands of stories of people you meet in schools, that school represents what was going on throughout the cities. These young students, many of them going back and forth from Baton Rouge to come back to a school here in New Orleans, once the schools open back up. And as you know a year ago, we visited Warren Easton.

So, it was a connection there and a way to use Warren Easton as a platform to speak to the importance of getting the schools open, and have them open in a safe and secure environment, where the students could get back and have some normalcy to their lives.

And Warren Easton represented the entire area, where students were displaced and to get them back so they could be with their friends and the teachers they knew, and to give back some semblance of home and get to enjoy what America projects. That ability to go to school where they want, worship where they want, and be in the town they want to be in, which is New Orleans.

So it -- it's been a great success story of what has happened at Warren Easton. But, there's still much work left to be done on the public schools.

PHILLIPS: Which is so true. We've stayed in touch in the educational efforts and the rebuilding of those schools. You just mentioned something very interesting in what you just said, worship where they want. New Orleans is also a very spiritual city, and that is a huge part of that community.

And matter of fact, I remember from a number of your commencement speeches, you incorporated the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. Just a couple of lines that I jotted down, Lord, make me a channel of thy peace, where there is hatred bring love, where there is doubt, bring faith. Where there is despair, bring hope. Of course, it goes on. It's a beautiful prayer. Why do you mention that prayer so many times when you are speaking to those in New Orleans and also Mississippi?

HONORE: You know, Francis Assisi started off as a soldier. And while he was in the army, he got captured. He was a young man of great wealth, and after he was captured, he went about, gave away his wealth and spent time going among people and helping the poor and those who were less fortunate.

And in today's world, at the end of the day, we will be measured by not what we do personally and the amount of wealth we achieve, but what we do with the wealth and talent to help those less fortunate be it because of economic reason, or be it because of a disaster like Katrina.

So it's a good talking point to remind graduates coming out of college that their greatest contribution they can make is not only to do well themselves and take care of their families, but what contributions they can make into the community.

Because if the community is not whole, if there is a part of the community that's suffering, the entire community will suffer, because if the entire community is not been able to take advantage of the greatness of America, then that part of that community will threaten the part of the community that is doing well. So, that -- that's the thought and process behind what we as soldiers fight for is that America is safe and free, and that is something that those graduates, if they don't come in the army, that's a contribution they can make at home on the homefront to make America continue to be the greatest nation in the world.

PHILLIPS: General Russel Honore, it's been an honor not only to know you but just to watch how you stayed involved in Louisiana and also Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina and continue to just follow- up on all the work that you still do.

Sir, thanks so much for spending some time with us today.

HONORE: Yes, and remind the people to prepare, because you will never protect an area from category five storm. When the storm is coming, leave.

PHILLIPS: It's interesting when you talk about preparation, because you are very involved with the boy scouts, I know. And that's one of their mantras, right? Always be prepared.

HONORE: Always be prepared.

PHILLIPS: And, sir, you are always prepared, including all the one-liners. Russel Honore, great to see you.

HONORE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, CNN's special coverage of the Katrina anniversary continues all day, 7:00 Eastern, a preview of "Children of the Storm" with director Spike Lee. Then 8:00 p.m., life after Katrina through the eyes of the "Children of the storm," and at 10:00 Eastern, "AC 360" live in New Orleans with a look at recovery efforts two years later.

More ahead, a developing story right now. Construction accident in New Jersey. Our affiliate WABC is reporting that a worker is trapped. Live pictures right here from the helicopter there above New Jersey's skies. Details as we get them.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: More on this New Jersey construction accident right now. Live pictures coming to us from WABC. This is Woodbridge, New Jersey. We're told that there's a worker trapped here at this construction site about five to six feet underground there. We are told through emergency workers on the scene that he is conscious and breathing. That's the good news.

Right now, emergency workers trying to figure out how to get down there and get this construction worker out of it -- it looks like a ditch, where he had fallen into, now trapped five to six feet down. We're tracking it, we'll bring you the details as we get them. He repeatedly tops the box office, but actor Owen Wilson's personal life may have hit rock bottom. What's wrong and will he recover? Addiction specialist Dr. Drew Pinsky joins me straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: Owen Wilson, an actor who always seems to get the laughs as well as the girls in the movies. Perhaps that's why reports that he attempted suicide seem so shocking. There are also reports that Wilson has struggled with heroin and cocaine addiction and a debilitating depression that typically goes with that neighborhood.

Author and addiction specialist Drew Pinsky offered some insight on "AC 360."

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DR. DREW PINSKY, AUTHOR & ADDICTION SPECIALIST: The reality is that he was admitted to Hazelton Chemical Dependence Treatment Center for, apparently, heroin and cocaine, and once someone is an opiate/cocaine addict, they are always an opiate/cocaine addict. That is their diagnosis. So, if they develop depression and develop behavior problems and suicidiality, you must think that their primary diagnosis is underlying that.

And I must tell you that relationships break down when people are using, maybe that's what happened with Kate Hudson. Addicts do very impulsive things to try and get out of the pain and misery of their addiction, whether they're trying to get relief from withdrawal, or really, we sort of conceptualize it as trying to kill the addict that they feel despair will never go away in them and they see no other way out.

It's -- they're depressed, they're truly depressed, but it's really not depression that leads to the suicide attempt. This situation really smacks of that kind of thing.

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