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Bad Weather Hits Midwest; Schools Face Tough Economic Choices; Same-Sex Marriages in California; George Bush in England

Aired June 15, 2008 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead this hour, weather coming or going? Iowa water levels mean big problems for the people of the Hawkeye State. What do they need right now? And Waterloo Train Station in London, apparently it's the place to be if you want to eyeball some top secret documents. A member of the public found another set on the train. What's going on over there?
And if you're gay and you want to get married, you can say "I do" in California. But what happens to couples once they're back in their home states?

Hello everyone, I'm Fredricka Whitfield and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. To call it record flooding would be an understatement. More National Guard troops are being deployed to Cedar Rapids to form a line around the neighborhoods ravaged by flooding. The waters now are receding. Thousands of people, however, who fled to safe ground are eager to see their homes firsthand. But they're afraid of what they will find.

Today, the Iowa River crested at Iowa City at a record level of 31 feet. Live images right now out of Coralville, Iowa. And here we're seeing it pushed past the homes just west of the city. Also today, there's trouble on the mighty Mississippi. The river jumped its banks in parts of Iowa as well as Illinois, and they're filling sandbags in northern Missouri as well, preparing for the potential onslaught.

Well, Iowa's governor said today the flooding in Cedar Rapids exceeds 500 year projections. He called the flooding across his state unprecedented and he sounded a rallying cry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHET CULVER, IOWA: I'm serious when I say that, yeah, it's been a setback. We've had a real blow to the guts. But we are going to keep fighting and we're going to be more united and stronger at the end of the day because of it. We will not be deterred. We are a determined people. We are hard-working and we love this state. And because of that, I have the level of confidence I do about the future of Iowa as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Jim Acosta joins us now from the worst-hit town in Iowa, and that would be Cedar Rapids. Are we looking at water that is receding? JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Fredricka. I am doing something right now that I was not able to do 24 hours ago, and that is walk through downtown Cedar Rapids.

The water was about five to eight feet high yesterday. It is significantly receded over that time span and that is news for the people here when you consider the numbers -- 1,200 city blocks in Cedar Rapids totally flooded by this event. Some 24,000 people evacuated from their homes. Economic losses somewhere in the neighborhood of $736 million.

And it is a pain-staking process getting people back into their homes. We can tell you we have some pictures to show you of some of the checkpoints that are being set up around some of the hardest-hit neighborhoods. National Guard troops along with local police have set up checkpoints where people are lining up around the block in some cases. Those residents getting wrist bands around their wrists before they can go back into their homes.

And we can stress those are not even the hardest-hit homes. Many of those residences are still being blocked off from neighborhoods. It is a pain-staking process. It is a slow process. And for many of the residents here, it is a frustrating process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you have your whole life tied up in a house, all the possessions, all the -- well, everything. So what? You know, can't do anything. Salvage a few things and go from there. But I hope that people that are doing decision-making do it fast because the longer is more painful. You can't move on, you can't put closure to something.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And for many of those people who are going back to their homes, they are finding foundational issues, Fredricka, which is very significant because many of the people here are starting to tell reporters, starting to tell local officials that they were told they didn't need to buy flood insurance. All of this is going to sound awfully familiar to our viewers out there who listened to all of these heart-breaking stories after Hurricane Katrina.

Not that this is anything like Hurricane Katrina, but again residents saying they didn't have the flood insurance to protect their properties before this flood hit. One other piece of good news we can report, the city officials are telling us the water, the clean drinking water in this town, is back to what they considered to be operating levels.

Yesterday they were telling people to use their water supply on a limited basis. Now they are basically calling off that warning, saying that they've got their water back up and running again. And in all of this murky water out here, Fredricka, it's hard to find a silver lining. But that is one of them at this point. WHITFIELD: And Jim, for a lot of folks who didn't have the flood insurance, obviously they're now going to have to rely on this area being declared a federal disaster area so they'll get federal assistance. But oftentimes when that happens, people will still say it doesn't quite cover the cost of what they may have lost. What is the feeling here? Or is it just too early for them to process it that far?

ACOSTA: It's really too early to process at this point, Fredricka. We walked into some of these neighborhoods with some of these residents and I have to tell you, it's surprising to see people have a good sense of humor, to be good-natured when they go back to their homes and see things totally devastated and perhaps it's that Midwestern folksiness. But we've run across that on a number of occasions out here today in Iowa, people just as friendly as the day is long.

But I have to tell you after going through a number of these neighborhoods, there is some pretty widespread devastation here. From what we're hearing from people who are saying that they don't have the flood insurance, there's going to be a big price tag on all of this when the federal government, state and local governments, take a look at all of this. It's just not clear at this point whether that assistance is going to be able to cover all of these costs.

WHITFIELD: Wow, incredible. All right, thanks so much, Jim Acosta from Cedar Rapids.

Well now let's get the picture from Iowa City, about 30 miles east of Cedar Rapids. Live pictures right now. This, what you're looking at, is part of the University of Iowa campus. Hard to identify, but we understand some 20 buildings are underwater and it is indeed enduring a lot of damage. Live for us now from Iowa City, reporter Christian Farr. Christian?

CHRISTIAN FARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fredricka, you explained it correctly, a lot of damage on this campus. We are on a parking structure right above the campus of the University of Iowa, the home of the Hawkeyes. And I want to cut to that second live camera that we have up here just to show you the devastation. A lot of buildings are underwater, nearly 20 buildings underwater.

And one of those buildings I want to focus on in particular is the art museum building. And here's the story with that building. There is 250 billion pieces of art, that is the worth of that art. But what the university did, before the flood waters came in, secretly, they did not tell the media, they moved all of this out because they wouldn't be able to get the security to get all of that artwork out of there.

They hauled it all away and have hidden it in Chicago to save that art. And as you can see, it is underwater. They don't know the damage because they can't get inside of that building as well as the rest of the buildings. There's a performing arts building as well, a technology building, very tragic. That story was told to us by the president of the university and we caught up with her a short while ago and she gave us her reaction.

(BEGIN VIDEO LCIP)

SALLY MASON, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF IOWA: It's a shocking mind-numbing sight. But we also know we have work to do. And we're staying focused on the work that needs to be done and we're going to focus on safety and making sure that we come back better, bigger, stronger when this is all over, and we will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FARR: And again, we are back here live. They will try to rebuild. Just a correction, it was $250 billion of artwork that they had to move out of here. Again, that was hauled away secretly, they did not tell the media. It is safe, it was not damaged. But the building, that is a different story. Summer session was supposed to start tomorrow but has been deferred for several weeks. The good news is that the facilities manager told us that they believe that the river has crested. So at this point they feel it might just go up a few more inches. The weather is supposed to be good over the next couple of days so hopefully that is good news for the University of Iowa. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Well, let's hope so. All right, Christian Farr, thanks so much.

Let's check in with Chad Myers, he's in the Severe Weather Center. And just looking at the beautiful blue skies behind Christian there in the live shot, it certainly gives a glimmer of hope that perhaps the worst of the bad weather is gone. At least for a while?

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: We'll look for that, thanks so much, Chad. And of course we will have much more on the flooding overall, including a tour of a church in Iowa City from the pastor of the past 20 years there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And yet I didn't feel too emotional until we got into the nursery.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A man of the cloth struggles to come to terms with the biblical flooding of 2008. That's coming up at 4:30.

In China, can't seem to catch a break either. Just weeks after an earthquake killed thousands, deadly flooding forces millions of people there out of their homes.

Also ahead, food fights. What's got these Argentine fighters so fighting mad?

And Waterloo Station in London, apparently the place to see top secret documents. One week, two breaches. What is going on there? You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A grim discovery for rescuers searching for earthquake survivors in Japan. Today they found three bodies buried under a landslide that crashed down on a family-run resort. Crews believe four more bodies are somewhere in that wreckage. So far, there are nine confirmed deaths in yesterday's 7.2 magnitude quake.

In southern China, meantime it's flooding that's creating real misery there. State media reports at least 55 people have died and more than a million people have been forced from their homes. The situation could get even worse. Heavy rain is forecast for most of the flooded areas over the next 10 days.

In London, British investigators are trying to figure out why top secret government documents were left on a public train -- again. Owen Thomas reports on this second security breach in less than a week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OWEN THOMAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It would appear you don't need a network of spies to discover top secret British government information. Maybe all you've got to do is hop on a train. The latest set of documents found on a train here at Waterloo Station in central London. They were handed over to a British national newspaper. The newspaper hasn't given exact details what was in these confidential papers but they did say the paper gives the policies of the British government towards the financing of terrorist groups to money laundering, to drug trafficking. There was also criticism of Iran, how it deals with the financing of terrorist organizations and general financial crimes.

Now, this is the second time in a week that confidential papers have been found on a train here in London. There's already a police and a government investigation into how papers regarding al Qaeda and Iraq were just left on a train for anyone to find. At this stage, people aren't talking about a conspiracy necessarily, these were deliberately left. It certainly looks like total incompetence. It's left many people wondering whether next time they get on a train, they too will find some confidential documentation regarding Britain's national security on the seat next to them. Owen Thomas, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Hundreds of Taliban militants still on the run in Afghanistan, presumably. Suicide truck bombers helped spring them from a prison in Kandahar Friday. The bombers blasted holes in the prison using two tons of explosives. Today coalition and Afghan forces say they killed about 15 insurgents and captured five others. It is unclear if those militants were escaped prisoners.

Farmers in Argentina promised more protests and strikes over a new export tax. They say the terror fund cuts into their profits at a time of record gain. The government defends attacks and says it will increase food supplies for the poor. This demonstration yesterday turned violent when riot police forcibly removed protesters blocking a highway. At least 18 people were arrested. Demonstrations and blockades over the tax have been going on for three months now and they've caused shortages of food and fuel across Argentina.

If you're checking a bag on your next flight, well be ready to pay up. American, United and U.S. Airways are all adding a $15 fee for the first checked bag. Each additional piece means an additional charge. The airline says this is all need to offset rising fuel prices. American's fee took effect today for new ticket purchases. United began charging on Friday.

Well skyrocketing fuel prices are hitting everybody hard, especially school districts. Many are having to rethink their priorities, even cutting programs in order to keep school buses running. Kate Bolduan looks at one district's dilemma.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ah, the sweet summer freedom.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, have a nice party.

BOLDUAN: And freedom is exactly what school systems are looking for from fuel prices.

DEAN TISTADT, FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: We didn't think it would get this bad.

BOLDUAN: Dean Tistadt oversees the budget for the Fairfax County school system. He says it was hard enough to keep things running this year battling ever-rising fuel prices.

TISTADT: We didn't implement the next phase of full day kindergarten at a lot of schools that we wanted to implement. We actually cut back on textbooks and library books this year.

BOLDUAN: Tistadt says it will likely mean making even more difficult cuts next year.

TISTADT: This kind thing is just going to keep taking money away from the instructional side of houses to the support side. That's just not a good outcome for student achievement.

BOLDUAN: In the past 12 months, these Fairfax school buses used 3.5 million gallons of fuel and school officials say every one cent increase at the pump costs them an extra $34,000 a year. Fairfax isn't alone. With buses getting nine miles to the gallon, Culpeper, Virginia schools are considering shortening bus routes to save on fuel.

LAUREN THOMAS, CULPEPER COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: We'll delay some maintenance projects. We may look at charging some fees for activity runs or field trips, things of that nature that we've always provided for free in the past. BOLDUAN: School districts across the country are feeling the pinch. In West Virginia, schools are pressing the governor for more help.

GOV. JOE MANCHIN (D), WEST VIRGINIA: In West Virginia, we're not geared for $4 a gallon gas. Our economy is not geared for that. I'm appropriating special appropriations right now as governors do, an extra $5 million for my school districts, just to pay for the fuel bill.

BOLDUAN: Bottom line, school administrators say the buses have to keep running. But with fuel prices unlikely to drop, that ride is starting to cause schools more than just dollars. Kate Bolduan, CNN, Fairfax, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Tune in each day for a full hour of news about money. Watch CNN's "ISSUE #1" Monday through Friday, noon Eastern Time.

An empty moderator seat on today's "Meet the Press." The powerful silence following the death of Tim Russert.

And an Iowa pastor says he was OK until he got into this room of his flood-ravaged church. He'll take us through it, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Tributes to veteran Tim Russert have been pouring in since he passed away Friday. Russert's chair on "Meet the Press" was left empty this morning to honor his impact and influence. He collapsed from apparent heart attack while preparing for today's program. On the air this morning, NBC colleague Tom Brokaw remembered Russert as a devoted husband and father.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM BROKAW, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT: It is worth remembering, this would not have been just another Sunday on "Meet the Press" for Tim. After all, this is Father's Day, a Sunday in June in which we honor fathers. With his books, "Big Russ and Me," and "Wisdom of our Fathers," Tim gave voice to the bond of father and child. He explored the generational differences, from the World War II generation to his own baby boomer experience as a dad. And he touched off a national dialogue within families and communities about the enduring lessons of fatherhood, for dads and their offspring alike.

Away from this setting, he had no greater calling and no greater pride than fulfilling his obligation to Maureen, as her husband, and also as a son and as a father. He shared that well beyond his relationship with Big Russ and Luke, Tim's son, his pride and joy. So in memory of Tim, happy Father's Day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Russert's hometown honored his memory today. Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown proclaiming this "Tim Russert Day." Tomorrow New York lawmakers plan to introduce a resolution on Capitol Hill. It calls for part of U.S. Route 20 to bear Russert's name. That section of the highway runs past the Buffalo Bills stadium, Russert's beloved NFL team.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Here's a look at the stories happening right now. Flood waters have begun to recede in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But the daunting cleanup remains. Thousands of residents who fled to higher ground are anxious to get back home, but they're afraid of what they'll find. The Iowa River crested today in Iowa City at a record level of 31 feet. The river has caused significant damage to the University of Iowa campus. You're looking at live images right now. You can barely see that one building rooftop, that's the campus at the university. Well, here's an up close and personal look at some of the damage in Iowa City. The Reverend Jeff Gilmore takes us inside the flooded church that he's called home nearly two decades.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PASTOR JEFF GILMORE, PARKVIEW EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH: So when we heard the flood was coming, everybody thought, oh, it will be OK, it will be OK. We were safe in '93. So when we first went in, it was -- I was so taken aback by all the water and the different perspective. I actually within the first few minutes -- I didn't know where I was.

The perspective totally is gone.

I've been through the building thousands of times over the last 17 years.

Look at this.

And this is a perspective that you would never, ever dream of having to witness.

First time in here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you feeling?

GILMORE: Just shock and awe.

And yet I didn't feel too emotional until we got into the nursery.

I've got to get out of this room.

Seeing those toys floating. That got to me. Nobody dreams that the floods would be this bad. But the church will go on. The gates of hell will not prevail against it. If the gates of hell can't prevail against it, certainly a little flood won't.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: Here's the reason why this is happening. These three swollen rivers among nine in Iowa that are at or above flood levels never seen before. Iowa's governor has declared disaster areas in 83 of the state's 99 counties. Extraordinary.

Chad Myers is in the Severe Weather Center. These folks have never dealt with this before. Certainly no one saw it coming all at once like this.

MYERS: Not to this extent. Not so many rivers that are over record flood stage, Fred. I know I showed this map earlier but I think it's really important to know that this is the old record.28 1/2 feet. That's where the water was in Iowa City back in '93. That was considered to be a century flood, even a 200-year flood. We're one, two, three, four feet above that. What that is? Is that a 500-year flood? That's what they're calling it in Cedar Rapids, a 500-year flood.

We are seeing rain showers and thunderstorms today from about Detroit back into Quincy down into parts of Missouri and even into Kansas. Only one area that I'm really worried about here, that's as these storms are sinking out of Omaha through Kansas City and down into Missouri, a couple of these storms are actually spinning. One way out here by itself in the central part of Kansas, that's going to be near Delight, Kansas. Moving through the beach kind of area, through the mountains in here and there's an awful lot of picnic areas and lakes in here. You get caught outside in one of these, probably isn't a good place to be in a tornado or even wind damage situation there. No real significant rainfall in the flooded areas. And that's great news.

For the next 48 hours, the rain is to the south or to the east of where the water is. But now there's a bubble. There is a bubble coming down the Mississippi River. And even if you didn't get rain in places like Quincy, and this water has to go somewhere. It is headed to the Gulf of Mexico in the Mississippi River. And this water is going to keep coming up and there are going to be record floods in places that it didn't rain. And there is obviously rain coming down in places where that bubble is going and that's not going to help things out at all. We'll touch on a little bit of that in the next hour, obviously in the 6:00 hour and 10:00 tonight.

We'll give a bird's eye view of where this water is going. It literally has to go somewhere. Here's a shot, though, I think we have this I-report. I just wanted to bring it to your attention because I was flipping through ireport.com. If you think youtube is amazing, go to ireport.com. Spectacular things, there 95 percent of them are weather-related. This is from Steve East in Iowa. That's the Terrible's Casino there. If you look close there was going to be a cruise Friday at 9:00 p.m. I don't think that happened.

WHITFIELD: I don't think so. Except everyone kind of is cruising in some sort of flotation device. Because difficult to get around to assess the damage any other way, sadly. Thanks so much, Chad.

The flood waters in hard-hit Cedar Rapids are receding a bit. That's giving some residents there their first-hand look at the overwhelming damage done to their homes and businesses. Joining us now by phone, Lee Clancey, she is president of the Cedar Rapids Chamber of Commerce and the city's former mayor. Miss Clancey thanks for being with us. We understand that in various parts of the state, people are lining up, whether it's to get the wrist bands so that they can get a first-hand look at their homes or actually even lining up to get tetanus shots. In your view how are people handling all of this?

LEE CLANCEY, PRESIDENT, CEDAR RAPIDS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (via telephone): You know, it really is remarkable. I'll tell you, it shows to me the grit and determination that Iowans have. The resilience that they have. They have -- attitudes have been good. Their patience level is good. Obviously there's very high anxiety about the status of businesses and homes. But people have been remarkably patient and I just -- I'm in awe of all those people who have lost so much.

WHITFIELD: And how about you? How about your home?

CLANCEY: My home is fine. We're high and dry. Our office was at the very edge of the 500-year flood plain and the water came up to within about a quarter of a block of us. But we didn't get water in our office so we're still up and running. And as a result, we're trying to figure out ways in which to help other businesses get up and running. If we can get business back to work, then we're all going to be better off for it.

WHITFIELD: What's the best thing you can say to anybody of the many people that we've interviewed who have said, we don't have flood insurance, we barely left the home with the shirts on our backs, we don't even have a toothbrush. How do you offer some support, some guidance, to people, a lot of people in this very same boat, so to speak?

CLANCEY: One of the things that we're going to be doing tomorrow is putting together a series of seminars that are information seminars. We're going to completely change our course of work here at the chamber and try to give people as much information as we can. We're going to bring FEMA people in; we are going to bring small business administration people in, in order to access whatever programs there might be to aid them.

And in addition, we are going to be setting up a business recovery fund. As you may know, the FEMA program is really only for residential properties. The only properties for businesses -- the only programs for businesses through the SBA and most of those are loan programs. And sometimes all a small business needs in order to get back on its feet is a small grant of $1,000, $2,000, $5,000. So we're hoping to start a business recovery fund and allow for those small grants to be made to our small business members.

WHITFIELD: Are you and others happy with the local and state emergency response as well as FEMA, as well as SBA?

CLANCEY: I'll tell you something, I think that we have one of the finest emergency management associations here anyplace. We do drills on a regular basis. The emergency system is in place and is working like clockwork. Communication has been established between all the different entices. The National Guard is here they have been fabulous. All of our surrounding neighbors, cities to the north and east of us, have provided additional firefighting, additional police.

WHITFIELD: But it would seem drills for a calamity of this magnitude are really difficult to anticipate since no one would have anticipated a flood of this scale. Do you believe it's just that everyone sort of rose to the occasion and that's how emergency responders were able to manage all of this?

CLANCEY: I think it's a combination of both. We have a nuclear power plant here and run drills for all kinds of disaster scenarios related to that. So they knew -- they know how to work disaster drills. The fact that this was the magnitude it was took everybody by surprise. And we have just had to step up to the plate and make sure that we are doing the best we can. It is a disaster of a magnitude none of us expected.

WHITFIELD: Before I let you go, folks, look at these images from across the country. How can I help people out? What's your best advice?

CLANCEY: We have two Websites that are up right now, www.corridorrecovery.org. and www.2008flood.org. Both of those have ideas for how people might be able to help. We don't want really anybody in here yet because the flood waters have not quite receded. And we are on severe water restrictions. But until that time, there are some ideas there.

WHITFIELD: Lee Clancey, president of the Cedar Rapids Chamber of Commerce and former mayor as well, thanks so much for your time and all the best in the recovery.

CLANCEY: Thanks for the coverage. We appreciate it.

WHITFIELD: Absolutely. And just to underscore what Miss Clancey was offering, if you want to help out, corridorover.org is one location, 2008flood.org is another location you can go to get guidance. And of course we here at CNN want to give you as much guidance as possible. You can go to CNN.com/impactyourworld and find out some of the best ways in which you can reach out to the many flood victims in the Midwest.

Meantime, Barack Obama makes a big church appearance for the first time since the Reverend Wright flap. Hear the candidate's message the congregation.

And the couple planning to be first in line when same-sex marriage becomes legal tomorrow in California. It is all coming up in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: President Bush is on the final leg of his farewell European tour arriving in London today. Crowds turned out to protest Mr. Bush's presence, however. Many carried signs criticizing the war in Iraq. Iraq was expected to top the agenda at the president's sit- down with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown today. Our Robin Oakley has more.

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's been a social opening to President Bush's visit to Britain. First of all, tea with the queen at Windsor castle and a visit to the royal apartments in St. George's hall where the ceremonial regalia of the knights of the garter are kept. Then it is on to Downing Street dinner with Gordon Brown the Prime Minister and his wife Sarah, strictly a social occasion. The heavy talks come tomorrow and the usual subjects will be discussed, climate change. Whether to step up sanctions against Iran if it continues with its uranium enrichment program, World trade talks, Afghanistan.

And the most fractious potential issue, that of Iraq. British newspapers reporting in an interview, President Bush was warning Mr. Brown not to pull back British troops from Iraq too soon, saying there shouldn't be a definitive timetable. In fact, Mr. Brown has himself said there isn't going to be a timetable, that he will take his tone on that issue from the commanders on the ground. It was made out that Mr. Brown, who's languishing in the opinion polls in Britain, would love to be the prime minister to bring the troops home from Iraq, and Mr. Bush will probably be pushing him gently not to do it until those commanders are absolutely certain that it can be done.

Finally, Mr. Bush will accompany Gordon Brown to Northern Ireland. In the morning he'll also have a talk with Tony Blair, a man with whom he had rather more cordial relations that he's been able to develop with Britain's current prime minister. Robin Oakley, CNN, London.

WHITFIELD: And here in this country, Barack Obama and his family spent Father's Day morning attending church in Chicago. It is his first big church appearance since leaving Trinity United over the Reverend Wright controversy. Senator Obama and his wife and two young daughters, and today he spoke to the congregation about what it means to be a father.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's up to us as fathers, as parents, to instill this sense of excellence in our children. It's up to us to say to our daughters, don't let the images on television tell you what you're worth. Because I want my daughters to dream without limits. And reach for those goals. It's up to us to tell our sons, those songs on the radio that glorify violence and glorify materialism, that's not going to cut it in my house. In my house, we live to admire and respect achievement and self-respect and hard work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And this political note, former Virginia Governor Mark Warner is making it clear he's not up for joining the Obama ticket. His name did come up in speculation over possible running mates. But Warner has just accepted the Democratic nomination for this fall's U.S. Senate race in Virginia.

Meantime, Senator John McCain met this morning with Iraq's foreign minister to discuss security improvements in Iraq and negotiations over the long-term presence of U.S. forces there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm pleased to visit the prime minister who I've had the honor and privilege of knowing for more than a decade. He was one of the leaders in the opposition to Saddam Hussein long before the conflict began and has continued to play a key role in leadership of Iraq. We've had a very good discussion about the challenges that have been overcome and the challenges that lay ahead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And Senator McCain got an early Father's Day gift from his daughter Megan. She announced last week that she is changing her voter registration form from independent to Republican because she believes so strongly in her dad.

All the latest campaign news is just at your fingertips. Go to CNNPOLITICS.com.

We also have analysis from the best political team on television. It's all there at CNNPOLITICS.com.

California is preparing for a rush of same-sex marriages. Starting tomorrow, county clerks across the state can issue marriage licenses to gay couples. Massachusetts is the only other state that does. CNN's Ted Rowlands has the story of a California couple who plan to be the first in line.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFED FEMALE: Thanks so much, appreciate it, thank you.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): For the past 19 years, every marriage license issued in northern California's Contra Costa County has had Stephen Weir's signature on it. As county clerk, she also performs weddings.

STEPHEN WEIR, COUNTY CLERK: For that magic period of time, you're assisting them with something that's really deeply, deeply personal for them. And I get emotional doing that.

ROWLANDS: Last month's California Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage has had Weir scrambling to prepare for a flood of marriages, including his own.

WEIR: I promised myself and my partner and the community that when this was legal, I'd be first in line.

ROWLANDS: Weir and his partner John, who live with their two dogs in this suburban home, have been together for 18 years. They say ever since they had this fake wedding photo taken as sort of joke years ago, they've actually been serious about wanting to get married. But never thought they'd have the chance.

JOHN HEMM, WEIR'S PARTNER: Didn't think it would ever happen.

ROWLANDS: The plan is for the couple to be the first in the county to fill out one of the new marriage forms which says party a and b, instead of bride and groom. Then in front of family, friends, and all of Steve's colleagues, get married in the county wedding room. But there could be uninvited guests. Outspoken Kansas Reverend Fred Phelps has said he will be there to protest. The local sheriff is planning for trouble. Steve says he's not worried.

WEIR: If these folks want to come here, they're exercising their constitutional rights. And I'm exercising my constitutional rights. And my family and friends are going to be there to celebrate this, and there isn't anybody that's going to take any of that away from us.

ROWLANDS: Weir who is 59, says he knows many people, including some in his office, are uncomfortable with same-sex marriage. He says he also knows that John who is 53, and has been battling Aids for more than ten years, is without a doubt the person he wants to marry.

WEIR: Finally after 18 years, getting the chance to do something that's good and right and proper for us to do.

HEMM: Just tell the man that I love that I love him in front of everybody. And just have a wonderful time and just have that experience everybody else has.

ROWLANDS: Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: In our next hour we'll actually talk to Stephen Weir. We want to find out what's on his mind as California prepares to recognize same-sex marriages, including that of his and his partner's.

All right, America lost heroes and children lost fathers. Ahead, a special Father's Day tribute at the Vietnam wall.

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WHITFIELD: News across America right now, gas or clothes, about 100 people in Boulder, Colorado, didn't use either yesterday, stripping down to their birthday suits and jumping on their bikes to protest sky-high gas prices. And to encourage people to use bikes as a form of transportation. Police were there. Apparently didn't feel compelled to arrest any demonstrators.

A strange sight on a New Hampshire highway a 1940 biplane. The airplane was flying into the town of Lebanon when its engine died. The pilot thought he could make it to the airstrip. But he fell just a little short. Luckily no one was hurt.

A home invasion in North Carolina, 60,000 bees found inside the walls of this house. Believe it or not it wasn't a buzzing sound that tipped the owners off. They found honey oozing from their walls like some kind of sweet haunted house. The owners hired beekeepers to relocate the insects.

In the nation's capital, a poignant Father's Day at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

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UNIDENTIFED FEMALE: An estimated 20,000 young Americans were left fatherless by the Vietnam War. The wall bears the names of those fallen heroes we gold star kids call dad. As you'll hear when the messages are read, the fathers we honor here today are not just the tragic statistics of war, but men who are missed and loved and remembered.

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WHITFIELD: Among today's visitors, sons and daughters of men who died in the Vietnam War. Fathers lost in Iraq and Afghanistan were also honored. Many family members left roses of remembrance.

And a Texas-size welcome for Silver Star honorees. Army specialist Monica Lynn Brown received a hero's welcome in Lake Jackson, Texas this weekend. She has been awarded the Silver Star for her actions in Afghanistan. And she is only the second woman to receive it since World War II. Her hometown renamed a jogging trail in her honor.

And now a unique way to honor American service members killed in Iraq. A cross country run of 4,000 miles one mile for each fallen man and woman.

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JOHN BELLONA, RUN FOR THE FALLEN: This is the start of run for the fallen. Beginning here at painted rock, Ft. Irwin, and taking us 4,000 miles through 13 states and ending at Arlington National Cemetery on Sunday, August 24th. Our main mission is to run one mile for every service member killed in "Operation "Operation Iraqi Freedom."

BRIG. GEN. DANA PITTARD, U.S. ARMY: Most Americans have not felt the pain of this conflict. Like our families and our fellow soldiers, airmen, marines have. It means a lot to us for you to do this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready, set -- go!

BELLONA: Inspiration really came from knowing my best friend and Hamilton college roommate, First Lieutenant Michael J. Cleary. For Mike, that was the clarion call for him. Ambush IED on his Humvee. He was killed instantaneously. This is something I wanted to do, finding a way to honor him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This would be the third mile. This is the fourth flag we've planted. BELLONA: Each mile is for a service member. For me, it's Mike. But everybody here, people are joining us along the way in Tennessee or Kansas has a different story for why they're running. 1,000 people are in some way have put forth an effort in making this happen, a lot of space there. Looking around, you know, down the road, I mean, there's a lot of space. Putting one foot in front of the other, 5,280 feet. In that space, there's the opportunity and chance to reflect but also activate. This is the start of run for the fallen. Our mission is to run one mile for every service member killed in "Operation Iraqi Freedom."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM starts right after this.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are not going to quit. We are in this fight for as long as it takes.

WHITFIELD: Next in the NEWSROOM, some call it Iowa's version of Katrina. Receding flood waters unveil the scope of the devastation.

Plus, in just a few hours it will be legal for same-sex couples to get married in the nation's largest state. One of the first people to take that step joins us.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right there.

UNIDENTIFED FEMALE: Right there.

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WHITFIELD: Move over, Tupperware. A shocking new craze sweeping the country, the Taser party.