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New Source for Knowledge on Web; Obama and Netanyahu to Meet; Elizabeth Edwards Speaks Out; Mexicans Seeking Faith-Based Cure
Aired May 05, 2009 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Happening this hour. Wall Street reopens after stocks surge. We're watching the numbers today hoping for some more good numbers. Also, waiting to hear from the Fed chairman.
And in too deep to say. Millions of Americans awaiting foreclosure may actually get nothing out of President Barack Obama's modification plan. We'll tell you about that.
And also, a snapshot of the class of 2009. Meet street graduates whose plans have been changed by the recession.
It is Tuesday, May 5th. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Taking the pulse of the economy. Are things finally getting better? We may get a more clear idea next hour when Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke testifies on Capitol Hill. His expected message? Despite recent improvements, it may take years for the economy to fully recover.
Bernanke is also expected to face some tough questions. Among the top concerns, the trillions of dollars pumped into banks to get them lending again. And the risk posed to that taxpayer money that we all know about.
Let's go ahead and take a closer look now. Christine Romans is part of the CNN money team. She's joining us now.
First, let's begin with the market rally. Yesterday, that was pretty fun. Does this mean the worse is over though?
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, you know, you can't look at one day in isolation. So let's look at eight weeks. It's been quite an eight weeks, Heidi. The S&P 500 is a gauge of 500 different stocks of different companies and all different sectors, is up 35 percent over the past eight weeks.
We are now in the black for the year. Think of that. The S&P 500 has erased its losses for the year.
COLLINS: Unreal.
ROMANS: However, it is still down 41 or 42 percent from the peak October 2007. COLLINS: Yes.
ROMANS: So investors have still been really hurt here. Why does it appear things, or at least the stock market thinks things are better? Every now and then we're getting little economic reports that are showing stabilization either on housing, in manufacturing, in construction, in homes.
And basically what economists are telling me is that the economy appears to be stabilizing. They're not ready to say it's growing right now.
COLLINS: Yes.
ROMANS: It is not growing. But it is stabilizing. The floor is not falling out from underneath us. And that's the first step to building the base so we'd have a recovery.
COLLINS: Yes, no question about that. What about Ben Bernanke, though, on the Hill today? What can we expect from him today?
ROMANS: Well, he's the Fed chairman. He has said in the past that there will be a recovery and we'll want to know what his timing is on that recovery. Does he see something later this year? Does he see something next year? How long does he think it's going to take for the damage and the financial system to be healed?
What is he going to say about the banks, if he says anything? As you mentioned, regulators are starting to brief the banks today and tomorrow about whether they need to have more money, whether they need to -- excuse me -- raise more money.
We'll find out the results of those so-called stress tests on Thursday. But the banks have been put through these stress tests to see...
COLLINS: Right.
ROMANS: ... what they can -- what they can handle. We'll learn more about that in a couple of days. But we want to know what the Fed chairman thinks about the recovery. Is there something -- is there an expiration date on this recession and when will it be?
COLLINS: All right. Very good. Christine Romans, busy girl this morning. We will check back with you later on.
Thanks, Christine.
ROMANS: Sure.
COLLINS: Investors buckling up for a bumpy ride on Wall Street. At the bottom of the hour, we will check in with Stephanie Elam for the rest of the new trading day. Keep our eye on those numbers this morning.
Breaking news now to get to. Tensions rising on the high seas. We are just learning about an incident where two Chinese fishing vessels came what's being called dangerously close to a U.S. military ship.
Our Barbara Starr has the story now this morning.
So, Barbara, this is just the latest of several incidents in recent months.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Heidi. If this sounds familiar to you there is good reason. This is the fifth time in the last two months Chinese fishing vessels have approached U.S. warships, U.S. shipping, pardon me, in international waters.
Let's tell people briefly what happened. The Pentagon hasn't announced it but it was last Friday off the coast of China, two Chinese fishing vessels in international waters, far out to sea, approached an ocean surveillance ship run by the U.S. Military Sealift Command.
This was the U.S. NS Victorious. It conducts undersea ocean surveillance. This is very routine for these ships which are run by the Sealift Command. They often are out there. The Chinese fishing vessels, according to our sources, came, quote, "dangerously close to the U.S. ship," causing it to have to really slam on its brakes, sound its danger alarm, turn these fire hoses on to try and push the Chinese vessels away.
No shots were fired. But these incidents are growing concern obviously to the U.S. Navy. They don't like to see this happen at sea. Heidi?
COLLINS: Yes. And maybe we should talk about that for a second, Barbara. Why? Why is the U.S. so concerned when things like this happen?
STARR: Well, you know, we've seen it in so many places now. This has happened many times out in the Pacific with the Chinese -- with the Chinese Navy and Chinese forces. It has happened, of course, in the Persian Gulf with Iran. We see much more violent action off the coast of Somalia, of course, with the pirate attacks.
But you know, for the U.S. Navy, the problem is instability at sea, violence at sea. There's real rules of the road when these ships come dangerously close to U.S. vessels. Things can go very wrong very fast. Shots can be fired, things can escalate. Things can rapidly get out of control.
COLLINS: Yes.
STARR: In fact, you know, back in March, there was a much more serious incident with the Chinese. There's video of that very incident. And that led the U.S. Navy to start escorting ships through these waters with their armed Destroyer escorts.
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said he was very unhappy about the whole thing and thought it should all be cleared up very rapidly so this didn't happen again, but it has. Heidi?
COLLINS: All right, CNN's Barbara Starr, our Pentagon correspondent. Staying on top of that story for us.
Barbara, thank you.
Today's at the White House, President Obama launches his first direct efforts to broker a Middle East peace deal. He's meeting with Israeli president Shimon Peres in the first of many high-level meetings.
Let's get the very latest now from CNN White House correspondent, Suzanne Malveaux.
Good morning to you, Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
This is certainly a unique time and a unique opportunity for the Obama administration. It is going where many former administrations have failed trying to achieve Middle East peace.
One of the reasons why you see, Heidi, that the White House is coming out so early on, it's trying to increase its chances of somehow succeeding.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): For President Barack Obama and Israeli president Shimon Peres, it's a first step.
SHIMON PERES, PRESIDENT OF ISRAEL: Let me make it clear, we trust the leadership of President Obama.
MALVEAUX: The two leaders' top priority -- peace in the Middle East, starting with the Israelis and Palestinians.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am a strong supporter of a two-state solution.
PERES: I have a simple question. Why wait? Israeli is prepared today to bring peace closer. Today.
MALVEAUX: But even the Israeli leadership is split over whether that's even possible. Israel's newly elected prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not endorsed the two-state solution. Mr. President Obama would like that to change.
OBAMA: My hope would be that over the next several months, that you start seeing gestures of good faith on all sides.
MALVEAUX: Already some Arab states are encouraged by Mr. Obama's early outreach to the Muslim/Arab world.
KING ABDULLAH, JORDAN: This has gone down extremely well and really begins, I believe, a new page of mutual respect and mutual understanding between cultures.
MALVEAUX: But Iran continues to threaten the region with its nuclear ambitions. But U.S. and Israel believe the regime is intent on developing nuclear weapons.
PERES: Iran is not threatened by anybody.
MALVEAUX: But President Obama believes opening a dialogue with Iran's regime could change its behavior.
OBAMA: Tough, direct diplomacy has to be pursued without taking a whole host of other options off the table.
MALVEAUX: Former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich slammed the president's approach, telling the "Jerusalem Post" it was a fantasy, part of a policy very dangerous for Israel.
But Peres told CNN's Wolf Blitzer, he didn't have a problem with Mr. Obama reaching out to talk to Iran's leader.
PERES: Look, if he'll be successful, God bless him. Who wants a war? They're not crazy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: And Shimon Peres, a very well respected elder states man, but Heidi, as we know, his post is largely ceremonial. It really is the newly elected prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has the power. He is going to be meeting with President Obama in the weeks to come and it's notable, Heidi, here that the president is breaking tradition.
He is meeting with the president first, then the prime minister. Obviously, Shimon Peres, very much more in line with the thinking of the Obama administration when it comes to that two-state solution - Heidi.
COLLINS: All right. Well, we will keep our eye on those meetings as well.
Suzanne Malveaux, from the White House, for us. Thanks, Suzanne.
Now to the latest on the swine flu outbreak. Mexico City appears to be on the mend after a five-day national shutdown to stop the spread of the H1N1 virus. Government offices and restaurants are supposed to reopen tomorrow. But bars, nightclubs and sports stadiums are still closed indefinitely.
Universities and high schools are scheduled to reopen on Thursday. And younger children will go back to class on Monday. But the World Health Organization is still cautioning people to stay alert because of the ongoing concerns. Both Cinco de Mayo celebrations in the city are canceled.
Homeowners in desperate need of help.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GERALDINE NELSON, FACING FORECLOSURE: It is stressful. I have cried so many times, you don't know. Nobody would know how many times I've cried.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: A priority for the president, but his new plan may still be leaving a lot of people out in the cold.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm Rob Marciano on the CNN Severe Weather Center. Damaging storms yesterday and more flooding rains on the way today. Weather is coming up when the CNN NEWSROOM comes right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Over to the Severe Weather Center now because we do have a lot of talk about. Our Rob Marciano, take it away.
MARCIANO: Just a couple of storms yesterday, but unfortunately, Heidi, they did some damage. This one out of Louisiana. Just west of New Orleans, tornado likely touching down here. They go out and check it out and make sure it was. Certainly some strong winds at the very least here.
About a dozen homes were damaged or destroyed here. Three people injured, actually.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: Including one person that...
COLLINS: Look at that. Wow.
MARCIANO: That had to be taken to the hospital because of -- actually she was trying just to get out of her home and run to her mom's home.
Another spot here. This is out of Norfolk, Virginia, where they had some damaging storms as well. This likely a tornado also. And much like what we've seen in the past couple of days, most of the damage coming from in this area, at least, old growth trees, decades old in some cases. And that certainly can do a whole lot of hurt in a big hurry there.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MARCIANO: Heidi, that's the latest from here. We'll talk more about weather and also there's rumors of -- a black bear getting a little feisty down in Florida.
COLLINS: Oh, yes, yes.
MARCIANO: We'll look at that as well.
COLLINS: Yes. Can't wait. Good stuff. All right, Rob. We'll check back later. Thanks.
MARCIANO: Sounds good.
COLLINS: The Obama administration has made helping homeowners a priority. Now, expanding a mortgage relief plan to include second mortgages. It's all part of the president's making homes affordable initiative.
But as CNN's Allan Chernoff explains, the plan still doesn't cover everyone in danger of losing their home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Meet Geraldine Nelson, a three time loser in the refinancing game. Three times she fell victim to unscrupulous mortgage brokers. As a result, her mortgage today is nearly double the $89,000 she borrowed to buy her home in 2000 when she was still employed.
Collection agent calls are a constant irritant.
NELSON: Sell it. You can't afford it, sell it. Where are you going to go? I have nowhere to go. What am I going to do move my things on the street?
CHERNOFF: To pay her monthly mortgage requires 97 percent of her income, virtually all of which comes from Social Security. So Geraldine has been unable to make payments for months and the foreclosure moratorium Chase Bank granted Geraldine has now expired.
NELSON: It's stressful. I have cried so many times, you don't know. Nobody would know how many times I have cried.
CHERNOFF (on camera): On March 24th, Geraldine's lenders sent her a letter saying she might be eligible for the president's new Making Home Affordable program. Three weeks later, the bank sent a letter saying it was beginning foreclosure proceedings immediately.
(voice-over): Her Bridgeport, Connecticut neighborhood is littered with homes that have already been foreclosed. To prevent Geraldine from being the next victim, her housing counselor, Julissa Soto of ACORN Housing, is asking Chase to make big concessions -- drop her interest rate by nearly six percent, down to two percent; extend the term by ten years to 40 years; and chop $30,000 off the principal.
Even then, Geraldine's mortgage would still be too much debt for her to qualify under the Obama criteria for a loan modification. Chase would have to make an exception.
JULISSA SOTO, ACORN HOUSING COUNSELOR: Honestly, it's going to be hard. It's going to be really hard.
CHERNOFF: Chase won't speak to Geraldine's case citing reasons of privacy. But the bank says, "We continue to modify thousands of mortgages each week to help families stay in their homes, but unfortunately there are some borrowers who do not qualify for the modification programs."
President Obama says his plan will help millions of Americans facing foreclosure, but millions more may get nothing.
SHAUN DONOVAN, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT: This plan cannot help every single homeowner that's in trouble.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Senior correspondent Allan Chernoff joining us now live from New York to talk a little more about it so.
Allan, I'm sure Geraldine is well aware that she's not alone, but how did she fall so deep into the hole?
CHERNOFF: Heidi, it's very common. First of all, she bought more home than she could afford.
COLLINS: Yes.
CHERNOFF: Millions of Americans did that. Then when she needed help, she turned to mortgage brokers. This happened three times. And each time the mortgage brokers -- different mortgage brokers, put her into lousy loans. They -- she wanted money to be able to fix the roof, to make all the improvements. She's very devoted to her home.
But these mortgage brokers, instead of delivering that extra money to her, they just took their own slice and then walked away, and ended -- you know ended up giving her just awful loans with the interest rate shooting up. And that's how she fell so deep underwater. A very, very sad story.
COLLINS: Yes. Usually ends up being a combination of things, doesn't it?
All right, Allan Chernoff, we sure do appreciate that. Thank you.
It could be a key to uncovering one of the mysteries of autism. We're taking a look at one area of a child's brain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A new study says the size of your toddler's brain may help experts pinpoint if and when your child can develop autism.
Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here now with the story.
Sanjay, this is fascinating. Is it the physical size of the cranium that's an indicator for autism or a specific area inside the brain?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what's interesting, for some time researchers have sort of figured out that the circumference overall, the head circumference of children with autism seems to be slightly bigger, not noticeably larger, but slightly bigger.
They didn't quite know what to do with that information. They started getting scans, trying to look deep inside the brain, trying to figure out, was there something else that was going on within the brain?
So researchers at the University of North Carolina have actually decided to look deeper in the brain, specifically in an area, as you point out, Heidi, an area called the Amygdale (ph), those are those almond shape areas close to the front of the brain you see over there. They're about 13 percent larger in children with autism.
Now this is an area of the brain that's responsible for your ability to process emotion, recognize faces, understand threat. If it's not working well, all those things seem to be malfunctioning. Again, the amygdale is larger at age 2 but that doesn't seem to grow at all by age 4. and keep in mind, usually autism is diagnosed around age 3.
COLLINS: Right.
GUPTA: Right in the middle there.
COLLINS: Right.
GUPTA: So, you know, again, researchers trying to piece this all together and understanding, for example, if you tell a child with autism to look at a particular object, look at a clock, for example.
They may not be able to process it, recognize it, or not perceive it as a threat as compared to a child without autism who would simply just look at a clock and be able to process that.
COLLINS: Yes.
GUPTA: This is very early research out of UMC but fascinating stuff, though.
COLLINS: Yes. Really interesting. So then are some kids born with a bigger brain or does it actually grow bigger as they grow and maybe faster?
GUPTA: I think that's -- that is the critical question. Are you born with this? Are you somehow born with a predisposition to it or does it all happen after you're born? Now researchers don't know the answer to that. But I think what they're going to start doing is they're going to start doing some of these scans, maybe even earlier in life.
They do it around age 2 and again at age 4. But they do it earlier in life, they may try and figure out whether or not the children are born with this larger amygdale, that particular area of the brain, you know, from that time of birth. This is something that you're sort of born with.
And I think more importantly, it could be sort of a predictor or a signal...
COLLINS: Sure.
GUPTA: ... that something is happening in the brain. I don't know if it's going to lead to treatment as much as it's going to lead to early diagnosis. But as you know, Heidi, we talk about this all the time on your show, that's a critical component, trying to figure this out early.
COLLINS: Absolutely. Yes. All right. Well, boy, we'd love to hear more about that as that research continues.
GUPTA: That's nice tough. Yes.
COLLINS: Yes. Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Thanks, Sanjay.
GUPTA: Thank you.
COLLINS: Taking aim at the Taliban. Civilians now being told to get out of the way as the Pakistani military moves closer to a new offensive.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: Live in the CNN NEWSROOM, Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: On Wall Street, stocks are coming off a nice rally that helped lift the S&P 500 into positive territory for the year. But it could be a little difficult to keep the follow-through going today.
Stephanie Elam is at the New York Stock Exchange this morning with a preview of the trading day. I'm sorry. I'm just looking at the video right next to you and there are people running right at my face.
Good morning, Stephanie.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. I'm sure that man will be very happy to know his ear was life size.
COLLINS: Yes. Yes. It's good stuff.
ELAM: He was at shot.
Right. Yesterday we had some surprisingly solid economic reports. But today, there isn't much to push on tires, so we're expecting a slightly lower open. Fed chief Ben Bernanke will testify before Congress today. He'll give an economic outlook and will likely face questioning about the Fed's recent moves to boost the economy.
Of course, the health of the nation's biggest banks are of particular concern to Wall Street. Results of the government's stress test will be released on Thursday. Several reports out today indicate that about 10 of 19 banks tested will actually need to raise more capital. Banks overseas are taking a hit as well. UBS, that's Switzerland's largest bank, posted nearly $2 billion in quarterly loss. Expect the global economy to continue to worsen. So we'll be keeping our eyes on it.
But really, at this point, Heidi, we'll be in a bit of a waiting game here really for Thursday, for those stress tests and really for Friday because we'll get that employment data. So at this point, we're just kind of holding out.
As you can you see there, Chipotle is ringing the bell.
COLLINS: Love them.
ELAM: One of my favorite, favorite things.
COLLINS: Me, too.
ELAM: Love it.
(CROSSTALK)
ELAM: Yes, Cinco de Mayo.
COLLINS: Yes. Of course.
ELAM: All right. So the markets are now going to be opening here. Hopefully we'll get a few of those numbers on their screen. And I can see already that it looks like we might be mixed here at the open.
COLLINS: OK.
ELAM: Yes, there we go. The Dow is off slightly now to give us a start to the red side. So we'll be keeping our eyes on it as things continue here today.
But, Heidi, I do have one thing to tell you. That new proof that alcohol is recession proof.
COLLINS: Yes?
ELAM: That's because Molson Coors, their first quarter earnings, they doubled to $75 million.
COLLINS: Wow.
ELAM: That's for Coors.
COLLINS: Wow.
ELAM: Their ticker symbol happens to be TAP. Now I got to get that TAP in there. So they were up 5 percent in premarket trading.
So, yes, there we are. We're off to a downside on all three of the major averages, but fractionally to the downside right now - Heidi.
COLLINS: OK, very good. I was going to say, give me a burrito, but maybe I shouldn't be talking about the other there.
Thank you, Stephanie. Appreciate it.
ELAM: Sure.
COLLINS: Over the last few weeks now, the stock market has made big gains and even the real estate market is showing faint signs of a rebound. So is there reason for optimism?
Here's what CNN chief business correspondent Ali Velshi had to say last night on "AC 360."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: What I've been talking about the things that have been making this economy feel a little stronger. Remember, three months ago, Anderson, I couldn't find anything good to say about the economy.
But, over the weeks, we have been seeing things. Now, here's what we got this morning. We -- these are measurements from March, because, obviously, these economic reports are a little delayed sometimes. But housing sales, pending home sales -- that's homes under contract -- up 3.2 percent in March. That's much better than people expected. That's because home prices continue to be lower and interest rates continue to be quite low.
It was in March that we saw those interest rates actually start to drop. Then, we also saw something else that was interesting. Construction spending was up three-tenths-of-a-percent, again, not much, but in the right direction.
This isn't home construction, because, obviously, homes are not being built, because they won't be sold just yet. But, generally speaking, public construction was up. So, these two things made things feel a little better. And, of course, last week, Anderson, you and I talked about the fact that one major economist that tracks the economy says this recession will end in 2009, maybe as early as summer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: And it is worth noting that some economists actually say the recent surge in the stock market may be too much too fast. They predict repeated stumbles before the recovery really takes hold, and that could be sometime next year.
Well, it is that time of year, right now, the class of '09, facing the real world with some real worries. Tomorrow, we have some experts on to answer your questions about financial aid, grants, loans, 529 plans, and more. So make sure you send us your questions and comments. Just go to cnn.com/newsroom and click on my name or send us an e-mail at cnnnewsroom@cnn.com. Very good job, Matt.
We're going to try to answer your questions tomorrow.
Operating the board over there, Matt.
President Obama is now reaching out to senators who will play a role in confirming his Supreme Court choice. One of those is Republican Orrin Hatch, who told Politico.com he believes the nominee to replace retiring Justice David Souter could be named by the end of the week. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says he hopes the president nominates a former governor or senator or someone with what he called real life experiences.
We'll be watching that.
And the president diving right into Mid-East peace efforts today. At 2:00 p.m., he's inviting Israeli President Shimon Peres to the White House. The two met before in Jerusalem during the presidential campaign, you may remember. Tomorrow, Afghan president Hamid Karzai and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari will come together at the White House.
And before President Zardari sit down for that meeting, he sits down with our Wolf Blitzer in "THE SITUATION ROOM." You can catch that interview later on today at 4:00 and 6:00 p.m. Eastern.
Civilians in Pakistan are being told to evacuate from Taliban strongholds now. Now the government order may be a signal that a new military offensive is on the way.
CNN's Ivan Watson joining us live now from Islamabad, Pakistan.
So, Ivan, what's the very latest now on this offensive?
IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, looks like the Pakistani army and the Taliban militants are headed towards a confrontation there in the Swat Valley. We've had attacks by the Taliban against Pakistani security forces attacking police check points, attacking police. CNN just got off the phone with a Taliban spokesman who says three policemen were killed over the last 24 hours.
The Pakistani military, they are giving us some mixed signals about whether or not this evacuation order has actually gone out. The top civilian official in the Swat Valley, he says, in fact, that the residents of that region have to get moving. They have until tomorrow to get out of there. There's been a curfew that's going to be imposed imminently from the get-out. Motorcycles are banned in that district. That's a favorite mode transport for Taliban militants. And it really does look like a battle is on the way there.
COLLINS: Ivan, if you can, tell us a little bit more about how civilians, everyday people are being affected now by all of this.
WATSON: Well, we've really got a warning just now from a top provincial official in the northwest frontier province. He's warning of a possible half million civilians who will be forced out of the Swat Valley if this battle does indeed take place. And says he does not have enough refugee camps to house all of this people. He says they need at least six more to be established. Already Pakistan has, Heidi, half a million refugees from previous fighting going on since last August between the soldiers and the militants - Heidi.
COLLINS: Boy, that is an awful lot of people to be worrying about.
All right. Our Ivan Watson, live this morning from Islamabad, Pakistan.
Thank you, Ivan. We'll be checking in on that story throughout the day.
Is there a united front among Taliban fighters in Pakistan and Afghanistan? CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson had a chance to sit down for a rare exclusive interview with a spokesman for Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar.
He asked him if Afghani fighters would be joining battles in Pakistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZABIULLAH MUJAHID, SPOKESMAN FOR MULLAH OMAR (through translator): We do not want to interfere in the Pakistan-Taliban affairs. We are Afghan Taliban and our policy is clear against the foreign troops. The second thing, yes, sympathies between the two sides is there. Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The spokesman also issued a warning to President Obama. We'll have that, plus more on Nic's exclusive interview, coming up next hour.
Suspected rebels took control of a tank base near Georgia's capital of Tbilisi this morning. But the government says the mutiny is now under control. About 500 troops and possibly some civilians were involved in the attempted rebellion. The government believes it was intended to disrupt tomorrow's start of a joint NATO military exercises in Georgia. Russia has angrily criticized the move by NATO, and has beefed up its troop presence along the borders of two break- away regions in Georgia.
Happening right now, the first of two Senate hearings looking into efforts to stop piracy on the seas. The Armed Services Committee is listening to testimony from U.S. officials right now. Later, crew men from the Maersk Alabama will testify before the Commerce committee. Among them, you see him there, Captain Richard Philips, who was held hostage by Somali pirates, as I'm sure you remember, for five days last month.
At that hearing this afternoon, the chairman plans to show this video of pirates attacking another American ship shortly after the Maersk incident. We are giving an early look at it now. The Liberty Sun was carrying humanitarian aid to Kenya when it came under attack on April 14th. Somali pirates fired grenades and automatic weapons, but they fled by the time the Navy got there.
All right. Now, just the bear facts, please. One fury forager is coming to extreme left to get a bite to eat. Pretty cute. However, eating garbage may be up his alley. But animal control officers are thinking something else. They're hoping that this bear has a sweet tooth. Tell you why in a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: OK. So you've got Google, Yahoo!, and other search engines. Now there's a new way to get information on the Internet. It's getting a lot of attention, too. But is it really worth all the hype?
Stephen Shankland from CNET News has seen it. He's joining us now from San Francisco to fill us in just a little bit.
All right. So what's this thing called? And can we check it out yet?
STEPHEN SHANKLAND, SENIOR WRITER, CNET NEWS: You can't check it out yet. It's going to publicly launch in the next few weeks, sometime in May. It's called Wolfram Alpha. It's sort of a cross between a search engine, a reference library, and maybe like a natural language processing system that will understand what you're asking it.
So this is actually different from Google in a lot of ways. Google will do a good job of answering a question. If somebody has already answered that question on the Internet, Wolfram Alpha is designed to get you an answer based on the data it actually has programmed into its system. So it's a more general system for answering a question, but it really only does well right now at least with very technical data.
COLLINS: OK. All right. And it sounds like it might be pretty limited because of that, because the input has to -- the data has to be inputted.
Yes?
SHANKLAND: Well, yes. Somebody has to enter the data into the Wolfram system but that's not you, that's the folks at Wolfram.
COLLINS: Of course.
SHANKLAND: And they have quite a lot in there. So you have baseball statistics, you have nutritional information, you have the phases of the moon, you have the location of the international space station. They have a lot of data in there. And unlike the stuff you're going to find on Google, for example. Somebody has actually looked at it, scrubbed it, edited it. That means you can trust it probably a little bit more. But on the other hand, it also means it takes a lot longer to get that data into the system in the first place.
COLLINS: OK. We're looking at a good shot of it right now. But, now, listen, here's the headline from the "Independent," of course, the British newspaper, talking about this new program.
We'll put that on the screen for everybody. It says, "On invention that could change the Internet forever."
Is it?
SHANKLAND: I think that's a little strong. I think -- I think it definitely -- let's put it this way. I don't think Google is terrified of this. But I do think it's going to give them a little kick in the pants, because it does in some context, I think give better answers than what Google can supply.
COLLINS: Right.
SHANKLAND: But Google is certainly not standing still. One of the amusing things about this story is during a public debut of Wolfram Alpha last week, Google actually announced a similar, but much more limited idea, where, for example, it will show data from lots of public records and they will chart them nicely the way Wolfram Alpha does. Nice, flashy graphics. So certainly Google is not standing still on this.
COLLINS: OK. Yes, they don't want to remain complaisant. But I don't know about that name, Stephen. Wolfram Alpha, that does not roll off my tongue at all.
SHANKLAND: Well, I have to say that, yes, you have to bear in mind this comes from Steven Wolfram who is a mathematician and physicist who got his PhD in theoretical physics at age 20. This guy is -- you know, he's a hard core scientist and mathematician.
COLLINS: Yes. He sounds like a real flouch.
SHANKLAND: He's very well respected in a lot of ways. But he definitely caters to the scientific set. There are lots of consumer kinds of things you might be able to use this for. But, really, this is going to be helpful for people who are doing research. You know, maybe they're going to be people on Wall Street, students researching papers. You know, if you want to sift around in the human genome. It's very technical.
But, you know, for example, if you want to find out whether the moon is going to be full during your romantic getaway, you can type in July 31st, moon phase, and it will tell you whether you can get a full moon or not.
COLLINS: All right. Well, very good. We'll have to keep our eye on this, as I'm sure Google will be doing the same as you say.
Stephen Shankland, he's a senior writer for CNET News.
Appreciate that. Thank you, Steven. SHANKLAND: Thank you.
COLLINS: And I want to let you know how technical I am, I'm blogging now. About 100 years like everybody else.
And we've got a new CNN NEWSROOM show page. Matt's over there operating it, yet again. Talk to me, everybody. Let me know what you think of the stories we're telling. Leave me a comment about what stories you would like to hear. Just check it out at cnn.com/newsroom.
Lots of stuff on there to check out.
Rob Marciano, do you have a blog?
MARCIANO: No, I don't. I mean, that would require actually learning how to write first. What kind of things do you write about? I mean, what kind of things?
COLLINS: A plethora. You know what, you have to check it out, because there's so much on there. I don't want to ruin it for everybody.
MARCIANO: Just a window into what is Heidi Collins.
COLLINS: Right.
MARCIANO: Excellent. I will check that out.
COLLINS: There are so many people trying to get in. I wouldn't know you would be in there.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: OK. Very good. We know you're watching it all.
And hey, there's this, Rob.
MARCIANO: Yes.
COLLINS: A piece of video that has absolutely nothing to do with weather, but it made us think of you anyway.
MARCIANO: Oh, because...
COLLINS: I don't know. But it's a little --
MARCIANO: ...because I'm as huggable as a bear?
COLLINS: That's right. That's right. And there's dumpster diving, too.
MARCIANO: Stories from my college past.
COLLINS: Look at this. That's right. This bear hanging out in Ft. Myers, Florida, looking for a free meal. MARCIANO: Are you kidding me?
COLLINS: Maybe it was that part there that reminded us of you.
People are being told, though, of course, to stay away from it. And as always, don't feed the bears because they may end up getting little too comfortable around humans.
MARCIANO: (INAUDIBLE)
COLLINS: Yes. They do really like picnic baskets, though. So animal control officers have been trying to lure it into a trap using doughnuts.
How about that?
MARCIANO: Because they like doughnuts.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: Who doesn't?
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: You know, it's been a while since...
(CROSSTALK)
COLLINS: See how kind and gentle he is, he is ripping the top of the garbage canister?
MARCIANO: I have a black bear story for you I'll share with you off air.
COLLINS: I cannot wait -- maybe you should blog about it.
All right?
MARCIANO: Maybe I should blog about it.
COLLINS: OK? All right, Rob. We'll check back later on. Thank you.
MARCIANO: See you later.
COLLINS: Well, it's being called the battle between the virus and the virgin. Catholics in Mexico hope their faith and prayers will provide that miracle cure that beats the swine flu.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Before Pakistan's president sits down with President Obama tomorrow, he will be sitting down to talk with our Wolf Blitzer. On "THE SITUATION ROOM," Wolf Blitzer interviews Asif Ali Zardari. That will happen today at 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Another meeting a lot of people are talking about, the one between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Obama, that's going to happen in a couple of weeks. Netanyahu has not endorsed the two-state solution. Mr. Obama would like that to change. Talking to members of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee yesterday, Netanyahu talked about a positive future for the Palestinians.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER, ISRAEL: I want to see Palestinian youngsters knowing that they have a future. I want them not to be hostage to a cult of death and despair and hate. I want them to have jobs. I want them to have career paths. I want them to know that they can provide for their families. This means that we can give them a future of hope, a future that means that there's prosperity for all. And this is proof to be successful in advancing a political peace in many parts of the world.
I believe that this triple track towards peace is the realistic path to peace. And I believe that with the cooperation of President Obama and President Abbas, we can defy the skeptics. We can surprise the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Israeli officials say any idea of a rift between the American and Israeli leaders is overstated.
Elizabeth Edwards says despite the heartache, she's still standing by her man. Her marriage to two-time presidential candidate John Edwards took a hit after he admitted having an extramarital affair. Now he's under a federal investigation for allegedly paying that same woman's company with campaign money. But as Edwards tells talk show host Oprah Winfrey, she still believes in him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPRAH WINFREY, TV TALK SHOW HOST, "THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW": Did you believe that this was the only time?
ELIZABETH EDWARDS, WIFE OF JOHN EDWARDS: I did. I did. You know, I believed --
WINFREY: Only time with her.
EDWARDS: Only time with her.
WINFREY: Did you believe it was the only time ever?
EDWARDS: Yes. I mean, I believe that, I want to believe that, you know.
WINFREY: You still believe that?
(END VIDEO CLIP) COLLINS: Mrs. Edwards also said she doesn't think her husband spent campaign funds improperly.
There is a lot going on this morning, and CNN crews are bringing it all to you. Here's a look at what's ahead now.
Beginning with you, Christine Romans.
Hi, there.
ROMANS: Hi, there, Heidi.
We're going to talk about the economy. Whether it's stabilizing, whether the pace of contraction, as they say, in the economy is slowing. And what the Fed Chief Ben Bernanke has to say about what could happen next for how you and I feel about the economy. That's at the top of the hour.
MALVEAUX: I'm Suzanne Malveaux at the White House. We're waiting where President Obama's going to be meeting with Israel President Shimon Peres. They're going to be talking about jumpstarting the Middle East peace process, and also confronting the threat of Iran.
More of that at the top of the hour.
ELAM: I'm Stephanie Elam at the New York Stock Exchange. With the Dow and S&P 500 have started the trading day close to four month highs, but the momentum may be fading. New reports indicate that many of the nation's biggest banks didn't fare so well on the government's stress test.
Heidi, more on that at the top of the hour.
COLLINS: All right. We'll be waiting for all of those stories.
Thanks, guys.
We'll also investigate claims of highway robbery. And it's the police who are accused of the thievery.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Some people in Mexico are looking to their beliefs now to deliver them from the swine flu. With Catholics praying to the Lady of Guadalupe and others relying on herbs or witch doctors. The faithful are hoping the power of prayer can help them stay healthy.
CNN's Karl Penhaul tells us how it's working out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN VIDEO CORRESPONDENT: Help is not to infect or to get infected. The priests praise. It's a new prayer written to combat the swine flu virus. Prayers for protection, the Catholic faithful are buying crucifixes and statuettes of the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico's patroness.
"We have great faith and hope the Virgin of Guadalupe will bring us through this," she says.
On a normal Sunday, more than a million worshippers flock to the Basilica of our Lady of Guadalupe, but for now, the government is allowing just a handful to gather in a bid to stop H1N1 from spreading.
"Our faith in the Virgin of Guadalupe will help us through this crisis, through this psychosis and through this epidemic," he says.
Across Mexico City, a shaman or witch doctors market. On offer, everything from herbs, and tinctures, to rattlesnakes and dried fox carcasses. Vendors prescribe them for aches, pains, diabetes or even cancer. But this herbal pharmacist cannot promise a miracle cure for swine flu.
"My recommendation would be to go to the doctor. I wouldn't sell something that's not going to work, I would say go and see a professional," he says.
We search for herbal antidote.
Carmelo Gregorio (ph) prescribes me a handful of wood chippings. He says it's an antiviral drug but doesn't guarantee it will tackle H1N1.
Mexicans put great faith in plant remedies handed down by their Aztecan ancestors. Those supported by health insurance are told they can buy a cure with little as 30 cents compared to around $6.00 for a doctor's visit. While there's no proof it works, some have few other options.
"When people don't have health insurance, they have to buy their own medicine. And if they're too poor, they don't go to the doctor, but try and invent a homemade remedy," he says.
Back at the Basilica, worshippers are putting their faith in the power of prayer.
"I came to pray for Mexico and other countries that have this virus, the Virgin of Guadalupe will help us," he says.
Some here see it as the battle of the Virgin versus the virus.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Mexico City.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
