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Small Town Texas Cops Allegedly Bilked Motorists; Couple Fights Off Wildfire From Bunker; Parents Opting to Not Vaccinate Kids

Aired May 07, 2009 - 14:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, only in Washington would $17 billion be considered chump change, but not by the White House. The budget director and his boss, President Obama, are both defending 121 line-item cuts worth $17 billion in next year's spending plan. Well, those include an early education program called early start which hasn't lived up to expectations and an alternate engine for the joint strike fighter jet. The president said the jet's original engine is just fine and the pentagon doesn't want an alternate. Still, he's bracing for a fight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: None of this will be easy. For every dollar we seek to save, there will be those who have an interest in seeing it spent. That's how unnecessary programs survive year after year, that's how budgets swell. That's how the people's interest is slowly overtaken by the special interest. But at this moment, at this difficult time for our nation, we can't accept business as usual. We can't accept anything less than a government ready to meet the challenges of our time.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, republicans are challenging the president to cut more than one half of one percent of a $3.5 trillion budget.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JUDD GREGG, (R) NEW HAMPSHIRE: Taking $17 billion out of that spending program is not going to solve our overall problems, which involve the fact that we are headed into a non sustainable government because of the size of the spending that we're doing in the government and because of the size of the debt that we're running up.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So, who wouldn't want to cut waste? Well, in just a few minutes we're going to talk about the cuts, the causes and the nation's finances with Tom Schatz of the group Citizens against Government Waste.

Taking a look at the Dow Industrials right now on Wall Street, looks like they are down about 112 points, we're monitoring the numbers.

Also, the government has taken stock of the nation's banks, 19 of them anyway, and today we find out which ones can withstand the stress of a deep recession and which ones need a bigger cushion. CNN's Stephanie Elam naming names. Stephanie, which banks need more money and which ones are ok?

STEPHANIE ELAM: Let's take a look at that Kyra. Reports are indicating that few are going to need to raise more cash. The exact numbers on how much money they're going to need to raise is not exactly known right now, but there are a lot of questions about the health of regional banks, especially the cause of their exposure to the commercial real estate market. That could be the next shoe to drop. But the bottom line here is that the government will not let any of these banks fail, so your money is safe.

Now sources telling CNN that the following banks will need to raise capital. That would be Bank of America, Wells Fargo, GMAC, as you can see there, and also Citigroup. The banks that won't need to raise capital, include Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, American Express and Bank of New York Mellon. All in all, 19 banks in the U.S. did go through these stress tests. We'll get the full results of these tests after the close of trading today. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: And pushing forward real quickly what's next for these banks, Stephanie?

ELAM: For the banks that are in trouble, they'll have 30 days to come up with a plan to raise money and then six months to actually raise that money itself. Then they could look at how they're going to raise the funds possibly by selling assets or by getting some from the private sector or perhaps as a last line of defense going to the government, although the treasury department and the White House say that they don't think that that's a likely option at this point. The bank is also going to have to take a real hard look at their management of these struggling banks to determine if they're the right people for the job. Otherwise the government might have something to say about that. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: All right, Stephanie, thanks.

Those lines could only be outside a job fair, in this case just outside Atlanta. But the lines at unemployment offices shrank last week. The labor department said that first-time claims for benefits dropped to 601,000, the fewest in 14 weeks. Economists say it's a possible sign that layoffs have peaked. Keyword "possible."

And later this hour, a "30 second pitch." If you're hiring, keep watching. We've got a job seeker for you.

And a quick note on the shifting balance of power on Capitol Hill, Illinois democrat, Dick Durbin, agreed to give up chairmanship of a key senate subcommittee. That would let republican, turned democrat, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, take over. And just yesterday, the senate voted unanimously to strip Specter of the seniority that he earned during his nearly 30 years as a republican. His switch brings the democrats within one vote of a veto-proof majority in the senate. And the U.S. won't open up another war front in Pakistan. That assurance, to U.S. troops from secretary of defense, Robert Gates. While he's visiting them in Kabul today, the secretary said that no U.S. ground forces will be deployed to Pakistan. He also says the pentagon is working to get American troops longer home visits between deployments in Afghanistan.

Secretary Gates won't be meeting with Afghan president Hamid Karzai, that's because Karzai and Pakistan's president are spending a second day in Washington after meeting with President Obama yesterday. They're hashing out ways to take on the Taliban and al Qaeda, amid daily reminders of the need to take action. Pakistani forces stepping up their offensive against Taliban militants who are getting bolder by the day. And today in Southern Afghanistan, a suicide bomber killed at least a dozen people at the marketplace.

Gunned down in cold blood. A growing number of Chicago children losing their lives to gun violence. One family tells us their story.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, drops in buckets, low-hanging fruit, pick your metaphor. We're talking budget cuts, several billion dollars the White House wants to cut from a $3.5 trillion spending plan. So, did you know that you're paying rent in Paris for the U.S. education department? Well, that's on the chopping block. Along with a radio- based navigation system that GPS has made obsolete. And the National Institute for Literacy, which spent almost half of last year's funding on overhead, proposed to be taken out. And the White House says that it isn't chump change, it's only a start. Tom Schatz joins me now from Washington, he's president of the group Citizens against Government Waste. Tom, good to see you.

THOMAS SCHATZ, CITIZENS AGAINST GOVERNMENT WASTE: Hi.

PHILLIPS: So, I'm curious, out of the 120, possibly more, proposed cuts, is there anything on that list that you think should stay?

SCHATZ: Unlikely. In fact, there's a lot more that could be cut.

PHILLIPS: All right. Which leads me to the next question, was there something that you saw on there -- we listed a few of them -- that you thought was just absolutely egregious?

SCHATZ: The $465 million for the alternate engine for the joint strike fighter, two years ago the pentagon said they didn't need it. An independent study said it wasn't necessary, and there's some anonymous group of members of congress trying to protect it, it was one of 142 anonymous earmarks in this year's defense appropriations bill. And nobody put their name on it. So, that should go. Even start, the education program, has been on the block as well. About 40 percent of these were in George Bush's last list, and congress ignored it. So, even though it's not a lot of money, getting just this small amount through is going to be very difficult. PHILLIPS: You bring up an interesting point, then. So, nothing passed when it came to president -- former President Bush's list? So, is this actually -- is this just for fun here? Is this just sort of a PR stunt, or are there really going to be cuts and are Americans going to save billions of dollars?

SCHATZ: Out of President Bush's last list, which was about $18 billion, he got $1.6 billion through, that's 10 percent of what is really half of one percent. It's a lot of math. It's a very small amount of a really small amount of a $3.5 trillion budget. And most organizations across the country, to stay in business, are cutting 10, 15, 20 percent. People are losing their jobs. There's really nothing like that here in Washington. And while the president deserves credit for a pretty good list of spending ideas to cut, a lot more really needs to be done.

PHILLIPS: So, you can't stop with the pork, obviously. When you say a lot more needs to be done, then, where do we need to start seeing other cuts?

SCHATZ: Well, this is only one-third of the budget. It's a trillion dollars in the non entitlement area. Two-thirds of the budget goes to entitlements, social security, Medicare, student loans. A lot of programs that have not been addressed for many years and that are really out of control. That's where the thing -- that's where everything really needs to go, and that's what the president should also be talking about. But even within the discretionary area, the areas he's talked about, first he said $100 million across the agencies. Now he says $17 billion. That number should be much larger. Closer to $300 billion, which would be about 10 percent of the whole $3 trillion budget. .

PHILLIPS: So, Tom, I'm curious. Was there anything missing on the list of proposed cuts, something that you thought, hey, why isn't this on the list?

SCHATZ: Well, we've got a list of $270 billion in one year, $1.9 trillion over five years. It's called the prime cuts. And it's a long list of spending cuts, all of which have been vetted through the Congressional Budget Office, prior budgets, and anything on that list is something that should be added to what the president has already.

PHILLIPS: Tom Schatz, appreciate your time.

SCHATZ: Thanks.

PHILLIPS: Billions of dollars are also on the line in the U.S. auto industry, and GM says it's still burning through cash. The automaker says it lost about $6 billion in the first 3 months of this year, and that's revenue that fell by almost half on sluggish auto sales. GM has until the end of the month to come up with a restructuring plan, otherwise it will join Chrysler in bankruptcy.

Our Detroit affiliate, WDIV reports that the head of Fiat will be the new chief executive of Chrysler once it emerges from bankruptcy. Fiat is taking a 20 percent stake in that company, and Chrysler's current CEO plans to step aside once the bankruptcy is complete. President Obama has said that he hopes Chrysler can emerge from bankruptcy in 30 to 60 days.

Recession, swine flu, the ups and downs of weather, well the American farmer is getting hit from all sides. CNN's Sean Callebs reports now from Kansas where money and Main Street intersect.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is no special effect. This is a young wheat field buffeted by punishing winds. A stark reminder, no matter how bad the economy, farmers are always at nature's mercy.

ROB SELLARO, KANSAS FARMER: This is even so dry, it's gotten hard, there's no moisture left in it. And without the moisture, this wheat is going to continue to die.

CALLEBS: For generations, the sellers have farmed Bucklin Kansas. Rob and Sylvia now own a whopping 14,000 acres, that's nearly 22 square miles.

KRAIG LINDSAY, OFFERIE GRAIN & SUPPLY CO.: The farm community is really what we consider the backbone of America. We work every day.

CALLEBS: It's not easy or cheap. It costs a fortune to plant wheat last fall. The spike in oil prices driving up the cost of oil- based fertilizers.

SELLARO: You know, four or five years ago, we were buying $350 to $400 a ton fertilizer. This wheat crop here when we fertilized last August and September, fertilized was $1,000, $1,100 a ton.

CALLEBS: Grain prices are low compared to last season. The seller can sit on his harvest and hope the price goes up. But he has to pay to store it. The sellers also raise Black Angus cattle that make those tasty steaks that corporate execs have always spent so lavishly on.

LINDSAY: And with the fears in Wall Street, people have stopped eating out so much. Less beef is sold. Foreign countries, don't -- they're struggling, too, so we don't have the exports.

CALLEBS: Exports are slowly improving and the sellers do have the option of hanging on to their prize cattle until prices improve. But what farmers do have is a lot of expensive machinery, and repairs keep them busy.

LINDSAY: If you were buying a new one, it's going to cost you probably about $240,000.

CALLEBS: In this economy, there's no money for a new tractor, so seller has to squeeze all he can out of this one. There is some good news. Crop prices have been good the last couple of years. But falling stock prices, the credit crunch, many say things will get worse here before the economy turns the corner. KELLY ESTES, JOHN DEERE DEALER: You know, it always starts on the east coast and west coast, and then it just kind of comes in. And by the time it gets here, we're hoping that that tidal wave is a ripple effect.

LINDSAY: This plant should be opened up very green. You know, a plant goes into survival mode.

CALLEBS: Oh, got you.

LINDSAY: These plants are shriveled and curled up.

CALLEBS: He's trying to hang on.

LINDSAY: He's trying to hang on.

CALLEBS: Just like the American farmer. Sean Callebs, CNN, Bucklin, Kansas.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: You can see more "Money & Main Street" stories tonight with Roland Martin "No Bias, No Bull," 8:00 eastern on CNN.

Flames sweeping through hillsides and destroying homes, it's been an inferno around Santa Barbara, California, as that wildfire spreads. The weather making a pretty bad situation worse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Ah, she's a-singing, she's a-strumming, but she ain't a-talking. A Texas prosecutor faces claims that her cops are squeezing minority drivers. We uncover the story but we're not stopping there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A record number of Chicago public school students have been killed this school year. Just yesterday that number hit 36. CNN's special investigations unit correspondent, Abbie Boudreau, gave a video camera to a mom and her 10-year-old son who lost a young family member to gun violence. They recorded video diaries for us so we could better understand what they've been going through.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TREVON BOSLEY, VICTIM'S BROTHER: My name is Trevon Bosley.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And how old are you?

BOSLEY: I'm 10 years old.

ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT (voice-over): Trevon Bosley's mom asks him questions about his older brother who was gunned down in a church parking lot.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, the day when all this took place, you was there, right? You went to the hospital?

BOSLEY: Can you pause it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, let's talk. You went to the hospital.

BOSLEY: I --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on, Tre. It's hard. This too hard?

BOSLEY: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ok, ok. Let me pause it.

BOUDREAU: A few minutes later, Trevon sits back on the couch.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ok, so you do miss your brother?

BOSLEY: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And this is a hard thing for you to do. It's hard to talk about him, because everything has changed, right?

BOSLEY: Yes. Hope over fear, unity over division. That's sending a powerful message that change is coming to America! I am the first black president of the United States. I have to learn that speech, because I want to be president just like Barack Obama.

BOUDREAU: This is Pam Bosley, the voice you heard behind the camera. Asking her young son about losing his 18-year-old brother, Terrell. Terrell was shot in 2006. The police still haven't found the killer. He was not a gang member. He wanted to play the bass guitar in a gospel band. Instead, he was killed for no apparent reason, and died a painful death.

PAM BOSLEY, VICTIM'S MOTHER: The bullet -- the bullet destroyed a lot of things. That -- it destroyed a lot of things in this society. My baby was suffering. He could not breathe. He did not deserve this. It was horrible.

BOUDREAU: There's so many people who are watching this who don't understand truly how it feels, and no one can really know.

P. BOSLEY: Uh-huh.

BOUDREAU: But could you try to explain?

P. BOSLEY: It feels like somebody just took a knife and just stabbed you in the heart, and they don't stop. They just continue to stab you in your heart. I actually try to leave here on my own, even though I was raised in the church, the first year I tried to commit suicide. I couldn't take the pain. I tried, but I thank God that he did not allow me to go out like that, because my other two boys are already suffering. (END OF VIDEOTAPE)

BOUDREAU: The Bosleys have been fighting for stricter gun laws ever since it's happened hoping that it will make some sort of difference. Incredibly nearly half of the student killings this school year are unsolved. There was an arrest in the Bosley murder, but he was acquitted at the trial, so, of course, they're still waiting for some sort of justice. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: You hear the frustration and the pain for the Bosleys.

BOUDREAU: Yeah.

PHILLIPS: I'm sure all the other parents are dealing with this, too, and this number has got to be frustrating for them as well.

BOUDREAU: They just keep saying they feel as though a lot of the people in Chicago are become desensitized to all these murders because they're happening so often, and they want people to get angry. They're angry that people aren't more angry about this. And I guess that's why we keep doing these stories, and we're going to continue to cover these stories throughout the next couple of weeks and beyond of course.

PHILLIPS: So, are all the parents getting together and being proactive and --

BOUDREAU: Yeah. I mean, there's a lot of that. There's a lot of that. They're trying to fight for stricter gun laws, but a lot of other people tell us, stricter gun laws OK that's great and everything, but if a bad guy wants to get a gun, he's going to find a way to get a gun. A lot of this stuff has to start at home and figuring out why these children -- they are children -- why they're so angry and figure out a way to try to stop these people from doing such horrific crimes.

PHILLIPS: Abbie, thanks.

Well, license and registration, please, add in your money and all your stuff, too. If you're a minority and you're driving in this small Texas town, guess what CNN found out? The law might just pull you over, and take all your stuff. A new lawsuit claims the cops are shaking down ethnic drivers in Tenaha, Texas. CNN's Gary Tuchman confronted one of the accused officers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: My name is Gary Tuchman with CNN. I want to know if you recognize this guy. We're doing a story about this guy, Roderick Daniels. He was pulled over here by you a year and a half ago and you took his money and his jewelry. Do you recognize him?

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: All right, well, the cop won't talk. What about the local D.A. who CNN found wrote a bunch of questionable checks with the confiscated money? We didn't find her in her office, and we didn't find her in court, either.

Yep, that's her, Shelby County District Attorney, Lynda Russell. She's singing, but she's not talking.

And I don't know if our next guest can carry a tune, but I can tell you one thing is for sure, he's definitely getting involved in trying to do something about this. I'm talking about Senator John Whitmire. He saw the investigation that Gary did.

What was your reaction to that, sir?

JOHN WHITMIRE, TEXAS STATE SENATE: It was outrageous, angry. It should be against the law. And we need to end that abuse of in Tenaha, or any other community that abuses what is a good law, which was passed in 1989, the felony forfeiture. A good concept, but obviously they have lost all sense of justice in Tenaha.

PHILLIPS: So, the forfeiture law, tell me what you're doing to get that changed. Can you change it? And where does it stand right now? Because obviously this can't continue.

WHITMIRE: Absolutely. We passed a statute in the Senate already. That would prohibit this waiver practice where they pull someone over. It requires them to take you to court, prove their case, tie it to a criminal act. It creates a transparency, an audit. It gives the attorney general authority to oversee this program. It has passed the Senate, and I expect it to pass the House very shortly and become state law.

PHILLIPS: So, it leads me to my next question, can you go after this D.A. for what she has been doing? And can you go after this cop?

WHITMIRE: They ought to be held accountable. Unfortunately, the current statute, which was passed in '89, is so general, and it currently relies upon law enforcement and the district attorney to follow the general terms of that statute.

I would hope, though, that federal officials and others, maybe even now east Texas officials, certainly law enforcement, review these practices and hold them accountable.

It's outrageous that these folks have been shaking down -- I think robbed by public officials. The new law will prevent it, but I think there ought to be some accountability for previous actions which Gary's story has documented.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely. And I think just seeing here the D.A.'s reaction to the story and to Gary also seeing the officer's reaction to Gary and the story and the fact that they aren't saying anything, looks like they were pretty caught by surprise, that is for sure.

You know, and then Gary had talked to Roderick Daniels. This was one of the gentleman that he featured in the piece, that had got -- taken for thousands and thousands of dollars. We're looking at video of him right now. Apparently there's been a change of face here with Gary's investigation, and we're being told that he's going to get his money back. The question was, how soon he was going to get it. Word is, it's up to the D.A. So we really don't know when he's going to get his money back. But apparently there were no questions asked when this was pursued.

So, I guess my other question is, can people like Roderick maybe have the chance to get their money back, Senator?

WHITMIRE: I would certainly hope so. I know most of them are represented by an attorney. I think the State of Texas needs to continue to be involved, the new law obviously will prevent that, but we need to - and the press obviously plays a vital role in creating the transparency and bringing these issues to view and helping these families get their moneys back. And obviously, completely stop the practice.

And not only in Tenaha, but I -- if we had time, I could cite other examples of where this law is being abused. Spending the money for political purposes, campaign work, et cetera.

The new statute will completely shut down these illegal practices. But I am very sensitive and I will continue to work. We could conceivably have hearings to bring the families forward to let the public and the process help them recover their funds.

PHILLIPS: Well, we are...

WHITMIRE: It's outrageous. And this threat of taking their children away? I mean, you know, that surely has got to violate federal statutes.

PHILLIPS: Yes, it's kind of like a movie script. It's what you see happening in places, you know, not in the United States. Something that you see on the big screen. It's pretty outrageous and especially...

WHITMIRE: You wouldn't believe it if you hadn't seen it so well documented.

PHILLIPS: Absolutely, and Gary Tuchman did an outstanding job of doing that.

Senator John Whitmire, we're going to follow-up on your efforts to change, obviously, that law and follows up on what happens to the police officer that got ten grand from the D.A. and what's going to happen to that D.A. We'll stay on top of it, that's for sure.

Thank you, Senator.

WHITMIRE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: You know, we've been following the story out of Connecticut where police are searching for the suspect of the shooting death of Wesleyan student. In stories earlier today, CNN and other news organizations published an incorrect photograph supplied to the media by the university showing another individual. Well, the photo shown earlier today was not that of the suspect, and CNN regrets that error.

Here is the correct photograph that police have given CNN. This is Steven Morgan, wanted in connection with the shooting death of a Wesleyan student in Connecticut. Police say he is armed and dangerous, and they need your help in tracking him down.

After eight years of direct White House access, today's National Day of Prayer events are a little more low key. President Obama, coming in for some criticism.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: So far, it's unstoppable. A wildfire around Santa Barbara, California, is giving firefighters all they can handle. At least eight have been hurt. Thousands of people have had to flee their homes as flames spread hell through their neighborhood.

Let's go back out to CNN's Thelma Gutierrez right now with an update - Thelma.

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, I can tell you we've been out here all morning and we have been watching some of the choppers make water drops in this very steep canyon called Mission Canyon.

If you take a look right around me, all of this area, completely burned, right up to this person's property line. The firestorm raged through this area. Many of the homes in this area were completely burned to the ground. But as you can see, the Martins' home is left standing.

Now, yesterday, when the storm ripped through this area, they turned on sprinklers that they had on their roof. And that was keeping all the wood decks completely wet. And they said that this was a big reason that they were able to stay behind and defend their space.

But Kyra, there's another reason that the Martins' home is actually left standing. Despite the fact that so many people were evacuated through the area, the Martins' home was able to be here, completely intact because of this structure right here. This is something that they called a bunker. It's a five-by-seven room that -- hi, how are you?

RICHARD MARTIN (ph), FOUGHT OFF FIRE FROM BUNKER: Hi.

GUTIERREZ: They put up about a year ago?

R. MARTIN: Oh, no, it's been there more like 10 or 15 years.

GUTIERREZ: Ten or 15 years that you have had this bunker?

R. MARTIN: Yes.

GUTIERREZ: Is this the first time you had to use it?

R. MARTIN: Fortunately, yes.

GUTIERREZ: Right behind, I see you have all of your important papers. You say you keep your photographs, passports. How -- what was it like yesterday to have this firestorm race through this area?

R. MARTIN: Well, firestorm is so intense that you cannot be out there very long. It assaults all your senses. And it...

GUTIERREZ: You went outside every few minutes to check on your home.

R. MARTIN: Every five minutes or so. But when I first started going out, I couldn't stay more than a minute or two, and I was basically driven back into the bunker because, you know, it's assaulting your eyes, your mouth, your nose with...

GUTIERREZ: But you would go out...

R. MARTIN: ... extreme heat and extreme smoke.

GUTIERREZ: You said that you would go out there. You would have -- you had garden hoses around the property, so when you found a hot spot, you were able to put it out. Do you believe that is why your home is left standing?

R. MARTIN: That, yes. That and the fact that we had rainbirds (ph) on the roof which also kept our decks wet.

GUTIERREZ: What was it like for you to be in this bunker as this storm is raging? Did you once think, maybe we should have evacuated?

PENNY MARTIN (ph), FOUGHT OFF FIRE FROM BUNKER: We had planned for this for five years. So, it's not anything we thought about for a week or a month. It's been years we've planned for this. So mentally, I was ready for it, but it's always a little shock when it happens.

But it came so fast. The fire was here within seconds. It was burning over there, but in seconds it came down this hill here. It must have gone down the canyon and around our back. We didn't even know it until it was here and our whole mountain was afire.

GUTIERREZ: And I understand that your three closest neighbors actually lost their homes.

P. MARTIN: They did. Very sad. We watched all three homes burn. And feel very badly about that.

Being in here, I felt safe. There was a little panic initially. But as my husband and I were just talking, you stay so focused, because we've verbally gone through the plan so many times. We knew what we had to do. And I felt safe in here.

GUTIERREZ: All right, Penny and Richard Marshall -- Martin. Thank you very much. And so they were able to stay safe, Kyra, just sitting in this room, waiting that fire out. And able -- they were able to actually go out and put out those hot spots, and they say that this is the reason that their home is left standing - Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Talk about being prepared. Thelma Gutierrez, thanks.

A .9-millimeter Glock, about 500 bucks. A grandma packing it, priceless. Florida woman stands up for older drivers everywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: OK. Full transparency here, I am not a fan of beauty pageants. I think they actually take us backwards and the media blitz over this blonde bombshell, Miss California, is a case in point. Sure, she looks great in a bikini and apparently in those topless photos that we haven't seen yet, but why is her opinion on gay marriage relevant to you and me?

Which takes me now to the other side of the world and a beauty contest that's more like a beauty contrast. Saudi Arabia, a place where women don't have rights like they do here in the States, but maybe there is something to say for how it judges its beauty pageant contestants. Saudi's Miss Beautiful Morals begins this weekend. No bikinis, no choreography, no tuxedoed judges. Just good old Q&A on morals.

Two hundred Saudi women covered in Islamic veils will be quizzed on discovering inner strength, leadership, and respect for parents. Men are not involved, by the way, women are judges. The winner receives cash and prizes. And it's a pretty good bet, old pictures won't come back to haunt her.

As always Rick Sanchez here working on the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

Did you like how I placed that little piece just before you, Rick?

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: I was thinking all throughout, as I was listening you -- listening to you amplify on that topic, and as a man...

PHILLIPS: You disagree with me?

SANCHEZ: No, I will just tell you that there must be a happy medium.

PHILLIPS: You actually bring up a very good point, because your wife is both beautiful and also has quite the moral compass. And you're very lucky to have her.

SANCHEZ: My wife is what I always describe as a straight line, and I'm glad somebody in our family is. Just like this.

Hey, speaking of moral compasses, there's something -- there's a couple of interesting things that I'm going to be talking about today. And one of them is something that I know most Americans are fascinated by. I know it's easy to say, well, that person's fat because they can't control themselves and they overeat and blah, blah, blah. We hear that all the time. But the former director of the Food and Drug Administration, he's going to be on our show today. He's just written this book.

Let me reach over and show it to you. There it is. See it? There's the book. It's called "The End of Overeating."

And what he says is, that in many ways, just comparatively speaking, just like big tobacco puts certain stuff in cigarettes to make sure we kept consuming their product, food companies in the United States are manipulating salts and fats and sugars and chemicals in such a way to make sure we continue to overeat and we continue to have desires for food that we probably should have stopped eating a long time ago.

This is a -- this is a fascinating conversation. I know everybody out there tells you that -- how you should or shouldn't eat. But this is a guy that comes at it from a completely scientific standpoint. He's the former director of the Food and Drug Administration.

So this should be, I think, a pretty cool interview, that I think most Americans should watch. Including you, not that you have a weight problem, because you're absolutely adorable and gorgeous and all that other stuff. You know what I mean?

PHILLIPS: I don't look like Miss California, that's for sure.

SANCHEZ: Would you leave her alone?

PHILLIPS: I continue to work on my moral compass.

SANCHEZ: You're jealous.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Rick. Moving on.

Speaking of moral compass, today marks the annual National Day of Prayer and events are being held across the country. But there's no public ceremony at the White House, that's a big change from the East Room event hosted by President Bush.

Here's a little history. George Washington proclaimed a Day of Prayer back in 1795, but Thomas Jefferson opposed the idea of an official day of prayer. Then during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln signed a resolution calling for fasting and prayer. And in 1952, Harry Truman signed a bill creating the official National Day of Prayer. And in 1988, President Reagan designated it the first Thursday in May.

It has a long history, but it hasn't been without controversy. Senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, here to talk about it.

So Candy, some people aren't happy with President Obama about this year's event. CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. And what this seems to be, first of all, none of this should be confused with all the other prayer days, the Congressional Prayer Breakfast, the prayer breakfast that presidents from time to time have. So there are a lot of, not religious ceremonies, but religious-oriented events that take place. In fact, the president went to one, went to the Congressional Prayer Breakfast, earlier in his term.

So, listen, what this is about at this point is that there are some conservative Christians on the right side that have been complaining that the president, unlike George Bush, signed the proclamation, and did not have an event at the White House.

Now, what the White House said was, he is going -- reverting back to how other presidents dealt with that. And indeed, most of them did sign the proclamation and that was it. A couple of them from time to time would have an event at the White House.

So, what we have is a President Obama kind of reverting back to the pre-George Bush, the son, days. And the White House said, listen, he will prayer in private, like he does every day.

PHILLIPS: Well, so do you think this means that President Obama doesn't care about evangelicals? That the role is changing?

CROWLEY: You know, what's interesting is, of all the candidates, democratic candidates, that I have covered in campaigns, this president reached out more to evangelicals than any democrat I've seen. You know, democrats have always sort of historically been uneasy with religion in the public square. This president is pretty easy talking about religion. He had an evangelical desk in his -- in his headquarters. He had a person charged with reaching out to evangelicals.

Now, it didn't do him that much good among white evangelicals, who still voted heavily for John McCain. Still 74 percent of white evangelicals went for John McCain. And when you go to regular churchgoers, which we define as going to church once a week, John McCain also edged out Barack Obama 55 to 43 percent.

So look, it is a big populace that indeed can sway elections. But again, this is a president that made quite an effort as a campaigner -- and don't forget that the day he went to the prayer breakfast in January, he expanded George Bush's faith-based initiative.

So, I think these are sort of sporadic complaints. Certainly nothing that looks like it's taking on a life of its own.

PHILLIPS: Candy Crowley, great to see you.

Well, if you left it up to kids, for sure they'd say, "no shots." But more and more parents are opting out of vaccinating their little ones. Dr. Sanjay Gupta tells you what he thinks about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Well, a Florida grandma puts an end to a road-rage scare with her trusty Glock and a car full of hooligans won't never forget it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All of a sudden, my husband said, look at that car. He's riding us. He would ride up and back up, ride up and back up. Then they started harassing us and riding next to us and shooting us birds. And getting in front of us and getting back beside us, and I thought, my goodness. They just wouldn't stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, that driver did stop after he saw granny's piece. In fact, he pulled up to a traffic cop and tried to rat her out, but she had already called 911. No charges have been filed in the case.

And here's a surefire way to muff your chances at a job -- steal a bunch of stuff from your would-be employer. A Dayton-area Ohio man allegedly stuffed $500 worth of clothes into his shirt and pants. But before he left the store, what did he do? Oh, yes, filled out a job application. Stealthy. Police say they found that guy at a hotel for the homeless ironing a pair of hot jeans. Sorry, dude, no "30-Second Pitch" for you.

Well, back in the day, you just went ahead and vaccinated your kid, but as more parents opt out, more doctors fear outbreaks. What should you do? We're paging Dr. Gupta.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Vaccinating your children, once the norm, it's become something of a controversial issue. Many parents worried about possible autism risks. Despite the fact that a link never has been medically proven. Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes a look at opting out and some problems that have popped up.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is more than just a theoretical risk, the risk of not vaccinating your children. A new study out of "The New England Journal of Medicine" decided to put this to the test, trying to figure out just how much of a problem this is.

First of all, let's take a look at some of the numbers. Right now, as things stand, any state in any state of the country, for medical reasons you can opt out of vaccinations for your children. In 48 states, you can opt out for religious reasons. And now 21 states allow you to opt out for personal reasons as well, and people are starting to opt out.

Take a look at the numbers there. In 1991, for example, about one percent of parents opted out for their children. In 2008, almost three percent. So, there's been a tripling.

And as a result, you're starting to see what you might expect. You're starting to see an increase in various cases. For example, let's take a look at measles outbreak specifically. In 2005, there were 34 cases. Again, a disease that we hardly heard about a decade ago. In 2006, 18 cases, and just last year, 12 cases.

And I think even more to the point, if you look at the overall numbers, a decade ago versus now. You take a look, there are 131 cases in the United States versus about half that a decade ago. Ninety-one percent of those children were not vaccinated. Herein lies part of the problem.

You know, measles is a potentially big problem. It's a contagious disease that can lead to all sorts of problems later in life, including meningitis. It can lead to pneumonia. There are all sort of reasons to get vaccinated. A lot of parents are opting out primarily because of concerns about autism, as you mentioned, and concerns about simply, that they won't to need it. They think that the kids won't need the vaccine.

But what they find, again, is that children, especially children in clusters, where an entire community has decided not to get vaccinated, those children are most at risk. And it's usually the youngest children with the weakest immune systems that are at risk as well.

So this really takes it from the theoretical to the real numbers behind not vaccinating your kids.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Sanjay Gupta, thanks.

Well, he's one of the biggest names in baseball and he's the biggest one yet to get ensnared by the league's drug testing program. Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez has been suspended for 50 games. The commissioner's office did not reveal the exact violation, but Ramirez, in a statement issued by the players union, offered an apology. He said he took medication prescribed by a doctor that is banned under the league's drug policy. Ramirez stands to lose about a third of his $25 million salary.

That does it for us. See you back here tomorrow. Rick Sanchez picks it up from here.