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CIA Counters Pelosi Claims; First Lady Gives Commencement Address; Notre Dame Gears Up for Obama Address
Aired May 16, 2009 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Head of the class.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Michelle Obama.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The first lady's first commencement address, inspiration for the graduates, criticisms for one of her hometown's prominent universities.
The president's turn: Mr. Obama speaks tomorrow to graduates at Notre Dame. His views on abortion are fueling protests at the Catholic institution.
Speaker versus speaker: The former says the current is lying about what she knew about torturous interrogation tactics.
Dog's best friend: A dog tries to protect another one injured by a car. Just what is their special connection? We will tell you.
And, a come from behind run: Was it enough for the Kentucky Derby winner to pull ahead at the Preakness?
The news starts right now.
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon.
We start with the first lady of the United States, who used her speech as a call for service and gratitude -- a call for new graduates from California's newest university to embrace the future and a call to give thanks to the people who sacrificed for their success.
Here's a portion of what she said just moments ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, U.S. FIRST LADY: I grew up in one of those communities with similar values, like Merced. The South Side of Chicago is a community where people struggled financially but worked hard, looked out for each other and rallied around their children. My father was a blue-collar worker, as you all know. My mother stayed at home to raise me and my brother. We were the first to graduate from college in our immediate family.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: I know that many of you out here are also the first in your families to achieve that distinction as well.
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: And as you know, being the first is often a big responsibility.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the first lady also urged graduates to help build their communities. And she also had some critical comments for the University of Chicago and what she says was its lack of participation in its surrounding neighborhood when she was growing up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I group up just a few miles from the University of Chicago in my hometown. The university, like most institutions, was a major cultural, economic institution in my neighborhood. My mother even worked as a secretary there for several years.
Yet that university never played a meaningful role in my academic development. The institution made no effort to reach out to me -- a bright and promising student in their midst -- and I had no reason to believe there was a place for me there. Therefore, when it came to time for me to apply to college, I never for one second considered the university in my own backyard as a viable option.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So, you might be wondering, how did the University of California-Merced land the first lady as commencement speaker? The bottom line here: The Merced student body worked very hard for this honor and the first lady -- well, she simply just took notice of it.
Here's CNN's Erica Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The campaign to bring Mrs. Obama on board began in January, with a personal appeal on behalf of the students and this city of a quarter million -- the self- described poster child for the recession.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We did a lot of initial research as to why we are a compelling case. We eventually decided that, you know, the focus really should be on the San Joaquin Valley of California because it is so underserved and it has been struggling with a lot of problems in housing, economics and health care, long before the current financial crisis hit.
HILL: First, they laid out their case in a personal letter, signed by 12 graduating seniors. "Dear First Lady Michelle Obama," they write, "You may wonder why we specifically chose to ask you to be our speaker. Who better to relate to our efforts and inspire passion towards historic change? We know that your message will assure Valley residents and students that we are not alone."
Up next, this YouTube video, directed by a freshman. And helping to seal the deal, 900 handwritten valentines from students, the faculty and their families which were reportedly the talk of the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: That was CNN's Erica Hill.
The first lady's warm California welcome is a glaring contrast to her husband's speech tomorrow at Notre Dame, and the days of protests that are preceding it. President Obama's support of abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research are the flash point here.
And our Susan Candiotti is live there, on campus, just ahead of the speech.
Susan, what are you seeing?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, there is excitement over the president's visit and, of course, there is controversy. There is debate on and off campus over whether President Obama should become the ninth president at Notre Dame to receive an honorary law degree.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said after he had pronounced that law, whoso shedeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Outside Notre Dame, anti-abortion groups have been staging almost daily peaceful protests that end in trespassing arrest despite warnings from police.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll give you a chance to leave, please.
CANDIOTTI: Overhead, banners display bloody fetuses. On campus, few signs of the outside furor over whether President Obama should get an honorary law degree from one of the top Catholic universities in the land.
But make no mistake about it, a small group of seniors say they plan to boycott their own graduation, outrage that Notre Dame is extending a hand to a president whose abortion policies go against the Catholic religion's view on when life begins and stem cell research.
Michele Sagala and Andrew Chronister, getting married this summer, will be no-shows at their own graduation.
(on camera): Graduation day is such a big moment in any student's life. How could you miss it?
MICHELE SAGALA, BOYCOTTING GRADUATION: The thing that consoles me in this is that I'm taking a stand for those who are often forgotten.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): But history and peace studies major Michael Angullo says most students stand behind Notre Dame's invitation even if they don't agree with all of his policies.
MICHAEL ANGULLO, NOTRE DAME STUDENT: Don't think less of the University of Notre Dame, don't think that our mission is being corrupted by a president who might have thought on this issue that's different than Catholic thought. Be willing to engage in that.
CANDIOTTI: But other protesters here today say they are going to the ceremony as they put to it -- to bear witness.
CHRIS LABADIE, NOTRE DAME SENIOR: This is not just a day in my college career, it's the end -- it's the celebration of the past four years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: And student protesters who boycott the ceremony will attend a campus approved outdoor rally and prayer service. And, Don, the anticipation is building.
LEMON: All right. Thank you very much for that. Susan Candiotti reporting from Notre Dame -- we appreciate it.
The president speaks live tomorrow at Notre Dame University. He'll do that at 2:00 p.m. Eastern. We will carry it for you right here on CNN. Again, 2:00 p.m. Eastern, live on CNN -- the president's commencement address to Notre Dame.
President Obama nominates a new ambassador to China and possibly upends moderate Republicans' hopes for 2012. We will explain that.
Also, is Nancy Pelosi lying? More questions and more criticisms over what she knew about waterboarding and when she knew it.
And we want to know what's on your mind tonight. Make sure you join us, please. We like your comments -- Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: President Obama today reached across party lines and nominated a moderate Republican, a governor, for U.S. ambassador to China. His name is Jon Huntsman. He is in his second and final term as Utah's governor. He has also been mentioned as a potential challenger to President Obama in 2012.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JON HUNTSMAN, (R) UTAH: I grew up understanding that the most basic responsibility one has is service to country. When the president of the United States asks you to step up and serve in a capacity like this -- that to me is the end of the conversation and the beginning of the obligation. (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, Governor Huntsman served as a national co-chairman of John McCain's presidential campaign. Also, he speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese. And he once served as a Mormon missionary in Taiwan.
Washington is still buzzing this weekend about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and so is the rest of the nation. The issue that won't go away: Her efforts to explain what she knew about the government's use of harsh interrogation techniques. Today on the National Mall, one of her Republican predecessors accused her of lying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH, (R) FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: I think the fact that Leon Panetta, the head of the Central Intelligence Agency, a former Democratic member of Congress and President Clinton's chief of staff, issued in such a strong, clear statement yesterday puts enormous pressure on the House to open a formal investigation.
It seems to me that on her press conference on Thursday, that Speaker Pelosi lied on two counts. She lied first about the specific meeting and then she defamed every person in the intelligence community by asserting that the CIA routinely misinformed Congress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Harsh words from the former speaker. Well, Pelosi's remarks breathed new life into the controversy, and now, even the CIA director is speaking out.
CNN's Tom Foreman tells us where the story came from and where it's headed to next.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Someone is not telling the whole truth. But who? Trying to track that down starts with a briefing the CIA gave to Representative Pelosi in the fall of 2002. As a leader of the intelligence committee, she insists she was misled in that meeting about when or even if harsh interrogation techniques were used against suspected terrorists -- including al Qaeda leader Abu Zubaydah.
REP. NANCY PELOSI, (D) HOUSE SPEAKER: Those briefings made in September of 2002 gave me inaccurate and incomplete information. The only mention of waterboarding at that briefing was that it was not being employed.
FOREMAN: No way. That is the sentiment from President Obama's own CIA director and Pelosi's fellow California Democrat, Leon Panetta, in a note to his staff obtained by CNN. "Let me be clear: It is not our policy or practice to mislead Congress. That is against our laws and our values. Our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that the CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, describing 'the enhanced techniques that had been employed.'"
Pelosi has admitted for the first time this week that she was told about the so-called torture techniques back in 2003, but said nothing because of secrecy rules.
It is all feeding a Republican frenzy -- to see Pelosi tarring Bush officials over the interrogations but ducking her own culpability. The latest to pile on: former Speaker Newt Gingrich on ABC Radio.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
GINGRICH: I think this is the most despicable, dishonest and vicious political effort I've seen in my lifetime.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
FOREMAN: At once, trying to do damage control and turn up the heat on others, the speaker issued a late statement, saying in part, "My criticism of the manner in which the Bush administration did not appropriately inform Congress is separate from my respect for those in the intelligence community who work to keep our country safe."
(on camera): Still, she remains caught between Republicans who are accusing her of hypocrisy and some of her own Democrats who are wondering why if Nancy Pelosi believed for six years that America was torturing prisoners she did not sound the alarm.
Who's not telling the truth? We still don't know for sure, but it feels like we're getting closer.
(voice-over): Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. We appreciate Tom Foreman's reporting.
Let's talk about this controversy engulfing Nancy Pelosi and the president's choice of Jon Huntsman to be ambassador to China with our very own Bill Schneider. He's part of the best political team on television. He joins us tonight from Washington.
Bill, everything that I have been reading today, one account says this is a rare dent in Pelosi's armor. She has certainly -- she's got some very accusations against the CIA here, but it appears at this point the Democrats are rallying around her.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: That's right. And the more you hear comments like the one we just heard from Newt Gingrich today, the more they are likely to rally around her. I think Republicans see an opening whenever the Democrats in Congress talk about any kind of truth investigation -- which Nancy Pelosi herself favors -- into the use of these techniques. And who knew what, when -- they're going to say Nancy Pelosi. It gives them an opening to say the investigation should be about her.
So, the Democrats are likely to rally to her defense in the face of those charges.
LEMON: Bill, I'm also hearing too there is talk behind the scenes of trying to tamp this down both from the Republicans and also from Democrats on Nancy Pelosi sticking to the talking points, saying what's important is that we move forward here. And some Republicans are saying, "Let's turn down the heat on this issue."
Is it close to the end? Or do you think just starting up?
SCHNEIDER: Well, I don't think it's right at the end. There maybe a -- there maybe an investigation. But, I think, both sides realize -- number one, that they both could suffer some damage if these investigations go forward.
The American people want to know the truth, but I think they do have an impulse to move forward, they understand that there were some shameful incidents in the past, and with both parties now of the understanding that they could be hurt by this, they may decide it's too explosive, it's too dangerous -- which, of course, is President Obama's position.
LEMON: All right. Let's talk about Jon Huntsman now, the governor of Utah, who once said that he could be the challenger -- it was thought that he would be the challenger for President Obama in 2012. Even by one of President Obama's, you know, own right hand men said the same thing of him.
So, what is this about? Is this about taking him out of the running or the best person for the job or simply reaching across the aisle?
SCHNEIDER: It's about all those things. It's reaching across the aisle, he is a very well qualified person for this position. He speaks Chinese. How many Americans of this qualification, a governor, speak Chinese? He's been an ambassador. He's quite a young man.
He may -- it looks like he was thinking about running in 2012. He was the national co-chair of the McCain campaign. But yet, he's taking the job in the Obama administration. He could still run but perhaps in 2016. The real significance of this is the Obama administration, in a very shrewd move here, is opening the door to a fairly moderate Republican. He's departed from the conservative line on issues like global warming.
LEMON: But, Bill ...
SCHNEIDER: Yes?
LEMON: Bill, take us behind the scenes here, though, because there are others who are saying that maybe Governor Huntsman feels that he doesn't have a voice and more moderate Republicans in the party don't have a voice right t now and therefore, maybe bowing out for 2012 early on.
SCHNEIDER: That's right. They may think Obama's likely to be re- elected. I like the comment that former Congressman Tom Davis made. It was quoted in "Politico." He said, "We, the Republican Party, are driving out the heretics," that would be Jon Huntsman who's fairly moderate, and they are looking for converts.
Well, that's exactly what's happening. The White House is opening the door for Arlen Specter, for Jon Huntsman. They've tried with Judd Gregg. They're trying to get Republicans to come over to the Democratic side and the Democratic -- I'm sorry, the Republican Party seems to be shutting down, becoming smaller and smaller, and imposing more and more tests of political correctness on the Republicans and saying, "If you don't pass those tests, we don't want you."
LEMON: Part of the best political team on television, our Bill Schneider. Bill, we thank you very much for that.
SCHNEIDER: Sure.
LEMON: Working on the Supreme Court, the short list there. We'll take a closer look at the contenders.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: To Washington again, and a big decision ahead for President Obama. We have learned he has narrowed down his so-called short list of potential Supreme Court nominees and his decision could come soon.
Our Kate Bolduan has more now from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama calls it among his most serious responsibilities.
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES: I will seek somebody with a sharp and independent mind, and a record of excellence and integrity.
BOLDUAN: Sources close to the selection process tell CNN, the list of top candidates for Mr. Obama's Supreme Court nominee is down to about half a dozen -- a majority of which are women. They include federal appeals court judges Sonia Sotomayor and Diane Wood, Solicitor General Elena Kagan, and at least two candidates with political experience, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm.
On his search, the president says he's looking beyond judicial record.
OBAMA: I view that quality of empathy, of understanding and identifying with people's hopes and struggles, as an essential ingredient for arriving at just decisions and outcomes.
BOLDUAN: That worries many conservatives who translate what Mr. Obama calls empathy to mean judicial activism, conservative groups are gearing up for a fight.
GARY MARZ, EXEC. DIR., JUDICIAL CONFIRMATION NETWORK: We want to see that lobby equally applied and the empathy talk really -- you know, personal feelings getting into the mix, that is very troublesome.
BOLDUAN: The president is likely to announce his nominee by month's end. A lifetime appointment viewed as a key element of any presidential legacy.
THOMAS GOLDSTEIN, SUPREME COURT ANALYST: It's impossible to overstate the importance of a Supreme Court appointment because of the justice's power. They decide things like abortion, affirmative action, gay rights, the meaning of all of the laws involving the detainees at Guantanamo Bay and presidential powers, wiretapping -- and the list goes on and on and on.
BOLDUAN (on camera): President Obama's pick will undoubtedly be left of center. And while replacing one left-leaning justice with another won't likely change the ideological balance of the conservative bench, liberals are hoping for a more forceful justice to take on the conservative majority of the high court.
Kate Bolduan, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. Well, Scoop44 is a fledgling news Web site devoted to covering the Obama administration from the perspective of college aged kids. Well, they, after all, will be the ones who will have to live with the results of this administration's policies.
Alexander Heffner is a student at Harvard and the editor-in-chief of Scoop44 and he joins us now from New York to talk about the first lady's keynote address today at the University of California-Merced.
So, she talked about community service in her address there. Here's a question, Alexander. Will her message of education leading to community service, will that stick with these college grads?
ALEXANDER HEFFNER, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, SCOOP44: Oh, I think it certainly will. It was an awe-inspiring address. It was a symphony. And she dedicates her time principally to discussing service-oriented work, it's her passion.
LEMON: Yes. And, you know, it's very expensive now to go to college, and the first lady is well aware that, having worked through college herself. That message to college students, do you think that is enough in this financial -- this economic environment to get people to stick with it, to take that second or third job to get an education? And is it really realistic?
HEFFNER: Well, that message, Don, coupled with an emphasis on innovation in classrooms, among teachers, among future employees of various companies. And so, as long as there is a renewed emphasis on making the next generation, stronger, richer, more vibrant through technology, through innovation, I think she was right on.
LEMON: The first lady is an accomplished woman in business and also in community service herself as well. And it has been said that on the Supreme Court, that there needs to be more women so that women can have more of an opinion on the Supreme Court. Talk to me about that because Scoop44 has actually been writing about that pretty heady subject for a college-aged publication. HEFFNER: It's true. We focus on substantive journalism related to the Obama administration in what we call generational politics. I wrote a piece about why we need a woman on the court. And essentially, the Supreme Court is an obsolete artifact unless there's gender diversity and there's only one woman on the court now, there had been two in history. And I think it's ludicrous, frankly, Don, that we haven't seen that kind of balance.
LEMON: Are young people paying attention to that issue though when it comes to issues of the Supreme Court? Are young people saying to you, you know, we need more women? Have you done any sort of informal polling on this?
HEFFNER: We have. I've spoken to my colleagues at Scoop44. The sense is that we need modern institutions in American governance on the Supreme Court, in the U.S. Senate, on federal benches, so that trickles down throughout institutions of government.
LEMON: OK. Because of what you're doing -- I am told here at CNN -- that you are receiving a $242,000 grant from the Knight Foundation, which is a big honor. How does this help Scoop44 and why Scoop44?
HEFFNER: Sure. Well, it extends our ability to offer reporting on President Obama, on Washington politics, and it will enable us to offer stipends to burgeoning student journalists to explore investigative angles, creative exploratory journalism. And that's our passion at Scoop44. So, we encourage anyone to sign up to write, to apply and join, and be one of the reporters on the site.
LEMON: All right. Congratulations to you, and make sure you, you know, keep it clean, keep it good.
HEFFNER: Oh, we'll keep it clean, Don.
LEMON: Yes, I know.
HEFFNER: Always a pleasure, thanks, Don.
LEMON: You guys are doing a great job. You're doing a great job. Thank you very much. Alexander Heffner -- we always appreciate it.
And, you know, I have been talking to Alexander Heffner about the first lady, about her commencement address earlier today. And Yaasha Sabbaghian is part of the UC Merced's class of 2009. He was there for the first lady's address.
Congratulations to you on becoming a college graduate. And I understand that you help organize and lead the "Dear Michelle" campaign to get her to come, to speak at your commencement?
YAASHA SABBAGHIAN, U.C.-MERCED CLASS OF 2009 (via telephone): That's right.
LEMON: Yes. So, tell us about -- what was it like to sit in that crowd and see all of this coming to fruition for you? SABBAGHIAN: Well, as you can see, my voice is hoarse because I've just been doing so much excitement and shouting. It was full euphoria because it was -- it was nothing we could expect from each of us.
LEMON: You know, she gave an inspiring speech and really talking about the importance of community service and the importance of giving back, and also, you know, paying homage to the people who worked hard for you and made sacrifices. Now, is this something that you think these graduates will carry along with them? By having these remarks given by the first lady, does it put more importance on them for the students to carry them?
SABBAGHIAN: Most definitely (ph). What was special about her remarks, it was almost as if like it was the simplest kind of advice she could give us, because we were already doing all that. She definitely pointed that out just in time, towards giving back and towards community service. That's what this cause was all about.
As pioneers, we founded U.C.-Merced and we definitely tried to build an establishment here that is aware of our community and our surroundings and the people who helps bring this university here and helped -- made all this possible for us.
LEMON: What is it about the first lady that made you guys want her to speak so much here instead of another public figure?
SABBAGHIAN: It was how much she related to us, being like that. She and her brother were the first in her family to go to college. More than half of our university is first generation college students. And they're coming from families that don't even think about like to have education and they're like, the family backgrounds are -- they don't even have the money to afford sending them to college. More than 70 percent of our students in this university are need-based financial aid.
And being that we're about to go into a tough economy in a job market where we're competing against people, Michelle was able to recognize that. She's been able to work through her career on building up communities and building up impoverished areas that need a little bit more attention.
LEMON: She relates ...
SABBAGHIAN: That's what we're all about here.
LEMON: She relates with you. Yaasha Sabbaghian, thank you very much and congratulations on your diploma. What are you doing next?
SABBAGHIAN: Right now, I have my molecular and cellular biology bachelor of science, and I hope to, someday, go to law school and get in to public policy and do great things just like the Obamas.
LEMON: And following the first lady and her husband's footstep. Thank you, Yaasha, we appreciate it.
SABBAGHIAN: Thank you so much. LEMON: All right. Caps and gowns, diplomas and first lady, as we have been talking about -- Michelle Obama addresses the first graduating class at the University of California at Merced. We'll break it down with the best political team on television. There is more.
Also, the former first lady, Laura Bush speaks at her alma mater and reveals a fun fact about the keynote speaker at her graduation. Talk about keeping it in the family.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Our top stories for you on CNN this hour, protesters are already gearing up for President Obama's commencement address tomorrow at Notre Dame. Some students and alumni at the Catholic University opposed the president's support of abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.
A few hours ago, first lady Michelle Obama received a much warmer welcome when she spoke to graduates at the University of California in Merced where she urged graduates to help build their communities. She also had some critical comments at the University of Chicago in what she says is the lack of participation in its surrounding neighborhood when she was growing up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, U.S. FIRST LADY: I grew up just a few miles from the University of Chicago, in my hometown. The university like most institutions was a major cultural economic institution in my neighborhood. My mother even worked as a secretary there for several years. Yet that university never played a meaningful role in my academic development.
The institution made no effort to reach out to me, a bright and promising student in their midst and I had no reason to believe there was a place for me there. Therefore when it came time for me to apply to college, I never for one second considered the university in my own backyard as a viable option.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Our Bill Schneider is back. He's part of the best political team on television. Again, Bill joins us now from Washington about the first lady's commencement address. Is it surprising here that she said those words about the University of Chicago? It caught our attention, but it is not the first time that she had similar words. She said the same thing about Princeton.
BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you've got to remember that in those days, this is some 20, 30 years ago, African- Americans were just beginning to arrive at the nation's elite universities and certainly the University of Chicago as well as Princeton are among the highest rated universities in the country and they were in those days very largely white universities with white student bodies. They were just becoming more diverse. And of course the University of Chicago is surrounded by an overwhelmingly African-American neighborhood on Chicago's south side. There were always some difficulties that universities have come to recognize in the past 20 or 30 years about relations between town and gown. It was true all over the country, and she certainly felt it from the town side of that divide when she was growing up.
LEMON: And Bill, that was one reason she chose this particular school to give her first commencement address, because it is 70 percent of the students there are part of a minority group and half of them, half of the students there, this is their first time attending college for anyone in their family.
SCHNEIDER: That's right. And she relates to them and their experiences and doors have opened up. She clearly did not feel that way when she was growing up on the south side of Chicago. The University of Chicago was seen by many residents of that area as a kind of an alien fortress in their neighborhood. But I should add that Chicago as well as many other universities have come to recognize that problem and have begun to reach out over the last few decades to their surrounding communities.
LEMON: Bill Schneider is part of the best political team on television. Thank you, Bill.
SCHNEIDER: Sure.
LEMON: And the first lady wasn't the only first lady in the spotlight today. Former first lady Laura Bush returned to her alma mater to give the keynote address there. Southern Methodist University is where she received her bachelor's degree in elementary education and she admitted to something that she might not want to tell her father- in-law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA BUSH, FMR. U.S. FIRST LADY: So then I reflected on my graduation with my master's degree. But I couldn't recall who gave that commencement address. That's because I skipped the ceremony. But I did look it up and you can imagine my surprise when I discovered it was some guy named George Bush.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Former first lady Laura Bush once a teacher, always a teacher.
A dramatic Preakness win, wrecking triple crown hopes. With today's race, the last one for the Pimlico racetrack.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: OK. No, triple crown contender this year. "Mine that bird," winner of the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago couldn't quite catch "Rachel Alexandra" at the Preakness stakes in Baltimore. That race was about an hour ago. And just like in the derby, "Mine that bird" ran most of the race in the back of the pack, a powerful drive in the homestretch almost, almost repeated his derby victory, but the horses ran out of track there and the filly "Rachel Alexandra" won the Preakness by three quarters of a length and "Mine that bird" was quickly closing the gap. I don't know, what do you think, Rick Horrow? 10 more yards or so, maybe 15, maybe.
RICK HORROW, CNN SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST: About seven tail lengths, whatever the deal is as they measure in equine meters. OK.
LEMON: OK.
HORROW: And here's the thing.
LEMON: What is it?
HORROW: You want to ask - for women's sports.
LEMON: Can I introduce you first?
HORROW: Go.
LEMON: OK. Thank you.
I was asking you can say yes or no.
HORROW: Yes.
LEMON: He's our sports analyst here and he joins us from West Palm Beach. OK, so, you know, you said seven tail lengths, but really, this was a good day, you say, for women's sports. What do you mean by that?
HORROW: What I mean by that is women controlled $5 trillion of payroll and economics. Women make 80 percent of all the buying decisions in our house and now 125 percent in mine, and now, women control horseracing. The first filly to win the triple crown race, the Preakness, in 85 years, and the fifth ever, hats off to "Rachel Alexandra," a minute 55 seconds of unmitigated glory. Say it isn't so.
LEMON: Is that a compliment, Rick, that you're comparing women to -
HORROW: It is. Don't get me in trouble. It's a compliment.
LEMON: OK. So what does this mean for the Belmont since there's no triple crown?
HORROW: Well, no triple crown since 1978, a firm one at end, 7-1 odds that we would have had one this year. "Mine that Bird," almost seven tail lengths, as I said, but the story is eclipsed now, because of the filly, can she win two of these races if she enters. So there will not be a triple crown but we should have some excitement on the Belmont.
LEMON: What about for the entire industry? Any repercussions, will it affect? HORROW: Well, yes, the repercussions, it impacts Pimlico as well as you said in the tease. Magna Entertainment declared bankruptcy in March. They will auction off that facility in August. And by the way, there were 120 or so races a few years ago during the whole year at that track, now only 20. In the infield, they had ZZ Top. They had a beach volleyball tournament and they still didn't have a whole lot of people in the in field, about 10 percent decrease in attendance. So the economy is having an impact to be sure.
LEMON: I tell you what's happening today, Preakness and everything that was happening today, what perked up my ears when I heard it, coming across the television was Michael Phelps. It seems just like yesterday we were sitting here talking about the whole picture and him at the party and the bong and what have you but he has returned to swimming and he won two races today. So what does that mean for him? And what does that mean for the sport as well?
HORROW: You and I had a date Super Bowl night and we talked about the Steelers and we also talked about Michael Phelps and his amazing reaction to a youtube photo. Listen, three months suspension. He is back in the pool. It doesn't really matter if he wins these races or not. He did today in Charlotte. Omega stayed with him. Kellogg's dropped him but now as he prepares for the 2012 Olympics and he stays out of trouble, it's like he never left.
LEMON: Yes, and the pool, he has said and his coach the best place for him to be to stay out of trouble. And by the way, it was the "Star Magazine" photo, we show the "Star Magazine," Rick, just before - there it is. "Star Magazine" where he was shown caught smoking pot. You see there, it's in the upper right.
Rick Horrow, we appreciate it. Thank you, sir, for your expertise. As always -
HORROW: Happy Saturday night, my friend.
LEMON: I don't understand how you get darker than me. It must be the Florida sun.
HORROW: I'm not touching that one.
LEMON: Thank you. See you later.
A hamburger and a root beer. It was a tradition in Cedar Rapids, Iowa until flood waters drowned the drive in and much of the neighborhood it serve. Can the region survive? It's money, it's Main Street, it's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: It was the toughest and most complex job yet for the shuttle "Atlantis" astronauts. Fixing a broken camera may not sound too tough but it is if you're at the Hubble telescope. Space walking astronauts made some unprecedented repairs to Hubble's camera today. They also put some new high-tech gadgets on the super telescope giving it an even better view of the universe. Jacqui Jeras was in space today. She was actually working on that mission. She got back pretty fast. You got through customs and everything pretty quickly. So you have a picture that you want to show us of your journey?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, you crack me up, Don Lemon. And that's not a big lemon by the way that's the sign that we're looking at.
LEMON: There's your ride on the way back.
JERAS: Yes, isn't that cool. There's the space shuttle.
LEMON: What time did you land?
JERAS: Yes, that was again not me. But a really cool picture from NASA and this was taken by a photographer from the earth through a telescope and a solar filter so that he would actually able to see this and this was taken on Tuesday when the shuttle was on its way to hook up with the Hubble. So just some really cool, cool stuff.
And by the way, you want to know how hot? Do you remember, go back to eighth grade science class or whenever it was, 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit. That's how hot the sun is.
LEMON: 93 million miles away from the sun.
JERAS: All right. You remembered one of them. Very good. OK. A- plus for you today, Don Lemon.
LEMON: Thank you. I get a gold star.
JERAS: It might have felt as hot as the sun in California today. If you watched Michelle Obama, it was 93 in Fresno when she started her speech. Right now it's 98 degrees. That was Merced actually which was 93 degrees. 98 now in Fresno but the closest observation that I could find for you. 98 in Sacramento, 96 in Las Vegas, and the heat is really going to stick here as we head through the rest of the weekend.
You know, now when the sun goes down, all of the heat that's absorbed by the earth throughout the day radiates back away into space. So it's going to be really cool across the upper midwest tomorrow morning. We're talking about some freeze watches and advisories from Minnesota down through Iowa and tomorrow you're only going to be getting up there into the 60s.
Now we do have some showers and thundershowers to talk about across much of the east. It has been just popping up all over the place. Look at this, from Maine all the way down into Florida and then westward over into parts of Texas. For the most part, we haven't really been looking at severe weather per se, we have had a little bit of wind damage going on across parts of upstate New York. There you can see a sliver of a watch in Georgetown which is just outside of the Syracuse area. There was some damage and a couple of injuries because of some strong thunderstorm winds. You know, mostly just a nuisance here across the southeast, kind of ruining your plans there, if you're trying to have a barbecue today or if you're trying to travel because of these thunderstorms. There's so many delays right now, I can't get through them all. But over an hour now in Houston, among the worst at JFK, more than two hours and La Guardia, looking about an hour and a half. So not a great weekend if you're trying to travel across the east but the west looking a little better just really hot as the sun.
LEMON: So, Jacqui, we've been getting a lot of rain here, really good for the flowers and the plants and the garden.
JERAS: It is.
LEMON: Everything is like growing. I guess I don't know -
JERAS: Too much.
LEMON: I'm so excited. I've been getting into it. Yes, and I'm taking some notes from you and so is my mom. Every time I talk to her, she goes, so I was watching Jacqui's video of her garden on the blog and I've been whatever. So she's doing her own garden. How is your garden going?
JERAS: Well, it's growing pretty well, actually. For those of you who don't know, we planted a recession garden. We're going to follow this throughout the rest of the summer, hopefully growing some plants. And they say you should be able to make about $500 or save $500 throughout the summer. I've had some problems with some bunny rabbits and some birds trying to eat my strawberries. But other than that, things are progressing along very nicely.
LEMON: Yes, they did that with some - I had some lemon thing and they did it. But I also have greens coming up. I don't know where they came from. I think a bird picked it up and put it in my garden.
JERAS: That's great.
LEMON: Go to cnn.com/NEWSROOM, click on Don and you can see Jacqui's blog. Here recession garden. Thank you, Jacqui. We appreciate it.
JERAS: Sure.
LEMON: An authentic '50s drive-in. Burgers, jukeboxes, car hops. Wow. Then the flood. The owner is trying to rebuild. But the recession isn't helping.
Here's CNN's Ed Lavandera with tonight's "Money and Main Street."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA (voice-over): The smell of grilled hamburgers lingers in what's left in this A&W drive-in.
DOUG WARD, FLOOD VICTIM: This was the dining area.
LAVANDERA: But Doug Ward smells the stench of stale river water from last year's flood in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
LAVANDERA (on camera): This has got to be painful to see.
WARD: It is. It's really painful to see. It was our life for 30 years.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): When the Cedar River spilled over its banks, Ward's drive-in drowned in almost ten feet of water. Almost a year later, the drive-in sits in ruins. The root beer mugs still muddy.
WARD: A lot of them are older mugs. The older designs.
LAVANDERA: Ward doesn't know if rebuilding here is worth it. If people don't come back, who's going to loan him the $900,000 needed to rebuild the drive-in? Even changing locations will cost more than a million dollars. It's a painful decision.
WARD: If the neighborhood was normal we'd have this place up and running again. If we decide to move somewhere else, we have to - you know, we have to let it go.
LAVANDERA: The flood also destroyed Ward's church and his home just a few blocks away. He estimates rebuilding the house will cost $75,000. And he doesn't have insurance.
WARD: This was the living room.
LAVANDERA: FEMA gave him $28,000 toward home costs. But for now, Ward and his wife live in a trailer six miles away. It's not the same.
(on camera): Does this feel like home at all?
WARD: It doesn't to me, no. It just doesn't.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Since 1948, the Wards' drive-in has been a landmark in Cedar Rapids time check neighborhood, a fixture for people cruising down Ellis Boulevard in antique cars, a throwback to the 1950s. The drive-in evolved over time but it define the personality of this working class neighborhood.
MARK STOUFFER HUNTER, CEDAR RAPIDS HISTORIAN: It's almost like our little Eiffel Tower.
LAVANDERA: To Cedar Rapids historian Mark hunter, Doug Ward's story is why this road is the boulevard of broken dreams.
(on camera): The idea that he might not be able to put the business back here.
HUNTER: Yeah, it hurts. Because it's happening not just in this neighborhood but all over the neighborhoods that were affected by the flood.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Getting loans to rebuild the drive-in isn't easy. So far he qualified for a $350,000 disaster loan, but much more is still needed. Ward says each passing day brings more financial pressure.
WARD: Within a month or two, we're going to have to find something else to keep us above water. And if we don't get something else going here.
LAVANDERA: He doesn't know what kind of job he'll find. Doug Ward misses the job he loved, serving his friends a frosty root beer.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: To make sure you don't miss tonight's special event, the "CNN Money Summit: Money & Main Street," hosted by our Christine Romans and Ali Velshi. Make sure you log on to Facebook right now to RSVP for that. Tonight 8:00 Eastern, only on CNN.
Well, this is a story that you have to see to believe. An injured dog lying in the middle of a New York City expressway and a furry loved one, who tries to protect her. Talk about doggy devotion here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. So here is a story I can show you better than I can tell you. Take a look at this.
This yellow lab, well it's got hit by a car on a New York roadway. Look at that. Well, police were called, but officers had a hard time getting to the dog. That's because her son, her son who you see here is protecting her. Police were finally able to get mom into a car and off to a veterinarian hospital. They had quite a time catching up to sonny, though. But they finally did and were able to get him to his owner. The good news here. Mom is recovering. And it looks like she will be OK. He's just looking after mommy. Very sweet story there.
OK. Here's what you guys are saying about our stories. Utah savage says thank you for broadcasting that marvelous address. Michelle Obama is a great inspirational speaker. She had me in tears often. Mcronrn, please focus on those who ordered the torture, not those who could do nothing to stop it. NGospelthisweek says I was really proud to hear her speak. Smiled the whole time.
We want to know what's on your mind. Twitter, Facebook, myspace, i- report.com, that's how you could weigh in on the stories on our broadcast. You can even give us story ideas. We put them on the air.
It is the deadliest place in the country for school-age kids right now. I'm talking about Chicago, the third biggest city in America. But it leads the nation in murders of children and teens. We want to hear how all this violence is affecting families caught in middle of the cross fire.
CNN's special investigation unit gave a camera to a mom and her 10- year-old son for a couple of weeks so they could show us just how difficult life is after losing a young family member. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAM BOSLEY, VICTIM'S MOTHER: Everybody, this is my baby. This is where I have to visit my son at, at the cemetery. This is unfair for any mother to have to visit their baby here. This don't make sense. He didn't deserve this. Wasn't in a gang, didn't sell drugs, nothing. And I'm here at a cemetery visiting my baby. And my kids can't even come out here and see their brother. This is crazy. This is not the type of life that no mother should ever have to go through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The rest of that very powerful diary tonight 10:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN. I'm Don Lemon. I'll see you at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
Now we want to get to the "CNN Money Summit: Money & Main Street," right now.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: Hey, there, I'm Anderson Cooper.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Ali Velshi. Two topics in the hour ahead. The economy and you.
COOPER: We're sizing up the recession and meeting the people who are fighting their way through it.
VELSHI: We're going to show you how they're coping, how some are even thriving.
COOPER: And along the way, through their stories, we hope you'll get a better picture of what we are all facing tonight on the "CNN Money Summit: Money and Main St."
