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GM Appears Headed for Bankruptcy; Gas Prices Rising; Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Former Bush Officials, against Former Rep; U.S. Confident of Current Pakistan Nuclear Program's Safety; Children Suffer Most in Violence, Refugee Camps; Drew Peterson Enters "Not Guilty" Plea
Aired May 18, 2009 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Checking stories happening around the world now. An assistant middle school principal is the first person in New York City to die from swine flu complications. Fifty-five- year-old Mitchell Wiener died last night at Flushing Hospital. He's the sixth person in the United States whose death has been linked to H1N1.
Prosecutors seeking prison time for a mother they say schemed over the Internet to humiliate a 13-year-old girl. The girl, a 13- year-old neighbor of Lori Drews, killed herself after the alleged hoax on MySpace. Drew is to be sentenced today on three misdemeanor counts.
And defense attorneys could rest their case today in the penalty phase of Steven Green's trial. The former soldier faces a possible death sentence for the rape and murder of an Iraqi teenager and the shooting of her family.
Crisis in the Middle East. The search for middle ground. This hour at the White House, President Obama focuses a key ally on a growing issue. In fact, Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu may not budge on several critical issues pushed by the Obama White House. What does it all mean? Let's get a closer look from foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty now at the White House. Jill, good morning.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. Well, maybe a little bit of a schedule to start off with. The two leaders are scheduled to meet at the bottom of the hour, in about a half an hour. They'll be meeting privately or one on one, and then an hour after that they will open it up to other senior aides from both sides.
It's a very important meeting. Because, after all, this is the first official meeting between Barack Obama as president and the new Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. And they come at this from different perspectives especially on several key issues. One of those would have to be the two-state solution, as it's called.
COLLINS: Sure.
DOUGHERTY: Two entities. The two states, Israel, Palestinians living side by side. But how do you define that? Now, the United States calls it a state. And Benjamin Netanyahu is referring now to it as some type of entity. But it's not very well defined. He's talking about more economic aid. But it's not exactly what the Obama administration is talking about. Then you have that critical issue of settlement, and the United States wanting the settlements stopped.
Israel, at least, Mr. Netanyahu, believing that they can somehow grow naturally. So that's the point of debate. And then the last one, of course, Iran and the threat that Israel perceives from Iran and its nuclear program and the potential that Israel could actually take military action to stop the Iranian nuclear program. And that is something that the United States opposes.
Now, Heidi, you know, these meetings are worked out somewhat in advance. They've been doing, you know, a lot of staid work on it. But there is always the unpredictable factor when two leaders get together.
COLLINS: Absolutely. All right. We'll be watching closely. Appreciate that. Jill Dougherty outside the White House this morning.
Now, Jerusalem, the site of the first meeting between these two heads of state. But back then, neither of them were actually leading their countries just yet. Paula Hancocks tells us how today's meeting will be different.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): All smiles at their first meeting last year. But neither was in power or had responsibility then. The stakes are higher now as the new Israeli prime minister meets the new U.S. president. The Palestinian expectation from such a meeting is clear. Acceptance of a two-state solution.
SALAM FAYYAD, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRIME MINISTER: If, in fact, Mr. Netanyahu were to make an unequivocal statement of the acceptance of this as a solution process, then he should immediately be asked to begin immediately to implement Israel's other obligations -
HANCOCKS: Mr. Obama has endorsed a Palestinian state side by side with the Israeli state. Mr. Netanyahu has not. And that's not the only difference of opinion.
The Israeli leader wants a time limit for negotiating with Iran on its nuclear ambitions, or else take military action. Mr. Obama is unlikely to provide a specific timetable. Mr. Netanyahu wants to allow natural growth in Jewish settlements in the West Bank. The American president wants an immediate freeze on settlement expansion and dismantling of outposts. But despite clear differences, maybe all is not lost.
DAVID HOROVITZ, EDITOR, "JERUSALEM POST": Here you have what might appear to be a less promising meeting of leaders. You've got the relatively hawkish Netanyahu and the relatively dovish Obama. And yet, perhaps, and this would be my hope, perhaps there will be more realism in the relationship. Perhaps there'll be a more realistic approach to what is possible and why things failed in the past.
HANCOCKS: Mr. Netanyahu met with the leaders of Jordan and Egypt before his U.S. trip. The son of Egypt's president Hosni Mubarak tells CNN Netanyahu's refusal to endorse the two-state solution is crippling any chance of peace.
GAMAL MUBARAK, HEAD OF POLICY SECRETARIAT: If we are going to be held hostage every couple of years over change in government on either side, that decides to start all over again, that decides to say, you know, I'm not going to be committed to what has been agreed to before and let's start all over again, we're never going to get anywhere.
HANCOCKS (on camera): This first meeting is expected to be merely a chance to present positions. Any differences of opinion are likely to be ironed out at future meetings. And aides on both sides are stressing the importance of the Israeli-U.S. friendship. So a public disagreement between Mr. Obama and Mr. Netanyahu is highly unlikely.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A quick look now at President Obama's schedule today. Just a few minutes from now he meets one on one with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Next hour in the Oval Office, that meeting expands to include key aides and advisers. We'll keep our eye on that.
Then in the noon hour, Eastern, the president and Mr. Netanyahu will continue their talks in a working lunch.
The White House getting ready to rally behind the president's pick for the Supreme Court. The administration is bringing in a point person now to shepherd the nominee through the confirmation process. That person, Stephanie Cutter, a senior adviser for the Treasury.
Some names on the short list to replace Justice David Souter, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, California state supreme court justice Carlos Moreno, federal judge Diane Wood, U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan, federal judge Sonia Sotomayor, and Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm.
Now if the CIA really did lie to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a top republican says it's time to show some evidence of it. Pelosi claims the CIA misled her when they briefed her on so-called enhanced interrogation techniques. She tried to clear the air about it during a press conference last week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI, HOUSE SPEAKER: The only mention of waterboarding at that briefing was that it was not being employed.
QUESTION: Just to be clear, you're accusing the CIA of lying to you. PELOSI: Yes. Misleading the Congress of the United States.
QUESTION: And also...
PELOSI: Misleading the Congress of the United States. The CIA was misleading the Congress and at the same time, the administration was misleading the Congress on the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, to which I say this intelligence does not support the imminent threat, to which the press asked the same question you just did now, are you accusing them of lying? I'm just stating a fact.
QUESTION: The idea that we got from you was that you were never told that waterboarding was being used but now we know that later in February, you were told. It wasn't in a briefing but you were told.
PELOSI: No, by the time we were told, we were finding out that it's been used before. You know, in other words, it was beyond the point.
QUESTION: Why didn't tell us at the press briefing...
PELOSI: I told you what my briefing was. My briefing was...
QUESTION: So you had been told just not at that particular briefing. You sound very adamant that you didn't know that waterboarding was used.
PELOSI: That is right. The point is that I wasn't briefed, I was informed that someone else had been briefed about it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Our congressional correspondent Dana Bash there questioning the speaker. Now, if anything, that press conference just fanned the flames as you saw. House Minority leader John Boehner appeared on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" this weekend.
He says if there's proof the CIA lied Pelosi should turn it over to the Justice Department. And that's pretty tame compared to the things former Speaker Newt Gingrich has been saying about her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER: I don't see how she can serve as speaker if it turns out that she has lied about national security both to the House and to the country. I mean, I would expect at that point motion of censure. I think and under the rules of the house we can't serve for the rest of that term if you have been censured.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), MINORITY LEADER: I think I've outlined what I would describe as a different approach. That if in fact, she believes she was lied to, that is against the law. She ought to make that information public and turn over to the Justice Department so they prosecute these people.
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: But do you think...
BOEHNER: But if she did - if she does not produced this and she changes her mind, well then she ought to apologize. That would be the appropriate course of action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: CIA director Leon Panetta wasn't in charge when Pelosi was briefed. But he also disputes her claims saying his agency doesn't lie to Congress. Panetta is doing a Q&A at a luncheon in Los Angeles at 4:00 p.m. Eastern. We'll keep our eye on that.
Now, no reports of major damage or injuries from last night's earthquake that hit the Los Angeles area, the magnitude 4.7 quake hit around 8:40 local time. Its center about ten miles south of downtown. Coastal areas south of the city felt the biggest jolt. Some areas just to the north felt nothing.
Meanwhile, Rob Marciano standing by now at the Severe Weather Center and talk a little bit about this. And of course, the bigger weather picture right now - oh, there he is.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi.
COLLINS: You were a little dark there just for a minute.
MARCIANO: I've been called worse things. Yes. Southern California, they've seen a handful of aftershocks since the main quake which happened around 8:30 local time last night.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: We'll zoom into the area. These yellow and orange dots are the most recent little quakes here. But right around Englewood or just to the southwest of Englewood is where we saw this quake happen. The Englewood-New Port beach fault line is about 75 kilometers long. That's where this thing - geologists think this thing actually happened. It's about 15 kilometers deep, so over nine miles deep. Fairly deep for this part of the world. But they did feel the shake. And it was a bit of a rude way for these folks to end what was a pretty toasty weekend. Check out some of the numbers at California, 107 for a record high in Modesto. Bakersfield 105. Vegas also getting in the act at 102 and 102 as well in California.
Let's talk tropics. We mentioned this. It's a tropical situation setting up here in the northern Caribbean. Cuba, a little bit of low pressure starting to develop with some flare up of thunderstorms just to the northwest of Cuba. Computer models are bringing this towards Florida. So we might see a little bit of tropical developments. Kind of early in the year for that.
Actually, it's not officially hurricane season although these things can happen before the start of hurricane season. Regardless, we'll see some wind, some waves, and much needed rainfall, I think, for parts of Florida. There are some folks who live, especially south of Tampa, over the next few days, will see a pretty good dosing of rainfall. And it's good news because they're in a long-term drought.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: Not so much a long-term drought parts of Rhode Island. Seeing a fair amount of rainfall over the past several weeks. And I think we may have some video of some kayakers getting into some trouble. Yes. A little high water rescue there. Rivers flowing pretty high there in Cumberland, Rhode Island. A little rainfall over the weekend but I think it's a long term effect of these guys getting into a hairy situation.
COLLINS: Yes.
MARCIANO: The pros had to come in, rope off and pull these guys out of the water. Certainly a chilly rescue as well after some record-breaking heat. Things are pretty cold across parts of the east. It will remain cool in the east at least for the next couple of days. 10 to 15 degrees below normal. And out west, anywhere from 10 to 15 degrees above normal where we showed you the record high temps across parts - you know, I ordered this, we paid for it. I want to show you this real quick. Denver.
COLLINS: Denver. We only go to show Denver.
MARCIANO: Close to your heart.
COLLINS: There's Pike's Peak.
MARCIANO: They got a record out there. You can see through the hay. Very hazy and hot today with possibly a record-breaking temperature of 90 or so degrees.
COLLINS: Really.
MARCIANO: The record is 93. Yesterday they broke the record. So definitely toasty.
COLLINS: Wow. Who knew? All right. Rob, thank you. We'll check back later on.
MARCIANO: Sounds good.
COLLINS: And I know you like this. Cool pictures too. Look at this, cool pictures from space. The final space walk to fix the Hubble telescope under way right now. Astronauts are doing the repair work outside the space shuttle "Atlantis." It's actually the fifth space walk they've had to do on this mission. They're making repairs to buy the telescope a few more years of life. The shuttle will release the Hubble tomorrow.
Real quickly, we want to show you this. Speaking of sky high. Well that might be a little strong. But look at that. Dow Jones industrial average is up triple digits. About 109 points, now down to 106. But we are watching those numbers for you because we like them, quite frankly. President Obama and the abortion debate now. He ignited a firestorm on a college campus. Could mere words tamp down some of the flames?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: President Obama weighed in one of the most divisive debates in politics. At the University of Notre Dame yesterday, the president told graduating seniors even though there may be little agreement on abortion, there must be dialogue. More than three dozen people were arrested yesterday protesting his appearance at the Catholic university.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As I considered the controversy surrounding my visit here, I was reminded of an encounter I had during my Senate campaign. One that I described in a book I wrote called "The Audacity of Hope." In a few days after the democratic nomination, I received an e-mail from a doctor who told me that while he voted for me in the Illinois primary, he had a serious concern that might prevent him from voting for me in the general election.
He described himself as a Christian, who was strongly pro-life. But that was not what was preventing him potentially from voting for me. What bothered the doctor was an entry that my campaign staff had posted on my website. An entry that said I would fight, "right wing ideologues who want to take away a woman's right to choose."
The doctor said he had assumed I was a reasonable person. He supported my policy initiatives to help the poor and to lift up our educational system, but that if I truly believed that every pro-life individual was simply an ideologue, who wanted to inflict suffering on women, then I was not very reasonable. He wrote, "I do not ask at this point that you oppose abortion, only that you speak about this issue in fair-minded words." Fair-minded words.
After I read the doctor's letter, I wrote back to him and I thanked him. And I didn't change my underlying position. But I did tell my staff to change the words on my website. And I said a prayer that night. That I might extend the same presumption of good faith to others that the doctor had extended to me.
Because when we do that, when we open up our hearts and our minds to those who may not think precisely like we do or believe precisely what we believe, that's when we discover at least the possibility of common ground.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: President Obama's words did little to bridge the great divide in the abortion debate. CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti spoke to abortion opponents who staged protests of their own.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On campus, a small group of students who boycotted the president's speech spent the day mainly in prayer and stood by their decision to be no-shows at their own graduation.
EMILY TOATES, UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME GRADUATE: I want to be with some of them going in, marching in with the other engineers that I've been studying with for the last four years. But at the same time I feel a real kind of peace about my decision not to go.
CANDIOTTI: At one service, about 30 students wore a symbolic cross and baby's feet with their caps and gowns and t-shirts. Near the university, streets were lined with demonstrators carrying signs. Also off campus, nearly 40 people were arrested for trespassing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I love it.
CANDIOTTI: Including Norma McCorvey, more commonly known as Jane Roe. The name of the plaintiff in the landmark Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. She now opposes it. Some graduates decided to hear the president firsthand despite their disapproval over his abortion policies.
CHRIS LABADIE, UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME GRADUATE: He approached the issues in a spirit of dialogue which is how we approach this debate throughout the last two months.
CANDIOTTI: Many seniors didn't like this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop killing our children!
OBAMA: We must find a way.
STEVE SIMEONIDIS, UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME GRADUATE: I thought it was disrespectful to the president and to our university and to all the graduates.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it means the university is ready to talk about challenging issues and back away from them and I'm very proud that we're now ready to do that.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): Now graduates may find they'll have to face those same challenging issues in their new role now that they're leaving this campus. Susan Candiotti, CNN, South Bend, Indiana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A lot less uproar over the first lady's graduation speech at the University of California Merced, welcomed Michelle Obama Saturday. She urged students to dream big and help their communities.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Remember that you are blessed. Remember that in exchange for those blessings, you must give something back. You must reach back. And pull someone up. You must bend down and let someone else stand on your shoulders so that they can see a brighter future. As advocate and activist Marion Wright Edelman says, service is the rent we pay for living. It is the true measure, the only measure of our success.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: You see Merced is a small school with less than 3,000 students. It's the only college commencement the first lady is speaking at this year.
Meanwhile Vice President Joe Biden delivered a commencement speech of his own. Just minutes ago he spoke to the graduating class of Wake Forest University in North Carolina. And in a little while Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will deliver the commencement address at Barnard College in New York.
Clinton will also receive the Barnard Medal of Distinction. That's the college's highest honor. Barnard is an independent women's college affiliated with Columbia University.
A decision about a child is taken away from his parents. A court orders chemotherapy.
And right now, checking out the Dow for you once again here. Last time we looked it was up about 109 points. Now we're up 126. We'll tell you why coming up in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: It is news that no parents certainly ever want to hear. And that is that their child has cancer. Now the parents of one Minnesota boy are being told by the court how to have their son should treated. Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here now with more on this. What a tough story.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it is a tough story. Heidi, this is a classic conflict between the rights of parents to give their children the medical care they think is right and the obligation of courts to protect children.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COHEN (voice-over): If it were up to Daniel Hauser's parents, the cancer spreading through his body would not be treated with chemotherapy or radiation. 13-year-old Daniel did get one round of chemo which doctors say was working well against his Hodgkin's lymphoma but his parents said they wanted no more.
Colin and Anthony Hauser want alternative treatments for their son. Treatments recommended by this organization called the Nemenhah Band, a self-described Native American group advocating what they call natural healing.
COLLEN HAUSER, MOTHER: We're a simple, honest family. We're not out to harm anybody. We never - this is just our way of life and why people want to infringe on it, I don't know.
COHEN: Friday, a Minnesota judge ordered Daniel Hauser to get care from an oncologist saying that Daniel had been medically neglected. Oncologists typically have a 90 percent success rate against Daniel's type of cancer.
In a statement, an attorney for Daniel's parents said they disagreed with the ruling. "The Hausers believed that the injection of chemotherapy into Danny Hauser amounts to an assault upon his body, and torture when it occurs over a long period of time."
The Hausers said they prefer to treat their son with a natural diet, sweat lodges and other alternative remedies. But prosecutors in Minnesota argued that without chemo and radiation, Daniel would almost certainly die.
JAMES OLSON, ATTORNEY: The compelling interest here is the protection and welfare of children.
COHEN: Medical ethicists say parents generally do have a legal right to make decisions for their children but there is a limit.
ART CAPLAN, ETHICIST: Well the presumption is that parents do have the right to control the medical care of their children but they don't have that right or it can be, if will be, curtailed if they are doing something that really puts the life of their child at risk.
COHEN: The family's attorney said Daniel Hauser is abiding by the court order.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Wow. All right. So Elizabeth, do the courts usually side, you know, in cases like this, keeping in mind every case is different, obviously, but do the courts usually side with the doctors?
COHEN: Yes. In cases like this, they do. This is a matter of life and death. There's a treatment out there that works very, very well. The family wants to try a treatment that is not so proven, just using herbs to fight cancer. So they usually do. Now when there is a treatment out there that works that well, there are a lot of question marks, and it's not life and death, often they will give the parents the benefit of the doubt and let them proceed as they want o. In cases like this, courts side with doctors.
COLLINS: Yes. All right. Our senior medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen. Thanks, Elizabeth.
COHEN: Thanks.
COLLINS: And we do want to hear from everybody else on this too because there's obviously a lot of questions about whether or not the court should be getting involved or not.
All right. Thank you, Elizabeth. In Buffalo, New York, a police officer is being credited with saving the life of a toddler who had an allergic reaction to medication and stopped breathing. The parents were rushing the child to the hospital when they spotted officer Jose Vega and flagged him down. Officer Vega is seen in dramatic surveillance tape video, now, giving the child CPR.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSE VEGA, POLICE OFFICER: Every morning I wake up and pray that the lord will make me an instrument at his disposal. And on this day, my prayers were answered.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Vega is a 22-year veteran of the force. The baby is hospitalized now in critical condition.
An ex-cop, now on the other side of the law, accused of killing his third wife. What's happening today in Drew Peterson's case?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Here's what we're working on for you now, tackling Middle East issues. As you can see there, President Obama is getting ready to go one on one with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He just arrived at the White House a few minutes ago, so we're keeping an eye on that.
Also, prove it or apologize. Republicans are turning up the heat on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, accusing the CIA of lying to her about its use of harsh interrogation techniques during the Bush administration.
And also, accused of his third wife's death. Former police officer Drew Peterson faces a judge today.
It has been a terrible year for the American auto industry, as you well know. General Motors alone has cut tens of thousands of jobs here in the U.S., so why is it negotiating a plan now that could bring in even more of its vehicles from other countries?
Susan Lisovicz on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with more on that and more on this. I'm sorry, but I'm loving those numbers -- 138 points to the positive at the Dow there.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's not too bad. You know, we thought it might be a modest start, but, well, it has a lot to do with Lowe's. The home improvement retailer saying it's seen signs in recent weeks of life. When you think about the housing sector, I mean, home improvement, that's why Lowe's shares are up 5 percent. And it's helping to improve the sentiment overall.
But a different story for GM, Heidi. Yes. I mean, GM has been closing factories, slashing jobs in these very serious reorganization talks with the UAW. Against that backdrop, there's a "New York Times" story that says GM is going to increase its imports from low-wage countries in -- like Mexico and Asia. UAW up in arms about it, sending letters to every member of Congress saying that, among other things, to maintain -- in order to get government assistance, the company should maintain the maximum number of jobs in the U.S.
But here's the question. This is a very dire situation for GM, and that the quickest way for it to return to profitability might simply to get some of these cars that it makes in other countries to try to get them here in the U.S. for at least the time being. It's obviously a tactic that has a lot of debate about it.
COLLINS: Yes. In fact, I mean, it's been a lot of bad news for GM lately. Now we're seeing indications that despite its better efforts, bankruptcy might in the end be inevitable.
LISOVICZ: That's right. And you know, we had this terrible news on Friday that GM is going to close 1,100 dealerships. And that is seen by a lot of people as a sign that GM is getting closer and closer to bankruptcy. Why is that? Because once you go into bankruptcy protection, you will be able to close these dealerships.
If GM were not to have that protection, dealers themselves, which have contracts, they own these dealerships, they have all sorts of contracts with the company, they might be protected by the courts. Bankruptcy courts, you throw all that out, and you start over. That's why GM may be taking this step as yet another sign that that's the way it's going to go -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes. And then the dealership closures aren't really the only signs that bankruptcy could be on the way.
LISOVICZ: That's right. And among them are signs that some of GM's top executives are selling shares that they own of GM. Let me tell you something, GM shares, Heidi, right now are up seven percent, trading at $1.15. If you know anything about bankruptcy, shareholders get in at the end of a long line.
At $1.15 they've already taken a big bath. But you're lucky if you can get pennies on that dollar. Other signs, well, GM's looking to unload some of its brands like Saturn, Saab, Hummer. Also, the company wants to pay its suppliers back sooner. Suppliers huge in keeping the company functioning. If they're not paid and they're in distress, that's a problem.
And finally, you know, Fritz Henderson, the CEO, has been saying, I mean, he's quoted as saying that bankruptcy filing is probable. So, the signs are there.
COLLINS: Yes. OK. Yes. Absolutely.
LISOVICZ: The signs are there, Heidi, that two of the three may be operating under bankruptcy protection.
COLLINS: All right. We are watching. Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange. Thank you.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
COLLINS: We're also watching this: Gas prices going up by the day. But just how high will they go? Let's check in now with CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow. She has our "Energy Fix" this morning from New York.
Hi there, Poppy.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Heidi.
I was driving around with a friend this weekend, and they said, hey, gas prices are getting high, and everyone is talking about it. The national average today from AAA, $2.31 a gallon. It's more than that in some places. This is the 20th straight increase we've seen in gas prices, up more than 26 cents in about three weeks. The average price across all 50 states, it's now higher than $2 a gallon.
Of course, it's not like last summer's $4.00 a gallon. But, still, let's show you this chart. A year ago, we were at $3.79 a gallon on average. Take a look, though, at this chart, because this is this year, the yellow line, the increase there. And the blue line is 2008, Heidi. The only difference, the trend is similar, but look how much higher prices were.
COLLINS: Yes.
HARLOW: Well above $3.00, now we're just above $2.00. So, it's painful because we know how bad it could be, Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, but it feels like -- doesn't this happen every summer? I mean, we were really getting used to paying less than $2.00 a gallon, and they're going up now because?
HARLOW: Right. They call it the summer driving season. I don't know if I buy that. But the longer days, people drive more. The Memorial Day holiday, people take advantage of that. AAA came out with its forecast recently, saying over the holiday this weekend, 27 million Americans are planning to hit the road, some form of road trip. That's up about 2.5 percent from last year.
But the real reason gas is up is because crude prices are up. Oil right now about $58.00 a barrel. But look at that chart from this year. We've seen crude prices soar more than 70 percent just over the past four months. Oil prices are rising, Heidi, as investors are betting this economy is getting a little bit better. And they're betting on crude. And we could see what we saw not that long ago -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Bite your tongue.
HARLOW: I know.
COLLINS: How high are analysts telling you they think these prices are going to go?
HARLOW: Right. These are people that watch gas prices every single day. They dig into the numbers. They say $4 gas not in the cards this summer. AAA says the national average this summer probably won't exceed $2.50 a gallon. Still higher than some folks would like.
The lousy economy -- it is lousy still -- expected to keep sort of a lid on these gas prices for a while. People do drive less in the recession. And big industries demanding oil to produce products. That demand is not going to be where it was last summer, Heidi. So, we're rising. We'll keep an eye on it -- Heidi.
COLLINS: OK. Very good. CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow. Thanks, Poppy.
HARLOW: Sure.
COLLINS: A pastor making an offering to parishioners in hard times: Take from the collection plate if you need it. Now, others in need are also getting a helping hand from the church. Shana Franklin from our Dallas affiliate KDAF reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHANA FRANKLIN, KDAF-TV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even from a distance, it's clear the Cross Timbers Community Church is unusual.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
FRANKLIN: But what's happening inside is being called unheard of.
AMY SULLIVAN, CHURCH MEMBER: You don't hear about a church giving money away.
FRANKLIN: That's exactly what this nine-year-old nondenominational church in Argyle is doing.
PASTOR TOBY SLOUGH, CROSS TIMBERS COMMUNITY CHURCH: We're really, really excited about what God's doing among us.
FRANKLIN: Over the past two months, Cross Timbers has given away half a million dollars to both members and nonmembers who are struggling financially in today's economy.
SLOUGH: We've given single moms and widows $100 gifts. We've taken $200,000 and spread it out to organizations, four local, two mission, that are feeding and clothing hungry people in these tough times. We've paid utility bills for members of our church that are unemployed or underemployed.
FRANKLIN: But Pastor Toby Slough's favorite giveaway came three weeks ago. The church gave 1,400 families $50 each and told them to give it to someone else.
SLOUGH: It is my privilege today to baptize you.
FRANKLIN: Katie Lewis, who was baptized today, is one of those recipients. The gesture changed her life. KATIE LEWIS, CHURCH VISITOR: I've been alone for so long. Just to be thought of and to be remembered and to be welcomed, it's amazing. It's all I've ever wanted.
FRANKLIN: This movement started early this year, when Pastor Slough told his congregation to take money from the collection plate if they needed it, even though church donations were down. That day, they had the largest offering ever. Then just after, Pastor Slough gave a ride to a man looking for a job who just used his last bus pass.
SLOUGH: In that moment, I just knew this is what our church has to be about.
FRANKLIN: I asked Pastor Slough if he worries people will hear of the church's generosity and take advantage of it.
SLOUGH: I told our church a couple of weeks ago, if I'm not being taken advantage of, I'm not being like Jesus.
FRANKLIN: The church says giving away money is not an event for them but a lifestyle. In fact, they've just formed a group to look at the best ways to do that. They say as long as there is a need in the community, they will work to fill it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: All right. Quickly want to get to breaking news we have now from the Supreme Court.
Justices there have ruled in favor of former officials with the Bush administration. The rules deal with whether they can be held personally liable for knowing the alleged treatment of Muslim immigrants that were detained after the September 11 attacks.
A divided court refused to allow former Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI Director Robert Mueller to face pretrial depositions in an ongoing civil lawsuit. The case involved a Pakistani native who claimed top federal officials personally condoned isolating Muslims and Arab immigrants in a Brooklyn prison wing. We'll keep our eye on that for you today.
Also, this just in from the Supreme Court now. Justices have refused to delay the trial of former Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson. Remember this? He claimed the prosecutors violated his constitutional privileges as a lawmaker. And he wanted the Supreme Court to throw out his indictment. But we just got word the court will not hear his appeal. Jefferson was indicted for several counts, including asking for bribes.
Their happiest moment of the day is a drink of water. Pakistani children suffering amid a war they don't understand. We go to a refugee camp.
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COLLINS: Concerns some of Pakistan's nuclear weapons could fall into the wrong hands now growing in the United States.
Officials in Washington confirming Pakistan is ramping up its nuclear weapons program as it continues to battle the Taliban. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joining us now live for a little bit more on this.
Hi there, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Heidi.
Well, it couldn't be more concerning, of course, if, indeed, Pakistan is expanding its nuclear arsenal. The U.S. wants Pakistan to fight the Taliban. The Pakistanis obviously still pouring billions of dollars into that nuclear program.
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff gave an answer to a question on Capitol Hill last week. When Senator Webb of Virginia said, isn't there information, essentially, that they're expanding it, Mullen gave a one-word answer, saying yes.
Two areas of concern we have learned. When you look at the map, there are two places that have the U.S. most worried. One is a place called Kahuta. The U.S. believes Pakistanis have bought new gas centrifuge enrichment technology to produce uranium. Another place, Kusab (ph). They believe that the Pakistanis are working on a longer- term effort to build new plutonium production reactors.
All of that means more nuclear fuel, more nuclear weapons. And then Mullen said nonetheless, he believes that the weapons they do currently have are secure. Listen to what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADMIRAL MIKE MULLEN, CHAIRMAN, U.S. JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: I'm comfortable that it is secure. They've actually put in an increased level of security measures in the last three or four years. But there are limits on what we know in terms of a lot of the specifics. But I'm comfortable that from what I know, what we actually know and also what they've told us, that right now they're secure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STARR: So, it's one of these cases of what we know about in the United States, that's secure. But Mullen the first to acknowledge, Heidi, the U.S. still is not really sure what Pakistan is up to with its nuclear program -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes, yes. Understood. All right, our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr. Barbara, thank you.
More than a million Pakistanis have fled their homes in the Swat Valley since the Pakistani army launched its offensive against the Taliban. Many of those winding up in refugee camps are children. CNN's Reza Sayah looks at their plight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At a refugee camp where the happiest moment of the day for kids is a drink of water or a plate of rice, childhood dreams seem impossible to reach. But 8-year-old Rabia Khan is holding on to hers.
RABIA KHAN, REFUGEE CAMP RESIDENT: Doctor.
SAYAH (on camera): Doctor. She wants to become a doctor.
SAYAH (voice-over): Rabia is among hundreds of thousands of children who fled the battle zone of Swat Valley, where Pakistani troops are taking on the Taliban.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She saw the fighting, and the heard the sounds of the...
SAYAH (on camera): And what was it -- was that scary for her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
KHAN: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
SAYAH: It was. She was scared.
(voice-over): Rabia and her family traveled for days to this camp outside of Islamabad. Here, scores of children live with no electricity, no running water and tents as their only protection from suffocating heat.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's really been a really horrifying experience for them.
SAYAH: Psychiatrist Wiswan Khan (ph) says among the more than 1 million civilians displaced from their homes, the children are suffering the most.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't have their basic needs. The schoolchildren are really terrified. Where they are, why are they here? They're asking questions like that.
SAYAH (on camera): Because of these terrible conditions here, these children are developing conditions that are difficult to treat. Doctor, tell us what we have here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's some kind of allergic skin reaction which has gone chronic. It's been there for about a month.
SAYAH: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it's gone really -- it's erupted, and it's become very scaly and itchy.
SAYAH: And what do we see here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is alopecia. She's suffering from hair loss. And it can be stress-related. And it's been there for about four months.
SAYAH: Oh, man.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just a fear (ph) she has had, or probably somebody's pulled it or something.
SAYAH: So, it's a (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a (INAUDIBLE)
SAYAH: So, this is a toddler here. A cut, a real bad-looking cut.
(voice-over): Cuts will heal, says Doctor Taj (ph). But if the doctor doesn't provide basic services to these children soon, Taj (ph) says psychological trauma will set in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't know what war is. They don't know why these people are killing us. They don't know why fighting is going on.
SAYAH (on camera): How many of these children, because of a lack of ability to rationalize, are blaming everything on themselves? Maybe I'm a bad person?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly. When they can't find a reason, or they're not given any solid, clear, simple answer that why this has happened, then they will bring it on to themselves, and they can develop low self-esteem.
SAYAH: And that, says Doctor Taj (ph), is what could cause children like Rabia her dream and Pakistan a generation of young minds.
Reza Sayah at the Sonjani (ph) refugee camp outside of Islamabad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Hot out west and cool weather in the east. Rob Marciano in the severe weather center watching it all for us.
MARCIANO: Hi, Heidi.
That plus a little something brewing in the tropics. We're not even into hurricane season yet. We'll talk about that stuff when the CNN NEWSROOM comes right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Just a quick reminder now. We love hearing from you. You know, you can become part of the CNN NEWSROOM. See how quickly that is for Lynette (ph) to go over there and move that thing around?
You can join us on our new blog page. We'll take you inside the stories that we're covering and ask you to weigh in with your opinions. We always get some really interesting stuff. You can find us at CNN NEWSROOM -- cnn.com, pardon me, /newsroom, cnn.com/newsroom. And then once you get there, just click on my name and check it out.
Men were not the only ones at this weekend's NRA convention in Phoenix. NRA officials say there was a big spike in women this year because more women are carrying guns. And some experts even say smaller model guns, easier to handle, are being marketed toward women.
Well, Rob Marciano...
MARCIANO: You carry, don't you?
COLLINS: ... just back from the NRA convention, joining us now.
(LAUGHTER)
MARCIANO: From my cold dead hand. Come on. You carry, don't you?
COLLINS: Hey, I'm not divulging that information.
MARCIANO: Heidi Collins packing heat, no doubt about it.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: He's barely a teenager. Now he's a college graduate. A young math whiz shows age is just a number.
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COLLINS: Quickly on this developing story. Drew Peterson, an update here now. As we mentioned, he was in court today. It was an arraignment. And he did formally enter a "not guilty" plea. This is in the death of his third wife, an alleged drowning death.
So, once again, Drew Peterson formally entering a "not guilty" plea in court in Illinois. Prosecutors are also bringing about the idea of possibly getting a new judge in this case. So, we will stay on top of the Drew Peterson case for you, of course, here on CNN.
Time now to spotlight the Class of '09 and what may be one of its youngest graduates. Thirteen-year-old Caleb Kumar is graduating from a community college near Minneapolis. The math whiz first enrolled in classes at the tender age of 9.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CALEB KUMAR, 13-YEAR-OLD COLLEGE GRADUATE: At first, I got a lot of confused glares and stares. And so, I just -- I don't know, I just sort of went with it. And right now, people don't really mind me anymore. It's just, people that really accept me and talk to me as an equal. So, that makes you feel a lot better.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, he's ten years younger than me, so I think it's pretty fantastic.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COLLINS: You may be surprised by Caleb's next plans, eighth- grade finals next week and high school classes in the fall. His mom says she wants him to enjoy his childhood and not rush into a four- year college at 9.
I'm Heidi Collins. Issue number one, the economy. Where do we stand? An update from the president's chief money man, that's coming up next as CNN NEWSROOM continues with Tony Harris.
