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White House Evaluating Options on North Korea; Former Honor Guard Shares View of Arlington; Center Works to Find Missing Children; U.N. Calls Emergency Meeting on North Korea Nuclear Test; Swine Flu Infections on the Rise; Experts Say 30 SPF Sunscreen OK; Students' Cartoon Depicts Ways to Kill Girl; Powell Fires Back against GOP Critics

Aired May 25, 2009 - 13:00   ET

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

ALINA CHO, CNN ANCHOR: Tony, thank you.

And pushing forward on the latest defiant act from North Korea. The communist country testing limits and options of the outside world with a nuclear bomb test. We're following the fallout.

It is Memorial Day. Americans honoring the men and women who gave, in Lincoln's words, the last full measure of devotion to their country. We're live at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Who would say no to a tax break? Not a Detroit city councilwoman. How was she able to pay just $68 in property taxes while her neighbors paid thousands? We're going to hear her side of the story this hour.

And if it rains on holiday parades, picnics or barbecues this Memorial Day, in Greeley, Colorado, guess what? A lot of people who bought cars at one dealership, they're going to get their money back. We'll tell you why.

Hi, everybody. So glad you're with us on this Memorial Day. I'm Alina Cho live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The shockwaves are fading, but the outrage is building by the hour over the latest underground nuclear test in North Korea. What's been dubbed the world's most secretive country even defied China, its closest ally, with a blast this morning that shook the earth -- and I mean literally. U.S. Monitors picked up the equivalent of a 4.7 magnitude quake.

This blast was much bigger than Pyongyang's first bomb test. That was back in October of 2006. And it was followed by the test of at least one short-range missile.

We've got the worldwide resources of CNN to push this story forward. Our Jill Dougherty live in Washington with a blistering response from President Obama. John Vause, live in Beijing where China, North Korea's biggest ally, has declared its resolute opposition to the nuclear test. And our chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, will join me by phone from New York. President Obama calls the North Korean nuclear test reckless, a blatant violation of international law and a great threat to world peace. You heard him on CNN live from the White House just before he left for Arlington National Cemetery. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs pose a grave threat to the peace and security of the world, and I strongly condemn their reckless action.

North Korea's actions endanger the people of northeast Asia. They are a blatant violation of international law, and they contradict North Korea's own prior commitments. Now, the United States and the international community must take action in response.

The record's clear. North Korea's previously committed to abandoning its nuclear program. Instead of following through on that commitment, it has chosen to ignore that commitment. Its actions have also flown in the face of the United Nations resolutions. As a result, North Korea is not only deepening its own isolation; it's also inviting stronger international pressure. That's evident overnight, and as Russia and China, as well as our traditional allies of South Korea and Japan, have all come to the same conclusion. North Korea will not find security and respect through threats and illegal weapons.

We will work with our friends and allies to stand up to this behavior, and we will redouble our efforts toward a more robust international nonproliferation regime that all countries have responsibilities to meet. In this effort, the United States will never waiver from our determination to protect our people and the peace and security of the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: CNN's Jill Dougherty joins me now from our Washington bureau.

So Jill, is the White House surprised by this?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: They were not surprised necessarily by the actual nuclear test. I think they were surprised by the timing, that it happened so quickly after the April 5 launch of the satellite.

But they were -- the statement was strong by the president, but you'd have to say what is next? Because they have said similar things before. And they have tried. They've reached out their hand, as they said, when they came into -- this administration came in, said that it should talk, that they wanted to try talking. They had a special envoy. They themselves have been speaking with the allies.

Just three weeks ago they were offering to talk one on one with the North Koreans if it would help to bring them back to the negotiating table at the six-party talks. Nothing is working so far.

So, the question for the president is really what can they do that hasn't been tried before that will actually bring North Korea back to the talks and stop this nuclear program?

CHO: But as you mentioned, Jill, you know, North Korea not interested in talking. They have essentially abandoned six-party talks. So, what kind of options does the U.S. have at this point with respect to North Korea?

DOUGHERTY: Well, increasing sanctions, perhaps, but sanctions have been tried. So, the question is what does North Korea really want? And some officials in the Obama administration are saying they don't want talks any more. They want to be considered a nuclear power. So, if you're dealing with that, then you have to find what exactly will be the next step?

CHO: Jill Dougherty live for us in our Washington bureau. Jill, thank you.

We turn now to Beijing, where North Korea's only real ally is siding with the outside world on this one. Our John Vause is live for us from Beijing.

John, good evening to you.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi, siding with the rest of the world to a point. We had a statement coming out of the ministry of foreign affairs. It took them a while. They finally got round to issuing one long after United States, Japan and South Korea all issued their condemnation. And it did say that Beijing resolutely opposes this nuclear test. But what it did not say was a repeated a similar language that Beijing used back in October of 2006.

And that was, back then China accused the North Koreans of flagrantly disregarding -- or defying, rather, the international community. This time around those words were missing. Might be an indication of what is yet to come when the U.N. Security Council meets, what China will do during that meeting.

We may also have an idea of what China may do if we look back at April when there was that rocket launch that Jill was talking about. We know that the Chinese refused to support tougher actions against the North Koreans. And that actually caused some friction amongst the members of the Security Council. But the Chinese were determined to give Pyongyang this coverage.

So, this is what we're looking at when it comes to the Chinese and their role with dealing with the North Koreans.

One other issue in all of this is that the Chinese may, in fact, be more concerned about the internal situation in North Korea. There's this possible leadership transition under way between Kim Jong-Il and his son. The Chinese are worried that if they do anything, it might spark an internal crisis in North Korea -- Alina. CHO: That's right, because there's no clear line of succession. His third and youngest son has been named to a top post. But there's been a lot of talk of a potential coalition government.

But as we mentioned at the top there, John, you know, China and North Korea are really very strong allies. Does China have enough influence over North Korea to really put some pressure on them?

VAUSE: There's absolutely no doubt that out of any country in the world, China has more influence over North Korea than any other. The debate is how much influence is that?

Countries like the United States and South Korea, as well as Japan, say that China could be doing more. But the Chinese say, listen, that influence is very, very much limited. We supply food, and power and oil and those kinds of things.

But if it does put the heavies on the regime in Pyongyang, there's this constant fear here in Beijing that that would destabilize the entire country. And as we've heard before from the Chinese, they're worried about having this flood of refugees heading towards their border because of any potential crisis. And they say yes, they have influence, but it's very limited in what they can actually do, real-time on the ground, when it comes to dealing with North Korea.

CHO: North Korea has often shown that it often does what it wants. John Vause, live for us from Beijing today. John, thank you for your perspective on that.

Meanwhile, Pyongyang's delicate relations with the U.S., the U.N., Japan, and Russia, all but collapsed last month when the U.N. condemned the North Korean missile launch. So where do things go from here?

CNN's Christiane Amanpour live on the phone from New York with me.

Christiane, as you know, you and I were in North Korea together a little more than a year ago. And at the time North Korean officials, as you well know, said they were really looking forward to working with an Obama administration. But what we have seen is a harder line with respect to North Korea, abandoning six-party talks, jailing American journalists, putting them on trial. And now this.

So given all of this, do any of these latest developments surprise you?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via phone): Well, this time last year we had just returned from North Korea when the New York Philharmonic went. And with it also they gave us a very rare view inside Yongbyon, their nuclear plant. And what we saw there was the shutting down -- we saw it shut down.

We had that verified by U.S. technical experts who were there as well as the IAEA cameras that were surveilling and monitoring what was going on. We saw that they had also started to dismantled and disabled, take parts out, vital parts of the reprocessing of plutonium and other such things, put it in a kind of Saran Wrap and put it in storage.

But we also noticed, even then, they were slowing down the removal of fuel rods, the all-important substances used for making weapons-grade material. And what was going on, apparently, appeared to be a negotiating and bargaining tactic.

We spoke to the chief nuclear negotiator, who told us that it would take courage for both sides of this deal to move forward but that, he said, North Korea was committed to the disarmament of Yongbyon and their nuclear program.

And then in June, exactly a year ago, as negotiations continued, I went back, and we witnessed North Korea blowing up their cooling tower, which is necessary for the reprocessing activity.

So, what's happened now is a gradual ratcheting up, because they feel that they weren't -- they don't have enough fuel; they don't have enough money; they don't have enough food; and they want all this from the west.

And what we're being told is that, from various analysts, who are really only guessing, that this is part of a rather typical North Korean bargaining position, on the one hand. And what we're being told is, by various analysts, who are really only guessing, is this is part of a rather typical North Korean bargaining position, on the one hand. It could also be part of the secession struggle, as you mentioned, that's going on in North Korea since Kim Jong-Il fell ill last year.

CHO: Yes, and Christiane, let's talk a little bit more about that, because there is no clear line of succession. I mean, there are some people who were very surprised to learn that one of his sons was named to a top post. They had suspected that maybe that meant that he might be next in line. And then there's a lot of talk about a coalition government.

So, at the end of the day, when you're looking at this nuclear bomb test, do you see it as posturing or a real threat?

AMANPOUR: Well, look, who knows about the succession? It's only speculation from anybody outside. Nobody really knows.

But in terms of what just happened, if what the Russian defense ministry says is true, that this was a 10- to 20-kiloton explosion, that would put it at 10 to 20 times more powerful than what they tried to do, testing a nuclear device back in 2006, which would mean that it is now a nuclear state, in a way.

Although other security experts in places like MIT and others warn that, while they perhaps had the capability now to test that size device, they still don't have the capability of a long-range missile, a possibility to deliver it. Nor do they have yet the ability to turn that device into a warhead and put it onto a delivery system. So they say that they're quite a few years away from that. The question really is what does North Korea want? Why is it doing this? And furthermore, the more tricky and difficult question, is what can the rest of the world do about it?

CHO: That's right.

AMANPOUR: Can they impose sanctions? Sanctions will only work if they are united and global. In other words, if China agrees.

Will China? It's not clear. Will President Obama have to pick up a telephone and speak to the president of China and say, "All right, now you see this. Is this enough for you to come into a tougher sanctions regime?" Most analysts, diplomatic analysts believe that, if that's going to happen, China absolutely has to be on board. It is not at all clear from its position today that it's going to do that.

CHO: Right. And the world community really has no choice, Christiane, but to take this seriously. Christiane Amanpour, our chief international correspondent, live by phone from New York. Christiane, as always, thank you.

Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia, every day is Memorial Day there. But on this official holiday, we're reminded that these grounds could be America's most sacred memorial of all. President Obama taking part in an annual tradition, the wreath-laying ceremony. That was earlier today at the Tomb of the Unknowns. He then spoke at the memorial amphitheater.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: If the fallen could speak to us, what would they say? Would they console us? Perhaps they might say that, while they could not know they'd be called upon to storm a beach through a hail of gunfire, they were willing to give up everything for the defense of our freedom. And while they could not know they'd called upon to jump into the mountains of Afghanistan and seek an elusive enemy, they were willing to sacrifice all for their country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Honor, duty, tradition, just as they're part of military service, they're also part of the honor guard at Arlington National Cemetery. They can't let emotion get in the way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. MICHAEL BANDZWOLEK, U.S. ARMY: It never gets easier. It's difficult to see someone who, like I said, particularly someone whose husband or wife or son or daughter just died in Iraq or Afghanistan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: We're going to walk through Arlington with a former honor guard member who calls this an honor for him to serve.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Singing sensation Susan Boyle picks up the mike again. So what did she sing this time? Did she choke? You may be surprised. We're going to take a look at her latest performance.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: The remains of two American soldiers killed in Iraq are back home. There was a ceremony last night at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. These, by the way, are the first Memorial Day Weekend dignified transfers, as they're being called, since the Pentagon changed its policy to allow media coverage.

Sergeant Brian Naseman of Racine, Wisconsin, died Friday in a noncombat incident. He leaves behind a wife and two sons. Army medic Paul Brooks of Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, died Thursday along with two other soldiers in a suicide blast. He leaves behind a wife and eight children, all under the age of 16.

If Memorial Day has a focal point, Arlington National Cemetery, well, just may be it. For generations, this is where families have come to say good-bye and where a grateful nation says, "Thank you." The cemetery's dignity, honor and tradition is a job of the honor guard, a job they do with great pride.

CNN's John King walked through Arlington with a former honor guard member.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BANDZWOLEK: I had spent a year in Iraq during the invasion, and then up until February of '04 with 101st Airborne Division. So it was different.

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Does that experience enter your thoughts at all when you're here serving, when you're seeing people who served alongside you?

BANDZWOLEK: It does, just because as we've walked already, I saw two graves of guys that I went to high school with. Other ones that I recognize as guys I went to college with or guys that I went to college with, soldiers that they've had. So you do think about it when you see someone that you knew, and here they are.

KING: You do a job here in which you're trained to almost be dispassionate, pay no attention to what's going on around you. Do not be distracted by what's going on around you. You got quite emotional walking through there, because you said you're passing the graves of friends. How difficult is it to do what you do?

BANKZWOLEK: It is difficult. I think at first it is more difficult, because you're not only learning a job but you're dealing with a very emotional situation. As you grow a little more comfortable with doing your job, it becomes easier to focus on that and not so much the families that are surrounding you. But it never gets easier. It's difficult to see someone who, like I said, particularly someone whose husband or wife or son or daughter just died in Iraq and Afghanistan. And to stand in front of them and to do that job and to try to remain -- try to remain not necessarily dispassionate but to remain focused on what your job is.

KING: Is it what you expected? Or can you not think in advance or study in advance what the experience is going to be like?

BANDZWOLEK: I don't think at the time when I came here I knew what to expect. The longer I've been here, it's definitely been an honor to be able to provide a service on the other side of the Army.

There's a lot of people in Iraq and Afghanistan that are doing their job, and there need to be some people on this side that are representing what the Army does and what the military is doing and also provide honors for a fallen soldier from Iraq or Afghanistan.

So, it is an honor to do this job, and I'm proud to say that I've done it.

(MUSIC PLAYING -- "TAPS")

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: Thousands of names, thousands of stories. A Web site honoring fallen heroes in Iraq and Afghanistan, years in the making. And take a look. It involves Google Earth. And it tells you exactly where the fallen come from.

Now, if you want to get to it, there's actually a post on our blog about Map the Fallen Project. Read all about it at CNN.com/newsroom. Click "Kyra" to find our stories.

Later today, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, the country is asking you to stop precisely at 3 p.m. local time for a moment of silence. President Obama is calling today a day of prayer for a permanent peace. And he is asking that all Americans observe the national moment of remembrance to remind us all what Memorial Day is all about.

More than 16 million Americans fought in World War II. To get the full story behind this pilot, his coyote companion, and a heroic rescue, you have to go to our blog. And take a look at that photo there. It's just great. At CNN.com/newsroom is where you'll find the story.

It's Memorial Day, but it's also National Missing Children's Day. Their faces line the wall. Kids reunited with their families. A source of hope and motivation at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. How you can help and keep your own kids safe. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Twenty-five minutes after the hour. Today is not only Memorial Day; it's also National Missing Children's Day. Well, it's just a coincidence that they share a date this year. Both are meant to make us stop and think about the lost.

Christi Paul, an anchor at HLN, and she joins me now with a look at a segment on CNN.com called "Find the Children," which tries to help bring these missing kids home, really. And it's been quite successful, hasn't it?

CHRISTI PAUL, ANCHOR, HLN: Well, I think what's really interesting is a lot of people don't realize, because I went to D.C. and talked to folks at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, who kind of partnered with us on this. And the thing is, they have a 96 percent recovery rate.

CHO: That's incredible.

PAUL: Isn't it? When we talk about these missing...

CHO: That's heartwarming to hear, by the way.

PAUL: It is. But it's true; technology obviously has played a big part in that. Because now with the Internet and television, they can get information out in a matter of minutes that used to take days and even weeks to get out.

And you know you've all seen them. Have you seen these fliers that come to 85 million homes a week? One out of six children are recovered from that flier...

CHO: Is that right?

PAUL: ... as a direct result from the flier. And Ernie Allen, the president of NCMEC, did say to me that their biggest hindrance in finding kids is the fact that people don't think -- we can't fathom that we, just the general public, can recognize a child. But we can. That's all it takes. In fact, he's got these fascinating stories of recovery -- of recovery here that he's telling us about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERNIE ALLEN, NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN: We've had classmates who said, "That girl's in my class." We had a law student from Louisiana on vacation in Central America who called us and said, "I just saw that little girl on an island off the coast of Belize."

It is astounding how well they work. And they work because people look at the pictures. They pay attention.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: And the other thing, you know, Ernie points out, somebody knows. You don't realize that you know something, but you do. The most minute piece of information can help police.

If you just see -- there was a girl in North Carolina who disappeared. And this woman didn't even know it. She called authorities because she saw a 4-year-old with her hair dyed.

CHO: Incredible.

PAUL: She said, "This makes no sense to me that a 4-year-old would have her hair dyed."

CHO: And I've interviewed Ernie Allen before. He's fantastic, and he's great to be at the helm of this organization and this project, which by the way, has done such wonderful things.

So, you know, I have to ask you, because the takeaway from all of this, of course, is for parents whose greatest fear, other than losing a child, is having them go missing.

PAUL: Go missing.

CHO: So, what are some tips? Because I know you found out, for some parents who...

PAUL: Oh, I did. Because we want to keep our kids safe, certainly. And one of the first things that Ernie said to me was, "We need to be very cognizant of the fact that these kids, most of the abductions happen during the time that kids travel back and forth to school.

CHO: Which makes sense.

PAUL: Right. And in three-fourths of the cases, the abductor is in a vehicle and tries to get that child in a vehicle.

Secondly, tell kids to fight like hell, people. Kids who kicked, screamed, made a scene, ran, they're the ones that got away. You've got to get into them, don't let them get in the car, don't let them take you to another location. And then listen to your gut.

CHO: I find that so interesting. Because kids, they know. They also sense something might be wrong.

PAUL: They absolutely do. Kristin Anderson (ph) said, I'm amazed that humans are the only species that will talk ourselves out of an instinct. She said, this is not the time to be politically correct. It doesn't mean you're incriminating anybody. It just means your alert is up. And if your alert is up, it needs to be, because something is telling you something.

CHO: And kids, if you're out there listening, by the way, make a scene. Right?

PAUL: Right, right. That's what I mean. Fight, make a scene, scream, yell, kick. Those are the kids that got away.

And Ernie did say what differentiates child predators from other criminals, child predators are very patient. They will -- they will watch a child for a long time. They will watch a family. They will try to ingratiate themselves with that family or with that child. And they've created this scenario in their head of what the attack or the abduction will be like. They see it as peaceful, because they've befriended these people. So when you fight, it completely throws them off guard.

CHO: Christi Paul, HLN anchor. We thank you for that.

PAUL: Thank you so much.

CHO: You know, if you'd like to know more about missing children cases in your area, go to our Web site: CNN.com/FindTheChildren. You will find an interactive map on cases that are still unsolved, along with pertinent information about those cases.

Let's say your daughter Piper was the target of a cartoon called "The Top Six Ways to Kill Piper." What do you do? You call the parents of the kids behind it, right? One dad just can't be bothered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BETH SMITH, MOTHER: One guy blew it off and said he was making dinner. Yes, he was busy making dinner right now. He'd get back to us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Can you believe that? Welcome to their world. Now mom is afraid for her daughter's safety.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Thirty-three minutes after the hour. We are following the fallout from a second underground nuclear test in North Korea. Today's blast comes two and a half years after the first one.

And this one a lot bigger. Set off seismographs and alarm bells around the world. President Obama calls the test reckless, a blatant disregard of international law. Even China, Pyongyang's closest and maybe only ally, is joining in the world outrage.

The U.N. Security Council due to meet in an emergency session later this afternoon, and that brings me to CNN senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth, who joins us live from New York. So, Richard, how unusual it is for the U.N. Security Council to call an emergency session? And what realistically can be accomplished during a meeting?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's turning into a fairly routine activity when it comes to North Korea over the last few years. And really, it's going to be hard to decide on something today from the Security Council.

Secretary of State Clinton has been working the phones. She has spoken with her foreign ministry counterparts in Japan and South Korea. She has calls pending with Russia and China. And those are the key calls because Russia and China in April, when North Korea launched that satellite/missile, didn't want to go along with a tougher approach.

Now we're going to see that approach get tested. Certainly U.S., Japan and others on the Security Council will want to see some stronger diplomatic response to this action by North Korea.

CHO: Richard, you mentioned April. Of course, that was when North Korea launched a missile. Whether or not it was successful is still an open question, really, in terms of the world community and how they reacted to it. But the Security Council met back then, and there was an unusual response on the part of Russia, right? What did they say?

ROTH: Well, it was a comment that you don't often hear. In front of reporters, Russia, the Ambassador Vitaly Churkin made it clear that he thought that Susan Rice, the new U.S. ambassador, and the Chinese ambassador had worked very well together in a compromise.

You don't hear Russia praising the U.S. diplomatic efforts. There were years where Ambassador Bolton of the United States was seen too hawkish by many at the U.N. But again, that's all well and good that they worked well together to come up with a compromise statement. But now you've had a nuclear test. Can you top this, in other words?

CHO: Richard Roth live for us in New York. Richard, thank you.

So, will you need an umbrella for your outside activities this Memorial Day if you're going to a barbecue, you're going to a picnic? Meteorologist Chad Myers tracking it all for us. So, we're going to get some rain in Atlanta, right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHO: All right, you mentioned Greeley, Colorado, right?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, ma'am.

CHO: All right. You know, there's a forecast that your computer models just won't see, and it's a chance for free cars and golf ball- sized joy. If it rains an inch there today, an auto dealer says he's going to give certain buyers a refund. And guess what, the forecast is far from sunny. We're going to get more from Chad.

And in the next hour, we're actually going to talk to the dealer. And we're going to ask him the question we all want answered: What in the heck were you thinking?

And if you're heading to the beach this Memorial Day -- that would be nice, wouldn't it? -- don't forget your sunscreen. But do you know which kind is right for you? We're going to be decoding all those SPF numbers to ease your confusion.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: New developments today in the swine flu outbreak. The number of H1N1 infections is on the rise. Another swine flu death has been confirmed in New York. A woman in her 50s with underlying health problems died from the virus over the weekend. And the CDC confirms nine other deaths in six states. There have been more than 6,500 cases in this country alone and worldwide more than 12,000 cases. According to the latest figures from the World Health Organization, more than 90 deaths around the world.

Now, by now, most of us have chucked the baby oil, and we are smart enough to use sunscreen at the beach. But how do you know which SPF is right for you? There are so many options.

Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen here to decode all the numbers. As we were talking in the break, I read an article recently about 100 SPF. I mean, what does this all mean? I mean, are these just funny numbers? Do they mean anything?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Next year, will it be 200, and then the year after it 300? Right. You look out into the shelves of the drugstore, and it's hard to know what to choose. There are so many SPF numbers. So, we asked the American Academy of Dermatology, and here's what they had to say.

They said 30 is fine. You don't have to go any higher than that. You can if you want to, but you really don't have to. An SPF of 30 lets in 3 percent of harmful rays. An SPF of 85 lets in 1 percent of harmful rays. And the doctors we talked to said, look, the difference in 1 percent, 3 percent, who really cares. It's diminishing returns, so you're fine with 30.

CHO: So, the big question is how much do you -- you know, when you put it on, there's always the danger of it just melting off because you're sweating so much. So, how much do you put on to know that you're safe?

COHEN: You need a lot. Take a look at this, Alina. You need this much. I mean, that...

CHO: For one person?

COHEN: For one person. For one person. That's a shotglass full. That's an ounce of sunscreen. That is quite a bit. You need to put it on every hour.

CHO: How do you rub it all in?

COHEN: I know. You think, maybe, I don't know, smaller people don't need as much. But you need to put it on once an hour, Sunscreen once an hour when you're in the sun. And if you've been swimming, you need to reapply even more often. And I think most people probably don't do that, so if you really want it to work, you've got to do that.

CHO: I get out there, I just stay out there. I don't do anything. I don't go in the water. I'm kind of lazy.

So, there's always this question, and I always get confused. What is the difference between UVA and UVB? because there's an important distinction. COHEN: There is an important distinction. Now, all sunscreens will protect against UVB, which is good. That's to protect you against sunburns. But not all of them protect against UVA. And UVA are the rays that give you wrinkles and age spots. So, goodness, we certainly want to have a sunscreen that protects against both of those. The labeling is very clear. Just check the labeling. Make sure that it says protects against both UVA and UVB.

CHO: Yes. I get spotty in the summer sometimes. You know, so there are some recommendations about brands. I mean, at the end of the day, we want to know when we go to the store, what should I buy? Right?

COHEN: That's right. You definitely do. And so, there's a group called the Environmental Working Group that actually went out and compared different sunscreens in terms of efficacy. And if you go to CNN.com/newsroom, you will see a blog that I wrote that mentions, that has that site in it.

So, you can go right in there, "Sunscreen Season Begins." You see that right there. And you can click on that link and get a comparison. It also compares sunscreens for children, which is important.

CHO: Oh, that is important. You got one reader right here. At 3 p.m. I sign off. I'm going to read it.

COHEN: Oh, good. Glad to hear it.

CHO: Elizabeth Cohen. Elizabeth, thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

CHO: Well, never mind what you think you see. This house doesn't exist. And the tax bill, pretty nonexistent, too. The city official who lived here says she never found it odd that she owed dozens of dollars, not thousands.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHO: Well, it seems the world just can't get enough of Internet singing sensation Susan Boyle. Videos of the singer who's never been kissed, or so she says, has been viewed on YouTube more than 220 million times. Last night, in the first of five semifinals for the British version of "American Idol," she was noticeably nervous at the beginning as she sang. Take a look.

(VIDEO CLIP -- SUSAN BOYLE SINGING "MEMORY")

CHO: Well, you know, she shook off the jitters and delivered a powerful performance of "Memory" from the musical "Cats," clinching a spot in Saturday's finale. Take a listen.

(VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHO: Parents and teachers near Seattle, Washington, are shaking their heads. They're horrified by a cartoon that's found its way to YouTube. The title of the cartoon says it all. Elisa Hahn from our affiliate KING has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELISA HAHN, KING-TV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The cartoon is called "Top Six Ways to Kill Piper." It includes depictions of five girls shooting her, making her commit suicide, even pushing her off a cliff.

B. SMITH: I was horrified. I hoped to find kids making jokes, and it wasn't. It was death.

HAHN: Beth Smith says the cartoon targeting her daughter was posted on YouTube to a Hannah Montana song called "True Friend." Piper is a 6th grader at Elk Plain School of Choice. The girls who made the video attend the same school.

PIPER SMITH, STUDENT: It was beyond funny stuff. I mean, it really, really hurt my feelings. I mean, if somebody could hate me that much to make a video about me like that, it would make me feel, like, really bad.

HAHN: Piper's mother contacted the parents of the girls who made the video. Some were shocked. Others were dismissive.

B. SMITH: One guy blew it off and said he was making dinner. Yes, he was busy making dinner right now. He'd get back to us.

HAHN: The school district says because of privacy rules, it can't say how the girls were disciplined.

KRISTA CARLSON, BETHEL SCHOOL SYSTEM: Since then, these students have expressed their remorse about this incident, and we do believe that Elk Plain has been and will continue to be a safe place for students to learn.

HAHN: Not knowing what happened leaves Smith frustrated because she wants to know her daughter is safe.

B. SMITH: My heart aches. I fear for her safety.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: School officials in that suburban Seattle community say a report has been filed with the Pierce County Sheriff's Office.

We are pushing forward. The outrage over North Korea's nuclear tests. We're going to take a look at the stir it's caused, both above and below the ground.

And if you think that biological clock is just something for the ladies, well, listen up, guys. We'll have a wake-up call for you. And a big brick Tudor with stained-glass windows. A nice house on a nice block. So, it blew neighbors' minds to find out the city official who owns it paid just 68 bucks in property taxes last year. Some of them paid almost 100 times that much. Well, Councilwoman Joann Watson says she paid the amount on her bill, and this is all a tax and smear campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOANN WATSON, DETROIT CITY COUNCILWOMAN: What would you think the motivation is? Oh, let's see now. Well, I don't smoke, drink, sleep around, I don't gamble, I don't cheat. So, what do you think? It's an election year. What do you think?

HAKIM SHAID, NEIGHBOR: If that's what hers is, then let's do a fair assessment of the whole area and rectify it for everyone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Well, it turns out city records have listed the property as a vacant lot for a decade. Watson says she doesn't know why and that her tax bill dropped before she was elected to city council. She said it was hit by a tornado. She's just requested a review from the assessor's office.

By the way, we should mention that CNN did reach out to the councilwoman. She didn't get back to us.

He's a soldier, a statesman, a diplomat, a hero to millions, but is Colin Powell a Republican or not? He says yes. And he says his party's in trouble.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CALLER: My father was Edward Buddy Carter. He was a sergeant in Company E of the 60th Infantry. He was killed in Normandy, France. The picture is one of the few that I have of my father and myself because it was made in the spring of 1944. He's one of those people I really wish that I had known, if not just as my father, but as a person. I think I would have enjoyed knowing Edward even if it wasn't as my father.

CHO: And you're looking live there at Arlington National Cemetery. Really a profoundly emotional place to be on any day, but especially on this Memorial Day. You see the flags, and you see the families of the fallen.

This, by the way, is Section 60, where the most recent fallen heroes from Iraq and Afghanistan are laid to rest. And we want to move over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, or the Wall as it's being called. A solemn celebration going on there, where they're singing "Amazing Grace." We can take that picture. There you go.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

CHO: More than 58,000 names adorn that wall there, really a symbol of Memorial Day. Twelve hundred of those names, by the way, listed as missing.

And we asked you to share your thoughts on this Memorial Day. We've gotten lots of tweets. Reggriffin says, "Sadly, I think many national holidays lose their true meaning as we simply turn them into extra vacation days." Well put.

From jencam1981, "I was the only one in my 300-level history class that knew why we celebrate Memorial Day."

Some personal words from Zefah, who says, "Had a soldier friend who died on peacekeeping duty elsewhere. Twas painful. Best way to honor him and others is try to keep the peace."

And Dustyroads325 sums it up very nicely: "All veterans are heroes and deserve our praise and support."

And if you'd like to weigh in, the team's Twitter name is kyraCNN, my colleague Kyra. We're going to read some more of them on the air in the next hour.

We're following fallout from a second underground nuclear test in North Korea. Today's blast comes two and a half years after the first one, and this one, a lot bigger. President Obama calls the test reckless and a blatant disregard of international law. The U.N. Security Council is set to meet in emergency session later today.

When Colin Powell speaks, some Republicans listen. Others cover their ears and call him a closet Democrat. Such is the state of the Grand Old Party, Republicans divided between the right wing base and a chorus of disaffected moderates. Our Jim Acosta has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alina, on this Memorial Day weekend, the man who is arguably America's most popular living general fired back, breaking his silence to take on former Vice President Dick Cheney on closing down Guantanamo and opening up the Republican Party.

COLIN POWELL, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: And I'm what people call oh, heavens, a moderate Republican.

ACOSTA (voice-over): No matter what Dick Cheney says...

DICK CHENEY, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My take on it was, Colin had already left the party. I didn't know he was still a Republican.

POWELL: Neither he nor rush Limbaugh are members of the membership committee of the Republican Party. I get to make my decision on that.

ACOSTA: The former secretary of state sounded moderate to the core, noting he had voted for Reagan and both Bushes as well as Kennedy, Johnson, Carter and Obama. Powell says it's the GOP that should do some soul-searching, not him. POWELL: The Republican Party is losing -- north, south, east, west, men, women, whites, blacks, Hispanics, and I think the Republican Party has to take a hard look at itself and decide, what kind of party are we.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Guantanamo will be closed.

ACOSTA: Powell revealed he has consulted with President Obama on Guantanamo.

POWELL: I felt Guantanamo should be closed for the past six years.

ACOSTA: But he also criticized the president's move to shut down the detention camp without telling Congress how he'd do it.

POWELL: I think President Obama didn't handle it very well by going up to the Congress and asking for $80 million without a plan.

ACOSTA: On the Bush administration's use of harsh interrogation methods, Powell insisted their primary purpose was to prevent terrorist attacks.

POWELL: If we had another attack like 9/11, say on 9/11 a year later, nobody would have forgiven us.

ACOSTA: One of Powell's closest confidants says the retired general is still reluctant to speak out on his years in the Bush administration and is haunted by his flawed presentation to the United Nations about the war in Iraq.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's difficult to say on a personal basis that you were part of such an episode.

ACOSTA: But Powell is gaining allies in the GOP's war on words. Former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge rejected a key Cheney talking point.

JOHN KING, HOST, CNN'S "STATE OF THE UNION": Do you believe we are less safe today because of steps taken by President Obama?

TOM RIDGE, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: I do not.

KING: You disagree with Dick Cheney then?

RIDGE: Yes, I disagree with Dick Cheney.

ACOSTA (on camera): Colin Powell's model for the Republican Party, the late former congressman and vice presidential candidate Jack Kemp, a principled conservative, Powell noted, who also reached out to minority voters -- Alina..

CHO: Jim Acosta, thank you.