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START Arms Control Treaty With Russia; New Foreclosure Firewall; Ladies in White Thank President Obama

Aired March 26, 2010 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Here are some of the top stories in the CNN NEWSROOM for Friday, March 26th.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What other Congresses could not do in 100, we did twice in three days. We feel good about that.

HARRIS: Congress finally -- let's say it again -- finally finishes health care, capping the week with a bill that fixes the historic new law. Also this story --

WALTER MORRIS, FIRST BLACK PARATROOPER: We were servants, not soldiers.

HARRIS: Sixty-six years after he fought in a segregated Army, the Pentagon honors America's first African-American paratrooper.

Oh boy, this is going to be hot. And what matters to Jill Scott? I am talking with the singer/songwriter, actress and columnist for "Essence" magazine.

Good morning, everyone.

I'm Tony Harris, and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Breaking news from the White House. President Obama will travel to Prague in 10 days to sign a new start arms control treaty with Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: With this agreement, the United States and Russia, the two largest nuclear powers in the world, also send a clear signal that we intend to lead. By upholding our own commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, we strengthen our global efforts to stop the spread of these weapons and to ensure that other nations meet their own responsibilities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: CNN Foreign Affairs Correspondent Jill Dougherty is in New York. And in just a couple of moments we'll bring in our Matthew Chance. He is in Moscow.

But Jill, first of all, if you would, talk us through this agreement. Again, another big agreement in a big week for the president of the United States.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: It is. It's a very important deal, Tony.

And one of the reasons it's really important is that, you know, sometimes we talk about terrorism and all of that, but right now, at this very moment, there are thousands of missiles that the United States and Russia have that are pointed at each other on hair-trigger alert that could blow up the world. And that is a fact, and we don't talk about it that much.

So this deal that they have -- and they've been working on it now for a year of the Obama administration -- really tough, really complicated. But it's the first arms control agreement in 20 years.

And so what it will do is it will reduce the number of warheads, the atomic warheads, to 1,550, and that is very low. It's about a third of what it has been. And then the bombers and the other, as they call, delivery vehicles. But it also, in kind of a political sense, it resets the relationship with Russia. It's very important to both countries.

And then down the line, and actually probably the most important thing, is it gets these two countries saying, look, we're doing the right thing. We're trying to get rid of these weapons in other countries that are getting nuclear weapons right now. Iran, North Korea, but other countries may go nuclear, too.

This is a message to them that we have to cut back and hopefully contain these with the Non-Proliferation Treaty. So there are a lot of implications for this.

HARRIS: Yes, absolutely. Boy, a big deal.

Jill Dougherty for us, our foreign affairs correspondent.

We'll get to Matthew Chance in Moscow in just a couple of minutes.

Other big stories we're following for you in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(NEWSBREAK)

HARRIS: And new help this morning for people at risk of losing their homes. Just last hour, the Obama team announced a two-pronged plan to help turn the tidal wave of foreclosures sweeping the United States.

Here's a broad outline for you.

Out-of-work Americans could cut or even eliminate mortgage payments temporarily. Homeowners who owe more than their property is worth, those who are under water, get new options.

So could the new mortgage rescue plan help you? Let's get some specifics, more, at least, from CNN's Stephanie Elam. She's at the business desk.

And Stephanie, good to see you. Good morning.

How does all of this work?

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Right. That's the big question everyone wants to know, Tony.

And really, what we're seeing here that's a change from what we've seen before is that now we're looking for people who are really in pain, getting their overall balance on their loan truncated, getting that cut down, not just focusing on the interest rates of their payments. So let me break it down for you.

Lenders would have to cut payments under this plan to no more than 31 percent of a borrower's income. That would put them in line with the unemployment insurance that they may be qualified for. And this would happen for three to six months, and in some cases they would even let some borrowers skip a payment to help them get back on their feet. They'd also -- this would be the Fed -- would also offer incentives to banks to help underwater borrowers by cutting those loan balances.

Here's one other thing. Up-to-date people on their loans but are still under water, they could also get help, and the Federal Housing Administration could back the loans to help them refinance those and help them out.

And in case you're wondering how this will be paid for, it will be paid for from $50 billion that was set aside from that TARP money, that Troubled Asset Relief Program. And so they're saying no new taxpayer funds would be necessary to pay for this.

One thing though about this, too, Tony, that I should point out is that the administration admits, you know what? This is not going to help out everybody.

HARRIS: Right.

ELAM: There are some people that, they're going to come back in six months and still have a problem. And there are some people who are going to still end up losing their homes.

But the idea here is to start helping more people. And there are some options for people who are employed but are still struggling, to help them out as well under this plan as well, too. So that's worth pointing out.

HARRIS: Well, I'll tell you what, over the last couple of days it feels like we're really starting to get some momentum on this idea on reducing the principal, right, on these mortgages?

ELAM: And that is a huge --

HARRIS: That is a huge deal. ELAM: I can't emphasize how huge of a change that is, because what we've seen over these last couple of years, you know, in the beginning, when this housing crisis started, sure, it may have started with people who bought --

HARRIS: Subprime and - yes.

ELAM: -- one home here, two homes there. Right. And then they're like, you know what? I need a house here, I need a house there, and then they couldn't afford them all when the bubble started to burst.

HARRIS: Right.

ELAM: But now you've got people who have lost their jobs. They're not able to work, and therefore they can't pay their mortgage, when before this they had great credit scores and were making their payments on time. And so that's why they're saying this needs to be adjusted to bring that loan balance back in line with what the house is worth. So there's the big change there.

HARRIS: What it's worth today, as opposed to what it was worth when you bought it.

ELAM: Right, today.

HARRIS: All right, Stephanie. Appreciate it.

ELAM: Right. Exactly. But you're not going to get it below 100 percent, though. Like, you're not going to be your house to be below that level.

But yes, sure.

HARRIS: If we could make that happen -- all right, Stephanie. Appreciate it. Thank you.

ELAM: Sure.

HARRIS: One desperate homeowner looking for mortgage relief is Garet Hartshorn. You'll remember, he is the quality control engineer I've been checking in with from time to time. Garet was laid off from his job at Ford two years ago after the plant in Hapeville, Georgia, shut down. Now he is selling insurance to make ends meet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GARET HARTSHORN, BEHIND ON MORTGAGE PAYMENTS: They know that I'm trying to make my payments, and so, basically, I'm one month behind on my mortgage payment right now. I probably owe $10,000, maybe $12,000 in credit cards.

I've got doctor bills that are behind by $500 or $600. I'm running low on my medication. And that's another $500 that I need to spend that I don't have right now. And, of course, you know, what money I do have is to take care of the immediate needs -- lights and heat and food.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Heat and food.

All right. Time to speak out. When ladies armed with flowers get hauled away, condemnation coming from President Obama and a famous singer.

But first, a look at the Big Board, the New York Stock Exchange. Here we go.

We're in positive territory. Can we end there for a Friday into the weekend? We're up 51 points.

Following these numbers throughout the day for you, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Big thanks going out to President Obama from a small group of women in Cuba. The president's powerful voice helping to get their message out.

Our Shasta Darlington explains from the Cuban capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Shasta Darlington in Havana.

After a week of public protests and marches, the demand for the release of political prisoners, Cuban dissidents the Ladies in White have been recognized by the president of the United States, Barack Obama. He said he's deeply disturbed by the repression they faced last week.

That was when the Ladies in White, about 30 women who are the wives, relatives and the supporters of jailed dissidents, took to the streets to demand their release. Everywhere they went they were met by groups of government supporters, massive groups that shouted them down with slogans like "This street belongs to Fidel." And on one occasion, they were surrounded by police and forced on to a bus. Pushed on to a bus, even, and driven home.

On Thursday, the Ladies in White thanked President Obama for his words of support, and they also sent a word of thanks to Gloria Estefan, the pop singer who's leading a march in Miami in solidarity.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Well, Gloria Estefan says spearheading the solidarity march was something she had to do as a Cuban woman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GLORIA ESTEFAN, SINGER: I think whenever you have a cause that is just -- and this is not a political cause, this is a human cause, this is for rights, for freedom, which we have enjoyed in this country and -- it doesn't matter what your political affiliation, how you think of things. We are one when it comes to freedom and when it comes to human rights for every human being.

And today it's Cuba, some other day it may be another country. I know there's lots of countries going through this right now.

But being a Cuban woman and seeing those images of those women that were peacefully marching being hauled away, having bones broken, and having them the next day back out there quietly stating their position that they stand for human rights, and trying to get their unjustly jailed husbands, sons and fathers freed, I mean, I had to do something. Sometimes the universe conspires, and there's a certain moment in history that you have to take advantage of it, and I think that moment is coming.

I think that Cuba's feeling the pressure worldwide. A lot of people are coming out against what happened. And as a Cuban woman, I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try to do what I could.

And everybody here is just phenomenal. I'm so happy. I don't even have words to tell you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: How about this new chapter in her career?

As you saw -- take a look at these pictures. You need to see it for yourself.

Thousands of demonstrators took part in yesterday's solidarity in Miami's Little Havana. The sea of supporters stretching literally as far as the eye could see. What a scene. Man.

Speaking of powerful women, next hour we will speak to Jill Scott, philanthropist, writer and musician.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Buying your first home? You are running out of time if you want to claim that tax credit.

Our Ines Ferre is here to tell us how you can take advantage of it.

Ines, good to see you.

If you would, walk us through this process, please.

INES FERRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: OK. Well, Tony, the first-time homebuyer tax credit is $8,000, and to get it you have to have signed a contract by April 30th. To qualify, you can't make more than $125,000 if you're single. For couples, the income limit is $225,000. And you cannot have owned a home for three years, and the home you're buying must be your primary residence.

And remember that this is an extension of the first-time homebuyer tax credit, and it's estimated about two million people qualified for it last year. Another 900,000 are expected to qualify this year -- Tony.

HARRIS: Nice. Any tax break for people who aren't first-time homebuyers?

FERRE: Actually, there is. You can get up to $6,500 on a home you're buying if it's going to be your primary residence, and if you've owned and lived in a home five out of the past eight years. You have to be under contract by April 30th, and if you're an active- duty service member and you qualify, you can also get an extension on that.

Another quick one. If you bought a home recently, how do you go about claiming this on your taxes?

FERRE: Right. Well, a few things that you should know.

First-time homebuyers need to file Form 5405 with their taxes. Also, attach a signed Hud-1 statement. And you cannot file this electronically. Now, last year you could, and some folks got their money before their claim was certified as legitimate, and so the IRS wants to avoid that this year. They don't want headaches.

HARRIS: No, that makes sense.

All right, Ines. See you next hour. Thank you.

Be sure to watch "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" this Saturday morning, right here on CNN at 9:30 Eastern Time. It is literally the show that saves you money.

Now that health care reform is the law of the land, what's in it for you? Elizabeth Cohen joins us to talk about the realities of reform.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: In 2008, Anne Mahlum started a program to help the homeless get back on their feet. That effort earned her a CNN Hero Award.

As Anderson Cooper tells us, that was just the beginning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: CNN Hero Anne Mahlum.

ANNE MAHLUM, CNN HERO: You can change the world through decent humanity, kindness and encouragement in giving people a second chance.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two years ago, Anne Mahlum was honored a as a CNN Hero for helping those who might otherwise be forgotten -- the homeless.

MAHLUM: So we're going to go over there and we're going to fit you for shorts and we're going to fit you for your shirt.

COOPER: Her Back on My Feet program inspires homeless men and women to change their own lives, sharing the benefits of running, as well as providing job training skills.

What started off as a small running club of 300 has expanded to more than 1,500 members, with 17 teams running three times a week, spread throughout Philadelphia, Baltimore, and just this week, wash Washington, D.C.

MAHLUM: You're doing great.

Since being a CNN Hero, it's been extraordinary. We've received so many requests for expansion and people wanting to bring this program to their city.

COOPER: Anne has done more than just help them get off the streets. Last year alone, more than 170 members found work, started job training, or moved out of shelters.

And Anne isn't stopping anytime soon.

MAHLUM: All right. We're at the homestretch, guys. So pick it up.

COOPER: Along with first lady Michelle Obama, she's featured in this month's issue of "Fitness" magazine and has plans to expand to Boston and Chicago later this year.

MAHLUM: We just gave them the opportunity to do something great. They took advantage of it and they did it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Boy, do we have a program in Atlanta? And how do we get one started?

OK. Well, here's the answer. To find out more about Anne's program and whether it's coming to your city next, or to nominate someone you think is changing the world, just go to CNN.com/heroes.

The realities of health care reform. Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen uses her avatars to explain what the new law means for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Okay. The House has passed the final piece of the health care reform legislation, the so-called "fixes" bill. Now we want to take a closer look at the reform bill in real life, right? What the health care overhaul means for you.

Our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with some specific examples. Elizabeth, good to see you. Let's hear -- why don't we start here? Who might have a little bit of a beef with the bill?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Okay. Let's start with undocumented Ursula. Ursula is in this country illegally ,and there had been some hope that maybe there would be some help for her because there are 7 million uninsured, undocumented people in the United States.

But what Ursula get it is out of this health care bill is pretty much a big fat zero. She doesn't get to use the exchange, Tony, that you and I have talked so much about over the months. She can't buy insurance that way; she doesn't get subsidies from the government.

Now, I say almost zero because there is a lot of money in this bill for community health centers to beef up the free clinics and those free clinics tend to accept people like Ursula, so hopefully she will -- well, hopefully, depending upon what your opinion is, she'll be able to get some help at those clinics.

HARRIS: If it's not at one of the clinics it's back to the emergency room, right?

COHEN: Exactly. Which, of course, costs everyone a lot of money because emergency rooms are very expensive, and you and I end up paying for that.

HARRIS: What about folks who are laid off right now? Any help in the legislation?

COHEN: All right. Let's take a look at laid-off Luke. There he is. He's just gotten his pink slip and looking for a job. Now -- until for the next five years the health care bill does, again, about zero for him. He doesn't have a pre-existing condition. He has no reason to go into some of these high-risk pools. He's really not getting much out of this bill.

But starting in 2014, he will be getting some money, some subsidies to buy health insurance. Now, again, like Ursula, he can try to take advantage of some of these beefed up, free clinics, and that's where he'll end up.

HARRIS: Luke needs to clean up his act a little bit. Get a haircut and a clean shave.

COHEN: That might be why he doesn't have a job, right?

HARRIS: C'mon. Get it together, dude.

How will part-time workers be impacted?

COHEN: Okay. Let's take a look at this. I have a part-time worker right under here. There we go. Part-time Patrick is a waiter at a restaurant that apparently serves only water. And he's also someone who has a beef with this legislation. That's why you can see he's not a happy camper.

Again, we have pretty much a zero for him, the reason being is that employers or at least most employers under this bill, are being forced to give their employees insurance, but he's a part-timer, and they don't have to give him insurance.

HARRIS: Gotcha. I've got one more here. Gay couples might also have some concerns here.

COHEN: Yes. Absolutely. This one is a little bit more complicated, but Gary and Gabe have been a couple for decades now. And Gary's job gives benefits to domestic partners. So, Gabe has been getting his insurance from Gary. And the problem, though is that Gary has to pay taxes on that, so Gabe's benefits get counted as income for Gary, and he has to pay taxes.

Now, when it's a husband and a wife or a man and a woman in a domestic relationship, that doesn't happen. You don't have to pay those taxes.

HARRIS: Right.

COHEN: So they had been hoping that this legislation would stop that whole tax thing, but it doesn't. They are still going to have to pay taxes on the benefits that Gabe gets from Gary's job.

HARRIS: Well, we love the avatars. Appreciate it, Elizabeth.

COHEN: Great!

HARRIS: Good to see you. Thank you.

They broke the Army's color barrier in secret.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sixteen men graduated from jump school on February 18, 1944, ready for war. But the Army wasn't really ready for America's first-ever first black paratroop unit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: The Triple Nickel Parachute Battalion finally gets its due.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Revising the rules of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. As the Pentagon takes its first steps toward repealing a ban on gays serving openly in the military, our Chris Lawrence gets reaction from U.S. troops on the front lines in Afghanistan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Used to be even if an American service member kept their mouth shut about being gay, they could be outed by someone else. Now the Pentagon is saying that's not fair. So, if Private Jones outs Private Smith, the military may not kick Smith out. Especially if it's proven Private Jones had a personal grudge against him.

PFC. JEREMY CARROLL, U.S. ARMY: Personally, I think it's a good idea just because if someone's mad at somebody, they'll just try to mess with them and that's how they're going to do it. You've got to be more professional than that.

LAWRENCE: Troops deployed to Camp Leatherneck are in the thick of Taliban territory. And while many support the change in how Don't Ask, Don't Tell is enforced, some are not ready to see it repealed.

(on camera): They tell us it's different in a remote war zone like this because gay or straight, you are literally sleeping right on top of each other.

PETTY OFFICER ZACHARY FROSTIC, U.S. NAVY: I think it makes other people in the military uncomfortable, you know? if they're living with someone like that. So I don't really think they should be in the military.

LAWRENCE: But the Pentagon is going the opposite way in trying to better protect gay troops. From here on out, the military may have to prove someone's sexual orientation affected military readiness. Gay troops have been able to serve openly in the British army for ten years, and straight soldiers say it's had almost no effect on morale.

LANCE CORPORAL IAN RICHARDSON, BRITISH SOLDIER: You do get some -- little bit of the banter and the bullying sometimes, but nine times out of ten it's not a problem.

LAWRENCE: Before the change in the UK and Canada, a poll shows two-thirds of British and Canadian troops would refuse to serve with openly gay soldiers. But once the law was lifted, only a handful of troops actually left the service.

RICHARDSON: Just because that man or woman is a homosexual, that's got nothing to do with the fact that they can fight and do their job properly.

LAWRENCE: Today, more than 20 nations allow gay troops to serve openly from South Africa to Spain and most nations in Europe.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Helmand province, Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Checking this hour's top stories.

The obama administration has come up with a new plan to stem foreclosures. Homeowners without a job could see their mortgage payments suspended for up to six months, and those with bigger mortgages than their homes are worth could see their balances reduced.

Together again for the first time since they conceded in the 2008 presidential election, Sarah Palin and John McCain on the campaign trail. She's trying to help him keep his current job in the U.S. Senate. First stop, Tuscon this afternoon. Tomorrow, on to the Phoenix suburb of Mesa.

If you are flying British Airways in the next few days, you better check your flight schedule. The airline's cabin crews are launching their second wave of strikes at midnight Eastern. They're planning to walk the picket lines for four days. The strike follows a three-day walkout last weekend. British Airways says it will still be able to fly more than 75 percent of passengers before the strike.

Award-winion -

(LAUGHTER)

Yeah, right. Award-winning singer, songwriter, actress and columnist. No wonder people pay attention to Jill Scott.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

HARRIS: She joins me next hour to talk about what matters. This, I promise you, is going to be hot. Wow! There she is. Are we talking to you this hour, Jill? You're there early? That's what I'm talking about! Getting there early. That's what matters. See you next hour, Jill.

JILL SCOTT, SINGER/ACTRESS: See you.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: So, participants in the Fit Nation Triathlon Challenge are working hard, biking, swimming, and running their way to better health. The New York City triathlon is less than four months away, and in today's "Fit Nation Report," chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta checks in on two of the challengers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICKY WILLIAMS, FIT NATION CHALLENGE PARTICIPANT: Obviously, I want to see a physical transformation. I want to get on top of my fitness. So I've let it -- kind of get out of control in the last few years.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ricky Williams (ph) was more than 100 pounds overweight when we first met. It's a number he was pretty embarrassed about.

Our first work-out together, it was a struggle. But now, its two months closer to race day, and Ricky is unstoppable.

WILLIAMS: I'm noticing an incremental change in every sport: run, bike, and swim.

GUPTA: After kicking his fast food habit, he tries to work out regularly, waking up at dawn in most days. It hasn't been easy but Ricky is back in control.

WILLIAMS: I feel so much better about life and about exercise and living than I did five weeks ago.

GUPTA: Fellow challenger Stanley Saballett (ph) has been training hard as well. When we started, he told me he wanted to race the New York City Triathlon so he could help the teenagers he mentors get back in shape. STANLEY SABALLETT, FIT NATION CHALLENGE PARTICIPANT: And the part of the whole Fit Nation and what really encouraged me is the sense of community and helping others.

GUPTA: Back in San Diego, he hits the gym four or five days a week. Spin workouts and weightlifting to build some muscle. And every Friday, you'll find him hiking up this mountain with the teens in his program.

SABALLETT: Everyone that I invite to come to this mountain ends up coming to this mountain regularly.

GUPTA: For both men, adjusting to their new fit lifestyles hasn't always been easy.

SABALLET: I'm not going to lie. I have had fries here and there.

GUPTA: Even when they're not working out.

WILLIAMS: My biggest obstacles, for sure, between my ears, the mental approach to training.

GUPTA: Ricky and Stanley say if they can do it, so can you.

SABALLETT: Get off your couch. Get off the fast food diet.

WILLIAMS: Take a step every -- no matter how hard the step is. For me, it was just get moving. Find the will to move.

GUPTA: And don't stop.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: That is -- that is really encouraging. Take the first step, don't stop. You can follow the "Fit Nation Challenge" participants by going to CNN.com/fitnation. And be sure to watch Dr. Gupta this Saturday morning as he answers your health care questions live. It is "SANJAY GUPTA, M.D." at 7:30 a.m. Eastern time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Okay. If you're a NASCAR fan -- and who isn't these days -- you've seen it. We're talking about drivers sort of bumping into one another to get a better position on the track. Well, NASCAR has loosened the move a bit saying the rules give drivers more of a say-so in how races are run, but does the policy change go too far?

Rob Marciano took a drive to Bristol, Tennessee, to see what NASCAR and some of its drivers are saying about all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Reaching speeds of nearly 200 miles an hour, cars sometimes only inches apart.

(on camera): Bristol Motor Speedway, the world's fastest half mile. This is short track racing and here, as they say, if you aren't revving, you aren't racing.

(voice-over): That's exactly what happened on the track on a recent Sunday. This pileup was an accident but what if the wreck is intentional. Some say many are. And now some say there could be many more after NASCAR loosened the rules this year stating they are putting racing back in the hands of the driver.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Boys have at it and have a good time. That's all I can say.

MARCIANO: That policy is open to interpretation. Earlier this month near Atlanta, Carl Edwards was knocked out of the race by Brad Keselowski. When Edwards returned to the track with no chance of winning, he retaliated, intentionally wrecking Keselowski sending him flying into the air.

BRAD KESELOWSKI, NASCAR # 12: It happened so fast. And there was a point where I thought -- I closed my eyes really quickly. I thought I might have gone up into the grand stands.

MARCIANO (on camera): Carl Edwards in the 99 car just couldn't finish qualifying. But a lot of people think that he should have been suspended and the car parked at least for this race.

(voice-over): Instead, he received a three-race probation.

Do you think that Carl Edwards should have gotten suspended?

KESELOWSKI: Well, you know, like I said I'm really not objective.

MARCIANO (voice-over): Denny Hamlin has had a few run-ins with Keselowski, too.

DENNY HAMLIN, NASCAR # 11: He doesn't like me. I don't like him. But it's one of those things where when we're on the race track, I'm not going to give one inch to him.

MARCIANO: Retired racer and NASCAR commentator Kyle Petty likes drivers getting more control to an extent.

KYLE PETTY, RACING COMMENTATOR: It is ok to bump guys. It always has been and it should always be in this sport. That's putting it back in the driver's hand. When you go in the garage area and sit for 150 plus lapse and setting a goal and you come back out and your main purpose in being on the racetrack is to take another driver out, that's uncalled for. That's got no place in this sport.

MARCIANO (on camera): Do you ever go home at night and start thinking to yourself, my goodness, I kind of let the dogs loose here. I don't know what's going to happen this year.

ROBIN PEMBERTON, NASCAR VICE PRESIDENT OF COMPETITION: You know, you will have races that are different. And occasionally, that might happen for various reasons. We have a lot of hard competitors. We have to let them do what they need to do to put on a good show.

MARCIANO (voice-over): And this high-speed show is not slowing down.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Rob Marciano joining us now.

Not slowing down. But let me tell you something -- there's a new design on the car?

MARCIANO: The cars now are safer, so I asked the drivers, do you feel invincible? Are you driving more aggressively because of that? They all said no, that's not necessarily the case.

HARRIS: Yes. It's a few years old now, right? The whole Hans (ph) device, right, that made it safer for drivers --

MARCIANO: The whole cockpit is safer. So, you see wrecks like that, and they walk away. But if those keep happening, they're not all going to walk away.

HARRIS: Right.

MARCIANO: So, they're trying to regulate it but not regulate it. Ratings have been down. Attendance has been down. So, this is --

HARRIS: But the reality is, there's a lot of people out there who go to NASCAR races because they want to see the wrecks. They want to see drivers take chances, right? And if you can build safer cars so that the wrecks are not as damaging to the drivers, you know, the number one asset here, maybe that makes a little sense?

MARCIANO: A little policing of each other with a softer hand from NASCAR hopefully is a winning combination for safety and speed.

HARRIS: Can we get someone other than Jimmie Johnson winning everything? Maybe that would help a little bit.

MARCIANO: Well, maybe I'll do a story -- you know, I'm the resident NASCAR correspondent now. Maybe I'll do a story. We'll see.

(LAUGHTER) HARRIS: Have a good weekend, man.

This is what's coming up in the next hour CNN NEWSROOM.

A man fighting cancer with no heart insurance. A small business owner facing tough choices trying to insure his family and employees. People pinning their hopes on the new health care reform law.

And she tells it like it is in her music and now in her column for "Essence" magazine. Boy, she has set something off with her most recent column. She'll be joining us. We're talking about Jill Scott, next hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: They parachuted their way into history, but you may have never heard their story of the Army's first black parachutes. In a ceremony yesterday, the Pentagon took a step toward changing that by finally honoring these pioneering soldiers. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr profiles the men who led the charge.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALTER MORRIS, FIRST BLACK PARATROOPER: Here I am, here.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Walter Morris joined the Army in 1941, he knew the Army was segregated, but the Army didn't know Walter Morris.

MORRIS: They had two Armies -- the white soldiers were the combat troops, the colored soldiers were the servants.

STARR (on camera): When you say that, and it's the words that you're using, "the colored soldiers," "servants," it's so hard for people these days, and I suspect for many of the young troops today, to really understand.

MORRIS: They looked at me and shake their heads. They couldn't believe that existed, you know? But we were servants, we were not soldiers. And -

STARR: And how did you guys feel about that?

MORRIS: Well, we felt -- most of us had an inferiority complex.

STARR (voice-over): Walter was sent to parachute jump school to perform menial duties. He wanted the same opportunities as the white soldiers he saw getting ready for war.

MORRIS: And it was that feeling of inferiority that caused me to uplift my men. So, with the help of the other NCOs, noncommissioned officers, we started to imitate the white students.

STARR: Walter and his men started teaching themselves the same exercises, doing the same training as their white counterparts. All the while, living, eating, and working in facilities marked "Colored Only." Walter wanted more for his men.

MORRIS: They had no incentive. Their self esteem was low.

STARR (on camera): But there was something -- it sounds to me like there was something in you that knew it could be different.

MORRIS: Yes, because I know I could do better than I -- what I was doing.

STARR (voice-over): What Walter was about to find out, the Army was starting a paratroop unit for African-American soldiers. Walter would run the 555th, the Triple Nickel.

Sixteen men graduated from jump school on February 18th, 1944, ready for war, but the Army wasn't really ready for America's first- ever black paratroop unit.

MORRIS: You had to be in a separate area. So we were behind our barracks, and we were not permitted to be the other graduating students.

STARR: These days, Walter often talks about the segregated Army to young troops, including one special soldier, Captain Michael Fowles (ph), a veteran of Iraq and Walter's grandson.

MORRIS: The grandfather pinning the grandson. And when I finished pinning him, Barbara, I was so filled with admiration that I hugged him, and he was so embarrassed.

STARR: Across the generations, a man once referred to as a colored paratrooper honoring his paratrooper grandson.

MORRIS: It means that the progress in this country is evident that we are moving forward. We haven't gotten to the end of the so- called tunnel, but we can see the light.

STARR: Today, only Walter and two other men from his original unit are still living. Still able to tell what it was like when they broke one of the toughest barriers in the Army, becoming the first black paratroopers.

Barbara Starr, CNN, Palm Coast, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Good stuff.