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Suicide Attacks on Russian Subway; President Obama Visits Afghanistan; On the Front Lines in Afghanistan; Targeting Christian Militia; Ford Sells Volvo; IPAD Shipments Delay; When The Lights Went Out; Earthquakes in the U.S.; Big Tax Bill

Aired March 29, 2010 - 09:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, guys. Good morning. And we start with the terrorist strike underground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I feel scared. I have to walk to get to work because there is no way I'm going by metro.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Explosions rip through two Moscow subway stations and the repercussions are felt as close to home as New York.

What can you achieve in 36 hours? So little time, so much to get done. Prioritizing the war in Afghanistan. What did President Obama tell the troops?

And our inbox still jammed with your health care reform questions. We'll answer them straight from our health care desk.

We begin now with women strapped to the explosives killing dozens of people in Moscow's crowded subway system.

Here's what we know right. Russian state security says two female suicide bombers carried out those attacks. Those attacks timed perfectly to strike two subway systems during rush hour.

More than 30 people dead, more than 60 injured.

Attacks like these are nothing new. Subway systems have been attacked before. But this morning, Chechen rebels are claiming this one. Now Russian President Dimitri Medvedev has ordered heightened security for public transit.

Security also stepped up in New York. Police say that it's just a precaution and President Obama released this statement. "The American people stand united with the people of Russia in opposition to violent extremism and heinous terrorist attacks that demonstrate such disregard for human life."

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin also now weighing in, vowing to destroy whomever is responsible for those attacks.

CNN's senior international correspondent Matthew Chance in Moscow this morning.

What does he mean by "destroy," Matthew?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, hasn't been an attack like this in Moscow for well over six years. Muscovites must have felt they were insulated from the insurgency that's been raging in the north caucuses region, with separatist fighters battling against the government.

But it seems that they are not because there have been two devastating explosions ripping through the heart of this capital. The metro stations, the first one here at Lubyanka, very close to the Kremlin, right under the headquarters of the former KGB, the current security services.

The perpetrators of this attack sending a very clear message that they can strike not just at the heart of the capital but also at the heart of the security services in this country.

At 8:00 local time, the bomb in the metro station in Lubyanka exploded killing at least 23 people, injuring at least 20 or 30 others, according to emergency workers here. The site has now been cleared. Forensic teams are on the ground trying to gather what evidence they can to build a better picture of how this kind of an attack could have happened.

Just 30 minutes later at the height of rush hour, another attack, this time at a metro called Park Kultury, not very far from here on the same metro line, very packed with commuters being detonated, again killing at least 12 people, injuring about 20.

Now no claim of responsibility has been made for these attacks. We had some earlier information which proved to be incorrect. But the authorities here in Russia are pointing the finger of blame very clearly at rebels from the north caucuses region.

Here's what the head of the Russian Security Services had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEXANDER BORTNIKOV, FEDERAL SECURITY SERVICES (through translator): Our preliminary assessment is that this act of terror was committed by a terrorist group from the north caucuses region. We consider this the most likely scenario based on investigations conducted at the site of the blasts.

Evidence taken from fragments of the suicide bombers' bodies found at the blast, according to our preliminary findings, indicate that the bombers were from the north caucuses region.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: Well, concerns now about what will happen later on in the day and indeed over the coming days because just because there's been two suicide bombers detonating their explosives this morning, it does not mean there may not be more attacks in the days, in the hours or in the weeks ahead.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

PHILLIPS: And we're going to be keeping an eye on this story throughout the morning. Next hour we'll dig deeper into the Chechen separatists and the so-called Black Widows, a startling part of the separatist movement.

Severe weather worries in south Florida. Tornado warning now in effect for Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, Rob?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Miami-Dade County and now, yes, you're right, Broward County as well. So a couple of items to talk about here.

First off, this one -- this rotating cell just to the west of Homestead. This is the Miami-Dade County tornado warning that's in effect for the next -- at least 15 minutes. But pretty strong rotation here.

This is not a populated area right now. But once it gets out of the everglades and gets over towards western Miami-Dade we get into some serious population issues here. So we're watching this very carefully. No confirmed reports of this touching down on the ground yet. But as it comes closer to, say -- avenue then we'll probably going to see -- maybe a report or two.

Now this was just posted minutes ago. Broward County. We did have reports of a tornado earlier this morning across Oakland Park, north of Ft. Lauderdale. There was a report of debris along I-95 as well from a trained spotter.

This is a different cell. But right now we have a rotation in this thing. No confirmation of this touching the ground. But this is closer to Ft. Lauderdale proper. SO we're watching these two cells all within this watch box that's in effect until 11:00 this morning.

Tornado watch for all of the south Florida peninsula as we continue to get pulses of convection off the Gulf of Mexico. And this one just across Miami-Dade County is certainly the one that's the strongest.

And we're watching that as it gets closer to Homestead. And then eventually moving more towards the northeast at 35 miles an hour towards Miami.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll track it. Thanks, Rob.

MARCIANO: You bet.

PHILLIPS: President Obama landed back in the U.S. just moments ago after he slipped out of the country for a surprise visit to Afghanistan. He made it there and back in less than 36 hours. This was his first trip to the country since he took office. He met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and pumped up the troops at Bagram Air Base.

Suzanne Malveaux, standing by for us at the White House. Also, our Chris Lawrence embedded with troops in Helmand Province.

Well, this trip came after the president's big victory on health care.

Suzanne, that was last week. Probably his most successful week since he took office. What's he hoping to get out of this trip and why now?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, he certainly was building on the momentum of his success, his domestic agenda and also that -- you can't forget the nuclear treaty with Russia as well. Both of those things huge for this administration. So clearly he's in a position of strength.

There were two things that he really wanted to get out of this meeting, this very quick trip. One of them, of course, is to thank the troops for their sacrifice, to tell them how proud he was, to boost their morale.

The other thing that was equally important here is his 30-minute meeting that he had with Afghan president Hamid Karzai.

The back story, Kyra, is that there's been a lot of frustration and some concern from President Obama and officials here at the White House about the state of Afghanistan since Hamid Karzai was re-elected in August.

An election that largely was seen as fraudulent, if you will. There are a couple of things that they are looking for him to do and the president made it very clear. First, the problem is that Karzai is not dealing with some key problems in his own administration.

That is fighting corruption, as well as taking on this drug trade. The drug trade that essentially is financing the Taliban, the insurgents, and their activities here. That has really hurt the credibility of the Karzai government.

The second thing, the second problem here is that Karzai has been moving away from his western allies. He's been meeting with other leaders. The leaders of Pakistan, of China and Iran just within the last month.

As a matter of fact, Kyra, he was actually visiting with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran over the weekend. Went back to Kabul and arrived in Kabul just a couple hours before President Obama arrived.

The president wanted to make it very clear that the U.S. relationship with Afghanistan is critical, not only to a military success here, but also a civilian one.

This is how the president put it, Kyra.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have seen already progress with respect to the military campaign against extremism in the region. But we also want to continue to make progress on the stability process, ensuring that agricultural production, energy production, good governance, rule of law, anti- corruption efforts -- all these things resulting in an Afghanistan that is prosperous, more pure, independent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And Kyra, what was striking was that the person who was actually traveling with the president, General Jim Jones, the national security adviser, said, look, they want a strategic rapport with Hamid Karzai.

This is not a warm and fuzzy relationship between President Obama and Hamid Karzai. It's not even a close relationship like we saw between President Bush and Karzai. They need to improve this relationship. That is why we heard the president extend invitation or Karzai to come here to the White House on May 12th. We understand that Karzai had accepted that invitation, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And we'll follow it. Suzanne Malveaux, thanks so much.

Now, Chris, the president's trip was limited to the northeast part of Afghanistan. But you are embedded with troops much farther south in Helmand Province. How did they feel about the president's surprise pop-in?

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra, I was in a room full of Marines who were about to go out on patrol when we all got the word that the president was here in the country.

They pretty much just shrugged and said well, he's probably not going to come to a base like this one down here. And they're right. You know up north, it's safer, it's more stable. Much more dangerous down here in Helmand Province.

In fact, the Marines that I've been with here in Nazad, you know, they have been hit by an IED every single day since we've been on this embed. And although none of them have been seriously injured, some of the locals haven't been quite so lucky.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE (voice-over): In this part of Helmand Province, there really could be a bomb on any corner. A mine around every curve.

CAPT. JASON BREZLER, U.S. MARINE CORPS: By all accounts, we think Nazad is probably one of the most heavily IED'd cities in the world.

LAWRENCE: Twenty thousand residents abandoned this area four years ago when the Taliban came back to confront British soldiers.

(On camera): The Taliban and British forces went at each other here for four long years, but neither side was strong enough to kick the other one out.

(Voice-over): The Taliban used IEDs to protect their line of defense. Dozens, hundreds, and by the time U.S. Marines took over last year, thousands.

(On camera): In fact, four of the villages in this area are so heavy mined with explosives, they are completely uninhabitable.

(Voice-over): Some Afghan families have been killed trying to return home. Now the U.S. State Department is spending nearly $2 million to de-mine the area. Seventy-five professional Afghan de- miners have relocated here. And they are training another 70 locals from Nazad to help clear their valleys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What can we do as a team to identify who is planting IEDs in the road?

LAWRENCE: Every week the Marines meet with a new district governor and local mullahs. It's hours of small talk and tea before one of them asks us to turn off our camera. And then he tells the Marines.

"Look, the Taliban are coming between 6:00 and 8:00 at night hiding among the sheep herders to plant new bombs."

BREZLER: It takes several hours, a great deal of patience and, you know, several kinds of (INAUDIBLE).

LAWRENCE: But that patience is paying off. As a once bustling bazaar shows its first signs of life. Merchants who believe the mines may soon be gone.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE: Now the Marines have been working with the local government. A big part of their mission here.

You know, historically, two tribes have a dispute, it's only settled one of two ways. Death or one tribe gives one of its daughters, a young girl, to the other tribe. But a few weeks ago there was a dispute between two tribes. And they actually came to the local government to settle it.

Now that's not the kind of headline that's going to be on the front page to CNN.com and "The New York Times," but it is a watershed moment for the Marines here as they try to bolster this local government and get the local Afghan people to start to trust it. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: Chris Lawrence, appreciate it.

So Americans are actually getting more optimistic about the war in Afghanistan, according to a new CNN Opinion Research poll. Fifty- five percent now think that things are going well in Afghanistan. That's a huge 23-point jump from November.

And the overall opinion is split almost down the middle. Forty- eight percent are in favor of the war, 49 percent are against it. That's the first time opposition has dropped below 50 percent in more than a year.

They follow the word of Jesus Christ and they back it up with smoke grenades and automatic weapons. Is a Christian militia group being targeted by the FBI? A live report coming up in just a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, plenty of damage in the wake of last night's severe weather in North Carolina. In fact, parts of the Tar Heel state were under a tornado watch up until just a few hours ago.

Here's what the storm did near Charlotte, tossing several trailers and then peeling part of the roof of a nearby warehouse. One eyewitness says it was raining sheet metal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID KIRK, STORM VICTIM: I knew something bad was about to happen. And that's when I seen the big red dust cloud just drop. And I seen all this metal start flying over. I was thinking the whole trailer park was about to get wiped out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The National Weather Service is heading there this morning to access whether similar funnel cloud reports across the state if those indeed were tornados.

Rob, you've been watching it all. What do you think?

MARCIANO: Looks like it to me. And you know the way things were rolling last night and judging from the damage, probably so. We had eight reports, unconfirmed reports. And usually when you get that many unconfirmed, at least one or two is going to pan out.

And with all -- with the setup that we have, the number of fronts that were in that area, the number of -- the amount of converging winds, it's not surprising. It was very, very active. And obviously, some of that damage not good news.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: This is a two-front storm on the east coast, Kyra. And to top things off, our friends on the west coast just waking up. Northern California through the northwest, they are going to see a heavy duty storm today as well with wind in higher elevation blizzard conditions.

Back over to you. PHILLIPS: Not a good thing to wake up to. OK, thanks, Rob.

MARCIANO: OK. See you.

PHILLIPS: Well, at least seven people are in custody after a series of FBI raids in a rugged part of Michigan as well as in Ohio and Indiana. And within the next hour, we should know what they are looking for exactly.

National correspondent Susan Candiotti joins me now.

Do we know anything about these people they arrested?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Very little right now until these charges are unsealed in court. But we do know that the FBI is not telling us, nor are prosecutors, whether these people actually belong to a militia group.

We do know from prosecutors, as you said, that seven people have been arrested at various locations in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. And that helicopters were used in some areas as authorities executed search warrants.

Now people who live near those Michigan sites describe some of those involved in the operation as being part of a Christian militia group.

PHILLIPS: All right, let's talk about this militia group. It has a Web site. It has videos. This is new to a lot of us.

CANDIOTTI: I had not heard about it either until now. So we've been looking it up. And on this group's Web site, they have posted, for example, it's called utari. There's an insignia that shows a cross and what appears to be two spears across the bottom.

There are also videos that are set to music that show people with their faces covered training or posing with guns, and sometimes you can hear gunshots. And there are also some statements posted on the site.

Now one of the statements on the site reads like this. Quote, "We believe that one day, as prophecy says, there will be an anti- Christ. All Christians must know this and prepare just as Christ commanded."

PHILLIPS: So, you know, do we know if authorities here or internationally have known anything about this organization? Is this just coming out of nowhere? Do we know if it will be a terrorism case, a domestic case, an international case?

CANDIOTTI: All we know right is that according to a law enforcement source, that this does not involve domestic or international terrorism, and that the arrests do not involve anyone in a conspiracy to target anything involving the federal government in any way, shape or form. But again, neither in the FBI nor prosecutors have pin pointed yet a militia group per se. These charges are kept under seal. They are telling us repeatedly and that they will be unsealed within the next hour. So we'll know very, very soon.

PHILLIPS: All right. Susan Candiotti. Appreciate it. It's like these groups are just popping up at random all over the place. You wonder what the continued influence is.

CANDIOTTI: You do. And certainly we hope to be able to find that out. Once we know more about what this group is we'll be able to delve more into, you know, the intricacies of it, how well known they are, how many members there are, if, in fact, this is the group that is being targeted.

PHILLIPS: Got it. Susan, thanks so much.

Well, it's the kind of driving that would make Burt Reynolds proud. But this high-speed space ain't Smokey and the bandit. Heck, the driver isn't legally old enough to drive. But she sure knows how to spin those wheels. High-speed through the land of enchantment in a buck 30.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, he's coming to the defense of the Pope. On Palm Sunday, the archbishop of New York stepped up to the pulpit and preached all you naysayers are just plain wrong.

As you know, Pope Benedict is under heavy criticism for his handling of a Milwaukee priest who admitted molesting hundreds of deaf boys. How did Catholics take the message? Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARCHBISHOP TIMOTHY DOLAN, SAINT PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL: Certain sources seem almost frenzied to implicate the man who, perhaps more than anybody else, has been the leader in purification, reform and renewal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Short, straight, right to the point. Said what he needed to say. I was very touched by it. It was just what the congregation and the Catholic Church, everyone needed to hear.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The scandal is not keeping the faithful from the Pope's doorstep. He celebrated Palm Sunday with thousands of the faithful in St. Peter Square.

His aid say that the latest allegations of sexual abuse won't interfere with his Holy Week duties. And back in the states, the scandal has people talking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am saddened that we hadn't done a better job as a church in protecting the young. But it hasn't shaken my faith in the whole institution.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's happening with the Catholic Church at the moment is exploding in their face and the things that are coming out are pretty outrageous by anyone's standing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The sentiment of a handful of protesters outside London's Westminster Cathedral yesterday, follow Pope Benedict's announced visit to Britain in September, not to mention the Catholic Church's ongoing sex abuse scandal involving priests.

This demonstration was organized by a coalition of groups under the banner Protest the Pope.

On Wall Street, stocks have been climbing, slowly but surely. The Dow is up, yes, six of the past seven weeks it looks like, right, Steph? Let's talk more about that. Maybe we'll continue to go on that upswing.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Maybe the markets will be all excited because Kyra Phillips is in New York.

(LAUGHTER)

ELAM: You know, maybe that will help out.

PHILLIPS: Maybe --

ELAM: And have a nice little Kyra rally today.

PHILLIPS: Maybe it is because Stephanie Elam is going to be having a baby and I want to be a godmother again.

(LAUGHTER)

ELAM: Oh, OK. We'll keep that in mind come June when she decides to make her debut.

PHILLIPS: Her appearance.

ELAM: Of course, I'll have to come down so you can visit -- you can visit with the niece when -- a little bit later here after your show.

As for now, though, we're taking a look at the markets. And we can see -- you know we've had some nice rallies. None of them have been huge. But we've seen nice rallies over the past few weeks. And all of that has led to a nice gain.

Over, let's see, about 900 points over the past month and a half. And today we are expecting another higher opening. So we should see what's going on there. But I have to tell you, there's nothing really major driving this. What we're seeing is the expectation that the economy is healthier. And because of that, that's leading the stocks to trade higher and higher. It's really something that we'll be keeping our eyes on, though, this Friday because that's when we get the monthly jobs report for -- what is this? -- March, because we're going into April now. So, we'll be getting that report and that should give us an idea if the economy is really getting stronger. Analysts are expecting to see a gain, but investors are just not going to be able to react about that until Monday, because Friday is Good Friday, so the markets will be closed. That's something to keep in mind there.

Also, I want to tell you about some other news that's happening here. In fact, Volvo, they've got a new owner now. Ford has gone ahead and sold the brand to a Chinese carmaker. The deal there about $2 billion. Ford is going to take a loss on this one, though, because it paid more than $6 billion for Volvo just over ten years ago.

And you know, the other hot story that everyone has been talking about, those iPads from Apple. It turns out they may be actually running out of them at this point. That's because, apparently, the demand has been so high that it's been helping them out so much. Originally, they're saying all iPads, if you order them online, you'd get them by April 3rd. Now, they say you get by April 12th. So, still people have to take a look. People who order them early, though, should be fine. So, keep your eyes on that.

Just to give you an idea of the market numbers really quickly to the upside because, Kyra, is in New York, Dow up 27, 10,878 and Nasdaq better by nine, 2404. That's the "Kyra Rally" in early going.

PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: You always make my day, Steph. I'll see you in about an hour and a half.

ELAM: OK. Sounds good.

PHILLIPS: All right. One man's journey and one soldier's story. For months, we've followed a young man from his high school days to his journey in the U.S. military, and today, we check in on a decision that could send him to war.

And in case you missed it, these are pretty cool pics from Saturday night. The lights went out on landmarks around the globe such as the Empire State Building and Big Ben. You may know the symbolic switch-off was to mark Earth Hour 2010. Since 2007, the World Wildlife Fund has asked people to turn off their lights to raise concern about the planet's future and a lot of people did.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: For the last several months, CNN has followed the path of a young man from his small town to his coming of age in the U.S. military. Today, in the sixth part of a soldier's story, we check in at a very pivotal point of his young military career, a weigh station that could well lead to war.

CNN's Jason Carroll joining us now with a closer look. I mean, we don't often get chances to follow somebody for such a long period of time. Have you watched him grow up?

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I have. I've watched him grow, watched him change in just a short period of time. It's been fascinating to watch his transition. You know, what we want to do now is show you what happens to a private once the training wraps up. What happens? Where do they go next? Will McLain and the others are about to find out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, go, go, go, get down faster.

CARROLL (voice-over): Urban warfare training.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, what your shooting at?

CARROLL: One of a series of crucial exercises soldiers like will McLain undergo at Ft. Lindenwold Missouri to become army combat engineers. Learning how to secure buildings and hostile regions is key.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on son. Get in the fight.

CARROLL: Nearly 13 weeks into his training, Will is beginning to learn how to become a leader.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Brother is coming out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, go, go go.

CARROLL: But on this day, it's hard for all of them to stay on top of their game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get from behind this corner, son. You can't shoot around corners. You're not superman.

CARROLL: Why is this day a distraction?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One. Go, go.

CARROLL: Now that will has completed basic and is wrapping up specialized training, he and the others will get orders for their first station. It's where the army will send new soldiers for more training before many are deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq.

(on camera): We're actually talking to Will now before he's actually gotten his orders. How are you feeling about that?

WILL MCLAIN, U.S. ARMY RECRUIT: It's kind of like I'm anxious to see what I'm going to get because I know of so many places.

CARROLL (voice-over): Thousands of miles away, back home in Rosamond, California, his mother Lori is anxious, too.

LORI MCLAIN, MOTHER: So that's I'm waiting for his call. I can't be tough. And discuss that because that just pulls my strings right now the.

CARROLL: Lori McLain has seen dramatic changes in Will in the three months he has been gone. He dropped 54 pounds and more.

L. MCLAIN: It was kind of a symbol of him growing up and doing his thing. More like I'm not your baby anymore, tough stuff. He's always my baby.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First group, Hamburg, Germany.

CARROLL: Now second away from another major change in Will's life. Ft. Stewart, Lewis, McLain.

W. MCLAIN: Ft. Stewart, Georgia. That's all right. I can do it. It's Down south. A good drive to Texas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm living it up in Hawaii.

CARROLL: New assignments always come with a few jokes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get yourself a Georgia girl. Good, home cooking.

CARROLL: McLain will have a familiar face with him at Ft. Stewart. His battle buddy Demetrius Daniels. The recruit assigned to be his partner during basic training.

W. MCLAIN: Just knowing he's in my same unit will make it easier when I get there. So at least I know somebody, there's somebody I can avoid getting in trouble with. You know all that fun stuff.

DEMETRIUS DANIEL, BATTLE BUDDY: We were prepared to part ways. But I think it's still good we're together.

CARROLL: Welcome news for his mother back home.

W. MCLAIN: I was calling to let you know we got our orders in today. (INAUDIBLE)

L. MCLAIN: And?

W. MCLAIN: Yes, I'm stationed in Ft. Stewart, Georgia.

L. MCLAIN: He's not going to be put into a war immediately. Thank you, Lord.

CARROLL: Not immediately, but for soldiers like Will, war is still a very real possibility.

W. MCLAIN: Fire in the hole.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: At Ft. Stewart, Georgia, Will and the others will receive even more intensive combat engineer training which could last for months. This is a very similar to the path that many soldiers follow before they end up being deployed.

PHILLIPS: I tell you what, you see a mom like that and it's like -- your heart just goes -- that lump in your throat. All right. But he, like you mentioned, could very well go overseas and probably will. Are you going to go with him and keep following his story?

CARROLL: Absolutely. And the reason why we want to do this is because with such a commitment to places like Afghanistan and Iraq, we want people out there to get a better sense of who these men and women are and what they go through before they get there. So, we'll be following right along.

PHILLIPS: Yes, and then what happens to them after they've been there. That's a whole other follow-up as well.

CARROLL: Absolutely.

PHILLIPS: It's great stuff. Thanks, Jason.

CARROLL: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And what other changes are headed your way under the health care reforms? We're answering your questions at our health care desk. That's next hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Teenage girls gone wild. The automotive episode, police in Santa Fe, New Mexico, say that a 14-year-old girl and her friends led lawmen on a high-speed chase through town. Nearly all of it caught right here on the police cruiser's dash cam. The driver blew through red lights, parking lots, even doing the old one-way, wrong way against traffic trying to lose police. Didn't work. Those stop spikes are hard to dodge. The underage driver and her BFFs racked up a laundry list of charges.

Imagine looking out your window and seeing this. At least eight unconfirmed tornadoes actually touched down in North Carolina last night. Mobile homes were tossed around, trees were uprooted, and at least three people were hurt. We should know more about damage as the day goes on. And that's where our Rob Marciano jumps in. he's following it all for us -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Good morning again, Kyra. We're watching -- that certainly looked like a tornado on the videotape, and the damage we're seeing this morning, certainly highlights that. I'm just checking out this latest tornado warning that's in effect for Miami-Dade County includes homestead and Aranja and also Princeton. So, these areas are under the gun right now for seeing a rotating storm that may bring few some damage. Here it is on the Doppler, South Miami Heights. This is all heading toward the northeast. It may clip South Miami itself, but right now, heading over say the speedway moving northeast at about 30 to 40 miles an hour.

No confirmed reports of that being -- having a tornado on the ground, but certainly, we're watching for that possibility. The entire area of South Florida under a tornado watch until 11:00 this morning. So, we still get pulses of energy and convection off the Gulf of Mexico. So, that's why they've kept that watch in effect for the next hour and a half. Carolina, you saw the rough weather last night. It's just rain in the low country and that's going to help develop a low pressure system that will spread a lot of rain across the northeast and maybe a flood watches and warnings posted for the already very, very soggy Tri-State Area.

We'll talk more weather throughout the morning. It looks like that - we're hoping that tornado warnings are about to expire here in the next few minutes, but if they extend it, we'll get back on the air for sure -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Great. Thanks, Rob.

MARCIANO: You bet.

PHILLIPS: Californians live with the threat of earthquakes every day, but millions of Americans have no idea that the same danger lurks beneath their feet as well. Look at one southern city that suffered one of the most devastating quakes in U.S. history.

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PHILLIPS: A killer earthquake. We've seen them strike Haiti and Chile in recent months and, of course, everyone knows about the danger in California. But there are some places in the U.S. you might not expect.

CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is joining us with a closer look at that. Hey, Jacqui.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Kyra. Yes the large majority of earthquakes do happen out West. But some of the most powerful in U.S. history have actually happened in the Midwest and the south, believe it or not.

We're going to take you to Charleston, South Carolina now, where they could experience an earthquake similar in magnitude to the one that happened in Haiti in January.

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RICHARD COTE, AUTHOR AND RESEARCHER: It was the most catastrophic earthquake ever to hit any place east of the Mississippi in all of U.S. history. It struck Charleston with a ferocious roar.

JERAS (on camera): Author and researcher Richard Cote describes the horror that filled the steamy Charleston air on August 31st, 1886. An estimated 7.3 magnitude earthquake devastated this charming southern city.

COTE: Two-thirds of all the brick structures in Charleston were either destroyed or severely damaged.

JERAS (voice-over): And it was felt from Montreal to Nebraska, Cuba to Bermuda.

(on camera): So this is the church building.

COTE: Yes.

JERAS: And this was severely damaged in the earthquake?

COTE: This was one of the most magnificent churches in Charleston St. Michael Episcopal Church. The entire bell tower separated with a huge crack through the side of the building.

JERAS (voice-over): Amazingly, the building was put back together with earthquake bolts, as where many other buildings in town.

(on camera): So these are the earthquake bolts --

COTE: These are Charleston's legendary earthquake bolts. What you see on the side of this building is not actually the earthquake bolt itself. That's the long iron rod that runs all the way through the buildings.

JERAS: And what we're going to see at the Fort?

PERDITO HWANI, RETIRED GEOLOGY PROFESSOR: At the Fort we're going to be seeing the effects of the earthquake.

JERAS (voice-over): Retired geology professor Perdito Hwani (ph) has spent decades researching the 1886 quake. He says the fault zone is deep and runs through nearby historical Fort Dorchester. Hwani's research has shown the 1886 quake was one of at least seven quakes to happen here.

HWANI: The frequency of earthquakes we're getting is about five -- every 500 years, on an average.

JERAS (on camera): So it's not a matter of if another powerful quake will rattle Charleston, but when? And is the city prepared?

(voice-over): Charleston Mayor Joseph Riley says earthquakes are fused into Charleston's history and future.

JOSEPH RILEY, MAYOR, CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA: We've made our buildings stronger, so they would more -- well withstand an earthquake than they did 144 years ago. And then we're poised and ready to get through it and to recover.

JERAS: The South Carolina Emergency Management Division released the results of a study that outlines what could happen today if a 7.3 magnitude earthquake were to strike the same area. The report estimates that 900 people would be killed; 800 bridges would be damaged beyond use; 36 million tons of debris would be generated and total economic losses would reach $20 billion.

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JERAS: So those are just some incredible numbers there. And scary to think about, you know, but we say this happens maybe every 500 years. It's not an if but a when scenario. But unfortunately, Kyra, it doesn't work like clockwork. We're not going to say exactly 500 years this could happen.

So in reality, this could happen next year. This could happen in five years or this could happen in another 300 years or so.

PHILLIPS: So Jacqui, what do you think are some other prone areas?

JERAS: Well, we talked about California. This map behind me from the USGS in red shows the area that are greatest -- greatest risk where it's more likely for this to happen maybe in the next 50 years. And so look at some places out here into Arizona, into Nevada, into Utah up into parts of Wyoming. Here you can see the big bull's-eye there over the Charleston area that we were talking about.

And then, the new Madrid fault zone and I think a few people are a little bit more familiar with that one in the Midwest from say Illinois extending down towards Arkansas. And in two weeks from now we're going to take you to Memphis, Tennessee, where a powerful quake there could have impacts not just locally but across the globe.

PHILLIPS: Jacqui, I appreciate it.

More from the CNN NEWSROOM straight ahead.

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PHILLIPS: Well, so much for the show must go on. Gay Jesus won't be taking the stage after all. We're talking about the play in Tarleton State University in Stevensville, Texas.

"Corpus Christi" was going to feature a gay Jesus and apostles. Needless to say that didn't sit well with many folks in the heart of Texas. The school got lots of complaints. But the university president ignored them, saying the play illustrated the school's commitment to free speech and expression.

Well, apparently that sentiment only goes so far. The school cancelled the play citing safety and security concerns. They say they were flooded with threatening calls and e-mails in the days leading up to Saturday's performance.

So gay Jesus didn't die for your sins, he was killed by e-mail.

A lot going on this morning as CNN crews are working hard to bring you all the details. Let's check in with our correspondents beginning with Poppy Harlow in New York -- Poppy.

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Well, Kyra, we're talking health reform this morning. And if you have health insurance through your employer you are going to see some major changes to your benefits. Bottom line, we're digging deeper on whether you will have to pay more starting next year. That's coming up in the next hour. ELAM: I'm Stephanie Elam, also in New York where we are following a massive case of identity theft. Information on more than three million Americans has been stolen. Kyra, I'll have that -- more on that in the next hour.

MARCIANO: I'm Rob Marciano in the CNN Severe Weather Center. Last night, tornados tore up real estate from Greensboro down to Charlotte, North Carolina. Now, South Florida under the gun, tornado watch in effect for the next hour and a half. Weather is at the top of the agenda at 10:00 a.m. -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Thanks, guys.

Also ahead, militias in the Midwest; is this what they mean by Christian warriors? The FBI carries out raids in three different states.

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PHILLIPS: The real definition of tax burden: your ability to pay is outweighed by your tax assessment. Guess what? More people are going to feel that burden as April 15th draws closer.

Christine Romans from CNN's "YOUR MONEY" has some cash saving tips for us though so don't worry too much.

All right. Take it away. This is the last thing people want to hear is that they're burdened even more.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN HOST, "YOUR MONEY": I know. Well, most people are going to get a refund. There's a lot of goodies in the stimulus, right, so most people will be able to refund. But there is another group there that is going to have a big tax bill and no money in the bank to pay for it.

So here's what you have to do. Do not hide from the IRS. Kyra, you would be surprised how many people just kind of put their head in the sand. Don't do it.

File on time even if you don't have the money to pay. Try to find a way other than with a credit card. I'm not a big fan of the credit card and some other personal finance experts aren't either because if you don't have the money in the bank that means you're not going to have the money to pay back the credit card with all those fees and interest.

Talk to the IRS, get an installment plan. If you think you're going to be able to come up with the money in the next three or four months, there are ways that you can do online payments with the IRS.

If you have to, you can make a deal with the IRS. Tax experts tell me it's not like advertisements on TV that tell you, you're going to get -- oh, we're going to help you settle for pennies on the dollar. It's not really like that. But talk -- you have to be talking to the government about this to try to fix it. Most people are going to get a refund. That's the good news. The refund may be up to $3,000, but there is this group of people who are going to have a big bill and no cash to pay it because after $2,400 of your jobless check it's taxable.

So last year, if you made more than $2,400 for unemployment benefits, you have to pay taxes on top of that. Also, Kyra, some people they changed their withholdings so they have a little bit more money in the bank. You know -- like on the check.

PHILLIPS: (INAUDIBLE) but you may have to pay that back.

ROMANS: And now -- but now that means you're going to have to pay taxes at the end so, pay attention.

PHILLIPS: We have to say to the IRS, go after the Bernie Madoffs of the world and all of us hard-paying -- hardworking taxpaying citizens, just leave us alone. How about that?

ROMANS: I love that most people are going to get a refund. That's what I love.

PHILLIPS: That is the good news. Thanks, Christine.

ROMANS: Sure.

PHILLIPS: All right.