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Illegal Immigrants & Homicide; Goldman Sachs CEO Defends Company; Pakistan Army Faces Scrutiny; Illegal Immigration Crackdown; Plane Diverted by Passenger; Sandra Bullock Files for Divorce

Aired April 28, 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: Here are some of the big stories in the CNN NEWSROOM for Wednesday, April 28th.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The thing we're trying to minimize is land impact because of the environmental and socioeconomic damage that it can do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Oil and water, a combination that could spell disaster along the Gulf Coast. Now the Coast Guard is adding fire to the mix?

Plus this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The kind of manufacturing that you're looking at today is not your grand-dad's manufacturing. It's a lot more complex.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Boy, it sure is. Learning new skills to get a new high- tech job, all on the company's dime. Apprenticeships and ideas of the past working in today's job market.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In most parts of the U.S. it's relatively easy to get daycare. And coming here to Tokyo, it's like night and day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And 46,000 children waiting for day care in Japan. So why is the government paying people to have more babies? The idea behind Cash for Kids.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris.

Those stories and your comments right here, right now, in the CNN NEWSROOM. So, Arizona's immigration battle comes to Washington. At this hour, House Democrats are set to start a news conference denouncing the state's new law allowing police to check anyone's status.

Republican lawmakers held their own news conference earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TED POE (R), TEXAS: We want the National Guard on the border to be able to be armed and defend themselves, if necessary, and assist the border patrol and local law enforcement as they need it. We need the full support of the federal government. This country protects the borders of other nations better than it protects our own border.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Meanwhile, a big bust in Phoenix. Law enforcement officers rounding up 70 people during a raid on an alleged drop house. The Mexican Consulate in Phoenix is overwhelmed right now with illegal immigrants applying for Mexican citizenship for their American-born children. Parents want kids to be able to join them in Mexico if they are deported.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALFONSO NAVARRO, DEPUTY CONSUL OF MEXICO: Let's say that maybe the family head, the mom and dad, is arrested while working, and they are deported. They want to be ready in order to reunite the whole family on Mexican soil.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: San Francisco's mayor, Gavin Newsom, wants to punish Arizona economically over the strict new law. He has announced a boycott on city employee travel to Arizona.

We have been asking you to weigh in on this controversial crackdown on illegal immigration. And boy, are you giving us an earful from both sides of the issue.

Here are a couple of your iReports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JASON ASSELIN, IREPORTER: If you're an illegal alien you don't have rights. You should leave. Get the green card, get the proper documentation you need to be in our country. That's cool, that's fine, that's dandy. But when you're here illegally, we don't know who you are.

Are you a drug dealer? Are you a terrorist? You know, that's my number one concern, terrorists. They can be coming across the Mexican border right now and we wouldn't even know it, disguised as illegal immigrants.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AFAEL LARA, IREPORTER: The reality is that this law in specific is directed at illegal immigrants crossing from Mexico and from Central America. So the reality that the police officers are going to be given free reign to question and ask, that's basically racial profiling at its best.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: We have been bringing you both sides of this immigration controversy even before it became front-page news and ignited heated debate nationwide.

I had the Arizona lawmaker who authored the bill in the NEWSROOM. Let's do this -- let's roll a portion of that interview with state Senator Russell Pearce.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUSSELL PEARCE (R), ARIZONA STATE SENATOR: It's outrageous that we continue to have the anarchists, the open border, while Phoenix -- 50 percent of the homicides in Phoenix are committed by illegal aliens.

Phoenix is number two in the world in kidnappings. It's become the home invasion, carjacking, identity theft capital of the world. We're not putting up with it anymore.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: So let's focus on the concern over violence.

Our Josh Levs has a bit of a fact check -- Josh.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Tony, you said at the time, when you heard those numbers flying around, you're like, "We've got to fact-check this." Of course, we do.

That idea about half of the homicides in that area coming from illegal immigrants, let me just go straight to the facts for you on this one.

There actually are no clear statistics held by the federal government. We can show you that. The FBI does not break down in any kind of specific numbers, federal statistics, homicides by illegal immigrants.

If you take a look at the 168 murders that have been reported by police in Phoenix in 2008, half of them are actually uncleared, which means that they don't have any idea who did it. And there's no breakdown of those that did take place, how many may have been carried out by illegal immigrants. So there is nothing to back up an assertion like we heard there in terms of hard information. Now, something that he did touch on which is really important when we take a look at what's going on in Arizona is this reality. Phoenix is a kidnapping capital of America and the world. I mean, look at that figure, Tony. Police investigated in 2008.

HARRIS: Look at that.

LEVS: That's more than an average of one kidnapping every single day. It is having a massive problem with drug crime, and this is a situation in which you are seeing a lot of authorities saying what can be done?

Now, we have to be really careful about not creating an overlap between the concept of someone being in this country illegally and the problem of drug crime. But what you do see some people saying in situations like this is that if there were a firmer hold on who is in the country and who is not, maybe that would be one way, and maybe even just a little piece of reducing the problem.

In order to show you what a big problem it is, I actually want to show you the screen behind me. I think we can zoom way in here.

You might remember this, Tony. You and I looked at this last year, but it's basically a breakdown of what's been going on in Phoenix.

First of all, you can see this chart here. And it's not going to show up really high for you, but, basically, you have a line that goes all the way up there that shows the kidnappings. Every single year it's going up and up and up. And we have this explainer of what's been happening inside Phoenix and why there have been so incredibly many kidnappings, people held for ransom, the extent to which drug crime makes a difference.

Now, again, there's two separate issues here, but when you see someone say there's a huge problem of crime in Phoenix, and also talking about the problem of illegal immigrants, that is a piece of the picture in this whole debate of what's going on in Arizona. People saying authorities need a clearer sense of who is in the country legally or illegally. But in short, nothing at all to back up that claim that half of the murders are committed by illegal immigrants. Nothing to back it up.

HARRIS: OK. So, Josh, a little later in the hour you're going to fact-check another portion of that interview. Am I correct here?

LEVS: Yes, about the relationship between immigrants and the economy. Are they helping or are they hurting? We're going to bring you what we can on that.

HARRIS: All right. That's terrific. Josh, appreciate it. Thank you, sir.

LEVS: You bet, Tony.

HARRIS: One growing concern about the illegal immigration crackdown in Arizona, other states may decide to enact similar laws. Later this hour, you will hear what the governors of Minnesota and Montana have to say about that. Then, next hour, you will hear opposing views on whether to boycott Arizona. I will be joined by Arizona Hotel and Lodging Association president Debbie Johnson and San Francisco supervisor David Campos, who is behind his city's newly announced boycott of Arizona.

(NEWSBREAK)

HARRIS: Got to tell you, he got grilled by lawmakers. Then the CEO of Goldman Sachs went one-on-one with our Christine Romans.

And Rob Marciano is tracking the oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico. We will talk with him and Reynolds Wolf about plans to set it on fire.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Boy, I've got to tell you, a lot of heat, but much not more light from the showdown between a Senate committee and Goldman Sachs executives. The company defended its actions leading up to the financial crisis.

After taking a real pounding from lawmakers, Goldman's CEO talked with our Christine Romans. Christine joining us now from Washington.

Ooh, Christine. What came out of this conversation?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's very rare for Lloyd Blankfein to sit down and talk to reporters. It's just not the company's style. That's the way it's been explained to me in the past.

They just like to speak through their profit reports and through their clients, quite frankly. But now it's a whole new day and a whole new world after 11 hours of grilling on Capitol Hill. They were a little more open after that hearing, and I asked Lloyd Blankfein, Tony, how it feels to be the symbol of Wall Street greed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Can I ask you how you became the poster boy for Main Street versus Wall Street? You're a guy that grew up with working class parents, working class family. Your dad was a postal worker. And now you're the guy who's the face of the enemy of Main Street.

How did that happen?

LLOYD BLANKFEIN, CEO, GOLDMAN SACHS: I know in some corners, maybe that's a fair characterization, but I hope it's not like that broadly and I hope it doesn't stay that way. I don't know how it's happened --

ROMANS: I mean, but there are people with signs that say "America's public enemy number one, Lloyd Blankfein." I mean, that must pain you.

BLANKFEIN: Well, if I had seen that it would pain me. It pains me to hear you say it.

We have, I have, the firm has its work cut out for it. However we got to this place, we are going to work very, very hard to make ourselves appreciated for the value we contribute and for the way in which our activities are good for America. I know there is a credibility gap there, but I tell you, the activities that we do, financing companies, helping to manage people's money, these are all good for the United States.

ROMANS: But what about trading and what about CDOs? Are those good or was that nothing? That was air?

BLANKFEIN: No, of course it's good. People can only be able to raise capital if the people who buy those equities and buy those bonds are able to sell them. And they can only sell them if they're liquid markets. They're all connected to the capital markets.

Nobody, even the legislators, they're not questioning the importance of the capital markets and the work we do when we're doing well. Their criticism is that we haven't done a good job or we haven't -- we haven't taken account of all of the interest in the way we should have. And we're committed to re-earning that trust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: So, Tony, the question is, are they closer to re-earning that trust, right?

HARRIS: Yes.

ROMANS: And after 11 hours of grilling on the Hill, I mean, Senator Carl Levin, you saw it, Tony, it was electric. These were two very successful, very intelligent men going at it for quite some time, especially toward the end there.

Are they closer to earning that trust? And the jury is still out. They have an SEC case to get through first, and then you just have got to see if whether people are going to stop asking these tough questions about what exactly it was that Goldman Sachs was generating. Was it profits or was it economic activity that helps growth?

HARRIS: Well, wait a minute, Christine. We've seen other corporations in this kind of position needing to, you know, reinvent itself and regain public trust. Most recently, Toyota, correct? And we saw commercials on the air all over the place.

I mean, I'm wondering what Goldman will actually do to restore public trust in the company.

ROMANS: You make a good point with the Toyota comparison, too, and others have pointed out to me that America loves to find a corporate villain when there's something going wrong. High energy prices, oil companies were the villain. High drug prices, drug companies were the villain. And maybe rightfully so, but we've moved on in some cases from those debates, and now it is Goldman Sachs and Wall Street that is in the crosshairs.

Will we move on from this again, or is Senator Carl Levin and this committee and others, including the SEC, going to get to the bottom of some of the behavior that may have led to the bubble and make some real changes? We're still in the thick of it.

HARRIS: Well, you remember the Toyota ads. There was there a bit of an apology in that, and mistakes were made. I know that's kind of passive construction, but the acknowledgement that the company made mistake, we certainly remember that from Toyota's lesson.

ROMANS: And Lloyd Blankfein, in that interview, he was more contrite to me than what I heard on the floor in the Dirksen Senate Office Building. I mean, in the testimony.

He said to me, "We were part of a system that led to the bubble," but that's not what they're being accused of. They're being accused of a variety of different things.

Everyone was part of the system. But what was it about the financial engineering and the trading and the short-termism, the trading for profits that might have contributed to it. That's what we're still trying to get.

HARRIS: Yes. Good stuff.

Christine, appreciate it. Thank you.

ROMANS: Sure.

HARRIS: Burning off the oil. Will it work? Our guy on the Gulf Coast, Reynolds Wolf, is tracking efforts to stop the oil slick before it becomes an environmental disaster.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Got to tell you, a U.N. report is renewing long-running concerns about Pakistan's armed forces. Investigators say the Pakistani army and its intelligence agencies are involved in shadowy activities that have undermined the rule of law.

CNN's Reza Sayah reports from central Pakistan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thunderous explosions rock the scorching desert of central Pakistan, the ear-splitting sounds of the biggest military exercise here in two decades. This is the image the Pakistani military wants you to see, protector of Pakistan from nuclear neighbor India, a source of national pride, the most powerful institution in the country.

(on camera): What you don't see here is what many Pakistanis already believe but rarely talk about, and that's the role of the Pakistani military and its intelligence agencies, especially the ISI, off the battlefield, behind the scenes, a role that has the military involved with everything from shaping foreign policy to domestic politics.

(voice-over): That role was harshly condemned by a U.N. fact- finding commission charged with investigating the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. The reporter said the military spy agencies were often intimidating, politicized, and rogue organizations involved in Pakistan's most pivotal events from the 2007 sacking of Pakistan's chief justice to the 2008 elections. And the botched investigation into the Bhutto killing, where according to the report, spy agencies kept evidence away from investigators. "The pervasive involvement of the intelligence agencies in diverse spheres, which is an open secret, has undermined the rule of law," reads the U.N. report.

At the military exercise, the army's top spokesman downplayed the findings of the report.

MAJ. GEN. ATHAR ABBAS, PAKISTANI ARMY SPOKESMAN: The military intelligence agency has been pointed out, but that is not exactly the blame which is had.

SAYAH: Just days after the U.N. report, Pakistan's civilian government vowed to renew its investigation into the Bhutto killing, setting up a potential showdown with the military, something Pakistan can ill afford. But analysts say Pakistan's army chief, Ashfaq Kayani, has taken steps to avoid a clash with the government.

At the war games, Kayani and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani seemed friendly. Kayani allowed the U.N. commission to question military intelligence officials and has yet to object to the government doing so as well.

Pakistani television host and analyst Hamid Mir says the army chief knows the military's credibility is at stake.

HAMID MIR, PAKISTANI POLITICAL ANALYST: General Kayani was committed that Pakistan's army would not and should not be involved in politics.

SAYAH: Analysts say in the months to come, Pakistan will know if the army's apparent retreat from politics is real or simply window dressing while it rebuilds its image and continues to wield power both on and off the battlefield.

Reza Sayah, CNN, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Boy, got to tell you, they have tried skimming it off, capping it off. Now Coast Guard crews are going to try to burn off at least part of the oil slick heading for the Gulf shores.

Our Reynolds Wolf is watching all of this from Venice, Louisiana.

And Reynolds, first of all, good to see you, Doctor.

What are you learning about a controlled burn? Is it later this hour, or possibly next hour?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, Tony, I mean, timing is everything. And we just got this information right now. And it looks like they are going to give this a shot right at noon Eastern Time. Of course, that is 11:00 local.

And what they plan on doing is using what we've been referring to the last couple of days as a fire-proof burn. Now, the state of Louisiana has obtained hundreds of thousands of feet of this. They've either ordered it, they've bought it, or they've obtained it.

What the game plan is, is actually go to the oil slick. Remember, 97 percent of this is like a rainbow sheen, but there's about three percent of it which is this thick crude. The idea is to skim away some of the thicker crude, separate it from the rest of the oily mass, and then set that afire.

Now, again, I don't want to sound like there's going to be some haphazard measure. Pardon me one moment while I get these papers.

HARRIS: Take your time.

WOLF: It's not going to be just some haphazard measure. What they're going to do is it's going to be a very controlled burn.

"Control" is the key phrase, because, again, remember, highly- flammable content that you have across the water. They're trying to separate the worst stuff, of course, the crude, away from the other parts.

And when it comes to the rainbow sheen we've been referring to, that is going to be handled mostly by Mother Nature, because the sun's radiant energy is going to help burn most of that off. It's the crude that they're really focusing on with this controlled burn.

Now, a couple of things that they had to really wait on, that they really had to check. And one had to be that the currents and the wind had to cooperate.

Well, I'll tell you, it looks like that that is certainly the case if they're going to proceed with this. As I mentioned, just starting up in, goodness gracious, just about an hour's time. So it should be very interesting to see how this plays out -- Tony.

HARRIS: Hey, Reynolds, just give us an overall on this. How big is this slick now?

WOLF: Oh, the latest numbers we've gotten are about 600 square miles. It is amazing.

But see, the thing is, we've changed that number quite a bit of times because, of course, you have to remember, this thing is about -- when I say "thing," we're talking about this eruption of oil that's coming just from down below, about 5,000 feet below the surface, right out there, about some 93 miles from right behind me. You've got this oil coming out. So, as it comes out, of course it's going to spread a bit.

Now, something else about it spreading, the winds really do not help in some matters. Certainly, it's favorable today to try the controlled burn, but the winds have had a detrimental effect. And what I mean by that, the winds have helped carry some of the -- for lack of a better term -- the smell of this oil slick to faraway places.

When I say faraway places, we're talking parts of the Florida coastline, even into Alabama and Mississippi. So, people - here have been reports of people actually being able to smell this carried by the strong winds.

HARRIS: Wow. OK, Reynolds. Good update there.

So we're going to try this controlled burn next hour. Let's keep our fingers crossed on that.

Reynolds Wolf for us.

Reynolds, appreciate it. Thank you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: There's also the matter of the oil spill that is still leaking from the rig that sank. What else is being done to contain it? Commander Richard Schultz -- can't wait for this -- of the Coast Guard will join us in just a couple of minutes.

Illegal immigration and the economy. Our fact-check team is digging deep to see how it affects your bottom line.

That's next, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Illegal immigration becoming even more polarizing with Arizona's tough new law in Washington. This morning, representatives from both parties piled on the rhetoric.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ED ROYCE (R) CALIFORNIA: This would be a magnet that individuals would find irresistible and we would see a large additional increase in illegal immigration. So, this would be the worst possible time to push an amnesty bill because at this time, because the secretary's wrong in her assessment, the situation is actually spinning out of control.

REP. NYDIA VELAZQUEZ, (D) NEW YORK: It is irresponsible for any city, state or elected official to legalize racial profiling and discrimination and that is exactly what the governor of Arizona and the republican-controlled legislature have done. This short-sighted law is a step backward in our nation's ongoing struggle to provide civil rights for all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Attorney General Eric Holder says the government could actually go to court to challenge Arizona's tough new immigration law. President Obama has called the law misguided. Our Campbell Brown asked the governors of Montana and Minnesota for their views.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GOV. TIM PAWLENTY, (R) MINNESOTA: The Arizona is clearly frustrated with the lack of attention and action from the federal government on this issue. Number two, we need an immigration system that allows for legal and orderly and reasonable immigration, but the current system is not that. It's frustrating and it's broken.

So, it needs to be fixed. So, they're taking steps to do that. I applaud their efforts to try to have better enforcement, but I am concerned about the standard that law enforcement can and must interact with anybody and try to detain or interact with somebody.

CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN HOST: But nobody seems to know what the standard is.

PAWLENTY: That's the problem. I think the definition of what's the probable cause to believe that somebody's here illegally, that would have to be better defined and we got to get some comfort around.

BROWN: So, you're not okay with the law as it is now? I mean, there are a lot of people saying it is unconstitutional and there are also a lot of people as I'm sure you know who believe that if you're Latino and you're in Arizona, you should be afraid to walk down the street now.

PAWLENTY: We do need better enforcement for immigration, but we need to do it in a fair manner, and we need to do it in a non- discriminatory manner and how they interpret this language, in this statute, in this law which is pretty ambiguous is going to be a very important part about whether this is fair and whether it works or not and that remains to be seen.

BROWN: Governor, where are you on this?

GOV. BRIAN SCHWEITZER, (D) MONTANA: I'd veto the bill, and let me tell you why. The problem that we have with immigration is we haven't given a path for people to become citizens, but if you're a roofer and you need people who roof, if you have gardeners who work for you or people in your kitchen staff, you're hiring illegals, and so we're saying to the illegals, you're the one breaking the law and what are we doing about the people who are employing them?

I understand the frustration that Arizona has, New Mexico and Texas with this immigration wave, but this isn't the first time in American history that we've had this sort of thing. We've had this sort of thing with the Chinese, with the Irish, with the Germans, with the Norwegians, and so, now, there's a big crush of Latin Americans, but let's face it, the southwest part of the United States was part of Latin America and now it's part of the United States.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: So many conflicting reports of how much of a negative or positive impact illegal immigration has on our economy. It came up during debate two weeks ago right here, on our show, and if you remember, I asked for a little more clarity. Our Josh Levs is part of the fact-check team on this one, and he's answering the call for us.

Josh, what were you able to dig up here?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, because I mean, we all know what this argument is, right? This basic idea being immigrants are great for the economy, no, they're draining the economy. Great, drain, great and you hear both sides. And what I'm going to do now is show you some facts from starting with the CBO, because the Congressional Budget Office which is nonpartisan, all they do is look at numbers. That's it. Their job is to look at numbers, and you're going to two conflicting things here.

The first thing they say is long-term tax revenue generated by immigrants, legal and illegal together, overall they say exceeds the cost of the services they use. This is looking at a lot of different studies. So, in that sense, they're saying OK, overall, over time net positive, but now, look at the next thing. The CBO also says, they say the cost of providing public services to illegal immigrants at the state and local levels generally exceeds their tax payments. So, in short there, state and local levels when you look at the handling of illegal immigrants in that sense overall negative.

Now, what am I giving you here? I know this isn't everybody's favorite, kind of reality check, because you like, you're giving me two sides and thanks a lot, I've got nothing. But I want everyone to understand which I think gives a real significant is if you are, just like so many of Americans are one of the people who is firmly convinced that it's absolutely extremely clear that illegal immigrants in America are either extremely great for the economy or extremely bad for the economy, the reality is when the CBO looks at tons and tons of studies what really happens, what you really are seeing is both.

It's this mix of both and it's not a very simple or clear answer and that's important to understand when we deal with this debate, both sides do exist. And Tony, in that debate that you had, there is also one very specific figure that was brought up. Let's take a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUSSELL PEARCE, (R) ARIZONA STATE SENATE: They've taken jobs from Americans, billions of dollars in costs. We spent $1 billion in Arizona just to educate the children of illegals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: There you go. State senator there, and it just went by really fast, but he said $1 billion spent in Arizona to educate the children of illegals in this country as he put it. Here is what we found about that. This is from an organization that's called the Federation for American Immigration Reform. They oppose illegal immigration and promote border security. They have found that Arizonans spend about $820 million annually on education for illegal immigrant children and their siblings who were born in this country.

So not quite $1 billion, but you can see, it kind of fits in what we're talking about there, state and local expenses. So, the reality is both exist, and when we're dealing with a huge problem in America, we have to understand, there are the positives and the negatives overall.

HARRIS: Love the fact checking. Just love it. Josh, appreciate it. Thank you, sir. See you next hour.

And the next hour, speaking of which, we will hear from both sides of the boycott debate. Debbie Johnson joins us from the Arizona Hotels and Lodging Association and David Campos is a San Francisco supervisor that's next hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Let's get you caught up on top stories now. The passenger blamed for diverting a Paris to Atlanta flight now says he had taken a sleeping pill. Authorities say Derek Stansberry claimed he had explosives on the delta jet. The plane was diverted to Bangor, Maine, where passengers had to spend the night and no explosives were found.

President Obama will deliver the eulogy tomorrow at Dorothy Height's funeral. The civil rights pioneer died last week at age 98 after a long illness. Hundreds of people turned out yesterday for a public viewing in Washington. Height's funeral will be at the Washington National Cathedral.

Oscar-winning actress, Sandra Bullock, is giving up on her marriage. She tells "People" magazine she has filed for divorce from her husband, Jesse James. They had been married for about five years. James has admitted to having an affair.

The Coast Guard is getting ready to set fire to part of that oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico, but it is just one of the efforts under way. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: You know, we've been telling you all morning about the effort to stop that huge oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico. And now, this morning, the coast guard plans to set part of it on fire. With me on the phone is coast guard Commander Richard Schultze in Robert, Louisiana. Commander Schultz, it's good to talk to you. Thanks for your time this morning.

VOICE OF RICHARD SCHULTZ, COMMANDER, U.S. COAST GUARD: Any time.

HARRIS: Hey, if you would Commander, describe what you're attempting to do today. I understand you got a couple of elements here. There is that what we're calling a rainbow sheen of oil that maybe nature will take care of and then there is the heavier crude. Is it the heavier crude that you will attempt to burn off at the top of the hour?

SCHULTZ: Right, yes. That's correct. It would be the heavier crude that we will attempt to burn off some time hopefully this morning, and it's just another tool to use in our arsenal of collaborative response efforts with other agents and partners and BP.

HARRIS: And Commander, will you be looking attempt this controlled burn somewhere near the open valve?

SCHULTZ: No, no, no, not at all. Actually, what happens is we take a portion of that oil away from the main response or the main oil spill away from that and collect it, utilize a fire-resistant boom and attempt to light that portion of the oil on fire.

HARRIS: OK. So, I'm trying to get to what I think is maybe a bottom-line question for a lot of folks watching. How successful do you believe a controlled burn can be, if it's successful, at heading off and encroaching a slick? Could this, theoretically, be the answer to saving the coastlines, the beaches and the wetlands of the Gulf States?

SCHULTZ: Well, I mean, we're hopeful that it's going to be successful on the first attempt so then we can continue to utilize this particular response method along with the other response methods that were used in the mechanical recovery with the skimming vessels as well as the dispersion applications as well as the continued efforts to still shut in the valve that's, as you know, 5,000 feet below the surface.

HARRIS: My goodness. I can't even imagine the effort on that. But Commander Schultz, if you would, give us the latest on the diameter on this slick. What are we talking about here? Is it 80 miles long? A 40 miles wide and growing? I think that's the latest that I heard.

SCHULTZ: Right. That's correct. We're still at those parameters with respect to the size of the spill.

HARRIS: OK. Commander Schultz, good luck with that. When will you know? How soon will you know whether or not the burn has been successful?

SCHULTZ: We're hopeful that the burn is going to take place some time this morning, later this morning and shortly thereafter we should know.

HARRIS: OK. Commander Schultz, appreciate it. Thank you and good luck with this effort.

You know, in addition to the burn, crews have been using robot subs like they did with the Exxon Valdes oil spill trying to trigger a so-called blowout preventer. Ideally, it would seal off the well. That takes anywhere from 24 to 36 hours. Another option is putting an alternative rig about a mile away from the one that sunk. This relief well would drill down an attempt to enter the damaged rig at an angle and plug it. That could take two to three months. My goodness.

Japan is already one of the world's most crowded countries and why is the government there encouraging parents to have bigger families? We will explain.

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HARRIS: I need you to reach out to the program. I need you to talk to me directly. A couple of ways you can do that. First of all, CNN.com/Tony takes you directly to this, bam, our blog page. If you'd like to send us your thoughts on Facebook, here's what you do, TonyHarrisCNN. Here's my twitter address, TonyHarris, CNN. Call us. Pick up the phone, 1-877-742-5760. Let's have more of your thoughts on the program. CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris.

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HARRIS: And this just in to CNN. We're hearing of another flight being diverted. Our homeland security correspondent, Jeanne Meserve is on this story for us. And Jeanne, what are you learning?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: A flight has been diverted, Continental Airlines flight 3006. It was flying from Houston to Dulles when it was diverted to Greensboro, North Carolina. The reason being, they found a threatening message written on a lavatory mirror. According to one government source, the word "bomb" was written on that mirror. And so, the plane put down about an hour ago. It's been taken to a remote area of the airport.

If things go as they usually do in these instances, law enforcement is meeting that plane, talking to the passengers and sweeping the aircraft to see if they find anything whatsoever on board. This, of course, comes on the heels of yesterday's diversion of a flight from Paris to Atlanta. That was diverted to Bangor, Maine after a man on board said he had explosives and brought false documents. Nothing was found that in that instance. And a word is that individual will be appearing in the federal court in Bangor sometime today -- Tony.

HARRIS: Our Jeanne Meserve. Jeanne, appreciate it. Thank you.

And here's what we're working on for the next hour at CNN NEWSROOM. The battle line in the fight over Arizona's immigration law. Some say the state hit it where it hurts, in the wallet. Others think a boycott is a bad idea. Two guests debate the issue and learning a job and getting paid to do it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The people who take this class, who take this course, they have a broader tool belt of skills. They can take to the company and say, here, I'm not just a machinist. This is what I can do. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And as the economy recovers, companies are paying employees to go to school and work. And it is a long day, but it really does day off. A report on being an apprentice. Coming up next hour in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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HARRIS: You know, Japan is the world's tenth biggest country by population, but because of a low birth rate, its population has actually been shrinking since 2004. The government is so worried it is now paying parents to have children. Imagine that! CNN's Kyung Lah reports.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you want to know what winning the lot to looks like in Tokyo, this is it. Getting a spot at any day care center.

Your mom's at work.

Mai (ph) is among the lucky. Japan's government estimates 46,000 children are on waiting lists to get into day care. It's so competitive to get into our school, says Shogakokana (ph) Academy's principal, as we sat down for a snack time with the kids. When the center opened a few weeks ago, it had to turn away more than 75 percent of its applicants.

A 1-year-old Jamie waited six months to get into a center considered a short wait in Tokyo, but it was a culture shock for his American father.

AARON LLOYD, PARENT: In most parts of the U.S., it's relatively easy to get day care. And coming here to Tokyo, it's like night and day, getting in somewhere. So, it's just -- I mean, it's just a fact here.

LAH: Japan's government passed a stunning new initiative in this year's budget. Give parents cash for their kid. It's a drastic move for a sweeping problem. Japan has the world's fastest Asian population with one of the lowest birth rates. By 2050, 40 percent of Japan will be over the age of 65.

LAH (on-camera): So, here's how the government hopes the subsidy will encourage families to have more children. The government will pay $150 per family per child per month. So, if you have two children, that would be $300 a month. And if you have another, that would be $450 a month. Economists say, while this certainly looks like it could be a solution, the numbers just don't add up.

The money doesn't truly get to the root of the problem, explains economist, Yurio Kena (ph), who says Japanese women don't want to have children because of the inequity of domestic duties and the lack of day care, which means women often have to give up their jobs. When asked about whether the government cash will push from Mikosano (ph) to give Hitomi (ph) a brother.

TRANSLATOR: Honestly, I'd like to have more children but I can't do it without child care, she says. She hasn't been able to work and will finally go back to a job next month. The cash is nice, she says, but it doesn't fix the biggest problem for parents in Japan.

LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Tokyo.

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