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Honoring the Fallen at Arlington; Israeli Navy Storms Gaza Aid Ships; BP Tries Again to Stop Oil Gusher; VP Honors Fallen; Seafood Industry Shutdown

Aired May 31, 2010 - 11:08   ET

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

UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: Vice President Joseph Biden has arrived and is being greeted by the host for today's observance, William Jay Lind III (ph), Deputy Secretary of Defense; Admiral Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Major General Carl R. Horst, commanding general of Joint Forces Headquarters of National Capital Region and the United States Army military district of Washington.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: There you have it, the annual traditional wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The vice president doing the honors this year, Vice President Biden.

In just a couple of minutes, remarks from the vice president, as well as remarks from the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Admiral Mike Mullen, from the Memorial Amphitheater. And we will bring you those comments live, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Good morning, everyone. Live from Studio 7 at CNN world headquarters, I'm Tony Harris.

It is Memorial Day, 2010, and a very busy news day. We are monitoring several developing stories right now.

First, in the eastern Mediterranean, Israeli commandos storm humanitarian ships bound for Gaza. At least nine civilians end up dead. The precise facts surrounding the incident a casualty as well.

Oil spews into the Gulf of Mexico for a 42nd day. BP tries another plan this week, but admits the well may gush for another two to three months. A sense of helplessness on the coast.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The people down here are really in bad shape, especially the fishermen. They can't fish. They can't shrimp. And that's their livelihood.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And a parade of patriotism all day in New York. The Navy parks 3,000 ships for Fleet Week. Memorial Day observances bring events to a close today. And we will hear from the vice president this hour. He will speak at Arlington National Cemetery shortly.

The latest on those stories and your comments, right here, right now, in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Let's get started.

First, confrontation on the Mediterranean Sea. At least nine civilians have been killed.

Israel says it intercepted a flotilla of six ships that tried to break its blockade of Gaza. Israel says the incident turned violent after troops were met with gunfire, knives and clubs.

Relief workers aboard the ships carrying aid to Gaza say that's a lie. The Israelis, they say, came on board with guns blazing.

An Israeli spokesman noted the reason for the blockade in the first place -- stopping arms smuggling and support for terrorism in Gaza.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANNY AYALON, ISRAELI DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER: No sovereign country would tolerate such violence against civilian population against its sovereignty, against international law. And we in Israel call today upon all relevant parties and all relevant countries to work together on calming the situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK. One of the humanitarian groups behind the flotilla is based in Cyprus, another in Turkey.

Let's go now to our Ivan Watson.

And Ivan, let's begin here by framing this. I am hearing some strong language directed against Israel for this incident. I'm hearing words like "piracy."

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Tony. In fact, the Turkish prime minister just called this an act of state terrorism, and that has big implications for Israel.

Turkey is Israel's only Muslim ally in the Middle East. And that strategic alliance -- intelligence sharing, military cooperation, economic ties -- has been strained over the course of the past year in part because of this blockade around Gaza. And now this relationship really risks being on the rocks.

The Turkish government says that this could cause an irreparable impact to the Turkish/Israeli alliance. The Turks have already cancelled military exercises. They have cancelled soccer games between the two countries. And they have recalled the Turkish ambassador from Israel in protest. In addition to that, we are also hearing from one major tourist operator here that, already, Israelis have cancelled some 15,000 tourism trips to Turkey's popular Mediterranean coastal resorts just over the course of today -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Ivan, as we look at video here -- and let me be clear about the video we are seeing. I believe we are seeing some video from the IDF.

And if someone in the control room can explain, is this -- OK. This is from on board one of those ships.

But my question is, is this the video from the activists on board the ship, or is this from the IDF?

OK. This is video taken on the ship.

All right. So my question to you --

WATSON: I'm afraid I can't --

HARRIS: No, no, you can't see it, Ivan. And we're explaining it as we go here.

WATSON: OK.

HARRIS: No, I'm not asking you for the explanation of the video we're seeing.

WATSON: All right.

HARRIS: But here is my question to you. Maybe for folks watching on this Memorial Day, maybe you can put this into context. How did we get to this day? My understanding is that the planning for this flotilla has been going on for months now.

WATSON: That's right. And one of the major groups -- it's an international flotilla. There are people from more than 30 different countries on board, including lawmakers from Sweden, from Germany. But the Turks are big players in this. Not the Turkish government, but a charity organization, an Islamist group that's very pro- Palestinian. They played a big role in organizing this.

One of the ships departed from Istanbul. I saw it leave last week. There was a big celebration, there were fireworks going off. And they were determined to deliver tons of aid to Gaza, which has been blockaded by the Israelis for three years now.

They knew that there was going to be some kind of an encounter. The Israelis warned these ships not to come closer.

The fact is, is that the Israeli predawn raid, where you had commandos rappelling down these ropes off of helicopters, it took place, according to the Turkish government, miles and miles out in international water. And the Turkish government calls that a violation of international law. And that's going to be very difficult for the Israelis to defend themselves on. Perhaps if they had waited until it had gotten closer, they would have more justification. And then things clearly spiraled out of control on board at least one of those vessels.

HARRIS: And Ivan, for the benefit of our audience here, seeing pictures that you're not seeing, maybe you can put some context and describe to us what you have seen happening in front of the Israeli Embassy in Istanbul.

WATSON: Well, we have seen a series of protests taking place here in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city. Most of them have been peaceful. However, there was an attempt to try to break in towards the Israeli Consulate here in Istanbul. Some broken windows. Riot police pushed the crowd back.

We have seen dramatic images of Israeli flags getting torn up. And what I'm seeing also is that this is rippling out beyond fringe groups that are very passionate about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.

I'm hearing from ordinary Turks, taxi drivers, secular people who don't necessarily espouse to an Islamist world view, very angry at what they say as innocents being killed on board a humanitarian convoy. And the fact that the Turkish government is being so vociferous, so critical of Israel right now, going so far as to call this an act of state terrorism, or international piracy, does not bode well for a very important alliance that Israel has relied on for years --

HARRIS: That's right.

WATSON: -- its closest friend in the Middle East -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Ivan, appreciate it. Good context for the pictures. And the story is really compelling here.

Let me just make a note here. We are going to -- first of all, we have shown you a lot of video already. We're going to take a moment a little later in the show and put context, put a frame around all of the pictures that you're seeing. And our Octave Nasr will help us do that in just a couple of minutes here.

Gaza is under the control of Hamas. You will remember the U.S. considers the organization a terrorist group. Here is Hamas' statement: "We in Hamas consider the Israeli attack on the freedom flotilla as a great crime and a huge violation of international law. In spite of the great harm suffered by the people who joined this flotilla, we consider that their message has been delivered."

The White House issued this statement before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cancelled his visit to D.C. tomorrow. And the statement highlights the contradictory versions of events. And here it is. "The United States deeply regrets the loss of life and injuries sustained, and is currently working to understand the circumstances surrounding this tragedy." Both the humanitarian organizations and Israeli military have released their own videotapes of the incident at sea today. It goes without saying an intense public relations battle appears to be under way. And images, as you know, play a very powerful role in shaping and swaying opinion.

So, as I mentioned just a moment ago I am going to speak with our senior editor for Middle East Affairs about these images and about the PR battle in just a couple of minutes.

We head to the Gulf now to update you on what's next now that the top kill didn't work this weekend.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: BP's next attempt to cap the oil gusher in the Gulf could begin early this week. Over the weekend, the company announced the top kill procedure failed.

Here are the latest developments.

Forty-two days into the disaster now, BP will try to place a custom-built cap over a piece of equipment known as the riser. The process involves cutting the damaged riser, and that would temporarily increase the oil flow.

A fisherman has filed a temporary restraining order against BP. It asks the company not to alter tests or destroy clothing or other evidence when workers involved in the cleanup get sick.

And demonstrators protested in New Orleans. They demanded that the federal government and BP devote all possible resources to stopping the oil leak.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: BP needs to be held accountable. America needs to stop treating Louisiana as the stepchildren of the country.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So it's "Drill, baby, drill." You're going to spill, baby, spill. And then you will kill, baby, kill.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It needs to stop now. Now. No excuses.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Top kill didn't work. So let's get more details now on BP's next plan to cap the oil gusher in the Gulf.

CNN's Sandra Endo from Grand Isle, Louisiana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This image says it all -- another failed attempt by BP to stop the massive oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. DOUG SUTTLES, COO, BP: We're disappointed the oil's going to flow for a while, and we're going to redouble our efforts to make sure it's kept off the beaches.

ENDO: Saturday, BP officials announced the so-called "top kill" procedure which pumped heavy mud into the well didn't plug the leak. Now BP is preparing to contain the spill by cutting off the riser from the well and capping it off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This operation should be able to capture most of the oil. I want to stress the word "most," because it is not a tight mechanical seal.

ENDO: All that spewing crude will eventually end up somewhere, much of it heading straight for the coast.

(on camera): This beautiful seven-mile beach is usually packed with people for this Memorial day Weekend, but it's empty, closed to the public. And all you see now are cleanup crews trying to get rid of the tar.

(voice-over): Many in the Gulf Coast region say this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the economic effects which will likely be felt for a long time to come. BP says it has already paid out more than $35 million in damage claims.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know that the people in the lower parishes who do make their living down there, fishing and whatnot, that it's just going to ruin a lot of things. It's going to put a lot of people out of work.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's heartbreaking. It's just sad. That's all you can think, is how sad it is.

ENDO: In Grand Isle, Louisiana, I'm Sandra Endo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: All right.

One of the chemicals BP is using is using is banned in other countries. So why are chemicals prohibited in other countries used in everyday products here in the United States?

Watch "Toxic America," a two-night special investigation with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Wednesday and Thursday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Confrontation at sea turns deadly between Israeli commandos and pro-Palestinian activists. We have got the chain of events, plus perspective, from CNN's senior editor for Middle East Affairs, Octavia Nasr. She joins me next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: International condemnation pouring in right now after Israeli commandos storm six ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. Israel says nine people were killed and 20 injured in the predawn attack, and seven Israeli troops were wounded.

This video shows the pandemonium as Israeli forces rappelled from helicopters onto one of the Turkish ships. Israel Defense Forces have released this video of the incident. Officials say their soldiers' lives were in danger after they were attacked with live fire, knives and clubs. But organizers of the flotilla insist the soldiers started shooting the moment they hit the deck. Neither version of events can at this point be independently verified by CNN. The incident set off a protest outside the Israeli Embassy in Istanbul.

And joining me right now, CNN editor -- our senior editor for Middle East Affairs, Octavia Nasr.

Octavia, good to see you.

First of all, look, put a frame on this for me. This is a flotilla that had been organizing for at least a couple of months. It absolutely expected some kind of confrontation with Israeli Defense Forces. And that absolutely played out, didn't it?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SENIOR EDITOR, MIDDLE EAST AFFAIRS: Absolutely. They were planning this trip for a while. As a matter of fact, the trip itself was delayed because of mechanical problems with two of the ships. So, one ship stayed behind, and then the six ships went on with a plan.

As a matter of fact, the organizers provided a live stream of that trip which was very interesting. Yesterday, I had been watching this and following it very closely, because anyone who knows the region, anyone who knows the history of the story, knew that it was going to be something, a confrontation, violence. We did not know.

So, obviously, ,the Israeli forces, the IDF, felt uncomfortable with those ships. They tried to dissuade them from going to Gaza with the aid on board. That didn't happen, so they had that commandos' operation.

And what the IDF is saying is that they thought that they were going to be meeting with peaceful demonstrators, peaceful activists. Instead, they're saying that they were met with force and they had to respond with force in order to defend their lives. That's the Israeli version of it.

Of course, the activists and their supporters have a totally different version. As a matter of fact, they were tweeting -- they were on Twitter from aboard those ships, and they were talking about every single detail -- how the IDF approached them, how the IDF -- basically, they used words like "stormed the ship" -- how the IDF attacked them and so forth.

And since then, a very alarming thing going on, Tony, is since then, their cell phones are off, their communication is off. So the outside world has no connection to these people on those ships. So we're talking about hundreds of them from all over the world. We're not talking about --

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: So we don't know their status right now?

NASR: We know that nine people are dead, although we don't have identities. We do not know who these people are. We know that a few are injured and --

HARRIS: But we're talking about six ships.

NASR: Yes, and hundreds of people. And Israel did make an arrest. They said that they arrested a few people. So, basically, these are either the ones who attacked the IDF soldiers -- we do not know the details of that.

But, in the meantime, you have countries trying to figure out how to get their nationals out of Israel. You have those boats docked and waiting. And there is no word, there's no communication back and forth.

HARRIS: There's something extraordinary going on here, and this is this PR battle over the messaging on this. We have been showing you the video. And let's isolate the video if we can here that's been provided to us by the IDF.

So, we have that video that's being provided by the IDF of the operation. And there it is. OK?

And the play-by-play on this is pretty clear. You can see the helicopter over one of the vessels, and six in all here. And we can see the activity on the deck here as a lot of people scatter.

NASR: Right.

HARRIS: All right. So that is the view provided to us of this operation from the IDF.

NASR: Right.

HARRIS: Now, Roger, let's go to the other video from -- I'm assuming this is from on the ship itself.

NASR: Yes. We have seen a lot of video from Turkish broadcasters, because the ship itself is a Turkish ship. That's why it's flying the Turkish flag, and that's why you're seeing Turkey up in arms about what's happened, very, very upset about the developments and Israel's response to the flotilla basically trying to get aid to Gaza.

But also, backtrack for a second and try to understand Israel's position. Israel is worried about its security.

HARRIS: Exactly.

NASR: And these are ships that are about to cross its waters, and they felt very uncomfortable with that. Plus, this is a blockade -- HARRIS: And there is real reason to be concerned that there is a blockade for a reason, and Israel is concerned that there is gun- running --

NASR: That's right.

HARRIS: -- into Gaza.

NASR: That's absolutely right. Also, Israel is concerned if they allow one ship in, or a flotilla of ships in, then more will be coming in, and then it will be hard to control.

So there is history, there is background. But this is not the problem. The problem right now is how Israel responded to this flotilla.

HARRIS: Yes. No one would deny that Israel had a right, a sovereign right, to respond to this flotilla trying to break its blockade.

NASR: Yes. It's the response. And people -- I mean, you're seeing countries --

HARRIS: In international waters.

NASR: Right. And people are saying this is piracy. People saying this goes against the international law. They're saying they want an investigation.

And this is really the key, the investigation. We do not know. No one will know for sure unless there is an independent investigation into this, what really happened.

But right now, the world is up in arms, and mainly we are seeing this reaction, Tony, ,on social media, which is the most interesting thing about this story at this point. But, basically, the world is up in arms. Countries, governments calling the Israeli ambassadors back.

HARRIS: Because they are able to see the images.

NASR: Because they're able to see the images and because --

HARRIS: Because there's been a live stream up of the trip.

NASR: Right.

HARRIS: And that everyone on board was using social media to get the message out, their message out.

NASR: Not everyone on board, but many people on board and more so on the ground. A lot of activism took place on the story in the Middle East. A lot of -- I cannot tell you how much.

It was interesting. They were trying to trend the word flotilla yesterday. They kept tweeting about it, even when nothing was happening. It was just basically the boats headed towards Gaza. They tried to trend it, it trended for little while, then stop and then they started with a new word, they called it "freedom flotilla" so that it trends again.

And actually, when you look at the trending map, you'll see that the word "flotilla" is trending all across the globe. This started as a small effort by activists in the Middle East. I mean, ordinary citizens, they figured out that they can totally bypass --

HARRIS: Go around governments.

NASR: Absolutely. Bypass governments and government censorship and bypass any kind of control. They're out in the open. They allowed the story to basically display on the international stage.

HARRIS: Yes.

NASR: And what happened is Israel acted on the international stage and it caught the attention of the whole world. Not that it wasn't going to catch the attention of the world with hundreds of people basically on the boats and ending up in Israel, you know, waiting to see what's going to happen to them, but basically it captured the world in a very interesting way. Basically feeling that this was an aid package, this was an aid flotilla headed to Gaza in order to break the blockade and look what happened, look how Israel reacted to it.

HARRIS: All right, let's leave it there for now. I want to get to Arlington National Cemetery and comments from the comments now on this Memorial Day from the vice president of the United States, Joe Biden.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: -- headstones, a decoration worthy of their dignity.

Collectively, the generation of soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who have served and sacrificed for us are the heart and soul and, I would say, spine of this nation. And as a nation, we pause today to remember them.

They gave their lives fulfilling their oath to this nation and to us. And in doing so, they imparted a responsibility on us to recognize, to respect, to honor, and to care for those who risk their lives so that we can live our lives.

Moments ago, I had the distinct honor and high privilege of laying the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This morning, I welcomed to the White House the Gold Star families who know all too well the price of their loved ones' patriotism.

I met Ruth Stonesifer, the current president of the Gold Star Mothers, who lost her son, Christopher, on the first night of major operations in Afghanistan in October of 2001.

Emogene Cupp, the mother who played a pivotal role in the early stages of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and unveiled the first panel.

To Terry Davis (ph), remarkable champion of Gold Star Families. Terry, God love her, is a Gold Star sister, a Gold Star wife, and a Gold Star mother. None should be asked to sacrifice that much.

And I also met the parents, the brother, and the beautiful widow of John Hallett. I had the privilege of meeting his family when I attended the memorial service at Fort Lewis in Washington state.

John served in a Stryker brigade that was among the hardest hit in Afghanistan. He left behind a wife, two young sons, and an infant daughter who he never got to meet, but who I hope will grow up with the pride in her father filling part of the void that's left by his loss.

Each of the Gold Star families embodies, in the words of John Milton, those also serve who only stand and wait. Many of you in this amphitheater today have stood and waited, relieved, as Jill and I were, at the return of a loved one, in our case, our son from a year in Iraq.

Many of you are now waiting with family members still overseas, many in harm's way, and some of you have stood and waited for a loved one that did not return and live now with the knowledge that you will one day be reunited with them with our heavenly father.

To those who have lost a loved one in the service of our nation, I recall a famous headstone in Ireland. And the headstone reads as follows: "Death leaves a heartache no one can heal. Love leaves a memory no one can steal." No one can steal the memory from you.

I can tell you from my own personal experience that eventually the pain and heartache you now feel will -- will eventually, God willing, be replaced by the joyful memory of the son or daughter, husband, wife, father or mother that you loved so dearly and lost.

Jill and my prayer for you is that that day will come sooner rather than later, but it will come. I promise you.

Today is a day in which sorrow mixes with incredible pride. We mourn those we've lost, and we hold fast to their memories. And we take pride, great pride, in the lives they lived and the service they provided and the nation they created, saved and strengthened.

Earlier this month, Stephen Banko, who was kind enough to sell -- send my wife, Jill, some of his speeches right after we were elected. Stephen Banko, who won two Silver Stars, four Bronze Stars, an Air Medal, four Purple Hearts, all in Vietnam, spoke at a deduction of the Purple Heart Memorial in Buffalo, New York.

And he said, and I quote, "Most people think the battlefield -- think of the battlefield as a province of hate, fear and anger. When you've fought and you've bled and you've risked and you've survived, you recognize it as something entirely different. Hatred would hardly be enough to make a soldier leave a safe position to rescue a buddy. Fear would never make one share the last sip of water with a dying comrade. And anger would never motivate a nurse to stand tall in a bloody operating room for half a day or longer to put a blasted soldier or Marine back together. No, only love -- only love can motivate that kind of heroism. Only love can trigger that kind of courage."

Only love. Love is why we're here today, to show our love for the men and women who died showing their love for this great country and to honor their families who share that love even more deeply.

As I look over at the headstones of those who gave their lives to win our independence, to save our nation, to save our union, to defend against fascism and communism, I wonder -- I wonder what they'd think of this nation and this world today.

I wonder what they'd think of this new generation of warriors, for the forces of globalization have made the world across which they must fight much smaller. And as the world around us shrinks, it means trouble halfway around the globe can and will visit us, no matter how high our walls or how wide our oceans.

Our men and women in uniform know full well that the promise and the peril of this time have never been greater. The threats to American security are more widespread geographically than ever before, and the spread of weapons of mass destruction and dangerous disease, economic dislocations, and the growing gap between the rich and the poor, ethnic animosities, and failed states, the challenges to freedom and security that we face from radical fundamentalism.

Now this new generation of warriors stands watch, protecting America's interests against all of these new threats. And it will take -- and it has taken -- equally great sacrifice as those who've gone before them. From Fallujah to Marjah, from Baghdad to Kandahar, from Basra to the Kunar Valley, from Helmand to Anbar, our nation has lost 4,391 servicemen and -women in Operation Iraqi Freedom, 1,074 in Operation Enduring Freedom and in Afghanistan.

They were the best of us. There were our blood. They were bone of our bone, blood of our blood. They were our treasure. The force of arms that won our independence and throughout our history, it's been the force of arms that has protected our freedom. That will not change nor will our sacred obligation, the only obligation the government has that is truly sacred, our sacred obligation to provide these warriors with everything they need to complete their mission and everything they need -- and I might add, deserve -- when they come home.

(APPLAUSE)

But these new warriors are a special breed. They're warriors but they're also bright, educated, and committed like those who have gone before. They understand that the example of our power must be matched by the power of our example. And we owe it to them to capture the totality of America's trend for all of you know our ultimate strength lies in our values. That's what brought every one of the men and women in this hallowed cemetery to ultimately give their lives, upholding our values. And in upholding our values, we're made stronger.

The objective of our new enemy is to change what we value, to change how we live our lives, to change what it means to be an American. It has been my honor over the last two decades to visit our troops from Bosnia to Kosovo, to Iraq, to Afghanistan, from six young warriors in a forward-operating base high in the mountains of Northeast Afghanistan in upper Kunar Valley to the crowded mess halls at Camp Liberty in Iraq.

And every time -- every time, I can say without fear of contradiction I come away impressed with the intelligence, the grit, the resolve, and the patriotism of these young women and men. This is the finest military the world has ever produced, period.

(APPLAUSE)

If anyone ever has any doubt about that, they should have been with me three days ago when that conviction was reinforced when I had the great privilege and honor of addressing this year's graduating class at the Naval Academy. As part of that service, that was an award given to some one young Marine showing the qualities that will make him a future leader of the Marine Corps. The award was named for a Marine named Doug Zembiec.

Major Zembiec was a captain in Echo Company during Operation Vigilant Resolve in 2004. And because of his heroism in the early ground assault, he became known as "the lion of Fallujah."

Three years ago this month, Doug was shot and killed while leading Iraqi troops he had helped train. It was his fourth tour. Silver staff, bronze star, two purple hearts -- Doug was a warrior -- a warrior of whom this nation can be proud.

Major Zembiec is buried just down the hill from here in Section 60, Site 8621. And when he was laid to rest, his best friend read from Doug's person notebook in which Major Zembiec wrote these words encapsulating his philosophy.

He said, "Be a man of principle. Fight for what you believe in. Keep your word. Be brave. Believe in something bigger than yourself. Serve your country. Teach, mentor, give something back to society. Lead from the front, and conquer your fears."

These words, in my view, convey the character and the purpose of all of those who we remember today. They lived with integrity. They served nobly. They gave everything. They fought for what they believed in.

And maybe, most importantly, they believed in something bigger than themselves. They believed in all of you. They believed in all of us. And they believed in America.

So on this day, this solemn day, let us strive once again to be individuals and a nation worthy of that belief.

May God bless you. May God protect our troops. And may he continue to bless the memory of all those who have died that we may live.

Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

HARRIS: Vice President Joe Biden, moving words on this Memorial Day, full of passion and fire.

Let's take a break. We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Got to tell you, we've seen the devastating impact of the Gulf oil leak on local fishermen and businesses in the area, but the disaster could have a ripple effect far from the Gulf Coast. It could reach all the way to your dinner table or your favorite seafood restaurant, wherever you are in the country.

Greg Lindberg is the owner of Absolutely Fresh Seafood in Omaha, Nebraska. Hey, Greg, appreciate you doing this on this Memorial Day. Thanks a lot.

You know, you own restaurants, you ship seafood to other restaurants. How much of your seafood now that you use in your own places, that you ship to other places comes from the Gulf?

GREG LINDBERG, OWNER, ABSOLUTELY FRESH SEAFOOD: About 20 percent comes from the Gulf area, and it's been quite affected.

HARRIS: And the rest of it comes from international waters?

LINDBERG: Central and South America, Thailand, different parts of Asia, Alaska, New England, Canada -- all over the place. It's a global commodity these days, seafood in general.

HARRIS: That wasn't always the case, was it? I would imagine there was a time --

(CROSSTALK)

HARRIS: Yes, I would imagine there was a time in your business where you got probably most of your seafood from the Gulf?

LINDBERG: Right. It was trucked in by us, before fax machines, before e-mail, before cell phones, certainly before GPS, and it was a very direct route. But things have expanded.

HARRIS: About 20 percent is a sizeable amount of your seafood coming from the Gulf. How has the spill impacted that portion of your business?

LINDBERG: Well, shrimp and oysters are two huge areas of seafood that come primarily from the Gulf, at least domestically produced. So that's really taken a hit. The prices have gone up 20 percent, some people say they're going to go up maybe another 10 percent. Different sizes of shrimp, big shrimp is hard to get. A lot of speculation, so people are grabbing 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 pounds of those and that sucks a lot of product out of the pipeline. So obviously, supply and demand, price goes up.

HARRIS: Do you think the price is going to go even higher? What's your view of it?

LINDBERG: Well, how is that capping working down there, I guess? That's part of the problem. It's not working. The longer it goes, the worse it's going to get.

HARRIS: Can you make up the loss supply or diminished supply in the Gulf elsewhere?

LINDBERG: Yes. For example, we've moved our oyster production, our oyster procurement further around to the East Coast, much more from New England up into Canada. The shrimp comes -- we bring in quite a bit from Thailand already, a little bit from Central and South America. So we already made that move, but we still bring in a lot of Gulf shrimp. And Texas so far is less affected. But it seems to be moving east, so that's going to make it tougher for Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, those producing parts of the oysters and shrimp both.

HARRIS: Hey, Greg, at some point, are you going to have to disassociate yourself from Gulf seafood? I mean, simply say to folks like --

LINDBERG: Not likely.

HARRIS: Not likely?

LINDBERG: No. I mean, at worst case, if it's all shut down, well that will make the decision for us. But I believe in the product, I believe that there's credible people that --

HARRIS: You believe in the product even now?

LINDBERG: Yes. Yes. I would not want to be harvesting anything from waters where there's oil, but there's a lot of places there's no oil yet and hopefully it will stay that way.

HARRIS: All right, Greg, appreciate it. Thanks for your time. Thanks, man. Great conversation with you.

LINDBERG: You bet.

HARRIS: Seafood prices soar as the Gulf leak oil spreads, you just heard that from Greg. In the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM, we will talk with a Seattle chef who says its effect on seafood production will be felt all over the world for years to come.

Plus, on this Memorial Day, Barbara Starr brings us the story of the man responsible for cataloging everything people leave behind to honor loved ones at Arlington National Cemetery.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: On this Memorial Day, we pause to honor those killed, captured or wounded in service to this country. Since 2005, Dan Wallrath through Operation Finally Home has given wounded Iraq and Afghanistan veterans homes of their own mortgage free. He absolutely is a CNN Hero.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN WALLRATH, FOUNDER, OPERATION FINALLY HOME: You know, I've got in the habit of calling our young men and women heroes, instead of troops, soldiers, Marines, because they lay their life on the line for you and me.

Five years ago, I had a friend of mine call me. A friend of his, his son had been injured in Iraq. It just broke my heart. It was literally like somebody hit me upside the head with a two-by-four.

This is happening every day to families across the nation. They did that for me and my wife and my sons and my grandchildren. And because of that, I feel like I owe them something.

TEXT: 2010 CNN Hero Dan Wallrath started Operation Finally Home, which builds and donates homes to returning wounded veterans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK, and if you would like to learn more about Dan Wallrath or to nominate someone you think is changing the world, go to CNN.com/heroes.