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G-20 Protests & Power Meetings; Gay Catholics Controversy; Fallout from Gen. McChrystal's Firing; Kagan Confirmation Hearings; Gulf Oil Disaster's Environmental Impact; Quest for the World Cup, Tracking the Tropics, HBO Documentary on Iranian Woman, National HIV Testing Day, Scallop Season Opens Early

Aired June 27, 2010 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A Catholic congregation marching in today's gay pride parade in New York but their archbishop insists they leave their church banners behind. We'll tell you why this hour.

The moratorium on deepwater drilling as the Obama administration appeals to keep it in place. Some gulf residents wonder how much longer they'll have a job. That's at 4:00 Eastern Time.

And then at 5:00 p.m. Eastern, people who have preexisting medical conditions but can't find affordable coverage. Well, thanks to health care reform, that contentious battle, they're possibly just days away from financial relief.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

Police in Toronto are on guard. They're expecting more trouble as the G-20 Summit wraps up. Right now, world leaders are in the middle of a working lunch.

Let's get right to our chief business correspondent, Ali Velshi. So what's on the menu?

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'll tell you. You know, the one thing about these things, G-20 started last night, finishes up in a couple of hours, G-8 was before that. But a lot of the hard work is done. They've got agenda items and they've come to final agreement.

In fact, we're just seeing some word about what their final agreement is going to be on deficits, and, really, these world leaders are coming together and they're agreeing by 2013 to cut the deficits, which is a shortfall, Fredricka, between what you spend and what you take in. They want to cut those in half.

So they're moving forward on a number of things. I don't know if you can see it here, but they've just taken what they call their family photo, the - the G-20 leaders, and you can tell if you got them on TV, they're kind of hamming it up a little bit - Sarkozy and then the president with the President of South Africa, Jacob Zuma. The reporters were cheering for their own country. There were some catcalls about the World Cup. They all seem to be having a good time. But that does mask, Fred, a little bit of the - the division that was here. And basically that division can be - can be spelled out like this. The United States came in and said, look, we're not out of the woods yet. We don't want countries to pull back on their government spending. That spending, as you know, Fred, we've seen it the last couple of years, was meant to replace the spending the consumers were doing and the U.S. says don't stop. The - the biggest mistake you can make - Timothy Geithner, Treasury Secretary of the United States, said yesterday the biggest mistake you can make is to think this is over and pull out.

Now, the - who does U.S. disagree with here? The Europeans particularly Germany and Great Britain. So yesterday I had a chance - late yesterday afternoon to catch up with the head of the E.U Commission, Mr. Barroso, and I asked him, I put this question to him about whether there are differences, and most importantly, could we get into another pickle again? Could we have another country throwing the world into financial turmoil like we saw with Greece? Here's what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: Are you - are you feeling like we've seen the worst of it, we're not going to go through another Greece?

JOSE MANUEL BARROSO, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: Look, if there was another case like the one you mentioned, we will be more than prepared to face it, because now the Americans are ready. Americans are established to act.

When the Greek problem came, frankly speaking, it was an unprecedented problem. It was the first time we had this question of the sovereign debt crisis in one member of their area. So we have to invent the response.

It was the first time from an institutional, political and also from a financial point of view, we have to create some kind of mechanism and we have done it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: And that's Jose Manuel Barroso. He's the head of the E.U. Commission, former prime minister of Portugal.

Listen, the communique that is going to be coming out, Fred, Dan Lothian has just confirmed for us, we'll recommend that G-20 countries - and I have to say recommend, because these are not binding resolutions. But they will set the goal of cutting the deficits of these countries in half by 2013 and having a downward slope on debt, which is the accumulation of all the deficits by 2016.

Again, these are goals. Everybody will hit that differently. Long, long answer to your question, Fred, about what was on the menu, because the short answer to that question is they didn't invite me to lunch.

WHITFIELD: Oh, darn. Well, the invitation must have gotten lost in the mail.

VELSHI: Must have gotten lost in the mail.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ali Velshi, thanks so much in Toronto.

All right, back in this country. Gay pride parades are taking place in many cities. And in New York, a Catholic church that's been part of the parade for years now is doing things a little differently this year and not by choice.

Susan Candiotti is live in New York with more on the parade and the church - Susan.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. As always, this is a very colorful parade. Even companies like Macy's and Delta Airlines participate. And for about 12 years, St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church has, too. They march under the church banner.

But this year the archbishop of New York - all right. Just one second, please. Thank you. The archbishop of New York has asked the churchgoers not to use their church banner even though the parishioners see this as an opportunity to evangelize, to reach out to gay Catholics.

So instead the church this year decided to march with a blank banner and wear t-shirts with the church's name on it as a sign of protest. Here is what one parishioner said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHANIE SAMOY, ST. FRANCIS XAVIER CATHOLIC CHURCH LESBIAN GROUP: What did I think? Well, the hell, no. So - and I was angry, angry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: So, again, as a silence protest, they march with a blank banner. Now, some theologians say that the Vatican is in quite a dilemma these days how to minister the gay Catholics, but on the other hand saying that homosexuality is some kind of a disorder.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PROFESSOR MICHELE DILLON, UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE: The Vatican has been extremely clear that homosexuality as they have, say, generally refer to it, is an objectively disorder condition and for Catholics to claim that they're Catholic and gay is to be contradictory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Well, the gay ministries of St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church say they love their pastor, they love their church and they will continue to march in this parade with or without their banner in the coming years, and hope that all of this controversy winds up in some sort of dialogue with the archbishop. The archbishop had no comment about this for CNN.

Fredricka, back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Susan Candiotti, thanks so much. That was a very huge turnout for the Gay Pride Parade there in Manhattan.

Preparing for a Capitol Hill showdown now, Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan starts confirmation hearings tomorrow. Coming up, we'll take a look at some of the key issues on the table.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Today top lawmakers are suggesting President Obama need to - needs to make more changes in its Afghanistan team now that General Stanley McChrystal is out.

Let's go live to CNN's Sandra Endo in Washington - Sandra.

SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, there are strong words of criticism and confidence from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The confidence is for General David Petraeus, who is taking over command in the war in Afghanistan. But now some say a shake-up militarily may be a good opportunity for some on the civilian side to go as well.

Now, that should include the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry, or National Security Adviser James Jones, and the president's point man to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke. Here's what some lawmakers are dishing out today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. DIANE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: I think you put the general in, he should make the call. If he can't work with the ambassador, the ambassador should be changed. If he can't work with Holbrooke, that should change. I mean, I think we put all of our eggs in the Petraeus basket at this stage.

SEN. SAXBY CHAMBLISS (R), GEORGIA: Right now, as General Petraeus comes in with his team of military leaders, they've got to work hand in hand on the - with the civilian side, so I think it's an opportunity for the president to take a look at it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ENDO: So, clearly, frustration is bubbling up over getting some real success in Afghanistan - Fred.

WHITFIELD: And so also another bone of contention seems to be the president's July, 2011, next year, troop withdrawal deadline.

ENDO: Yes. That is going to be an interesting topic, because with General Petraeus on the hot seat on Tuesday, it will be a chance for lawmakers to really raise the debate over the president's deadline to begin withdrawing troops in July, 2011. It's a deadline General Petraeus supports, but critics argue why telegraph strategy with an arbitrary debate.

So many lawmakers now are saying a troop drawdown should be based on conditions in the war and shouldn't be set in stone.

WHITFIELD: All right. Sandra Endo, thanks so much, joining us from Washington.

All right. The political stage is set for tomorrow's Senate confirmation hearings for U.S. Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan. The White House is confident that when all is said and done, she will get the votes to be confirmed. But her lack of experience as a judge and her political history have some concerned.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELENA KAGAN, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: I look forward to working with the Senate in this next stage of this process.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Elena Kagan has been quietly working with White House lawyers to prepare for her big moment in the political spotlight. Every aspect of her academic career and government service scrutinized for clues about the kind of justice she would become.

The president who nominated her last month thinks he knows.

PRES. BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: That understanding of law, not as an intellectual exercise or words on a page, but as it affects the lives of ordinary people has animated every step of Elena's career.

BOLDUAN: Republican senators for their part promise a fair but tough examination of her record in two Democratic administrations, past and present. Possible areas of concern? Her resistance to allowing military recruiters on campus when she was dean of Harvard Law School, this because of the Pentagon's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy on gays in the military. Kagan called the policy a quote, "profound wrong".

Also, her often politically focused views as a top aide in the Clinton White House on a range of hot button issues like abortion, gun rights and executive power.

Then, there's Kagan's lack of judicial experience which worries both Liberals and Conservatives.

CARRIE SEVERINO, JUDICIAL CRISIS NETWORK: The only thing she's ever done is politics, and so the concern is that she'll just continue that in the bench and continue to be a rubber stamp of the agenda for the administration she works for now.

BOLDUAN: The White House publicly insists Kagan will be a fair and impartial judge and has quietly assured Liberals she will be a liable vote on the left. Bipartisan prays as well for her consensus building skills with those of differing viewpoints and assets some analysts think will benefit her on a divided high court. THOMAS GOLDSTEIN, FOUNDER, SCOTUSBLOG.COM: President Obama couldn't really hope to appoint somebody who's going to really change the views of the Conservatives on the Supreme Court. They have very strongly held opinions on lots of important legal questions. What he could hope for and what he may well have gotten is a nominee who has the skill set to find accommodations between the left and the right, to find the common ground for them, and in that way, maybe pull the court a little bit to the left.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And that was Kate Bolduan reporting.

As a backdrop to the drama on the Capitol Hill, the Supreme Court will issue this term's final opinions on Monday. The justices will rule on a blockbuster case over the right to bear arms and may overturn a strict handgun ban in Chicago.

CNN's live coverage of the hearings for Elena Kagan, President Obama second Supreme Court nominee begins tomorrow at noon Eastern.

All right. So what's in store for the Gulf of Mexico? We'll talk with ocean explorer, Jean-Michel Cousteau about the environmental legacy of the worst oil spill in this nation. Plus, the latest on the remnants of tropical storm Alex and how what's happening today just might impact that storm.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now. Vice President Dick Cheney is expected to be released from a Washington area hospital tomorrow. His daughter, Liz Cheney, says he is feeling better after getting treatment to relieve a fluid buildup that has been affecting his heart. A family friend tells CNN that Cheney was hospitalized late last week because of an irregular heart rhythm.

And tense confrontations in the streets of Toronto between police and protestors at the G-20 summit. Some 90 protestors have been arrested today on top of some 300 arrests on Saturday. World leaders including President Obama are focusing on ways to keep deficits from choking the global economic recovery.

And forecasters are watching for the remnants of what was tropical storm Alex to regain strength as the system moves into the Gulf of Mexico later on today. They predict that bad weather will steer clear of the oil spill disaster area and head for Mainland Mexico. But if it shifts course, it could temporarily stop oil recovery efforts.

And we know the oil spill in the gulf is a major environmental disaster, but what's not known are the long-term effects of the oil spill and how we actually start getting a handle on solving this problem.

Joining us is ocean explorer and environmentalist, Jean-Michel Cousteau. He has visited the gulf in recent weeks. He has also written a book about his father, you know him of course, Jacques Cousteau, the famous marine explorer.

Welcome to you, Jean-Michel.

JEAN-MICHEL COUSTEAU, OCEAN EXPLORER AND ENVIRONMENTALIST: Welcome. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Well, give me an idea, before we talk about your book, let's talk about your observation in the Gulf of Mexico. You are to return to the Gulf of Mexico this week, if - if I have my information correct. What's your expectation of what you will see compared to what you have already seen there?

COUSTEAU: Well, if I knew, I wouldn't go back, but I know it's getting worse all the time, and we were there twice already. The second time we were trying to really make people make decisions about some of those technologies that are available to clean up the mess.

We are here for solutions. There is a number of ways that we can help. We're not there to point fingers, but Ecosphere Technology is one of the technologies that is working with the oil companies already but not in the gulf, and we need permission to put it out there so we can treat, was one of the 20 pieces of equipment that are available, million gallons a day by not putting anything in the ocean and separating the oil and the dispersant and putting the clean water back in there.

WHITFIELD: And, in fact, one of the - that was one of the technologies that we featured last weekend Sunday, where we talked to a couple investors of this effort where it helps to push what - a type of air into the water to push this oil to the surface and then separate the oil and the water into a barge and the fresh water goes back into the ocean and this container holds the oil. Do I have that about right?

COUSTEAU: Well, you have that right about that approach to the technology. I am referring to the same pieces of equipment that can literally, along the coastline today, without going deep, clean the mess along the coastline and separate the oil and the dispersant and put the oil - the water back into the environment.

And that's why we're going back, because we want to help. We're there to - we're not pointing fingers. We have the most devastating man-made catastrophe when it comes to the environment and to the ocean, which happens to be a life support system ever on the planet. It's not just the U.S., it's anywhere. So we want to take actions, we want to help, and that's why we're going back again thanks to the people supporting our little expedition to be there, and we'll be there for as long as we can and at least for the next month.

WHITFIELD: So Jean-Michel, you have these ways to help. Are you finding it's a difficult sell right now to try to recruit the government on board or BP to get on board to adopt some of this message that you would like to propose and you have been proposing to clean up this oil spill?

COUSTEAU: We've been on stand-by for several weeks. I would say at least five or six weeks, and it's all red tape, it's all people questioning this and that. BP has -

WHITFIELD: So they're not necessarily sold that these are effective method?

COUSTEAU: Well, those - those methods work. You know, many years ago after September 11, a very similar piece of equipment from the same company was in New York on one of the piers pumping water from the harbor where you had dead things, cats and dogs, and at the end of that piece of equipment, I was drinking the water.

So we're talking about something that has proven itself. There are many oil companies that are using it to clean the water that's been used when they're pumping gas on land, and that can be immediately put in place within the next 24 to 72 hours, 24 pieces of equipment can be in place, and we'll treat over 20 million gallons a day.

WHITFIELD: As an ocean conservationist and as an environmentalist, is there anything about the scenario right now that is being played out in the Gulf of Mexico that encourages you about the future of the marine life, about any lifestyle surrounding the Gulf of Mexico?

COUSTEAU: I don't want to be skeptical, but I see tens of thousands of people with stress on their faces. People who cannot go back to work. We don't know how they're going to feed their family tomorrow.

And I'm saying this is the huge kick in the butt that we need internationally to create an international commission not impacted by money from industries, not impacted by political pressures one way or the other that will make every one of us obey by the same regulations, prevention, prevention, prevention, and in case of an accident because we make mistakes, what are we going to do? One, two, three, which in this particular case nobody was prepared for after they took a lot of shortcuts.

WHITFIELD: If a commission like that is created, and before that is created, because it sounds like it may be years away if that even comes to pass, what do you see happening to the marine life there in the Gulf of Mexico in the interim as this oil continues to gush?

COUSTEAU: Well, for the time being, between the dispersant and the oil itself, the entire water column all the way down to where that oil is coming out is being affected. We're talking about things we don't see and we are visual creatures so we relate to birds that are dying, we relate to dolphins that are running around.

What about everything else in the food chain from the plankton, which is really the foundations of all marine life, all the way up the food chain to the surface? All of that is being affected right now. So the consequences are long term, like we'd experienced in the Exxon Valdez where I was 21 years ago, like we've experienced in Spain with the Prestige. Their consequences are for decades, and I don't know how we can look at and say to those people straight in the face, you will get your job back. We are heading for major issues and we want to help as much as we can. We need to stop this leak, and I know how complicated it is, and we need to clean the mess as much as we can, and as soon as we can before it reaches the coastline, and it already has. It's heading toward Florida. It's going to come up into the Caribbean. It's going to be coming (ph) into the Gulf Stream, and it's going to go all the way to the U.K., to France, to Spain and to Portugal.

WHITFIELD: Well, you're not sounding very hopeful about this at all. All of this at a time that you're also promoting your book, "My Father, The Captain". The world knows your father many times over, Jacques Cousteau, but perhaps they don't know him like you're portraying him in your book.

How much are you thinking of your father as the world watches how the Gulf of Mexico, how this catastrophe will be stopped or healed? How much are you thinking about your dad as you help promote this book and as everyone watches, you know, what may be a futile, I guess, future for the gulf?

COUSTEAU: Well, my dear father taught me a lot and so did his team and this is teamwork, and what he was telling us, I remember in 1971 he said, if in 20, 30, 50 years from now we haven't taken care of ourselves of our life support system, it may be too late. This is in 11 years from now.

And, you know, in honor of his 100th anniversary, the book is being published by National Geographic, and I'm wearing and many of us and the entire people on the sanctuary, we're wearing this two days ago, but he did this so we start doing this to ourselves. This is what we're doing right now to ourselves. You're talking about the oil spill which now has reached the coastline.

You're talking about even these little crabs that cannot dive down because the oil is keeping them on top of the surface. We're talking about the Portuguese Men of War. This is what we're doing. I know it's not as spectacular as looking at a dolphin, looking at a turtle, but everything else is being affected by what we're doing, and that's what he taught us. That's where he has helped us understand, and I think we know enough today where we can change. We can make a difference.

And I strongly believe in the face of young people, the next generation, we're not going to let them down. We're going to make a difference. We need to roll up our sleeves and go to work and stop abusing our life support system, which means abusing every one of us.

WHITFIELD: Jean-Michel Cousteau, thanks so much for carrying on the legacy of helping to impress upon everyone how to appreciate our marine life, our ocean, our environment. Also the author of "My Father, the Captain". Thanks so much for your time and all the best as you make your way towards the gulf this week as well.

COUSTEAU: Thank you very much. We'll be back.

WHITFIELD: OK. All right. A battle of heavyweights at the World Cup - Germany versus England. We'll show you which fans are still cheering.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: OK, if you know football, you know that England takes that sport very seriously. Fans dropped everything to watch today's World Cup match against Germany. Even in Afghanistan, some British troops took a break to watch the action coming from South Africa.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STAFF SGT. NATHAN GEARING, BRITISH ARMED FORCES: The guys are working really hard out here, and this is the highlight of it all, really. The guys have to got to look forward to watching the World Cup. Everybody back in the U.K., all the high hopes and everything before the World Cup starts, and then kickoff starts and then that's it. The hopes are gone for the nation. It's a shame, really, but let's just hope Holland wins now because they're in my sweepstakes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, so yes, it's a bit of a downer for those troops that their beloved England got trounced by Germany. CNN's Alex Thomas joins us now from Bloemfontein, South Africa. What's next? All right, so what's next? They say Holland.

ALEX THOMAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no need to rub it in, Fredricka. No absolutely, I mean this is a match between two great rivals that we saw here. In a couple of hours since the game in the Free State Stadium behind me, the strong wind has picked up, but it's England that's been blowing away.

They famously won their only World Cup back in 1966, beating West Germany in the final. But since then, history has firmly been on the side of the Germans and it was again in here. An action-packed game. Let's take a look at the highlights for you between these two great rivals in the venue behind me.

It all burst into life twenty minutes into the match, when Germany's Miroslav Klose out-muscled and out-stretched Matthew Upson to steer along ball past England's goalkeeper, David James in the 20th minute.

Shortly after, Thomas Mueller found Lukas Podolski unmarked, from a tight angle there in, he beat James to put Germany two up. England didn't crumble, and quickly hit back when Steven Gerrard's cross was met by Upson's head, the westbound defender, making amends for his earlier laps.

And before halftime, England thought they'd leveled the scores, thanks to Frank Lampard's delicate lob. The ball seemed to be well over the line, but without the benefit of video replays, the official disallowed it.

Germany then extended their lead in the second half when the outstanding Bastian Schweinsteiger crossed to rifle a shot passed James, and Germany sealed their biggest-ever win over England when Mueller claimed another three minute later.

So 4-1, the final score in favor of Germany, and you know, they've got a terribly young and exciting team, Fredricka, under their coach Joachim Loew. They thought it would take a couple years for them to fully mature, but they could be a threat of the bigger sides of this World Cup.

As for England, well, a "Golden Generation" so-called in the English league here, the likes of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, and John Terry are possibly now too old to ever have another World Cup, and maybe they've missed their final chance to win football's biggest prize of all.

One other line for you entrusting that the British Prime Minister Tony Blair watched the second half alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel. She apologized apparently for that disallowed goal. No need. To any England fans we've been speaking to here said it wasn't the goal that failed England, it was just poor tactics.

WHITFIELD: Oh, darn. All right, well better luck next time, I guess, and maybe the guys that you say are too old for the next four years, maybe they'll get some new blood in them and maybe there is hope for four years from now. Alex Thomas, thanks so much, and in the interim, of course.

All right, the Atlantic hurricane season's first named storm? Well it's lost some punch. What was tropical storm Alex is now a tropical depression after splashing ashore in Belize. It moved on to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula where it has dumped heavy rain.

The system is expected to strengthen when it moves into the Gulf of Mexico, however. But right now it's not expected to effect the oil disaster, though. At least, that's the hope, right? Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras with us now. Boy, that's what these tropical storms and hurricanes do. They have you like on the edge of your seat, and then you're like OK, that's OK, and then you're back on the edge of your seat again. So

JERAS: I know, it's all still --

WHITFIELD: Unpredictable, right?

JERAS: Well, things could still change, you know, and something to keep in mind is when tropical systems are over land that changes the ball game a little bit because it becomes more unpredictable as it interacts with that land. But we have a pretty good handle, we think, on where this thing is going.

And as you mentioned, it is a tropical depression right now, and kind of a large system. It's pulling off the Yucatan. We think it's going to be back over open water even later on tonight. So even the winds, 35 mph maximum is sustained. The biggest threat right now is the heavy rainfall and some flash flooding, maybe even the threat of some mudslides here. Four to eight inches of rain easy across the Yucatan Peninsula and some of the higher elevations you can see locally heavier amounts. Now as it moves back over open water, that is the concern. Right now it's moving in a west to northwesterly direction, so it's going to be moving into the Bay of Campeche here and the wind conditions are very, very light.

The water temperatures are extremely warm so it's not going to take we think for this thing to bump back up to tropical storm Alex and eventually likely become our first hurricane of the season, and become Hurricane Alex. Maximum winds, you know, 75-85 mph perhaps.

Landfall at the earliest we think would take place on Thursday. But keep in mind, look at that cone of uncertainty. It is pretty wide that far out, and Texas is still within that column. So that's something we'll be watching in the days to come, and there is a quick look at some of those computer models, a couple of which do bring it farther north. So we don't want to write off Alex altogether just yet for the U.S.

A couple of other weather headlines that we have at this hour, some severe thunderstorms have been rumbling across parts of the Great Lakes and upper Midwest. Detroit, we want to tell you about a severe thunderstorm that's moving through right now, two of them, actually. One to your south that does have possible rotation on it, so tornado warning for Winn County. This is the south side of town that we're concerned about.

Heat, our last weather headline, we've got a lot of that across parts of the southeast. We'll tell you more about that later in the Newsroom, Fredricka. It is summer but when we're talking triple digits, that's uncomfortable.

WHITFIELD: Yes, we're feeling it. We are feeling it already. Thanks so much, Jacqui.

JERAS: Sure.

WHITFIELD: Her death was seen around the world on the Internet. Now HBO wants you to know the rest of the story about this Iranian woman who many consider a martyr.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories right now. Along the Gulf Coast, a day of prayer for the victims of the oil disaster. The governors of Texas. Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama are asking people to remember the 11 workers killed when the oil rig exploded. They're asking people to pray for fisherman and others who have lost their livelihoods because of the disaster.

In central Asia, there were no reports of violence as voters in Kyrgyzstan went to the polls today for a referendum for a new constitution. We've gotten word that the referendum passed. The vote comes just weeks after deadly ethnic classes killed at least 275 people in the southern part of the country. Right now, Kyrgyzstan is under an interim government. The new constitution would curb the president's powers and set up a parliamentary republic.

And in the Middle East, a captured Israeli soldier's family sets out on a long journey to press for his release. They are spending 12 days marching to Jerusalem and they're joined by 2,000 supporters. Gilad Shalit was captured by Hamas militants in Gaza more then four years ago. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will meet with Shalit's family in Jerusalem.

One year ago, the Iranian presidential elections provoked violent protests. Well now, a new HBO documentary tells the story of Neda, the young Iranian woman whose death on a Tehran street during those protests captured by cell phones and uplinked almost immediately to the Internet.

She had been shot through the heart while demonstrating Iran's elections. The HBO documentary makers had to smuggle video out of Iran to bring you this story. Here's a peek.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

Reporter: My God, I thought, I'm actually filming in Neda's home. When I went into her bedroom, I thought, Neda used to walk in here every day. This is where she slept. She was no longer a stranger. Neda's mother was immediately warm towards me. At first I addressed her as Mrs. Nostani, but in no time I was calling her mother.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, so why now, one year after Neda's death? The film's director says he's on a mission.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY THOMAS, FILM DIRECTOR: I wanted to make sure that Neda would never be forgotten. I know Iran very well, and I've been there as we've seen in 2007 and frankly, I just fell in love with Iranian people. And I really felt that in the west, particularly Britain, the United States, we think of the Iranian people as sort of 70 million fanatics.

I really wanted to make a film which they would be seeing in a different light. And finally, I wanted those brave people who'd taken to the streets to know that they weren't forgotten. When the first reports came out, it was suggested that she had nothing to do with the demonstrations at all.

She was in the car, the car was stopped by demonstrators, she got out to get some fresh air and then she was shot. So what did motivate her? What I found fascinating about her, really, really fascinating, was that A, she wasn't that bystander who just was shot by accident. She was actively taking part in the demonstrations. But she was not a political person.

She didn't belong to any political group, any movement or anything like that. She was just like millions and millions of other young girls all over the world. She just wanted the freedom to be, to wear the clothes she wanted, to go to the gym, to dance, to be with friends, but what she did have, which many of those millions probably don't have, is just unbelievable courage and strength and determination.

And she was out there on the street, as witnesses tell you in the film, really drawing attention to herself. And she died for her beliefs. I would love to show it to the Iranian president. Indeed, I hope he's already seen it. And what I want him to take away from this is really, please, Mr. President, rethink. Let's have a real democratic election for the Iranian people, and please respect those results.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And you can see this documentary on HBO's On Demand until July 7th.

We're getting this information just in. West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd is at a hospital, and we understand in that Washington area hospital he is listed in serious condition. Apparently he was admitted earlier last week because of heat exhaustion and severe dehydration as a result of extreme temperatures there in the Washington, D.C. Of course when we get any more information on Senator Robert Byrd's condition, of West Virginia, we'll bring that along to you.

In the meantime, there's a national push to make sure you know whether you have HIV. Next, how to find out.

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WHITFIELD: Today is National HIV Testing Day. Here in Atlanta, Mayor Kasim Reed is hosting a testing event to raise awareness about the need for people to know their HIV status. Our cameras followed one woman went through the process to find out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAIGE LEE, ATLANTA RESIDENT: Who did I have sex with, when, where, how, when? Just a lot of questions go through your mind. Just seems like if I go and they tell me I'm HIV positive, how am I supposed to live with this?

I just have a lot of emotions going on. I feel nervous. I mean honestly, I believe my test is going to be negative, but like I said in the beginning, you never know. That's the hardest thing, just building up the courage to even do this.

My name is Paige Lee, I'm 20 years old and I'm being tested today for HIV and aids.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you said you are sexually active?

LEE: Uh-huh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell me what your knowledge is of how HIV can be transferred to you?

LEE: One reason I know, I had unprotected sex, using syringes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what I need for you to do is just to pull this out.

LEE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what you're going to do is take this piece and you're going to swab along the upper portion of your gum line and do the same thing around the bottom.

LEE: OK. I trust my partner and I feel like communication is really big with us, and I feel that we're going to be OK. You know, I just feel like we stick with what we're doing, I think we're fine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is going to take 20 minutes for the results to come up.

LEE: No it's not painful at all. Just a swab, no prick, no blood drawn or anything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So one line in between the C line lets us know we get enough specimen on the stick, and it also lets us know that she's negative. No HIV antibodies were found at the time of her test.

LEE: I knew coming in here my results were going to be negative, even though I was still nervous because you never know, but I feel relieved. HIV and AIDS is killing our people. I hope this interview will help someone. Go get tested and know your status.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, courageous young lady. So if you're uncertain about your status, or you would like to find an HIV testing site near you, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a web site that could help. Just direct your browser to hivtest.org.

All right, scallops are serious business along Florida's Gulf Coast, but the scallop season is changing because of, of course, the oil disaster. We'll take a look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: 33 rounds of golf? That's more than a year's worth for most weekend golfers, but Ben Berger did it in just one day. He played 612 holes in hall. It took 16 hours of course to complete the course, and it's part of his Par for the Cause fundraising effort. Berger has raised around $200,000 for a South Bend Indiana Autism Center. Congrats to him.

Getting ahead of the oil. That's exactly what they're trying to do in Florida where they have opened the important bay scallop season two weeks early. CNN oil platform journalist John Cowles went out with some regulars along Florida's gulf coast. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLIE NORWOOD, SEA HOG MARINE: Get in the water and see something. Maybe you can catch a scallop. You never know. We might get one or two. See you later, baby. That's one scallop-catching dog, isn't she? Fishing has become more and more regulated, more expensive to go fishing than it used to be.

Cost of the boats, cost of the gas, and scalloping has become more of the family thing to do. There's some folks coming in now. A bunch of boats. Do we go fishing or scalloping? They do the full scallop season and I bet they scallop three or four times a week. Hello. You guys just got here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we've been here several hours. I don't see the crowds down here that I usually see, but then scallop season opened about 12 days early this year.

NORWOOD: And it pretty much is the lifeline. It brings us a tremendous amount of out-of-town business. Beautiful. Got a whole bunch of them, huh baby? Excited they opened it early. We were concerned it was going to backfire on us, but so far the scalloping is good.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very addictive, because you think, if I just stay under a little longer, I could find more.

NORWOOD: It's just like a never-ending Easter egg hunt.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is. It is addictive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I noticed a little bit of oil on it and I thought, oh, my gosh. The oil is here. And then I realized it was some oil off the back of my motor, so we're good.

NORWOOD: The good news is we are very relieved and it gave us a tremendous amount of confidence to hear that others feel that the oil is not coming into the Big Bend area.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We came early after the governor opened it up and we thought this was going to be -- he may know something we don't.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are great. The fish will be in early.

NORWOOD: Scalloping to us is close to 70 percent of our business for the whole year that we get in a less than three-month cycle.

You guys will sleep good tonight, won't you? We have lost numerous bookings. I really think opening early give folks confidence that it will be a good scalloping season, they feel the oil is not going to come here for now and that they're going to keep their plans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow, that's a lot of hard work. Coming up in the CNN Newsroom at 4:00 Eastern time, we'll hear from Gulf Coast residents who worry that a federal moratorium on deep sea drilling will cause them their livelihood. And then at 5:00 p.m. Eastern, people who have preexisting medical conditions but can't find affordable coverage. Well, possibly just days away now from some relief, thanks to health care reform. Remember that? "Your $$$" begins right now.