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Southwest Airlines Cancels More Flights; President Obama Launches 2012 Bid; Rebels Rescued From Misrata; Gen. Petraeus Speaks Out about Koran Burning; Meet a Japanese Hero from Oshima Island; Eric Holder to Hold Press Conference About 9/11 Trials

Aired April 04, 2011 - 10:59   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux.

Want to get you up to speed this Monday morning, April 4th.

Tokyo Electric is dumping some 11,000 tons of water with low levels of radiation into the Pacific. Water is threatening to flood new generators and storage tanks are now full. If the generators are lost, crews would have to pour even more water to cool the nuclear fuel, continuing the cycle.

We're going to talk about the long-term impact on the ocean and marine life in just a few minutes.

(GUNFIRE)

MALVEAUX: Libyan rebels moved on the oil town of Brega today, but government troops stood their ground and forced them back. Wounded fighters from the besieged town of Misrata got an emotional welcome in rebel-held Benghazi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CHANTING)

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: An incredibly emotional moment here in the opposition capital of Benghazi as a Turkish hospital ship filled with 300 wounded people, all of them injured in the fighting in Misrata, has arrived here in Benghazi's naval port.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: The Libyan woman who told journalists she was gang-raped by Moammar Gadhafi's forces is no longer in custody. CNN reached Eman Obeidy by telephone. She says she is with family in Tripoli. This is the first independent confirmation of her well-being since she was taken away nine days ago.

Protesters in Yemen, out in full force in four cities today, keeping pressure on the country's president to resign. Troops lobbed tear gas at protesters in the Red Sea town Taiz on Sunday. Forces then opened fire, reportedly killing 12 people and wounding 500.

(CHANTING)

MALVEAUX: Afghanistan rocked by a fourth day of protests against a Florida preacher who burned the Koran. Reports say crowds turned out in three eastern cities today burning effigies of Pastor Terry Jones. Now, since Friday, more than 20 people have been killed, including several U.N. staffers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, COMMANDER, U.S. FORCES, AFGHANISTAN: We condemn the action of an individual in the United States who burned a holy Koran. That action was hateful, it was intolerant, and it was extremely disrespectful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: President Barack Obama today became the first candidate to file for the 2012 campaign. He begins a fund-raising spree that could top a record $1 billion. I'm talking "B," billion dollars.

The announcement came in a video clip on BarackObama.com. Supporters also received e-mail or text messages.

Well, CNN meteorologists say there is a good chance of a severe weather outbreak today across the mid-South from Jackson, Mississippi, to Memphis and Nashville. The system shifts east tonight. The risk zone will stretch all the way from Florida to Pennsylvania.

Well, one of two runways at the New Orleans airport remains closed right now. Smoke in the cockpit forced a United Airlines flight to return to New Orleans this morning after just minutes in the air.

Now, passengers slid to safety down those emergency chutes. United Flight 497 was headed for San Francisco.

Thousands of air travelers are now scrambling to make other plans today as Southwest Airlines cancels more and more flights. The airline is inspecting all of its Boeing 737s after a hole blew open in one of its planes Friday in mid-flight.

Our Jeanne Meserve, she's in Washington.

And Jeanne, tell us exactly what the airline is looking for. Because you can only imagine when those passengers saw the sky, looked up ahead, and thought, what on earth is going on?

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes. If you listen to the sound with some of them, they clearly were very startled and scared by developments. So Southwest is inspecting 79 Boeing 737- 300s in its fleet.

So far, small subsurface cracks have been detected in three additional aircraft. Nineteen have been returned to service.

Boeing is drafting a voluntary service bulletin, and the Federal Aviation Administration is likely to mandate inspections. We don't know how broad their order will be, but it could involve other 737 models and other airlines. We will see.

Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board investigators have removed a section of the ruptured fuselage skin from the Southwest plane. It is being sent back to Washington for in-depth analysis by experts so they can learn more about what went wrong here and, of course, how to correct it -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And Jeanne, do we know how old these planes are that they're looking at? And how old is really too old before they are just not any good anymore and these kinds of things can happen?

MESERVE: These planes are middle-aged. That's how you would characterize them.

They are about 15 years old. But every time they take off and every time they land there is compression and decompression. That puts stress on the aircraft.

And Southwest aircraft get a lot of use, averaging six flights per day. Now, that is part of the calculation when maintenance schedules are set. And this plane got a heavy-duty inspection last March.

Either there was something missed by the people who were inspecting it, or the cracks developed very quickly. Investigators will be looking at that question.

At this point, according to the NTSB, the kind of joint where the problem appears to have developed gets only a visual inspection. Something more may eventually be called for. We will see.

What everyone is remembering, of course, is that 1988 Aloha flight where a large portion of the fuselage simply peeled away and one flight attendant was killed. That was a watershed moment in the whole field of metal fatigue and aircraft aging. Who knows what we'll learn from this one?

Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Jeanne.

Jeanne Meserve, out of Washington.

Here's what we have ahead "On the Rundown."

President Obama is trying to raise $1 billion for the re-election campaign he announced just today. We're going to take a look at his competition.

Plus, hope for the wounded in Libya. A hospital ship docks at rebel- controlled port cities.

And radioactive water from Japan's damaged nuclear plant going now right into the Pacific.

Also, a pastor burns a Koran in Florida. Now people are dying in Afghanistan. And parts of the Midwest brutalized by severe weather. We're going to tell you where the storm is headed next.

And this from Japan's tsunami zone --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: "I talked to my boat and said, 'You have been with me 42 years. If we live or die, we'll be together.' Then I pushed on the full throttle."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Well, you knew he'd run for re-election. Now it is official. President Obama today launched his re-election bid for 2012 in a video on his Web site. The president hopes to raise, he says, $1 billion for his campaign.

Our national political correspondent, Jessica Yellin, joins us live from D.C.

Jessica, this is your moment. I mean, the campaign, it's officially kicking off now. Yes?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's the Democrats' moment, that's for sure. And the president is in the game, very clearly. He can also start raising money, and that's the game that he has to get in right now.

You mentioned a billion dollars, Suzanne. I keep saying we should have asterisks, exclamation points and bells around that, because that is an unbelievable number, record-breaking. And that's one of the reasons he has to get in so early. You know, earlier than other presidents have, slightly. And because he needs to raise a huge amount of money if he's going to meet that goal, and it's not easy.

MALVEAUX: And how does the president match up to some of the GOP contenders, the Republicans? We're talking about those who are out there, Huckabee, Romney, Christie, Palin, the whole group of them.

YELLIN: Yes. It depends who he's running against. So here's a look at some poll numbers.

With Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, it's essentially a statistical dead heat. You see 44-43.

If Chris Christie, the New Jersey governor, for example, should get in, President Obama is six points ahead. But there's no indication Chris Christie is getting in. It's just a big fear among the Democrats because he's such a formidable candidate, and that gap would close.

And then, Sarah Palin, for example, he would trounce her. The president, right now, 54 points to Palin's 34. And don't forget that the Republicans still have a primary to get through, so a lot of -- they're going to have to fight one another's attacks while the president gets all the trappings of the Oval Office to campaign from.

MALVEAUX: And Jessica, I understand that these contenders also have some big challenges as well.

YELLIN: That's right. I mean, some of the top contenders are Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, and Tim Pawlenty, because those are three that we know that will run and seem to have very strong machines, or organizations, behind them. But each of them has key challenges, obstacles to overcome, if they hope to get the Republican nomination.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

YELLIN (voice-over): Mitt Romney. He has a fierce fund-raising machine, broad name recognition, and he's getting praise from the man in the Oval Office.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I agree with Mitt Romney, who recently said he's proud of what he accomplished on health care in Massachusetts.

YELLIN: What's that about? Well, health care reform could well be Romney's Achilles heel. As Massachusetts governor, he signed a health care reform law that included a mandate, and it's a lot like the Obama health care plan, which is wildly unpopular among Republican voters.

Here's the governor explaining it in New Hampshire.

MITT ROMNEY (R), FMR. MASSACHUSETTS GOVERNOR: Now our approach next door was a state plan to address state problems in ways that were unique to Massachusetts. Now, our experiment wasn't perfect.

YELLIN: For former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the challenge isn't policy. It's personal.

He's been married three times. He's admitted to having affairs. That's a tough sell for the values voters who naturally gravitate to social conservative positions.

Now he's asking for forgiveness now and offering a rationale on the Christian Broadcasting Network.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), FMR. HOUSE SPEAKER: Well, I mean, first of all, there is no question that at times in my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard, and that things happened in my life that were not appropriate.

YELLIN: That got the late night comics buzzing. Here's NBC's Jay Leno.

JAY LENO, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": Did you hear his explanation? He said he's so passionate, he's so passionate about America, that he loved it so much, that it led him to cheating. YELLIN: These days, Gingrich's wife is a prominent part of his team, and supporters are banking on his energetic campaign style, his wealth of ideas, and some name recognition to carry the day.

Then there's former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty. His biggest challenge? He hasn't grabbed a lot of notice. A fellow Republican joked --

REP. BEN QUAYLE (R), ARIZONA: Tim Pawlenty could win the general election and serve two consecutive terms before anyone would notice.

YELLIN: Ouch.

They noticed him when he was governor of Minnesota. He slashed government spending so much, he prompted a bus driver strike and a government shutdown.

As for his lack of pizzazz, here's what he told ABC's Terry Moran.

TIM PAWLENTY (R), FMR. MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: You can either look at pizzazz, or you can look at people's records and what they stand for and what they got done. And I'll take results over pizzazz any day of the week.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

YELLIN: And you can't talk about the election without mentioning Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee, Suzanne. Both have strong appeal to the conservative base, but they have challenges reaching Independent voters. Plus, there is no clear sign that either of them plans to run at all, and you can't win if you don't run -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK. We'll wait for the announcements. Thanks, Jessica.

YELLIN: Thanks.

MALVEAUX: The U.S. air strikes are set to end today, but the battle is still raging in Libya.

Our Reza Sayah spoke with a few of the rebels wounded in the fighting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: An incredibly emotional moment here in the opposition capital of Benghazi as a Turkish hospital ship filled with 300 wounded people, all of them injured in the fighting in Misrata, has arrived here in Benghazi's naval port.

Scores of opposition supporters here greeting this ship. They're chanting pro-opposition slogans, and those slogans being echoed by the people on the ship.

Getting on this ship hasn't been easy. After a good hour of pushing and shoving and jostling, I think we are about to finally make our way onto the ship.

(voice-over): Inside, the grim realities of war. Many here were on the doorsteps of death.

Businessman-turned-rebel Khalid Moteridi, shot twice by a sniper, he says. Twenty-year-old salesman-turned-rebel Mohammed El Suker hit by shrapnel. This man says he lost his nose when a medical crew he was helping came under fire.

The images, rare proof of the fierce fighting in Misrata. Rebels say the situation, growing desperate.

MOHAMMED EL SUKER, HIT BY SHRAPNEL (through translator): They are killing, violating our honor, robbing our homes. Anything that is wrong, they're doing it. You can't imagine what's going on there.

KHALID MOTERIDI, SHOT IN THE LEGS (through translator): We were fighting with light weapons, but they have so much more -- artillery, mortars, rocket-propelled grenades. That's how they were fighting back.

SAYAH: Not all the injured were fighting. Forty-six-year-old cab driver Mostafa Hamali lost half his leg.

MOSTAFA HAMALI, INJURED CAB DRIVER (through translator): I was driving with my wife and my car blew up. I don't know what happened.

SAYAH: Twelve-year-old Mohammed lost his eye, broke his leg, and suffered cuts to his face and arms when an explosive device hit his house, his father says.

MOHAMMED HAMDI SHEIKH, SON INJURED IN BLAST (through translator): I feel complete pride and true honor for what happened to my kids because it is for the sake of the country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Reza Sayah joins us from Benghazi.

And Reza, you saw the real misery on that ship. What is the morale like for the rebels right now?

SAYAH: Well, Suzanne, these rebel fighters may not have tanks, high- tech weapons and uniforms, but they do have a lot of determination and courage. They are a little reckless, sometimes, and sometimes they get down, but overall I think the morale is high and they are standing firm.

I spoke to a lot of injured rebel fighters, and they said they want to go back in there and fight. They say they want to free their country. One rebel fighter had with him a rock he picked up from a Misrata street, his way of staying close to his hometown.

So they are still remaining upbeat as best as they can, but obviously if this conflict continues, there's going to be a lot more casualties, Suzanne. The challenge is going to be getting to these casualties, getting them help.

MALVEAUX: All right. Reza Sayah, out of Benghazi, Libya.

Thank you so much, Reza.

Well, thousands of tons of radioactive water from Japan's crippled nuclear plant. What does the country do with it all? Well, how might it affect you? We're going to talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We have three stories featuring people who are lending a helping hand to others. Let us know which one of these you would like to see in the next hour.

You vote by texting 22360. Here are your options.

First, Washington's famous Cherry Blossom Festival in full swing. Japan donated the trees to D.C. almost a hundred years ago. Well, this year, the city is giving back in Japan's time of need.

Next choice, a couple trying to make a difference in the lives of young children fosters 100 kids and ends up adopting six of them. Now they are getting something from Uncle Sam that no one expected.

And finally, Japanese farmers trying to overcome fears of radiation in their produce get a unique show of solidarity from their customers.

So, vote by texting 22360. Text 1 for "Washington Festival Helps Japan"; text 2 for "Family With Six Adopted Kids Gets Surprise"; or vote 3 for "Japanese Show of Solidarity." The winning story will air in the next hour.

Well, the Japanese are getting ready to dump tons of radioactive water into the Pacific, and that is after failing to plug a crack that is leaking water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.

Michael Friedlander, he's a former senior nuclear power plant operator. He joins us from Hong Kong.

Michael, thanks again for being here, putting this all into perspective.

First of all, is there any alternative to dumping radioactive water now into the ocean?

MICHAEL FRIEDLANDER, FMR. SR. POWER PLANT OPERATOR: Yes, good evening, Suzanne.

You know what? This is a topic that I'm a bit frustrated with, because I am convinced that there are a whole host of alternatives.

One, we could drop a sump pump in there, and we could pump the contents of that channel into a rubberized bladder. We could put it into a tanker truck.

Now, I fully acknowledge that that water is extremely radioactive, and of course we could put some measures in place to protect the people from it. But I certainly think that there are a number of very reasonable alternatives rather than just simply letting it dump into the Pacific Ocean.

MALVEAUX: Why do you suppose that they are not even using, considering these alternatives?

FRIEDLANDER: Yes. You know what? I think that that's a good idea.

There is no doubt that these guys are stretched absolutely beyond their resources, and probably beyond their managerial oversight. And I quite honestly think that it's the simplest solution to them right now, and perhaps they are not even thinking of different alternatives.

MALVEAUX: Michael, I spoke with Dr. Greg Bossart -- this was just last week -- who said the impact of radiation in this water could be very harmful to sea life, like dolphins, all mammals, as a matter of fact. I want you to listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREG BOSSART, CHIEF VETERINARY OFFICER, GEORGIA AQUARIUM: The immediate effects of a high-dose radiation effect really rapidly dividing cells in our body like our intestinal tract, our bone marrow, our skin. So, the immediate effects, you would see conditions like diarrhea, vomiting, skin rashes, loss of hair. But down the road, the delayed actions are even more worrisome, because there you get into impacts like cancer, infertility, anemia, recurrent diseases, impact on your immune system.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So, Michael, if they are now dumping radioactive water directly now into the ocean, could this be even worse?

FRIEDLANDER: Well, you know what, Suzanne? The levels of radioactivity that they are tracking are quite a bit lower than the levels that would be needed to give those type of symptoms that the doctor had indicated in your segment earlier.

However, the one thing that we do not know about and the one thing that concerns me as much as anything are, as he indicated, sort of the long-term consequences, particularly as the longer-lived isotopes concentrate in the food chain. That's something that, absolutely, I think the authorities need to monitor, and not just over the next weeks and months, but this is for many years into the future.

MALVEAUX: Should we be worried to hear that this radioactive water is now being pumped into the Pacific?

FRIEDLANDER: It's a good question. And I'm not exactly sure that there is any real tangible answer to your question.

I think that given the alternatives, that there are certainly alternatives that should be explored. Given the fact that though that it's a Japanese sovereign territory, and the Japanese government is currently in charge of running it, I'm not sure, quite honestly, that we have any alternative.

Certainly, though, I think as the consequences of it, there needs to be a heightened level of monitoring and oversight as to what's going on. We need to be looking at the food chain. I certainly think that the World Health Organization and the U.N. authorities need to be involved in monitoring what's going on here.

MALVEAUX: OK. Michael Friedlander, thank you so much, as always, for putting this into perspective.

Well, on a happy note -- we like happy notes -- a dog and her owner have been reunited more than three weeks after the earthquake and tsunami. The two were separated when the disaster hit. The dog was spotted over the weekend floating on top of debris about a mile out into the ocean. The owner recognized her dog from the video.

More deadly protests in Afghanistan.

(GUNFIRE)

MALVEAUX: Anger over the burning of a Koran in the United States. A live report from the Pentagon, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Ahead "On the Rundown," revenge killings in Afghanistan after a Florida pastor sets Islam's holy book on fire.

Plus, after battering the Midwest this weekend, severe weather is now on the move.

And the president has declared he wants another term.

Also, protesters have taken to the streets of Afghanistan for a fourth straight day. They are outraged over the burning of a Koran by a pastor in Florida. Now, so far, 20 people have been killed in the protests.

General David Petraeus, the top military commander in Afghanistan, is one of just several U.S. officials who's speaking out against the destruction of the Muslim holy book.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, COMMANDER, U.S. FORCES IN AFGHANISTAN: We condemn the action of an individual in the United States who burned a holy Koran. That action was hateful. It was intolerant, and it was extremely disrespectful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: President Obama, he has also condemned the burning of the Koran. I want to bring in our CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.

Barbara, thanks for being here. First of all, one person burns a Koran in the United States and then you've got rioters in Afghanistan kill 20 people. What does that say, do you think, about our alliance, the United States alliance with the Afghan people?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Suzanne, think of it this way. The U.S. strategy right now is basically to try and build trust with the Afghan government, with the Afghan people so Afghan security forces can take over and U.S. troops can come home.

This perhaps shows the fragility of that trust and that relationship between the U.S. and the Afghan side. The violence erupted very quickly after it became known inside Afghanistan that the Koran had been burned by the Florida pastor.

And it just shows when you see President Obama going out, David Petraeus going out, top officials speaking out about this, the level of concern that they have about the violence and trying to get a handle on it and trying to get a handle on it and trying one more time to demonstrate to the Afghan people that the coalition is there to try and help, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And Barbara, you know better than anybody. We've got, what, 90,000 U.S. troops over there, spent an estimated $450 billion. There's a lot of blood and treasure to try to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people.

Do we know if these were Afghan citizens or the Taliban? Do we have any idea who's been attacking the U.N. and U.S. workers?

STARR: Well, you know, this has now spread to several cities in Afghanistan, both in the north and in the east and southeast. And you see the pictures. It appears to be large numbers of people. I think that's the question: are the insurgents and the Taliban behind some of this stirring it up, getting people to come out on the street, having the imams talk about it at Friday prayers, which then has believed to resulted in people coming out and protesting?

There really isn't a good handle on that question. U.S. officials do believe that some of the insurgent and Taliban leaders are behind stirring some of this up. But clearly, there are a large number of Afghan people that are very upset about what happened.

MALVEAUX: And Barbara, from the people that you talked to inside the building and throughout the administration, do they believe in some way that this Koran burning could be used as an excuse to express real hatred toward the United States and its presence in Afghanistan?

STARR: Well, whatever the motivations are of the Afghan people, I mean, this is something that strikes very deep, certainly inside Afghanistan and across the Islamic world.

There have been these types of incidents before where people of the Islamic faith have good reason to be very concerned and very upset about slurs about their religion and against their faith. And there have been very public demonstrations of how upset they are. But the violence, the rioting, if you will, the murders that took place at the U.N. compound on Friday in northern Afghanistan, that is something else, again and the U.S. wants to see it stopped, absolutely, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you very much. Barbara Starr from the Pentagon.

We have three unique stories today featuring people going out of their way to help others. Vote today's Choose the News by texting 22360.

Text one to learn how Washington is using this year's Cherry Blossom Festival to help Japan.

Vote two, to hear the story of a couple who adopted six children and a surprise thanks from the federal government.

And text three, for the special show of solidarity some Japanese are showing to farmers dealing with radiation and their crops.

Storm clouds now gathering. We're going to tell you who needs to be on the lookout.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Checking stories from around the country. A wildfire forced people in Colorado out of more than 300 homes. This happened last night. They were allowed back after the winds shifted, but not before at least 15 homes burned to the ground.

Kids in Spavinaw, Oklahoma have class off today. Classes were cancelled after strong winds ripped off part of the school's roof yesterday. That is where the cafeteria and the offices are located.

Right now in Memphis, Tennessee, it's in the bull's eye. Nasty storms all around.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Endeavour's final mission to space, it has been delayed. NASA announced this morning that the space shuttle will lift off on April 29th. The 10-day delay is due to a scheduling conflict with a Russian cargo ship that's set to dock at the International Space Station.

Well, President Obama is making it official. He's running for re- election. We're going to talk presidential politics with Mark Preston, part of the Best Political Team on Television.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The race for 2012 begins right now. President Obama has announced his reelection bid in a video featuring what his campaign calls his grassroots supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Unfortunately President Obama is one person. He cannot go -- plus, he's got a job. We're paying him to do a job so we can't say, hey, can you just take some time off and come and get us all energized? So we better figure it out. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Mark Preston, part of the Best Political Team on Television live from the political desk in Washington, D.C.

Mark, great to see you.

He's got a job. That's what she said. He has a job. Why is he launching the campaign today?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, you know, Suzanne, it really comes down to money. The fact of the matter is, we are looking at perhaps a $750 million to $1 billion campaign and that's just from President Obama. That's what we expect him to raise over the next year and a half as he runs for reelection.

In order to start raising that money, he needs to file paperwork here in Washington, D.C. with the Federal Election Commission to begin doing so. And that's why we saw the campaign start today.

MALVEAUX: So the ad says it begins with us, but it also begins with this budget, this billion dollar budget that they're hoping to raise. In addition, Mark, to raising the money, he needs to fire up his supporters here. The last time he leaned heavily on young voters, African-Americans, Independents.

Who is he trying to reach this go-round?

PRESTON: He's trying to reach them all again. And, in fact, specifically he needs to reach out to liberal voters who seem a little bit angry at President Obama. Some folks on the liberal side are upset that the health care legislation didn't go far enough. Other folks on the liberal side are upset that Guantanamo Bay is still operating. You know, President Obama said that he would close it down.

But at the same time, Suzanne, he needs to reach out to Independent voters. You know, he's lost them, according to public polling. Independent voters are skewing a little bit more Republican. So, President Obama needs to walk a very fine line between getting that base back, those liberal voters, those young voters, as well as making sure the Independents vote for him again in 2012.

MALVEAUX: So Mark, you know, we see the YouTube clip that was mailed out. Folks, they're on a first-name basis, they're young, they're women, Hispanic. And then there's just a brief flash of the president from the campaign.

Why do you suppose he doesn't address us in this ad?

PRESTON: Well, two reasons. One is the fact of the matter is, it is still a little bit early in the campaign season, I think, for Americans who are really focused on some major issues. The economy is still hurting very much so. We see foreclosures still very high. And he has to be the Commander in Chief. In fact, the clip we just showed, Suzanne, showed a woman saying that he has another job. Well, in fact, President Obama does have a job at a time when the government may shut down at the end of the week, when we have U.S. war planes over Libya, President Obama talking officially running, or at least talking about running for reelection probably is not the issue right now that the Obama campaign wants to portray.

MALVEAUX: So Mark, you would think, though, with all that he has to do in Washington, the campaign would be based in Washington, simply out of convenience.

Why didn't they have that set up this go-around?

PRESTON: Well, you know, because a lot of people say you need to get outside of Washington to really hear and understand what Americans are saying. If it was based here in Washington, Republicans could label it as just an inside the beltway campaign. But, in fact, he'll be in Chicago, where he ran the 2008 campaign. He's going to be right off of Grant Park. That's where the main operation will be.

But let's not forget, there will be some very important advisors here in Washington, including David Plouffe, who's in the White House right now, Suzanne. David Plouffe ran his campaign back in 2008. So, there'll be a lot of coordination, a lot of telephone calls.

MALVEAUX: All right. Well, officially the campaign season is underway. You'll be very busy, huh, Mark?

PRESTON: Unfortunately.

MALVEAUX: OK. You know you love it. We love this stuff. We love this stuff.

For the latest political news you know where to go, CNNpolitics.com.

In today's Choose the News, we are highlighting people who are going out of their way to help others. Vote for the story you'd like to see by texting 22360.

Text one to learn how Washington is using this year's Cherry Blossom Festival to help Japan.

Text two to hear the story of a couple who adopted six children and the surprise thanks from the federal government.

And text three for the special show of solidarity some Japanese are showing to farmers who are dealing with radiation in their crops.

Falling home prices are great for buyers looking for a bargain. But not if you're struggling to sell or stay in your home. CNN's Carmen Wong Ulrich is here with top tips on the real cost of walking away from your home.

Carmen, I'm trying to sell my house. What am I dealing with here?

CARMEN WONG-ULRICH, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you probably don't want to walk away. Hi, Suzanne. With home values geared for a possible double dip and 27 percent of homeowners owing more than the homes are worth, some homeowners may be thinking that walking away from home is the answer. But there are big downsides to walking away. So, it's best to know all the facts and exhaust your options before doing so.

If you're plan to purposefully foreclosure, first make sure you look into mortgage modification. Talk with the lender and inquire about a loan modification. Also talk to a nonprofit housing counselor. Find one through the National Federation for Credit Counseling at nfcc.org and the Department of Housing and urban development site hud.gov.

Now also, another option before you walk, if you have another place to live consider renting out your home to cover the costs while offering it for a short sale, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Not a bad idea. Now, how does this impact your credit? Is it substantial if you decide you're just going to walk away from it?

ULRICH: Oh, yes. Walking away is considered a foreclosure which stays on the your report for seven to ten years. And you'll most likely not be able to get a mortgage for at least three years. If you're looking to rent, keep in mind that landlords look at credit reports.

So if you have to foreclose, or you're planning to foreclosure, make sure you secure another place to live, most likely a rental before your credit takes the hit.

Now another serious side effect to keep in mind that in some states a lender can come after other assets or garnish your wages. It's rare but happens if you walk away. This is called a deficiency judgment. But in non-recourse states, you pay a surcharge on your mortgage at closing so the lender can't come after you. It's a form of insurance for other assets. So know the rules in your state.

MALVEAUX: All right, Carmen. We are learning the rules as we go.

You say that there are benefits for homeowners if they decide to foreclosure. I want to sit tight here. We want to hear about that after the break.

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MALVEAUX: For homeowners who are in trouble, there can be benefits now to foreclosure. We're back with Carmen Wong Ulrich. And Carmen, tell us about the plus side, now, of walking away.

ULRICH: Hey, Suzanne. Having trouble with audio because I can't hear you right now. But first off, if a foreclosure's the only answer, know that it's not the end of your financial life. Maintaining your home that's been devalued can be incredibly stressful both personally and financially, and for some there is little choice but to let go of that burden.

But after foreclosure, yes, your credit will hit rock bottom but then you have the freedom and ability to start over and get your finances under control. Now, just as with bankruptcy, as long as you plan well moving forward the bad credit can be overcome. Keep on top of all your other debts and obligations. And the folks who manage your three credit scores, MyFICO.com, say that your scores can rebound in as little as two years if you manage your finances very well from that point on.

MALVEAUX: All right. Great advice. Thank you very much, Carmen.

I want to move on. In Japan, a sea captain's instinct takes over.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): He says, I knew if I didn't save my boat, my island would be isolated and in trouble.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Full steam ahead straight into the tsunami.

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MALVEAUX: We have some new information coming in to CNN right now. Two U.S. officials and a government source confirming now that Attorney General Eric Holder is going to announce this afternoon that the 9/11 suspects that are being held in Guantanamo Bay will now hold trials. They will not face federal civilian trials as the Obama administration had wanted. Rather, they will go before a Military commission. That also includes the suspect, the 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.

This is an important development. This is a reversal, if you will, from the Obama administration. There had been a lot of controversy just where to hold these trials, how to hold them, whether it was going to be in New York City or other cities or towns throughout the country. There was a lot of push-back, a lot of complaints here.

Well it looks like this decision is a reversal by the Obama administration announcing they will go before military commissions. We're going to have more on this report, more information. There's going to be a 2:00, we understand, a press conference with the Attorney General Eric Holder. We also hope to get one of our White House correspondents up to give us more details.

But again, very significant development here, a reversal, if you will, from the Obama administration in how it is best to deal with some of the most dangerous detainees in Guantanamo Bay, including the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks.

Moving on, you may have heard it before, when a tsunami approaches, head for deep water. Well, Paula Hancocks in Japan has a fisherman's incredible story.

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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the islanders of Oshima run for the hills, Susuma Sugawara ran to the sea. The earthquake had hit and the tsunami alert was blaring but he started the engine of his boat and steered into deeper water.

He says I knew didn't save my boat, my island would be isolated and in trouble. Passing his other boats used for fishing abalone, he said good-bye to them, apologizing he could not save them all.

The 68-year-old drove straight into the first wave. He estimated it was up to 20 meters high.

SUSUMA SUGAWARA OSHIMA BOAT CAPTAIN (through translator): My feeling at this moment is indescribable. I talked to my boat and said you've been with me 42 years. If we live or die, we'll be together. Then I push on full throttle.

Usually when I look to the sea, he says, I look at this level. But this time I was looking straight up. The wave was like a mountain. I started climbing and when I got to the top, the waves started breaking on the boat time and time again. I knew I had to break through.

HANCOCKS: Sugawara says he closed his eyes and felt dizzy. When he opened them, he was through. Instead of the usual sharp drop after a wave, there was a long slope down. Then the next wave came. He can't remember if there were four or five.

He stayed at sea until dark steering through wrecked houses, boats and other debris that floated towards him. For 20 days he's been making hourly trips to the mainland transporting people and aid. The only ferry that wasn't driven on land only started working two days ago.

Sugawara is without a doubt the local hero. Everyone wants to hear his story, including Japan's self-defense forces. This supermarket owner gave all his food away for free after the disaster and now helps Sugawara.

TADAOMI SASAHARA, SUPERMARKET OWNER: He tells me everyone used to look out for themselves on this island, but after this, the whole community helps one another.

HANCOCKS: Sugawara risked his life for his boat and his island, one of the very few to ride a tsunami and live to tell the tale.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Oshima Island, Japan.

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