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Giant Storm Forms during Graduation; GOP Veep-Stakes under Way; Wallenda New Death Defying Act; Tracking Your Moves on the Internet; Same Sex Ceremony on Post Draws Fire; Graduates Weather the Storm; Where the Manufacturing Jobs Are; Olympic Swimmers Pictured with Weapons
Aired June 08, 2012 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Soledad. Happening right now in the NEWSROOM, mysterious outbreak. Four states, 11 cases of E. coli sending disease hunters scrambling this morning.
Graduation terror. What looks like a funnel cloud sweeping through a New Jersey high school ceremony just as the caps were being thrown into the air. Students and families run for cover. We'll talk to the guy who shot this video.
"Prometheus." A whole lot of people talking this morning about the $130 million Ridley Scott sci-fi thriller. It's a battle to save the human race and we've got the early buzz straight ahead.
Plus this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Clearly you don't have a fear of heights.
NIK WALLENDA, HIGH WIRE WALKER: I don't. I respect heights.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Walk on a wire. A feat 200 feet up high above Niagara Falls. We will introduce you to Nik Wallenda.
NEWSROOM begins right now.
And good morning. And thank you for joining us. Happy Friday to you.
A medical mystery is unfolding for the Centers for Disease Control as it races to find the source of a deadly E. coli outbreak. Here's what we know right now. There are reports that 11 people have been sickened so far. That includes the death of a 20-month old girl in New Orleans. This morning several southern states, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama and Florida, all reporting illnesses linked to E. coli. The biggest group is located here in Atlanta. Home of the CDC.
State health officials say the cause is unknown but they are partnering with the CDC as they investigate this outbreak.
In Louisiana, officials said rumors the New Orleans cases were related to a local petting zoo are untrue. Something that was confirmed by an infectious disease expert who spoke with our affiliate, WWL.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would doubt very seriously that this child acquired this from a petting -- an animal in a zoo. If the same DNA fingerprint is showing up in other cities across the United States.
There have been cases of these aggressive E. coli outbreaks that have been related to petting zoos where children may have gone in and put their hands in their mouth before the parent could wash their hand but those are really very rare compared with the food-borne outbreaks.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: We have reached out to the Georgia Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control to come on and explain the latest in their investigation. Both agencies refused our request. We of course hope to get them on in the next hour of NEWSROOM.
It was a high school graduation in New Jersey but it looks like the apocalypse or Lord Voldemort is coming. Look at that. The huge supercell thunderstorm formed during the ceremony last night. It's hard to concentrate on the biggest moment of your young life when you've got that monster looming over your head.
There were no reports of a tornado coming out of this and no reports of injuries but we're thinking there were a lot of soaked ground, tassels and diplomas.
Matthew Blanchard was there to see his sister graduate. He actually shot these pictures you just saw. He joins us now from Atlantic City.
Welcome, Matthew.
MATTHEW BLANCHARD, SHOT STORM VIDEO: Hi.
COSTELLO: So you're watching your sister graduate. When did you notice that the weather was getting bad?
BLANCHARD: Just as they were reading the names actually. The clouds started spinning like that. So that's why I took out my phone.
COSTELLO: So you whipped out your camera on your phone and you took these pictures. Why didn't you run?
BLANCHARD: It hadn't started raining or anything yet. So it was -- it was still just kind of like in the distance and thundering and lightning. There was no rain or anything so it came unexpectedly. COSTELLO: OK. So they're reading the names of these graduating seniors. The most exciting day of their young lives. What was the reaction from them as they spotted this cloud thing?
BLANCHARD: It seemed like a mix of, like, joy because they had just finished their graduation and terror because they were fleeing the field.
COSTELLO: I just can't even imagine. You're -- I mean, you're supposed to be graduating going towards a hopeful future and then this happens. So as you talked to your sister about her graduation ceremony, how did she describe it to you?
BLANCHARD: She didn't seem like she didn't like it or anything. She said it was, like, pretty unique and, you know, it wasn't -- it didn't ruin her day or anything.
COSTELLO: So it wasn't like a sign of things to come or anything like that?
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Well, I'm glad you're safe and thank you so much for joining us, Matthew Blanchard.
BLANCHARD: Thank you.
COSTELLO: You're welcome.
There is new fallout from the recent leaks of classified information in Washington. Both the House and Senate intelligence committees are vowing full-blown investigations into the national secrets that are being funneled to the media supposedly.
The FBI is looking into whether the White House is to blame. Lawmakers from both parties say someone needs to go to jail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER (D), MARYLAND: The leaks are very serious. It affects our national security. And they're wrong. We're going to follow the facts wherever they go. In a bipartisan way the Senate and the House are coming together. We need the administration to work with us in a partnership to find out where the leaks are and how we're going to stop these leaks, and wherever the facts take us, that's where we should go and if someone -- whoever did commit these leaks, they should be held accountable.
REP. MIKE ROGERS (R), HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Someone has committed a crime that has -- is having serious consequences to our national security. So what we're arguing, I think, in a bipartisan way is we need to follow the leads of the investigation to the leaker and make sure that leaker goes to jail, much like what happened with Valerie Plame case. Someone went to jail over that. This is a hundred times the magnitude of that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Rogers also says there's a chilling effect that stretches beyond U.S. borders. He says the nation's allies are now nervous about trusting the United States and could withhold vital cooperation.
Turning now to presidential politics. Bill Clinton says he's sorry. He's very, very sorry. The former president on the stump for Barack Obama but hasn't always been on the same page with the campaign's talking points. Just in the past week Clinton raised eyebrows when he praised the business success of presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney and he appeared to side with the GOP theme when he seemed to express support for extending the Bush era tax cuts.
Clinton sat down to explain with Wolf Blitzer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, ANCHOR, SITUATION ROOM: Some of your critics have said, you know, the former president is undermining the current president for whatever reason.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Look, in 2008 when he ran for president and defeated Hillary in the primaries, I did 40 events for him, 40, in the election. In 2012, I have done these major fundraisers. I have spoken up for him whenever I could. I have told people repeatedly I think he's done a good job, a really good job under very trying circumstances and better than some people give him credit for.
And I strongly committed to his re-election. And I just regret that -- you know, my instinct -- you know me. I don't think I should say bad things about Governor Romney personally to disagree with him politically. The fact that I was complimentary of his success as a business person doesn't mean that I think that he should be elected and President Obama shouldn't.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Republicans have seized on the apparent conflict and try to use Clinton's words against Obama. Conspiracy theorists even suggests sabotage saying Clinton is laying the groundwork for a future presidential bid by his wife, Hillary Clinton.
And just to remind you at 10:15 Eastern Time just about an hour and 15 minutes from now, President Obama will be making a statement on the economy. Don't know what he'll say but stick around. We're going to bring that event to you live.
For Republicans, the guessing game is under way. Who will Mitt Romney choose as his running mate? The veep-stakes buzz is getting louder today as conservative leaders and activists launch their biggest gathering of the year in Chicago. Today delegates will hear from Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell. His name frequently comes up in this discussion. Also on stage at the conference, former presidential candidates Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and one-time Romney challenger, Herman Cain.
CNN political reporter Shannon Travis is in the Windy City suburb of Rosemont.
Morning, Shannon.
SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: Hey there, Carol. Yes, you just rattled off a list of some of the VIP conservatives that will be here at this CPAC conference.
Let's talk a little bit about the location as well. It's here in Chicago the first time that CPAC conference is in Chicago. You know you're used to seeing it in Washington, D.C. But guess what, Carol, they're mounting this "take back the Midwest" campaign and where are they doing it? In President Obama's backyard.
Obviously this is the president's home state. And it's not that far, maybe about a 20-minute drive away from the president's re- election headquarters in downtown Chicago.
Back to that list that you just mentioned a few moments ago, four of the names that we are paying special close attention to, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, Governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia, the other two, obviously Chris Christie and Bobby Jindal of Louisiana.
Why? You know, Carol, because those are four of the names on the potential running -- Romney running mate list. They're going to be speaking here firing up the crowd.
Another person we're going to be paying especially close attention to is Rick Santorum. Former Pennsylvania senator, former Republicans presidential candidate. He announced this morning, this political action committee to basically further his -- pushes pet issues, the things that he cares about most, faith, family, freedom, opportunity, but he is going to come here in about an hour.
We expect for him to hold a media (INAUDIBLE), take questions from reporters, and lay out his political future. Could he be setting himself up for possibly 2016? Certainly one of the questions we'll toss at him -- Carol.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Can't wait. Shannon Travis, reporting live from Chicago this morning.
Turning now to the crisis overseas in Syria. International envoy Kofi Annan is meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to discuss the -- the deepening urgency of the violence there, the increasing threat of civil war and the growing evidence of a government massacre.
Ten hours of talk yesterday at the United Nations, world leaders are voicing frustration with the defiant Assad government and the need to ratchet up international pressure.
A new soccer field, more than 20 cable channels on TV, painting classes, a library full of DVDs, books and newspapers in different languages. Wow. Sounds good. Sort of like perks at a private school. But that's what's available to terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay. Remember President Obama had different plans for that prison three years ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It will be closed no later than one year from now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Instead NBC News is reporting the government has spent millions of dollars in upgrades and those improvements could keep Guantanamo Bay open for several more years. Right now there are 169 terror detainees at the facility and you and I spend about $800,000 per year on each and every one.
The Flying Wallendas. The name is legendary. Generations of this family have walked the tight rope sometimes cheating death and just as famously sometimes surrendering to it. As CNN's Jason Carroll shows us, a new challenge pushes the envelope yet again.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL (voice-over): An ominous sight. Raging water rumbling over Niagara Falls' Crestline dropping 180 feet. Imagine walking across the falls on a high wire.
Sound like a nightmare?
WALLENDA: Yesterday our training was about 52-mile-an-hour winds.
CARROLL: Just the opposite for Nik Wallenda.
WALLENDA: It's been a dream of mine for a long time. And I'm one of those that always overachieve. I want to do -- I want to do more. I want to bigger things. I want to do exciting things.
CARROLL: Call it exciting, call it crazy. Wallenda will attempt to cross Niagara Falls on a steel rope two inches in diameter. No bigger than a tennis ball. The walk more than 1500 feet long. 200 feet above the falls.
(On camera): Clearly you don't have a fear of heights.
WALLENDA: I don't. I respect heights. You know, it's not a fear. It can be -- fear is debilitating. It makes it works almost impossible. You overreact and it'll cause you to fall.
CARROLL (voice-over): Wallenda had a near fall on his last high wire walk across Baltimore's inner harbor. He was able to steady himself due to years of practice. He comes from seven generations of flying Wallendas. A name given for their daredevil antics over the decades.
The family has seen successes and tragedies. In 1978, Wallenda's great grandfather attempted a walk between two hotel towers in Puerto Rico. He slipped and fell to his death.
WALLENDA: He's definitely my inspiration behind most of what I do. And I do this for him out of respect for him. So absolutely I think about him and I'll think about him as I'm crossing over the falls for sure.
CARROLL: Wallenda, like his forbearers. has always walked without a harness. But not this time. His sponsors are requiring he wear one for the Niagara walk.
(On camera): Why don't you want to wear the harness? I mean you're talking to some who does not walk a wire so --
WALLENDA: Well, you know, I think it's more about personal goal than anything. And my personal goal is to do it without a harness.
CARROLL (voice-over): Both his father and uncle support that goal.
(On camera): I think a lot of people are going to find that hard to understand. And you say that because he's not used to, what, training with a harness?
TERRY TROFFER, NICK WALLENDA'S FATHER: He's never worn a harness in all of those years.
MIKE TROFFER, NIK WALLENDA'S UNCLE: It's a bit personal for me in that I'm the guy designing this thing now so that it will get over the wire.
CARROLL (voice-over): Wallenda's practice on this day without a harness goes well.
WALLENDA: Thank you. Thank you.
CARROLL: He said a prayer mid walk and says he'll be doing more of that crossing the falls.
WALLENDA: I know that there are angels around me and there's a lot of people in this audience and viewers that will watching that night. They'll be listing me up in their prayers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Wow. Jason Carroll now joins us from New York.
So, I'm curious about this harness. Even with a harness, if he falls off the wire, how far down will he fall?
CARROLL: Well, you're talking more than 150 feet. But if that's -- if he was falling without a harness. With a harness it would catch him, you know, in 10 to 12 feet something like that. But as you can see from what he was saying there, he really doesn't want to do and wear that harness when he does this walk next Friday.
And it was hard for me to understand because I'm thinking you'd be safer with it. But in his mind since he's been training for years and years ever since the age of six without wearing a harness, he feels as though it might throw off his equilibrium. He has to wear one which it turns out he will.
COSTELLO: Well, I totally understand that, though, because it's not as daring a feat with a harness on.
CARROLL: Well, it may not be as exciting for some, but you still think about it, you're still walking across Niagara Falls on that tiny little wire out there. So, for me, I would rather be safe knowing that if I did fall, something would be there to catch me. But I'm not Nik Wallenda and I'm not part of the Wallenda family, obviously.
COSTELLO: Yes. I was going to say, I can see you walk on tightrope, Jason.
(CROSSTALK)
CARROLL: Not me.
COSTELLO: Jason Carroll, thanks so much.
CARROLL: You bet.
COSTELLO: Do you want your every move on the internet tracked? There is a battle brewing between Google and Microsoft and you're right in the middle of it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Eighteen minutes past the hour. Checking our top stories now:
CDC investigators are racing to find the source of a reported E. coli outbreak in four Southern states. Eleven people have gotten sick, including a 21-month-old girl who died in New Orleans last week.
Imagine driving 85 miles an hour and not worrying about a speeding ticket. Drivers on a stretch of Texas highway may get to try that out. It would be the first road in the United States with a posted 85-mile-an-hour speed limit. Texas and Utah are the only states right now that have some 80-mile-an-hour speed limits.
It's not a labor union, but 5,000 Wal-Mart workers have come together to fight for better wages. The Organization United for Respect at Wal-Mart called OUR Wal-Mart is also pushing for more consistent work schedules. The employees move comes as Wal-Mart tries to hold down expenses at its stores.
Paula Abdul in a Phillie Phanatic show, show off some moves (INAUDIBLE). Abdul gets extra points for dancing in high heels and on grass. She was at the game to promote prostate cancer awareness and I think they did a good job. Such a funny sight.
Do you like the idea of every move on the web being tracked by advertisers? Well, advertisers sure love it. But there's a battle brewing between Microsoft and Google over the practice.
Alison Kosik joins us from New York with more on the soon to be released "do not track" option. Interesting.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It is.
So, here's what the do not track option is, Carol. It's actually a web button on browsers that's going to be coming out soon. What it does is opts people out of data collection on Web sites. Right now, the proposal is being backed by big companies that make these browsers by the Obama administration and 90 percent of ad networks like Google and Yahoo.
And I'll tell you what? It's been major process getting these sides to agree on how it would work. Microsoft says that it will make the do not track default setting in new version of Internet Explorer, meaning you won't have to opt in so automatically data is not going to be collected.
But guess what? Google, which relies on advertising, said they'd only agree to do this "do not track" if the default setting is off. Remember, they stand to benefit because Google and other advertisers want to know your surfing habits. That's how they can make money -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Alison Kosik, one more question though. Even if you opt out of "do not track" because I know how that works with political calls that come in, it didn't work very well. But can't they still track your information any way?
KOSIK: That's a good question. Technically yes. They can track you.
So, remember, "do not track" is basically a web version of the do not call list. Just because you opt out of having your information gathered, it really doesn't mean it can't happen. There's no real firewall to keep them out.
One privacy researcher says even if Internet Explorer makes do not track default, Google says we'll be able to do whatever we want any way. So, it would be a risky move because you would be going against what the FTC requires but it doesn't make it impossible for them to go ahead and track you -- Carol.
COSTELLO: It figures. Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange.
Ever wonder what you'd ask the presidential candidates if you had the chance? Well, this middle class mom wanted some answers from the Obama campaign, so we brought her words to Obama's ears.
And don't forget if you're heading out the door, you can take us with you. Watch us any time on your mobile or computer. Just head to CNN.com/TV.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: It is time for middle class talk back. A segment we kicked of last month to give middle class Americans the chance to ask direct questions of the presidential candidates. Today, it's Nana Boone's turn. She's from Mableton, Georgia. She and her husband have three children and are financially secure. But like many in the middle class, they are fearful their way of life will disappear.
This week, Nana had a question for President Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NANA BOONE, MIDDLE CLASS MOM: President Obama if you are re- elected as president of our country, what do you have in store in terms of education reform. We're continuingly seeing cutbacks in education, teachers are continuing to be laid off and classroom sizes are increasing. So, what can we expect that will be different if you're elected for a second term?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: We sent Nana's question to the Obama campaign. And here's what they sent back.
Quote, "Thank you for your question, Nana. President Obama values good teachers and educators and is committed to keeping them secure in their jobs. And the president wants to elevate the teaching profession. How? By giving schools the resources they need to keep good teachers on the job and reward the best ones, adding more leadership roles and responsibilities for teachers and supporting local efforts to create evaluation systems based on more than just test scores and to reform teacher tenure to protect good teachers and promote accountability."
The president has already given states the choice of opting out of No Child Left Behind, the Bush era law meant to make schools more accountable by stressing standardized tests. Many educators feel no child is draconian. The Obama campaign says Governor Romney would turn back the clock on education reform by opposing small class size and allow student loan rates to go up.
Next week, it's (INAUDIBLE) turn. She'll have a question for Governor Romney.
A military chaplain performs a same-sex ceremony on a military post in Louisiana and the congressman who represents that part of the state is not happy. He wants to make sure it never happens again. We'll talk to him next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Good morning to you. I'm Carol Costello. It's 30 minutes past the hour.
President Obama will be giving a statement at 10:15 Eastern on the economy. That's in 45 minutes. He's expected to call on Congress to pass a back to work plan proposed last year to upgrade our roads and bridges and to put more teachers back in the classroom. That will come your way at 10:15 eastern, 45 minutes from now from the White House. And, of course, we'll bring that to you live.
A 21-month-old girl is dead and ten others are reportedly sick following an E. coli outbreak in several southern states. Officials in Louisiana and Georgia say they are working to track the source which remains unknown at this time.
Good luck seniors. It's a tough world out there as you can plainly see. The super cell thunderstorm formed during a high school graduation ceremony in New Jersey. The rain and hail started coming down just after the graduates through up their caps. Luckily no one was hurt.
Another kind of storm brewing in Louisiana. An Army chaplain performed a private religious ceremony for a female soldier and her partner on post. It happened last month, but the news is just getting out now. The twist here, Louisiana does not recognize same-sex marriage or civil unions although it doesn't look like this ceremony was either.
Here's what people who live around Fort Polk are saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For them to break the law of the state, they're showing disrespect they don't care or care about the military.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm happy for the people. I'm glad they get to be together with who they love.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People have a right to do what they want to do behind closed doors, but I don't think that's the right place for it in the military.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The military is awesome. I don't care if they're married to a man or woman or man to man or woman to woman. It's not going to change anybody's feelings. They are still supporting our country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Louisiana Congressman John Fleming represents that district. He's also on the House Armed Services Committee. This story has him pushing to ban same-sex ceremonies at military facilities. He wants to ban them.
Welcome.
REP. JOHN FLEMING (R), LOUISIANA: Hi, Carol. Thanks for having me on today.
COSTELLO: Thanks for being here.
This was a commitment ceremony. It wasn't a marriage. It wasn't a civil union. It was a commitment ceremony. So if your mind, what's the problem with it?
FLEMING: Well, there are several problems. First of all, Carol, the state of Louisiana does not recognize a marriage between two men or two women. It's unlawful to do that. That passed into the Constitution of Louisiana by a vast majority of Louisianans.
COSTELLO: But, again, sir, this ceremony wasn't a legal binding union. And since the chaplain was a military chaplain, the Army approved it, Pentagon told us this morning it approved it. So, if it's not civil union and not a legal marriage, what's the problem?
FLEMING: Yes, Carol, I think you have your facts incorrect. The base commander did not -- was not even aware of it when it occurred. The head chaplain had no knowledge of it.
This was done by a chaplain and two individuals who did it on their own. There was nothing that went up the chain of command. There was no approvals.
Again, the state of Louisiana -- the law does not provide for unions between members of the same-sex. Now, as you point out, they characterize this as a marriage-like ceremony, perhaps a mock ceremony. The point is that a military base is not the venue for that. That is a protest and so forth that should be done outside of that venue.
Our responsibility with regard to the defense of this nation is to ensure the readiness of our military members and to defend this nation, not use it for social experimentation or trying to promulgate some sort of change in our society or customs of our society.
So, for that reason this is problematic and we passed a NDAA bill earlier this year in fact that is prevention of doing this and it did pass the House.
COSTELLO: Just going back to what you said about that, and we did contact the Pentagon and the Pentagon did not have any problem with this. And the chaplain who performed the ceremony didn't have any problem with this.
FLEMING: That's completely different. Obviously the chaplain that performed it agreed to do that.
COSTELLO: So, what's the problem?
FLEMING: The Pentagon was not notified. The base commander was not notified. So they may say after the fact they had no problem but it was not approved by any stretch of the imagination.
The problem is basically, Carol, that this is hardly the venue for a protest ceremony or mock ceremony. Military readiness is extremely important and I don't think using it as a social test tube is appropriate.
COSTELLO: Well, I guess nobody forced the chaplain to perform the ceremony. No one forced troops to watch. No one forced troops to come in and participate in the ceremony. So, I'm struggling to understand how this affects the military any way?
FLEMING: That's not the question. The question is now we have a base commander who had to field questions from the media for a week which diverted him away from and distracted him and many other members of the service from their important duties to defend this nation. That's what is important in their jobs. Not having to deal with this and many other episodes that may come down the pike.
COSTELLO: But the Pentagon has no problem with this. I mean, the Army chaplain may be dealing with it because of complaints from your office.
FLEMING: Yes, that's what you say. I received no notification from the Pentagon that this was approved in any way, shape or form.
COSTELLO: What's the next step? I mean, will there be -- I mean, what would you suggest they do? It wasn't a civil union and it wasn't a legal marriage. They were having a commitment ceremony with a chaplain that agreed to do it and I'm still struggling to know what the controversy is.
FLEMING: Yes, I'll try to help you with this, carol. I just personally and I think many of my colleagues and many Americans and certainly many people in Louisiana do not feel that a military base and using military members and facilities is a place for a mock ceremony. Certainly if this were in a state where it is recognized legally, that's probably acceptable.
But I think in the state of Louisiana where it's not, using the base facilities for a mock ceremony or in some way to promote a social experiment is simply a bad use of this country's assets. We're at a time in which we have to defend this nation against potential terrorism around the world. We're having to deal with problems constantly, as you know. We don't need these kind of distractions from our military members.
COSTELLO: Congressman, thank you so much for being with us today. We appreciate it.
FLEMING: Thank you for having me.
COSTELLO: Sure. Alien fans rejoice. "Prometheus," the epic cinematic pre-alien puzzle is out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have to stop it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not stopping anything. We're going home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Science fiction fans get ready. We have a preview for you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: If you were a big alien fan and let's be honest, who wasn't, you are more than likely ready in line -- already in line I should say to get your ticket to "Prometheus."
Nischelle Turner is here to tell us all about what many think is going to be this weekend's blockbuster. I'm excited to see this myself.
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: You know, exactly, Carol. But this is already a blockbuster overseas. It opened there last week. Although we're not going to see the numbers like "The Avengers" or "Hunger Games" had. The film is expected to take in more than $40 millions this weekend.
Now, if you are a fan of "Alien" movies like you were talking about, you probably already know that this is being seen as a prequel to the classic sci-fi/horror film. Director Ridley Scott, who is behind both "Alien" and "Prometheus" is hoping to duplicate some of that same tension and terror and action, all of that that's in the original.
Now, the reviews, they've actually been pretty good. But a "Showbiz Tonight" staffer who saw said it was a little bit paint by numbers. So, he liked it but didn't love it.
If you have ever seen "Alien," this is what I say, do yourself a favor, go download the original right now before you go see "Prometheus." That's my little piece of advice.
COSTELLO: Oh, so Ridley factors into the movie, then, prominently, because of course it's her story in the end, right?
TURNER: Exactly. I'm actually excited to go check this one out. I'm not the big horror movie fan but I liked "Alien" because it was well done. So, I'm actually excited to see this and (INAUDIBLE) in it. So, there you go.
COSTELLO: I understand totally.
Nischelle Turner, thanks so much.
TURNER: All right.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: -- is doing it. So is G.E. Hyundai is following the lead. Still ahead: why these big name companies are hiring more employees.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Forty-five minutes past the hour. Checking our "Top Stories" now.
Health investigators are racing to find the source of an E. Coli outbreak in four southern states. 11 people have gotten sick including a 21-month-old girl who died in New Orleans last week.
In weather news a high school graduation in New Jersey is interrupted by a huge thunderstorm and it's all caught on camera. The storm forced -- formed during the ceremony. No injuries reported. Earlier I talked to Matthew Blanchard who shot this video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTHEW BLANCHARD, SHOT VIDEO OF STORE: It hadn't started raining or anything yet. So it was -- it was still just kind of like you know in the distance some thundering and lightning but there is no rain or anything. So we were -- it came on unexpectedly.
COSTELLO: Ok so they are reading the names of these graduating seniors -- the most exciting day of their young lives. What was the reaction from them as they spotted this cloud thing?
BLANCHARD: It seemed like a mix of like joy because they just finished their graduation and terror because they were fleeing the field.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Matthew was there to see his sister graduate from high school. She did indeed graduate.
In money you just keep your eye on your checking account. Consumers are still getting hit by unexpected fees and not getting clear information about other costs in their accounts. That finding comes from the Pew Safe Checking in the Electronic Age Project. Despite the government's move to protect consumers from hefty overdraft fees, the study says banks are still finding ways to penalize customers.
You could say the south is in the middle of a hiring surge as big name businesses head to the region bringing thousands of new jobs with them. Here's just a few of the companies. Hyundai is adding a third shift at an assembly plant in Alabama. While in Tennessee Volkswagen has opened it's only US plant spending $1 billion to do it.
Caterpillar is actually moving a plant from Japan to Georgia and in Kentucky GE has invested $800 million to reopen and revamp an appliance factory.
Poppy Harlow has been all over this story. She joins me now. Automakers have been doing this for year but now GE and Caterpillar. What's next?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes. I've been down to most of those plants to see it firsthand Carol. You know it's interesting that there's four main reasons why this is happening. A big one is that most of these states, not all, but most of them are non-union states. They are "right to work" states. And that typically makes labor cheaper for a company.
Secondly, the tax rates are incredibly competitive. I took a look this morning at all of the corporate tax rates in all 50 states. If you look at Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, none of them have a tax rate over 6.5 percent.
But if you look at Illinois, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, none of them have a tax rate below nine percent. So you're talking about a huge difference here, more than three percent, typically when you compare the South, those states to the North and the Midwest.
So that makes it cheaper for companies to build there. Also China actually is costing more to make things there. The labor costs in China are going up about 20 percent from where we were last year. That's a good thing for U.S. in terms of jobs.
And finally what I saw firsthand let's say the GE plant in Kentucky, they are building water heaters there. That was a plant that was shuttered, it was idled. They we're going to spin off the appliance business totally but it became a lot more expensive for them to make these things overseas and then to ship them.
So they decide we're going to make them here. They are big, heavy items. We're going to make them here so they are closer to transport to our customers here in U.S. rather than shipping them.
Now they also told me and this is key, they're not going to make microwaves or air conditioners, those smaller items here in the U.S. because they don't cost as much to ship. So those things still are going to be made in China for the foreseeable future. But there is this big shift happening Carol and it's happening in the South.
COSTELLO: Interesting. Ok. But let's put it all into perspective. Manufacturing is improving.
HARLOW: Right.
COSTELLO: And no doubt we'll continue to hear that from President Obama on the campaign trail.
HARLOW: Right.
COSTELLO: But we're still nowhere near where we need to be, right?
HARLOW: We're nowhere near. So if we go back to 2000 and we take a look at manufacturing jobs in the United States, we had over 17.3 million manufacturing jobs in the U.S. then. Take a look at March of this year. We're just under 12 million, 11.9 million. So we're still at a loss of 5.3 plus million manufacturing jobs.
And a lot of analysts say those are not necessarily going to come back. When we look at the improvement we've seen in manufacturing jobs, it's getting better than the recession but it's slowing. If you take a look at March, we added 42,000 manufacturing jobs but then if you look at April, we added 9,000 and May 12,000.
So there is this fear that there was a lot of ramping up as this recovery got under way and companies are pulling back a little bit. So we're not where we were but -- but there is this trend and it's happening in the south and it's not just automakers. I saw it you know firsthand at VW building that billion dollar plant there in Chattanooga, Tennessee. A lot of this comes down to those very, very lucrative packages for -- for companies.
I talked to the CEO of Caterpillar when they decided to open that big, big plant in Athens, Georgia right near where you are and why they chose that state out of 400 different cities that had bid for this. Take a listen to why Caterpillar says that is.
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DOUGLAS OBERHELMAN, CEO, CATERPILLAR: Because of the, I guess, the flow, the competitiveness we see and everything else going around with -- with global trade we put those where the market is right here in the United States and I'm very happy about that.
We looked at Georgia in -- in a climate that's very friendly to expansion and -- and that Georgia -- I would give Georgia a lot of credit for a very competitive package.
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HARLOW: But now you can read through those words, and very competitive package means big tax breaks and -- and "right to work" state and non-union plants. And now that's the trend we're seeing.
I will tell you one thing that surprises me. These companies have said they've got a hard time finding skilled labor. And -- and finding people that are qualified, they are not just looking for people that can put the parts together, they are looking for people that can innovate on the factory floor, Carol and they can even cut costs on the floor.
So they are looking for a higher bar.
COSTELLO: Poppy Harlow reporting live from New York for us this morning.
A couple of Olympic swimmers are in trouble for posting their pictures online while they were holding weapons. We'll tell you what action is being taken against them.
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COSTELLO: Olympic swimmer Nick D'Arcy says it was all in fun but the people who run Australia's swim team well, they are not laughing. D'Arcy and teammate Kenrick Monk posted photos of themselves brandishing weapons. The postings come just weeks before the summer games begin in London.
Zain Verjee is there and so what's the big deal?
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well they got themselves into a big old mess because basically they were training in California for the Olympics. And then they decided hey let's go have some fun. We never get to shoot in Australia. We're in the U.S. we may as well go to a shooting range. So they went there and then they took these pictures of themselves and they posted it on Twitter and on Facebook.
So the big deal about this is people in Australia were outraged. They were like ok these guys are role models and these pictures are looking very much like some of the kids who kill and go on shooting rampages in schools so these two boys were ordered to remove the pictures from Facebook and Twitter.
So now there's this big old investigation going on now to decide whether they should be kicked off the Olympic team or not.
A lot of people in Australia are rallying behind them and they're saying look boys will be boys. They just had a little fun and they were just a little bit dumb to do that and post it.
But they're hoping that they will stay on the team. But it doesn't look good. One of them is a -- swims a 200-meter in butterfly, the other does 200-meter free style and 4 x 100 race. So these are swimming champions but they may have gotten themselves into hot water this time.
COSTELLO: Ok. Well, we'll continue to follow that.
More importantly -- you have seen "Prometheus"?
VERJEE: I really want to see "Prometheus" this weekend. We were talking a little about it just now. What's fascinating to me about "Prometheus" is that he was the guy, Carol, who stole fire from the heavens. And the Greek god Zeus got really mad with him for giving it to the humans so he punished him by tying him down and having birds peck out his liver.
COSTELLO: Oh.
VERJEE: The thing is the liver regenerated itself every day. So for years Prometheus was punished by Zeus of giving human beings fire and the birds just got his liver every day.
COSTELLO: Well --
VERJEE: I couldn't resist sharing that with you. Thank you. Enjoy the movie.
COSTELLO: I hope that scene is not in the move. Somehow I don't think it will be. But I heard it's quite gory. So there will be other things to feast your eyes upon.
Zain Verjee, thanks so much. President Obama will being giving a statement at 10:15 eastern time, just about 20 minutes from now. He'll be giving a statement on the economy. He's expected to call on Congress to pass a back to work plan proposed last year to upgrade our roads and bridges and Obama says to put more teachers back in the classroom.
That's at 10:15 Eastern. That's 20 minutes from now. We'll bring that to you live.
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COSTELLO: Happening right now in the newsroom the economy front and center this hour. President Obama making a statement in just about 15 minutes. He's expected to call on Congress to pass a back to work plan proposed last year to upgrade our roads and bridges and put teachers back in the classroom. We're going to carry that live for you.
Mysterious outbreak, four states, 11 cases of e. Coli sending disease hunters scrambling this morning.
Graduation terror -- what looks like a funnel cloud sweeping through a New Jersey high school ceremony just as the caps are being thrown into the air. Students and families run for cover. We'll talk to the guy who shot this video.
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JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Clearly, you don't have a fear of heights?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't. I respect heights.
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