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CNN Live Saturday

Gas Prices Continue to Rise; Controversy Surrounds Today's Election in New Orleans; New Research Contradicts Allergic Reactions in Kids; Catholic Group Decries The DaVinci Code Movie;

Aired April 22, 2006 - 16:00   ET

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

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Higher and higher and higher they go, soaring gas prices here in California. Will drivers soon get a break? I'm Kareen Wynter, and details are next in a live report.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Roesgen reporting live in New Orleans on the race for mayor.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kathleen Koch at the White House, where the administration's leak investigation has apparently netted a career CIA officer.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: And hello, and welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. And all that and more after this check of the headlines.

Finding an alternative to high-priced gasoline. President Bush is exploring one possibility in California. We'll take you there. A live report just a few minutes away.

Major political action in Iraq. The new parliament finally fills top leadership spots. Jawad al Maliki was formally named prime minister elect today, and he replaces Ibrahim al Jaafari who agreed to step down Thursday ending four months of political wrangling. Al Maliki has 30 days to form a national unity government.

That's not soon enough for Senator John Kerry. The Massachusetts Democrat says if Iraqi leaders fail to form a government by May 15th, U.S. troops should be immediately withdrawn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: We must be tough, and we must set another deadline to extricate our troops and get Iraq up on its own two feet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Bill gates is talking business in Vietnam. Specifically the business of fake computer software. Vietnam has one of the highest rates of fake software sold in the world. The Microsoft founder signed an agreement, making the Vietnam's finance ministry the first government office there to install licensed Microsoft software. First this hour, your car's gas gauge. That E means empty your wallet. Gas prices went up three cents today. Three states now are paying three bucks a gallon and others are headed in that very direction. President Bush today is pushing a long-term solution, but not the quick fix Americans seem to want.

We at CNN are gauging all the angles. And we'll start in Los Angeles, a pricey place for gas, with CNN's Kareen Wynter.

WYNTER: Fred, we have a booming culture of commuters here in California. Households where people have multiple vehicles and are driving at times hours to work each day, so people are definitely, definitely feeling the pinch.

I've seen the price of regular unleaded as high as $3.25, even higher, higher, in some locations. And we haven't even begun the busy driving season. Experts say one factor leading to high prices is the ever-growing demand, and also the residual effects from last year's hurricanes and the industry's switch to less polluting ethanol.

I want to give you a snapshot of how things stand this year in parts of the region compared to last year. For example, in the Los Angeles/Long Beach area, the current average for regular unleaded is $3.06. That's a 50-cents increase compared to last year.

In Orange County, $3.03, compared to $2.60 last year this time. And the state average as a whole, $3.05, compare that to $2.64. Some energy groups are speaking out, denouncing the high prices, but they are also giving proposals, initiatives, for what they say would be more petroleum consumption in California, which would actually lower it. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES PROVENSANO, CLEAN AIR NOW: We don't view it as a tax. It's a payment to the citizens of the state of California for allowing the oil companies to take a precious resource that we all own from our ground. That's what it is. Just like Alaska's doing, just like Texas is doing. We need to catch up in this state, and we need to have the oil companies pay their fair share and they are not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WYNTER: At a time where consumers feel like they really have no options, there are actually some things they can do to get more for their money at the pump. For starters, car pooling and also consolidating errands. Keeping vehicles well maintained, and this fourth tip surprised me, because I'm guilty of it. Clearing away the clutter in the trunk, any excess items such as baggage or golf clubs, believe it or not removing the extra weight will give you more mileage.

WHITFIELD: All good tips. Thanks so much.

Rightly or wrongly, President Bush is taking political heat for the state of gas prices. Mr. Bush is addressing the problem today, but he's talking long term. In his radio address, he promoted the promise of hydrogen fuel cells as the vehicle fuel of the future. And he's expected to speak on the subject later on this afternoon.

Short term, he's pledging to deal firmly with gas-price gougers. A recent poll shows that three-quarters of the public disapproves of the president's handling of the overall gas price plague.

Do you have any questions about what's behind the spike at the gas pump? E-mail us at weekends@CNN.com. We'll have an energy industry analysts to answer your cost questions straight ahead.

A local election gets global scrutiny. Voters in New Orleans decide today whether to re-elect Mayor Ray Nagin or opt for new blood as the storm-ravaged city moves forward. Twenty-one candidate the would like to take Nagin's job.

Our Susan Roesgen is live from New Orleans with the latest. People still lining up outside the polling station.

ROESGEN: I'm at one of the megasites, the four megasites where they've brought in literally hundreds of voting machines for people who lost their polling places in their local precincts during the flood.

There are nearly a dozen names on the ballot, but political analysts believe there are only three men in this race who have a shot at either winning the election outright today, the primary election, or in facing each other in a runoff a month from now, and those three are the incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin, and businessman Ron Foreman and our lieutenant governor, Mitch Landrieu.

Whoever wins has a tall order in this city, restoring housing to people who have lost their houses and restoring businesses, helping businesses get back on their feet and just picking up the trash. We talked to one voter who had evacuated all the way to Connecticut and couldn't believe what this city looked like when she got back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANITA CRUMP, NEW ORLEANS EAST RESIDENT: As I look around the city of New Orleans, it looks like a dump, especially the highway. I was surprised to see that they have not cleaned this place up, just to see the people coming in this area, we definitely need the kind of leadership that's going to move New Orleans forward. And that's why I have done everything I could to come back here to vote to make sure that I cast my ballot for an individual I feel is going to do something to assist us in the dilemma that we're in.

BEVERLY RAGAS, VOTING COMMISSIONER: I think it's really historic. It's just wonderful to see people seeing that exercising their right to vote is just so important. Every vote counts. I've had people tell me they drove in from Atlanta and, of course, people coming in from Lake Charles, who could have voted when we had the early voting, but, said, hey, I wanted to vote today, and it's just been wonderful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: The secretary of state here told me, Fredricka, that even though we've had intense interest in this race, not only locally, but around the world, he's really only expecting a pretty typical turnout for a mayoral election which would only be 40 percent, and from what we're seeing at different polling places around the city, the voters have been coming in a steady stream, but not in great numbers, so we'll have to see at the end of the day. The polls close her at 8:00 local and 9:00 East Coast time.

WHITFIELD: For many people that have showed up behind you, any complaints from any of the voters, complaints about how the voting process has carried out or anything like that?

ROESGEN: Really not. And, again been I guess you have to give some credit to the secretary of state's office. They have gone above and beyond to try to let people know before they even got here today, where they can vote. If their old polling place was wiped out by the flood, they've got new places listed.

Although this polling place has more than 100 machines, there's not more than a one or two person line for the machines. They have things separated by precinct, there's lots of people standing around to help people, and there's water available and bathrooms, so they are trying to make is as smooth as possible for those that have made the effort to come back and vote here.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much.

On to other news, a bomb rips through a Canadian convoy in Afghanistan, killing four soldiers. The attack took place south of the capital of Kabul, nearby the town of Gumbad, here's Sarah Gallishan from CTV News.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARAH GALLISHAN: It's about 7:30 a.m. this morning local time that Canadians came across -- a Canadian convoy came across a roadside bomb, just about seven kilometers outside of the platoon house they've established in the area.

That road side bomb exploded, destroying a G Wagon vehicle. There were four Canadian troops inside that vehicle. Three died instantly. A fourth was airlifted to the Kandahar airfield hospital, but try as they might, they were unable to save him. So all four have died today. This is a significant loss for the Canadian military.

To give you some idea, it was almost four years ago to the day that Canada lost four of its soldiers to a friendly fire incident. That was a training exercise. This is the first -- the largest single loss of life of Canadian troops involved in actual operations since Canada fought in Korea.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Secrets revealed. A CIA officer is fired for leaking classified information to the media, could others be close behind her. Plus, put down that dust cloth. If you're a parent of a young child, why new evidence shows you should hold off on that spring cleaning.

And coming up, pain at the pump. A former Energy Department official answers your questions on the rising cost of gas. E-mail us at weekends@CNN.com. And you're watching CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Federal authorities say this 21 year old college student and a teenage friend are part of an international terrorist plot targeting U.S. oil refineries and military bases. Nineteen year old Islam Sadiqi was arraigned this afternoon in New York after his capture in Bangladesh. The FBI says both men made contact with Islamic extremists last year in Canada.

Reunion weekend at Duke University has many of the school's alumni talking about the alleged rape case that has captured national attention. Attorneys for the two Duke lacrosse players facing charges are questioning the way the alleged victim identified her attackers.

And Delta Airlines officials say they have averted a potential pilot strike that could have financially crippled the already bankrupt airline. The deal, which will allow them $280 million in savings over the next four years, must be formally ratified by the Pilots' Union, and it is expected by the end of May and must be approved by the U.S. bankruptcy court.

Promoting the fuel technology of tomorrow, President Bush is spending Earth Day in California. While rising gas prices are fueling concerns nationwide, alternative sources like turning grass to gas are getting more attention. Here's our Daniel Sieberg.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Maybe you scratched your head when Willie Nelson talked about biodiesel.

WILLIE NELSON, SINGER, BIO-DIESEL USER: My wife told me, this a couple years ago, and said, you know, I'm going to buy this car that runs on vegetable oil. I said OK, SO I bought a Mercedes, and it's never had anything in it except vegetable oil.

SIEBERG: Perhaps he did a double take when President Bush said grass could power your car.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We'll also fund additional research in cutting-edge methods of producing ethanol not just from corn but wood chips and stalks or switch grass.

SIEBERG: But when two very different people are talking about a very different way to run your vehicle, there must be something to it.

NATHANIEL GREENE, NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE CO.: There's a lot of interesting new bedfellows coming together to fight for this, and we want to see more of it. SIEBERG: The idea of plants powering your car isn't new. Using ethanol as a viable fuel source has been discussed since Henry Ford's days, but it's never reached its potential. Recent efforts to use corn to produce ethanol has met with critics, since fossil fuels are needed to process the corn, which sort of defeats the purpose, and because it's using an otherwise valuable crop. The key, many experts say, is making something called cellulosic ethanol.

BRIAN FOODY, CEO, IOGEN INC.: Almost any source of natural fiber could be used. So we're standing in front of straw, America has great resources of corn stalks and corn stovers that are now just plowed under, but beyond that we could go to rice hulls in California and wood wastes all over the United States or even municipal wastes.

SIEBERG: Iogen is a Canadian biotech firm and the first to tap into making gas from grass on a bigger scale, as much as one million gallons a year, that's a drop in the tank compared to what is required by all the vehicles in North America.

FOODY: People have to take a real risk to get the first facilities up. They have to move that forward, there's new things to be worked out, and these won't come without bugs and problems.

SIEBERG: Iogen is considering construction of a giant facility in Idaho in 2007. Company reps routinely travel to Washington for more money and support. To date, they say the enthusiasm there is overflowing, but the funding remains a trickle. It's getting over that bump that will make ethanol cost effective to produce. The manufacturing process involves taking plant material like wheat straw and separating the necessary ingredients.

(on camera): So I can't help but notice the smell up here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, not bad, is it? That's the fermentation, and it's like a brewing process. In fact, we call this first batch that comes off beer, which is about five percent to seven percent alcohol.

SIEBERG (voice-over): Part of the reason environmentalists like it so much is that even the discarded material called lygnen can be recycled back into the process to power the machinery. There's virtually no waste.

FOODY: When you produce cellulose ethanol, you actually don't use any fossil fuels in the processing. And that means overall there's no net greenhouse gas emissions.

SIEBERG: One success story on the road to ethanol conversion is the country of Brazil. Once dependent on fossil fuel, they are on the track to being energy independent, growing sugar cane for ethanol production.

GREENE: In the last three years, their market has gone from virtually entirely gasoline vehicles going off the new car lots until today it's about 75 percent vehicles that can use both gasoline and ethanol. Giving consumers a choice has really changed the market down there dramatically.

SIEBERG (on camera): Your car may already be equipped to run on an ethanol-based fuel. Today there are at least five million so- called alternative fuel vehicles on the road. That means they can run on regular gas or some combination of gas with up to 85 percent ethanol. But because your car probably doesn't look like this, you simply may not be aware of it.

GREENE: The only reason car manufacturers have made flexible vehicles to date here in the U.S. is because they got credits towards their energy efficiency standards or requirements they have to meet, so they were producing them, but they didn't put any labels on them.

SIEBERG: And that's likely led to confusion over how ethanol works. Unlike a hybrid or hydrogen-powered car, there's minimal conversion needed with the engine. Any car can currently run on 10 percent ethanol and gas mixed together, so it will take a partnership between firms like Iogen, car manufacturers and oil companies. For the consumer the practical side is still a few miles away.

GREENE: The economic value cuts across the whole country and the environmental value clearly cuts across the whole country, national security values cut across the whole country. So there's no reason for this to be a Republican or a Democratic issue or an urban or agricultural issue.

SIEBERG: With oil hovering at $70 a barrel and prices at the pump approaching $3 a gallon, the answer may lie in the ground, just not that far in the ground. Daniel Sieberg, CNN. Ottowa, Ontario.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Coming up, America is addicted to oil, and prices could rise even more with the ever-growing petroleum demands of an awakening Asian superpower. The China factor, and your gas tanks straight ahead.

Plus, getting answers, email us your gas questions to weekend@cnn.com and later, a secretive Catholic group breaks its silence to take on"The Da Vinci Code." Why is it so upset about the upcoming film.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, you've probably heard the various reasons why all of us are paying more at the pump, ruptured pipelines in Iraq, unrest in Nigeria, Iranian saber rattling. But there's another player affecting the global price of oil petroleum. It's china. The world's most populous nation is fast becoming the world's biggest oil addict, and that's caused a seismic shift in global markets. CNN's Candy Crowley has more in a story you first saw on "ANDERSON COOPER 360."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Holy gas pains, America, $3.19 for regular in Los Angeles and in Chicago.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it sucks.

CROWLEY: Ever wonder how it came to this?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's because of shortage of oil.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know that the world situation is tenuous and that the oil companies will take advantage of any opportunity to stick it to us.

CROWLEY: Kind of. But think Economics 101. Think supply and demand.

PHIL FLYNN, ENERGY ANALYST: This has been a story of incredible demand growth in China. And -- and what people are starting to realize, that, if you look at the upside potential for China demand over the next 10 to 20 years, there's not going to be enough oil left for anybody else.

CROWLEY: Meet the leaders of the two biggest oil-consuming countries on the planet, the People's Republic of China, the United States of America.

BUSH: China is home to an ancient civilization, and it is helping to shape the modern world.

CROWLEY: It's not just about pandas anymore. This is no longer Ronald Reagan's China. No longer a waking giant, China is a walking giant, powering through the days on an economy growing by as much as 10 percent a year. And, increasingly, China is a speeding giant, dumping bicycles for cars, 10 million privately owned cars, and 75 million more Chinese are expected to buy a car in the next 15 years. They're going to need a lot more gas.

Overall, energy needs are expected to more than double by 2020. Where in the world does China get all that supply? Same place the U.S. does, and elsewhere.

JEFFREY BADER, DIRECTOR, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION CHINA INITIATIVE: Well, they're getting 10 or 11 percent of their oil from Iran. So, it's going to be kind of a push-pull with China on Iran.

CROWLEY: The United States thinks China, having used the global marketplace to prosper, needs to step up to the plate and help solve global problems. Case in point, Iran, where the Bush administration thinks China has been pulling punches on Iran's quest for nuclear weapons, because China wants to protect a key oil supply line.

And while the subject came up at the White House, it appears the U.S. got milquetoast.

HU JINTAO, CHINESE PRESIDENT (through translator): Both sides agree to continue their efforts to facilitate the six-party talks to seek proper solution to the Korean nuclear issue. And both sides agree to continue their efforts to seek a peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue.

CROWLEY: The reality is, the U.S. no longer has the world playing field or the world oil supplies to itself. China, once an insular, isolated country, has long since thrown open its bamboo curtain, posing problems and offering possibilities.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Be sure to join us for "ANDERSON COOPER 360" week nights at 10:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN.

Well, many of you have questions on the rising price of energy, specifically gasoline. We'll get to some of your e-mails in a minute. But, first, let's talk with Joseph McMonigle, who is a former official with the U.S. Department of Energy. He joins us live from the nation's capital. Good to see you.

JOSEPH MCMONIGLE, FORMER D.O.E. OFFICIAL: Good to be with you.

WHITFIELD: All right, so what do you blame for the sudden increase in gas prices?

MCMONIGLE: Well, I think it's mainly due to the high price of oil. But I think you have to step aside and look at, you know, the gas prices are generally a seasonal -- follow seasonal pattern, you know, the wintertime, when driving is less and demand is less, prices are less.

WHITFIELD: So you say folks should really expect this? We are in the season where you ordinarily would see a hike in prices, but if you just look at the example of the southern California area, that our Kareen Wynter showed us, moments ago, there's like an almost 50 percent increase compared to this time last year. So it does seem extraordinary.

MCMONIGLE: Yes, gas prices do jump right around this time, Memorial Day is the kickoff of the summer driving season, when -- when people are taking summer vacations and there's a lot more gas being consumed, so that's normal. I think what's different this time is you've got, you know, oil prices at $75 a barrel, you know, as of last Friday. So --

WHITFIELD: What's to blame for that?

MCMONIGLE: Well, I think there's a lot of things to blame for it. Number one is the skyrocketing demand in the world, and, as you pointed out in your previous segments, China is increasing its gas usage, and, you know, 40 percent of its -- oil imports account for 40 percent right now, and in 2020 it's going to jump to about 70 percent. And the U.S. is using increasingly more oil, and will as we -- as we go forward.

WHITFIELD: So because of all those extreme factors, at least in this country, do you see that if in any way drivers were to modify their habits, they were to become a little less dependent on their vehicles in the course of the next few weeks or months, do you see in any way it might make some sort of difference in the kind of prices we're seeing at the pump?

MCMONIGLE: Well, I really don't expect drivers to not drive as much with prices at the level that they are at. I mean, I think, you know, $3 a gallon gasoline is very expensive. But we're approaching now a high-demand season and I just don't think it's high enough at this stage that it's going to modify people's behavior.

WHITFIELD: All right, we've been trying to encourage people to send in their e-mail questions and we have a few, and I want to pass them on to you, because people were anxious what you had to say. Richard writes, how do you define price gouging?

MCMONIGLE: I think it would best be defined as taking advantage of situations that exist but may not be related to the actual price of the cost of gasoline at a specific location. One example would be, you know, stations in the U.S. that raised gas prices right after Katrina but were not affected at all by the Katrina, Rita, and immediately after Katrina and there were no impacts yet. So -- so I think that would be one example if there was something to happen in some part of the world and a particular gas station would use that as a reason to raise gases.

I think people should be aware that the Department of Energy has a gas price hotline. I've noticed that they have a Web site where you can email specifics.

FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, well, let me get in a couple more questions real quick.

MCMONIGLE: Okay. Go ahead.

WHITFIELD: Another viewer asks, one of the reasons gas prices are rising is because the U.S. has not built refineries in decades. So why would a rich nation like ours not be able to build any of these new structures? Is there an answer?

MCMONIGLE: Well it's true that we haven't built a new refinery in about 25 years. What refiners have done are build on to existing refineries and increase efficiencies at refineries, so they are actually refining more. But we haven't built a new refinery, and the main reason is, of course, environmental regulations, and it's just too onerous and too expensive an investment to do that without any kind of guarantee that you'll be able to complete the process.

WHITFIELD: Okay. Joseph McMonigle, formerly of the U.S. Department of Energy, thanks so much for joining us from the nation's capital, today.

MCMONIGLE: Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Now in the news, a roadside bomb kills four U.S. soldiers south of Baghdad earlier today. The military says all four were killed when an IED, improvised explosive device, struck their patrol vehicle.

In Nepal more clashes between pro democracy demonstrators and riot police, all in the capital of Katmandu. An estimated 200,000 protesters turned out one day after the Nepalese king said he will return to political power to the people.

The "Associated Press" is reporting that Iran and Russia have apparently agreed to a joint uranium enrichment program. The process would reportedly be carried out on Russian soil. It's unclear if the deal means Iran would give up uranium enrichment within its own borders.

This mug shot is certainly not the most flattering for swimsuit model May Andersen. But it's one of our most popular stories on cnn.com. The 24-year-old faces charges of simple battery, resisting arrest and disorderly intoxication on a flight from Miami to Amsterdam. She's accused of hitting a flight attendant and trying to flee police as they took her into custody on Thursday.

Next on CNN SATURDAY, fire, the political fallout over news that this CIA agent shared secrets.

And a storm-ravaged city is choosing its next leader today. New Orleans Council President Oliver Thomas joins me live with his thoughts, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A leak to the media uncovering a political -- a politically rather explosive story. The presence of a network of secret CIA prisons abroad. The CIA agent responsible for that leak has been fired. The "Associated Press" identifies her as Mary McCarthy, a senior analyst nearing retirement. Let's go live to the White House now and CNN's Kathleen Koch. Kathleen?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka the Bush administration has been livid about intelligence leaks that have occurred over the last year or so, so U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies have been questioning and polygraphing national security employees, and apparently that is how this career CIA officer, who the "Associated Press" identifies as Mary McCarthy was picked up. Sources tell CNN that McCarthy failed a polygraph test being given to a wide range of intelligence officials and then confessed. A CIA spokesman says the officer admitted to "unauthorized discussion with the media in which the officer knowingly and willfully shared classified intelligence, including operational information."

The senior government source tells CNN that the firing was related to a "Washington Post" story about terror-related suspects being sent in secret to prisons in other countries. The U.S. official says that McCarthy's name has been turned over to the Justice Department, which will decide whether or not to file criminal charges against her.

Now, there's little reaction to this from the White House. Though a senior administration official says, quote, "The disclosure of classified information is against the law and, thus, should be pursued." Now CNN has made efforts to reach out to McCarthy, leaving some voice mail messages, but thus far, she's not returned our calls and our inquiries for comment. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: While there's no immediate response from the White House, surely there's a lot of pressure from inside Washington that the White House does take a serious position on what's taking place here?

KOCH: Certainly. And there has been praise, actually, for this firing from members of congress, top officials, top lawmakers, on the various intelligence committees who have been very displeased themselves who believe that the leaks have compromised national security, so certainly there will be pressure from that order to go forward with criminal charges.

WHITFIELD: All right, Kathleen Koch from the White House thanks so much.

KOCH: You bet.

WHITFIELD: Today's municipal elections in New Orleans aren't without a good bit of controversy. In fact, some in the big easy feel they're getting short tripped from federal officials. Remember Iraq's national election? Well, there were ballot boxes all over America, so expatriated Iraqis could vote. Many people displaced from New Orleans wonder why they aren't getting the same kind of accommodation. Joining us for more on this story, New Orleans Council President, Oliver Thomas. Good to see you.

OLIVER THOMAS, NEW ORLEANS COUNCIL PRESIDENT: Fredricka good to see you guys, and as always, thank y'all for the coverage during this recovery. Thank you very much CNN.

WHITFIELD: Well we appreciate you taking the time out as well. Well have you heard much from a lot of these voters who have said they feel disenfranchised that perhaps there wasn't a greater effort being made to try to make sure that everyone's vote who was from the New Orleans area, no matter where they are in this country, would count?

THOMAS: Well I haven't heard a lot of complaints today, but, of course, you guys know I have been dealing with my brother's death, so I'm just out today kind of campaigning to touch people to make sure that I kind of have something else to do, but my brother was one of my campaign managers, so I'm keeping busy, because I know he would want me to be out here touching people and working --

WHITFIELD: Certainly, our deepest condolences on that, while you are suffering a huge loss. And then, dealing with what really is a great burden of trying to get your city back on track there. What have you been hearing from a number of people there at the polling stations?

THOMAS: Well, the number one thing I've been hearing from people is they just want to hear some consistency in the message. You know, they hear about all these millions of dollars or billions of dollars that are coming done, but they haven't met anybody that's actually received any money. They hear a lot about floodplain maps from the Corps of Engineers, but they haven't seen the maps and what the elevations mean from the Corps and FEMA yet. And a lot of people really want to know what type of levee protection do we have? We know that it's better than what we had before, but what does it represent? Does it represent category two, three, four? What we had before, which was paper-mache levees, so people just want some real answers and some consistency in the message about our recovery.

WHITFIELD: So among all of the candidates, including the incumbent, have any of the voters heard anything that is promising from these candidates that they would be able to help get some of these answers that, perhaps, during the last administration, didn't happen over the last eight months?

THOMAS: Well, you know, it's been real interesting, because after the last couple of debates, the one consistent thing was that no candidate seemed to separate themselves from the others in the mayoral field and that's what people are looking for. They are looking for a mayoral candidate to at least embrace the type of ideals and principles that they think is going to move our city forward. It's going to be interesting to see, especially amongst the top seven or eight, how the vote comes out today.

WHITFIELD: Was it easy for you to make a decision on who to cast your vote for?

THOMAS: It's one of the most difficult things that we have had to do. You know? But, we asked God to guide us through our walk, with this recovery, as well as who we vote for.

WHITFIELD: Oliver Thomas, thank you so much for taking the time out and again, our deepest condolences on the loss of your brother.

THOMAS: Fredricka, CNN has been a blessing and an angel to us, and thank ya'll.

WHITFIELD: All right, take care.

Well, tough love from your child's allergist. Why some researchers say dust and pollen actually help your child in the battle against the sniffles and sneezes for a lifetime.

And inside Opus Dei. What this very private Catholic group wants you to know before you go see the movie "The DaVinci Code.

UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: "Money Magazine" researchers checked out hundreds of jobs. They ranked each career based on categories including earning, flexibility, creativity, stress and ease of entry. And this is what they found. Financial advisers scored a B average and ranked number three on "Money's" list of best jobs in America. "Money's" Cybele Weisser says it's one of the most popular jobs today.

CYBELE WEISSER, WRITER MONEY MAGAZINE: With the diminishment of pensions and more people are trying to figure out what to do with their 401(k)s, baby boomers are retiring, there is so much need for financial advice. CORRESPONDENT: Education is often scene as a key to getting a good job and believe it or not the job of college professor ranked number two. Mainly because the hours are so flexible.

WEISSER: You can arrange a schedule where you're not in an office 9:00 to 5:00 every day. You might teach two courses a week, for example.

CORRESPONDENT: And which position topped the list? According to "Money Magazine," if you are a software engineer, you have the best job in America.

WEISSER: There's such a huge need for software engineers right now. It's a job that has a lot of flexibility in that it's in every location including, of course, working from home. It's not too stressful and it is a job where you can get into it with a bachelor's degree, it also pays very well.

CORRESPONDENT: For a complete list of "Money Magazine's" Best Jobs in America, visit www.money.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: So spring is here and for many of us, that means allergy season. But what would you say if I told you a new study out actually suggest exposing young children to dust pollen, pet dander, all of that at a very early age, for the sake of allergy prevention? Sound crazy, Dr. Bill Lloyd joins us live from Philadelphia today, and doctor this seems to contradict what a lot of people thought should be the norm, keeping them safe, keeping them in, all that. And this new study says, no, expose the kids to it all.

DR. BILL LLOYD, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-DAVIS MEDICAL CENTER: Hi, Fredicka. Yeah, you know asthma's an enormous health problem for children and they get asthmatic because very early in life they are sensitized to those things that you mentioned, things like dust and bacteria and little molecules on fungus and little proteins and chemicals called end toxins that are on these germs. And most of these germs are in common dust that's located in their bedroom, and as the mother of a young child, you know that young kids spend most of their day in the bedroom.

So here's what the researchers did, they followed hundreds of children from the day they were born. They put them in two groups, children who are kept in meticulous houses where the floors were kept clean and other families were maybe not so tidy and they found out by age four, the young children that were in houses that had dust bunnies under the beds, had a far less, lower risk of developing asthma.

WHITFIELD: Wow, okay great. Well then I think a lot of us have a new excuse as to not do house cleaning, I like this.

LLOYD: The doctor told me, exactly.

WHITFIELD: That's right. Well you know it's interesting in these test groups, many of these kids actually had parents who did have asthma or had severe allergies, so one would think that automatically the offspring would have them, too.

LLOYD: You know, it was a very clever designed study. They enrolled families where the parents either had asthma or other serious allergic problems. We know there's many different factors that contribute to asthma, and heredity is one. Do you carry a gene from your parents? So if everybody in the study has parents that had asthma or other serious allergies, then by studying what's happening in the bedrooms, clean floors, dirty floors, you eliminate that bias toward the hereditary issue.

WHITFIELD: So what do parents need to do at this point, I mean seriously, what are some of the things they need to look for or the precautions they should or shouldn't even take any more?

LLOYD: It's all about eliminating the triggers that could give your child an asthmatic attack. So we just talked about getting rid of the things that could cause allergies also getting rid of smoke in your house. Now, for smokers who think they are solving the problem by going outside, you bring a lot of that secondhand smoke back in with you on your clothes. So just stop smoking, if you can. Prevent your children from being exposed to viral infections. That's a very powerful trigger in giving children asthmatic attacks.

Too much exertion, as the warmer weather moves in, children want to spend more and more time outside on the jungle gym and whatever. Believe me, moderation will pay off if your children are prone to developing asthma. And, again, this time of year, Fredicka, with all of the changing weather, one day it's 50, the next day it's 80, abrupt changes from hot to cold or vice versa might leave your child prone, so always make sure they're properly dressed when they go outside to play.

WHITFIELD: Dr. Bill Lloyd, thanks so much.

LLOYD: We'll talk again soon.

WHITFIELD: All right, next weekend.

Carol Lin is here to preview what's to come now for the next hour of more of CNN SATURDAY. Hello.

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm just contemplating the dust bunnies under the bed.

WHITFIELD: I'm relieved.

LIN: I am, too.

All right, coming up at 5 o'clock, we're going to be talking about the New Orleans election and whether this election is going to be seen as a credible one. You know, there is all this controversy about whether the election should be taking place, where the polling stations were going to be, Justice Department weighed in, it's all in the state of Louisiana, people are driving hundreds of miles. So is the outcome going to be challenged? Going to be talking about that.

Also, at 6 o'clock, you know there are all these gadgets now that people say might help you save gas. Right? Increase your mileage.

WHITFIELD: Right, heard about it.

LIN: Lauren Fix has the advice on what you need to do with your existing car. It's not like we're going to stop driving, it's not like we're going to go out and buy a new car because gas prices are going up, what you can do without making that major commitment.

WHITFIELD: Good advice, we'll be listening and watching. Thanks so much Carol.

Still ahead in this hour, it's not quite David versus goliath, but a small religious group is taking on Hollywood over a blockbuster film. The story, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A controversial Catholic sect is chafing at its new found exposure. The group called Opus Dei never courted the spotlight, but then came "The DaVinci Code," the best-selling book, and now comes the movie. CNN\'s Brian Todd has the story that first aired on "The Situation Room."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MOVIE NAT SOT: So you're saying all this is real?

Real enough to kill for.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Projected to be a box office bestseller next month, "The DaVinci Code" starring Tom Hanks already has members of Opus Dei on edge. The small conservative group within the Catholic Church, whose members adhere to a strict routine of prayer and sacrifice, wants Sony Pictures to issue a disclaimer at the start of the film.

BRIAN FINNERTY, OPUS DEI: We want the disclaimer to make clear that the movie is not an accurate representation of history.

TODD: Controversy that has hounded Opus Dei since the publication of Dan Brown's hugely successful novel, a work that brown has said is fair to the group. But Opus Dei leaders say it's hardly fair to claim they have any monks at all, certainly not like one in the story.

FINNERTY: The fictional Opus Dei is about a monk running around killing people in search of the Holy Grail. The real Opus Dei is ordinary people trying to come closer to God in their work in everyday lives.

TODD: Father James Martin, who writes for the Jesuit "America Magazine" agrees that Opus Dei is unfairly characterized in the book, but says the group has brought some of this on itself.

FATHER JAMES MARTIN, AMERICA MAGAZINE: There are some problems with it. They have some very heavy-handed recruiting techniques. They do have this penchant for secrecy.

TODD: Those long-standing criticisms, denied by Opus Dei leaders, who want Sony to at least change the group's name in the movie. Sony says it won't reveal details of its film. Issuing a statement to CNN reading in part, "We view the DaVinci Code as a work of fiction and at its heart, it's a thriller, not a religious tract."

That may not be enough to satisfy Opus Dei leaders, who tell us they're not calling for a boycott of "The DaVinci Code" and have no plans to sue if there's no disclaimer. But they do say they'll continue to make public appeals to what they call Sony's sense of fairness. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITIFIELD: And make sure to join Wolf Blitzer in "The Situation Room," weekdays at 4:00 p.m. eastern and 7:00 p.m. eastern.

Carol Lin is coming up next with more of CNN LIVE SATURDAY. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Everyone's complaining about the recent spike in gas prices. But wait until you see what people are paying at the pump here in California. I'm Kareen Wynter. I'll have all the live details straight ahead.

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Roesgen, live in New Orleans covering the first election since hurricane Katrina.

LIN: And trouble on the front lines, I'll show you what the army is going to do to keep soldiers from committing suicide. Hello, and welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY. I'm Carol Lin and here's what's happening right now in the news.

Five U.S. soldiers were killed in Iraq today. All were killed by roadside bombs.

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