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CNN Live Saturday

National Guard Presence Could Increase at U.S./Mexico Border; Critics Wary of NSA Phone Call Monitoring; New Medicare Drug Program Confuses Many Seniors; Indonesia's Mount Merapi Threatens to Blow

Aired May 13, 2006 - 12:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: He arrived in Florence, Colorado, after an overnight fright from Virginia, where he stood trial.
The latest from Iraq, today's death toll includes one U.S. soldier and two Iraqi soldiers. The American was killed by a road side bomb in Baghdad in the Iraqis died in fighting north of Baghdad in Diala (ph) province.

President Bush used his weekly radio address to praise his nominee for CIA director, General Michael Hayden. He urged the Senate to confirm promptly. Hayden is the former director of the National Security Agency which has come under fire for its domestic surveillance operations.

A typhoon that swept through the Philippines has killed at least 24 people. This boat was one of several that sank, capsized or ran aground. The storm forced southeast Asian trade ministers to move a meeting that was supposed to take place at an island resorts.

Thousands of Indonesians are being evacuated amid concerns a volcano in Java could erupt full force. Mount Merapi is already spewing smoke, lava and ash. About 60 people died when it last erupted in 1994. And when it erupted in 1930, it claimed about 1,300 lives.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Brianna Keilar. Welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

Ahead this hour, stargazing in more ways than one. What does it take to feed our obsession with celebrity? We'll chase the paparazzi who chase Angelina Jolie.

Then on to some cosmic stars. Just wait until you see the new close up pictures from one of Saturn's moons, but first our top story.

Immigration and national security, those are the big issues on President Bush's agenda this weekend. In his weekly radio address today, he talked up his nomination of General Michael Hayden to be CIA director and he defended the National Security Agency's domestic surveillance program. On Monday he'll address the nation on illegal immigration. CNN White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is standing by.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And good afternoon. The president's decision to deliver that address comes at a time when he has been facing some intense pressure from conservative republicans in the House. They want tighter border security measures. Well, now a senior Bush administration official is saying that border security will, in fact, be a main focus when the president delivers immigration remarks Monday night.

One plan the president is considering, according to this official, seen enhancing the role of the National Guard in protecting the U.S. border with Mexico. At the same time, the president has no plans to back away from his support for a temporary guest worker program. Mr. Bush believes that is an essential part of controlling the border. But critics have called that amnesty because it would provide a possible path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants.

On another front, the president is urging the Senate to move quickly to confirm Michael Hayden as the next CIA chief. In his weekly radio address the president called General Hayden "supremely qualified." Hayden once headed the National Security Agency which began carrying out the warrantless wiretap program under President Bush's authorization after 9/11. The president today defended that program as legal and necessary. Confirmation hearings are set to begin for General Hayden on Thursday -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Elaine Quijano at the White House, thanks for that report.

Now, President Bush's televised address on immigration will come amid growing controversy and anger. Just yesterday, a cross-country caravan of minuteman activists opposed to illegal immigration, arrived at the U.S. Capitol, they were confronted by immigrant rights activists who accused them of being fascists.

One possibility for cutting down on -- or cutting down illegal immigration, stationing National Guard troops at the U.S./Mexico border.

CNN's senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Pentagon's been asked to draw up options for the military to help beef up security along the U.S./Mexico border. And Pentagon sources tell CNN one idea under consideration is to have the federal government pick up the tab for several thousand additional National Guard troops to be activated in the border states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.

Under that option, the Guard troops would remain under the control of state governors as they were during Hurricane Katrina and would be limited to a support supporting role, providing logistics, intelligence, and surveillance help to civilian authorities. That's already being done on a small scale by several hundred guard troop, but the numbers could jump to several thousand. FRANK GAFFNEY, CNTR. FOR SECURITY POLICY: This a job that we can train our forces to perform., we can utilize the panoply of sensors and detection devices and monitoring equipment and military hardware to ensure that we do not continue to be subjected to what amounts to an onslaught every single day.

MCINTYRE: Still, don't expect to see U.S. troops on the front lines patrolling the board, officials say, but with additional helicopters, unmanned spy planes, and sophisticated computers and communication's the Guard can be what the Pentagon calls a force multiplier for the overburdened U.S. Border Patrol and local law enforcement.

Active duty U.S. troops are barred from law enforcement by a Civil War era law known as Posse Comitatus, but National Guard troops under state control can perform some law enforcement functions such as crowd control.

Still the Pentagon is an anxious to avoid the sort of controversy that erupted back in 1997 when a U.S. Marine supporting counter-drug agents shot and killed a goat herder along the Mexican border.

(on camera): The Pentagon says,in theory, it could sustain a force of up to 10,000 Guard troops along the Mexican border without affecting its other operations. But officials say it's way too early to say how many troops might be deployed and they insist any additional military assistance will be temporary until the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency can hire additional permanent personnel.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Not everyone is enthusiastic about the National Guard proposal, and that includes the governor of the most populous border state. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says guardsmen returning from Iraq should not be asked to go on border petrol. He days they should be allowed to return to their regular jobs.

Our in-depth coverage of the president's speech gets started with a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM" at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, Monday. After the speech join us for a special "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT," followed by "LARRY KING LIVE." And then a special edition of "ANDERSON COOPER 360," the focus, immigration reform.

If you see long lines at the pharmacy this weekend, don't be surprised. Monday is the deadline to enroll in the Medicare prescription drug program without a financial penalty. And some six million eligible seniors still haven't signed up. A lot of them still have questions about how the program works.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MARK MCCLELLAN, MEDICARE ADMINISTERED: It's completely understandable that a lot of people will have a lot of questions. This is the most important new benefit in Medicare in 40 year, but it's -- there are three simple steps that can help people take advantage of the coverage. No. 1, make a list of your drugs or put your pill bottles in front of you; No. 2, have your Medicare card handy because it's got your Medicare number and we can use that to give you personalized help; and No. 3, call us at 1-800-Medicare or go to one of the more a thousand events taking place all over the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: A new CNN poll suggests that many seniors still have their doubts about the prescription drug benefit. When asked if s the new Medicare drug program working? Only 30 percent said yes; 47 percent said no, and the others were unsure.

CNN visited a senior citizens festival in New York City to get reactions to the prescription plan and we got plenty of opinions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Monday is the deadline and if you don't sign up, you get penalties. I think they understand. The senior citizens are, you know, they're really with it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do a comparison of the three -- top three plans for you. You understand it better now?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A little bit.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That says Medicare RX, that means you're already signed up. Right now you're taken care of.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So there's no deadline for me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This mail come everyday to my house about Part D, so I just wanted someone to explain Part D to me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's so many different plans that nobody really understands it. I don't if the people that made the plans understand it themselves.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There looks like about 50 different plans. I don't now how the people under what the plans offer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The government is doing it from the point of view of the druggist and the industry not the people. People don't understand Part D. It has not been advertised well. I think they should actually extend the deadline.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't find it confusing and I haven't found anyone that finds it confusing. It's just easier. It's better. It's better. I get a better discount than I had before.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So you're signed up already? I'm on about four different medications. I have a son that went on the Internet and he checked out a couple of different places for me and we picked out which was the best, that I figured, for me. You have to go with the flow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: If you have more question watch CNN tomorrow morning. The secretary of Health and Human Service, Mike Leavitt, joins us live. That's tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. Eastern, right here tomorrow at CNN.

Prelude to another White House run? Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona delivered the commencement address this morning at Jerry Falwell's Liberty University in Virginia. During the 2000 presidential campaign, McCain called Falwell one of the, quote, "agents of intolerance." They now say they've put at least some of their differences behind them. Analysts say the religious conservative Falwell could help McCain if he seeks the GOP nomination in 2008.

Democratic Party chairman, Howard Dean, won't be addressing law school graduates at the University of California at Berkeley. Dean backed out today's commencements, saying he would not cross a picket line of janitors who were upset over wages.

And in Minnesota, the parents of two twins formerly joined at the chest and abdomens, say their daughters look great. Doctors at the Mayo Clinic separated the five-month-old twins in a nearly seven hour operation yesterday. They say there's a 90 to 95 percent chance both girls will survive.

And mail carriers across the country are collecting food for charity today. They're asking people to leave donation of canned goods, rice, pasta and other items in bags near their mailboxes before mail delivery.

The mold remains but health officials in New Orleans say it's OK to move back home. We take a look.

And later, amazing pictures from outer space. Get up close and personal with Titan and from the moon -- a moon to these stars we tag along as paparazzi chase down Hollywood's elite to get the perfect shot.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Top stories now, a one-way ticket for Zacarias Moussaoui. He arrived at the Supermax federal prison south of Denver today to serve his life sentence. The convict Al Qaeda conspirator joins other high profile inmates, they include Olympic Park bomber, Eric Rudolph, the Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.

Pentagon sources say up to 10,000 National Guard troops may be sent to guard the border with Mexico. President Bush could announce the plan next week. He has a primetime address set for Monday night. Live coverage right here on CNN. And volcano has thousands of Indonesians on the run today. The fear Mount Merapi is about to blow. The volcano has been rumbling for years, but a new lava dome suggests a major eruption could be imminent.

Back home now, out of control brush fires in Florida are reportedly contained now in closed sections of I-95 are open. The fires have scorched nearly 37,000 acres and destroyed at least three homes.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KEILAR: With hurricane season officially set to start June 1, residents of New Orleans' Ninth Ward are getting the go ahead to move back into a neighborhood that was devastated by Katrina. Some health officials warn the move is too soon.

CNN's Sean Callebs reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Think of this as a welcome mat. Despite these conditions, Mayor Ray Nagin says it's OK for residents to return to a large section of the lower Ninth Ward, an area of New Orleans hit hardest by flooding.

ELLIOT PELLEBON, 9TH WARD RESIDENT: I feel let down by the city in a way.

CALLEBS: Fifty-eight-year-old Elliot Pellebon and others are being allowed back because the state says the water is now safe enough to drink. But he doesn't want to drink it. Pellebon has been back in his house more months, even though he shouldn't have. But Pellebon says he has nowhere else to go. There is still no electricity in much of the area and his walls are coated in nasty, harmful black mold.

We took Dr. Jim Diaz, an LSU public health physician, to Pellebon's home. Diaz couldn't believe city leaders would allow residents to move back into houses like this.

DR. JIM DIAZ, LSU SCHOOL PUBLIC HEALTH: I mean, look at the ceiling, here. Look at these colonies on the ceiling. In fact, I don't think it's a good idea for us to stay in here for a long period.

CALLEBS: Since virtually all of the lower ninth was submerged by foul floodwater, the doctor says this home is not the exception.

DIAZ: I certainly don't think that people with children, with elderly grandparents and relatives, people at the extremes of age, people with any diseases or even short-term illnesses, these sorts of people shouldn't be moving here.

CALLEBS: That includes just about everybody. We went to city hall to try to get an answer when our calls weren't returned. The mayor's office put us in touch with the New Orleans Department of health, Dr. Kevin Stevens, who was in Atlanta at a conference. (on camera): Doctor, I'm not trying to put you on the a spot, but you're asking people who are mostly of low income and have nowhere else to stay to spend money that, arguable, many of them don't have in getting their homes. Where are they supposed to stay if they're encouraged to come back to the lower ninth?

(voice-over): Stevens says it's not the city's fault. He passes blame onto FEMA for not having more trailers. And to the state because it has not appropriated billions to help insured homeowners.

And even without mold exposure. Pellebon's already in poor health with a heart condition, high blood pressure, and had part of his right lung removed years back. Pellebon's family is still scattered after the storm, so he's doing the work by himself. According to the doctor, the backbreaking job has had Pellebon in harm's way for weeks.

PELLEBON: If you want to get to the germs and stuff, this is what you got to do. Go down to the nitty-gritty.

CALLEBS: Critics say the city needs to get down to the nitty- gritty and develop a working plan for getting people back in to flooded out neighborhoods. So for now if people do come home, it's enter at your own risk.

Sean Callebs, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Does the government know who you're calling at night? Still to come this hour. A revealing report that could make you think twice about making that call.

And whether it's Mariah Carey or some other celebrities, "CNN PRESENTS" looks at our obsession with the stars. We'll give you a sneak peek, stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Americans love their celebrities. Among the hottest, actress Angelina Jolie and actor Brad Pitt. "CNN PRESENTS" takes us on a wild ride during the paparazzi's pursuit of the red-hot actress.

Here's CNN's Kyra Phillips.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A couple of the guys were doing the stakeout at Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's house in Malibu and apparently Angelina is on the move.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The hunt is on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to get on the 405 and go 405 South. Are you still south PCH? PHILLIPS: The prey: red-hot actress Angelina Jolie.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy that. Just keep me updated.

PHILLIPS: Then, a 26-year-old photographer who works for one of the biggest paparazzi agencies in Hollywood. Bower Griffin (ph). He's asked us not to use his last name.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have nothing. There's absolutely nothing. I'm coming behind you, no cops anywhere. The 405 is right here, the 10's going to be right here, and she's like right here on the 10 going this way. I'm trying to catch up as fast as I can, Reynolds (ph). Give me your location. You guys pass West Schenley (ph) yet? Copy that.

PHILLIPS: Ben is coordinating with two other paparazzi from his agency, hot an Angelina's tail, he finally catches up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There she is. There she is. That was a Range Rover.

PHILLIPS: But he's on the wrong side of the freeway.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's all the competition, right there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Copy that, I just saw you guys go by. That's funny.

PHILLIPS: Paparazzi aren't the only ones desperately seeking Angelina.

BONNIE FULLER, "STAR" MAGAZINE: She's not fitting into her clothes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not fitting into her clothes...

FULLER: How'd that happen?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The body, she hates, you know, the hormones raging. She's very uncomfortable.

PHILLIPS: "Star" magazine's Bonnie Fuller is chasing down any salacious tidbits on the actress, here Hollywood hunk boyfriend, and the girl next-door he left behind.

FULLER: I like this, Jennifer's turning to hypnosis?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yep.

FULLER: Therapy it get over Brad. That's fabulous. I mean how can you not be nosey about people that are fascinating to look at, as a Jen, a Brad, and an Angelina? How can you not?

PHILLIPS: Over at "People" magazine, managing editor, Larry Hackett is salivating over a scoop Jolie's camp is promising. LARRY HACKETT, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: I got the call in the morning that something was going to be discussed and then I got the call about what was being discussed. I was thrilled.

PHILLIPS: And Mark Lisanti, the blogger behind the Internet gossip site, Defamer.com, is snarking about official word that Angelina is pregnant.

MARK LISANTI, DEFAMER.COM: Once you get a public publicist's real name on something, you know, it then becomes reality and we can all rejoice and start knitting the baby booties.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: If you want more "CNN PRESENTS," "Chasing Angelina: Paparazzi and Celebrity Obsession" today and tomorrow at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. It's only on CNN.

Is the U.S. government spying on you? Ahead, how the National Security Agency got a list of who you're calling.

And later, these kids aren't bird watcher, but they know all about birdies and eagles. Golf lovers know what I'm talking about. And their story is still to come.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Some other stories "Now in the News."

Convicted September 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui begins serving his life sentence today at a maximum security prison in Colorado. Moussaoui was moved overnight from a federal detention center to the federal facility about 90 miles southwest of Denver.

A roadside bomb has killed another American soldier in Iraq. The military says the attack happened as the soldier was driving in southern Baghdad. His death brings to 2,435 the number of American troops killed in Iraq since the war began.

Securing the borders. President Bush is scheduled to address the nation Monday night about his immigration policy. Senior administration officials say Mr. Bush could announce a plan to deploy thousands of National Guard troops to patrol the border with Mexico.

Tulane University graduates got a pep talk today from two former presidents. Former presidents Bush and Clinton delivered commencement addresses to the graduates at the New Orleans arena. Ceremonies ended with a balloon drop and confetti shower.

Indonesian officials warn a volcano on the island of Java is on the verge of eruption. Thousands of people living near Mount Merapi have been ordered to evacuate. Lava has been flowing from the 9,700 foot peak for the past two days.

And be sure to tune in Monday night. We'll have special in-depth coverage of the president's speech on illegal immigration reform. And get started with a special edition of "THE SITUATION ROOM" at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Monday. After the speech, join us for a special "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT," followed by "LARRY KING LIVE." And then a special edition of "A.C. 360," the focus -- immigration reform.

President Bush defended his administration's domestic surveillance programs again today. He used his weekly radio address to respond to reports the government has been collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans. While he says privacy rights are being protected, critics are unconvinced.

Our national correspondent David Ensor is on the CNN "Security Watch."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a brief report on the impact of war upon a nationwide service.

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For as long as there have been telephones and even well before that, the major communications companies have cooperated closely with the U.S. government. Former employees say during World War II, the government under President Franklin Roosevelt received copies of every single telegram sent in or out of the United States. Not by law, but by request.

A former administration official says the same thing is apparently going on now between AT&T, BellSouth and Verizon and the U.S. government and that it is legal, according to the Supreme Court.

RICHARD FALKENRATH, FMR. HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISER: They said, call records that are stripped of personal information about the customer are not covered by the fourth amendment and therefore may be held and used by a federal agency that gets there voluntarily.

ENSOR: Such as the National Security Agency in Fort Meade, Maryland, which is analyzing telephone, call records in search of terrorists. It is legal, too, who says Falkenrath for the companies to give the phone call data, just the telephone numbers under the Telecommunications Act of 1934 and subsequent laws, but clearly not everyone agrees. The then CEO of Qwest Communications, Joseph Nacchio refused the government's request for his customers' phone data.

In a statement his attorney says, quote, "When he learned that there was a disinclination on the part of the authorities to use any legal process, Mr. Nacchio concluded that these requests violated the privacy requirements of the Telecommunications Act. Accordingly, Mr. Nacchio issued instructions to refuse to comply with these requests."

Phone calls are not the only issue. In this AT&T building in San Francisco, according to a retired 22-year employee Mark Klein, who is a witness in a lawsuit against the government, the NSA scoops up e- mail and Internet traffic from the whole region.

JAMES BROSNAHAN, ATTORNEY FOR MARK KLEIN: He became aware and was assigned the job of assisting in a split of the fiber optic cable so that it took a complete copy of all of the e-mails and all of the web browsing that people do people of all kinds, companies of all kinds, and sent it to a secret government room.

ENSOR: NSA and AT&T officials offer no comment on the lawsuit.

(on camera): BellSouth, Verizon and AT&T also declined comment on their dealings with the NSA, but in a statement, Verizon said, it does not and will not provide any government agency with unfettered access to our customer records or provide information to the government under circumstances that would allow a phishing expedition.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Going global now. Indonesian officials are warning that Mount Merapi may be about to erupt. The volcano has been rumbling for about a month, and new lava dome triggered immediate concerns. Officials are ordering thousands of people to evacuate.

Also in Indonesia, local tests confirm that the three people from the same family have died in the last week from bird flu. An official says the World Health Organization will conduct further tests. WHO has confirmed 25 human deaths from the bird flu in Indonesia.

Bloody battles in the streets of Mogadishu. Fighting between transitional government forces and Islamic fighters resumed overnight in the Somali capital. Witnesses say at least seven people were killed, adding to 130 deaths in recent days. Most of the dead were civilians

And in Nigeria, emergency workers have carted off charred bodies littering the beaches and floating in the Atlantic Ocean. They were victims of an oil pipeline explosion. Officials say up to 200 people died in yesterday's blast. Vandals trying to steal fuel are believed to have caused it.

Another round of DNA tests in the Duke lacrosse team rape case. Do the results help or hurt the prosecution? We'll take a look just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: There have been more DNA tests in the rape case allegedly involving members of the Duke University lacrosse team. The results, according to defense lawyers, same as the first tests.

CNN's Jason Carroll reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Defense attorneys representing several Duke lacrosse players gathered late Friday to say exactly what they thought of the results of the second round of DNA tests.

JOE CHESHIRE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: We can say to you categorically that this report shows no conclusive match between any genetic material taken on, about, in or from the false accuser, and any genetic material of any Duke lacrosse player.

CARROLL: While they say the results are inconclusive, the report does name a third lacrosse player, someone whose DNA material was found on the alleged victim's fake fingernail. Defense attorneys argue the nail was found in a trash can in the bathroom of the lacrosse house, and therefore is tainted. Even more importantly, they say the report shows semen was found in the alleged victim, but it does not match any of the players.

CHESHIRE: They did retrieve male genetic material from a single source, a single male source, from vaginal swabs. And that that source has been named in this report, is a person known to the Durham Police Department. To put it very simply, it appears that this woman had sex with a male, but it also appears, with certainty, that it wasn't a Duke lacrosse player.

CARROLL: Durham's district attorney Michael Nifong did not return repeated calls about the second round of tests. He has said in the past it's his moral obligation to pursue anyone he believes is guilty of a crime. The second round of tests Nifong ordered were done by a private lab. The first round, done by a state lab, showed no match between the players and the alleged victim.

The young woman, an exotic dancer and student, says three players raped her during a lacrosse party. So far, two have been charged: Reade Seligmann and Collin Finnerty.

(on camera): The question now: will the new DNA results lead to a third arrest? Defense attorneys believe the district attorney will pursue another indictment. The next chance he'll get to do that is when the grand jury meets on Monday.

Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: You don't see this everyday. These are radar images from Titan, one of Saturn's moons. What are they? We'll tell you after the break.

And watch out. Mother Nature is hot, steamy and ready to burst. A check on this lava-maker is just ahead.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Top stories for you now.

Zacarias Moussaoui begins his life sentence today at a maximum security prison filled with notorious criminals. The convicted al Qaeda conspirator will spend 23 hours a day in his cell at the supermax prison in Colorado. He will have little to no contact with other inmates, including bombers Eric Rudolph and Ted Kaczynski.

President Bush tackles a hot button issue in primetime. He'll make a televised speech on immigration and border security Monday night at 8:00 Eastern. For live coverage, tune it here to CNN.

And a rumbling volcano in Indonesia could erupt any time now. Mount Merapi has been spewing more lava, and the new lava dome has formed at its peak. That means an eruption could be imminent. Thousands of residents have been ordered to evacuate.

Now we move out to space. Do you remember this spacecraft? It's called Cassini and it's in orbit around Saturn and its moons. Cassini has sent back amazing pictures recently of one moon in particular -- that's Titan -- as has this probe at the end of that parachute. It's called the Huygens probe. It jettisoned from the orbiting Cassini, landed on Titan and took photos of the surface for a couple of hours.

This is Carolyn Porco now with us. She is in charge of the Cassini imaging team. And Carolyn, we understand that the scientific community is very excited about some radar pictures from Titan and that there are dunes of a sort on the surface? I know you're going to get to that in a minute, but first, how difficult was it to see the surface of Titan?

CAROLYN PORCO, CASSINI IMAGING SCIENTIST: Well, Titan is enshrouded in a very thick atmosphere, very much like our own, made of molecular nitrogen. But unlike our own, it is suffused with hundreds of kilometers -- miles -- hundreds of miles worth of haze. And it is the haze which makes it so fascinating, because that haze is made of organic material that is believed over billions of years to have fallen through the atmosphere in both liquid and solid form, and landed on the surface, coating the surface with time.

But it's also that haze that makes it very difficult to see with your naked eye. In fact, even the Voyager cameras on the Voyager spacecraft in the early 1980s couldn't see down to the surface of Titan. So with Cassini, we went to extraordinary efforts to make sure that we were going to investigate the surface of Titan, which was, before Cassini got there, the largest unexplored expanse of territory in the solar system.

So the Huygens probe was one -- one attempt at that. And you see now a simulation, a computer graphics movie, made from real images acquired on the way down. And the thing that was so startling about Huygens' descent and the pictures it took was that region you see towards the center right, where you can see carved channels in the surface. And that told us right away that we did, in fact, have liquids, carving liquid channels -- carving river channels on the surface.

And then when it finally landed, as you can see now, it landed in a flat region that probably, at one time, had liquid flowing across it and also had rocks about the size -- about six inches across, about the size of your foot maybe. And we think those are probably made out of water-ice, but the material that that rock -- those rocks are resting on and that the probe came to rest on, was probably hydrocarbon material.

So it's a fascinating, fascinating surface to begin with. And now the radar instrument on the orbiter has returned information -- radar pictures. They easily can see through the atmosphere. And you can see now, we're panning across the equatorial region of Titan. And these stripes that you see are, in fact, dunes. They are like dunes in the deserts of Africa. They're about a hundred meters high, several kilometers from one dune to the other. They extend for thousands of miles across the surface of Titan. And that tells us that the surface, at least in the equatorial regions, is rather dry.

So Titan has turned out to be rather like the Earth. It has regions that are covered with deserts. It has regions that obviously, at least at one time, were carved by liquid channels, channels carved by liquid. So this is why our results on Titan have become so utterly fascinating. We're finding that Titan is an environment very much like the Earth. And since we live on a planet, it behooves us to learn what planets are all about. And Titan has given us a wonderful point of comparison with our own.

KEILAR: Those are really amazing pictures, Carolyn. Carolyn Porco, who's in charge of the Cassini imaging team. Thanks so much for being with us.

And if you want to see more of those pictures, you can go to www.nasa.gov. to see more pictures and also to get more information on the mission to Titan.

Hitting the links is than just a sport for these young men. It's a way out. From the greens to Grambling State University, their story just ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: A surprise visitor today at commencement ceremonies for Tulane University in New Orleans. Comedienne Ellen DeGeneres, a New Orleans native, turned up just a few minutes ago. Former presidents George Bush and Bill Clinton also were there. This is Tulane's first commencement since Hurricane Katrina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELLEN DEGENERES, TALK SHOW HOST: This is a -- I was in town, and whenever I get a chance to speak after presidents, I say get me in there! And this is the closest I'll ever come to graduating, so I thought I would join you. I never went to college. I lived here, I was born and raised here. My mother worked at Newcomb (ph) when I was a little girl, so I spent time here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Some nice comic relief for a university that's had definitely a hard year. It's long been considered a pastime for the wealthy, but with the growing prominence of minority players like Tiger Woods, the appeal of golf spreading.

CNN's Larry Smith has the story of some Atlanta teenagers who are off the streets and on the links.

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LARRY SMITH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They are the product of a successful urban redevelopment program. Four boys, living in East Lake, once one of Atlanta's poorest neighborhoods, before it was transformed into a new community that introduced them to the game of golf.

ROD LOWERY, GOLFER: From, I would say about the age 9, I knew that I really wanted to play golf because I can use that for a ticket to get out of there. I was like, I don't want to sell drugs, I don't want to locked up or killed, so I use golf as a tool to get me out of there.

SMITH: Thanks to their participation in The First Tee of East Lake, a year round golf instruction and mentoring program, Rod Lowery, Willie Brown, Shelton Davis and Brandon Bradley will all be leaving the neighborhood in the fall to attend Grambling State University on golf scholarships.

R. LOWERY: I want to kind of show off my skills and show them that people from the project have more to offer if they just step up to the bat and try different things instead of sticking to the mentality of I'm oppressed, I'm not going to do that.

SAM PURYEAR, FMR. PROGRAM DIRECTOR: It means that dreams come true. It shows that a lot of hard work, patience, preparation and a lot of faith definitely can make dreams come true. These kids have worked very hard to achieve a certain goal and they believed, even when sometimes it looked pretty bleak.

SMITH: Beyond college, golf has provided Lowery and the others with an opportunity to see the world by travelling to places like Bermuda and Scotland.

R. LOWERY: I think I have been to more places than people have been in their lifetime.

GERALDINE LOWERY, ROD LOWERY'S MOTHER: They've been places that I never could afford to do and through that, he really -- have enjoyed themselves, traveling and playing golf different places around and I've enjoyed it with them.

SMITH (on camera): Most of the boys have dreams of a pro golf career, but regardless of whether they make it to the next level, their current success has been a beacon for an entire community.

Larry Smith, CNN, Atlanta.

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(WEATHER REPORT)

KEILAR: I'm Brianna Keilar. Thanks for watching. A look at our top stories in just a moment, but first, a preview of "IN THE MONEY."

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JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks.

Coming up on "IN THE MONEY," the calls of the riled. Big phone companies may have given your telephone records to the government. Doesn't that do something for your sunny disposition? If you ticks you off, you can find out how to make your voice heard.

And chasing a fast buck. America loves the get rich quick fad, after dot-coms and real estate. Let's see why we haven't figured it all out yet.

And shop for your life. We'll look at consumer-driven health care. As the Medicare Part D deadline closes in.

All that and more coming up right after a quick check of the headlines.

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