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Samuel Alito's Win; Boy Accidentally Shoots Girl at Daycare Center; Latin America Shifts to the Left

Aired January 24, 2006 - 14:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: No big surprise for Samuel Alito. The Senate Judiciary Committee, on a party line vote, approved the federal judge's nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States. Up next, a full Senate vote.
Our Ed Henry is on the Hill with that and a lot more.

Hey, Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Once again, good afternoon.

In fact, no surprises here, as you say. A party line vote in the Judiciary Committee, 10-8 in favor of Judge Alito. That does move him to the Senate floor. And, in fact, we're expecting him to have much along the same lines, a party line vote as well, on the Senate floor.

A far cry from what we saw with Chief Justice John Roberts last year. He got 78 votes, clear bipartisan majority, but also 22 Senate Democrats on board.

This time, Judge Alito only has one Democrat, Ben Nelson, on board in the full Senate. No Democrats supporting him in the Judiciary Committee. And that deep divide among the parties reflected today in the comments of Democrat Pat Leahy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D-VT), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: This is a nomination that I fear threatens the fundamental rights and liberties of all Americans now and in generations to come. The president is in the midst of a radical realignment of the powers of the government and its intrusiveness, its intrusiveness into the private lives of Americans. And I believe this nomination is part of that plan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Democrats also complaining today that they do not feel that Judge Alito answered their questions. They think he dodged, especially on the issue of abortion. But the Republican chairman, Arlen Specter, who supports abortion rights, said he was satisfied with the answers Judge Alito gave.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), CHAIRMAN, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: The most patient witness in the history of the United States Congress. If anybody has demonstrated judicial temperament and poise and patience, it is Judge Alito. And he ought to be confirmed on that basis alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: In fact, we're expecting confirmation as early as the end this week, possibly could drag over into next week. But by the latest, Democrats acknowledging he will be confirmed by next Tuesday -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: But they're still trying to score as many points as possible before that full vote, right?

HENRY: Oh, absolutely. And the pressure you are seeing is from Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid. And he is trying to get his rank and file to vote against Judge Alito on the floor.

They want to get under 60 votes because they want to have a real contrast from Chef Justice John Roberts, as I mentioned. Because then Democrats will make the political point that this was a polarizing nominee and that the president was not a uniter, he was a divider. But the republicans are saying, look, this would not be a tainted victory, a victory is a victory, and if there's any polarization, it is because of the Democrats and their sharp questioning during the hearings.

And the bottom line is they really didn't get anywhere. And he is going to be confirmed -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Ed Henry, thanks so much.

And if want to know more about Sam Alito, well, just log on to CNN.com. You will find his profile, plus an interactive guide to the issues involved in the confirmation of a new Supreme Court justice. That's at cnn.com/supremecourt.

The U.S. attorney general makes the case for warrantless eavesdropping. At Georgetown University Law School today, Alberto Gonzales called the program an important and legal tool for protecting America. He noted Osama bin Laden's recent claim that al Qaeda is preparing another attack against the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: This administration has chosen to utilize every necessary and lawful tool at its disposal. It is hard, quite frankly, to imagine a president, any president who wouldn't elect to use these tools in defense of the American people. In fact, I think it would be irresponsible to do otherwise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Gonzales ignored a silent demonstration from hooded protesters who held up a quote from Benjamin Franklin, "Those who would sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither."

Life-and-death drama at a daycare center near Washington. A 7- year-old girl is said to be recovering after an accidental shooting.

CNN's Gary Nurenberg is on the scene there in Germantown, Maryland.

Gary, do we know how that gun got into the school?

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boy, that's the big question of the day, Kyra. That is exactly what investigators are trying to find out.

They do know that an 8-year-old boy brought the handgun into the daycare center shortly before 7:00 this morning in a backpack. Earlier today, they said he was playing with it in the backpack when it accidentally went off and hit a 7-year-old girl in the arm, inflicting what authorities are calling serious but not life- threatening injuries. However, this afternoon, police have begun to back away from that statement, saying only the investigation is in, rather, its very early stages.

There were six children at the daycare center at the time. They are now -- they are all well. They are now either home or in school as the investigation continues.

The key question, Kyra, is where did the boy get the gun, how did he have access to it? And presumably, was there any kind of negligence on the part of adults that let that happen?

PHILLIPS: Have the neighbors been able to add anything to that? Do they know him, the parents?

NURENBERG: Kyra, I think probably the most common reaction was the one probably that you and I have when we heard the story, and that's one of just enormous surprise that this could happen.

We talked to one mother here earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KARON WILLIAMS, NEIGHBOR: I'm not going to blame it on the neighborhood because this is a really good neighborhood and I've had no problems here. And like I said, I've had no problems in the daycare, but, you know, it concerns me a little bit to put my daughter back there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NURENBERG: We asked the operators of the daycare center if they'd be willing to make any kind of statement to CNN and said not today. We don't know if the daycare center will be opened tomorrow. We're told it was licensed in 2003.

Anyway, lots of questions here, Kyra. So far, not many answers.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll stay in touch. Gary Nurenberg, thanks so much. It's the kind of distinction that no city wants, 27 people shot, beaten or stabbed to death in 23 days. The place? Baltimore, Maryland.

A 12-year-old girl was shot and killed this weekend. Four of her family members were wounded.

Police say two men were killed in separate shootings just last night.

And despite all that, the city's homicide rate is about the same as it was this time last year. In 2004, the FBI ranked Baltimore the 15th deadliest metropolitan area in the nation with 329 homicides. Los Angeles topped the list with more than 1,000.

Ineffective, dysfunctional, and should be scrapped, tough wards about the trial of Saddam Hussein from former U.S. attorney general and Hussein defense adviser Ramsey Clark. Clark vented after yet another court delay. This one blamed on witnesses failing to appear.

The trial is now due to reconvene with a new chief judge on the bench on Sunday.

The U.S. military confirms the deaths of four U.S. service members in separate accidents in Iraq. Two soldiers were killed when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in Baghdad. Two Marines died in a vehicle accident near Taqaddum.

The toll of U.S. military war dead now stands at 2,235.

Still no word on the fate of an American journalist kidnapped in Iraq. Jill Carroll was grabbed 17 days ago in Baghdad while trying to conduct an interview for the "Christian Science Monitor." Her captors were last heard from a week ago today when they issued a 72-hour ultimatum to free Iraqi women prisoners or else.

The militant Palestinian group Hamas is now among those calling for Carroll's release.

Two German engineers were taken hostage today near an oilfield north of Baghdad supposedly by gunmen dressed as Iraqi soldiers. The German government says it is doing all it can to get those hostages freed.

Still to come on LIVE FROM, you've heard the U.S. outsources jobs, but what about no-holds-barred interrogations of terror suspects? European investigators are still suspicious, and you'll know why when LIVE FROM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hockey lovers, listen up. Betty Nguyen has some scoop for you -- Betty.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, some scoop. But you know what? Hockey lovers may not like to hear this because people love Pittsburgh Penguins' Mario Lemieux.

Well, today he has announced that he is going to retire. This news conference is taking place right now. He made the announcement just a few minutes ago.

As you know, he is the NHL's seventh-leading career scorer. But he has cited health as the main reason for his retirement.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIO LEMIEUX, PITTSBURGH PENGUINS: I have two main reasons for retiring here today. I think the first one is that I can no longer play at the level that I was accustomed to in the past. And that has been very, very frustrating to me throughout this past year.

The second one is realizing that my health, along with my family, is the most important thing in the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Yes, it is. You know, hockey is definitely a tough sport.

Want to give you a little background on this player. He's really fantastic, if you don't already know.

He's just 40 years old, but he has won Stanley Cups, scoring titles. Then he battled cancer and a heart problem.

But after all of that, he has made a comeback. But then he learned in December that he has an irregular heartbeat which causes his pulse to flutter. He has to take constant medication for that.

Now, he did try to return a week after being hospitalized for that. He had to be taken out again because that problem flared up on December 16 in a game against Buffalo. And he hasn't played since.

But he is the NHL's seventh-leading scorer. And listen to this, Kyra, 1,723 points. Now, that's a player, one who will be missed.

PHILLIPS: All right. Betty Nguyen, thanks so much.

Moving along, we are going to talk about a U.S. Army interrogator now that won't go to prison for the death of Iraqi general. Instead, a military jury at Fort Carson, Colorado, is recommending Chief Warrant officer Lewis Welshofer be reprimanded for stuffing the Iraqi head first into a sleeping bag and sitting on his chest. The same jury convicted Welshofer of negligent homicide, rejecting a murder charge that could have sent him to prison for life.

Outsourcing torture? A European investigator sees reason to believe the U.S. is doing just that at secret prisons overseas. And that's not all Swiss senator Dick Marty has to say.

CNN European Political Editor Robin Oakley has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR (voice over): In an interim report, Mr. Marty told Europe's top human rights watchdog body, the Council of Europe, that there was a great deal of coherent, convergent evidence pointing to the outsourcing of torture by the CIA as part of the program of so-called extraordinary rendition flights across Europe.

DICK MARTY, COUNCIL OF EUROPE (through translator): There are people in Europe who were kidnapped, deprived of their liberty, transferred to a number of countries with no rights and no assistance.

OAKLEY: These, he insisted, were criminal acts and would have been so in the U.S., too.

MARTY (through translator): Other individuals taken in Europe have been rendered to countries where we know full well that they would be subjected to unacceptable treatment.

OAKLEY: A very different message to that from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In Europe in December, she insisted that renditions took terrorists out of action and saved lives. And she assured Europe's foreign ministers who demanded explanations that the U.S. never sent people to countries where they faced torture.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: The United States does not engage in torture, it doesn't condone it, it doesn't expect its employees to engage in it.

OAKLEY: That was good enough for the ministers who have since kept silent on the subject. But it hasn't been good enough for Europe's human rights groups or parliamentarians.

KATHALLINE BUITENWEG, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: We've seen these same ministers being immediately pacified after one dinner with Condoleezza Rice without given any explanation about why we should suddenly trust that there's actually nothing going on.

OAKLEY: That's why a range of national parliaments and the European parliament itself are mounting their own investigations of extraordinary rendition. Like Mr. Marty, who admits he's found no evidence of any secret CIA prisons in Europe, they'll find facts hard to obtain that they share an instinct that something wrong has been going on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The judicial authorities would say we need evidence, but from a political institution, I would say that I can't imagine how all this could have happened without anybody being aware of what was going on.

OAKLEY (on camera): It isn't the U.S. or the CIA now who the are the target of all these investigations so much as European lawmakers, who many lawmakers believe turned a blind eye to what they knew was happening. Robin Oakley, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Behind bars for four years or more, no charges filed, all but anonymous. That could change soon.

A federal judge in New York has ordered the Pentagon to name names at Guantanamo Bay. There are about 500 Gitmo detainees all labeled "terror suspects," virtually none of them known to the outside world. The Bush administration has until tomorrow to decide whether to appeal.

The changing face of politics south of the border. We will look at the leftist leanings in Latin America.

LIVE FROM is back right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: We don't get a vote, but all Americans have a stake in the Supreme Court's comings and goings. And Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport is asking their opinion of Sam Alito.

As we have been reporting, Alito's nomination cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a party line vote.

Frank, has the public support for Alito changed since his confirmation hearings?

FRANK NEWPORT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, GALLUP: Well, it went up a little, Kyra. It's kind of interesting.

In January, early in January. before the hearings, we found the American public was in favor of Alito being confirmed, but by a 49-30 margin. Now it's 54-30. If anything, just a slight increase. But I think what's really important here was it didn't go down.

So after all the hearings, support is still there. Americans, at least a majority, say yes to Alito.

A couple of other interesting points.

If on the court would Alito vote to overturn Roe versus Wade? Interesting question. The public, 44-34, says they don't believe he would. And actually, the percentage said they don't think Alito would overturn Roe went up slightly after the hearings, which is quite interesting.

One other point here, filibuster, Democrats should they in fact filibuster to try to delay the vote? Well, Americans say not a good idea. Forty-eight say no, 38 yes, 15 percent no opinion on that complex Senate procedural issue -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. The president's speech at Kansas State University, although a lot of people talking about the question from the audience, did he see "Brokeback Mountain," he also defended his controversial wiretapping program.

What do you think? Has there been a shift in public opinion?

NEWPORT: A very slight one. I think it's fair to summarize public opinion in general as split on this whole issue.

It is very complex. And different question wordings will bring out different majorities of Americans depending on whether you stress the freedom to get away from terrorism or constitutional rights.

But anyhow, in January, 50-46, Americans say what Bush, the NSA et al did was, as you can see, right versus wrong, and now it's 46-51. A little higher percent saying wrong. Basically not much change; a split public.

However, Kyra, a little less of a split on this question: Should there be a special prosecutor appointed to look into it? Fifty-eight percent of Americans say that's perhaps not a bad idea.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's stay on the topic of terrorism. Osama bin Laden in the audiotape that we heard, he threatened more attacks on the U.S.

How are people feeling about that?

NEWPORT: We can't find much change in our data as a result, at least correlationally a result of the audiotape from Osama bin Laden that was in the media last week.

Here's one question we track quite frequently: How worried are you that you or a member of your family may be a victim of terrorism? And you can see it's gone up and down some. But basically, it was 41 percent who said they were worried in December. Now it is just 43.

So no major shift in American concerns about terrorism that we can find as a result of what happened last week.

PHILLIPS: All right. So given the latest developments, the Alito vote, bin Laden, secret wiretapping, has any of this had an impact on the president's job approval rating?

NEWPORT: It certainly hasn't. And Kyra, we have a magic number for you, 43.

Remember, George W. Bush is the 43rd president. He's stuck now, fourth poll in a row -- and this is very unusual in polling not to at least have a little margin of error, a statistical wobble -- but, 43, 43, 43 and now again 43 percent of Americans approve of the job as Bush is doing as president. Virtually no change at all.

PHILLIPS: Frank Newport, thank you.

Big changes in the television business are on the way. Two struggling networks joining forces.

Let's talk about the deals. Susan Lisovicz joins us live from the New York Stock Exchange.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Sore topic under a nice carpet. President Bush and Pakistan's prime minister may have done a little sweeping today after their White House meeting and before they ushered in reporters.

Neither dignitary said a word in public about the U.S. airstrike that killed 13 Pakistani civilians 11 days ago. Outraged Pakistanis continue anti-U.S. demonstrations, and the prime minister denounced the attack then sought to downplay the tensions.

All Mr. Bush would say is that Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have just had a wide-ranging discussion which one should expect when we've got a strategic relationship like we have with Pakistan. I think the relationship with Pakistan is a vital relationship for the United States.

And I want to thank the prime minister and thank the president for working closely with us on a variety of issues. We're working closely to defeat the terrorists who would like to harm America and harm Pakistan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: The U.S. says the targets of the missile attack were al Qaeda militants, but no bodies have yet been found.

Speaking in Norway, Pakistan's president says that some al Qaeda members may have been killed, but "I'm not 100 percent sure of that."

There's a power shift in Latin America to the left. At least six of the region's leaders consider themselves socialists. Venezuela's president, to be sure. The heads of state in Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil as well and add to that the new presidents of Chile and Bolivia. Other nations could jump on the bandwagon later this year with elections in Nicaragua and Mexico.

One more thing, most of these leaders are great admirers of another leader in that region, Cuba's Fidel Castro. So where does that leave the U.S.? Should we be worried?

Arturo Valenzuela is the director of Georgetown University Center for Latin American studies. Good to see you, Arturo. What's going on? Sort of a natural force that's happening here?

There really is a shift in many ways in many countries, not so In central America, but we need to make a distinction between a more social Democratic left, which is what the Chileans would be, and the more populist left which is what Chavez is, the latter being much more anti-American than the former.

The Chileans have been cooperative with the United States. They believe in free trade. They believe in engaging with globalization. In many ways they appear more like the European socialists than they do the more firebrand fiery populists of the Chavez Venezuela variety.

PHILLIPS: We're talking about a number of leaders. If you don't mind, I'm just going to hit each leader here. We actually, you know, when you look at the number here it is pretty amazing when you see how many are going left, shall we say. If you don't mind, just tell me as I name the leader, good for America, relations with United States or not? Just really quickly and tell me why. H

Hugo Chavez, Venezuela

VALENZUELA: Not so good for the United States.

PHILLIPS: We've heard his comments. He's not really happy with the Bush administration.

VALENZUELA: That's correct. He's been very vocal in his rejection of U.S. foreign policy worldwide. He's trying to create a hemisphere coalition against the United States. But that's being resisted by many of the other leaders, including other leaders on the left.

PHILLIPS: Michell Bachelet in Chile.

VALENZUELA: Michell Bachelet is an extraordinary person, the first woman to be elected president in Chile, the first woman to be elected in her own right in Latin America. She represents, definitely, the left, but very different kind of left than the left of Hugo Chavez. It's the left of Social Democrats. It's a left that will continue the policies of also socialist president, Ricardo Lagos, the outgoing president of Chile.

PHILLIPS: Luis Ignacio Lula De Silva, aka Lula, Brazil. Good or bad for U.S. relations.

VALENZUELA: Lula has been actually good for U.S. relations. People really worried about Lula. They thought he was going to be a clone of Chavez when he came in. But in fact, he's worked constructively with the United States on many different things. Brazil and United States have differences on trade that are very, very serious, but he is an important leader in the United States and has been able to work with him.

PHILLIPS: Nestor Kirchner, Argentina.

VALENZUELA: Kirchner is a bit more of paradox. On the one hand, I wouldn't put him in the same category as Chavez. He isn't vocally or clearly anti-American. He's more of a populist like Chavez than he is a social Democrat like Bachelet in Chile.

PHILLIPS: Tabaray Vazquez, Uruguay? VALENZUELA: Tabaray Vazquez would also be more of a Social Democrat. It's the first time in Uruguay that the left has ever won. The two traditional parties, the liberals and the conservatives, have dominated politics in that country, so there is a really significant change, but again it is not a populist kind of attempting to redistribute resources kind of left, but a left that is trying to engage the state, but at the same time, be a positive factor in a globalized world.

PHILLIPS: Interesting character. Finally Evo Morales in Bolivia. We've been talking a lot about him in the past week or so.

VALENZUELA: He is very interesting. He does represent a very significant shift in Bolivia. To his credit he got a strong support. In other words, he has strong majority support. You are not going to have the governability problems you had before with a very weak sort of minority government.

He has a real task cut out for him. He cannot simply live by criticizing the United States or the Chileans and others. He is going to have to do constructive policies to make Bolivia come into the 21st century. He is going to have to do that by selling gas, and that means opening up private sector internationally as well as the United States.

PHILLIPS: As you know, within these countries corruption has been a tremendous problem. Some more than others. And this quote comes from Brazil's president as he responded to the election of Bolivia's president Evo Morales.

He said, "For the first time we could see that there is a possibility that Latin America will not be treated like poor countries or third world countries but take their place in the community of developed nations. In order do that, we need serious government that governs in the interest of majority of the people."

Could we start seeing a shift where there may be better relations among these countries and less corruption?

VALENZUELA: Well, I think that's right, and in fact, again, the Chilean case is very emblematic of that. Chile ranks higher than the United States on transparency indicators. It has very low levels of corruption. It has very strong institutions. It has a quality, a governing coalition.

You know, you don't have majority governments, but you have very strong disciplined parties that work effectively, so, you know, that is the direction -- the president Of Brazil is perfectly right. That's the direction that these countries need to take. Corruption, weak politics, weak parties are not the way to go. They need to strengthen those institutions in order to be able to bring the countries up to the level that people deserve.

PHILLIPS: There is a tremendous influence going on here on behalf of Fidel Castro. Does that concern you? VALENZUELA: Well, you know, Chavez and Venezuela has a close relationship with Fidel Castro and Morales in Bolivia may find it interesting to try to make the link with Cuba and with Che Guevera who actually lost his life in Bolivia.

Most of the other countries in the region really see Castro as the outlier and an anachronism that really no longer belongs in the 21st century. I don't think he is that much of an issue.

PHILLIPS: Back to Hugo Chavez for a moment and whether it's Vicente Fox and Hugo Chavez or Chavez and leaders here in the United States most recently John McCain saying on a Sunday talk show America must explore alternative energy sources to avoid depending on Iran or wackos in Venezuela. Apparently talking about Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.

Then the vice president of Venezuela coming forward and saying, "Well, it looks like they have nothing else to do in the United States. The Americans have so many problems, 40 million poor people, 30 million drug users and an American senator is paying attention to us. He can go to hell."

A lot of back and forth. This obviously doesn't help with regard to the tensions that we're talking about.

VALENZUELA: No, and to be honest, the United States needs to worry about this. Venezuela is a significant -- it is the fourth largest exporter of petroleum in the world. It is a significant exporter to the United States. With energy supplies in the United States going down significantly, and North America generally going down significantly, Venezuela is part of the future for energy for the United States, both in terms of petroleum as well as gas for the region, so we need to have a more consistent policy even with regard to Venezuela.

He does get carried away, but, you know, we need to engage, and the best way to engage is to engage with our other allies in the region, particularly with other leftist allies in the region to make sure that in fact he doesn't get away with the idea of bringing everybody over to his side, which at this particular point he's not succeeded in doing.

PHILLIPS: Arturo Valenzuela, Director of Georgetown University Center for Latin American Studies, thank you, Arturo.

One of her hits with The Vandellas was "Nowhere to Run," but Martha Reeves didn't take her own advice. She ran in Detroit. Now her supporters are dancing in the street. We are going to talk with her straight ahead on LIVE FROM. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hold on tight, we're flying back to Neverland, the official sequel to the classic tale of "Peter Pan" is finished. So far though, all we know is the title, "Peter Pan in Scarlet." We're almost certain Wendy and Captain Hook are in it. The question is, does Peter Pan actually grow up? We will have to wait until it's published October 5th to find out how it all pans out for Peter.

The indie film "Little Miss Sunshine" is making hay at the Sundance Film Festival. Our own ray of sunshine, Sibila Vargas, in Los Angeles with all the details. Hi, Sibila.

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Hi, you're making me blush. I know my cheeks are a little red right now.

PHILLIPS: That's our goal is to make you blush. Or sing, one or the other.

VARGAS: Kyra, well as you know, the Sundance Film Festival is where Hollywood goes to buy the rights to smaller independent movies. Well we've got our first sale already and it's a big one.

Fox Searchlight paid a Sundance record $10.5 million for the quirky comedy "Little Miss Sunshine" starring "40-Year-Old Virgin's" Steve Carell. It's about a dysfunctional family's efforts to get their seven-year-old daughter to a beauty pageant. Carell says the laughs are a little more subtle than the other comedies he's been in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE CARELL, ACTOR: Well, you know what, nobody in the movie, I felt, really went for it in terms of trying to make it funny. I think we all just sort of looked at it as like these separate characters that were having these interactions. And that's where the comedy is derived as opposed to doing something wacky or crazy within the part.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VARGAS: Well yet another T.V. favorite is coming to the big screen. Universal Pictures has given "Magnum P.I." the green light. Magnum, starring Tom Selleck, ran from 1980 to 1988 and followed the adventures of a Navy intelligence officer turned private investigator.

"DodgeBall" director Rawson Marshall Thurber is signed on to write and direct. And unlike T.V. shows or other T.V. shows recently turned into movies, it's not going to be a spoof. Thurber is aiming to capture the original show's combination of comedy and action. The movie's plot centers around Magnum's search for a missing buddy.

Well we never thought we'd see these New York folks together again, but we are. Joey Buttafuoco, Mary Buttafuoco and Amy Fisher are coming together for a televised reunion in May. It hasn't been sold yet to a network, but offers are reportedly on the table.

The Long Island love triangle drew mass media attention in 1992 when Fisher, 16-years-old at the time, shot Mary Jo in the head, paralyzing her. Fisher, dubbed the "Long Island Lolita" was having an affair Joey, Mary Jo's husband. Both Joey and Fisher served time and I thought we were over this episode but apparently, Kyra, they just can't seem to get out of the spotlight.

PHILLIPS: Can never get enough of the Buttafuocos. All right Sibila, thanks so much. VARGAS: Well from Motown to downtown, the lead singer of "Martha and the Vandellas" has a new day job. Martha Reeves, causing a heat wave in Detroit. She's going to join me live to talk about her new political adventure.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: He's powerful, he's wealthy and now he's a star. CNN goes behind the scenes of what's become must see T.V. in Thailand. Here's our senior Asia correspondent Mike Chinoy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE CHINOY, CNN SENIOR ASIA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Imagine tuning in and watching President Bush in his own reality show. It sounds farfetched but that's what people in Thailand are being treated to.

"Backstage Show" the prime minister, starring their controversial billionaire prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. For 100 straight hours this week on the country's biggest cable network, it's been him Thaksin, all the time.

Forty camera crews and five mobile trucks have descended on remote northeastern Thailand, broadcasting the prime minister's every move as he issues instructions and hands out goodies in the name of alleviating poverty. The prime minister, who is one of Thailand's richest men, showed me the tent where he's staying. This too became part of the program.

THAKSIN SHINAWATRA, PRIME MINISTER, THAILAND: Because I want to stay close to the people.

CHINOY: As did my interview with him.

SHINAWATRA: If you are a politician and if you want to help the people, your heart is with them.

CHINOY: For people like rice farmer and sometimes ice cream vendor, Lam Duong (ph), the prime minister's visit raised hopes of a better life. "It's good he's come," Lam Duong says. "It will boost our standard of living."

Still, many here suspect Thaksin's real goal is not to alleviate poverty, but to alleviate a slump in his ratings, caused by allegations of corruption, cronyism and muzzling the media.

SHINAWATRA: Many media is trying to judge on the people's behalf, without listening to the facts. We want to communicate direct to our citizens.

CHINOY: Despite his power and wealth, even Thaksin can't be on T.V. every single minute. So backstage show has some musical interludes. These women, singing Thaksin's praises quite literally.

(on camera): So the big question in all of this is whether "Backstage Show" the prime minister is going to mark the start of a trend, whether other leaders around the world are also going to want their own reality shows so that they too can present their own version of reality without all those pesky reporters getting in the way. Mike Chinoy, CNN, Roi Et, Thailand.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Three hours maybe, but thousands of American schools have done away with their one "N," the nurse. A closer look at the potentially dangerous trend, coming up next on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Now a pop quiz, subject: health. Does your child's school have a nurse? Almost half the schools in America don't have anyone on campus, full-time, trained to handle critical medical emergencies.

CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen looks into it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA ASSAEL, DAUGHTER HAS DIABETES: A little chilly, kids. Give me your finger.

COHEN: Melissa Assael tests her daughter's blood sugar one last time before school starts.

M. ASSAEL: Perfect right now but we'll have to give you a little something to get through snack, okay?

COHEN: Nervous that Katie's blood sugar level might plunge, Melissa gives her one final instruction.

M. ASSAEL: I want you to check your blood at 9:00.

COHEN: Katie has diabetes and after her mother leaves.

M. ASSAEL: Bye, Katie. I love you.

COHEN: The 6-year-old to a great extent is on her own. And that has her parents scared.

(on camera): Did you both grow up with a school nurse in your school?

M. ASSAEL: Yes. I did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.

COHEN: Were you surprised to hear your daughter's school wouldn't have one?

M. ASSAEL: I was shocked.

COHEN (voice-over): But that's the way it is these days at many schools around the country. In California, where Katie lives on any given day, 70 percent of the students don't have a nurse at their school. That's according to the California School Nurse's Organization.

(on camera): While she's at school what is the big worry in the back of your mind?

M. ASSAEL: Many worries but sometimes even when she has low blood sugar, she gets too low, her body doesn't recognize it. And it is just so dangerous. She can pass out. And they wouldn't know how to care for her.

COHEN: Does Katie worry about Katie while she's at school?

M. ASSAEL: Katie definitely worries about Katie.

COHEN (voice-over): And Katie isn't the only one who is worried.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tell me what kind of medications is he on.

COHEN: This is registered nurse Kathy Gabe. She splits her time between Katie's school and five others.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Off I go.

COHEN: Half a day here, half a day there, driving from one school to another.

(on camera): In all you take care of how many students?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My case load is approximately 5,000 students.

COHEN: Can one nurse really cover 5,000 students in six schools?

NANCY SPRADLING, CALIFORNIA SCHOOL NURSES' ORGANIZATION: No. Absolutely not.

COHEN (voice-over): And as the number of school nurses continues to decrease, the number of children with chronic illnesses continues to rise.

(on camera): So there are more sick kids these days.

SPRADLING: Absolutely.

COHEN: And fewer school nurses.

SPRADLING: Correct.

COHEN: Many fewer.

COHEN: Many fewer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are you doing? COHEN: Gary McHenry is the superintendent of schools in Katie's district. He agrees that one nurse for six schools isn't enough but he says there is nothing he can do. Could you hire more school nurses if you wanted to?

GARY MCHENRY, SUPERINTENDENT, MT. DIABLO SCHOOL DISTRICT: No.

COHEN: Because the money is not there.

MCHENRY: Just not there. With the funding that we have, we have to put the money into teachers first. Safety second. And nursing and counseling services is less of a priority in terms of the money. So I would say to those parents that are angry that they have to put pressure on legislators to provide more funding for schools so that can happen.

COHEN: Nationally there are many overworked nurses like Kathy. Statistics in regulations vary from state to state and district to district. But according to a 2004 National Association of School Nurses survey, nurses take care of nearly twice as many students as they're supposed to under federal guidelines.

KATHY GABE, SCHOOL NURSE: Don't feel hot. I'll have you sit in a chair over there. How about you, young man?

COHEN: Kathy does what she can. On any given day, she's taking care of children with cerebral palsy, epilepsy, diabetes, and headaches and fevers.

GABE: Go ahead and put that under your tongue.

I love my job. And there are days I feel overwhelmed because there was so much to do and not enough time to do it and not enough answers. And those are the days that I leave and I go, you know, I'm worried about that child.

COHEN: Of course Kathy can't be at six schools at one time so what happens when there is an emergency. These days at many schools, when a child has a terrible allergic reaction or a child has an asthma attack who is there to take care of them?

GABE: Our secretaries.

COHEN: That's right. The secretary. The same person who takes attendance, registers new students and answers the phones is handling medical problems.

GABE: The minute they say my throat is tight, can't swallow, you give them the Epipen.

COHEN: Today Kathy teaches to secretaries how to handle severe allergic reactions.

(on camera): So you're expected to handle kids who have seizures ... MARY SHEPHERD, SCHOOL SECRETARY: Who have fallen and broken something who have destroyed their hands in wood shop, all that kind of stuff.

COHEN: And you're a secretary.

SHEPHERD: Last time I looked, yeah.

COHEN: You have no medical training.

SHEPHERD: Nope. I'm just a mom.

COHEN: Does that seem right to you that a secretary should be asked to handle shock?

SHEPHERD: No. Not at all.

COHEN: Are you surprised there aren't more accidents?

SPRADLING: I think that it is an accident waiting to happen. I think that if not tomorrow or next week, then, you know, it could be in six months, but kids are going to die. Kids are going to die. And kids have died.

COHEN: Linda Gonzalez (ph) has seen what can happen when the school nurse isn't there.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got a call and they told me that Philip had collapsed.

COHEN: When Linda's 11-year-old son Philip had an asthma attack at school, the nurse was at another school. The staff tried but couldn't help him. They called 911. Linda rushed to the hospital, but her son was already dead.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I miss him. He was my baby. If the nurse would have been there at school, she could have helped Philip.

COHEN: Katie Assael knows all too well what to expect in an emergency.

KATIE ASSAEL, HAS DIABETES: I would have to take a shot.

COHEN: Who gives you the shot while you're at school?

K. ASSAEL: My mom.

COHEN: Melissa is back at school just a few hours after dropping Katie off. Worried Katie's sugar is too low, she does another check. After Melissa leaves, Katie will check it again herself.

M. ASSAEL: If you feel low anytime before lunch time, will you check it again?

K. ASSAEL: Mm-hmm.

COHEN: It's a big responsibility for a six-year-old.

M. ASSAEL: In Katie's situation, it could truly be a matter of life or death. It should be the nurse that does it, not the teacher, not the secretary and not Katie alone.

COHEN: But with nurse Kathy Gabe only at Katie's school half a day a week, it is up to Melissa to check on her daughter.

M. ASSAEL: I never know what it is going to be and, you know, it's a constant worry. Constant worry.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Walnut Creek, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Almost the top of the hour right now. We're talking about the fall-out from a U.S. air strike in Pakistan. Samuel Alito one step away from the Supreme Court.

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