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CNN Live Today
Day Without Immigrants; Legal Immigrants; Fact Check; Energy 'Crisis'; Gold Medal Heart; Mission Accomplished?
Aired May 01, 2006 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The Oval Office subsequent to the two secretary's visit to Iraq.
And we are out of time.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We are. Let's send it right to Daryn Kagan. She's at the CNN Center, going to take you through the next couple of hours on CNN LIVE TODAY.
Hey, Daryn, good morning.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad.
Good morning, Miles.
We do have a busy couple of hours, perhaps even three hours ahead. We are talking immigration off the job and on the march. Across the U.S. today, immigrants take to the street. They are boycotting work, school, even shopping. One rally is planned later today in Chicago. Organizers say tens of millions will protest nationwide. Angry over proposed crackdown on illegal immigration.
But divisions and emotions run deep on this volatile issue. Right now in Washington, Hispanic doctors, lawyers, teachers and others are speaking out against illegal immigration. Their coalition is named You Don't Speak For Me. CNN reporters have fanned out across the country, even across the border. Throughout the day, live reports from nine cities, from Los Angeles, to New York, to Mexico City. CNN's Keith Oppenheim is in Chicago where one of the first demonstrations of the day will take place a little bit later on.
In Chicago are we talking just a demonstration or a boycott of business as well, Keith?
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's really a combination of a demonstration and taking the day off from work. Let me just sort of set the scene for you a bit here, Daryn. This is Union Park in Chicago. Kind of the west loop. As I walk, you can see some folks are here on the sidewalk and over here by a road.
And what will happen here is two rallies will come together, two marches, and they'll form a mega march going down Randolph Street down to downtown Chicago. The desire for a rally like this has really been intense in the city of Chicago for the last couple of months. Keep in mind, on May 10th there was a fairly quickly organized rally here that drew 100,000 protesters and today we're expecting that workers will take the day of, kids are expected to take the day off from school, or at least some. And we have seen some young people around here.
And Chicago police have been working with neighborhood organizations ahead of time this time to prepare for this rally and demonstration. And the numbers we're hearing, Daryn, could range from perhaps 300,000, upwards to half a million demonstrators today. There could be some rain which may depress those figures a bit. But overall what we're expecting is kind of a coming out party, if you will. That for legal and particularly undocumented workers that this is a day where they really want to show their displeasure with legislation that would crackdown on illegal immigration.
Daryn.
KAGAN: All right, Keith Oppenheim in Chicago. We'll check back with you.
On to New York City, the biggest city in America. Home to tens of thousands of immigrants. On tap today, a solidarity march and human chain as well. Let's go to our Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff.
Allan, first tell us about what's happening at 12:16 p.m. What's scheduled to happen?.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Daryn.
A little bit after 12:00 there will be a human chain right along Canal Street over here. Everybody is going to link arms to symbolize how interdependent New Yorkers are, immigrants, people born in the United States, workers as well as business people. So that human chain is planned and the time, of course, very symbolic, 12:16. That's the date that the House passed the bill which would make it a felony for a person to be here illegally.
But in terms of a boycott, that's absolutely not happening here in Chinatown. As a matter of fact, we've been speaking with business people up and down the streets here. Here along Mott (ph) Street, the vendors selling vegetables, selling flowers, clothing. None of them aware of this idea at all. In fact, they weren't even aware of the human chain plan.
Over at the United Orient Bank, no one planning to leave work over here. The same true for the Advikas (ph) Federal Bank that I'm standing right in front of. And just down the street, one of the most famous restaurants here in Chinatown, a Grand Harmony Restaurant, right now the ducks and the geese are cooking. That's the specialty over there. It was quite crowded for breakfast. It will be even more crowded for lunch and dinner. We found absolutely no one planning to take the day off from work. Just some people planning to step out for this human chain at 12:16 p.m.
Daryn.
KAGAN: Allan Chernoff in New York City. We'll check back with you as well. As we look at immigration, we know that there are many illegal routes into the U.S. But there are ways, of course, to enter the country legally. CNN's Tom Foreman takes a look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that I will bear true faith.
CROWD: And that I will bear true faith.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Look at the pictures, hope and inspiration of legalized American citizens. And the question about illegal immigrants seems obvious.
Why don't people come here legally?
And the answer is just as clear to Brent Wilkes, an activist for immigrant rights.
BRENT WILKES, LEAGUE OF UNITED LATIN AMERICAN CITIZENS: Well, they can't play by the rules when the rules are you can't play.
FOREMAN: Well, you can play, but the rules are strict. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. First, through family.
ANDIE MACDOWELL, "GREEN CARD": This is ridiculous.
GERARD DEPARDIEU, "GREEN CARD": No, no, no. Look, for the green card I'd do anything.
FOREMAN: As the movie "Green Card" portrays, immediate families of U.S. citizens can come in with relative ease, as long as they prove the relationship is not a fraud.
DEPARDIEU: I do.
MACDOWELL: I do.
FOREMAN: But bringing in others is difficult and time consuming. If you were from the Philippines and want your grown, married son to join you this year, should have applied for his legal entry in 1988 because that waiting list is 18 years.
Immigrant sport stars, celebrities, people with highly specialized skills or advanced educations can be brought in by employers, but the less special they are, the heard it gets. People seeking political asylum are legally admitted while their cases are evaluated. So are investor who commit $1 million to build a U.S. business. A half million if it help as struggling industry.
And finally there is the diversity lottery. Out of the millions of low-skilled and unskilled laborers who want to move to America every year, 55,000 essentially have their names pulled from a hat. But -- and this is important -- if you are from Mexico or a handful of other countries that already send a lot of immigrants, the State Department has said your name cannot be in the hat.
Immigration was once much more open. When the nation needed many workers, people hopped on a boat overseas and hopped off here.
WILKES: That was it. There's nothing like that anymore. It's much more complicated and it's much harder to come into the country legally. And for that reason that's why we've got illegal workers.
FOREMAN: Taking the citizenship quiz, saying the oath, those are the easy parts. Getting legally in line for the test, that can be hard.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: A guest worker program, illegal immigrants could stay in the U.S., at least for a while. President Bush first backed that idea two years ago. Here now are the facts of the plan from CNN's Betty Nguyen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Some key points of President Bush's controversial guest worker plan include, employers must make a reasonable effort to hire an American before turning to illegal immigrants now employed in the country or workers in foreign countries who have been offered jobs here.
The government would step up efforts to enforce laws against hiring foreigners illegally.
Illegal immigrants would be able to gain legal status for a set amount of time to do a specific job. Once the job is done, the workers would be required to return home.
Workers involved would be required to pay a one-time fee to register for the program. They would have a chance to renew the temporary worker status at an unspecified time in the future. Only people outside the U.S. would be allowed to join the temporary worker program.
One crucial point Mr. Bush's program does not allow is amnesty. He says those who have entered the country illegally should not be rewarded for breaking U.S. law.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: CNN will have extensive coverage of the day without immigrants. You'll also see live reports from our Spanish language news network, CNN En Espanol. And when you're away from your television, you can go online to get the latest with CNN Pipeline. It's cnn.com all day long.
And this just in from the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court has ruled that former stripper Anna Nicole Smith, in fact, can pursue part of her late husband's estate. Anna Nicole Smith was fighting a lower court ruling that gave all of her late husband's money to one of his sons. So more on that. But it looks like a victory for Anna Nicole Smith at the U.S. Supreme Court.
Iraq three years later. Has the mission really been accomplished? Coming up, a look at what's happened since the president declared victory.
For the first time the "c" word from the Bush team. The White House is facing new pressure on gas prices. That's coming up.
And a boycott. But this one's not about immigration. A price protest where big oil leaves. Motorists in Beeville, Texas, say they'll keep on driving right past the Exxon stations.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We are checking in on gas prices as your cash checks out of your wallet. The average national price for a gallon of regular has held steady since last week, $2.92 according to AAA. Now check the bigger picture. The price is up 37 cents a gallon from one month ago and up 68 cents from one year ago.
Motorists, they are muttering about high gas prices. We can't repeat some of the four-letter words that they're saying. But Washington is using six letters to describe the big increase, but we can tell you about that. Here's CNN's Ed Henry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over); For the first time, a senior Bush official is calling America's energy problem a crisis. And said it may take three years to lower gas prices.
SAMUEL BODMAN, ENERGY SECRETARY: There is apparently some evidence that we have a crisis. There's a lot of concern about this. And so the president is looking at everything, every tool at his disposal to put to work on it. And so, you know, I'm not embarrassed by that.
TIM RUSSERT, MEET THE PRESS: Do you call it a crisis?
BODMAN: I would call it that, yes. I think that there is great concern.
HENRY: Democrats charge this shows President Bush's plan to increase supply, promote investment in alternative fuels and investigate price gouging falls short.
SEN. BARBARA BOXER, (D) CALIFORNIA: All you had to do was look at Mr. Bodman's body language and what he said. We think we have a crisis. I'm not embarrassed. What is that?
HENRY: And the White House is facing new pressure from a conservative Republican, Trent Lott, who says he's now open to a Democratic plan to tax the huge profits oil companies are reaping.
SEN. TRENT LOTT, (R) MISSISSIPPI: This may come as a shock to you, but I'm going to keep my options open. The message to the oil companies is, hold down your price of gasoline and it better start sliding back the other way. If they don't control it and if they continue to have prices go up, profits go up and salaries go up, Congress will do something.
HENRY: But experts point out raising taxes or a Senate Republican plan to give consumer $100 gas rebates will have little impact on prices in the short term. The long-term problem is American's dependence on foreign oil.
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: And that's why we need to keep -- we need to start dealing with these problems now, so the next time this comes up, we won't be wringing our hands.
HENRY: Democrats are now threatening to break up the oil giants, charging that a lack of competition is only driving up the price of gas. Democrat Chuck Schumer said the Senate needs to explore what he called as little good old fashioned trust busting.
Ed Henry, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: Deep in the heart of Texas, oil country, gas outrage is bubbling over. A boycott begins to day against ExxonMobil. Bee County commissioners voted for the boycott. Commissioners say the goal is to bring gas prices down to $1.30 a gallon. Exxon is targeted because of billion of dollars in profits and millions in executive payouts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE JIMMY MARTINEZ, BEE COUNTY, TEXAS: I want to know, you know, why people are getting in the millions for salaries and bonuses. I've got people in my county that can't even travel to Corpus Christi to get health services.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: In response, ExxonMobil says it does not control the market price of gas and the owner of Beeville's three Exxon stations says her workers are worried about their jobs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LETICIA MUNOZ, GAS STATION OWNER: We are independent. We are not affiliated with ExxonMobil. Therefore it's not going to -- they won't probably even know that this is going on down here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: From your kitchen to your car, cooking up new ideas for vegetable oil. Get this, some drivers are filling up on it. CNN LIVE TODAY is back in a moment.
But first, an Olympic gold medalist. How Joey Cheek became a champion a second time to refugees. You're watching CNN.
And let's go ahead and check out the markets. They've been open about 46 minutes. You can see the Dow is moving up nicely. It is up 32 points. The Nasdaq is in positive territory as well. It is up just a bit. It is up eight points.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: They come from all different backgrounds and opposing political views but they share one cause, saving lives in Sudan's Darfur region. Thousands of people showed up for a rally on the national mall in Washington on Sunday. Among the workers, actor George Clooney just back from Darfur. Clooney and his father interviewed families in a refugee camp. Government-backed Arab militia are blamed for killing tens of thousands and leaving 2 million people homeless. Clooney says leader's policies to stop the genocide are failing and citizens must demand change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE CLOONEY, ACTOR: All of you here decide what is right and what is wrong. We're at the doorstep of something we thought was impossible to dream of in the 21st century. If we turn our heads and look away and hope that it will all disappear, then they will. All of them. An entire generation of people. And we will have only history left to judge us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Some athletes give back to the communities. Some say no one does it like Joey Cheek. The Olympic gold medalist is a champion of the Darfur refugee aid and he's recruiting others for the team. CNN's Andrea Koppel has his story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): For American speed skater Joey Cheek, winning a gold medal in the Turin Olympics was a dream come true.
You looked so excited when you were holding the flag.
JOEY CHEEK, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Well, that's a day that you dream of. It really is. As cliche as it sounds, it really is something that you dream of and chase in your head over and over and over again.
KOPPEL: But it's what Cheek did after he won gold that turned this Olympic champion into a hero. At a post race press conference, Cheek announced he planned to donate the $25,000 bonus he won from the U.S. Olympic Committee to help children in refugee camps, especially those in Sudan's Darfur region. The 26-year-old Cheek also donated his $15,000 Olympic bonus after winning a silver medal. CHEEK: I saw in 2002 I won a bronze medal and I kind of saw how the news cycle worked and how the people who won would get an opportunity to speak for a few minutes. And I decided when I got those few minutes I wanted to make sure that I spoke on something that I really cared about and was passionate about.
KOPPEL: It was the genocide in Darfur that caught Cheek's attention. A genocide which has killed at least 200,000 people according to the United Nations and forced 2 million Sudanese men, women and children to seek shelter in refugee camps.
Before the Olympics were over, Cheek says he succeed in raising more than half a million dollars in matching funds from U.S. corporations and individuals. The moral, says Cheek . . .
CHEEK: That small act made by a lot of people is a very powerful thing.
KOPPEL: As Cheek learned during his years on the ice, sometimes even one person focused on a single goal can do great things.
Andrea Koppel, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And we take live pictures now. President and Mrs. Bush are in the Rose Garden today. They are there for the Preserve American Presidential Awards for Historic and Neighborhood Preservation. We'll listen in to see if the president makes any comments about the immigration issue today. And if he does, we will bring those to you.
Meanwhile, the jock sits, the geeks scores. It's the National Championship for Science stars. You'll see it on LIVE TODAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: These live pictures are from New Orleans, Louisiana. One of the sites of immigration protests today. New Orleans is a city that has seen an influx of immigrants because of the number of jobs available after Katrina. This is one of just many rallies that are planned all across the country. We have our reporters fanned out across the country and across the border into Mexico as well.
Meanwhile, though, on to world news. Americans killed in Iraq. April was the deadliest month this year for U.S. troops fighting in Iraq. The State Department says there were 69 military deaths in April. That's the highest monthly death toll for Americans since November of last year.
Three years is a long time. A lot can change. It certainly has in Iraq. On May 1, 2003, President Bush declared victory in Iraq. CNN's Ryan Chilcote is in the war zone. He retraces the battle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): May 1, 2003.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended and the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed.
CHILCOTE: Three years later, Iraq as it is known on your television screen. What happened? Let's rewind back to the invasion.
American troops marched into Baghdad and occupation begins. Iraqi military is disbanded. And within a few months, the insurgency begins its own war.
By the end of that year, Saddam is found hiding in a hole. His regime toppled. The insurgency gathers strength. Still, Iraqis go to the polls three times, forming their first democratically elected government.
Under pressure at home to produce an exit strategy, U.S. military intensifies the training of Iraq's security forces.
Even as the U.S. military has grown Iraq's security forces, it's run into another problem perhaps even larger than the insurgency. It's called sectarian violence. Iraqis killing Iraqis out of sectarian hate.
February 22nd, that hate peaks after terrorist blow up one of Shia Islam's most important mosques. This weekend a U.S. commander congratulated Iraqi soldiers after they repelled an insurgent attack with very little help from the U.S. military. It's still a unique event here. Iraq's security forces do not operate completely independent of the U.S. military anywhere in Iraq and the threat from insurgents is still so great they declined to go on camera without covering their faces.
Three years ago, President Bush declared the U.S. military's mission accomplished here. Do you think that there was an under appreciation, an under estimation of the challenges that lay ahead?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I wasn't here three years ago. I'm here today. And I realize we have challenges. But with soldiers like you saw today, we will, in fact, beat those challenges.
CHILCOTE: General Abadi is a top commander in the Iraqi military.
Do you think that when the U.S. military came here they underestimated some of the challenges that lay ahead?
GEN ABADI, COMMANDER, IRAQ MILITARY: Well, I think that's through assumption because we have problems now had we had been more prepared, this would not happen. We gone through such a scale.
CHILCOTE: More than 30,000 Iraqis have been killed. More than 17,000 American troops wounded, another 2,350 plus fatalities. While one mission may have been accomplished, toppling the regime, the war against insurgents and the growing conflict between religious groups in Iraq is posing a challenge to the U.S. How do you form a viable exit strategy when the mission itself keeps changing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And Ryan Chilcote standing by live from Baghdad.
So, Ryan, more violence in Iraq. But what's this basically newly formed government trying to do to change things?
CHILCOTE: Well, there's two things going on. One thing that is obviously going on is they're continuing, along with the U.S. military, to try to defeat the insurgency militarily. As you know, the U.S. military has about 133,000 troops on the ground. Iraq's security forces are growing. There's an operation underway right now in the west of the country, at a place called Ramadi. The U.S. military says that 100 insurgents have been killed almost exclusively by Iraq security forces there. And then there's this new thing going on. They're trying to defeat the insurgents by talking to them. For the first time ever, a senior Iraqi official is acknowledging that those talks are under way. That's coming from Iraq's new president Jalal Talabani. He says he's talking to seven different armed groups, encouraging them to disarm and join other Sunni Arabs in the political process -- Daryn.
Ryan Chilcote live from Baghdad. Ryan, thank you.
Let's go ahead and fast forward three years and see what Americans think today of the president's "mission accomplished" statement. A CNN poll conducted by Opinion Research Corporation found only nine percent of Americans think the U.S. mission in Iraq has been accomplished, 40 percent believe the mission hasn't been accomplished, but will be, and 44 percent say the U.S. will never reach its goals in Iraq.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: The kids don't shoot hoops, but their robots certainly scored. Top high-schoolers strut their engineering stuff on the basketball coach.
CNN's Reynolds Wolf reports from the Georgia Dome.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's one of the biggest events of the year for high school science students. First, it stands for inspiration and recognition of science and technology. It gives students the chance to strut their science know-how.
The students, under the guidance of mentors, design and build robots from materials in a kit. They run about $17,000 apiece, but students only have to pay entry fees and travel costs.
(on camera): How do you guys get here? I notice a lot of big sponsorships, and...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A lot of little fund-raising. We only had two semi-big sponsors, the Perkins Foundation and the Annenberg Foundation. Everything else is just individual fund-raising.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our parents do a lot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bake sales, car washes. We do a 30-30 program letter, where we send 30 letters out for $30. And we get $2 up to like $100 back.
WOLF: Instead of having, like, one big corporate sponsor, it was a real community effort.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
WOLF (voice-over): Founder Dean Kamen says one goal of the competition is to break stereotypes.
DEAN KAMEN, FOUNDER, FIRST: If we could find the Shaquille O'Neal of engineering and put that person in front of all the kids in the same kind of fun environment as they see these world-class young athletes, and if these kids go back to school with a little bit of passion and a little bit of thought, you know, maybe that engineering and science is worthwhile, we are going to dramatically change the outcome of their decision making as they choose careers.
MATT FULTZ, CYBER BLUE: People say they want to be an engineer, but they don't really know what being an engineer involves.
CATHY WARNER, CYBER BLUE: It's not really something you can really take in high school as a class to see what it is. So doing this definitely helps to see what engineers really do.
WOLF: And once students have taken part in FIRST, they are immediately eligible to apply for certain scholarships, in engineering and the sciences.
For the final match, top-seeded teams pick and choose other robots to form alliances, and the right choice will lead to victory.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were the last pick, and they picked us, which I love you guys for.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We wouldn't have chosen it any other way.
WOLF (on camera): Never met each other before?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We met at another competition. We had a tough time against them, and we knew they were an awesome robot, so we had to pick them.
STEVEN D'ALESSIO, ROBO WIZARDS: Everything is teamwork. Without them, we would never have gotten this far. Without us, they never would have gotten this far.
WOLF: The journey that began for these teams back in January is now over. The seniors, well, they'll have their memories. But for the freshman, the sophomores, and the juniors there's always next year. Reynolds Wolf, CNN, Atlanta.
Now there was one young man at the competition over the weekend, a teenager who had to look for a way around the law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm here illegally, but at least I'm making a difference.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Listen to his story and see if you think he deserves a pass. That's ahead on LIVE TODAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: These live pictures coming to us from Durham, North Carolina. This is the campus of Duke University. The New Black Panther Party has gathered at an entrance to the university. They are there to show their support for the woman who told police she was raped by three members of the school's lacrosse team. They plan not only to hold this rally, but to march past the house, and hold a black townhall meeting later today at a local church. The Duke spokesman says that the university has no intention of limiting anyone's right to speak. But he says the safety of the campus cannot be jeopardized. We'll be keeping an eye on that.
We're also watching the U.S. Supreme Court hand a ruling to former stripper Anna Nicole Smith. We figured who bring you up to date on Anna Nicole Smith than Tony Harris.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks!
KAGAN: Your interest level just peaks suddenly.
HARRIS: Yes, yes. Wooh!
OK, all right. The U.S. Supreme Court as you mentioned a little earlier, Daryn, unanimously has given Anna Nicole Smith the go-ahead to pursue part of her late husband's oil fortune. Smith says she's entitled to collect millions of dollars from the estate of her late husband, Jay Howard Marshall III. That estate worth as much as $1.6 billion.
This has been, as you know, Daryn, a year's long battle between Smith and the Marshall's youngest son, E. Pierce Marshall. Justice Ginsburg wrote the opinion for the court, saying Smith should have a fresh chance to pursue claims in federal court. No reaction from Anna Nicole Smith, not yet anyway, to the Supreme Court decision, and these pictures are from February as the court heard the arguments in this case.
Daryn, back to you.
KAGAN: Very well done, Tony. HARRIS: Thank you.
If you have your way, we'll be coming back to you for more updates on that story.
HARRIS: OK.
KAGAN: Thank you so much.
Of course the big story today are immigration protests all across the country. I want to show you some live pictures. First, to Homestead, Florida. A number of people showing up there to protest policies and reform against immigration and illegal immigration. Also we're watching New Orleans where a number of immigrants have flocked into this area since Katrina, with a number of construction jobs opening up there.
We are all across the country and into Mexico with correspondents fanned out across the country. We'll have coverage all day long of this day. Also, while we're talking about other stories, you can check what's going on Pipeline, CNN.com/pipeline. Live complete coverage all day long today.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES REPORT)
KAGAN: The Rolling Stones Keith Richards fell out of a tree. The question is what was he doing out there in the first place. He may defy age, but he can't fool gravity. He conked his head when he fell out of a palm tree in Fiji. The stones haven't exactly confirmed what happened in the South Pacific, but one report says he tumbled 16 feet. Then he went out on a jet ski and tumbled again. Richards is 62. He's in a New Zealand hospital today with a concussion. The Stones are set to perform next in Barcelona late this month for their Bigger Bang world tour. That is if Richards can get over his big bang on his head.
An annual tradition, and this year President Bush doubled the fun. Ahead on CNN, the president and the press.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: As you know I always look forward to these dinners.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just a bunch of media types, Hollywood liberals, Democrats like Joe Biden. How come I can't have dinner with the 36 percent of the people who like me?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: On this day where many are taking to the streets of America to protest policies against illegal immigrants, we have our cameras across the country and into Mexico. On the left part of your screen that is Homestead, Florida, where you can see a number of people marching along the sidewalk there. On the right side of the screen, New Orleans, Louisiana. We'll be checking in live all day long with different protests across the country.
And with so many illegal immigrants flooding the streets today, you have to kind of wonder, are immigration enforcement agents taking notice or planning any action at today's rallies? Paul Virtue is a former INS commissioner. He joins us from Washington.
Paul, good morning.
PAUL VIRTUE, FORMER INS COMMISSIONER: Good morning.
KAGAN: I think a basic question a lot of Americans ask, why doesn't the INS show up at these many rallies and make a bunch of arrests?
VIRTUE: Well, I think you have to look at the numbers here. It really is a numbers issue. I mean, we're talking about 11 to 12 million people versus maybe 20,000 to 30,000 agents available to enforce the law. They really have to give priority to people who commit crimes in the U.S.
KAGAN: But some people would say it's a crime to be an illegal immigrant.
VIRTUE: Well, it's not.
KAGAN: It's not a crime to be an illegal immigrant?
VIRTUE: There is a misdemeanor provision, which is very rarely, if ever, prosecuted for people who enter the U.S. illegally. There is a bill pending that passed the House that would up the ante on that and make illegal entry a crime.
KAGAN: Which is one of the things that is being protested today that it would make it a felony not only to be an illegal immigrant, but to hire illegal immigrants, or even help them. Right.
VIRTUE: That's right. That's one of the things that people are protesting today.
KAGAN: So what are the other things that the 20,000 or 30,000 INS agents would be doing on a day like today?
VIRTUE: Well, their main focus is to identify, apprehend and remove people who commit crimes in the U.S. and that really is a full- time job pretty much for them. They also enforce the laws with respect to alien smuggling and employer sanctions. And we have seen an increase, even in just over the last few weeks, in employer sanctions enforcement.
KAGAN: Do you think that's the answer in going after employers rather than the people who are coming in the country?
VIRTUE: Well, I think you have to have a balance. And I think that's what the comprehensive immigration reform advocates are saying, that you really have to deal with this 11 to 12 million person problem as well as stepping up the enforcement at the border and also in the interior.
KAGAN: Did you face anything like this, these huge protests or situations like this when you were INS commissioner?
VIRTUE: You know, we didn't. I was there from '83 and we had the 1986 Act during the -- we legalized about three million people and that's when employers sanctions came into focus, but there was nothing like this in terms of the grassroots effort of people speaking out on the immigration issue.
KAGAN: Now, wasn't that the idea back in the '80s, that if you went and legalized these three million people that would take care of the problem? And here we are more than 20 years later now they are saying 11 or 12 million illegal immigrants, that it's just gotten bigger.
VIRTUE: Well, the idea there was it was three parts. It was to legalize the population that were here because we couldn't deal with them from an enforcement perspective to try employer sanctions to see if they would work in terms of cutting down the number of jobs here, and also stepping up the enforcement, increasing the border security as well as the interior enforcement population.
The problem is the enforcement measures were never put into place, and so we're back at an 11 to 12 million person problem. The jobs are going always -- they're going to be here. And even if we were to remove 11 to 12 million people -- which is not going to happen -- somebody is going to have to fill those jobs. So we really have to deal with both issues: enforcement and the question about legalizing the status of people who have been here for a long time.
KAGAN: Paul Virtue former INS commissioner, thanks for your perspective and your time. Thank you.
VIRTUE: My pleasure. Thank you.
KAGAN: Talking about the English language. It's a big piece of the immigration debate. Some states have English-only laws. But did you know there's also the movement to make English the official language of the entire U.S.? A "Fact Check" now from CNN's Kyra Phillips.
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KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Twenty-seven states now have some form of English-only legislation. A spearhead of the movement is the Washington-based group U.S. English Incorporated. Founded in 1983, the group says it's the nation's oldest organization dedicated, in its words, "to preserving the unifying role of the English language in the United States."
Immigrant and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is a member of the U.S. English Advisory Board. Other celebrities on the board are actor Charlton Heston and golfer Arnold Palmer, and former Defense Secretary James Schlesinger.
U.S. English isn't limiting its efforts just at the state level. It's mounted a campaign on Capitol Hill to pass a law making English the official language of the United States. U.S. English and a similar group called Pro English argue that English as official language laws will help immigrants learn English and thus succeed in this country.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other critics say English- only laws do nothing more than discriminate against and punish those who have not learned English.
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KAGAN: Listening? The music is carrying the message. But it is who is behind the hard-hitting campaign that really has people talking. More on this story just ahead.
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KAGAN: The crown jewel of New York City's skyline celebrates a big birthday. The Empire State Building is 75 years old today. For four decades, it was the world's tallest building and it's still head and shoulders above all other skyscrapers in the Big Apple. And what a sight it is when the sun goes down.
When the building opened in 1931, President Herbert Hoover pressed a button in Washington to turn on the lights.
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