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CNN Live Today

Immigration Battle; New England Flooding; Crackdown?; U.S./Libya Relations; Welcome To The Future; Medicare Deadline Tips

Aired May 15, 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: That's all the time we have and then some for this AMERICAN MORNING. Thanks for being with us this morning.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get 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. What a busy couple of hours it's going to be. Nothing like Monday morning to get things going. You guys have a great day in New York City.

We are watching a number of developing stories, including watching the rivers rise in New England. Hundreds of evacuations follow torrential rain. We'll go live to one town that is under water this morning.

And a possible new charge this morning in the Duke lacrosse rape case. But some lawyers are asking, where's the evidence. We're on the scene in Durham, North Carolina.

We are also on the border this morning and the razors edge of controversy. Strong reaction today to a plan that calls for the deployment of National Guard troops to the U.S. boarder with Mexico. We're told that President Bush will outline his plan tonight. He will have a prime time address to the nation. It's a move meant to unify conservatives for immigration reform. But it's stirring plenty of criticism as well on both sides of the border.

One senior administration official tells CNN that the president's plan calls for fewer than 10,000 National Guard troops. Let's get the latest from CNN White House Correspondent Ed Henry.

Ed, first of all, who do you think is President Bush's target audience tonight?

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, clearly, he's trying to reach out to conservatives. And the idea is if the president lays out a plan that shows he's going to get tough on border security, that may make it more palatable for conservatives, particularly on Capitol Hill, to swallow this idea of a guest worker program that those conservatives feel is to lenient on the 11 to 12 million illegal immigrants already here. Now let me give you a little bit of the back story here. New White House Press Secretary Tony Snow a short while ago told reporters this speech will last about 20 minutes. The president did his first run-through on Friday. He's going to have a couple more practice sessions today. Tony Snow would not address some of the tough questions, such as with the federal government or the states will pick up the tab for this or what does temporary mean. Exactly how long will this plan last.

But Snow did address questions, criticism already coming out about whether the National Guard is stretched too thin. Snow insisting this will have no effect on the execution of the war on terror or federal preparations for the new hurricane season. The White House is stressing that those less than 10,000 National Guard troops that you mentioned, that's only about 2 or 3 percent of the 400,000 National Guard troops the U.S. has. They will be deployed along the U.S.-Mexico border, but they will be in a supportive role of the border patrol already there. So they will not actually be apprehending illegal immigrants.

Take a listen to White House National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley on CNN's "Late Edition."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN HADLEY, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: It's not about militarization of the board, it's about assisting the civilian border patrol in doing their job, providing intelligence, providing support, logistics support, and training in these sort of things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Now this will be the president's 21st nationally- televised prime time address to the nation. I asked Tony Snow why now? Why raise the stakes like this? He said point-blank, it's crunch time in the immigration reform debate. The president himself decided to weigh in, in a big way.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Ed Henry at the White House. We'll be back with you throughout the next couple of hours.

Right now we want to get the military perspective. Our Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr is at her post with the latest.

Barbara, Ed was giving us some of the details. But overall, how would this work?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn, right now there are about 350 troops on the southern border. This will be in addition to that. Sources here describing it as a few thousand.

Now, to be clear, they will not be federal troops, if you will. Instead they will be activated by the governors of the four states, California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. The federal government is most likely to pick up the tab.

What they will do, however, is support. Support for the border patrol authorities that are already there. They will help with surveillance, support missions, reconnaissance, intelligence, that sort of thing. Keeping an eye on the border.

What they are not expected to be doing will be law enforcement. Sources telling us that they will have no law enforcement role. They will not make arrests. They will have no role in detention of people crossing the border. No role in transporting people crossing the border. That's the initial look at it. The details may change, but that's what national guard authorities are prepared to do under this plan.

As soon as the president makes his announcement, they will then begin fine-tuning the proposal with the governors of the four states. This will be a temporary measure we are told. They want to make sure that they don't disrupt the lives of any National Guard troops more than has already taken place.

For example, basically the troops that will not be touched by this will be any troops that have recently returned from Iraq, troops that may be on their way to Iraq. The National Guard authorities are very aware that that deployment has been a strain on the families and they don't want to add to it. They believe this will be a temporary deployment, but the details, Daryn, still largely remain to be worked out.

KAGAN: All right. We will be watching tonight. Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you.

We are all over this story today. We have in-depth prime time coverage tonight. That gets started at 7:00 Eastern when Lou Dobbs joins Wolf Blitzer for a special edition of "The Situation Room." After the speech, Lou Dobbs hosts a special edition of "Lou Dobbs Tonight." "Larry King Live" is up at 9:00 Eastern reporting live from the border. And Anderson Cooper wraps it all up with a very special edition of "A.C. 360." It is all here on CNN. As well as right here on CNN LIVE TODAY. We'll continue to hit this story hard throughout the next two hours.

Well, it could be the worst flooding in 70 years in parts of New England which are under water today. Roads washed out. Homes unlivable. And now dams that are weakened. CNN's Dan Lothian has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): A weekend of torrential rain turned roads into rivers. The flood waters forcing hundreds of people in Massachusetts and New Hampshire to flee their homes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm just so glad we're out of the house. It's so good to be out of the house.

LOTHIAN: For some, the only way to safety was by boat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We put all our stuff on the roof. All the stuff's on the roof of the house because there's so much water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is the worse we've seen. Definitely the worse we've seen. We've never had it out like this.

LOTHIAN: Rescuers waded through waist-deep water searching for stranded families.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of water. That's all I can tell you. There's a lot of water and there's still some more people out there.

LOTHIAN: The governors of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maine declared states of emergency and the weather is expected to get worse before it gets better.

GOV. MITT ROMNEY, (R) MASSACHUSETTS: There are a number of rivers which we expect as of Monday night to rise substantially above the flood level.

LOTHIAN: Forecasters predict as much as 15 inches of rain will fall in some areas by the time the storm passes.

JOHN LYNCH, NEW HAMPSHIRE GOVERNOR: Well, five out of 10 counties have really experienced widespread flooding. Many roads closed, parts of roads washed away. We've had mandatory and voluntary evacuations. A number of shelters have been set up across the state.

LOTHIAN: And there's concern across New England about weakened dams giving way and sending walls of water sweeping through areas already hit hard.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was just hard. We lost everything. And we just redid everything in our house.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Water was at the door when we left. Who knows where it will be when we get back.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And our Dan Lothian joins us now I think about waist deep in some of the worst flooding that this area has seen since 1936, Dan.

LOTHIAN: It is pretty bad and, you know, the end is not here. What we've been seeing throughout the morning is at times you'll have the heavy rain coming down, then it kind of slows down a little bit and then it picks back up again and then you have that wind pushing that water as well.

We are in the downtown Peabody area. I'm standing in about one to two feet of water right in this region here. And as you look down the street, you get a sense of how deep it really get. That's a white car all the way down there. Much deeper there than it is right here. The entire town square area had to be closed because of water.

Daryn.

KAGAN: And as you were saying, it doesn't look good for today for conditions. Dan, thank you. And I would say stay dry, but I think you passed that point.

LOTHIAN: That's right. Way past it.

KAGAN: Yes, way past it. Waist past it.

KAGAN: Jacqui Jeras watching the weather conditions today.

Jacqui, more rain for that area?

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: Still ahead, we have a smuggling case out of Mexico and we're not talking drugs. This bust involves a baby. A hidden camera and some disturbing allegations. The details from the video ahead on LIVE TODAY.

Also, what should the U.S. do to stem the flow of illegal immigrants? One faction with very vocal members is convinced there's only one solution -- crack down.

And the search is on in the waters of Florida following three deadly attacks in less than a week. Coming up, tracking killer gators in a state where people love to swim.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's check out those latest numbers on Wall Street. Moving just a tiny little bit. You can see the Dow is up 12 points. The markets have been open 44 minutes. And the Nasdaq, a little bit of movement as well. It is down three points I believe.

On to the raging battle over immigration. One faction mincing no words here. The solution, they say, is easy -- crack down on illegal immigrants. CNN's Casey Wian has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Border security activists began a weekend series of rallies across the country on Cinco de Mayo.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here because we'd like to have our laws enforced.

WIAN: While their opponents chose May Day for their marches, these protesters picked the Mexican cultural celebration to send a message to the federal government.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they were doing what they were elected to do, then we would not have to be here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not just about, you know, illegal immigration. It's pretty much an invasion. You know, you have, you know, Mexico's pushed, you know, 12 million people into our country.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They are here illegally. They are here breaking the law and yet they want rights and citizenship and amnesty and everything else. Why can't they wait their turn?

WIAN: Border security activists are demanding the United States treat illegal immigration the way many other countries, including Mexico, already do. Minnesota Congressman James Sensenbrenner released a study by the Law Library of Congress examining immigration law enforcement and criminal penalties for illegal immigration in six nations across the globe. It shows that Brazil, Egypt, Japan, Mexico, Sweden and Switzerland all have stiffer penalties against illegal immigration then the United States.

In Mexico, for example, illegal entry is a federal crime punishable by up to two years in prison. Moreover, continued illegal presence in Mexico is punishable by another six years in prison. In the United States, illegal entry is only a civil violation of the first offense. Even repeat offenders are rarely prosecuted.

Brazil was the only studied country that doesn't criminalize illegal entry, but it does impose penalties of up to eight years in prison for immigration document forgery.

Casey Wian, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And we have breaking news of international relations. Apparently the U.S. and Libya might soon start talking. Let's go to Elise Labbott on the phone with us with more details about that.

Elise.

ELISE LABBOTT, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, Daryn.

We've been told by numerous state department officials and also a senior living official that a very big announcement coming this morning by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and that's that the U.S. and Libya are establishing full diplomatic ties and that both of their lesion (ph) offices right now, currently headed by Asharsha Defare (ph), will be upgraded by an ambassador.

Also big news for Libya being taken off the state sponsors of terrorism list. That process is underway. The United States is notifying Congress and then there's a 45-day waiting period.

But big news for Libya. The relations between the two countries have really improved since Libya gave up its weapons program in late -- agreed to give up its weapons program in late 2003 and started to do so the following year and gradually you've seen an easing of U.S. sanctions and improvement in the relation of big news today being announced by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a briefing room later this hour.

KAGAN: But how does a country go to one that should be on a state-sponsored terrorism list to one that the United States wants to be friendly with?

LABBOTT: Well, Daryn, this is the argument of the United States in that countries can rehabilitate themselves. As you know, Libya was put on the state sponsors list in '79 and because of the support with Iran over the embassy bombings -- over storming of the U.S. embassy. And then we had the Lockerbie bombing in 1988 and, obviously, Libya is considered one of the major state sponsors of terrorism.

But the United States argues that a lot of those contacts have now ended. President Moammar Gadhafi himself (ph) tried to rehabilitate himself and in late 2003 had that major agreement with the United States to give up its weapons program. And the U.S. wants to argue that countries can rehabilitate themselves, get back into better relations with the United States and the west. And, in fact, you've had several senior U.S. officials over the last year use this case for Iran, saying Iran can really follow the Libya model and get back into better relations with the west.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Elise Labbott with the latest on the U.S. and Libya restarting about relationship there. Thank you, Elise. More on that in a little bit.

Also senior, ahead for you, a very important day and deadline. Gerri Willis has that information for you.

Gerri.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A deadline for seniors? We're going to talk about Medicare and the deadline. It's creeping up. It's midnight tonight. We'll have more details when CNN LIVE TODAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: CNN continues its year-long look into the future. Your future. This month we focus on the workplace and did you than in just six years 19 percent of America's workforce will be over the age of 55? Surprisingly though, recent studies by the AARP show that these aging employees are not necessarily thinking about retirement.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARY: Staying active physically helps to keep you alive mentally. I'm a grandmother of three beautiful little girls and I take care of them during the daytime and then I work here at Borders at night. That's a grand total of 87-hour workweek.

When I first started working my dad said to me, don't ever be caught standing around. But I'm not so sure how pervasive that kind of work ethic is anymore.

My goal is to try and continue to work at this place as long as my health will allow it. MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Turns out Mary is not alone. As a matter of fact, nearly three out of four baby boomers say they plan on staying in the workplace beyond the age of 65. In fact, many are vowed to work well into their 80s. Brace yourself for a graying workforce, employers.

Many people are staying at work longer for the medical benefits or the money or they simply want to stay active. Deborah Russell of the American Association of Retired Persons says these works are about to give retirement a whole new meaning.

DEBORAH RUSSELL, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF RETIRED PERSONS: Retirement is going to be much more of a cyclical type of event where people are going to be in and out of the workplace. They may not want to work in the same job for as many hours, but they're going to want to be engaged in the workplace.

MILES O'BRIEN: And while a handful of companies are embracing their older staffers, Russell says many employers are stuck in some old stereotypes about the value of seasoned workers. In the future, those that make it easier for older workers will have an easier time finding good employees.

RUSSELL: The changing demographics is going to require them to look differently at 50-plus workers. It shouldn't matter too much how old that person is. It's really what they bring to the table and are they getting that job done.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Seniors you'll want to listen to this next segment as well. The clock is ticking. It is deadline day for the Medicare prescription drug plan. Five million older Americans who are eligible for the plan have not signed up yet. So why should they? Our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis offers some insights with her "Top Five Tips."

Gerri, good morning.

WILLIS: Daryn, good to see you.

Midnight tonight, that's the deadline. You have to sign up by tonight or you'll be stuck with penalties that will last the life of your plan. Now the good news here, it shouldn't take more than half an hour to enroll and people who were victims of Hurricane Katrina or who are low income, they get a break on this deadline.

KAGAN: So 40 different Medicare plans. How do you get to the bottom line about which is the best for you?

WILLIS: It's a little confusing out there. There are a ton of plans to choose from, but you can tune out the noise and really get to the bottom line. The most important feature of these various plans is the group of medications it covers. So whatever direction you take, go to medicare.gov and plug in those drugs. The website should list a number of plans in your area that you can compare. Now be sure to ask about restrictions. Some plans may limit the amount of medicine you can get.

KAGAN: You've got to figure there's a lot of scam artists out there waiting to take advantage of seniors.

WILLIS: Well, it is, Daryn, a scam if somebody comes to your door to market a Medicare drug plan. You can't trust a company that cold calls you unless you've asked to be contacted for more information. Now if you suspect there's a problem, call the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare at 1-877-772-3379.

KAGAN: As the clock tick, how do you get help?

WILLIS: You can get one-on-one help still even before midnight tonight. Since time is running out, get that personal touch at medicare.gov. The 800 number, 633-4227. There are also state health assistance programs at shiptalk.org. The Agency on Aging can help as well. You see their number there 800-677-1116.

KAGAN: And, finally, you're signing up for this, obviously, because you want to save money, but there's a lot of places where you can look to save money in your health care costs.

WILLIS: I've got to tell you, hospital bills, Daryn, a big place where you might want to save some money. You've got to scrutinize those bills. Never pay your hospital bill before leaving the hospital. Request an itemized bill since the hospital won't automatically send you one. And don't get stuck paying for what they call a mucous-recovery system. I'm telling you -- tissue.

KAGAN: Tissue.

WILLIS: You've really got to look at these things because they're crazy. Make sure the dates are correct, then compare the charges on your bill with the doctor's orders. Room fees come with ala cartes. In addition to the tissues, sheets, towels, you name it, it can be on there. You definitely want to make sure you're paying for what you should.

And, Daryn, want to mention that they should -- people should send us an e-mail and tell us what "Five Tips" topics they want to have us talk about. You can e-mail me at 5tips@cnn.com.

KAGAN: You getting some good response?

WILLIS: We are, indeed.

KAGAN: OK.

WILLIS: We're very excited. We're going to try to do this Friday for you, Daryn, answer some e-mails on the air from our viewers.

KAGAN: Because you are here to serve.

WILLIS: That's right.

KAGAN: Thank you, Gerri.

WILLIS: Thank you.

KAGAN: Comedian Bill Cosby. He is known for speaking his mind. Now he has some advice for women graduating from college and it's no laughing matter. That's coming up.

And the Duke lacrosse rape case. Could another indictment be on the way. The grand jury is meeting today. A live report is ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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