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CNN Live Today

Border Shooting; Search For Hoffa; New Orleans Mayoral Race; What Happens to Smuggled Drugs?

Aired May 19, 2006 - 10:00   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We'll get started here with a story that is unfolding this hour. It is a 30-year-old mystery. FBI agents follow a lead on Jimmy Hoffa to a Michigan horse farm. We're going to update you on that search.
Immigration changes are also on the front burner. The Senate is back in session at this hour. Lawmakers are rushing to get a bill ready. It could make English the nation's official language.

It is the busiest border crossing in the world. Today it's a crime scene. The checkpoint at San Ysidro, California, connects San Diego and Tijuana. It was shut down for nine hours when officers shot and killed an SUV driver, one suspected of smuggling illegal immigrants.

Our Peter Viles is on the scene with the latest.

Peter, we're hearing that this all started with a tip to the border patrol.

PETER VILES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, a citizen tip, Daryn.

About five miles east of here at a different border crossing, a citizen called border patrol and said he had seen an SUV pickup, five men. It looked to him like they might be illegal aliens. Border patrol found this SUV and chased it to this border crossing. No question the SUV was headed to Mexico. Got about a hundred feet from Mexico and then hit heavy traffic. Border patrol surrounded the vehicle, tried to talk to the driver, tried to convince him to cooperate with them. He wouldn't. He lurched back into traffic.

At that point, probably feeling that somebody's life was in danger, the border patrol fired on him. The drive was killed -- was declared dead on the scene. The five passengers in the vehicle were not shot, were taken into custody. We still don't know if this was related to immigrant smuggling and if these were Mexican nationals. We don't have answers to those questions yet. But those five passengers in the vehicle were taken into custody, Daryn.

KAGAN: So no identity on either the driver or the others taken into custody?

VILES: Not yet. It wasn't released last night. It's only 7:00 in the morning out here. So the public information officials haven't been returning calls yet. We expect to get that information. We haven't got it yet this morning. KAGAN: What about the investigation? How unusual for something like this to happen at this border crossing?

VILES: You know, there is all kinds of craziness along this border near the Pacific Ocean and lot of it right here at San Ysidro. But you don't hear about violence here at this border. A lot of people try to cross at this border and there's a heavy police presence, border patrol presence here. Customs and border protection. But not this kind of violence. You hear about violence like this, smugglers shooting at the border patrol, but it's usually in remote area, not in this heavily populated area.

KAGAN: You know, one thing I read this morning, this is the world's busiest land border crossing. So not only did this one incident happen, but as we look at these pictures, this was a nightmare for folks trying to cross on either side.

VILES: Yes. If you were trying to get from San Diego to Tijuana last night, it was really hard to do that. It wasn't impossible. They closed this border crossing, but there is another one five miles to the east of here. But the traffic backed up for a mile. They closed the crossing into Mexico for nine hours.

And generally speaking, right now you can see the traffic going by me. It's a pretty easy cross into Mexico. You don't even have to come to a stop. You just drive in. That's what this guy in the SUV appeared to hope to do, to drive in. Just ran into traffic and got surrounded.

KAGAN: Peter Viles, live along the California/Mexico border. Thank you, Peter.

English only please. The Senate has voted to make English the national language. It's an amendment added to the immigration bill that is now up for debate. But a second, softer spoken amendment also passed and that one declares English the common and unifying language of the U.S. A conference committee will decide which amendment, if either, makes any final immigration bill.

While the Senate sorts it all out, we'd like to know what you think. Should English be the official language of the U.S.? E-mail me livetoday@cnn.com.

As we move on at three minutes past the hour, FBI agents are digging up a cold case. They are at a horse farm in eastern Michigan today and they're searching for a man who has been missing for three decades. None other than the notorious teamsters boss, Jimmy Hoffa.

Our national correspondent Susan Candiotti reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): The searchers have been busy. Armed with sticks, they probe the grounds of a horse farm. The FBI even enlisted University of Michigan students to help. News helicopters showed sections of field dug up by FBI agents who'd revealed that they are, in fact, looking for Hoffa's remains. A spokesman said the search could go on for weeks and that it was based on a solid tip.

DAN ROBERTS, FBI: In the last two years I've been here as the agent in charge, this is the best lead I've seen come across on the Hoffa investigation.

CANDIOTTI: According to a law enforcement official who asked not to be identified, the latest search for the missing teamsters boss is based on old information that's only recently been verified. Part of it has to do with suspicious activity at the farm the day Hoffa disappeared and a backhoe spotted near a barn where mob meetings were once held. The FBI said they even brought in architects to look more closely at that barn.

ROBERTS: We may have to actually physically remove at least one structure here on the property in order to adequately finish our search of the property.

CANDIOTTI: Hoffa vanished on July 30th, 1975, about 20 miles from this farm. He was due to meet Tony Provenzano, a New Jersey teamster official with mafia connections, and a Detroit mobster named Anthony Giacalone. In 1982, Hoffa was officially declared dead. As the teamsters most powerful boss, he had been famous for organizing truckers and for using underworld allies to get what he wanted. Years later, Hoffa did time for jury tampering. His sentence later commuted by Richard Nixon.

For three decades there have been many claims. For example, that he was buried inside Giants Stadium, or that he'd been murdered in a Detroit house where blood was found. Nothing's ever panned out and nothing will pan out at this horse farm either predicts a lawyer for the farm's former owner. Mayer Morganroth says the place was searched with "a fine-tooth comb" shortly after Hoffa disappeared.

MAYER MORGANROTH, ATTORNEY: I think that what's going to come out of it is egg on the face.

CANDIOTTI: Still, the search is likely to be much more through than anything that's ever been done here before. And if nothing is found, the FBI is promising, as it has before, that it will never stop looking for Jimmy Hoffa.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, Milford, Michigan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Wrong number. Try that again. That's the message from BellSouth to "USA Today." The newspaper, you might recall, reported that BellSouth was among the phone companies that gave customer records to the NSA. BellSouth denies that claim. They sent a letter to "USA Today" asking for a retraction. The telecom dismisses the story as false and unsubstantiated. The story also was denied by Verizon, another phone company named in the newspaper's story.

He is off The Hill and over the hump. Confirmation now seems assured for General Michael Hayden. He's President Bush's choice to head the CIA. Hayden withstood tough questioning, six hours of it, at his confirmation hearing. Democrats grilled him on the wiretaps he oversaw as head of the National Security Agency. Hayden says the program was necessary and legal.

Here is an idea. Vaccinating girls against a sexually transmitted disease. But how young is too young? A breakthrough in the fight against cervical cancer raises that question. We will take a look on LIVE TODAY.

Caught on tape, the mysterious muffin man. His bag of treats proved to be a terrible trick. A lesson for teachers on LIVE TODAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Take a look at this wall of flames. The victim here, a recycling plant in Phoenix. More than 100 firefighters rushed to the scene. They fought for several hours and finally managed to put out the fire early this morning. It's unclear what started the inferno. Nobody was injured.

Do you know the muffin man? The FBI wants to know. The bureau has released these surveillance photos. They show a young man who delivered a bag of tainted muffins to a high school in Dallas. We brought you the story earlier this week. Nineteen staffers got sick after eating the muffins in the teachers' lounge. Experts confirmed that the breakfast treats contained marijuana.

It is crunch time in New Orleans. The city's mayoral election is just a day away and the two runoff candidates, incumbent Ray Nagin and Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu, are trying to make every minute count. But there's a third player in this race, one that voters can't and won't forget, that's right, Katrina.

CNN's Gulf Coast correspondent Susan Roesgen has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): After Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest, you might think New Orleans is well on its way to recovery. Not really. While some areas are recovering from Katrina, 80 percent of the city was flooded and many neighborhoods are still stuck in a time warp.

MAYOR RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS: Hey. What's happening, man? How they treating you these days?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Doing good, man.

ROESGEN: Mayor Ray Nagin is fighting to bring the city back from the brink and fighting to stay in office.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Amen.

ROESGEN: He got a round of amens from a black minister's group when he told them he's the guy to stick with. NAGIN: This city does not have the luxury of having someone new to come in to try and learn all that is going on.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Exactly.

NAGIN: And try to figure out how to keep this momentum going.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.

ROESGEN: Nagin says the city's recovery is on track. His challenger, Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu, says it's not moving fast enough. Landrieu points to piles of trash and thousands of flooded and abandoned cars on the streets. And Landrieu likes to remind voters of the city's problems before Katrina, poverty and crime.

LT. GOV. MITCH LANDRIEU, NEW ORLEANS MAYORAL CANDIDATE: The past is thinking that it is our destiny to be second class citizens. Think about whether you want to go back to the past and have a place that's unsafe.

ROESGEN: Whoever wins faces a tough job right away, fixing a broken city while preparing for the next possible crisis with the start of the new hurricane season just 12 days away.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And Susan Roesgen is here live from new Orleans with us.

Susan, what kind of turnout is expected for the election?

ROESGEN: Daryn, they're expecting about 36 percent. About what it was in the primary election. And I know that sounds low, but in terms of actual voters, it works out to about 110,000 voters. And you have to remember that there are only about 180,000 people living in this city right now.

KAGAN: When you look at the challenges that the next mayor faces, it makes you wonder why anybody would really even want the job in the first place.

ROESGEN: It's a big job, you know, and I think the very first priority for whoever is elected has got to be giving New Orleans' neighborhoods some guidance. People need to know whether their neighborhoods can or will be rebuilt or not. They need to know if the city is going to give police protection or garbage collection or whether certain neighborhoods will just have to be abandoned.

Now, Daryn, that's a politically unpopular thing to say during the campaign, so we haven't heard it from either candidate. But New Orleans voters will be expecting whoever is mayor to come out and give them some real direction on where this city is going to go in the years ahead.

KAGAN: And you will be watching it. Susan Roesgen, thank you.

Students stunned their janitor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TERRY BIRCH, SCHOOL CUSTODIAN: To me it is unbelievable that Olympus Junior High was to help me out doing what they want to do. It's unbelievable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: An all-star fund-raiser for a friend in need. That story is ahead on LIVE TODAY.

And Gerri Willis says you are in charge, letting you steer the ship here on what we're going to do for "Top Five Tips."

Ger.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn, this is exciting. We're opening the mail bag. We're answering your e-mails about how to save money on energy, on travel. We've got the answers. Let's find out if we're answering your questions next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's check out the latest numbers on Wall Street. Not a lot of movement. We've been -- actually this is kind of a good thing for how we've seen the market slide this week. The Dow is down 3 points. The Nasdaq is down just a little bit as well. It is down about 5 points.

Well, they have a thankless job. How often do you really stop and think about the janitors who keep our offices and schools so tidy? Students at a Utah school gave theirs quite a bit of thought. And when he need it, they gave him help as well. Reporter Keith McCord of affiliate KSL has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEITH MCCORD, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): This is Terry. Terry Birch. He's the custodian at Olympus Junior High. Because of medical problems as an infant, Terry is totally deaf is one ear and has very marginal hearing in the other.

TERRY BIRCH, SCHOOL CUSTODIAN: Because I've lost so much of my hearing making it really difficult to communicate with people.

MCCORD: For our interview, we wrote our questions on a big board to make it easier for him to understand. To improve his hearing, Terry needs a cochlear implant, a costly surgery. At home, his wife, also deaf, recently had breast cancer surgery. Two of his children are hearing impaired. Medical bills are big.

So the students at Olympus came up with a plan to collect donated items to sell in an online auction. They sent out 1,200 letters to their favorite celebrities and sports stars. Now they have boxes of stuff. Want an autographed photo of the professor on "Gilligan's Island," tennis Star Roger Federer? Steve Young autographed a football. Magic Johnson sent a basketball. Sting signed his name to a CD. Students Will Gockner (ph), Cy Noah (ph) and Emily Blackum (ph) are thrilled with the response.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We thought it would get some stuff back, but we never expected all this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This much. Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Like big stuff. We just expect kind of pictures or . . .

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just pictures and nothing like footballs or basketballs. We kind of just expected small items.

MCCORD: The items are being sold on eBay through May 26th. All proceeds will go to Terry who is extremely grateful.

BIRCH: To me it is unbelievable that Olympus Junior High was to help me out doing what they want to do. It's unbelievable.

MCCORD: The students have raised $23,000 so far for Terry and they hope a bidding war on eBay brings in a lot more.

Keith McCord, Eyewitness News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: A very touching story. And you can help Terry Birch and his family. Purchase a celebrity item on eBay. Just go to eBay and search for the seller I.D. "Help Terry." More than 100 donations are still there for you to bid on.

Well, today we're going to try something a little bit news in the category of news you can use. Most days Gerri Willis brings us her "Top Five Tips" on all sorts of personal finance advice. Today, with your e-mail, you will choose the topics. Gerri is in New York to field those questions, so let's reach into our electronic mailbox and go for the first one.

WILLIS: All right. I'm ready to go.

KAGAN: Gerri, good morning.

WILLIS: Let's do it.

KAGAN: We're heading south. Charles in Alabama gets the first question. "I was hoping to get some advice about travel and lodging expenses. What's the best way to avoid spending too much cash?

WILLIS: A big problem. Yes, tourist season is well underway and, Daryn, I've got to tell you, if you want to find the deals, you've got to go to the business hotels. That's because during the summer there are more family vacations and less business conferences. Check the financial district for some of those hotels to get good deals. And get some money back on your gas bill. Believe it or not, some hotels and inns are giving consumers gas rebates of up to $30 to $50. Check out hotels.com. To get the rebate, you'll have to book through their site. Another site is bedandbreakfast.com. You can go directly to the B&B to get your rebate.

KAGAN: Now to Jay in New York. He has a transportation question. He wants to know what are the best ways to make the most of gas engines and miles. Take the subway, Jay.

WILLIS: Well, if that's not possible, if there's no subway where you live, you want to get a tune-up. You can avoid fuel economy problems because of worn spark plugs, drags brakes or low transmission fluid. Driving the speed limit, that's always a great idea to, you know, drive legally, but also it saves you 12 percent on your gas bill. And if you curb your appetite for aggressive driving, you can save up to 37 percent. That means, and you know who you are out there who are driving like this, you've got to brake more easily, not rev your engine, take it nice and easy when that light turns green.

KAGAN: On to Michigan now. Karen wants to know, "I'd like to see tips on improving your credit score."

WILLIS: Ah, yes. This is a big, important question for so many people. The key is to, of course, to pay your bills on time. And one great way to do that is to automate your bills online. This way you have no choice but to pay the bills on time. Plus, you don't run the risk of late fees and you save on postage. If you have to get rid of some of those credit card, I know people think that if they cut down their credit cards they'll have a better credit rating. Not necessarily. You cannot nix the oldest ones you have because that's part of your credit rating. You want to make sure that you show a long credit history to those credit companies.

KAGAN: Back to New York. Mark has a question. When you go for a rebate, "why won't rebate companies send rebates to a post office?" I didn't even know that.

WILLIS: I know. I thought this was a really interesting question. And the answer is easy, they're just trying to prevent fraud. Some fraud rings use multiple P.O. boxes to get around the one per limit rule. They're ripoff artists. We know you're not.

And what's more, we'd love to answer more of your e-mails. So send us some more questions at 5tips@cnn.com. We'll be back with more answers.

KAGAN: Great, Gerri. Sounds like a great debut of letting the viewers drive the bus here.

WILLIS: Excellent.

KAGAN: Thank you.

WILLIS: Have a good weekend.

KAGAN: Yes, you too.

It is a top secret heavily guarded and filled to the brim with illegal drugs. An exclusive look inside "The Vault." That's ahead on CNN LIVE TODAY.

Also, a look inside "The Da Vinci Code." The movie is out today, but how is it? A lot of the early reviews not that good. We'll check in with Mr. Moviefone.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Secure borders. Agents hope it will stop more than illegal immigrants. The U.S. seizes mind-boggling amounts of drugs that smugglers try to get into the country. What happens to that, though? Anderson Cooper gets an exclusive look inside "The Vault."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): As night falls, a shootout in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. As a new day nears, the streets will run red with blood.

Drug traffickers battling with Mexican federal agents. In this shootout, all but one of the drug cartel gunmen are killed. Others will quickly take their place, however. There's money to be made and valuable smuggling routes to protect.

After midnight Border Patrol agents on the U.S. side wait in darkness to catch smugglers bringing drugs across. The violence on the border has been increasing and drug seizures are on the rise.

At the San Ysidro border crossing, at least 50 bricks of cocaine were found hidden in this car. The driver, a Mexican woman, was allegedly a drug mule, supposed to meet up with a contact in San Diego.

(on camera): Most of the drugs which are seized at the border end up here. Now, we can't tell you exactly where here is. All I can say is that it's a secret location, heavily guarded somewhere in southern California.

This is a locked vault, operated by the Customs and Border Protection. It's heavily guarded. Inside this vault are more drugs than you've ever seen in your entire life.

(voice-over): From floor to ceiling there are boxes and boxes of drugs.

(on camera): So, you have all drugs here -- marijuana, cocaine, meth amphetamine, heroin?

PAUL HENNING, PORT DIR., U.S. CUSTOMS & BORDER PROTECTION: We have the big four here -- marijuana, meth, coke and heroin. In addition to that, we have other drugs such as steroids, ketamine, date rape drugs, and a variety of other things that are of smaller quantity. COOPER: This is incredible. I mean, it's a warehouse of drugs.

HENNING: That's correct. It's one of 67 warehouses that we have in the United States. This is the largest. It contains right now about 80 tons of different types of drugs. Right now amounting to a street value of about $150 million.

COOPER (voice-over): Marijuana is stored in boxes on open shelves. But harder drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin are kept in locked cages.

(on camera): This is what meth looks like up close?

HENNING: That's what it looks like up close in its raw form. That's correct. And this was actually seized from the gas tank of a motorcycle.

This is heroin. This is black tar heroin. This was seized in a Volkswagen Jetta in the firewall of the Jetta. And again, this officer was picking up on the nervousness on the part of the driver and then presence of the odor was confirmed by one of our detector dogs. And you can actually smell the pungent odor of the heroin through the packaging. It smells very much like vinegar.

COOPER: Yes, yes.

(voice-over): One pound of heroin sells for about $25,000 on the street. That adds up to big business, too tempting for criminals to ignore.

(on camera): Who are the traffickers?

HENNING: The traffickers are a very large cartel. It's very large organizations that control the flow of the narcotics from where its produced to where its going. And they will simply recruit anybody that they can to actually smuggle it across the border. They're not going to do that themselves. They're going to try and hire somebody who is expendable that they can then talk into bringing the stuff in.

COOPER: This is just one package of marijuana. This one weighs about 13 pounds. It's worth about $45,000 on the streets in the Midwest.

What's remarkable, though, in this shipment, is they found 11,000 pounds of marijuana hidden in a tractor trailer truck that was supposedly carrying television sets. It did have some TVs, but it also had all these bales of marijuana. On the street all of this stuff is probably worth about $33 million.

(voice-over): The drugs here don't stay forever. Most are kept as evidence until the judicial process runs its course. Then they're moved out.

(on camera): This is literally the end of the line for the narcotics that have been seized in this area. They're boxed up, shrink wrapped and then sent to the incinerator. They're basically burned. Before they're put in these boxes, however, they get tested one more time by Customs and Border Protection officers.

That's a brick of marijuana, and he's putting it in those plastic containers to do what?

HENNING: That's correct. He puts it inside the plastic container, seals it up and then breaks three individual ampoules of chemical that are inside. And once all three of those react then with the THC content in the marijuana, we'll get a purple color, a very vibrant purple color, which will tell us that that is indeed marijuana.

COOPER (voice-over): For all the drugs incinerated, more boxes of narcotics will quickly take their place. The cat and mouse game between drug traffickers and law enforcement shows no sign of letting up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Anderson is keeping a close eye on border issues. Join "A.C. 360" weeknights at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.

Our question, e-mail question of the day, what do you about think about this? Should English be the official language of the U.S.? E- mail me at livetoday@CNN.com.

Right now we have news just in from Iraq. Our Carol Lin is at the breaking news desk with more on that -- Carol.

CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn. Just yesterday, we were reporting the kidnapping of a United Arab Emirates diplomat in Iraq. Today, we have a report, according to the Associated Press, who apparently spoke with the diplomat's brother that the diplomat was freed. The brother telling the Associated Press that the family had been told by the government that he was free, but that they don't have any details about how he had been released.

We know that he was grabbed, his driver was shot yesterday, and that there was no word on his condition until Al Jazeera aired videotape of this diplomat pressed up against a blank wall. No idea who is responsible for the kidnappings, but, Daryn, there have been threats against Arab diplomats who have been supporting the Iraqi government. The UAE there in a supportive role with humanitarian efforts. But he is free now.

KAGAN: All right.

LIN: We'll get you more details.

KAGAN: All right. Carol, thank you.

Still ahead, a computer scam.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was giving the crooks everything that they needed. (END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Bogus e-mails that set you up for identity theft. You've got to see this to protect yourself. It's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Cost effective labor, but what about the burden that illegal immigrants put on employers who just want to do the right thing legally? CNN's Miles O'Brien takes a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're here to make money. That's the American way. That's why I do what I do. I just do it legally. When I'm out trying to make a living, doing it the honest way and someone else is shortcutting the rules, then it makes it very difficult for me, as a business owner.

It's going to be a challenge as an employer to verify that the paperwork is true and accurate. The more illegals we have, the tougher it'll become as a legitimate business owner to run-a business.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): Many employers in businesses like landscaping, construction, food service, struggle to stay legit in arenas flooded with illegal workers.

How can employers protect themselves and stay afloat?

TAMAR JACOBY, MANHATTAN INSTITUTE: We have 12 million people in this country whose names we don't even know.

O'BRIEN (voice-over): Just one reason why Tamar Jacoby of the Manhattan Institute says immigration reform is vital for employers as well as immigrants.

JACOBY: Why are we forcing them to be in the black market when we could have them on the right side of the law, enhancing our security, enhancing our rule of law and actually enhancing workplace relationships?

O'BRIEN: Right now, employers can use a government Web site to ensure job seekers are legal. But of 5.5 million employers in the country, a mere 5,000 are enrolled in the program.

JACOBY: The databases aren't as accurate as they should be. So right now, it's an experiment on the way to the program that we need.

O'BRIEN: If current reform bills become law, the verification system would include biometric I.D. cards to prevent fraud and would make it mandatory for all U.S. employers to screen their workers, from mega corporations to families with household help.

JACOBY: Once you make sure that you can't get a job if you're illegal, that's how you're going to control who comes and who doesn't come. (END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Our e-mail question of the day, should English be the official language of the United States? The Senate is considering that measure. You can e-mail me at livetoday@CNN.com. Here are some of the comments we have received so far.

First from Phil, who writes, "Yes. It's time to stop wasting money on bilingual signs and teaching at schools. My ancestors came here and learned English and it's time for others to do the same."

From Mark Fergel, "Yes. Many other countries have a national language. If I go overseas and I want to order a meal, then I'd better be ready to pull out a translation book. When in Rome..."

And finally, from Skyla in Port Angeles, Washington, "No, it should not, and never should be. Although it is a 'unifying' language, although it brings a common ground, this is a country founded by immigrants. Our country is what it is because of people coming from other countries."

Well, speaking of other countries, a lot of overseas locations for the movie that is just out today, "The Da Vinci Code," based on the very popular, yet controversial book. It is out today. Your first chance to see it in the theaters.

Sumi Das is at a theater complex in Alexandria, Virginia.

Sumi, good morning.

SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

Well, when the theater doors opened here, there was a line of people waiting to get in. They wanted to be among the first in the country to see "The Da Vinci Code." That screening started about 10 minutes ago. I might go in and bug them and sit next to them see how they're enjoying it after I speak with you.

Now, so far initial reaction to the film by critics hasn't been favorable, so it remains to be seen if these seats will be filled.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM HANKS, ACTOR: The symbols are a language that can help us understand our past.

SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It may be a work of fiction, but the fact is "The Da Vinci Code" is causing a fuss.

REV. THOMAS EUTENEUER, PRES., HUMAN LIFE INTERNATIONAL: Sony's "Da Vinci Code" movie seeks to profit off the -- quote/unquote -- "permissible prejudice of anti-Catholic bigotry in this country and around the world." DAS: "The Da Vinci Code" suggests that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene were married and had a child together. A secret covered up by a powerful organization associated with the church.

At the movie's film festival debut in Cannes, both its star and director reminded audiences that the film doesn't claim to be historically accurate.

HANKS: This is not a documentary. This is not something that is pulled up and said these are the facts and this is exactly what happened.

RON HOWARD, DIRECTOR: This is supposed to be entertainment. It's not theology.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are in the middle of a war, one that's been going on forever.

DAS: Still, church officials from China to Italy have called for boycotts of the film. A move some say may only peak moviegoer's curiosity, driving up box office sales.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're a free country. We're a Democratic country, If it is allowed in U.S., why should it be banned in the Philippines?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DAS: That gentleman was referring to a ban of the film in Manilla City, a suburb in the Philippines, which, of course, is a predominantly Roman Catholic country.

Now for the most part, the film has been panned by critics, but as those in the industry know, reviews aren't always a good indicator of box office success. The moviegoers we talked to this morning, they weren't going to let critics or controversy get in their way of seeing the film. Some of them were really ardent fans, having read the book twice -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And how much does a movie cost in the suburbs in Washington, D.C. these days?

DAS: Nine-fifty, although the matinee would be cheaper. A couple of bucks off. Yes.

KAGAN: And that doesn't include the popcorn and the soda.

DAS: Nine-fifty, and -- that's right, that will be probably another extra $9.50. And I'll have to let you know that The 9:15 showing this evening is already sold out.

KAGAN: Well, we'll see how it does over the whole weekend box office numbers.

Sumi Das in Alexandria, Virginia, thank you.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

KAGAN: Loch Ness monster, you can just go ahead and step aside. There's a new ripple of underwater intrigue in Colorado. The catch of the day. Just how big is that fish? It certainly is not the one that got away. We'll tell you ahead on LIVE TODAY.

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KAGAN: It is no trophy fish, but it's still quite a catch. Ben Noel (ph) reeled in this monster carp at a small lake in northern Colorado. It measures almost four feet long, weighs 44 and a half pounds. The fisherman claims the big catch gave him a ride around the lake for more than an hour before he could haul it into the boat. If the fish passes state certification, it will set a new record for Colorado.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: And we have breaking news out of the Pentagon. Barbara Starr has that for us -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Here's the latest news out of Iraq. CNN has learned that U.S. military commanders have made the decision to send additional U.S. troops to the city of Ramadi, out in western Iraq in the troubled Anbar province. These U.S. troops, they are said to be a significant number. But to be clear, they will come from other areas inside Iraq. They are being sent to the Ramadi area because of a recent uptick in violence there.

U.S. and coalition forces have battled insurgents across Ramadi for the last several days. There have been many firing engagements, many battles across the city. Now the decision has come that the U.S. will send U.S. troop reinforcements. The troops will be on the move. And they are not saying when they will get to the Ramadi area, but military sources confirming to CNN that U.S. reinforcements are being sent to that region.

All of this, Daryn, coming as a top U.S. commander in Iraq also tells us that sectarian violence now has increased in Iraq over the last couple of weeks. And over the last six weeks or so, about 130 U.S. troops have lost their lives in that country -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right, Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Barbara, thank you.

We turn now to "The Da Vinci Code." And our own artist in residence, Mr. Moviefone, shares his opinion on the movie. Russ Leatherman joins me in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY.

In medical news, vaccinating girls against a sexually transmitted disease. How young is too young? Our breakthrough in the fight against cervical cancer raises that question. We'll take a look at that ahead on LIVE TODAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAGAN: Mona Lisa smiles, but the critics scowl. Will the code be broken at the box office? "The Da Vinci Code" opens in theaters all around the country today. The long-awaited film is the buzz of Cannes, and the movie faces a buzzsaw from critics.

Our Brooke Anderson is at the posh gathering in France.

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BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (on camera): "The Da Vinci Code" has finally arrived in theaters worldwide. Now, this comes just two days after the movie had its premiere here at the Cannes Film Festival. Now, that premiere was met with really harsh criticism.

I sat down with "Da Vinci" director Ron Howard. We talked about the early negative reviews, and he also told me if he thinks that will affect the film's performance at the box office.

RON HOWARD, DIRECTOR: Disappointing, not surprising. You know, you talk to ten different people, you get ten different reactions to the novel. And that's the way it's been with the movie. And I really expected that. There are some that are very unkind. There are some that are praising it. There's a lot that are landing in this middle, and -- which is, I think, very much to be expected.

Would I love all glowing reviews? You know, of course. And I've had that in my career where they're 80, 90 percent positive, and that's a wonderful thing. You know, I never really felt like that's what we were inviting with this story and adapting, you know, the novel.

It's a very, very unusual kind of film and it entertains different people in different ways. People seem to want to be a part of the discussion, you know. And I think that's one of the reasons they've sold so many books. And I really hope it's -- you know, it's a reason a lot of people want to experience the movie.

ANDERSON: Howard also has a suggestion for those who are offended by "The Da Vinci Code." for those upset by the story, disapprove of the depiction of Jesus Christ, he said, don't go see the movie. He said to wait and then talk to people after they've seen it, discuss it and then make a decision. He said, it's that simple. "The Da Vinci Code" rolls out into more than 37,000 screens in the U.S. this weekend.

Reporting from the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, I'm Brooke Anderson.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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