Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Obama Backs "Equality", Not Marriage; Cell Phone Clues on Bin Laden?; Metta World Peace, Yes!!; IRS Hikes Gas Mileage Tax Break; Lexus, Honda Top Best Cars List; America's Best High School; One-on- One with Michael Phelps
Aired June 24, 2011 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama getting a standing ovation at a gay rights reception in New York. I'm Christine Romans. But how do his views on same-sex marriage really evolve?
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: A cell phone recovered in the bin Laden ring.
I'm Drew Griffin.
A report is saying that trace calls may point to Pakistan -- on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ROMANS: All right. Good morning, everybody. It's Friday! Friday, June 24th.
GRIFFIN: Yes.
ROMANS: Kiran Chetry and Ali Velshi both have the day off. Drew Griffin is in, on the house.
GRIFFIN: Trying to fill in as best I can on this Friday. This is the hardest couch in the world.
(LAUGHTER)
GRIFFIN: Up first, he ended up right in the middle of the battle of the same-sex marriage in New York. President Obama making headlines during a fundraising swing in New York City last night, calling for equal rights for same-sex couples, but still not marriage.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And I believe that discrimination because of somebody's sexual orientation or gender identity ran counter to who we are as a people and it's a violation of the basic tenets on which this nation was founded. I believe that gay couples deserve the same legal rights as every other couple in this country.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Joining us now, the host of "STATE OF THE UNION," Candy Crowley.
Candy, is he -- is this threading the needle on this issue? I mean, he says full legal rights but he doesn't say the word marriage.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is not a position that is unique to the president. There are many politicians out there who say a civil union, equal rights, you know, spousal visits at hospitals, things like that, certainly, they feel should be up there and should be allowed for same-sex couples.
The question, I think, at this point is the president has -- this is a very important community to the re-election campaign of President Obama, and there is a sense inside the LGBT community that, in fact, the president is for same-sex marriage and that it will take just a little push, but that he will get there. In fact, his own aides have talked about his own views are evolving. So, there's certainly a push within the gay and lesbian community to try to get the president to come out in favor of same-sex marriages.
But you heard, he said this is a matter that really should be -- the state should, you know, talk about and this is what democracy is all about. It is still a hard sell simply because even though, obviously, the popular opinion has also evolved on this, our polls show people evenly split about whether same-sex couples should be married.
So, it's still a difficult political position for the president.
GRIFFIN: And, Candy, you would know more than me -- but this seems to fall in line with a lot of issues that the president, quote/unquote, "takes on leadership from behind," if you will. New York state about to approve same-sex marriage. If he gets enough states that -- you know, if he just sits on the sidelines and waits until this is a fait accompli, then he can come out and say, "Yes, I'm for it, too."
CROWLEY: This is a cautious president. I think it is a hallmark of his leadership that we have seen for the past two-plus years, that his decisions are cautious. I mean, he's been -- that's been the, you know, leading from behind. It's been used to describe U.S. involvement in Libya. When he made his decision about Afghanistan and it struck people as kind of another fish nor fowl, just sort of somewhere in the middle.
This is a president who makes cautious decisions both policy- wise and politically.
ROMANS: Let me ask you about the debt talks. Excuse me, Eric Cantor, Republicans walk out of Biden's debt talks. Are they on the verge of collapse?
I mean, it's not surprising that they walk because, look, 230 House Republicans have signed a pledge they will not sign on to anything that raises taxes. So, it's really not a surprise to Democrats, I would think.
CROWLEY: No. But I think you should also look at it as a ploy to get to the next phase. At some point, President Obama and Speaker Boehner on the House side are going to have to engage with one another on this. The Senate side is, one assumes, has in the past, because it's dominated by Democrats, will go along with whatever deal the president can make.
So, I think this is -- you can look at this as the next phase. It's a gamble for Republicans because we're right up against that August 2nd deadline when the U.S. will blow through its debt ceiling or already through it, but will be unable to pay some of its debt.
So, I think you will see more of this because Congress tends to expand the amount of time it's allowed and it has up until August 2nd. So, the brinksmanship gets intense at this point.
ROMANS: It sure does. The clock is ticking. I mean, the clock is really ticking on the debt negotiations.
CROWLEY: Loudly.
ROMANS: It really is.
All right. Candy Crowley, thanks.
You know, don't miss "STATE OF THE UNION" with Candy starting at 9:00 Eastern, every Sunday, here on CNN.
GRIFFIN: Guns and grenades part of an alleged terror plot by U.S. citizens. FBI officials say these guys, Abu Khaled Abdul-Latif and Walli Mujahidh, planned to shot up a military entrance processing station right here in Seattle. The city's mayor is saying that the suspects tried to recruit a third guy but that guy ran to police.
Officials say the attack was in retaliation for alleged crimes committed by U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
ROMANS: Hackers are striking back against Arizona's controversial immigration law. The group LulzSec has released private information about the state's police department. We're talking names, addresses, phone numbers of law enforcement members, and a slew of internal documents. The hackers say they are protesting a law called SB-1070 and they called Arizona police state because of that law.
Law enforcement officials say the move puts officers and their families in danger.
GRIFFIN: Yes. U.S. intelligence reportedly looking at a cell phone. It was recovered in that bin Laden raid.
"The New York Times" is saying that the phone belonged to bin Laden's trusted courier and the contacts may point to Pakistan.
CHETRY: Joining us now is CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen.
Peter, what do you make of the recent report there is a cell phone and there may be information on it?
PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it would be very typical in these kinds of situations to pick up somebody's cell phone. We saw, for instance, with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the operational commander of 9/11, who what arrested in Pakistan in 2003, that computers and cell phones were recovered.
But I think, you know, "The Times" story is quite interesting. It's not entirely surprising, reported by three of their best reporters, indicating that the courier was in touch with a group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, which is a Kashmiri militant group and prevalent in the area where bin Laden was discovered in and killed. This group, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen has links back to bin Laden that go back to even long before 9/11.
For instance, you may recall the attacks on bin Laden's bases following the embassy attacks in Africa in 1998. President Clinton ordered those cruise missile attacks. They killed a number of people. Most of those who were killed were not members of al Qaeda. They were members of this Kashmiri militant group, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.
So, al Qaeda had long links with these Kashmiri militant groups. Abbottabad where bin Laden was killed is in an area where they have a strong presence, and a whole slew of these groups that al Qaeda has been linked to has worked with in the past.
Why would al Qaeda want to kind of consult with these groups? Well, of course, these groups are Pakistani. They operate to some degree with the acquiescence with the Pakistani state and sometimes even with the support of the Pakistani state.
And while the story in "The Times" was a little -- I mean, it's convoluted. I mean, the burden of this story suggests that here is a group that has operated with some degree of Pakistani support from the state in the past and does that in some way link up with people in the Pakistani intelligence operators.
GRIFFIN: So, I guess the question is to not beat around the bush, Peter -- where does the United States government go from here? It didn't past the smell test when the Pakistan government said they didn't know anything about Osama bin Laden in their country. Now, we keep getting dribbles and drabs of more and more information saying somebody in the government looks like they must have or might have known.
Does Pakistani have any intentions of kind of root out the terrorist supporters within its own community?
BERGEN: Well, we actually -- Drew, we have actually seen the arrest of a recently bringing of a brigadier in the Pakistani military who has (INAUDIBLE) -- a one star general who had links with militant groups. So, I mean -- you know, it's a complex country. And the fact that the courier was in touch with a group that has links to -- has had links to the Pakistani state does not mean they know where bin Laden was? No. In fact, if I was bin Laden, I would be very careful about letting anybody know where I was.
But it does bring, you know, six degrees of separation or a little bit closer to elements the Pakistani intelligence service, but I don't think there is proof here of really anything. I mean, Osama bin Laden is extremely paranoid and secretive and disciplined guy. And I think that he would be very careful about what he was letting his courier let other people know about his presence.
So, these -- the courier's cell phone is an interesting story. Does it prove that bin Laden was known to be in Abbottabad by members of the Pakistani intelligence or government? I don't think so.
ROMANS: Does it fix or hurt an already strained relationship between the U.S. and Pakistani? No.
(CROSSTALK)
GRIFFIN: Yes. I think Peter said it well, it's a very complex country.
ROMANS: Right. And it's already been a strained relationship to date with a lot of repairing to do if they can even get back to the status quo. Peter Bergen, thanks so much -- CNN national security analyst.
BERGEN: (INAUDIBLE).
GRIFFIN: Well, back here in the states, the notorious gangster James "Whitey" Bulger could be inside a Boston courtroom this morning to face 19 counts of murder. The feds finally caught up to him in California. He was on the run for 16 years. The arrest, talk of New England this morning.
The feds say they found 30 guns, fake IDs and $800,000 in cash inside a Santa Monica apartment.
ROMANS: Makes you wonder how much money he started with when he disappeared in 1994 if he's got 800 grand left.
Still ahead, Casey Anthony's mother takes the stand and drops an Internet search bombshell. We're live in Florida this morning.
GRIFFIN: Plus, whoa nellie! High-speed police chase on a motorcycle. We're going to show you how this one ended up.
ROMANS: Also, L.A. Lakers basketball star Ron Artest wants to legally change his name and this one seems a little wacky. We'll tell what he wants to have on the back of his jersey.
It's 10 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Good morning, Houston! I mean, that's pretty much a picture perfect sunrise in Houston. It's fair, 75 degrees. Later, it's going to be later hot and partly cloudy, 93.
Good morning, Houston.
GRIFFIN: Grab that picture while you can.
ROMANS: Yes.
GRIFFIN: A huge metro bus snapped in two like a twig. The driver of the Houston City bus died after this. It slammed into a bridge support on a freeway. Look at that. Wow!
Nobody else was on board. The driver of a dump truck told police that the bus veered into his lane and hit him just before it careened of the road.
ROMANS: A fugitive on a motorcycle tackled by police for about an hour. The man sped down a Texas highway. Police cruisers closely tailing behind.
The suspect appears to give up. He pulls over to the side of the road. That's when officers make their move and pounce on him. Authorities say the man was wanted for a federal parole violation.
GRIFFIN: This next video making the rounds online -- a motorcycle crash that turned into a competition. The motor bikes locked into each other and round and round they go, dancing as the riders trying to figure out how to get back on them. When the motorcycles finally did come apart, both men were disqualified from the race. The video has close to 2 million hits so far.
ROMANS: I think it was in France. That's amazing. It looks dangerous to jump in there and trying to get it. Rob Marciano in the Extreme Weather Center. Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, guys. Not a great day yesterday to be riding your bike up the Hudson over (INAUDIBLE) where they had flash flooding across areas of Nayak (ph). Check out some of the video coming to us.
You know, just to the west, just some like on the banks of the Hudson, I'm not sure if this is runoff heading towards the river or if it's part of the river overflowing, but nonetheless, it was a dangerous situation in Nayak, not about dangerous in Rockland and Putnam and Orange County and Fairfield County, Connecticut, seeing tremendous amount of rainfall, and at times, there were swift water rescue crews that were inactive.
Let's go overseas to China. Southwest China seeing similar action in a different scenario. Flash flooding there, and brought to you by CCTV. We appreciate that video. They are saturated that part of China with the monsoon happening. All right. Feels like a monsoon across parts of the northeast where it's not raining. It's going to feel steamy again, because this guy is not moving all that much. So, that's going to be the ongoing problem, I think, as we go through time. Last night, we had a lot of rainfall. Three to six inches in parts of this area, and because of that, that's why we saw that flash flooding across parts of upstate New York. If you are traveling today because of the pop-up thunderstorms, you'll probably see some delays in the afternoon. So, just be aware of that for your weekend travels. Day time high is going to be sticky again in Dallas, although, you know, relatively to what we have seen, 98 seems cool.
Certainly, an 87-degree high temperature in Atlanta seems on the cool side. Again, it's going to be humid across parts of the northeast, and there will be toasty across parts of the southwest, as well. I want to mention this. You probably didn't feel it, unless, you live somewhere out here.
Along the Aleutian Islands in Alaska, 7.2 magnitude quake last night. There was a, one point, a tsunami warning for some of this chain of islands but was later found that we didn't see much in the way of reports. Nonetheless, any time you get a major quake like that and the U.S., especially, or off the coastline of the U.S., that's enough to go on high alert, but, so far, so good with this one. Guys, nice playing with you. Have a good weekend.
ROMANS: Yes, you, too. Thanks, Rob.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Rob.
This lady calls herself Lady Gaga of the women's tour. Bethany Mattek-Sands likes to make a statement on the court, a fashion statement. Here, she is supporting a white jacket with a cowgirl feel. The tennis star made sure not to break Wimbledon's all white dress code. Don't worry. Mattek-Sands says she never competes in her wacky attire.
ROMANS: She just shows up (INAUDIBLE). OK. Ron Artest days are numbered, and now, the NBA star himself just the name Ron Artest days are numbered. The Lakers forward has reportedly filed a petition to legally change his name to, get this, Metta World Peace. He's going to shorten the name on the back of his jersey to just Peace. Of course, there's irony here because Artest is, perhaps, best known for going into the stands to fight Pistons fans in one of the biggest brawls in NBA history. Although, now, --
GRIFFIN: He is at peace.
ROMANS: Peaceful.
GRIFFIN: And he'll have a peaceful jersey.
(LAUGHTER)
GRIFFIN: Washington, D.C. watering hole unveiling a monster Martini.
ROMANS: Oh, wow.
GRIFFIN: It's 48 ounces called the Big Dirty. ROMANS: Or the Big Hangover.
GRIFFIN: D.C. --
(LAUGHTER)
GRIFFIN: Is a big dirty. It takes six shakers to fill this tall boy. The owners say it's meant to be shared with a group of friends, not just because it's so big, but because it costs $79.99 a pop.
ROMANS: Oh, wow!
GRIFFIN: Look at him pour that out.
ROMANS: I mean, it gives me a headache just looking at it. OK. Is your e-mail address uncool? HR exec say they would pitch your resume right in the garbage if they see a certain e-mail domain name.
GRIFFIN: What?
ROMANS: And I'm going to tell you something. What your e-mail address, the domain name you use, really tells them how old you are as well. I'm going to tell you about that next.
GRIFFIN: Really?
ROMANS: It really does. It really does.
GRIFFIN: Plus, want some gas money back? Yes? Do you know? How about the IRS gas mileage rule? That's changing. What every motor vehicle owner should know. We're going to watch that for you and your money, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: It's 22 minutes after the hour. Watching your money this morning.
Oil prices down to a four-month low after that announcement that 60 million barrels of crude oil will be tapped from the world's reserves. Gas prices were already dropping before this, down about 20 cents since the beginning of the month. The national average for a gallon of gas now stands about $3.60 a gallon.
The IRS is hiking the gas mileage deduction for business purposes by about five cents a mile. Starting July 1st, drivers can deduct 55 cents per mile for using their personal cars for business travel. The IRS says the rare midyear decision is because of higher gas prices.
Seeing a lot movement in stock futures. Ahead of the opening bell, futures pulling back from an earlier rise fueled by news of austerity agreement or agreement for austerity measures in Greece. Right now, stocks are set to open mixed this morning. We're going to give you the report in about six minutes. That would determine the future of the trade as well. If you're out there on the job hunt, OK, listen to this. Experts say if you're still using an older e-mail address like AOL, hotmail or Yahoo!, it could imply you're not tech savvy enough and hurt your chances at getting a job.
Ford dropping drastically in the JD Power & Associates best car survey this year down to 23 from the top 5 last year. The survey is citing issues reported with the my touch communications controls. Lexus and Honda top the list and Acura and Mercedes-Benz round out the top four.
Still ahead, Whitey Bulger's neighbors say his arrest is, quote, "as big as Bin Laden." Tales of brutality from Southie about the now captured Boston mob boss. AMERICAN MORNING back right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: There's a fog in Boston this morning. Fifty-nine degrees. Thunderstorms later today.
ROMANS: You know what, fog is sort of clear in Boston, figuratively speaking, because everyone is just amazed that they got this guy. The notorious mobster, James "Whitey" Bulger, could be back in Boston this morning to face 19 counts of murder. His arrest after 16 years on the run simply stunning that city.
GRIFFIN: Yes. He was the inspiration for Jack Nicholson's character in the movie "The Departed," if you saw that. The stories we are hearing on the streets that he wants rule, though, made that movie seem tame. Deb Feyerick has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the street of South Boston in a largely Irish-American neighborhood, word of James Bulger a.k.a. White Bulger's arrest spread fast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Basically, it's just weird how they got him. I never thought they'd catch him.
FEYERICK: For more than two decades, Bulger ran a notorious Irish mob known as the Winter Hill Gang. He paid off police and politicians and disappeared Christmas 1994 after a tip from a corrupt FBI agent alerting him federal agents were closing in.
BOB STUTMAN, FMR. DEA AGENT: The state police knew the FBI was in his pocket.
FEYERICK: Bob Stutman was in Boston running the Drug Enforcement Agency and working with the task force to get Bulger.
STUTMAN: There was a saying in Boston that Whitey walked down the street, the sidewalks shook. That's how bad he was. That's how tough he was. That's also how mean, crazy, and nasty he was. FEYERICK: Bulger is said to have modeled himself after gangsters immortalized by Hollywood's, Jimmy Cagney. Bulger's brutality was well known. Like New York mafia don, John Gotti, he allegedly killed his own crime boss to take over the gang. He also reportedly once pulled out someone's tongue.
STUTMAN: He could kill you for good reason. He could kill you for a bad reason. He could kill you for no reason. That was his reputation.
FEYERICK: Bulger's criminal operation included extortion, gun running for the IRA, and drugs, charging traffickers as much as $1 million to bring marijuana and cocaine through Boston harbor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who is laughing now? Whitey!
FEYERICK: Radio show host, Howie Carr, wrote a book about Whitey and his good brother, William. A legendary Boston politician who always denied he knew of his brother's whereabouts. Bulger was ultimately captured in Santa Monica, California, after the FBI ran a television add seeking Bulger's long-time girlfriend, Catherine Greig. Neighbors described them as the elderly couple on the third floor known as Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Gasco.
FEYERICK (on-camera): Among the many charges, Bulger is facing 19 counts of murder and attempted murder. So, some former law enforcement officials believe the actual numbers could be much higher.
Deborah Feyerick, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: Top stories now.
A failed terror plot in Seattle and two U.S. citizens blamed for it. The FBI says these guys planned to shoot up a military recruiting center there. But a third man they asked to join ran and told the police about it. Documents show the suspects were retaliating for what they thought was alleged crimes by U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
ROMANS: President Obama plays in the middle of the same-sex marriage debate in New York last night and received a standing ovation for his comments during a gay rights reception. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: And I believe that discrimination because of somebody's sexual orientation or gender identity ran counter to who we are as a people. And it's a violation of the basic tenets on which this nation was founded. I believe that gay couples deserve the same legal rights as every other couple in this country.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROMANS: You didn't hear him say the word "marriage." President Obama has long said he supports same sex civil unions, not same-sex marriage. The New York State Senate could vote on legalizing same-sex marriage, meanwhile, this morning.
GRIFFIN: Talks going on to solve the debt crisis. Those talks are now on the verge of collapse because a key Republican has walked away from the table of Vice President Biden. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor says he doesn't want to speak to Biden anymore. He wants to talk right to the president and deal with solving these debt ceiling issues. He also says he wants Democrats to stop with their push for tax increases, something that Republicans say they are not going to budge on.
ROMANS: Testimony about to resume this morning at the Casey Anthony murder trial in Florida. Prosecutors are still reeling from the revelation by Cindy Anthony that it was Cindy Anthony, not her daughter, who did an Internet search for "chloroform" on the family computer. That serves a key to the whole premeditation.
GRIFFIN: It sure is possibly a game changer on this. CNN's Gary Tuchman joining us live from Orlando on this stunning testimony. Gary?
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Drew, Christine, it could be a game-changer if the jury believes her, but it's not clear if the jury does believe her. Firstly, we know from Cindy and George Anthony's, their most important goal is she not go to death row and the premeditation issue would send her to death row possible. You got to consider that.
Also some of her testimony, for example, Cindy Anthony said she did not know what an internet browser but that she did remember pop-up ads from three years ago. So it's up to the jury to decide.
Here was the issue. The prosecutors say that Casey Anthony used chloroform to poison her daughter and suffocated her daughter with duct tape. They say they went to one Web site that mentioned chloroform 84 times. Yesterday, Cindy Anthony, the mother, took the stand said even though the records said she was at work she wasn't at work. She was looking up chloroform on the computer in regards to research about her dog.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you recall in March of 2008, you doing any types of searches for any items that might include chloroform?
CINDY ANTHONY: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And could you explain to the lathe ladies and gentlemen of the jury why you did that?
ANTHONY: Well, I started looking at chlorophyll and I was concerned about my smallest Yorkie. We have two Yorkie puppies. The smallest one was having some issues where she was extremely tired all the time. And both the dogs would eat the bamboo leaves out in the back, so I started looking up sources from the backyard that could potentially cause her to be more sleepy than it would affect the larger dog and I started looking up chloroform -- I mean chlorophyll and then that prompted me to look up chloroform.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TUCHMAN: OK. What could be problematic did about the testimony is around the same time records show there were searches for words like "shovel," "self-defense," "household weapons" and "neck breaking." Cindy Anthony says she did look up some of those terms because she was investigating an accident that a friend of hers was in, but now she did not look up all of those terms.
Also there was a visit to a MySpace page 20 second apart from a visit to a chloroform website, and Cindy Anthony testified that she did not know anything about MySpace at that time.
But I will tell you at one point Casey Anthony sat there and didn't look in her mother's house and mouthed this. She went -- it appeared to us that was silent purposely because we couldn't hear her, but appeared to us she was saying, "Wow," while her mother was talking.
ROMANS: So is Casey going to talk? Are we going to see Casey take the stand? Will she testify? The people who are obsessed with this case are wondering if she dares take the stand.
TUCHMAN: I'll tell you, Christine and drew, if she does testify, it will be a television spectacle. I will tell you that we know from last week that defense attorneys had not made a decision about that yet. They wanted to see how their case was going.
But, this is a big but, we may find out more today, because the judge has ordered the defense to tell him by the end of the day today how much more time they need with this case, and it's possible, based on that, if they say they need a lot more time, that could be an indication that they plan to call Casey Anthony to the stand. So stay tuned.
ROMANS: The Cindy Anthony stuff, Sunny Hostin said there is testifying and test-a-lying. And it's up to the jury to decide the veracity of that testimony.
GRIFFIN: I don't know, Gary. You were there. You watched. I mean who looks up chloroform and shovels? It's just weird.
TUCHMAN: I don't know. I will tell you, though, anyone who tells you this he know how the jury feels, I'm sorry. I will bluntly say they don't know what they are talking about.
But I will tell you the jury was paying very, very, very, close attentions. I say six very because that was the case. Science testimony early in the day they weren't paying close attention but they were listening very closely to what sin Cindy Anthony had to say.
GRIFFIN: Thanks, Gary.
ROMANS: It's been named the best high school in America. Where is it, and why are the kids there so much better prepared for college and life after graduating from this school? We're going to talk to that principal and find out why next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: The best of the best. "Newsweek" studying more than 1,000 top high schools to determine which ones are best at producing kids ready for college and life.
ROMANS: Drumroll, please. They put Dallas School of Science and Engineering at the very head of the class. Joining us now from Dallas is the school's principal, Jovan Wells. Congratulations, the best in the country. Tell us what is the secret in your sauce, because we need it all over the place.
JOVAN WELLS, PRINCIPAL, THE SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING MAGNET SCHOOL: Thank you so much. I guess the secret is a combination of several different things, but the one thing that stands out. Of course, you have to have great teachers and teachers has are willing to go above and beyond and willing to train throughout the summer and willing to stay long hours without being paid. And we have an abundance of this at the school of science and engineering, and they really make the difference. And they are there for the students.
GRIFFIN: Yes. You also have great kids. Tell us how you get into your school there in Dallas and how you select these kids.
WELLS: Well, we do select from the entire city of Dallas. The students have to meet entrance criteria, of course. We look at their ITBS scores, we look at GPA. And because we are a math and science school, we also have on-site math assessment and essay and interview to assess their interest in our school because it's a school of choice and they have to be interested to want to go through this rigorous process.
And so we look at those scores and we also make sure that it's even and across the district. So we're taking, you know, students from the entire city of Dallas. So it's very representative of our district.
ROMANS: These are kids that have shown some success and selecting into math and science program, magnet program. Tell me about the time that they spend in the classroom, because you talked about the extra while the teachers go. This is not your typical 8:50 to 2:50 school day, is it?
WELLS: Not at all. Our school hours are actually 9:00 to 4:00 and they have been adjusted to 9:15 to 4:15 for the next school year. However, we started about 7:30. We have teachers arrive there and a zero period for students in tutoring and a night period that lasts until 5:00 and we have several students that participate in that, as well as after-school tutoring. It's maximizing the time on task and students are there before and after school just as if it was the entire school day. I mean, they are there working and really taking advantage of that extra time available to study and work with the teachers.
GRIFFIN: Jovan, so many parents are watching this and might be feeling bad, because, number one, they don't live in Dallas. Number two, their school district doesn't have this kind of magnet opportunity that you are giving them. And they are trying to figure out in their own little education plan how can I make my kid a success given the school we're at now? What would you say to those parents as the one or two things they need to be doing to get success on an individual basis?
WELLS: Well, as a parent, myself, you know, I look at the things that these students are doing and it's just very good foundation and always actively involved in things like chess camp or math camps or something that keeps them on their toes.
So whether it's, you know, supplementing what they are being offered at the schools in their areas with programs that are available at the university level. You know, there's several programs available there. There is always something that can help students to achieve if they get that extra push.
So I would just research some areas if there are local universities and what kind of programs are they offering to help assist the students what they are doing at their local high school.
ROMANS: What's interesting, both of you, higher expectations are something. So your school, Jovan, has higher expectations the very get go for these kids. They have a certain GPA and already shown that they have some dedication to the subject matter. But parents could do that, too. Higher expectations all up and down the expectation process for our kids. These kids, for example, their GPA, 86 seniors graduated all of them, all of them going on to college and average SAT scores 1786, and that compares to 1509 for the rest of the country. So these are great kids. Good stuff.
GRIFFIN: Great stuff. Jovan Wells, congratulations to you and your school and your teachers and your kids. Thanks for being with us.
WELLS: Thanks so much for having me.
ROMANS: Still ahead the constant noise, the pollution, people everywhere, stress in the city. It turns out living in a city does more than stress you out. It messes with your brain.
GRIFFIN: Obviously.
(LAUGHTER)
That plus more headlines next. It is just about 15 minutes before the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: Forty-six minutes after the hour. Here's the morning headlines.
President Obama getting a standing ovation at a gay rights reception in New York while he said same-sex couples deserve equal rights, he stopped short of endorsing same-sex marriage.
At the same time, New York State a vote away from legalizing same-sex marriage. A vote could happen actually this morning after the State Senate put this one off for days.
A tax fight stalling talks to raise the nation's credit card limits. Top Republicans pulling out of Vice President Biden's talks saying President Obama needs to step in and settle the issue.
The cell phone of Osama bin Laden's right-hand man may show links to Pakistan's spy agency. That's according to "The New York Times" this very morning. It was recovered in the raid that killed both men.
And two U.S. citizens charged with plotting to kill Americans. FBI officials say these guys were going to use grenades and guns to murder victims at a military recruiting center in Seattle. Authorities says the men tried to recruit a third guy, that guy alerted police.
Most wanted gangster, James "Whitey" Bulger could be back in Boston this morning. He was caught after 16 years in hiding. The man who inspired the mob boss in "The Departed" movie is facing 19 counts of murder.
You're caught up on today's headlines. AMERICAN MORNING is back after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: What is that music? New York City is foggy, 66, thunderstorm -- wait a minute attracting sharks. Isn't that what the sharks like? Columbus Circle a little damp at the moment.
ROMANS: Looking like AC/DC.
GRIFFIN: I think that they -- I don't know what that is.
ROMANS: Really, this is a --
(CROSSTALK)
GRIFFIN: I know it's classic something or other. Guns N' Roses are they, right.
ROMANS: I knew this one. Anyway, some people -- the reason why we play that song is some people stressing out about living in the big city; others, they like the noise. It's all because of how our brain works.
A new study found people who live in the city have a higher activity in a part of the brain that controls stress.
GRIFFIN: That compares to those living in rural areas. It's the first study linking city living with high stress levels. No word on how long you have to live where you live for the effects to kick in.
ROMANS: Well, you just walk down the street in New York City or Chicago or any big city in America and you see all of these tourists looking around and saying I could never live here. Well that's why.
So we want to know, is city living worth it even if it's more stressful or possibly harmful to your health? It's our question of the day. And here are some of your responses.
DNELSON1980 on e-mail say, "I was born and raised in the country on a farm. Still living there after 49 years and would not trade it for anything."
GRIFFIN: Yes, Ronald Wall, "Beep no."
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: You can say that one.
GRIFFIN: We can?
ROMANS: Yes.
GRIFFIN: "Hell no. That is precisely why I live in the country. But then if everyone lived in the country, it would just be another big city."
ROMANS: That's very true. You keep your city, folks, you stay in the city.
GRIFFIN: That's some smart dude.
ROMANS: We didn't -- we don't see it that often.
Democrats and Republicans coming together but they did it last night for a good cause. No, not raising the debt ceiling, beating the Washington Press Corps in softball. It was the Third Annual Congressional Women's softball game. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor was -- she's a big Yankee fan by the way, she threw out the first pitch.
GRIFFIN: Yes but not like a Yankee.
From there the lady lawmakers beat the press 5-4, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz got the winning hit. There it was. The game drew a bipartisan part by the way.
Look at this, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi with John Boehner. The game benefited the Young Survival Coalition, a group that assists young women facing breast cancer.
ROMANS: All right. Meantime, a world away. First Lady Michelle Obama was delivering her message about health and fitness in South Africa and she enlisted Archbishop Desmond Tutu. They were doing sit ups and push-ups for the group in -- in Cape Town, Mrs. Obama pretty good at doing real sit- ups.
GRIFFIN: Great move.
ROMANS: Yes, Bishop Tutu he is just there for moral support, I think.
GRIFFIN: Yes, some kind of support.
All right. This guy is one of the greatest Olympians of all time, right?
ROMANS: Right.
GRIFFIN: Swimmer Michael Phelps, 16 Olympic medals and 14 of them solid.
ROMANS: Gold.
GRIFFIN: That's right.
ROMANS: And he's not done yet by the way. Phelps say he's going to compete in the 2012 London games and through his foundation he is helping kids find that same passion for swimming.
This week, I sat down with him and asked him about his motivation to succeed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: A lot of people were telling you that you couldn't do it or a lot of people were -- kids maybe picking on you a little bit about, what? About your ears?
MICHAEL PHELPS, OLYMPIC MEDALIST: Ears, shaving my legs, whatever. Wearing a Speedo.
ROMANS: You've got to have some kind of self-confidence, to get over that.
PHELPS: I just -- I think I got to the point where I just didn't care. You know I was happy. And -- and I love what I do.
ROMANS: Right.
PHELPS: You know? It's just I have goals that I want to accomplish in the sport before I retire and I didn't care what anybody else said. And, you know, when people doubt me now, it just fires me up and gives me more motivation.
ROMANS: Can you tell me what those goals are? Because you have so much metal around your neck and I can't imagine you could even hold your neck up. And what are those goals?
PHELPS: Everybody wants to know and you'll find out in 15 months after the Olympics if -- if I were successful or not and it's going to be hard, but I think it's something that's doable and something I want.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: So his mom made sure he learned how to swim for safety reasons and then, you know, she thought it was a good thing to do as a parent.
GRIFFIN: Sure.
ROMANS: She's pushed him all along the way and he brought her home 16 medals. Nice right?
Much more on my conversation with Michael Phelps on "YOUR BOTTOM LINE". That's the show I do Saturday mornings, 9:30 Eastern Time right here on CNN.
GRIFFIN: Interesting guy, he looks very, very largish.
ROMANS: Yes.
GRIFFIN: Like he's not huge like a football player.
ROMANS: I think the guy goes in the pool and every part of his body is made for scooping the water. I mean, he's -- he's -- one of our crew guys said that guy is like a swimming freak of nature, you know.
GRIFFIN: Right.
Hey, coming up on 54 minutes past the hour. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: As part of CNN's Freedom Project we're taking an in depth look at a real disturbing issue, modern day slavery.
ROMANS: That's right, our 2010 "CNN Hero of the Year" making it her mission to fight human trafficking and she's nicknamed "The Terminator." Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANURADHA KOIRALA, PROTECTING THE POWERLESS: In the West, America, Europe, if someone comes and says I want to make your child a prostitute, they would give them one slap or shoot them. But here, families, they are tricked all the time.
Girls are brought from the villages by people who can lure them and tell them that they are getting a nice job.
The border between India and Nepal is the conduit point of trafficking. There is no way to escape.
I am Anuradha Koirala and it is my strong hope to stop every Nepali girl from being trafficked. When we go to the border, exit points, we are intercepting four girls to five girls per day.
After the rescue, the girl is taken to Maiti Nepal. We started this. We accommodate rape survivors, trafficking survivors, we take everybody.
Oh, good girl.
The girls who come back from brothels, they are totally, psychologically broken. We give them whatever work they want to do, whatever training they want to do.
One day, we will really stop it. The trafficking will end. These are all convicted. Always a small (INAUDIBLE) that yes, one day, I was trafficked; but, today, I'm something new in my life.
They are my strength.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN: And this weekend, Demi Moore is going to join the 2010 Hero of the Year to take you inside the fight to end this modern day slavery. "NEPAL'S STOLEN CHILDREN" a CNN's Freedom Project Documentary, Sunday night at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.
ROMANS: Think about it for a minute. Who do you know right now who's making a big difference in your world? We want to know about them. Tell us about them.
Head to our AMERCIAN MORNING blog at cnn.com/am and you can nominate this person who is making a difference.
GRIFFIN: And a guy who is going to make a little difference at 5:00 a.m.
ROMANS: 5:00 a.m.
GRIFFIN: 5:00 a.m. Ali Velshi is going to be waking up and getting you a bit earlier start on the news day. It's starting this Monday, right? 5:00 a.m. Eastern during "WAKE-UP CALL" --
ROMANS: That's right.
GRIFFIN: -- starting right here with Ali Velshi on CNN.
ROMANS: So, you start your morning with a cup of coffee with two lumps of Velshi and you're ready to go. You're ready to go.
That's going to wrap it up for us for this week. Happy Friday everybody. Nice to see you, Drew.
GRIFFIN: Good to be here. Thanks for having me.
ROMANS: Thanks for being here.
"CNN NEWSROOM" with Kyra Phillips starts right now -- hi Kyra.
