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American Morning
Irene Death Toll Rises to 36; Rafael Nadal Interviewed; Five Year Old Plays Weather Reporter; New Strain of Bird Flu Virus; A Petite Powerhouse
Aired August 30, 2011 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Christine Romans.
Breaking news: 36 people new dead in Hurricane Irene. There are new images of floods that have bulldozed some towns. The water is still rising more than a day after the storm moved out.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. I'm Carol Costello.
It is now Tropical Storm Katia -- still an ocean away but already rattling nerves. Could it be the next natural disaster to hit us?
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: A call to fire the president's chief job promoter.
I'm Ali Velshi.
Democratic Congressman Dennis Kucinich says it's time for G.E.'s Jeffrey Immelt to go. Immelt is the guy in charge of the council that is supposed to create jobs. Kucinich says he's doing just the opposite. We'll talk to the congressman on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(MUSIC)
ROMANS: And good morning, everyone. It's Tuesday, August 30th. Welcome to AMERICAN MORNING.
COSTELLO: Good morning to you.
We begin with breaking news. Hurricane Irene -- well, the death toll has gone up. It has now killed 36 people. That's eight more than were just confirmed just an hour ago. And also, we have fresh images coming in of the devastation. Water is still tearing through many towns and turning them into islands and entire neighborhoods flooded out, water halfway up homes and covering the front doors.
VELSHI: Obama administration officials will visit three states today that were hit hard by hurricane Irene -- Virginia, North Carolina, and Vermont, where floodwaters in Vermont are still rising. They're higher than they have been for more than 80 years.
The governor there saying entire communities in his state are underwater, hundreds of residents are still trapped.
ROMANS: All right. Amber Lyon is live in Saxtons River, Vermont, this morning.
Amber, show us what it's like where you. It's just the water. It's the mud here, too, isn't it?
AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, mud and muck and that's covering roads all across the state.
Right behind me, this is the Saxtons River. And two days ago, residents tell us that this river crested and you could see houses and chicken coops and all types of buildings and belongings floating down this area. It came right through the area where I'm standing, I would have been under the water, and brought over this layer of mud and muck and then deposited it over here on one of the main roads in town.
This road is now shut down. Cars cannot get through here. And that's part of the problem the state is facing. More than 260 roads and bridges across Vermont have been knocked out.
And some of these communities have essentially been turned into islands as the roads and bridges leading in and out of the communities are both gone. So, that's something that rescue crews will try to be doing today is accessing these communities to figure out who needs help.
And there are still people, as of today, missing who are presumed to have been swept away by floodwaters. Three people died in this storm. And above all, the governor is warning people that some of these rivers in more low-lying areas will continue to crest and rise today and there will still be more flooding across this state.
Now, today, FEMA will be in Vermont. Also, more and more rescue crews will continue to go out and try to find out any way they can help these residents.
VELSHI: Amber, unlike a lot of states, Vermont didn't declare a state of emergency. It didn't order evacuations prior to the event. What's -- how are they dealing with these people who are trapped right now? Has that affected their ability to do it?
LYON: Well, yes, definitely, because a lot of these people did not evacuate and were in these small mountain communities at the time that these floods hit and continue to be there as of now.
And, Ali, yesterday, Governor Shumlin came under a lot of criticism for not ordering massive statewide evacuations, but the governor's explanation is that many of these communities are in low- lying areas and there are very few large areas of dry land in the state of Vermont where they could have evacuated people to. So, the governor says it wouldn't have been a practical solution.
But, above all, they are just trying to figure out the scope of the damage and trying to get around the state is nearly impossible.
VELSHI: All right. Amber, thanks very much. Really is something there. And as we pointed out, in some places like Vermont, even parts of New Jersey, it's worse today than two days ago.
COSTELLO: Nothing worse than water in your home, right?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's difficult to pinpoint ahead of time where these types of floods are going to happen. Obviously, the media would be at those spots if it were that easy.
VELSHI: Sure.
MARCIANO: But when it does happen, it comes down fast and furious.
COSTELLO: Well, how long of a chance was there for Vermont to get hard like it has been hit hard?
MARCIANO: A very good chance. And that was the one message I think that we all got accurate, which is the inland flooding is the big story of this and we knew that ahead of time because you guys have gotten so much rain the past couple of weeks. For Philly and New York and some spots upstate, August was a record-setter as far as rainfall. So, the ground was already saturated, it was almost a ticking time bomb in that regard.
Some of the rivers are receding a little bit, although most of them are still in flood stage. I want to show you exactly that. The higher terrain, the ones that had the most rugged terrain, the steepest valleys and mountains is Vermont. The water comes down the quick is also drains the fastest as well and, most of it is beginning to recede at least in the larger rivers, Connecticut River basin.
But you further down the Connecticut -- by the way, that pretty runs the I-91 corridor through Springfield and into Hartford. Most of that is crested with the exception of the lower Connecticut that will crest on later on today and tonight.
Also cresting today is the Passaic River across parts of northern New Jersey. I don't have to tell you if you live in that New York suburb. Tremendous amount of flooding happening right now even after a crest that will be in flood stage for a good couple of days.
All right. So, I want to show you this high resolution satellite. I showed it last hour, but I think it highlights very vividly where the moisture was in this storm and why we knew this indland flooding is going to be a problem.
All this bright white cloud, this is a visible satellite picture, high resolution, take a snapshot, you really get a sense where the deepest moisture is. Brighter the clouds, deeper the moisture. Southern half of this system, not a lot of rain. So, it's all to the north and west.
All right. As far as what is going to happen on later on today, we do have dry weather in store with a couple of thunderstorms across North Carolina. We are watching, by the way, our computer models are spinning a little something up in the Gulf of Mexico as we get towards the weekend. So, we'll keep an eye on that. Nothing yet.
What we do have is the new tropical storm. Its name is Katia. It's way out there in the Atlantic, no threat to land right now. But we do expect it to ramp up. It's got decent organization. Here you see the infrared satellite picture. It likely will become a satellite in a short time.
Here is the forecast from the National Hurricane Center, which brings it to category 1 status the next couple of days and potentially becoming a major category three or greater storm as we get towards Sunday. But we've got five days before it even gets toward a land mass and that would be towards the Leeward Islands.
Another cool shot I want to show you -- this video of the satellite picture from start-to-finish of Irene. This is always awe inspiring to me to watch these types of things develop as we go through time.
Do we have that picture? Yes. I'm assuming we got it.
VELSHI: There it is.
COSTELLO: We do. You can see it over here.
MARCIANO: Over where?
VELSHI: Come over here.
COSTELLO: There it is.
MARCIANO: Not enough monitors in this place.
Anyway, it's impressive to see that thing spun up like that and you see the eye kind of pop in and out when it was a category 3 storm, and thankfully decreasing in intensity as it hit the eastern United States.
VELSHI: Wow, that's incredibly.
ROMANS: I wish it had to cue. But one of the pictures taken from space by one of the astronauts in the International Space Station was just incredible, like looking out the window, just how huge it was. It's massive.
VELSHI: In the size of Europe at some point. Yes.
MARCIANO: These pictures are taken from 22,000 miles up. The ISS is up there about 600 miles, much closer up shot. You know, it looks a lot bigger and it is big.
And we sometimes lose at perspective of a monster storm, no doubt about it.
VELSHI: Rob, you want to stick around for this. We showed you this pint-size the iReporter yesterday.
She's five years old and she documented Irene's every move until it was bedtime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JANE HAUBRICH, IREPORTER: Jane Haubrich here reporting from Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The rain is coming down more than it was before. The wind is probably going faster. I think this is just the starting event.
I definitely feel it on my head just a tiny bit of rain.
I'm considered about the flood -- just like my puppy. It's definitely raining more because it's 5:00 now. Back to you.
This is my last report because it's my bedtime. It is really raining. The wind has picked up. This is the biggest ever has it been. Everybody take care! And please stay inside. Otherwise, you might blow away!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: She is adorable.
VELSHI: There is nothing wrong with that report. You understand it.
MARCIANO: She was very accurate.
VELSHI: Like, that is Journalism 101.
MARCIANO: Very calm. I actually -- I probably learned a few lessons. As a matter of fact, I was back stage. I was talking to her back stage, and with all the rain gear off, she's just gorgeous.
VELSHI: She's here. She and her family are with us.
COSTELLO: She's here and we're going to talk them coming up later this hour. So, family, we'll get right to you after the break.
VELSHI: Also ahead, should President Obama fire General Electric chief Jeffrey Immelt as the head of the president's jobs council? The council is supposed to create jobs here in the United States. Congressman Kucinich -- Dennis Kucinich -- says they failed to do that. We're going to speak about it, next.
ROMANS: And what does the president need to do now to create jobs and what does he need to undo his critics would say to get the economy back on track? The morning opinion next.
Ten minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
VELSHI: All right. Some live pictures we are looking at. This is Paterson, New Jersey, right now. Water is still tearing through many towns as was expected. Some water levels have been rising and, of course, now we are getting some of the first pictures from some of these places.
Aerial shots which give you a sense of the power of the water. We've been seeing that quite a bit. But this is Paterson, New Jersey.
ROMANS: I think this is the Passaic River. The river has been rising all morning. We know that Little Falls, which is a town right next to here -- I mean, you just look at some of those pictures. Whole rows and rows of houses inundated with water.
But these pictures brand-new -- just unbelievable ferocity of this water in New Jersey.
VELSHI: Yes, yes.
COSTELLO: All right. We'll keep you posted.
Also just in to CNN, a deadline in Libya. Rebels are giving forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi until Saturday to lay down their arms or face a military onslaught. This is according to the chairman of the National Transitional Council.
A rebel commander also telling CNN Moammar Gadhafi's son Khamis is dead. The former head of the regime's ruthless 32nd brigade was reportedly killed in a battle with opposition forces.
ROMANS: Algeria revealing it has allowed Moammar Gadhafi wife and daughter and two sons to enter the country for, quote, "humanitarian reasons." The new Libyan government, though, wants them back.
Also, just in to CNN, Gadhafi daughter who fled to Algeria reportedly gave birth to a baby girl early this morning. That's according to French news agency AFP. We had known she was almost full term with a child when she was still in the country. Algerian authorities say both mother and daughter are doing fine.
VELSHI: All right. If Democratic Congressman Dennis Kucinich had his way, President Obama's chief job promoter would be out of the job. Kucinich is calling for GE's CEO Jeffrey Immelt to resign from the President's' Council on Job. That's because according to Kucinich, GE's investment in China will end up creating jobs overseas. He joins me now, Congressman Dennis Kucinich of Ohio.
Congressman, good to speak to you again. Thank you for being with us.
REP. DENNIS KUCINICH (D), OHIO: Good morning.
VELSHI: Listen, none of this is a secret. There are all sorts of things we knew about GE when Jeff Immelt was named to this post, that, number one, GE pays less corporate tax than most people think it should pay on a federal level, and that it creates jobs overseas.
The White House, the president must have known this. But as the head of one of the world's biggest companies, one of the biggest industrial companies in the world, it seemed to make some sense at the time.
Did it make sense to you that Jeff Immelt would be the key man advising the president on job creation in the U.S.?
KUCINICH: You know, he has expertise in job creation, but it's, unfortunately, for the United States, seems to be creating jobs in other countries. One-fifth of the U.S. workforce has been -- has been eliminated since that gentleman had taken the helm of GE.
Now the larger problem here, which caused me to look at this, is that we have a synthetic fission technology that was developed at NASA for the private sector. It is that technology, and other unspecified high technologies, which GE is now moving to China, which will help China gain an even greater lead over the U.S., and jeopardize further our aerospace industry.
VELSHI: Right.
KUCINICH: So if this individual's involved in creating jobs, and in competitiveness, what's he doing?
VELSHI: OK. And so you represent a state, Congressman, which has really been hit hard over time by the loss of manufacturing jobs, which has nothing to do with this particular administration. It's been going on for a long time.
KUCINICH: Right.
VELSHI: I guess here's the issue: GE, like so many other industrial companies, based in the United States, in order to stay competitive, have been creating jobs elsewhere around the world. They also sell their products elsewhere.
So who better -- in other words, if it's not the head of a major industrial corporation, who is the person who you think should be advising the president on how to get jobs created in the United States? I'm not being funny about it. I'm saying --
(CROSSTALK)
KUCINICH: No, I (INAUDIBLE) --
VELSHI: -- (INAUDIBLE)?
KUCINICH: -- but I mean I'm -- and it's a very serious matter, but, look: if the White House doesn't have a jobs policy, and they go to somebody who's not only moving his jobs out of the country, but also offshoring profits so he's not paying a share of the -- of the taxes here GE ought to be paying, look, the White House has to get a grip on its jobs policy.
VELSHI: Right.
KUCINICH: We have 14 million Americans out of work. And you're right, in the state of Ohio, the unemployment level is high. But at the same time, we have lost steel, aerospace and we have to have a manufacturing policy, which we don't have, that says that as a matter of national security, steel, automotive aerospace, shipping are the industries we should be focusing on. We're not doing that.
VELSHI: Some would argue that the horse is out of the barn on that one, but let's talk about --
KUCINICH: Oh, not really.
VELSHI: -- what we're waiting -- you know, where maybe within a week or so, the president making his speech on jobs, what should that policy be right now? So putting aside Jeff Immelt for a second --
KUCINICH: Well --
VELSHI: -- and whether or not he should go -- and I have, you know, I hear you. I hear you very clearly, but I'd love hear the argument that, despite GE not paying the federal taxes it pays, and despite sending jobs overseas, why exactly Jeff Immelt, what he's doing to create jobs in the United States. That said, what should the president be doing?
KUCINICH: Well, what we should be doing is this: we should take a page out of FDR, go back to the WPA, rebuild America's infrastructure, rebuild our roads, bridges, water systems, sewer systems. There will people saying, well, where's the money coming from?
Look, if the Fed can create money out of nothing and give it to banks and park it at the Fed and gain interest, the government has the ability to spin (ph) money into circulation, just as the Fed does, and create the millions of jobs that are needed. We need to regain our position in technology.
We should have a Works Green Administration, which would take wind and solar microtechnologies, like they're working on at NASA, and be able to, with the private sector, take the design and engineering at NASA, then go for the manufacturing distribution and installation and maintenance, tens of millions of wind and solar microtechnologies could be developed. It's not like -- and for placement in homes.
We don't have a lack of need here. We have a lack of vision. And the White House has to look at from more -- from a perspective that is from sea to shining sea, not how do you move jobs out of the country any more. And that's why I raised this issue. I'm hopeful the president's going to come forward on Labor Day with a plan to get America back to work for real, not minimalism, not just talk, but do something.
VELSHI: Dennis Kucinich, always a pleasure to talk to you. Thanks very much, Representative Dennis Kucinich of Ohio. ROMANS: Going to take you to some live pictures from WABC right now. We were telling you about Paterson, New Jersey, where you're seeing just ferocious water rising. Now you're seeing some live rescues here.
You've got first responders pulling people out of homes, walking them carefully, gingerly through the rising waters of the Passaic River, and putting them into rafts to try to get them out. So we've seen just really big, boiling water coming out of -- out of -- out of that Passaic River. Now you're seeing, as we're going door to door, house to house, trying to get people out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know, going inside those homes, and getting people out, and using boats to do it, although the water doesn't look all that deep there. But next to the homes, it must be, because they have --
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: Right. This is one of those things where it's -- you can get out there and it's probably up to your, you know, mid-thighs in some places. But it's (inaudible) the doors in other places.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But our meteorologists will tell you it takes six inches of water to drown. And it takes even a little bit more than that to be swept off your feet and pulled in --
VELSHI: Right, and cars, I mean, you don't need much for a car to get swept in. I -- just in Manhattan, where we would -- didn't have this much water, you know, you'd see cars turning in, realizing, oh, my gosh, I'm in way deeper than I thought I was. See, it's completely dry over there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hang on --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Look at the road. Look at the center line of the road.
VELSHI: But, and New Jersey's hilly. You know, what worried me is what Amber Lyon was saying that the governor of Vermont had told her, that they're truly concerned that people got entirely swept away in that state, and that they're not accounted for.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And when we saw that earlier shot of the Passaic River, I mean, it was -- it was moving --
VELSHI: Serious, right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- it was really serious. You can just imagine, though, what those -- these people's homes look like, that the water's inside their houses, what they have to come back to when the water's finally --
VELSHI: Water's (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Especially when you're talking about Jersey, so you've got Route 46, you've got Route 3, you've got all these highways that crisscross. So there's concrete. You've got little towns along the sides of the Passaic River. And in some cases, there's not any place for this water to go.
You know, you've got concrete and you've got homes and you've got neighborhoods, and they've got the banks of this river. And as Rob was saying, that's the Passaic. That's the tape that we were showing you earlier, of the tape where -- unbelievable.
But you've also got the wettest -- the wettest August on record for New Jersey, and that's before Irene. I think it took 15 minutes of Irene to get over that --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I'm just wondering if these people were in the evacuation zone. Were they told by the governor, Chris Christie, to leave? I mean, we don't know that for sure. But it would be interesting to find out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And this is well off the coast. This is -- this right here is 13, 14, 15 miles from New York City. So you think about that. This is -- this is the inland flooding that Rob Marciano and Jacqui Jeras as and the others were saying was going to be a problem all along, and would happened when the skies were blue and the sun was shining, after the hurricane was gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, we're glad the rescue workers are there, doing the right thing, getting people out of their homes to safety. Thank goodness for them, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. All right. We're going to jump out of there for now, and up next, a check of the morning markets, China cracking down. China cracking down on Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. It's 23 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: It's 26 minutes after the hour. "Minding Your Business" this morning, U.S. stock futures for the Big Three are all trading lower ahead of the opening bell. Investors are gearing up for several economic reports this morning, one on the housing market, the other on consumer confidence.
Investors gearing up for some econ reports, some this morning, of course, the Case Shiller Home Price Index for June, that comes out at 9:00 am Eastern, that tracks the monthly changes and the value of real estate in 20 metropolitan areas worldwide -- or nationwide, the biggest ones. And the report on consumer confidence is expected a little later this morning.
A new survey by JD Power and Associates says Verizon ranked highest for overall wireless network performance, respondents saying they experienced fewer dropped calls, with fewer initial connection issues and texting problems with Verizon's service so far in 2011.
All right, music fans, listen to this one: Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, they're pop stars used to topping the charts, maybe not this chart, though. The Chinese government released a list of 100 songs to be banned from the Web site from the country, six of them from Lady Gaga, two from Katy Perry, banned in China.
The government there says downloading these and other pop songs on the Internet, quote, "endangered national cultural safety." The songs are not reviewed or registered with the Culture Ministry, which is required by law.
Still ahead, tennis star Rafael Nadal, off the court. What scares him the most and what's got him so excited about this year's U.S. Open? American Morning back right after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
VELSHI: Continuing to watch these live pictures come in. This is from Patterson, New Jersey. Flood rescues are going on right now as water continues to flow through the streets there. In many of these places the water levels are rising. Crews are going door-to- door in the area telling people to get out.
We'll keep an eye on that for you. We have got these pictures continuing to come in. You can see raft rescues under way there.
Hurricane Irene has now killed now 38 people, 38. That is 10 more than were confirmed just an hour ago. Obama administration officials will visit three states today that were hit hard. FEMA Director Craig Fugate heads to Vermont where unexpected and unprecedented flooding has stranded hundreds of people.
As Irene dies, tropical storm Katia forms in the Atlantic. The national hurricane center is already watching it as the next threat possible to the east coast. Maximum sustained winds right now are 40 miles an hour. It's still far away, but it is expected to intensify and start moving faster as it gets closer to the United States.
ROMANS: All right, he's just 25 years old, already a tennis great. Ali himself says he is dreamy. Rafael Nadal will play in primetime tonight in New York City at the U.S. Open.
COSTELLO: He is the defending champion, number two in the world. I got to sit down with him about life on and off the court, about Rafael Nadal's biggest passions and his biggest fear.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Some of the quotes from your book. Your mother describes you as a scaredy-cat around your family who sleeps with the light on. How does the cat become the tiger you are certainly on the court?
(LAUGHTER)
RAFAEL NADAL, TENNIS PLAYER: Especially in the evening I like to live with the TV or with the computer. COSTELLO: Even today, now?
NADAL: Today, I live with the TV on. Yes.
COSTELLO: Why is that? You don't like the dark?
NADAL: I hate the dark. So I do, I do. I just live with the TV.
COSTELLO: It takes a big man to admit that.
NADAL: I wake up at 3:00 in the morning with the TV on. I turn it off.
COSTELLO: You've joined the twitter verse.
NADAL: I've been doing since a few weeks ago.
COSTELLO: How is that going?
NADAL: I started with Facebook a few years ago. Well, it was the right moment to start with Twitter. Yes. It's a different thing to do. I have fun. I am in more contact with the fans. And, you know, I am a little bit shy, but with this kind of things, I am opening myself a little bit more to the people. And something, I think, works for them but works for myself too.
COSTELLO: See, I would never think you would be shy.
NADAL: I am a little bit, yes. I was very shy a few years ago. But with my life, I try to improve that.
COSTELLO: So why did you decide to become a part of that campaign?
NADAL: For me, it's really hard. The ambassador of the sport to be responsible. It's a campaign I really believe it's for everybody, but especially for the young people. The young and I like to go out with friends. I like to have fun with the family friends, go for a party, but everything, thinking responsibly. If you don't like crazy have the right plan to come back home safely, that is the right message.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about the U.S. Open. So what is different about the U.S. Open from other tournaments?
NADAL: The U.S. Open is last tournament of the season. Probably the one who waste most show for everybody, for the players, for the crowd. The crowd are very emotional here. A lot of things going on, doing the match for the crowd.
COSTELLO: Is the crowd tough here?
NADAL: I love the crowd here. I think they -- I have big support from them last years and, hopefully, this year I will too. So I feel a lot of passion when I go on this court, the biggest court on the tour. The crowd here is hard. So I love playing here in New York.
COSTELLO: What opponent do you find more difficult to face? Is it Federer?
NADAL: When Federer is playing and playing at his top level, I think his is the best in history. It is impossible to reach that level. When he is playing well it is very difficult to defeat him, to beat him. This year, everybody knows because he loves the match. He plays all season. But it depends on the moment. When he is playing his best, he is very difficult. When Federer is playing his best, he is very, very difficult. And if I am playing not my best, it's impossible.
(LAUGHTER)
NADAL: So that's the thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Is he that self-deprecating in real life?
NADAL: He was a charm. He is really a charmer, but he is talking about facing these different opponents. He says he doesn't really prepare any differently no matter who he faces. He just sticks to his game. If he is on his game, he says he is unbeatable.
VELSHI: Wow, very interesting. What is up with the hair?
COSTELLO: He had longer hair. I said you got your hair cut. He said, yes, yes.
VELSHI: It's not all in the hair.
Rob Marciano joins us here in our studios with a special guest, a guest we promised you yesterday. Rob, what are you learning?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Rafa-smafa. We're got a star right here.
(LAUGHTER)
MARCIANO: Jane Haubrich. We have been showing this you on YouTube, five-year-old Jane, and she is with us in the studio. This is a new star weather reporter. Behind you, Jane, we have a satellite picture. You don't look intimidated at all. This is big-time weather TV now. Here you are.
Are you ready? Can do you what we call a toss to break? Can you look in into that camera and say "AMERICAN MORNING will be right back?" Give that a shot.
JANE HAUBRICH, CNN IREPORTER: AMERICAN MORNING will be right back.
MARCIANO: Nails it. She kills it.
VELSHI: That's excellent.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Good morning, New York City, sunny and 67 degrees right now. What a beautiful shot of Central Park. Mostly sunny later this afternoon with a high of 83.
VELSHI: All right, we have had plenty of great hurricane Irene reporting here at CNN with our reporters spread across the east coast, but there is one reporter who captured our hearts, five year-old iReporter Jane Halbrick. Take a listen to her highlight reel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAUBRICH: I'm Jane Haubrich here reporting from Pennsylvania. The rain is coming down more than it was before. The wind is probably going faster. I think this is just a starting bit. I definitely feel it on my head just a tiny bit of rain.
I'm concerned the flood just like my puppy. It's definitely raining more because it's 5:00 now. Back to you.
This is my last report because it's my bedtime. It is really raining. The wind has picked up. This is the biggest ever has it been. Everybody, take care, and please stay inside. Otherwise, you might blow away.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(LAUGHTER)
ROMANS: And she reported all day up to her bedtime and then she had to sign off. Joining us now in the studio is Jane Haubrich with her parents and her little sister Charlotte. They're here from Doyle Town, Pennsylvania just over the border from New Jersey, which of course got hit by Irene. Welcome, you guys.
JENNIFER HAUBRICH, MOTHER OF JANE HAUBRICH: Thank you.
ROMANS: Jane, you slept in the basement that night, you signed off from your reports and you slept in the basement?
CHARLOTTE HAUBRICH, SISTER OF JANE HAUBRICH: I slept in the basement!
ROMANS: Did you, Charlotte? There was a big storm, wasn't there?
CHARLOTTE HAUBRICH: And daddy slept in the basement.
VELSHI: Everybody slept in the basement.
ROMANS: That was the biggest storm you ever saw, right, Jane?
CHARLOTTE HAUBRICH: But not mommy.
ROMANS: She didn't sleep in the basement?
COSTELLO: I think Charlotte is --
VELSHI: I think you see the bigger storm.
(LAUGHTER)
How did this all come up? How did you, Jane, decide to become a reporter?
FREDERIC HAUBRICH, FATHER OF JANE HAUBRICH: Well, I've been working a lot in the last few years, and Jane kept on telling me she wanted to work with me. I do documentaries and I did a documentary on World War II. She said, daddy, when you're done doing your show on soldiers, I want to do a show with you. So every weekend, we tried to find a project and when the hurricane came, she was a little stressed. She has never been through a hurricane before.
VELSHI: Sure.
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: So I was watching your show, watching CNN. I said to Jane, do you want to do your own report? And she gets to hold the microphone. She said, I'm in.
VELSHI: She didn't look stressed at all. Were you nervous in front of the camera? No. I can tell. That is a natural.
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: She just wanted to wear a different outfit.
VELSHI: We noticed that.
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: How did you choose your uniform? They give us these red jackets to wear at CNN so we have to wear the same thing whenever we are out there. You were choosing different things. Was it depending on how much rain was coming down or how much wind there was?
JANE: No.
VELSHI: Because you wanted to wear different things?
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: How did you choose them?
JANE: Because I wanted to.
COSTELLO: Because you wanted to. That is so fun!
ROMANS: Jane, what do you want to be when you grow up?
COSTELLO: A reporter.
ROMANS: Good answer. Good answer.
MARCIANO: What kind of reporter?
JANE: I don't know!
MARICANO: Good, good, because right now I'm nervous if she says weather reporter. I'd have to brush up.
ROMANS: Did you get pretty wet out there or did you stay under your umbrella or slicker?
JANE: I got wet.
ROMANS: Were you wearing rain boots too out there? Yes.
MARCIANO: So you got wet. But you let me in on a secret. Your cameraman, aka daddy, was he out in the rain too?
JANE: No.
MARCIANO: He wasn't?
VELSHI: Really? You had a shelter, daddy? What is going on there?
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: I was shooting from the garage. It's an expensive camera.
(LAUGHTER)
MARCIANO: There a number of CNN photojournalists listening to this interview saying he did. We can stay under there.
ROMANS: I remember my cameraman was standing under the awning of the hotel and kept pushing me out.
COSTELLO: Charlotte, where were you during all of this? Were you watching your sister being a weather forecaster? Now Charlotte is going to be shy.
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: Did you hold the umbrella for her a while? Can you tell us about that?
ROMANS: Umbrella is pretty heavy. Charlotte, how old are you? Five? Three.
(CROSSTALK)
ROMANS: And you're five. When is your birthday?
JANE: April 6th. So you're almost five and a half.
MARCIANO: Mom, ho how are you going to deal with the divas in the family?
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: I don't know.
(LAUGHTER)
FREDERIC HAUBRICH: She enjoyed it. I think she liked picking out the clothes a lot and her favorite thing to do she says is talk.
VELSHI: We were enjoying it. There has been a lot of talk the last few days whether we were over prepared or whether it was overhyped, but it was just fun to watch because she was just giving you the facts. Just telling you what was happen. It's raining harder. It's the worst it's been raining. You're going to blow away. Where was she getting all of this information? Where did you learn all this?
JANE: I don't know.
VELSHI: You were just saying what was coming to mind?
MARCIANO: Reporting what you saw, reporting on what you felt in a very calm, collected manner.
CHARLOTTE HAUBRICH: She got it from herself!
COSTELLO: She got it from herself.
VELSHI: Very nice.
COSTELLO: Now, you're going to go to kindergarten this fall then, right? So you'll be able to tell your teacher what did you do this summer. You can say, I was a -- I was a news reporter, right?
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: That's awesome. That's really awesome.
MARCIANO: Well, we think you're doing a great job. I -- I you know Michelle, our producer, just got in my ear saying do you have any words of wisdom. I want to ask you for advice the way that video came up. You did a fantastic job.
And do you have any -- do you have any stories from the storm? When the storm came through, did you stay inside? Did you go out when it was raining real hard? Or what did you guys do during the storm? In the basement the whole time? Yes. Well, that's a safe spot.
JENNIFER HAUBRICH, MOTHER OF JANE HAUBRICH: Until we lost electricity.
COSTELLO: You lost electricity too. Is your electricity back?
VELSHI: So Charlotte, you're going to be looking forward to the next storm now? Because you -- there a little bit, they are a bit fun now? Right? Did you have a good time watching all of this happening?
Good. We got two people less scared of storms now.
MARCIANO: Well, when you grow up, it's either you want to be an intern we've be happy to have you. You've got a bright future.
ROMANS: You sure do. That's awesome. Thank you guys for coming we really appreciate it. J. MAUBRICH: Thank you.
ROMANS: We love the iReport it was so cute. And I know, and really in all of the -- the seriousness of reporting that storm it was very -- I mean, a lot of people were touched by how -- how cute she was and how great that is and Charlotte, you're cute -- you're very cute too.
VELSHI: Both of you. Thank you very much for coming.
ROMANS: Thank you guys --
VELSHI: Great work out there and Charlotte thanks for encouraging her, ok?
ROMANS: Good job, Charlotte.
COSTELLO: Morning headlines coming your way next. Its 46 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Its 48 minutes past the hour. Here are your morning headlines.
Breaking news to tell you about: these are live pictures out of Patterson, New Jersey. Flood rescues going on right now from that neighborhood as water continues to roar through the streets. Crews going door-to-door in the area, telling people to get out. And there are raft rescues going on as well.
Hurricane Irene's death toll has now jumped to 38 people. More than a day after Irene hit, water still surging in many places and flooding out entire neighborhoods, taking out bridges and roads. Hundreds of people remain stranded.
Tropical storm Katia is forming and getting stronger in the Atlantic. The National Hurricane Center already watching it, it's the next possible treat to the East Coast.
Former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's wife and three kids have fled the country. They are now said to be in Algeria. Libya's new government is demanding they be returned.
U.S. markets open in just about 45 minutes. Right now stock futures for the DOW, NASDAQ and S&P 500 all trading lower ahead of the opening bell. Investors gearing up for several economic reports this morning, one on the housing market and the other on consumer confidence.
And former Laker Javaris Crittenton (ph) arrested last night at a southern California airport and facing murder charges. The FBI says he is accused of killing a mother of four in Atlanta.
Cashing in on the comeback: Eagles quarterback Michael Vick has signed a new six-year, $100 million contract with the Eagles. $40 million of that is guaranteed and makes him one of the highest paid NFL players in the league.
And it's official. We now know the line up for Season 13 of "Dancing with the Stars." And the big names battling it out for the Mirror Ball Trophy include actor David Arquette, Ricki Lake and Chaz Bono and one of our own, HLN's Nancy Grace.
We'll be watching you, Nancy.
That's the news you need to start your day. AMERICAN MORNING back after a break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Good morning, Atlanta. It's sunny and 73 right now. And mostly sunny later today and a reasonable 92 degrees for late August.
COSTELLO: That's right. For Atlanta, that's pretty normal.
VELSHI: Back to normal, yes.
All right in your "AM House Call" a warning from UN health officials about a possible resurgence of the deadly bird flu virus. A mutant strain of the virus may be spreading in Southeast Asia, it's appeared in China and Vietnam. Officials say the strain can side-step current vaccines. Bird flu has killed more than 3,000 -- I'm sorry, 330 people -- 330 people since it first emerged in 2003.
COSTELLO: Lipitor may lower more than just cholesterol. A new study is out. They found Lipitor may also prevent death from infection in respiratory illness. Clinical testing of the drug's effect on cholesterol ended in 2003 and since then, researchers say the group that took the drug it has what is called "legacy effects". A 14 percent lower death rate than in the group that took placebos. Researchers say the findings were very unexpected.
ROMANS: All right, we want to introduce you now to a remarkable woman who fought adversity and won. Here is Dr. Sanjay Gupta with this week's "Human Factor."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On a hot Los Angeles day you'll find Scout Bassett outside on the roof of her apartment building logging miles on her bike. She's a dedicated multisport athlete, but take a closer look. Scout has run marathons and raced triathlons all with one leg.
SCOUT BASSETT, ATHLETE: This has been very good to me and done a lot of long miles.
GUPTA: Scout lost her leg when she was just a baby. It was the beginning of a difficult childhood.
BASSETT: I was burned in a fire in China and when I turned one- year-old, I was placed on the streets in front of the government orphanage. When I came here to the U.S., I was 7 years old and weighed 22 pounds.
GUPTA: Scout had never left her orphanage before being adopted. Overnight, she found herself with a new family in a new country surrounded by strangers and unable to speak any English.
BASSETT: Everybody is just looking at you, wanting to know what is going on, who you are, where you come from. And I mean -- and it's like I'm not even sure what's happening to me. How am I supposed to explain that to you?
GUPTA: Exercise became a refuge. She saw other para-athletes race a triathlon with the Challenged Athletes Foundation.
BASSETT: Being able to see that was something that changed my life forever, seeing what was possible out there.
GUPTA: She started to race triathlons herself, swimming without any artificial leg because it would weigh her down. Switching into a leg with a foot made into a bike cleat and then switching again to an artificial running leg for the end of the race.
BASSETT: Race-by-race, training day by training day, I started to gain this confidence that I really had lacked for much of my life. And became just this person who really believed in myself for the first time.
GUPTA: And she has no plans of slowing down.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Good morning, Washington especially those of you in the White House. It's partly cloudy outside, 70 degrees. It's going to be 84 later on and mostly sunny. Isn't that the same thing, mostly sunny and partly cloudy?
COSTELLO: There is a meteorological difference and we'll have to go to Rob Marciano to find out but we'll do that later.
ROMANS: And you know in Washington, right there in the White House, they're trying to figure out how to create jobs, right. And in today's morning opinions, the focus is jobs. We want to show you one of these op-eds about the President needs to do to create jobs and another about what the President needs to undo to get the nation's economy back on track.
Starting with the to-do list "The Washington Post" op-ed says it's time for the President to get bold, quote, "This is a moment for the President to suppress his reflex for pre-emptive compromise. The unemployment crisis is so deep and self perpetuating that only a big, surprising, over-the-top jobs initiative could have real impact." The piece goes on to say that the administration should use federal money to seed new initiatives. Look at this. Another op-ed in "The Washington Times" says that is what is contributing to the problem. Wisconsin Republican Senator Ron Johnson is a guest columnist. He says, "Few on Mr. Obama's team have ever built a company, manufactured or marketed a product or balanced the books. They have no clue how to get our economy reignited and no clue how to create an atmosphere in which the private sector can create the jobs we need." Senator Johnson says the first steps to get the economy moving including doing away with the President's stimulus program, repealing health care reform and repealing the Dodd-Frank act.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: He definitely wanted to take away the stuff that actually started to go down the road of protecting consumers. That worked out really well when we didn't have consumer protection for anybody.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSI: I don't understand how you can be on the wrong side of consumer protection. You can say regulation comes your way.
COSTELLO: It comes from "The Washington Times" which is a conservative newspaper and it comes from a Republican so it's just talking points.
ROMANS: Here's the narrative. The narrative will be the President has to go big to create jobs. The other side of that is the President has got to undo what his agenda has been to create jobs and that is where you're going to see head-butting.
VELSHI: Right.
COSTELLO: It would be good if the person who wrote the editorial for "The Washington Times" and the person who wrote the editorial for "The Washington Post" -- right -- was watching the program, would come together in a beautiful moment of promise.
ROMANS: Oh, Carol.
VELSHI: Oh, my. Let's come together in a beautiful moment of compromise to end this show. We have had a great time. We will be back tomorrow.
Kyra, a big hug and over to you.
