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CNN Sunday Morning

Social Security Debate; Bush Arrives in Brussels

Aired February 20, 2005 - 09:00   ET

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

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


BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Social Security, President Bush says it needs a major overhaul but others say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Well, today we will try to help you understand the finer points in this ever growing debate.
I want to welcome you back this morning to the CNN Center here in Atlanta. This is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, February 20th, can you believe almost March?

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, man.

NGUYEN: I'm Betty Nguyen.

HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris, 9:00 a.m. here in the east, 6:00 a.m. in the west.

Let's get right to it with the stories making headlines this morning.

Air Force One arrive in Brussels a few hours from now marking President Bush's first overseas trip of his second term. During the coming week, he'll meet with nearly every European leader looking to improve relations that were strained over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

The Middle East peace process is likely to be an important item on Mr. Bush's European agenda. Just moments ago, we received word that Israel's cabinet, as expected, has approved a plan to evacuate Jewish settlers from Gaza. Jordan also sent an ambassador back to Tel Aviv today marking the return of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

And, in South Asia, two former U.S. presidents today are seeing firsthand the worst of the tsunami damage. George Bush and Bill Clinton toured the devastation of Banda Aceh in northern Indonesia, which suffered the brunt of the earthquake and tsunami. They said the enormity of the catastrophe is impossible to comprehend without being there.

NGUYEN: And you will definitely want to stick with us this hour. First, how many current workers will it take to pay for future retirees? We'll help you separate fact from fiction in this debate over Social Security.

Next, if you need a good feel good story, boy do we have it, and it involves a single soldier. See his truly selfless gift to a child. Plus later, ladies and gentlemen get your TV's started. NASCAR's big wheel even rolls out today and it's anybody's race. We'll have a preview.

HARRIS: And our top story this hour, Bienvenue and Wilkommen.

NGUYEN: What? Say that again.

HARRIS: I tried. I wanted to try. I just wanted to try.

NGUYEN: Nice try.

HARRIS: Well, the French and German greetings for welcome pretty much hammered by me and friendly words President Bush hopes to hear as he tours Europe. Mr. Bush left for the continent earlier this morning hoping to use some new words with leaders there like compromise and conciliation.

The president's itinerary includes stops in three countries, Belgium, Germany and the Slovak Republic. Even though it's just three countries, the president will meet with a long list of political leaders. He'll try to sell himself there we say as a kinder, gentler president.

More from CNN's Senior White House Correspondent John King.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Off the Europe where the goal is setting a new tone for the second term, the challenge rooted as much in a personality clash as it is in the many policy differences.

RICHARD PERLE, COUNCIL OF FOREIGN RELATIONS: The Europeans don't like the president's style. They're comfortable with Jacques Chirac. OK, he's not my taste but they've carried this disapproval of the president's style to an extreme.

KING: Not that there aren't numerous policy divides that make fence mending difficult, lingering tensions over the Iraq war. Mr. Bush won't join negotiations about Iran's nuclear program and wants the Europeans involved in those talks to take a tougher line. The White House opposes European plans to resume arms sales to China and Europeans can't fathom why Mr. Bush won't join the Kyoto Climate Change Treaty.

Just back from a big conference in Germany, Senator John McCain sees a desire on both sides of the Atlantic for a more friendly tone, yet he sees little movement on the policy divides with France and Germany.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: In the case of the Germans, Mr. Schroeder, a little straight talk, is interested in his reelection. He played the anti-American card last time and it helped him so it shouldn't surprise me. In the case of the French, as long as many French leaders believe, in their words, that they are counterweight to the United States of America, it's hard to forge a close alliance.

KING: The Iraq war is the biggest but not the only source of anti-Bush sentiment across much of Europe.

WOLFGANG ISCHINGER, GERMAN AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: Some of it has to do with style. Europeans, Germans and others may have some difficulty with this open, frank manner.

KING: How these differences are conveyed can be remarkably personal, portrayed as an ape in Britain's "Guardian" newspaper. Elsewhere in Europe, flipping a coin before marching or dancing off to the next war. Or, in this German cartoon, as a biblical figure bent on reshaping the world.

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: They've got to stop scapegoating George Bush as a person. They got to deal with America. He's the president of the United States. He's been reelected. His policies reflect more or less the will of a majority of the American people and the Europeans have to deal with that.

KING: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was well received on her recent trip to Europe. And, in Germany, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld tried humor to move past his controversial labeling of Iraq war critics as Old Europe.

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Oh, that was old Rumsfeld.

KING: Now, Mr. Bush takes his turn. One goal in Europe narrowing the policy divide, the other recasting or at least softening his image.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Secret tapes reportedly give a peak into George W. Bush's political strategy when he was considering a run for the presidency. "The New York Times" reports Doug Wead, an author and Bush friend, recorded private conversations with then Governor Bush.

Now in one of the tapes recorded back in 1998, Bush worried Christian conservatives would oppose his position not to criticize gay people. The "Times" reports the tapes revealed Bush said, "I think it's bad for Republicans to be kicking gays" and while preparing to meet with a Christian group, the tapes indicate Governor Bush said, "I'm going to say I have accepted Christ into my life. And that is a true statement."

HARRIS: And time now to check out some of the other stories making news around the world.

NGUYEN: And for that, as always, we go to Anand Naidoo, good morning Anand. ANAND NAIDOO, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hey, good morning to you from the international desk.

We begin in Jerusalem and we have a big development there, this just crossing the wires minutes ago, we're hearing that the Israeli Cabinet has approved the removal of Gaza settlements. The cabinet approves the evacuation of those settlements.

It's the first time that the Israeli Cabinet has given the green light to the removal of settlements from occupied land. We'll bring you more details on this development in the Middle East as we get it here at CNN.

The other big decision that the cabinet will be making today and that is whether to include two large settlements, which are in the West Bank at the moment but they once -- or the prime minister wants to include those settlements on the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier that is being built. We expect that decision to come down any minute as well.

Just a recap on that first decision, the Israeli Cabinet has approved the evacuation of settlements from Gaza and analysts have been saying for some time that they expected approval on both these issues. We'll keep you posted.

Now, to Washington. There are new efforts underway there to undo the North Korean nuclear logjam. The Japanese foreign minister held talks with top administration officials on that issue.

Both sides urged Pyongyang to get back to the all party negotiating table. North Korea responded by accusing the United States and Japan of planning to invade the country.

And one other note I should mention on the Japanese-U.S. meeting, the two sides also called on China to cool tensions with Taiwan, to which China replied, "That issue is none of your business."

Now, to Haiti. Gunmen stormed the nation's main prison. They released up to 350 prisoners. Most remain at large. Some high profile inmates, including former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune did not get out.

Prison guards spirited them away to a U.N. facility where they are being held right now. Neptune served as prime minister under the ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who is now of course in exile.

That is all from me, more later as we get them, back to Tony and Betty.

NGUYEN: A lot going on yes.

HARRIS: Anand, thank you.

NGUYEN: Well, meet America's newest super hero. We're talking about Omega Boy. If you haven't heard of him yet, well we are going to tell you all about him because he is the work of two young storytellers. So, who is Omega Boy's arch nemesis? The answer just might surprise you. We'll introduce you to all of them next.

HARRIS: Plus, a single soldier sent to Iraq decides to bring home an adopted son. How did it all happen? Their story is today's "Soldier's Story."

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And, I'm Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center. White on the radar scope that means snows across much of the upper Midwest. Detroit is one of those spots. We take a look at it where it's 27 degrees. Yes, there it is. You can see -- well, you can't see a whole lot there in Motown.

Nonetheless, you're going to get several inches of snow throughout the day today and then it's going to be cold and wet tonight. Complete forecast details for the rest of the country coming up in just a few minutes.

CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.

NGUYEN: It's like pea soup in that shot there.

HARRIS: Yes.

NGUYEN: But first, the future of America's Social Security Program it is a hot topic...

HARRIS: Certainly is.

NGUYEN: ...all across the country as the president pushes for reform.

HARRIS: And we're looking at the issue all morning long on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Here's what some of you say about the future of Social Security.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, I guess I'm not counting on anything. I've been working over 20-some years and where is my money?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you concerned about it at all?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not for myself but for my children and for younger people, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's your advice to them?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Put away money, save it and be prepared for what's coming.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once I get to the point to where I'm unable to work or do anything else by myself to the point, you know, that I'm going to need some help and some type of assistance and if Social Security is not going to be there, then where am I going to be?

(END VIDEO CLIP) HARRIS: OK. And, Social Security is the topic of our e-mail question this morning. Here it is. Does the Social Security System need to be fixed? E-mail us at wam@cnn.com and we'll read your replies a little later this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Guess which city this is. It is Detroit under all that fog and some snow flurries. You can barely see it in this live picture. I want to say good morning as you look live. Come aboard and catch today's Detroit Boat Show. It's hailed as the original biggest and best boat show in the state of Michigan -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, it's just a big old cloud. That's what it is just a big old cloud producing whatever it's producing.

NGUYEN: Can't get out in our boat today there -- Rob.

HARRIS: No, it doesn't seem to be.

MARCIANO: No, they always have those boat shows in the middle of wintertime.

HARRIS: To get you ready, looking forward, right?

NGUYEN: Exactly.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

HARRIS: Let's get the top stories now.

(NEWSBREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, we do want to say good morning Daytona. Look at that. Now that's a place to be today. The city is all revved up for today's super bowl of auto racing. That's called the Daytona 500 and you can expect a nearly perfect forecast for today's kickoff of the NASCAR season. Tony has your complete outlook. Tony, that would be Rob Marciano in just a little bit.

HARRIS: You don't want me doing it that's for sure.

NGUYEN: Although you've done a little forecasting in your time.

HARRIS: Oh, my.

First, a CNN Extra. Hawaii this week became the final state to adopt the Amber Alert system nine years after the abduction and murder of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman in Texas. The national network now spans the entire country. And, check this out, the Amber Alert networks are credited with saving the lives of 192 children nationwide.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And time now to go fast forward for a look at some of the stories we'll be covering in the week to come. The International Olympic Committee heads to the Big Apple on Monday. New York City is making a push to host the 2012 Olympic Games. London, Madrid, Paris and Moscow are also in the running.

Eight pro basketball games are scheduled around the country Tuesday and with them comes the debut of new NBA guidelines to limit the size and number of beers sold at games. The new restrictions are one way the NBA hopes to prevent a brawl like the one that broke out in November between the Pistons, Pacers and fans.

And, Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist will not be on the bench when court is back in session on Tuesday. Rehnquist is suffering with thyroid cancer and has decided to skip the two week cycle of oral arguments but he will continue voting on decisions and reading transcripts of arguments.

NGUYEN: We have a very special "Soldier's Story" this morning. Troops who serve in Iraq usually come home with strong memories of their time there but one National Guardsman came home with so much more.

Our Chris Lawrence has the story from Wisconsin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAPT. SCOTT SOUTHWORTH, U.S. ARMY: Hey buddy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, bubba (ph).

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Why would a man...

SOUTHWORTH: Ready to go home?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAWRENCE: ...single guy, just back from Baghdad, basically adopt an Iraqi orphan with cerebral palsy?

SOUTHWORTH: I didn't choose him. He chose me.

LAWRENCE: Captain Scott Southworth met Ala Adin (ph) a year and a half ago in a Baghdad orphanage.

SOUTHWORTH: And within a few short weeks began to call me Bubba or Daddy.

LAWRENCE: Scott kept visiting every few days even with his unit under constant attack.

SOUTHWORTH: I didn't know if I was going to make it out alive and I was afraid to promise him something and then get killed and then him not understand that.

LAWRENCE: After about a year, Scott's tour was up and the Army ordered him home but he discovered Ala was getting too old for the orphanage.

SOUTHWORTH: This is one of our favorite events.

LAWRENCE: He'd be transferred to an adult facility where with his cerebral palsy he might not survive the lack of attention and medical care.

SOUTHWORTH: It was a devastating and frustrating moment for me.

LAWRENCE: Now, foreign adoption is illegal in Iraq right now but after six months of work and mounds of red tape, he convinced Iraqi and American officials to grant Ala something called humanitarian parole.

SOUTHWORTH: You do it. You do it. Outstanding.

LAWRENCE: It's a special designation that allows him to get medical help here in America with Scott acting as guardian.

(on camera): Do you ever think about what his life would be like if he was still in Iraq today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAWRENCE (voice-over): It's a hard thing for Scott to explain but the emotion makes it clear why he'd take this on.

SOUTHWORTH: People will sometimes say to me, you know, oh what a great thing it is that you're doing it and I always tell them, you know, honestly he teaches me and gives back to me far more than I will ever give to him.

LAWRENCE: Scott admits he went to Baghdad hoping to win Iraqis' hearts and minds. He just never expected a 10-year-old to win his.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Wisconsin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: What a story. You know I often realize that when you feel like you're giving such a selfless act you get back so much more than you ever thought you were giving.

HARRIS: Well, forget about the politics. You love who you love.

NGUYEN: Absolutely. Boy, what a story. What a great story.

Well, violence in Lebanon this week, we want to talk about that. It has turned the world's eye on its neighbor, Syria, but what do Syrians think about all the attention their country is getting when CNN SUNDAY MORNING returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK) HARRIS: Well, it is a big day for all you racing fans. The green flag drops today on NASCAR's signature event the Daytona 500. Let's put pedal to the metal and burn on down to Daytona, Florida where Steve Overmyer from CNN Sports is covering all the action -- hey, Steve.

STEVE OVERMYER, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: How you doing Tony?

We're ready to rev it up here. I think the fans are ready. The drivers are certainly ready. Some might think that it is strange that this sports premiere event is held at the beginning of the season but for racing it seems like it makes perfect sense.

These drivers, these teams have a maximum of two months, their entire off season to prepare for new cars, new engines, get better aerodynamics. When it comes to this, this is the perfect time as a matter of fact to get ready for the best in racing, the super bowl in racing.

Now, who would have the lead or who exactly would people want to look for? Nobody has more momentum than Tony Stewart. Yesterday he wins the Bush race, did a little mowing of the grass, forced into the grass at nearly 200 miles an hour with no traction, somehow got it back in a corner and then charged way back to blow the doors of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and win his first ever Bush race. He also won a qualifying race hoping to complete the trifecta a little later on today.

As for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Michael Waltrip, this is a tandem that has just been dominant at this track. Waltrip won the first qualifying race over Lilly by three-hundredths of a second. This combo has combined to win three out of the last four Daytona 500s.

You know folk heroes are certainly made at this race, not necessarily at this track. The late Dale Earnhardt is the winningest drive at this track; however, Tony, his legend wasn't really cemented until he won the Daytona 500 after 20 tries -- back to you.

HARRIS: There you go, Steve Overmyer in Daytona for the big race today, Steve thank you.

NGUYEN: Now, that'll wake you up. So what stories are grabbing your attention on the Web site today? It seems the stars are really out this morning. And Christina Park from cnn.com joins us to talk more about that.

The stars are out this morning. What's that all about?

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh yeah. The stars are out. It's good and bad news today. We're tracking the best stories for you at cnn.com, and you can check them on-line anytime at the top right- hand side of your screen, right there, most popular. And one or our most clicked on reports features teen queen Lindsay Lohan's father. Long Island police say Lohan's troubled dad was charged with drunken driving early yesterday after he apparently ran his car off the road and crashed into a telephone phone. Forty-four-year-old Michael Lohan was alone when he scrambled out of his 2005 Volvo before it bursts into flames.

Now, earlier this month, Lohan held a news conference saying his problems with substance abuse were over. Lohan's 18-year-old superstar daughter has headlined hit movies like "Mean Girls" and "Freaky Friday."

Another "Most Popular" story, don't hate them because their beautiful, British pop singer Victoria Beckham and soccer star, David Beckham, have a new baby boy. The photogenic couple already have two children named Brooklyn and Romeo, and now their third baby's name isn't Baby Spike, it's Cruz. He was born a week early in a hospital in Spain, this morning, where David Beckham plays for the team Real Madrid. Mom and dad say, if baby Cruz plays soccer, or as they call it, football, England would be the preferred team over Spain, but one never knows. Beckham says Cruz has Posh Spice's lips and nose, so you know, so you know he's gorgeous. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) cnn.com.

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: All about the stars. So the name is Cruz. You got Romeo, Brooklyn, and Cruz. Those are some names.

PARK: I know, it's competitive nowadays. Stars...

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: Everybody wants the best name. "Apple."

With "Trinity" or "Shazam."

NGUYEN: Shazam? That's a new one, Christina.

PARK: I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that one.

NGUYEN: I don't think I'm going to write that one down, that may not be in my book. Thank you.

Well we are looking at the Social Security issue this morning, and asking you, does the system need to be fixed? Some of your responses. That's coming up right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

HARRIS: But first more of your thoughts on the future of Social Security.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I'm concerned more about my grandchildren and maybe my children than I am us. I'm -- the president said in his speech, people 55 and up won't be affected. I'm 52. I don't plan to participate in any of the privatization, if it's offered to people my age. Because, as slow as congress is, I'll probably be 72 before anything affects me is done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NGUYEN: A landmark vote in Israel within the last hour, an Israeli official says the cabinet gave final approval to the government's plan to withdraw Jewish settlements from Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. Now, opponents of the move protested last week, say it sought a national referendum. We want to go to now to CNN's John Vause who is live in Jerusalem with the latest on this vote.

Hi, John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Betty. A short time ago the Israeli cabinet gave its overwhelming approval, 17 votes to five to give the Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the authority to move ahead with his disengagement plan. What this actually means is that Ariel Sharon now has the authority to issue evacuation notices to some 8,000 Jewish settlers in all of the Gaza Strip and 1,000 more in the northern part of the West Bank. The disengagement is set to begin in July, and should take up to eight weeks. And as you mentioned, Betty, it will face nationwide protest. The settlers and their supporters have been campaigning for months, ever since this was announced. They have vowed to continue those campaigns. Now, what this actually means, though Betty, is that the wheels are now turning. The Israeli cabinet voted once before on disengagement, that was almost a year ago, but that was only disengagement in principle. This is now the beginning of the end, almost 38 years of Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Wow. CNN's John Vause in Jerusalem. Thank you for that update on the vote, today -- Tony.

HARRIS: Get the Syrian troops out of Lebanon. The assignation of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has renewed that call. The United States has not publicly blamed Syria for the killing, but it has recalled its ambassador to -- from Damascus. Rime Allaf is a Syrian analyst, writer and journalist and she joins us now from London.

Rime, good morning.

RIME ALLAF, SYRIAN JOURNALIST AND WRITER: Good morning.

HARRIS: I have to ask you first of all as we try to cut through some of the haze and smoke here, and a lot of the noise that's going on, the assassination of the former prime minister changes, let's start with, Lebanon, what does it change in Lebanon?

ALLAF: Well, for one thing, for many years we have seen a very divided opposition to the successive governments that have come, most of which were more or less pro-Syrian. The last government has been -- it is said, in Lebanon, the most pro-Syrian they've seen in a while, that's how the Lebanese people are interpreting it. And for the first time, after the assassination of Rafik Hariri, we've seen a very unified opposition, also unified people standing behind wishes to get the Syrian troops out. So I think this is the most immediate consequence of this horrible assassination.

HARRIS: OK, so what does it ring -- what does it change in Syria?

ALLAF: Well, the Syrians have immediately, obviously, condemned this atrocious crime. And everybody in Syria will tell you, there's absolutely no logical way that the Syrians could have wanted this to happen, and therefore, it could not have possibly done it. The Syrians will tell you they've always wanted stability in Lebanon, and in fact, fought very hard to achieve the stability, for which they were thanked and credited by the Lebanese, with the ending of the civil war in 1990. But, after the final withdrawal of the Israeli troops from southern Lebanon in 2000, a lot of people were demanding now that the Taif accords should be applied.

Now, the Taif accords, most people believe it's only related to the withdrawal of Syrian forces, but in fact it is much more complicated, and Resolution 1559 also is much more complicated than only the withdrawal because you have the dismantling of all armed militias, and its not just Hezbollah, you have also some armed refugees from Palestine who are -- there's about half a million Palestinian refugees and a number of other militia, so it is very problematic. Of course, many people would like the Syrians to get out, but how do you handle, then, the deployment of the Lebanese army to places where they haven't been trained to confront yet?

HARRIS: I have to ask you what you think of the pyrotechniques, the back and forth that's been going on this week from this administration. What do you think it all boils down to?

ALLAF: Well, the Bush administration has been trying to corner into giving Syria more on a number of issues. The Syrians will say, from their part, that they've done everything they could to secure the borders with Iraq. And even Secretary of State Colin Powell, one of the last statements he has made a few months -- a few weeks before he left office was to say indeed the Syrians had now cooperated greatly, and were trying to control the flow of whoever was trying to go to Iraq. The Syrians have been very close allies to the U.S. in the war on terror, something that was acknowledged by the U.S. administration several times, since September 11th.

But, the Syrians have tried to get the U.S. to be a bit more equitable in the issue of the Golan Heights, and the withdrawal of Israel from the land has occupied since 1967, and the Bush administration and the government of Ariel Sharon have repeatedly made it clear that the Syrian track was not, for the time being, on the table. So, I think the Syrians will be trying as well to point everybody's attention to that fight, but say, look, we will eventually get out of Lebanon. We never meant to stay there for the long time. But, we do have interests that we wish the international community, and especially the U.S., will turn their attention to.

HARRIS: Rime Allaf, good analysis from London this morning. We appreciate it. Rime, thank you.

NGUYEN: We want to turn now to Iraq and an exclusive story from "Time" magazine, this morning. "Time" is reporting that U.S. officials are in direct contact with Sunni insurgents in Iraq discussing an end to the insurgency. Now, this is a major development since the Bush administration has been adamant in refusing to negotiate with enemy fighters. But Pentagon officials tell "Time" that U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers have now joined back channel communications with the rebels. The Western observer says there is still no authorized dialogue, but as he puts it, there's a lot have bubbling under the surface.

HARRIS: How safe are you when you fly? Some airlines are now outsourcing repair work. Is this the safest way to go? At least one airline official warns of possible tragic consequences. It's the story you'll see only on CNN. Tune in tonight for this special investigation on "CNN SUNDAY NIGHT" at a new time, at 11:00 p.m. And beginning tomorrow, our sister network, CNN HEADLINE NEWS, is unveiling its new prime-time lineup, but we're getting a live sneak preview on CNN tonight. At 7:00 p.m. "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" debuts, award winning style from the East Coast to the West. Karen Bryant and A.J. Hammer take you behind the scenes of the Academy Awards. If it happens today, it's on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT."

Then at 8:00, she's doing justify to legal news, Nancy Grace, from prominent trials to possible wrongful convictions. Former prosecutor, Nancy Grace, takes on the legal issues of the day, always live and always unscripted.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, somewhere in a galaxy far, far away, a home was created for African-American superheroes. "Omega 7" was created 13 years ago by independent comic, book artist, and activist, Alonzo Washington. Now, two of his sons, 11-year-old Kamaal and 9-year-old Malcolm, seen here, have created their own superhero called "Omega Boy," his mission, to educate children on the effects of diabetes. More on America's newest super hero now, from CNN's Michael Schulder.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL SCHULDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the story of a real child searching for the superhero inside himself. Once upon a time there was a little boy who loved to do all the things little kids do. He loved candy, he loved sports, and he loved having fun. One day the little boy gets extremely thirsty. Although he drinks plenty of water, he can't quench his thirst. Suddenly he begins to use the rest room over and over again. He begins to feel a tingle in his hands, the doctor breaks the news. Our little boy has type one diabetes.

DR. STEPHEN ANDERSON, PEDIATRICIAN: Well, initially, diabetes is a big blow because it means your lifestyle has to change. They have to monitor their blood sugar four to six times per day. They have to take multiple injections of insulin to keep their blood sugars in good control.

SCHULDER: Presented with the diagnosis, the boy reacts with rage. "No," he screams, "I am not a freak or a monster. The world will pay for this!" The boy turns into the evil Dr. Diabetes. He vows to make sure that everyone on the planet feels his pain, that the whole world will have diabetes. ANDERSON: It's not uncommon for a child to feel very angry when this first comes out.

SCHULDER: Enter our superhero, Omega Boy. "You will not stop me," says Dr. Diabetes. "You will catch diabetes, as well."

"For a doctor, you don't know much," Omega Boy counterpunches, "let me teach you." And with those words, Omega Boy proceeds to teach us all about an increasingly common disease among young Americans, especially African-Americans.

ANDERSON: It's a genetic condition, genetic tendency, and also an environmental trigger which causes the diabetes to come out.

SCHULDER: "You're not a monster, my friend," says Omega Boy to the young diabetes patient, "you are just a child with an illness. With the right attitude and proper healthy choices, you can be a super hero that conquers diabetes."

The authors of those words, the co-creators of Omega Boy are an 11-year-old diabetes patient named Kamaal Washington and his younger brother, Malcolm. Kamaal and Malcolm, two boys searching for the superheroes inside themselves.

Michael Schulder, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: All right, so you've heard the story, now let's speak to the young men behind it. Joining us now from Kansas City, Missouri, are the creators of "Omega Boy" comic book, 11-year-old Kamaal Washington who has type one diabetes, and his 9-year-old brother, Malcolm Washington.

We appreciate you both being with us today. Thank you.

KAMAAL WASHINGTON, CO-CREATOR "OMEGA BOY": You're welcome.

MALCOLM WASHINGTON, CO-CREATOR "OMEGA BOY": You're welcome.

NGUYEN: Well, let's talk to you first, Kamaal. This started when you were diagnosed with type one diabetes. Take us back to that day. How did you find out and what did that make you feel like?

K. WASHINGTON: Well, I was 9-years-old and my dad was -- we were out of town and my dad was doing a convention. So, I kept drinking water, and Gatorade, and I kept getting thirsty, and I had to go to the bathroom a lot, and I started to feel a tingle in my fingers, so we left. I was still thirsty. It felt like I was about to throw up, so we went to the store and I got another big thing of Gatorade. So she took me to the hospital, and they found out that I had diabetes. And it was a week before Halloween, so it was then...

NGUYEN: So no candy for you, huh?

K. WASHINGTON: Yeah. I was mad at (UNINTELLIGIBLE) at the same time, because I didn't like the fact that I had to get shots, and I couldn't eat any candy, and I didn't know if I could die off it or not and I didn't know what the disease was.

NGUYEN: Yeah, it can be very scary, especially for a boy of your age. So now, tell us how that transformed into this comic book. Why did you want to write it?

K. WASHINGTON: Well, when I was at the hospital, there was nothing for me to read. The things that I could read had like, words that I couldn't understand and different parts of the body, so when my brother visited, we talked about it and then when we got home from the hospital, we told our dad, we wanted to do comic books for the longest, but he would always say, wait until you're older. But when we gave him this idea, he couldn't say no.

NGUYEN: And Malcolm, you've been his partner along the way, not only his brother, but his partner in this adventure. Tell us why you wanted to help your brother create this comic book, and what did do you? What role was yours in this one? Did you come up with the idea together? Or did you write it yourself? How did you come up with it?

M. WASHINGTON: Well, I wanted to support my brother in what he was going through, helping him with the comic. We both did the artwork and the concept of the book. And we'll both draw the same page, and our dad would choose which one goes into the comic book.

NGUYEN: Boy, you are talented, two very young talented young man, today. Kamaal, what's the main message you want to send out to other young children, just like you, who have type one diabetes?

K. WASHINGTON: To take your insulin and eat right, and it'll be OK. And you're not a freak, you just got to take care of yourself and just -- you just can't eat a lot of sugar, so you just going to have to deal with it.

NGUYEN: And, quickly, are you working on another book that may involve your brother, as well?

K. WASHINGTON: Yeah. We have our second book, we just got done drawing it, so it's sent -- got sent out to be printed. It's about Dr. Diabetes returns, he returns, and he cures diabetes, and he doesn't get a lot of recognition for it and "Mighty Boy's" in this comic...

M. WASHINGTON: Yes.

NGUYEN: "Mighty Boy," is his name. And that's you, right Malcolm? You're "Mighty Boy," Malcolm?

M. WASHINGTON: Yes. I'm ...

NGUYEN: Fantastic. And you're looking for a cure in real life, as well. We appreciate your time. And thanks for making this comic book. It's very important, today. Thank you both.

K. WASHINGTON: You're welcome. NGUYEN: And we'll be right back with more CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey, good morning, San Francisco, where everything is coming up orchids. Today, the San Francisco Orchid Society holds the 53rd Pacific Orchid Exposition. Thousands of varieties of orchids will be showcased at the...

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: Lots the orchids there today. OK, well you know what? Time now to check in with Dana Bash in Washington for a peek of what's coming up "On the Story."

Good morning.

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR, "ON THE STORY": Good morning, Betty. And we are "On the Story" from here in Washington to New York to Belgium and Iraq. Susan Malveaux is already in Brussels to cover President Bush's arrival, later today, and his meeting with European allies.

Jane Arraf is in northern Iraq as U.S. forces make a pitch to insurgents to give themselves up. And Liz Neisloss has the latest on a sexual harassment charge against a senior official at the United Nations. Kathleen Hays is "ON THE STORY" of why a growing economy means growing fear of inflation. That's all coming up, that's "ON THE STORY" -- Betty and Tony.

HARRIS: Thank you.

NGUYEN: Yes, thank you.

HARRIS. Well, we've been talking about Social Security all morning long and the president's proposed changes. Let's get a fact check on the changes right now. Here's one question: Are the personal retirement accounts President Bush is proposing guaranteed? In his State of the Union speech, Mr. Bush claimed, "Your money will grow, over time, at a greater rate than anything the current system can deliver, and your account will provide money for retirement over and above the check you will receive from Social Security."

According to our CNN fact check, the president and vice president incorrectly suggests that personal retirement accounts are guaranteed to provide greater returns than the current system. There is no guarantee that a worker will always receive a higher return on his or her investment with a personal retirement account under the current system.

NGUYEN: Which brings us to our e-mail question of the day.

HARRIS: That's right. We've been asking you, what do you think about the system? Should it be fixed? Should it be overhauled? Let's get to some of your responses. This from George, "Of course it needs to be fixated. Put the politicians on the same plan as we are on, and it will soon get "fixed." It's not the only place the American public is getting the screws put to them. Plain ol' honesty in government would cure most of the problems."

NGUYEN: And this person writes: "Of course something needs to be done. The problem is what? There are three surefire ways to save Social Security: raise taxes, cut benefits or raise the retirement age. Any politician looking for a career change might consider suggesting one of these."

HARRIS: And a final check of weather now with Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center. Good morning Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: All right, here's a current look at the -- did Bush say it would guarantee?

NGUYEN: Apparently.

MARCIANO: Did he say we were guaranteed?

HARRIS: It's a quote. It's a quote. It's from the fact check.

MARCIANO: OK, all right. OK. All right, all right, just asking.

HARRIS: No, no, no good question.

NGUYEN: Absolutely.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Your skepticism has been duly noted and sent over to the fact checkers to double check the facts.

NGUYEN: And you can e-mail us at wam@cnn.com.

HARRIS: Thanks, Rob. Have a great day, man.

MARCIANO: See you.

HARRIS: That's it for us this morning.

NGUYEN: Absolutely. But, we want to thank you for watching and we will see you back here next weekend. "ON THE STORY" is next.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired February 20, 2005 - 09:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Social Security, President Bush says it needs a major overhaul but others say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Well, today we will try to help you understand the finer points in this ever growing debate.
I want to welcome you back this morning to the CNN Center here in Atlanta. This is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, February 20th, can you believe almost March?

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, man.

NGUYEN: I'm Betty Nguyen.

HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris, 9:00 a.m. here in the east, 6:00 a.m. in the west.

Let's get right to it with the stories making headlines this morning.

Air Force One arrive in Brussels a few hours from now marking President Bush's first overseas trip of his second term. During the coming week, he'll meet with nearly every European leader looking to improve relations that were strained over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

The Middle East peace process is likely to be an important item on Mr. Bush's European agenda. Just moments ago, we received word that Israel's cabinet, as expected, has approved a plan to evacuate Jewish settlers from Gaza. Jordan also sent an ambassador back to Tel Aviv today marking the return of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

And, in South Asia, two former U.S. presidents today are seeing firsthand the worst of the tsunami damage. George Bush and Bill Clinton toured the devastation of Banda Aceh in northern Indonesia, which suffered the brunt of the earthquake and tsunami. They said the enormity of the catastrophe is impossible to comprehend without being there.

NGUYEN: And you will definitely want to stick with us this hour. First, how many current workers will it take to pay for future retirees? We'll help you separate fact from fiction in this debate over Social Security.

Next, if you need a good feel good story, boy do we have it, and it involves a single soldier. See his truly selfless gift to a child. Plus later, ladies and gentlemen get your TV's started. NASCAR's big wheel even rolls out today and it's anybody's race. We'll have a preview.

HARRIS: And our top story this hour, Bienvenue and Wilkommen.

NGUYEN: What? Say that again.

HARRIS: I tried. I wanted to try. I just wanted to try.

NGUYEN: Nice try.

HARRIS: Well, the French and German greetings for welcome pretty much hammered by me and friendly words President Bush hopes to hear as he tours Europe. Mr. Bush left for the continent earlier this morning hoping to use some new words with leaders there like compromise and conciliation.

The president's itinerary includes stops in three countries, Belgium, Germany and the Slovak Republic. Even though it's just three countries, the president will meet with a long list of political leaders. He'll try to sell himself there we say as a kinder, gentler president.

More from CNN's Senior White House Correspondent John King.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Off the Europe where the goal is setting a new tone for the second term, the challenge rooted as much in a personality clash as it is in the many policy differences.

RICHARD PERLE, COUNCIL OF FOREIGN RELATIONS: The Europeans don't like the president's style. They're comfortable with Jacques Chirac. OK, he's not my taste but they've carried this disapproval of the president's style to an extreme.

KING: Not that there aren't numerous policy divides that make fence mending difficult, lingering tensions over the Iraq war. Mr. Bush won't join negotiations about Iran's nuclear program and wants the Europeans involved in those talks to take a tougher line. The White House opposes European plans to resume arms sales to China and Europeans can't fathom why Mr. Bush won't join the Kyoto Climate Change Treaty.

Just back from a big conference in Germany, Senator John McCain sees a desire on both sides of the Atlantic for a more friendly tone, yet he sees little movement on the policy divides with France and Germany.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: In the case of the Germans, Mr. Schroeder, a little straight talk, is interested in his reelection. He played the anti-American card last time and it helped him so it shouldn't surprise me. In the case of the French, as long as many French leaders believe, in their words, that they are counterweight to the United States of America, it's hard to forge a close alliance.

KING: The Iraq war is the biggest but not the only source of anti-Bush sentiment across much of Europe.

WOLFGANG ISCHINGER, GERMAN AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: Some of it has to do with style. Europeans, Germans and others may have some difficulty with this open, frank manner.

KING: How these differences are conveyed can be remarkably personal, portrayed as an ape in Britain's "Guardian" newspaper. Elsewhere in Europe, flipping a coin before marching or dancing off to the next war. Or, in this German cartoon, as a biblical figure bent on reshaping the world.

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: They've got to stop scapegoating George Bush as a person. They got to deal with America. He's the president of the United States. He's been reelected. His policies reflect more or less the will of a majority of the American people and the Europeans have to deal with that.

KING: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was well received on her recent trip to Europe. And, in Germany, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld tried humor to move past his controversial labeling of Iraq war critics as Old Europe.

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Oh, that was old Rumsfeld.

KING: Now, Mr. Bush takes his turn. One goal in Europe narrowing the policy divide, the other recasting or at least softening his image.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Secret tapes reportedly give a peak into George W. Bush's political strategy when he was considering a run for the presidency. "The New York Times" reports Doug Wead, an author and Bush friend, recorded private conversations with then Governor Bush.

Now in one of the tapes recorded back in 1998, Bush worried Christian conservatives would oppose his position not to criticize gay people. The "Times" reports the tapes revealed Bush said, "I think it's bad for Republicans to be kicking gays" and while preparing to meet with a Christian group, the tapes indicate Governor Bush said, "I'm going to say I have accepted Christ into my life. And that is a true statement."

HARRIS: And time now to check out some of the other stories making news around the world.

NGUYEN: And for that, as always, we go to Anand Naidoo, good morning Anand. ANAND NAIDOO, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hey, good morning to you from the international desk.

We begin in Jerusalem and we have a big development there, this just crossing the wires minutes ago, we're hearing that the Israeli Cabinet has approved the removal of Gaza settlements. The cabinet approves the evacuation of those settlements.

It's the first time that the Israeli Cabinet has given the green light to the removal of settlements from occupied land. We'll bring you more details on this development in the Middle East as we get it here at CNN.

The other big decision that the cabinet will be making today and that is whether to include two large settlements, which are in the West Bank at the moment but they once -- or the prime minister wants to include those settlements on the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier that is being built. We expect that decision to come down any minute as well.

Just a recap on that first decision, the Israeli Cabinet has approved the evacuation of settlements from Gaza and analysts have been saying for some time that they expected approval on both these issues. We'll keep you posted.

Now, to Washington. There are new efforts underway there to undo the North Korean nuclear logjam. The Japanese foreign minister held talks with top administration officials on that issue.

Both sides urged Pyongyang to get back to the all party negotiating table. North Korea responded by accusing the United States and Japan of planning to invade the country.

And one other note I should mention on the Japanese-U.S. meeting, the two sides also called on China to cool tensions with Taiwan, to which China replied, "That issue is none of your business."

Now, to Haiti. Gunmen stormed the nation's main prison. They released up to 350 prisoners. Most remain at large. Some high profile inmates, including former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune did not get out.

Prison guards spirited them away to a U.N. facility where they are being held right now. Neptune served as prime minister under the ex-president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who is now of course in exile.

That is all from me, more later as we get them, back to Tony and Betty.

NGUYEN: A lot going on yes.

HARRIS: Anand, thank you.

NGUYEN: Well, meet America's newest super hero. We're talking about Omega Boy. If you haven't heard of him yet, well we are going to tell you all about him because he is the work of two young storytellers. So, who is Omega Boy's arch nemesis? The answer just might surprise you. We'll introduce you to all of them next.

HARRIS: Plus, a single soldier sent to Iraq decides to bring home an adopted son. How did it all happen? Their story is today's "Soldier's Story."

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And, I'm Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center. White on the radar scope that means snows across much of the upper Midwest. Detroit is one of those spots. We take a look at it where it's 27 degrees. Yes, there it is. You can see -- well, you can't see a whole lot there in Motown.

Nonetheless, you're going to get several inches of snow throughout the day today and then it's going to be cold and wet tonight. Complete forecast details for the rest of the country coming up in just a few minutes.

CNN SUNDAY MORNING will be right back.

NGUYEN: It's like pea soup in that shot there.

HARRIS: Yes.

NGUYEN: But first, the future of America's Social Security Program it is a hot topic...

HARRIS: Certainly is.

NGUYEN: ...all across the country as the president pushes for reform.

HARRIS: And we're looking at the issue all morning long on CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Here's what some of you say about the future of Social Security.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, I guess I'm not counting on anything. I've been working over 20-some years and where is my money?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you concerned about it at all?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not for myself but for my children and for younger people, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's your advice to them?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Put away money, save it and be prepared for what's coming.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once I get to the point to where I'm unable to work or do anything else by myself to the point, you know, that I'm going to need some help and some type of assistance and if Social Security is not going to be there, then where am I going to be?

(END VIDEO CLIP) HARRIS: OK. And, Social Security is the topic of our e-mail question this morning. Here it is. Does the Social Security System need to be fixed? E-mail us at wam@cnn.com and we'll read your replies a little later this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Guess which city this is. It is Detroit under all that fog and some snow flurries. You can barely see it in this live picture. I want to say good morning as you look live. Come aboard and catch today's Detroit Boat Show. It's hailed as the original biggest and best boat show in the state of Michigan -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, it's just a big old cloud. That's what it is just a big old cloud producing whatever it's producing.

NGUYEN: Can't get out in our boat today there -- Rob.

HARRIS: No, it doesn't seem to be.

MARCIANO: No, they always have those boat shows in the middle of wintertime.

HARRIS: To get you ready, looking forward, right?

NGUYEN: Exactly.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

HARRIS: Let's get the top stories now.

(NEWSBREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, we do want to say good morning Daytona. Look at that. Now that's a place to be today. The city is all revved up for today's super bowl of auto racing. That's called the Daytona 500 and you can expect a nearly perfect forecast for today's kickoff of the NASCAR season. Tony has your complete outlook. Tony, that would be Rob Marciano in just a little bit.

HARRIS: You don't want me doing it that's for sure.

NGUYEN: Although you've done a little forecasting in your time.

HARRIS: Oh, my.

First, a CNN Extra. Hawaii this week became the final state to adopt the Amber Alert system nine years after the abduction and murder of 9-year-old Amber Hagerman in Texas. The national network now spans the entire country. And, check this out, the Amber Alert networks are credited with saving the lives of 192 children nationwide.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And time now to go fast forward for a look at some of the stories we'll be covering in the week to come. The International Olympic Committee heads to the Big Apple on Monday. New York City is making a push to host the 2012 Olympic Games. London, Madrid, Paris and Moscow are also in the running.

Eight pro basketball games are scheduled around the country Tuesday and with them comes the debut of new NBA guidelines to limit the size and number of beers sold at games. The new restrictions are one way the NBA hopes to prevent a brawl like the one that broke out in November between the Pistons, Pacers and fans.

And, Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist will not be on the bench when court is back in session on Tuesday. Rehnquist is suffering with thyroid cancer and has decided to skip the two week cycle of oral arguments but he will continue voting on decisions and reading transcripts of arguments.

NGUYEN: We have a very special "Soldier's Story" this morning. Troops who serve in Iraq usually come home with strong memories of their time there but one National Guardsman came home with so much more.

Our Chris Lawrence has the story from Wisconsin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAPT. SCOTT SOUTHWORTH, U.S. ARMY: Hey buddy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, bubba (ph).

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Why would a man...

SOUTHWORTH: Ready to go home?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAWRENCE: ...single guy, just back from Baghdad, basically adopt an Iraqi orphan with cerebral palsy?

SOUTHWORTH: I didn't choose him. He chose me.

LAWRENCE: Captain Scott Southworth met Ala Adin (ph) a year and a half ago in a Baghdad orphanage.

SOUTHWORTH: And within a few short weeks began to call me Bubba or Daddy.

LAWRENCE: Scott kept visiting every few days even with his unit under constant attack.

SOUTHWORTH: I didn't know if I was going to make it out alive and I was afraid to promise him something and then get killed and then him not understand that.

LAWRENCE: After about a year, Scott's tour was up and the Army ordered him home but he discovered Ala was getting too old for the orphanage.

SOUTHWORTH: This is one of our favorite events.

LAWRENCE: He'd be transferred to an adult facility where with his cerebral palsy he might not survive the lack of attention and medical care.

SOUTHWORTH: It was a devastating and frustrating moment for me.

LAWRENCE: Now, foreign adoption is illegal in Iraq right now but after six months of work and mounds of red tape, he convinced Iraqi and American officials to grant Ala something called humanitarian parole.

SOUTHWORTH: You do it. You do it. Outstanding.

LAWRENCE: It's a special designation that allows him to get medical help here in America with Scott acting as guardian.

(on camera): Do you ever think about what his life would be like if he was still in Iraq today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAWRENCE (voice-over): It's a hard thing for Scott to explain but the emotion makes it clear why he'd take this on.

SOUTHWORTH: People will sometimes say to me, you know, oh what a great thing it is that you're doing it and I always tell them, you know, honestly he teaches me and gives back to me far more than I will ever give to him.

LAWRENCE: Scott admits he went to Baghdad hoping to win Iraqis' hearts and minds. He just never expected a 10-year-old to win his.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Wisconsin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: What a story. You know I often realize that when you feel like you're giving such a selfless act you get back so much more than you ever thought you were giving.

HARRIS: Well, forget about the politics. You love who you love.

NGUYEN: Absolutely. Boy, what a story. What a great story.

Well, violence in Lebanon this week, we want to talk about that. It has turned the world's eye on its neighbor, Syria, but what do Syrians think about all the attention their country is getting when CNN SUNDAY MORNING returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK) HARRIS: Well, it is a big day for all you racing fans. The green flag drops today on NASCAR's signature event the Daytona 500. Let's put pedal to the metal and burn on down to Daytona, Florida where Steve Overmyer from CNN Sports is covering all the action -- hey, Steve.

STEVE OVERMYER, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: How you doing Tony?

We're ready to rev it up here. I think the fans are ready. The drivers are certainly ready. Some might think that it is strange that this sports premiere event is held at the beginning of the season but for racing it seems like it makes perfect sense.

These drivers, these teams have a maximum of two months, their entire off season to prepare for new cars, new engines, get better aerodynamics. When it comes to this, this is the perfect time as a matter of fact to get ready for the best in racing, the super bowl in racing.

Now, who would have the lead or who exactly would people want to look for? Nobody has more momentum than Tony Stewart. Yesterday he wins the Bush race, did a little mowing of the grass, forced into the grass at nearly 200 miles an hour with no traction, somehow got it back in a corner and then charged way back to blow the doors of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and win his first ever Bush race. He also won a qualifying race hoping to complete the trifecta a little later on today.

As for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Michael Waltrip, this is a tandem that has just been dominant at this track. Waltrip won the first qualifying race over Lilly by three-hundredths of a second. This combo has combined to win three out of the last four Daytona 500s.

You know folk heroes are certainly made at this race, not necessarily at this track. The late Dale Earnhardt is the winningest drive at this track; however, Tony, his legend wasn't really cemented until he won the Daytona 500 after 20 tries -- back to you.

HARRIS: There you go, Steve Overmyer in Daytona for the big race today, Steve thank you.

NGUYEN: Now, that'll wake you up. So what stories are grabbing your attention on the Web site today? It seems the stars are really out this morning. And Christina Park from cnn.com joins us to talk more about that.

The stars are out this morning. What's that all about?

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh yeah. The stars are out. It's good and bad news today. We're tracking the best stories for you at cnn.com, and you can check them on-line anytime at the top right- hand side of your screen, right there, most popular. And one or our most clicked on reports features teen queen Lindsay Lohan's father. Long Island police say Lohan's troubled dad was charged with drunken driving early yesterday after he apparently ran his car off the road and crashed into a telephone phone. Forty-four-year-old Michael Lohan was alone when he scrambled out of his 2005 Volvo before it bursts into flames.

Now, earlier this month, Lohan held a news conference saying his problems with substance abuse were over. Lohan's 18-year-old superstar daughter has headlined hit movies like "Mean Girls" and "Freaky Friday."

Another "Most Popular" story, don't hate them because their beautiful, British pop singer Victoria Beckham and soccer star, David Beckham, have a new baby boy. The photogenic couple already have two children named Brooklyn and Romeo, and now their third baby's name isn't Baby Spike, it's Cruz. He was born a week early in a hospital in Spain, this morning, where David Beckham plays for the team Real Madrid. Mom and dad say, if baby Cruz plays soccer, or as they call it, football, England would be the preferred team over Spain, but one never knows. Beckham says Cruz has Posh Spice's lips and nose, so you know, so you know he's gorgeous. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) cnn.com.

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: All about the stars. So the name is Cruz. You got Romeo, Brooklyn, and Cruz. Those are some names.

PARK: I know, it's competitive nowadays. Stars...

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: Everybody wants the best name. "Apple."

With "Trinity" or "Shazam."

NGUYEN: Shazam? That's a new one, Christina.

PARK: I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that one.

NGUYEN: I don't think I'm going to write that one down, that may not be in my book. Thank you.

Well we are looking at the Social Security issue this morning, and asking you, does the system need to be fixed? Some of your responses. That's coming up right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

HARRIS: But first more of your thoughts on the future of Social Security.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I'm concerned more about my grandchildren and maybe my children than I am us. I'm -- the president said in his speech, people 55 and up won't be affected. I'm 52. I don't plan to participate in any of the privatization, if it's offered to people my age. Because, as slow as congress is, I'll probably be 72 before anything affects me is done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NGUYEN: A landmark vote in Israel within the last hour, an Israeli official says the cabinet gave final approval to the government's plan to withdraw Jewish settlements from Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. Now, opponents of the move protested last week, say it sought a national referendum. We want to go to now to CNN's John Vause who is live in Jerusalem with the latest on this vote.

Hi, John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Betty. A short time ago the Israeli cabinet gave its overwhelming approval, 17 votes to five to give the Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the authority to move ahead with his disengagement plan. What this actually means is that Ariel Sharon now has the authority to issue evacuation notices to some 8,000 Jewish settlers in all of the Gaza Strip and 1,000 more in the northern part of the West Bank. The disengagement is set to begin in July, and should take up to eight weeks. And as you mentioned, Betty, it will face nationwide protest. The settlers and their supporters have been campaigning for months, ever since this was announced. They have vowed to continue those campaigns. Now, what this actually means, though Betty, is that the wheels are now turning. The Israeli cabinet voted once before on disengagement, that was almost a year ago, but that was only disengagement in principle. This is now the beginning of the end, almost 38 years of Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Wow. CNN's John Vause in Jerusalem. Thank you for that update on the vote, today -- Tony.

HARRIS: Get the Syrian troops out of Lebanon. The assignation of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has renewed that call. The United States has not publicly blamed Syria for the killing, but it has recalled its ambassador to -- from Damascus. Rime Allaf is a Syrian analyst, writer and journalist and she joins us now from London.

Rime, good morning.

RIME ALLAF, SYRIAN JOURNALIST AND WRITER: Good morning.

HARRIS: I have to ask you first of all as we try to cut through some of the haze and smoke here, and a lot of the noise that's going on, the assassination of the former prime minister changes, let's start with, Lebanon, what does it change in Lebanon?

ALLAF: Well, for one thing, for many years we have seen a very divided opposition to the successive governments that have come, most of which were more or less pro-Syrian. The last government has been -- it is said, in Lebanon, the most pro-Syrian they've seen in a while, that's how the Lebanese people are interpreting it. And for the first time, after the assassination of Rafik Hariri, we've seen a very unified opposition, also unified people standing behind wishes to get the Syrian troops out. So I think this is the most immediate consequence of this horrible assassination.

HARRIS: OK, so what does it ring -- what does it change in Syria?

ALLAF: Well, the Syrians have immediately, obviously, condemned this atrocious crime. And everybody in Syria will tell you, there's absolutely no logical way that the Syrians could have wanted this to happen, and therefore, it could not have possibly done it. The Syrians will tell you they've always wanted stability in Lebanon, and in fact, fought very hard to achieve the stability, for which they were thanked and credited by the Lebanese, with the ending of the civil war in 1990. But, after the final withdrawal of the Israeli troops from southern Lebanon in 2000, a lot of people were demanding now that the Taif accords should be applied.

Now, the Taif accords, most people believe it's only related to the withdrawal of Syrian forces, but in fact it is much more complicated, and Resolution 1559 also is much more complicated than only the withdrawal because you have the dismantling of all armed militias, and its not just Hezbollah, you have also some armed refugees from Palestine who are -- there's about half a million Palestinian refugees and a number of other militia, so it is very problematic. Of course, many people would like the Syrians to get out, but how do you handle, then, the deployment of the Lebanese army to places where they haven't been trained to confront yet?

HARRIS: I have to ask you what you think of the pyrotechniques, the back and forth that's been going on this week from this administration. What do you think it all boils down to?

ALLAF: Well, the Bush administration has been trying to corner into giving Syria more on a number of issues. The Syrians will say, from their part, that they've done everything they could to secure the borders with Iraq. And even Secretary of State Colin Powell, one of the last statements he has made a few months -- a few weeks before he left office was to say indeed the Syrians had now cooperated greatly, and were trying to control the flow of whoever was trying to go to Iraq. The Syrians have been very close allies to the U.S. in the war on terror, something that was acknowledged by the U.S. administration several times, since September 11th.

But, the Syrians have tried to get the U.S. to be a bit more equitable in the issue of the Golan Heights, and the withdrawal of Israel from the land has occupied since 1967, and the Bush administration and the government of Ariel Sharon have repeatedly made it clear that the Syrian track was not, for the time being, on the table. So, I think the Syrians will be trying as well to point everybody's attention to that fight, but say, look, we will eventually get out of Lebanon. We never meant to stay there for the long time. But, we do have interests that we wish the international community, and especially the U.S., will turn their attention to.

HARRIS: Rime Allaf, good analysis from London this morning. We appreciate it. Rime, thank you.

NGUYEN: We want to turn now to Iraq and an exclusive story from "Time" magazine, this morning. "Time" is reporting that U.S. officials are in direct contact with Sunni insurgents in Iraq discussing an end to the insurgency. Now, this is a major development since the Bush administration has been adamant in refusing to negotiate with enemy fighters. But Pentagon officials tell "Time" that U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers have now joined back channel communications with the rebels. The Western observer says there is still no authorized dialogue, but as he puts it, there's a lot have bubbling under the surface.

HARRIS: How safe are you when you fly? Some airlines are now outsourcing repair work. Is this the safest way to go? At least one airline official warns of possible tragic consequences. It's the story you'll see only on CNN. Tune in tonight for this special investigation on "CNN SUNDAY NIGHT" at a new time, at 11:00 p.m. And beginning tomorrow, our sister network, CNN HEADLINE NEWS, is unveiling its new prime-time lineup, but we're getting a live sneak preview on CNN tonight. At 7:00 p.m. "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" debuts, award winning style from the East Coast to the West. Karen Bryant and A.J. Hammer take you behind the scenes of the Academy Awards. If it happens today, it's on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT."

Then at 8:00, she's doing justify to legal news, Nancy Grace, from prominent trials to possible wrongful convictions. Former prosecutor, Nancy Grace, takes on the legal issues of the day, always live and always unscripted.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, somewhere in a galaxy far, far away, a home was created for African-American superheroes. "Omega 7" was created 13 years ago by independent comic, book artist, and activist, Alonzo Washington. Now, two of his sons, 11-year-old Kamaal and 9-year-old Malcolm, seen here, have created their own superhero called "Omega Boy," his mission, to educate children on the effects of diabetes. More on America's newest super hero now, from CNN's Michael Schulder.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL SCHULDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the story of a real child searching for the superhero inside himself. Once upon a time there was a little boy who loved to do all the things little kids do. He loved candy, he loved sports, and he loved having fun. One day the little boy gets extremely thirsty. Although he drinks plenty of water, he can't quench his thirst. Suddenly he begins to use the rest room over and over again. He begins to feel a tingle in his hands, the doctor breaks the news. Our little boy has type one diabetes.

DR. STEPHEN ANDERSON, PEDIATRICIAN: Well, initially, diabetes is a big blow because it means your lifestyle has to change. They have to monitor their blood sugar four to six times per day. They have to take multiple injections of insulin to keep their blood sugars in good control.

SCHULDER: Presented with the diagnosis, the boy reacts with rage. "No," he screams, "I am not a freak or a monster. The world will pay for this!" The boy turns into the evil Dr. Diabetes. He vows to make sure that everyone on the planet feels his pain, that the whole world will have diabetes. ANDERSON: It's not uncommon for a child to feel very angry when this first comes out.

SCHULDER: Enter our superhero, Omega Boy. "You will not stop me," says Dr. Diabetes. "You will catch diabetes, as well."

"For a doctor, you don't know much," Omega Boy counterpunches, "let me teach you." And with those words, Omega Boy proceeds to teach us all about an increasingly common disease among young Americans, especially African-Americans.

ANDERSON: It's a genetic condition, genetic tendency, and also an environmental trigger which causes the diabetes to come out.

SCHULDER: "You're not a monster, my friend," says Omega Boy to the young diabetes patient, "you are just a child with an illness. With the right attitude and proper healthy choices, you can be a super hero that conquers diabetes."

The authors of those words, the co-creators of Omega Boy are an 11-year-old diabetes patient named Kamaal Washington and his younger brother, Malcolm. Kamaal and Malcolm, two boys searching for the superheroes inside themselves.

Michael Schulder, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: All right, so you've heard the story, now let's speak to the young men behind it. Joining us now from Kansas City, Missouri, are the creators of "Omega Boy" comic book, 11-year-old Kamaal Washington who has type one diabetes, and his 9-year-old brother, Malcolm Washington.

We appreciate you both being with us today. Thank you.

KAMAAL WASHINGTON, CO-CREATOR "OMEGA BOY": You're welcome.

MALCOLM WASHINGTON, CO-CREATOR "OMEGA BOY": You're welcome.

NGUYEN: Well, let's talk to you first, Kamaal. This started when you were diagnosed with type one diabetes. Take us back to that day. How did you find out and what did that make you feel like?

K. WASHINGTON: Well, I was 9-years-old and my dad was -- we were out of town and my dad was doing a convention. So, I kept drinking water, and Gatorade, and I kept getting thirsty, and I had to go to the bathroom a lot, and I started to feel a tingle in my fingers, so we left. I was still thirsty. It felt like I was about to throw up, so we went to the store and I got another big thing of Gatorade. So she took me to the hospital, and they found out that I had diabetes. And it was a week before Halloween, so it was then...

NGUYEN: So no candy for you, huh?

K. WASHINGTON: Yeah. I was mad at (UNINTELLIGIBLE) at the same time, because I didn't like the fact that I had to get shots, and I couldn't eat any candy, and I didn't know if I could die off it or not and I didn't know what the disease was.

NGUYEN: Yeah, it can be very scary, especially for a boy of your age. So now, tell us how that transformed into this comic book. Why did you want to write it?

K. WASHINGTON: Well, when I was at the hospital, there was nothing for me to read. The things that I could read had like, words that I couldn't understand and different parts of the body, so when my brother visited, we talked about it and then when we got home from the hospital, we told our dad, we wanted to do comic books for the longest, but he would always say, wait until you're older. But when we gave him this idea, he couldn't say no.

NGUYEN: And Malcolm, you've been his partner along the way, not only his brother, but his partner in this adventure. Tell us why you wanted to help your brother create this comic book, and what did do you? What role was yours in this one? Did you come up with the idea together? Or did you write it yourself? How did you come up with it?

M. WASHINGTON: Well, I wanted to support my brother in what he was going through, helping him with the comic. We both did the artwork and the concept of the book. And we'll both draw the same page, and our dad would choose which one goes into the comic book.

NGUYEN: Boy, you are talented, two very young talented young man, today. Kamaal, what's the main message you want to send out to other young children, just like you, who have type one diabetes?

K. WASHINGTON: To take your insulin and eat right, and it'll be OK. And you're not a freak, you just got to take care of yourself and just -- you just can't eat a lot of sugar, so you just going to have to deal with it.

NGUYEN: And, quickly, are you working on another book that may involve your brother, as well?

K. WASHINGTON: Yeah. We have our second book, we just got done drawing it, so it's sent -- got sent out to be printed. It's about Dr. Diabetes returns, he returns, and he cures diabetes, and he doesn't get a lot of recognition for it and "Mighty Boy's" in this comic...

M. WASHINGTON: Yes.

NGUYEN: "Mighty Boy," is his name. And that's you, right Malcolm? You're "Mighty Boy," Malcolm?

M. WASHINGTON: Yes. I'm ...

NGUYEN: Fantastic. And you're looking for a cure in real life, as well. We appreciate your time. And thanks for making this comic book. It's very important, today. Thank you both.

K. WASHINGTON: You're welcome. NGUYEN: And we'll be right back with more CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Hey, good morning, San Francisco, where everything is coming up orchids. Today, the San Francisco Orchid Society holds the 53rd Pacific Orchid Exposition. Thousands of varieties of orchids will be showcased at the...

(CROSSTALK)

NGUYEN: Lots the orchids there today. OK, well you know what? Time now to check in with Dana Bash in Washington for a peek of what's coming up "On the Story."

Good morning.

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR, "ON THE STORY": Good morning, Betty. And we are "On the Story" from here in Washington to New York to Belgium and Iraq. Susan Malveaux is already in Brussels to cover President Bush's arrival, later today, and his meeting with European allies.

Jane Arraf is in northern Iraq as U.S. forces make a pitch to insurgents to give themselves up. And Liz Neisloss has the latest on a sexual harassment charge against a senior official at the United Nations. Kathleen Hays is "ON THE STORY" of why a growing economy means growing fear of inflation. That's all coming up, that's "ON THE STORY" -- Betty and Tony.

HARRIS: Thank you.

NGUYEN: Yes, thank you.

HARRIS. Well, we've been talking about Social Security all morning long and the president's proposed changes. Let's get a fact check on the changes right now. Here's one question: Are the personal retirement accounts President Bush is proposing guaranteed? In his State of the Union speech, Mr. Bush claimed, "Your money will grow, over time, at a greater rate than anything the current system can deliver, and your account will provide money for retirement over and above the check you will receive from Social Security."

According to our CNN fact check, the president and vice president incorrectly suggests that personal retirement accounts are guaranteed to provide greater returns than the current system. There is no guarantee that a worker will always receive a higher return on his or her investment with a personal retirement account under the current system.

NGUYEN: Which brings us to our e-mail question of the day.

HARRIS: That's right. We've been asking you, what do you think about the system? Should it be fixed? Should it be overhauled? Let's get to some of your responses. This from George, "Of course it needs to be fixated. Put the politicians on the same plan as we are on, and it will soon get "fixed." It's not the only place the American public is getting the screws put to them. Plain ol' honesty in government would cure most of the problems."

NGUYEN: And this person writes: "Of course something needs to be done. The problem is what? There are three surefire ways to save Social Security: raise taxes, cut benefits or raise the retirement age. Any politician looking for a career change might consider suggesting one of these."

HARRIS: And a final check of weather now with Rob Marciano in the CNN Weather Center. Good morning Rob.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MARCIANO: All right, here's a current look at the -- did Bush say it would guarantee?

NGUYEN: Apparently.

MARCIANO: Did he say we were guaranteed?

HARRIS: It's a quote. It's a quote. It's from the fact check.

MARCIANO: OK, all right. OK. All right, all right, just asking.

HARRIS: No, no, no good question.

NGUYEN: Absolutely.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: Your skepticism has been duly noted and sent over to the fact checkers to double check the facts.

NGUYEN: And you can e-mail us at wam@cnn.com.

HARRIS: Thanks, Rob. Have a great day, man.

MARCIANO: See you.

HARRIS: That's it for us this morning.

NGUYEN: Absolutely. But, we want to thank you for watching and we will see you back here next weekend. "ON THE STORY" is next.

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