Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Sunday Morning

Greece Fires; Devastating Floods Across Midwest; Barack Obama Visits Church in New Orleans

Aired August 26, 2007 - 09:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: We've got two big stories we're keeping an eye on this hour. Wildfires in Greece burning for another day. And this time some famous landmarks could be in danger.
Also, keeping an eye on Barack Obama in New Orleans right now. There you're taking a live picture of the church where he'll be speaking, laying out his plans for Gulf Coast recovery. He's just one of many politicians heading to the Big Easy two years after Hurricane Katrina.

It is, of course, Sunday, August 26th.

Good morning you to all from the CNN Center right here in Atlanta, Georgia.

I'm T.J. Holmes.

ALINA CHO, CNN ANCHOR: We are so glad you're with us this morning. I'm Alina Cho.

Betty is on assignment.

Thanks for starting your day with us.

And we begin with those massive wildfires in Greece, most concentrated in the mountains of the south. Dozens of villages evacuated. Those fires have killed 49 people, but officials warn that number may rise.

Two people have been charged in connection to the fires. A 65- year-old man could reportedly face murder charges.

More than 12 European countries offered to help fight the fires.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHEE CARASSAVA, JOURNALIST: We've had assistance come in from France, Cyprus, Italy, and Greece is expecting more assistance to come in from more than 12 countries, including Serbia, Israel, Spain and Germany.

Now, the death toll remains high at 49. Officials, however, fear it may climb even further as firefighters have not been able to enter the flame-hit regions and assess the total extent of destruction.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: That from freelance journalist Anthee Carassava in Greece.

And here's what it looks like from space. Large plumes of smoke rising up from those massive fires -- T.J.

HOLMES: Well, turning back here to the U.S., severe weather hitting Ohio again. Strong winds near Columbus causing major damage to homes. And some residents say they saw funnel clouds in the area. But the National Weather Service says they have no actual reports of any twisters touching down.

CHO: There are no more storms expected right now in the flooded areas of the Midwest. That is good news. But flood warnings are still in effect for some areas.

CNN's Jim Acosta has more from Des Plaines, Illinois.

Hey, Jim. Good morning.

What is it like where you are?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Things are moving in the right direction here in Des Plaines, Illinois. We're about 30 minutes west of Chicago, right on the Des Plaines River. And this river was over this wall here and into these back yards just a couple of days ago, but luckily, this river hit its crest at about 11:30 p.m. Friday night at about 8.6 feet. And that was welcomed news for residence here, because they were expecting this flood to go much higher.

Why did that not happen? Well, mainly because rain that was in the forecast over the weekend did not materialize. So this is as bad as it got for many residence here.

Their back yards were flooded. You can see this playground set behind this house almost totally flooded.

All of this water was into the front yards of these homes just a couple of days ago. It was so ad, one of the neighbors in this community posted a "No Wake Zone" sign in front of his house to keep the cars from driving through too quickly and splashing water everywhere. Now all of that water is gone. And just no that "No Wake Zone "sign remains.

So things are moving in the right direction here because of the rain that did not materialize. Things are starting to dry out. People are starting to clean up. And if things stay the way they are now, things should get back to normal over the next couple of days.

Jim Acosta, CNN, in Des Plaines, Illinois.

CHO: That is one bright spot.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HOLMES: Returning now to a live picture at the First Emmanuel Baptist church in New Orleans, where you're seeing now Senator Barack Obama, presidential candidate and senator from Illinois, who is going to be laying out his plan for Gulf Coast recovery at this church. This city will get a lot of attention this week by several presidential candidates, as well as the president, coming up on the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Let's take a listen to what Obama is saying this morning.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: ... that people who visit New Orleans look a little closer, because to remember what happened here and to understand what has to be rebuilt, we can't just look at the city's storm-battered surface. We've got to look at the foundation that we're rebuilding upon.

You know, in getting ready to talk to you today, I thought about what Jesus said at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. He said, "Whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on a rock." And the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it did not fall for it was founded on the rock.

(APPLAUSE)

Here at First Emmanuel, you know what it means to have a foundation built on the rock. It's not about just building a structure to withstand a storm. It's what happened in this building during Katrina.

Your doors were open to people who needed shelter. You offered a place of refuge. You acted on that simple principle, I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper.

One tragedy of Katrina was that your government did not live up to that principle. When the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast extended their hand for help, that help wasn't there. When people looked up from the rooftops for too long they saw an empty sky.

When the winds blew and the floods came, we learned that for all our wealth and power, something wasn't right in America. Our foundation wasn't built on the rock.

Now we can talk about what happened two years ago, and we should. And we can talk about the levees that couldn't hold, about FEMA, which seemed to be paralyzed by incompetence, about the leadership that did not stir to action, taking days and days before they even showed up. But we know that a deeper tragedy took place before the storm and continues to this day. The deeper tragedy is in America, that for far too long has not tended to its own foundation.

CHO: Illinois Senator Barack Obama speaking at a Baptist church in New Orleans this morning, unveiling his plan for the recovery effort in New Orleans.

Some interesting components of that plan include limiting the FEMA director's tenure to six years, much like they do in the FBI. And also, interestingly enough, T.J., giving medical students loans in exchange for a promise that they will practice in New Orleans. That's a big problem, not enough doctors in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Even two years later.

HOLMES: And laying this out at a Baptist church, First Emmanuel, there in New Orleans. The city is going to be getting a lot of attention this week from presidential candidates and the president on the two-year anniversary. And the senator here using maybe a different intonation than he would use on the Senate floor, if you will, sounding more like a preacher than a senator this morning as he delivers his speech and almost delivers a sermon, if you will, there in the church.

But we're keeping an eye on what he's saying there. If anything pops out at us, we will certainly bring that you to.

CHO: Let's turn now to other presidential candidates.

Former senator John Edwards campaigning in New Hampshire today. He's got a town hall meeting set for about two hours from now. Then another one later today, along with a house party and rally.

Edwards is due in New Orleans tomorrow. Senator Hillary Clinton will be there, too. Clinton, Edwards and Republican presidential candidate Duncan Hunter are scheduled for a forum on rebuilding the Gulf Coast.

And guess what? CNN's Soledad O'Brien will be moderating from New Orleans.

HOLMES: And the president is continuing his vacations -- or working vacation, if you will, at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. The president's due to visit New Orleans later this week, as we mentioned. August 29th, of course, marks the second anniversary of when Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast.

CHO: Well, one Republican who wants to take over President Bush's job is accusing Democrats of being the party of big government. We've heard that argument before.

GOP presidential hopeful Rudolph Giuliani campaigned in New Hampshire yesterday. The former New York City mayor pledged to lower taxes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: By and large, with such a heavily-taxed economy, that if we make the choice to put money back, you're going to use it more intelligently than the government does.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Giuliani said he'd like to make President Bush's tax cuts permanent -- T.J. HOLMES: Well, the Democratic National Committee is warning Florida Democrats against leapfrogging ahead of other states to hold the nation's first in primary. In stern action, the DNC decided Florida would forfeit its votes in selecting the next presidential nominee unless the state's primary is delayed for at least a week. The Florida representative was the only DNC member to vote against such a penalty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLAN KATZ, DNC: I'm hopeful that what's going to happen is that a majority of those of us who are DNC members and other members of the central committee of the Democratic Party of Florida are willing to sort of say, OK, we took our best shot, we couldn't get what we wanted. But now we're going -- but we're Democrats and we're part of a national party, and the national party has rules, and therefore, they're saying they're going to work us with, let's try to get something done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: The DNC says the Florida party has 30 days to submit an alternative to its planned January 29th primary or lose its delegates to the nomination committee next summer in Denver.

Well, later this hour, we're going to be talking to Ken Rudin, talking all things politics. He's the political editor for National Public Radio. You'll want to stick around for him.

CHO: Iraq's prime minister has some harsh words for critics, mainly aimed at high-ranking Democrats who have indicated that replacing al-Maliki may be necessary for Iraq's future. At a news conference this morning, he said, "There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages. For example, Hillary Clinton and Michigan's Carl Levin. They should come to their senses," he says.

He also took some shots at the U.S. military, saying the military made some big mistakes by causing civilian casualties during anti- terror raids in some Baghdad neighborhoods.

Iraq's war strategy, as you might expect, will be a major topic coming up on "LATE EDITION WITH WOLF BLITZER". He's going to be interviewing the former Iraqi prime minister, Ayad Allawi. You can watch it here on CNN at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time.

HOLMES: And the heartbreak just won't stop for the families of six trapped miners in Utah. More bad news here.

A lawyer for some of the families says a sixth hole that was drilled in the mine revealed a chamber filled with rubble. There was no space there for the men to survive. Mine officials have not ruled out drilling a seventh hole; however, the mine operator said earlier that this sixth hole would be the last.

We do expect a news conference coming up at some time today. As you know, there's been no sign of the miners since August 6th, when that mine collapsed.

CHO: Stay with us on this Sunday morning. A lot ahead, including this -- a wedding celebration gone horribly wrong.

HOLMES: Yes. A truck slams into a crowd at a party. Several people are dead. Nearly two dozen injured.

That story a bit later this hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Some severe weather in China to tell you about here.

A report from a Chinese news agency today says 13 people have died in torrential rains and flooding in the past five days. A province in southwestern China has been inundated by more than 10 inches of rain. That triggered mudslides, landslides that toppled thousands of houses. Many bridges and roads were also swept away.

CHO: And sifting through the rubble in India today following two deadly explosions. At least 44 people were killed, scores more wounded in Saturday's attacks. Authorities also found explosives at 16 other locations in and around the city of Hyderabad. Police sources say those devices were sent to a forensics lab today for examination.

A single winning lottery ticket, a golden ticket, if you will, sold in Richmond, Indiana. One person will cash in that ticket to claim $314 million. That's the Powerball lottery jackpot.

Here are the numbers in case you missed them: 2, 8, 23, 29 and 35. The Powerball number, 19.

Earlier, we talked to one lottery official who said it usually takes the winner a couple of days to get their affairs in order before claiming the prize. But don't wait too long. There is a deadline.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW REED, HOOSIER LOTTERY: By our rules here in the state of Indiana, a player has 180 days from the drawing, or they have roughly six months to come in and claim their prize.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Yes. I would need about two.

But don't worry, folks. If you're not holding on to that ticket, we've got another shot at this.

There is another jackpot going right now. It's the Mega Millions jackpot. It is estimated at about $250 million. That drawing is coming up on Tuesday.

And, yes, I will be holding a ticket.

CHO: There is still hope for us.

HOLMES: There is still hope.

But you wait 180 days to turn in that ticket, something is wrong with you. You don't deserve to have the $314 million.

CHO: Right. Well, some would argue you should be watching those numbers pretty closely after the drawing, right?

Meanwhile, in the weather department, some heat relief in some areas across the country. But not for others.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHO: Stay with us this Sunday morning.

Coming up, inspired by a CNN Hero. How the story of a doctor making a difference inspired so many of you to lend a helping hand.

HOLMES: Also, recovering the victim. What we're learning this morning about that terrible balloon accident that was caught on tape. It happened in Canada.

We've got details coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Tens of thousands of you have come to the aid of a doctor in southern Arizona who is giving medical care for free to street kits who have no one else to turn to. His name is Dr. Randy Christensen, a CNN Hero, and because of you he's been able to expand his work.

He is now traveling the streets of Tempe in Phoenix, full time in two health mobiles instead of one.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When I was 10 years old I decided I'm going to run away from home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've been on the streets from 12 until 20.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, its scary living on the streets. There are so many drugs and there's violence.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I sleep in an abandoned house.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I live in a shack.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was taken away from my parents when I was like 10 years old.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My dad dropped me off at a dumpster. He told me don't even think about going back home. DR. RANDY CHRISTENSEN, CNN HERO: There are as many as 5,000 to 10,000 kids on the streets of Arizona. We turn our heads, we don't look at them in their eyes. Many of the kids are truly forgotten.

I'm Dr. Randy Christensen. I'm a medical director for the Cruise and Health Mobile. We take care of kids on the streets through a medical mobile van.

Everything that would be in a regular doctor's office is on the van. All of the kids that are seen by us are seen free of charge.

I've never really been about the money. I went to medical school thinking that I was going to be a surgeon. But everything that made me stop and think had to do with children and adolescents. I chose to come out on the streets.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dr. Christensen makes it to where people actually want to come back and actually want to get help.

CHRISTENSEN: We pull up in the van and within five to ten minutes there is 20 or 30 kids coming out of every different alley or different street. You get out there and you see some of these kids and you talk to them and you give them a little bit of dignity and respect. And all of a sudden they open up, it's like a light bulb goes on and they want to talk and they want to tell you their story.

Let me listen to you, I think you might have pneumonia. Take a deep breath.

They still have that gleam of hope in their eyes. It's that hope that gives you hope. And at the very end they give you a big hug and they say "thank you," and that means the most to me.

(END OF VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: And if you'd like to make a contribution to the organizations that support Dr. Randy Christensen, you'll find links to their Web sites on our Web site. Go to CNN/heroes.

You can also nominate a hero of your own on our Web site. Selected winners will be honored during a live global broadcast on December the 6th, hosted by our very own Anderson Cooper.

CHO: All right, T.J. Thanks.

Stay with us.

Coming up, drowning in water. Right after the break, where the water's rising this morning as this storm system holds its grip on the upper Midwest.

Plus, veronica.

Hey, Veronica. Good morning.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hey there. Good morning to you, Alina.

Good morning to you out there.

Dare to dream. That's all I have to say. What would you do with a $314 million Powerball jackpot?

Send us your e-mail to weekends@cnn.com. And I'm going to be reading some of those next from the .comDESK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Hello again, and welcome back to you all.

I'm T.J. Holmes.

CHO: Thanks for being with us on this Sunday. I'm Alina Cho.

Betty is on assignment.

It's August 26th, 9:00 a.m. in the East, 6:00 a.m. in the West.

In Greece this morning, a state of emergency. Take a look at the flames and smoke spreading across much of the country. Ancient historic sites now in the fire's path.

HOLMES: Also, Michael Vick, a day away now from his big day in court. And CNN is on this story.

CHO: And how about this for a water cooler story? Someone is waking up this morning a multi, multimillionaire. Powerball dreams coming true for someone with a lucky ticket. That, by the way, was bought in Indiana.

But first, tragedy overshadows a wedding in Canada today following an accident that left six people dead and at least 17 others injured. A pickup truck plowed into guests taking part in a traditional Indian wedding parade.

Police say it's too early to determine whether the 70-year-old driver will face charges. But they've ruled out drugs or alcohol. The wedding is expected to go on as planned, today, but the reception has been canceled.

HOLMES: An update this morning on that horrific balloon accident in Canada. Authorities have recovered the bodies of a woman and her daughter killed in that fiery accident. We get the latest now from CTV reporter Dave LaFave.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there anyone in there?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know, but it's coming this way.

DAVE LAFAVE, CTV REPORTER (voice over): Horrified cries and disbelief as people watched a hot air balloon floating high above engulfed in flames. The balloon caught fire around 7:30 Friday night, as it was preparing to lift off with a dozen passengers and a pilot.

TERRY HUNDAL, WITNESS: It was something you see in the movies, you know? It was horrifying. Just looking at people screaming and jumping out of there. You know, some of them, you know, I think, had fire on them, their clothes or something like that. It was just awful.

LAFAVE: The scene on the ground was pure chaos. The balloon's gondola landed in an RV park sparking several explosions and lighting fires. Most of the passengers managed to escape before the balloon drifted high in the sky, though two people remain trapped. Police have now confirmed those two people are dead.

FRANK HERSEY, WITNESS: The people were screaming and trying to get out. And, of course, four or five people jumped out and the basket got a lot lighter, it started lifting off and another one or two jumped out and then it was quite high, but roughly 40 feet out and another fellow jumped out at that level.

SGT ROGER MORROW, SURREY, BRITISH COLUMBIA POLICE: There were family members present on the ground watching their loved ones go up in, probably, an historic balloon ride and then tragedy has struck.

LAFAVE: All of the passengers were taken to hospital either by ground or air. At least two of them suffered burns while another two were injured in the fall.

(on camera): The balloon is the largest in western Canada. To put it in perspective, it is even bigger than the Goodyear blimp. The reason it didn't catch fire is because it is made of a flame retardant nylon material.

(voice over): John Reynolds was returning home from a cruise when he heard that his trailer had been consumed by flames.

JOHN REYNOLDS, TRAILER OWNER: But I never realized the extent of it. It's just -- it's not even worth -- you can't repair it. It's just a total -- gone.

LAFAVE: Three trailers were destroyed when the gondola landed in the park. The transportation safety board is now investigating how this sunset tour turned deadly.

Dave LaFave, CTV News, Surrey, British Columbia.

CHO: Other news, today. Waking up this morning without power, that's the deal for hundreds of thousands of people in the upper Midwest. In Ohio, new storms tore through areas around Columbus downing trees and power lines. We get more now from Paul Stelzer from affiliate WCMH.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL STELZER, WCMH REPORTER (voice over): The sirens roared as the storms rolled through central Ohio.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The whole neighborhood went white like in a winter whiteout.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The rain was going sideways and then it switched and went back the other way and we just heard snapping and breaking.

STELZER: The sounds of trees snapping apart. A falling tree crossed the front of this house on Glasgow Place in northwest Columbus. A neighbor says the owners of the home were out of town when the storm hit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's too bad for them. They just had an addition put on, new gutters.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The neighborhood looks like a bomb hit. I mean, there are trees down all over, through the houses.

STELZER: Less than a mile from the damaged homes, Mother Nature ripped a pine tree in two, destroyed a nearby fence and shredded this large tree scattering branches into this shed and backyard.

CHRISTINE SMITH, NORTHWEST COLUMBUS RESIDENT: It destroyed the whole thing. And it was amazing that a big tree like that could come down so quickly.

STELZER: on Heathmore Street, the powerful winds tore this metal chimney grate from the top of a nearby house.

TOM BILLMAN, NORTHWEST COLUMBUS RESIDENT: The wind must have been pretty fierce. It was a pretty powerful storm that came through, actually. Didn't realize the strength of it until we came outside. We were glad we were in the basement.

STELZER: Once the storm passed, neighbors gathered in the streets to clean up and help each other.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have to help your neighbors. Half of them are out of town on vacation camping and so forth. And you know, we're doing the best we can to help them out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Well, some of the floodwaters now starting to go down a bit there across parts of the Midwest. And that's certainly a welcomed sight for thousands of people forced from their home, but not all good. There are still some flood warnings in effect for some areas in northern Illinois, Iowa, and Indiana.

CHO: Watching all the weather for us, Bonnie Schneider in the CNN Weather Center.

So, some relief today, we hope -- Bonnie.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely, Alina. Look at this. Things are looking a lot better for Ohio. We have dry conditions right now. But some of that rain is sliding off to the east. In advance of a cold front will bring relief to the heat in the east. But spotty showers across Pennsylvania all the way down through western North Carolina.

We still have some flood watches and warnings for certain rivers in Illinois, Indiana, and back out towards Iowa. One of the rivers that we've been watching very closely is the Des Plaines River in Des Plaines, Illinois. And you can see that now we're just at the moderate flood stage, but as you can see, the forecast will bring it back down to flood stage and then below that in the days to come. It's not raining there, but it takes a while for the waters to recede -- T.J., Alina.

CHO: All right. Bonnie, thank you. We'll check back with you later.

$314 million Powerball jackpot. What would you do with all that money? Veronica is here with a look. You got lots of e-mails.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN.COM DESK: Tons of e-mails. You know, there is only one winner, but lots of people pretending it could have been them this morning. Dave Payakkal says that he would go for a space tour, open a charity foundation for the poor and then "enjoy the rest of my life in the Bahamas. "

HOLMES: But the tour first.

CRUZ: Right, yeah, sounds good.

Shane Kerry writes: "Being a disabled soldier, I would definitely invest my money into developing and improving my fellow soldiers with improved life-saving gear."

And Bruce in Vero Beach says he would give nearly all of it to his family because "they have been there for me through many difficulties...so, to my family I owe so much, not just in money, but in spirit and in gratitude."

HOLMES: Wow.

CRUZ: That sounds great. I defiantly can agree with that one.

HOLMES: I don't like my family that much.

CRUZ: T.J., hey!

HOLMES: OK.

CRUZ: Look at this one, Frank Kendrix says, "I would buy each of you ladies," Alina Bonnie, "a dozen roses and then I would hire a good lawyer because my wife would be calling hers." And that it Frank $314 million and you're going to buy us a dozen roses?

HOLMES: That's a lot of roses.

CRUZ: You know, and Sheila, who watches HEADLINE NEWS, says that she would -- she said that she saw Bob van Dillen talk about having the $314 million; he would do the weather forecast naked and then pay the fines because he could pay the fines. "And I would pay Bob the $314 million to keep his clothes on if he won." Wouldn't you?

CHO: I'd pay him the $314 to take them off.

CRUZ: You would?

CHO: Well, you know.

CRUZ: Well, keep dreaming big, you know that you can still play, because what's coming up next? Not the Powerball, it's the mega millions. That's like $250 million.

CHO: $250 million. Veronica, thanks.

HOLMES: Thank you for some of that, Veronica.

Well, we're going to be talking about church now, of all things. Barack Obama, actually in church, right after this. The candidate in New Orleans this morning as the city nears a milestone.

CHO: And in a few moments, the Katrina hospital desk. Questions persist. Who's to blame? What New Orleans officials know and what they're not telling. CNN pushes for answers. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CRUZ: Welcome back. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in New Orleans right now, mixing religion with a little politics. Just moments ago Obama wrapped up a speech to the congregation of the first Emanuel Baptist Church in New Orleans. He was talking about Gulf Coast recovery efforts a few days before the second anniversary of Katrina.

HOLMES: Of course, many stars are opening their doors for the politicians of their choice. Ken Rudin, a star in his own right, joins us now from Washington. He's a political editor for "National Public Radio,"

Sir, good to see you. We know that some of these celebrities throwing these big parties can bring in some big money to these candidates, but can they bring in votes?

KEN RUDIN, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO: Well, of course it depends on who's doing the promoting, you know if, you're a farmer in Iowa or somebody in New Hampshire, you might not be impressed by a big name endorsement, but nationally, if -- I mean just, for example, let's just say Oprah Winfrey decided to endorse Barack Obama and have a big party for him, it could make a big difference.

HOLMES: Now, she is exactly doing that. Also Magic Johnson throwing a party for Hillary Clinton.

RUDIN: Right.

HOLMES: So these things are all around. Now to have a celebrity endorsement is one thing. To have Oprah's endorsement is something totally different and something totally unique to this situation because her audience is exactly the audience that Barack and Hillary are fighting for.

RUDIN: That's exactly true. I mean, survey after survey shows that Oprah Winfrey gets tremendous support among women and African- Americans and again not only does Barack Obama need those groups to compete for the Democratic nomination, but polls, even though we're talking about five months out, polls show that Hillary Clinton is doing very well with the women and blacks.

Plus the fact that when Oprah Winfrey says something, people respond. She has this book club, millions of people read books because she said so. She talks about buying bras in Nordstrom's. I mean, I buy my bras at Nordstrom's because Oprah Winfrey says so. So, she's very influential in that regard.

HOLMES: Ken, I was just told in my ear, we go two minutes left for this interview. But I swear I should cut you off right now for that comment.

(LAUGHTER)

Well tell me, do Democrats -- we always talk about Democrats and in Hollywood and the celebrities. But, do they really own the market when it comes to celebrities or Republicans still got a good chunk of it as well?

RUDIN: Well, the Republicans usually like to talk about the liberal elite, the out of touch liberal elite that Hollywood represents. But you also have something like Fred Thompson. I mean, Fred Thompson has not said a word of meaning in the past three months. But everybody remembers him and knows him from "Law & Order" on TV and that entertainment factor factors into the fact that he's doing so well in the polls.

HOLMES: Now, do the celebrities themselves get anything out of these endorsements or is this pretty much all for the candidates?

RUDIN: No, I think it's for the candidates, because they will be popular no matter what ,through thick and thin, before the campaign, after the campaign is over, for the candidates' it's 15 minutes of fame that they need. You have something like Oprah Winfrey, Magic Johnson, that's where it really comes in for the candidates.

HOLMES: OK, and this could be part of the media's fault. But it seems like there's so much emphasis on the Democrats, maybe. And maybe it's because the big names, the Hillary Clinton and the Barack Obama and kind of the star status they're given. But do you see that some of the - that the Republicans are not getting the same attention, the same number of sound bites and the same number of cameras even following them around during this campaign season?

RUDIN: Well, but that's been true for many years. I mean, of course Ronald Reagan did have Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, people like that. But for the most part, you do have a very unpopular war. You do have the Hollywood folks opposed to this war and obviously that would translate into Democratic support for Democratic candidates.

HOLMES: All right. Ken Rudin, we know where you get your stuff...

RUDIN: Nordstrom's.

HOLMES: Nordstrom's', yes, because Oprah said so.

RUDIN: That's right.

HOLMES: She certainly has an impact, she's even telling you where you need to be buying your stuff. Ken, always good to see you, sir. Of course, the editor for "National Public Radio." You have a good one. I know we'll see you again soon.

RUDIN: Take care.

CHO: There's a waiting list for that Oprah event. But people are saying they're not going to get to that waiting list, because you're not going to RSVP no to Oprah.

HOLMES: Oh yeah. The Magic event, these tickets are 4,600 bucks, and so on and so forth to get into these things, so...

CHO: "Bash for cash" is what they're calling them.

HOLMES: All right. Well folks, I didn't have a bash for my birthday. That was a week ago today. I actually went to Costa Rica. A lot of you know this. It's not what you're thinking when you hear some of my friends say: T.J. Went to Costa Rica. I was not partying down there, OK? I did some volunteer work. We're going to be sharing some of those pictures and that experience coming up here.

CHO: Good for you.

Also coming up, what happened inside this New Orleans hospital while Katrina raged outside? Nine people died and some medical experts say it was homicide. A CNN investigative report right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Welcome back, time now to check in with Howie Kurtz in Washington to see what's ahead on CNN's RELIABLE SOURCES.

Hey Howie, good morning.

HOWARD KURTZ, RELIABLE SOURCES: Thanks Alina. Coming up, CBS rounds out 40 kids for an unsupervised reality show in the New Mexico desert and some get hurt. Did the network act recklessly for ratings?

The media play off Senator John Warner's call for a partial withdraw from Iraq. Are journalists rooting for a pullout?

Plus, Barack Obama, the latest presidential candidate to be quizzed by Jon Stewart. Is the "Daily Show" now as important as "Meet the Press?" That and more ahead on RELIABLE SOURCES.

CHO: Oh, Howie, you know some would argue that Jon Stewart is just as important. All right, we'll look forward to it, we'll be watching. Thanks -- T.j.

HOLMES: Well, two years ago this week Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans with devastating fury. For nine patients inside one of the most well respected hospitals, this would be their last week alive. It was one of the stories of Katrina that was hard to believe, allegation that's medical professionals killed patients instead of evacuating them. Those accused deny it including Anna Poe. Now CNN has learned the search for the truth may have ended inside a New Orleans grand jury. Here's investigative correspondent Drew Griffin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Just before Katrina struck new Orleans, Carrie Everett got a call from her wheelchair-bound husband, Emmitt, the 61-year-old, 380 pound man was recovering from an infection, but upbeat because he'd just had been moved to the biggest hospital in the city, Memorial Medical Center.

(on camera): How did he sound?

CARRIE EVERETT, VICTIM'S WIFE: To me, his old self. He wasn't complaining of hurting, not nothing. He said, "I'm in Memorial. I'm on the seventh floor." He gave me the room number, the telephone number. He said, "Everything's fine. I love you. Talk you to later."

GRIFFIN (voice over): But within hours, after family members were forced to leave Memorial Hospital in a chaotic final evacuation, Emmitt Everett and eight other patients would all be dead. An expert reports obtained by CNN through a public records request say all of them were deliberately killed.

DR ART CAPLAN, MEDICAL EXPERT: The evidence in this case for going forward to a trial is absolutely overwhelming.

GRIFFIN: Dr. Art Caplan, one of this country's leading experts on medical ethics, was one of five medical experts hired by the state to review toxicology and autopsy reports. Like the other experts, he believes all nine patients are homicide victims.

(on camera): How were they killed and why did all of them die together? For two years CNN has been trying to get the answer to that lingering mystery. Now, records have been released showing five renowned experts say there is no mystery. Their answers right here in these scientific reports, all the patients were homicide victims.

(voice over): And like the other experts, Caplan does not believe a grand jury ever saw his reports and certainly never got to hear him or his colleagues talk about their conclusions.

CAPLAN: I was never called to the grand jury. As far as I know, the grand jury never saw my report.

GRIFFIN: And that's parentally fine with New Orleans district attorney Eddie Jordan, who says simply the case is closed and no one will be charged in these homicides. CNN wanted to ask District Attorney Jordan why, but he refused our request to be interviewed. Instead he sent this statement:

"It's inappropriate to disclose what the grand jury did or did not consider," he says, "The Orleans Parish grand jury concluded that there was insufficient evidence to indicate Dr. Poe (sic) on any violations of criminal lay."

CNN first broke the story of suspicious deaths at memorial two years ago when this doctor said doctors and nurses openly discussed euthanizing patients because they would be difficult to evacuate. A year later, Attorney General Charles Foti announced he was charging Dr. Anna Poe and two nurses, Lori Budo and Cheri Landry, with second- degree murder in the deaths of four patients. Foti said all four died from drug overdoses of the painkiller, morphine, and the sedative, Versed.

CHARLES FOTI, LOUISIANA ATTY GENERAL: Either one of them can kill you, but when you use both of them together, it becomes a lethal cocktail. That guarantees they're going to die.

GRIFFIN: But, by Louisiana law, the case had to be turned over to New Orleans District Attorney Eddie Jordan along with all the evidence that the five experts had that Attorney General Foti thought was irrefutable.

A grand jury was convened and then -- and then nothing. The charges against the nurses were dropped after they were granted immunity in exchange for their testimony. The grand jury then, last month, decided not to indict Dr. Poe or anyone else. The case, according to District Attorney Eddie Jordan, is closed. But, should it be? When we come back, find out what five leading forensic experts say about the evidence they reviewed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We continue now with our report on the deaths of nine patients inside a New Orleans hospital during hurricane Katrina. Here again, CNN's investigative correspondent Drew Griffin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice over): New Orleans' district attorney, Eddie Jordan said a grand jury decided not to indict anyone in the deaths of the memorial hospital patients, but others think he is closing the books before justice has been served. Look at the near identical findings of five medical experts hired in the case.

Dr. Michael Baden, forensic pathologist, concludes: "the immediate cause of eight of the deaths was acute morphine and Versed poisoning and of the one death was acute morphine poisoning: and that the madder of death for each is homicide."

Dr. James Young, former chief coroner of Canada's Providence of Ontario: "the Manner of death in all nine of these cases is homicide." Forensic pathologist, Dr. Cyril Wecht, "the cause of death...acute combined drug toxicity, specifically, morphine and Versed...the manner of death would be classified as homicide."

And Dr. Frank Brescia, a specialist in end of life care, concluded that manner of death, "...obligates the legal process to consider them as homicides."

Remember, not one of the experts appeared before the grand jury investigating this case. Dr. Brescia says Emmitt Everett's case is the most troubling.

DR FRANK BRESCIA, ONCOLOGIST: He was -- seemed to be fine. He, in fact, in the notes he's stable, he's eating, he's comfortable, he's not febrile, and he's dead.

GRIFFIN: The Louisiana attorney general who made the initial arrests worries the homicides will remain unsolved. Kris Wartelle is his spokeswoman.

KRIS WARTELLE, LOUISIANA ATTY GENERAL'S OFFICE: Nine people died, according to one of the experts, in a three-hour period. One of the experts called that "beyond coincidence." People -- the loved ones here want to know what happened to their family members.

GRIFFIN: Attorneys for the two nurses say the grand jury's actions speak for itself and the medical experts' opinions are I will relevant.

In a lengthy statement written to CNN, Dr. Poe's lawyer denies that the combination of morphine and Versed is a lethal cocktail. In addition, Rick Simmons say, Poe's own experts said it was well known among scientists that blood levels of morphine are greatly increased in patients who have been dead for many days.

However, in an interview with "Newsweek," Dr. Poe said she did give the patients drugs and "If in doing so it hastened their deaths", she told "Newsweek," "then that's what happened. But this was not, 'I'm going to go to the seventh floor and murder some people.' We're here to help patients."

Poe's attorney is now in court along with the hospital's former owner, Ternate Healthcare, and a number of other attorneys trying to have all the records sealed so they never become public. If that happens, the victims' families may never know the truth. CNN is in court now fighting to get all the records released.

Drew griffin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: And we will keep you posted on that story. Meanwhile, the one-week anniversary of T.J. Holmes' 30th birthday. You did something very special.

HOLMES: I've been 30 for a week. And I look different, feel different, the whole thing, right?

CHO: You still look good.

HOLMES: Oh, thank you, Alina. I went to San Vicente, a hillside town in Costa Rica, on a humanitarian, a volunteer mission. It was put together by a group called Cross Cultural Solution, who pretty much places volunteers all around the world. And that's where I was working. That mural was not there before I got there. A group of seven volunteers did this mural on this school, again, a town of 290 people. There are the schoolchildren which absolutely were the highlight of the trip. But, this is a town -- small town that doesn't have much, nothing by Western standards as we were saying earlier.

CHO: Economically challenged. But, you said these were some of the happiest people you had ever met.

HOLMES: No question about it. They have everything they need. And that's all they know. And it's all they have and they are happy. But, there's another big picture of the town. But, I did some work there. And just a cultural exchange and they got exposed to us, we had exposure to them. But a beautiful, beautiful time, good trip. Way to start off my 30th year on a positive note.

CHO: Good for you and hopefully they'll get some tourism dollars now as a result.

HOLMES: A lot of it's coming in. So, that was the point of this. So, thanks guys to allowing me there, but it was a great time. And good to back here, now.

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