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CNN Saturday Morning News
Presidential Candidates Campaign on Internet; Cheney Temporarily in Charge of the Country; Final "Harry Potter" Book Released; Toxic FEMA Trailers
Aired July 21, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN center, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It's July 21st. Good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Susan Roesgen today filling in for Betty Nguyen. Here's what's in the line up this morning.
Take a look at this. Two officers pull out a taser to subdue this guy in a police station. You got to see what happened before this went down.
HOLMES: Also more bad news about those FEMA trailers sent to help hurricane victims. What's inside the trailers has some people calling their doctors this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been waiting so long, I'm really excited.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: It has been seven hours now since "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" went on sale in the U.S. and who knows how many people have already finished it or least skipped ahead to the last chapter. We'll be talking about that today.
But we'll start with Vice President Dick Cheney, who is now in charge. President Bush will transfer power to the vice president while he undergoes a colonoscopy at Camp David. The president will be under anesthesia. That's why the VP takes over. It's the same thing that happened in 2002 when President Bush had his last colonoscopy. Cheney assumed presidential responsibility then as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Because the president will be under the effects of anesthesia, he once again has elected to implement section 3 of the 25th amendment to the United States constitution. Once enacted, the vice president will serve as acting president until such time as the president notifies the appropriate authorities that he is prepared to resume the authority of the president.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROESGEN: And as you know, a colonoscopy is an important test. Doctors actually found two polyps during the examination of the president back in 1998 and 1999 but the president got a clean bill of health after that exam five years ago.
Another possible standoff between the White House and Congress again over those fired prosecutors. The White House now says that Congress cannot seek indictments for contempt of Congress. The president has issued executive privilege for current and former White House employees who might have been involved in those firings.
From executive privilege to executive order, the president has signed an order spelling out the rules of interrogation. It forbids the CIA from using cruel or inhuman treatment on detainees and that includes detainees suspected of terrorism. The order is an attempt to clarify the rules that are set out by the Geneva convention.
HOLMES: We're going to turn now to the early presidential race, the CNN/YouTube debate in South Carolina just two days way from the Democratic hopefuls. And let's see how the primary voters down in South Carolina, which way they're leaning. Hillary Clinton leads the latest CNN Opinion Research Corporation poll with 39 percent support and that compares to Barack Obama's 25 percent. John Edwards pulling up third with 15 percent and Al Gore, says he has no plan to run but 10 percent of voters are not listening in him there in South Carolina. They obviously want him to change his mind. None of the other contenders topped 2 percent.
Move now past the numbers into the campaigns themselves and not necessarily the campaigns playing out in small halls in Iowa or New Hampshire but the one playing out on the worldwide web. Candidates embracing a new way to reach potential voters as well as donors. CNN chief national correspondent John King takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He made his mark as a grassroots organizer the old-fashioned way, clipboards and shoe leather. Note the typewriter in this photo from a Chicago voter registration drive back in 1992. Fast forward to campaign 2008. No typewriters here. The architects of barackobama.com working constantly to spread the word. On YouTube, MySpace, Flickr, not to mention the official campaign Web site where a click or two finds the next event in a town near you or perhaps just a new ring tone. Four year ago Howard Dean put Internet fund-raising on the map but in the end failed to turn all his online money and buzz into enough votes. One reason the Dean campaign veteran who now runs the Obama web operation puts so much emphasis on helping supporters organize.
JOE ROSPARS, OBAMA DIRECTOR OF NEW MEDIA: Folks are forming their own grassroots volunteer groups. There's over 5,000 of them across the country. Each one of these tools is a piece of the campaign that an individual supporter can own and use to evangelize their friends.
KING: Every campaign has an Internet presence these days. John Edwards puts a premium on social networking sites, from Facebook to MySpace to Bebo. Hillary Clinton likewise gets high marks from web watchers for her creative site and attention grabbing video. One key target of all the campaigns is younger voters. Among all Americans, 15 percent said they relied most on the Internet for political news in the 2006 cycle, double the number from 2002. Among those under the age of 36 who have broadband connections, 35 percent said the Internet was their main source of political news.
JOHN WALSH, FMR. DEVAL PATRICK CAMPAIGN MGR.: You're not going to meet them at the chicken dinner or the political meeting, but they're instinctively going to the web for their information, and so you catch them there.
KING: John Walsh helped Deval Patrick go from underdog to governor of Massachusetts in 2006, in part through Internet organizing, he jokes took some time to learn and to trust.
WALSH: The first time I heard blog was in this campaign. I describe my technical expertise this way. I don't know how they put the little people in my TV set but I know how to use the clicker.
CHRIS HUGHES, FACEBOOK: If I click on Nevada for instance to see who my friends are who are supporting the campaign there.
KING: Chris Hughes is among the founders of Facebook and now among the 20-somethings looking to prove the power of Internet organizing. Almost 20,000 people so far have downloaded a special Facebook application to help Obama supporters lobby their friends in early primary and caucus states.
HUGHES: The idea is that I'm reaching out to the people I know. I know all of these people. I went to high school with her. I knew him from college. We chose to launch and offer a tool set that is more focused on organizing rather necessarily than having an enjoyable time on the Web site.
KING: In other words, talk, blog and swap videos all you want, but don't lose sight of the basics and the bottom line. John King, CNN, Chicago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Of course our John King part of the best political team on television. We'll get more on the race with John at 10:00 Eastern. He's going to join us from Charleston, South Carolina, the site of Monday's CNN/YouTube debate. Once again, CNN raising the bar on the presidential debates and yes, you can take part. Anderson Cooper hosts Monday's first of its kind debate, live and interactive on TV and online. The CNN/YouTube Democratic debate. You can see the Republican candidates go at it in their debate on Monday, September 17th and yes, you can submit your questions right now. Just log on to cnn.com/americavotes. CNN of course, your political headquarters.
ROESGEN: He's free on bond but now he faces charges. Prosecutors have charged the son of former Vice President Al Gore with illegal drug possession and speeding. Al Gore III was arrested in Orange County, California, back on July 4th. A deputy says he found marijuana. He could smell it, he said, coming from the car and illegal prescription pills in the car. Gore is scheduled to be arraigned August 1st.
First Katrina took their homes. Now the FEMA trailers brought in to provide temporary housing for those hurricane victims may pose a serious health risk. FEMA is under fire again, but now FEMA is promising to check the air quality in trailers supplied to Katrina victims.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice-over): Robert Green says his FEMA trailer is making him sick, literally.
ROBERT GREEN, TRAILER RESIDENT: So to keep from rubbing my eyes I actually put it in my eyes to wash it out, and tried not to rub it, because it's an all-day thing.
ROESGEN: Itchy eyes is just one of the symptoms of what some say are toxic trailers. EPA testing of FEMA trailers last year found the culprit is the chemical formaldehyde which can cause serious respiratory problems and even cancer. The test found formaldehyde levels much higher than Federal safety standards allow in the trailer cabinets, the furniture, even in the walls. Worst of all some of the highest concentrations are found here, in the particle boards that hold up the beds. More than 200 trailer residents have complained to FEMA about their health concerns but at this congressional committee hearing, FEMA was accused of not warning trailer residents of the danger, because FEMA's lawyers were more worried about the agency's liability, than about people's health.
REP. HENRY WAXMAN, (D) CALIFORNIA: Your staff, a year and a half ago, said you should be testing the occupied trailers. The testing didn't take place. Your lawyer sent an e-mail saying if you test them, you may take ownership of it.
DAVID PAULISON, FEMA DIRECTOR: We're looking at things in hindsight and not how they were at the time. We are recognizing as we have all along that we do have an issue and we're going to deal with it.
ROESGEN: Now, FEMA is promising to start an investigation, and to finally warn people, like Robert Green of the possible danger he and 76,000 other families still face, living in FEMA trailers along the Gulf coast.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: Now, at that hearing, the committee showed internal e- mails from FEMA lawyers advising FEMA field inspectors to keep a lid on any complaints that might expose FEMA to liability, but as you heard FEMA Director David Paulison says he didn't listen to the lawyers. However, nearly two years after hurricane Katrina, this is the first time FEMA is addressing that problem head-on. T.J., I was in that trailer for about 10 minutes and I thought either psychosomatic or I really sensed something, that my chest was a little tight, my eyes were a little itchy and these are the symptoms that you gets from formaldehyde.
HOLMES: And that was 10 minutes.
ROESGEN: Ten minutes and they've been living in there for nearly two years.
HOLMES: That can't be good. All right, Susan Roesgen, always on top of things in the Gulf coast.
ROESGEN: You've been down to the Gulf coast. You went down for (INAUDIBLE) fest.
HOLMES: I wasn't in a nasty trailer.
ROESGEN: I would hope not.
HOLMES: Kind of more of a party I was there for but still some great stuff going on. You always do some great work down there so thank you for helping us out. (INAUDIBLE) You'll be here tomorrow as well.
ROESGEN: We coordinated our outfits.
HOLMES: We did than this on purpose, trust us.
All right. We're going to talk about a pair of thieves here who tried at least to help themselves to some of the good stuff in a jewelry store but the shop owner had something to say about that, initially, hold it right there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back. Get back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You get out of here right now, young man.
I'm not that big of a person, but whenever I see something like that, I don't think about my life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: Talk about nerves of steal. That lady is tough. We'll show you how it all played out.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And a beautiful weekend in parts of the northeast, plenty of sunshine, high pressure building into the great lakes, but scattered showers, possibly some flash flooding in parts of central and south Texas. We'll let you know what you can expect in your neighborhood coming up in a few moments.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What's inside this book? Harry potter fans don't have to wait anymore. "Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows" is now on sale. I'm Bonnie Schneider. I'll have that story coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: An I-report sent to us from Tampa, Florida, a rainbow, and some lightning. Can you see that? There it is. Craig Dean sent this picture to us. He works at a restaurant and ran out to catch this image when customers told him what was happening outside. So thank for the I-report
ROESGEN: That was a good catch. I wonder how often that happens. Let's check in with Reynolds Wolf and find out. Is that unique to see lightning and a rainbow at the same time?
WOLF: Not particularly. You have to have the rain. You have to have the water in the atmosphere and the sunlight, the combination of both that gives you the beautiful rainbow. However, to actually have that caught on videotape, that's pretty cool. That's a neat thing to see. Something that's going to be really neat to see is all the sunshine in parts of the northeast, a spectacular weekend for you in Boston, New York, south toward the nation's capital, very mild conditions, temperatures in the 70s and the 80s, very dry conditions. However when you make your way into the deep south, we're going to be seeing some of that dry air filtering to Atlanta. But south Georgia, parts of Florida could get some scattered showers, not necessarily a bad thing. In the central part they're still desperate for rain, so this will be really a good thing to see some scattered showers there.
We don't need the rain in Texas and unfortunately, there's a great possibility of getting some heavy rainfall south of Austin and into San Antonio, right along the I-35 corridor. Meanwhile, you could be seeing some light rainfall southward into Corpus Christi as well as Houston, but the heavy hitters, that's going to be in the center of the state.
Meanwhile, farther out to the west, we've got the very dry conditions across Utah from Salt Lake City southward into Las Vegas. We're looking at some upper 90s, as well as some 100s. Take a look at this video that we have for you from Salt Lake City, showing you some of the big issues they've been dealing with, not just for the last couple of days but last couple of weeks. The dry conditions, the wildfires, one of many that we've had scattered throughout much of the great basin.
Let's take a look at some of those temperatures again, now out by pier 39 in San Francisco, it's going to be a pretty nice day. Some fog early but into the afternoon, 73 degrees, 77 Los Angeles, 102 in Phoenix, 79 in Chicago, 86 in Atlanta. New York enjoy it, 81 degrees, a beautiful, beautiful summer day. Back to you.
ROESGEN: A little bit of everything.
WOLF: Can't complain too much.
HOLMES: Reynolds, thanks so much.
No question, the boy wizard, Harry Potter, still has the magic. Lines and lines of anxious fans waiting to get their hands on the final book in the Harry Potter series. It went on sale a minute after midnight and our Bonnie Schneider braved the crowds at one store in suburban Atlanta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: How excited are you to get this book?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On a scale of one to 10? 20 million!
SCHNEIDER: This fan is not alone. In book stores around the world like this Barnes & Noble in Marietta, Georgia, wizard lovers waited in line for hours to get their copy of J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." Kids of all ages came dressed as their favorite character to celebrate the arrival of the long-anticipated last book of the popular series.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nothing was more important than this, like seriously I've been planning this since I knew when it was coming out.
SCHNEIDER: As the excitement built toward the midnight release, fans came up with their own scenarios as to how the seven-book series may end.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We actually printed out sheets of different scenarios, what you think will happen. It's kind of like March madness. We all decide what we think will happen and then we're going to compare predictions.
SCHNEIDER: Finally, it's 12:01 and the wait is over. Fans couldn't get their hands on the bright orange covered book fast enough.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am the most excited girl in the world. I have been waiting for this all, like since the last book came out. This is the happiest day of my life.
SCHNEIDER: Once fans get a copy of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the question is, when reading the book, do they start with the first page or the last?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The last page and then the whole thing straight through.
SCHNEIDER: Not everyone agrees.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't ruin it by looking at the ending first.
SCHNEIDER: Bonnie Schneider, CNN, Marietta, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: It would be tempting to look at the end. Anyway, the boy wizard has gotten kids of really all ages excited about reading again.
HOLMES: Are kids really reading more than they used to? We'll take a look in today's "reality check."
ROESGEN: And it's a day that a top athlete will never forget.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DREW WEAVER: The events of April 16th, something that will always be with me. It was a terrible day and I've thought about it in the perspective that this is something that I'll never forget.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: Drew Weaver talks about the Virginia Tech massacre and then the British open. CNN SATURDAY morning continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROESGEN: He is hammering toward home run history. Barry Bonds will take aim, we think tonight at Hank Aaron's home run record in the same city where that record was set, Milwaukee. The game is tonight in Milwaukee, and Bonds is just two away from a tie, three away from surpassing the magical 755 mark. Aaron hit his number 755 in Milwaukee when he was winding down his career as a member of the Brewers.
HOLMES: From tragedy to triumph for one American golfer taking part in this week's British open. But he's carrying more than just clubs around the course.
CNN's Don Riddell has the story from Carnoustie, Scotland.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For most of the golfers here at Carnoustie, success will be measured by the manner in which they finish on Sunday afternoon. But for one young American player, the fact that he's even starting is already a considerable achievement.
When Virginia Tech junior Drew Weaver sunk this putt on the 17th hole at the British amateur last month, he became the first American champion in some 28 years.
DREW WEAVER, VIRGINIA TECH JUNIOR: I still have to pinch myself quite often. I was so emotionally and physically spent I was just exhausted. It's just more of a relief. I kind of dropped my putter and kind of crouched down and that was it.
RIDDELL: His victory gained him entrance into the British open, as well as next year's masters.
WEAVER: For an American golfer, the Masters is everything. That's the biggest tournament of the year, and it's just been a dream of mine for my whole life.
RIDDELL: Weaver dedicated his amateur championship to those who died or who were injured during the Virginia Tech massacre last April. WEAVER: I felt like it was the right thing to do. Virginia Tech is such a big part of my life and the events of April 16th are something that will always be with me. It was a terrible day, and I've thought about it in the perspective that this is something that I'll never forget and just the amount of people that were affected is so large, that it really is tough to get an overall grasp on how big it is.
RIDDELL: It was while he was leaving class in an adjacent building on that fateful day, that Weaver saw the police and heard gunfire.
WEAVER: Those sounds are something that haunted me for a long time and once the shots went off, everybody freaked and we just ran as fast and far away as we could get. I ended up being in the library. So we were there for awhile.
RIDDELL: Weaver says he never thought about transferring from the school and hopes that all its students will return.
WEAVER: Honestly, I don't know how many people are going to. You know, I just know that there is a lot more positive talk about staying on campus and uniting than I thought, but I think the university as a whole has rebounded just in an incredible way and I think we're going to come out stronger than we were before from this.
RIDDELL: Don Riddell, CNN, Carnoustie, Scotland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Andrew Weaver did have a respectable couple of rounds in the British open. He finished high with former Masters champ Phil Mickelson (ph). However, Phil Mickelson missed the cut so Drew Weaver missed the cut. But we're going to take you live to Carnoustie in our 10:00 hour.
ROESGEN: And we have seen the Harry Potter-mania spreading across the globe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've just had J.K. Rowling read the first chapter of the "Deathly Hallows." It's amazing. It was actually quite dark, actually quite mysterious and it was left (INAUDIBLE). It makes me really want to get my book and read on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: Our Josh Levs is spinning his magic.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Am I really? Oh, nice, I like that. Thanks a lot. Here's the deal, there's a brand new Federal study that's going to tell us if kids are reading more or not. We got the surprising findings coming up. T.J. ...
HOLMES: All right, we'll see you here shortly and looking to security guard (ph). This store owner fights back when robbers came to visit to her store. You got to check this lady out.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's great. It makes kids excited to read and that's what we all want.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: Getting kids to turn off the TV and read a book instead can be very challenging. Does Harry Potter make it happen? We have a "reality check." Welcome back. I'm Susan Roesgen, filling in for Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes. First we're going to start with the Taliban. Taliban leaders in Afghanistan say they've killed two German hostages. The Germans were kidnapped Wednesday. They'd been working on a dam project.
ROESGEN: And the Associated Press is reporting that a man claiming to be a Taliban spokesman says the Germans were shot to death. The spokesman says the hostages were killed because Germany has not pulled its troops out of Afghanistan. The Taliban spokesman also says the fate of 23 South Koreans kidnapped on Thursday will be decided later today.
Meanwhile, China is trying to improve its product safety image. The Chinese government has shut down three companies linked to tainted products. Two of the companies were implicated in dozens of pet deaths here in the U.S. You'll remember that. And the third company was accused of selling a chemical found in antifreeze that wound up in cough syrup and other medicines. At least 94 people died of that in Panama.
Another product made in China is being recalled. And here's something you want to look at if you're doing yard work this weekend. Safety officials say pieces of the Black & Decker Trimmer and Edger can fly off. The trimmers can also overheat, and that can be dangerous, as well. The model is the GH 1000 Grass Hog XP. More than 200,000 have been sold and Black & Decker has received more than 700 reports of incidents involving 58 injuries.
Fed up in Phoenix -- a jewelry store owner facing two armed robbers. But instead of raising her hands, she puts up her fists.
We get the story from Ben Lemoine of affiliate KTVK.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN LEMOINE, KTVK REPORTER (voice-over): It began like any other purchase at Gaston Jewelers, but it took a turn at the checkout counter.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody on the ground. Get on the ground. Get back, get back, get back, get back. CAROL, JEWELRY STORE OWNER: You get out of here right now, young man. You thief!
LEMOINE: Like a school teacher scolding a student, Carol, the 5'2" store owner, kept questioning the robbers while they cleaned out her cases and ordered customers to lie on the floor.
CAROL: What are you guys doing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: they're trying to rob you.
LEMOINE: The two men took everything they could and fled, Carol chasing out the door after them.
CAROL: I'm not that big of a person, but whenever I see something like that, I don't think about my life. I was just livid that they would do this to me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was right by that case when he shot it. So when he blew the hole in it about that big, I -- he got my attention.
LEMOINE: In examining that hole, Carol admits attacking the gunmen was probably not the best choice. And while the surveillance cameras caught it all on tape, next time, she may be better prepared.
CAROL: The way these guys were, if I would have pulled a gun on them, somebody probably would have been dead. And I don't really want to kill anybody, but whenever my life is at stake or my employees' or my customers' lives are at stake, you bet I would fire.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
ROESGEN: And, you know, the robbers got away with about $100,000 worth of jewelry and they are still on the run.
HOLMES: Also caught on tape, the lobby of the Auburn Hills police station in Michigan, where an unruly man eventually was tasered to bring him under control. He had originally been arrested after driving into the arena where the Detroit Pistons played and demanding to use the bathroom of team owner Bill Davidson, because he really had to go.
Well, the vacation for an Ohio lawyer turns ugly when he's bitten on the leg by a shark off Hawaii's Oahu Beach.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HARVEY MILLER, SHARK BITE VICTIM: I looked up and then saw the snout of the shark. It bit me and spun me around. I punched it twice in the body, just below the dorsal fin, and started yelling and screaming, "Shark! Help!"
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now, Harvey Miller was attacked in clear water in an area not really known for shark attacks. As a matter of fact, the last time something like this happened off Oahu was 50 years ago. Miller will need more surgery to repair his leg.
ROESGEN: He can just keep a toe in next time.
HOLMES: (LAUGHTER).
ROESGEN: Well, you know, the wait is over.
Do you have the lightning bolt on your forehead?
HOLMES: Nah.
ROESGEN: Not yet.
Young readers all around the world, you know, have been up all night, as you've seen today, learning the fate of Harry Potter and his friends.
HOLMES: And fans waited for hours to get their hands on the final book in the series, showing an enthusiasm many people claim gets kids reading again.
But has Harry Potter gotten young people reading more?
Josh Levs joins us with a reality check. And if anything gets kids to read, I'm all for it (INAUDIBLE). Picking up a book...
ROESGEN: And a heavy book at that.
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
ROESGEN: How do the little hands balance it on the little legs, you know?
LEVS: You know what's weird?
There have even been studies about that -- about kids reading heftier books and how that can actually be a good thing because they're getting more -- developing their brain cells more.
HOLMES: Wow!
LEVS: But, yes, I'll tell you guys, my wife -- my wife did not want me to do this story, because she's a big reader and she thinks it's depressing. But let me just tell you, it's not all depressing, all right?
It's not entirely depressing. But the gist here is that there's a major federal study that's looking into this question -- are kids reading more today after Harry Potter?
Unfortunately, the answer is not so much.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
LEVS (voice-over): It's always been a big part of the buzz about Harry Potter -- millions of kids excited not just about movies, but about books. There's a widespread belief that...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LARRY KING LIVE," DECEMBER 8, 2003)
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Harry Potter has really made kids read.
LEVS: But are kids who grew up on Harry Potter really reading more than the generations before them?
A landmark federal study due this fall says no.
The National Endowment for the Arts says it has found a drop in pleasure reading among adolescents. In fact, the report finds the decline has continued at the same rate since before Harry Potter books existed.
The biggest reasons include video games, TV and the Internet.
But wait a second -- the Internet -- that's reading, right?
The federal study found even when you include reading online, the overall figures are still dropping.
Still, many parents believe Harry Potter has worked some magic in getting their kids to read.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX," COURTESY WARNER BROTHERS PICTURES)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fantastic, Jimmy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: It's possible the decline in adolescent reading would be even bigger were it not for the boy wizard. A survey commissioned by Scholastic, Harry Potter's U.S. publisher, found that 51 percent of kids who read Harry Potter said that afterward they started reading for fun in general. Eighty-nine percent of parents said the books helped their kids enjoy reading more.
The National Endowment for the Arts says it's too bad there aren't more Harry Potter style book crazes for young readers, but these things just don't happen often.
JENNIFER BROWN, CHILDREN'S BOOK EDITOR: I really can't think of another series that has generated this kind of excitement. I mean, possibly Charles Dickens did when he read from his serials as his -- he was publishing his books.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
LEVS: And that was in the 1800s.
Now, of course, it might not be another 150 years before there's another big book bonanza out there. And there are a lot of authors that are trying. But in the meantime, guys, educators are now looking for ways to try to get kids excited, rejuvenated about the whole idea of reading.
HOLMES: And how exactly do you do that?
LEVS: Yes, this is the thing. Like, they're thinking, OK, if Harry Potter didn't do the trick, then what do you try?
So they're looking into -- I've talked to some educational groups. They're talking -- they're looking at TV shows, they're looking at the Internet.
Are there ways to harness video games, Internet, TV in order to get kids to read more?
And, also, they're looking into some icons here and there. It's interesting. I heard an interview with the woman, the girl -- she's a girl, she's 17 -- who won "American Idol," Jordin Sparks. And the day after she won, she did an interview. They said what do you want to do?
She said the first thing she wanted to do now that she was is read a book, because she loves to read. Education groups love stuff like that. The more they can get people who are prominent to say how great it is to read, the more they think it will spill over.
HOLMES: (LAUGHTER).
LEVS: Even still, if Harry Potter didn't do it, then what you got?
You know, who knows?
HOLMES: You know what?
I'll wait until somebody wins the NBA finals and they say -- don't say I'm going to Disneyland and they say I'm going to go home and read.
ROESGEN: Read a book.
There you go.
HOLMES: Yes.
ROESGEN: There you go.
LEVS: (LAUGHTER).
ROESGEN: That will encourage people.
HOLMES: When that happens, we all know...
(CROSSTALK)
ROESGEN: I'm going to go home and read a book about the NBA or something.
HOLMES: Yes. Josh, thanks, man.
LEVS: Thanks a lot.
HOLMES: Well, what's popular on the Web these days?
ROESGEN: Right now, it's looking like a battle between Lindsay Lohan and Harry Potter.
Who is getting more of the clicks?
Veronica de la Cruz is coming up next from the Dot-Com Desk.
HOLMES: And if you could ask the presidential candidates anything, what would it be?
Well, you might be surprised at what some of our viewers are coming up.
Stay here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm Reynolds Wolf with a look at today's Allergy Report.
At any spot around the country where you happen to see green or blue on this map would indicate spots where you have very clean air.
However, where you have yellows and even orange across the Central Plains, the Central Rockies and even into the Pacific Northwest, you have high traces of ragweed and pollen. So if you have respiratory problems, you're going to want to take it easy.
Enjoy your day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, many of you are surfing the Web this morning. And so is our Veronica de la Cruz of the Dot-Com Desk.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Of course.
HOLMES: Good morning.
What's happening now, Veronica?
DE LA CRUZ: Hey, welcome back from New York.
Nice to see you.
HOLMES: Thank you. Thank you.
I had a good trip.
DE LA CRUZ: It is nice to see. Good, I'm glad.
So people are surfing the Web this morning, and guess what they're clicking on?
HOLMES: It's got to be, what, Harry Potter?
DE LA CRUZ: OK, Harry Potter and Lindsay Lohan.
HOLMES: Oh.
DE LA CRUZ: Why is this woman always in the news?
I would think that people wouldn't click on her because they would be so tired of hearing about La Lohan. I think that's what they call her.
HOLMES: La Lohan.
DE LA CRUZ: La Lohan. Well, she's turning herself in to Beverly Hills police to get booked and fingerprinted. This was for the traffic mishap she had over Memorial weekend that sent her to rehab, T.J.
Police say her blood alcohol at the time was above the legal limit. She also faces misdemeanor charges of leaving the scene of an accident. Lohan was released on her own recognizance after Thursday's booking and is due back in court August 24th
What do you think?
Will she be another Paris Hilton, going back to jail, serving that jail time?
HOLMES: I just want a positive story, one day...
DE LA CRUZ: I know.
HOLMES: ...a nice story about her.
DE LA CRUZ: Just one.
HOLMES: Just once.
DE LA CRUZ: Just one from la Lohan, right?
Also popular this morning, an anti-tank rocket launcher, like the one seen right here, has turned up in a very unlikely place. It was found laying in a yard yesterday in New Jersey across from Manhattan. The weapon was not loaded and posed no threat.
But what's not clear is if and when it had been fired.
Now, authorities believe the device is an older version of the one that you just saw a second ago. This type of weapon can only be fired once. And the Army is trying to figure out where it came from.
How did it just end up in that yard?
HOLMES: It just showed up, right?
It wasn't buried or anything?
It just kind of ended up there?
DE LA CRUZ: No, it just showed up.
HOLMES: Yes.
DE LA CRUZ: A big mystery in New Jersey.
Also, rounding out the most popular this morning, a story that we have covered a lot so far -- the long-awaited release of "Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows". This was the scene in suburban Atlanta -- that's where our Bonnie Schneider was -- As people waited for the book to go on sale. Leaks and spoilers apparently did not dampen the enthusiasm of fans willing to wait hours upon hours on end to get their own copy of the last word in the Potter series.
And I'm going to have more on the Harry Potter craze the next hour with some of the things that we have found posted on the Web. And don't worry, we're not going to spoil it for you.
But we'd like to hear from you. Send us your view of the new book at CNN.com/ireport.
HOLMES: OK.
DE LA CRUZ: You can also e-mail us at weekends@CNN.com.
Are you a Harry Potter fan?
HOLMES: I am not. So just tell me what happens.
Just tell me, what happens?
DE LA CRUZ: I can't spoil it. No -- I said no spoiling.
HOLMES: OK.
Well, I...
DE LA CRUZ: There will be no spoiling on -- on this show.
HOLMES: All right, you can do it in the commercial break.
Come on.
Thank you so much, Veronica.
We'll talk.
ROESGEN: And this just in from the Associated Press. Vice President Dick Cheney has now assumed presidential duties this morning. As we reported earlier, President Bush is undergoing a routine colonoscopy. He's under anesthesia. And when that happens, the vice president takes over until President Bush is ready to resume his duties. And we understand, once again, from the Associated Press, that that colonoscopy has begun. So Vice President Cheney has the presidential duties temporarily this morning.
HOLMES: All right, he has them because, of course, the president is sedated during this procedure. Vice President Dick Cheney now in charge.
So exactly what is involved in this colonoscopy?
We're going to talk to somebody about it, Dr. Roshini Rajapaksa -- excuse me, Rajapaksa.
So, hey, I'll tell you what -- the guest, where is she?
Just give me her picture.
Show her to me. Doctor, I was trying to get your name right.
DR. ROSHINI RAJAPAKSA, GASTROENTEROLOGIST: Yes, sure.
HOLMES: By all means, correct me and say that last name for me.
RAJAPAKSA: It's Rajapaksa.
HOLMES: Rajapaksa.
RAJAPAKSA: There you go.
HOLMES: All right. But they call you Dr. Raj.
Can I call you that this morning?
RAJAPAKSA: Absolutely.
HOLMES: Whoo, thank you, doctor.
RAJAPAKSA: You're welcome.
HOLMES: Thank you so much.
Well, tell us, the colonoscopy that's going on, first, just exactly what is the purpose of one of these?
RAJAPAKSA: Well, the reason why the president's getting a colonoscopy and why every American should get a colonoscopy starting at age 50 is to check for colon cancer. And what we do is we look inside the colon, we look for any cancers, but also for colon polyps, which are benign growths that, if we find them, we can remove. But if you leave them in there, they could eventually grow into cancer. So by getting this test, you can be really checked and possibly prevent a colon cancer before it even starts.
HOLMES: OK. People seem to be kind of nervous about these things, for one reason or other.
RAJAPAKSA: Right.
HOLMES: So what exactly do they do to you to go through this procedure?
RAJAPAKSA: Well, what happens is the day before the procedure you need to take a laxative preparation, really clean out the system. and then you go into your doctor's office or the hospital. You get an intravenous line, where you get sedation, so you fall asleep. And then you have a very skinny, flexible tube inserted in your rectum. And you're asleep during this, but the doctor will insert the tube and look through your entire large intestine or colon.
HOLMES: OK. That might be the part that gets people, that doesn't sound that pleasant.
RAJAPAKSA: You're right.
HOLMES: So, after the fact, I guess, when you wake up, how are you feeling?
RAJAPAKSA: Basically, the sedation is very short acting. So within a few minutes of ending the procedure, you start to wake up. and within about half an hour to an hour, you're fully awake and alert and ready to go home.
HOLMES: How are you walking, I guess?
RAJAPAKSA: You're able to walk within an hour after the procedure. We don't recommend doing vigorous exercise or heavy lifting, but you can pretty much go back to your regular activities.
HOLMES: All right.
But are you somewhat -- I guess is there any discomfort, if you will?
I'm trying to say this as nice as possible.
RAJAPAKSA: During the procedure itself, no. You're asleep. If you want to be awake...
HOLMES: No, after the fact.
RAJAPAKSA: Oh.
HOLMES: No, after you're awake and get up, is there some recovery time, if you will?
RAJAPAKSA: No, after the procedure, the only thing you might have is some gas pain because there is some air put into your system during the procedure. You might have a little bit of gas, but that passes, and then you feel fine.
HOLMES: All right. And I just want to get that out there for folks, because they do think about and talk about that stuff.
RAJAPAKSA: Yes.
HOLMES: So how effective have these been in identifying colon cancer?
RAJAPAKSA: Extremely effective. You know, colon cancer is one of the cancers that, if found early, is very curable. So that's why it's so important to people -- for people to get checked, even if you feel fine, because very often colon cancer doesn't cause any symptoms.
If you get it checked and you get it diagnosed early, you can get cured, whereas if it's diagnosed very late, it's very much -- much harder to cure.
HOLMES: And when should people start having these?
RAJAPAKSA: At age 50 is what the recommendation is for men and women, if you have no risk factors. So if you don't have a family history of colon cancer, you don't have any disease of your colon, then age 50 is a good time to start.
But you should discuss with your doctor your personal risk profile, because you may need it earlier.
HOLMES: And then after that, how often -- if you have an all clear at 50, I guess -- how often do they recommend you come back and have this done?
RAJAPAKSA: Right. So if it's completely normal at age 50, the recommendation is to repeat it in eight to 10 years.
HOLMES: All right.
Dr. Raj, thank you so much...
RAJAPAKSA: Thank you.
HOLMES: ...for working with us this morning. And, really, a lot of people -- a lot of information that could save people's lives. But some of this not so glamorous sometimes, but people are curious about it.
We thank you so much for being with us and explaining it to us.
RAJAPAKSA: Thank you.
HOLMES: All right.
ROESGEN: Coming up, some changes for air travel -- changing again. Starting next month, passengers who smoke can keep their lighters on the plane.
CNN SATURDAY MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ROESGEN: Firefighters in both the East and the Western parts of the country are fighting wildfires that have burned thousands of acres and forced dozens of evacuations. In Nassau County in Northern Florida, this fire has burned at least 200 acres and forced more than two dozen people out of their homes, north of Hilliard, Florida, on Friday.
And then in the West, firefighters are trying to stop this fire. They say it started Thursday in a private campground south of Salt Lake City. And believe it or not, it may have been started by a spark from a flat tire.
HOLMES: We want to turn now to weather.
And our Reynolds Wolf standing by in the weather department for us -- Reynolds.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROESGEN: Some good news for flyers and smokers. Starting August 4th, the Transportation Security Administration is relaxing the no lighter rule. That means that most disposable and refillable lighters will be allowed on board. The Transportation Security Administration was spending about $4 million a year to throw away all these lighters that had been turned in at security checkpoints. So now you'll be able to take your Bic on board, but you still can't flick it.
HOLMES: All right.
Well, so what do you get when you tell people to send in their questions for the candidates?
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How do you all, my presidential hopeful brothers, and Sister Hillary, plan on promoting and expanding civil rights so that poor brother Anderson Cooper here doesn't have to do all the work by himself?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: That's a good one.
HOLMES: Yes. We've got a lot like that, actually. No -- well, kind of.
What else you won't be seeing come Monday's YouTube debate. We'll give you a look at some of the more colorful ones.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS CRARY: Good evening. I'm Thomas Crary (ph) of Auburn, California.
For all the candidates, would you be willing to disclose a complete history of your prescription drug use for the last five years?
The last thing we need in the White House at this time is more flawed leadership and we voters should know the state of your physical and mental health before finally deciding who gets our votes.
Thanks very much and good evening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: So if you were one of the candidates, how would you answer that one?
Well, I've been on this, this and this or -- you know what, do you say?
HOLMES: And I'm cutting back on this.
ROESGEN: I'm cutting back on this.
So we've been talking about this first of a kind debate -- the Democratic candidates' first ever CNN/YouTube presidential debate right here Monday night.
HOLMES: Yes. And the Republicans debate September 17th. And that, too, will be on CNN and YouTube. And you've been sending in your questions, some quite interesting, to say the least.
Here now, CNN's Jeanne Moos with a sample.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As they prepare the presidential debates set, wait until you see the latest set of questions for the candidates.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you really believe that god exists?
MOOS: Do you really believe that some of these questions exist?
Submitted to YouTube by a dolphin?
By an alien?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My name is one among many.
MOOS: By a crab?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What would you do to stop the sexually transmitted diseases?
MOOS (on camera): A lot of the questions submitted to YouTube will go down the tubes, especially one delivered by a tube.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello there, troopers.
(INAUDIBLE) from Hollywood.
MOOS (voice-over): A few folks sang questions like, who's going to be your running mate?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to know who it is and why we should say wow!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I mean the worst thing you ever did that you won't tell us.
MOOS: And then there's the catchy what would you do about telephone outsourcing questions.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't understand a word, a word that I have heard, telephone outsourcing, telephone outsourcing.
MOOS: Some parents apparently outsourced questions to their kids about hunting.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: What would you do to stop PETA?
MOOS: About health care.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: They could die by the time all the paperwork gets filled out.
MOOS: These three mounted stuffed ostriches in front of the White House to tell the candidates not to bury their heads in the sand.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILDREN: What's your plan to fix Social Security?
MOOS: They may be too young to vote, but those accusatory little pointed fingers hurt.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: How are you going to fix it?
MOOS: And then there was the guy who asked one question like this.
DAVID MCMILLAN: Hi.
My name is David McMillan (ph).
MOOS: And another like this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is how do you all, my presidential hopeful brothers, and Sister Hillary, plan on promoting and expanding civil rights so poor brother Anderson Cooper here doesn't have to do all by himself?
MOOS (on camera): Don't expect YouTubers to keep their shirt on.
Question for Hillary Clinton.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: can I be your intern?
Joe Biden, the same question.
MOOS (voice-over): Some lost their train of thought mid-question.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I'd like to know, whoever you are, what the (OBSCENE WORD OMITTED) you're going to do about it.
MOOS: At this debate, the questions may be more fun than the answers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does this Web cam make my boobs look weird?
MOOS: Honestly, yes. But no candidate who wants your vote is going to tell you that.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
ROESGEN: Good morning from the CNN center in Atlanta. This is CNN SATURDAY MORNING and I'm Susan Roesgen filling in for Betty Nguyen. Vice President Dick Cheney is in charge of the nation right now and we'll tell you more about that in just a moment.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes. Good morning to you all. It's being called the first real test of diverse voters (ph).
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Democrats in South Carolina want to be with a winner. They would want to really be able to say, we did launch this campaign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The Democratic candidates and the strategy for winning in South Carolina.
ROESGEN: And watch this, another example of teenagers doing the wrong thing. What happened to the woman on the bike? You'll see it caught on video.
HOLMES: But we are going to start this hour with Cheney in charge. The vice president, yes, in charge of the country right now. CNN confirms President Bush handed over power a short time ago before going under anesthesia. The president right now getting a colonoscopy. They did the same thing during the president's colonoscopy in 2002 and CNN's Elaine Quijano joins us now from the White House this morning. Good morning to you, Elaine.
ELAINE QUIJANO, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, T.J.. That's right. The official transfer of authority happened around 7:16 Eastern time, about 45 minutes or so ago. That according to White House spokesman Scott Stansel (ph). It happened when an official letter was faxed to the leaders of the House and Senate notifying them of this transfer of power. Now Vice President Dick Cheney is acting president. He is at his home on the eastern shore of Maryland as this colonoscopy takes place at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.
Now yesterday White House press secretary Tony Snow emphasized that this is a routine colonoscopy, that back in 2002, in fact, he had the same procedure done at that time. Doctors gave him a clean bill of health essentially but said, look, let's do this again in five years. We're at that five-year mark. And Snow says that, given the president's age and his history, it wouldn't be unusual for doctors to perhaps find some polyps this morning. If they do, they'll of course be removed and examined. As for the results, we likely will not hear about any results of polyps that might be removed for another two to three days, but we should know sometime today, once the president resumes his authority, details about how the procedure went. T.J.?
HOLMES: OK. We don't expect Vice President Cheney to take Air Force one out for a spin or anything, right?
QUIJANO: We're not hearing anything along those lines.
HOLMES: All right. Elaine Quijano for us at the White House. Thanks so much Elaine.
ROESGEN: To presidential politics now and some new poll numbers from a key southern state. We're just two days away from the CNN YouTube debate for the Democratic candidates in South Carolina and CNN chief national correspondent John King joins us live in Charleston with the latest poll numbers. John?
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Susan, we're really looking forward to this debate on Monday night. It is ground breaking in the format. You were discussing it in the last hour. Everyday Americans, some of them quite colorfully and entertainingly recording their questions on YouTube for the eight Democratic candidates here on Monday night. Now it will be ground breaking in its format and it comes at a very important time in a very important state. Not until six months from now will the people of South Carolina get to vote, but that will come after Iowa, Nevada and New Hampshire and south Carolina traditionally plays the role of either endorsing somebody and sending them on to the nomination, whether it be the Democratic or the Republican side or saying wait a minute, stopping the race and stumbling the frontrunner a little bit to try to shake things up.
Right now our poll numbers would be encouraging if you are Senator Hillary Clinton, the prohibitive Democratic frontrunner at the moment. Our new CNN Opinion Research poll shows her leading in this key state, with 39 percent, a 14 point lead over her closest competitor here, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois. John Edwards, the former North Carolina senator, runs third at 15 percent. Somewhat surprisingly, a man who's not in the race, the former Vice President Al Gore comes in next at 10 percent and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson trailing way behind at 2 percent. Now, it is early, and the early polls tell you mostly that candidates have name recognition and some early momentum. But Senator Clinton's big lead is one of the reasons this debate is so important, especially to her challengers. They're trying to trip her up in some way and so we're going to have this ground-breaking innovative format.
And more than 1700 questions have come in so far. They range from the war in Iraq to health care, education, child care costs, gay rights in America. So we're very excited with our partners YouTube to put this debate on. It should be ground-breaking in the format and inventive in the sense that the candidates, even though it's over a video link Susan, will be confronting the questions and have to answer them one on one. So we expect a more personal debate. And again, still six months away from the South Carolina primary, but if you're challenging Hillary Rodham Clinton, you're looking to make inroads as soon as possible, Susan
ROESGEN: John, back to those poll numbers for just a minute. If Al Gore isn't running, as we know that he isn't, why was he even included in the poll?
KING: He's included in the poll because he hasn't flatly said never, absolutely, no not, no way, as he's out of course promoting his agenda on global climate change. So we put his name in the poll every now and then just to get a sense, if he did jump in the race, how much would he stir things up? And 10 percent of you, when people have heard him say he's not running, he could still have an influence if he gets in, but he says he won't Susan.
ROESGEN: OK, John, we'll check back in with you in a couple of hours. Thanks.
And as John mentioned, this is really a different thing for us, a different thing for the country, a different way to look at the candidates. CNN is raising the bar on the presidential debates and you can take part. Anderson Cooper will be hosting CNN's Monday YouTube debate. You can see the Republican candidates debate on Monday, September 17th. For this Democratic debate, submit your questions right now. Just log on to cnn.com/americavotes. CNN is your political headquarters.
HOLMES: A woman in Texas faces felony tampering charges over some tainted soup. Customers and a clerk reported an odd smell from the soup at a grocery store deli in Austin. It turned out to be a substance that's used in mothballs. Surveillance cameras led to the arrest of a woman accused of dropping something into the vats of soup. She's now being held on $100,000 bond.
ROESGEN: Well, it looks like a busy day ahead for firefighters in Utah. They're fighting to keep a huge brush fire from reaching a small town that's about 85 miles south of Salt Lake City. This wildfire started Thursday in a private campground and they think it might have been started by sparks that were coming from a car driven on the rim of a flat tire. It's just so dry there that that spark might have set it off.
HOLMES: Meanwhile in the east, a wildfire in Nassau County in northern Florida has charred hundreds of acres. Officials say the blaze forced more than 2,000 people - or rather that's two dozen. That's a lot different from 2,000. Again, two dozen people from their homes north of Hillard, Florida. Smoke from the fire stopped highway and train traffic through the area on Friday.
ROESGEN: Where people want the rain, they don't get it. Where people don't need the rain, they've got it. Reynolds Wolf is in the weather center.
WOLF: It always seems to be that way. Isn't that frustrating? The frustrating aspect of that weather, the haves and have nots. They need rain in Florida and they're going to get it today, especially in some of those places they've been battling the blazes. We've got a frontal boundary that's going to make its way along parts of I-4 as well as I-95. As it makes its way southward, we also have the converging sea breeze so at least a 50 percent chance of rain for much of the state, certainly great news there.
Yesterday, we had some rainfall there. We had some lightning. Even had a great I-report and you'll see that right here, that shows video from the combination of a thunderstorm. You see a rainbow and a lightning bolt. How about that, all in one. You don't see that kind of thing every single day. Thankfully, with that I-report sent in by Craig Dean, we were able to enjoy that wonderful view from Craig Dean in Tampa, Florida.
Let's go right back to the weather computer, as we do so, rain another big story in parts of Texas. We could see some flash flooding here, San Antonio out by the Alamo. So let's keep an eye on that part of the world. Austin, not so much for you. Southward to Corpus Christi and Laredo, showers, possibly some severe thunderstorms may be in the mix. More than anything, just a rain event. Rain out west does not look all that good, but still plenty of heat in the great basin. We've got that fire danger near Salt Lake City. Don't expect any changes as we make our way towards the end of the work week and into the weekend and into early next week. We're looking at temperatures going up in the triple digits for many spots and Salt Lake City northward into Montana. That should continue.
Meanwhile, nice and cool through the great lakes, 81 degrees in New York City, beautiful there and 86 in Atlanta, Charleston, South Carolina, beautiful morning there. Take a look at this live image that we have at the Citadel, beautiful image. That's going to be popping up at any time. There you go, not far from Summerall (ph) gate. And Great guy that I know went there from 1961 to 1965. That would be William M. Wolf, Jr., my dad, a Citadel bulldog. How about that? Let's send it back to you at the news desk. Got to give props to my dad.
HOLMES: I'm sure he appreciates you throwing the years out there.
ROESGEN: So you're a meteorologist instead of in the military. What can we say?
WOLF: It happens.
HOLMES: Thanks so much, Reynolds. A gaping hole in a hotel wall and an unusual wakeup call for residents in the room but not everybody makes it out alive.
ROESGEN: And this ought to make you mad. Teenagers attacking an elderly woman and stealing her scooter.
HOLMES: Also coming up, no collars allowed. A California priest facing sex charges after being arrested at a nude beach. You are watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: A Roman Catholic priest is free on bail in San Luis Obispo, California this morning and police say the Reverend Geronimo Enrique Cuervas was arrested Wednesday on sex charges. He's accused of sexual battery after he allegedly groped an undercover sheriff's deputy near a private beach. The area is known for its nude sunbathing. The priest was freed on $2,000 bail. The Catholic diocese says he has been placed on administrative leave.
ROESGEN: And then there's this story. Four teenage girls caught in Maryland with a load of marijuana. There it is. Turns out it was 33 pounds of pot in the girls' car. The 18-year-old driver faces drug charges, of course, and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The other three girls in the car were all under 18. The police say these drugs have a street value of about $100,000.
HOLMES: Wow. Also, we're going to turn now to a Wisconsin man who is now facing homicide charges for an accident, this accident. He rammed his SUV right through a motel room, killing one person and injuring another. The driver was later found with his truck stuck in the side of a nearby house. Police say his blood alcohol level -- check this out -- five times the legal limit. Don't even know how you get to five times the legal limit.
ROESGEN: You drink a lot. Another car in a building. This one was at a Chicago area restaurant. A car smashed through the front windows. A 94-year-old driver, witnesses say that she hit a parked car before, for some reason, she just sped up and smashed right into the restaurant. Eight people there were hurt. They, along with the driver, were taken to the hospital. Now that 94-year-old driver faces several charges.
HOLMES: A week now after a failed car bombing in Scotland, a major sporting event taking place there. We'll look at what changes fans and players are seeing.
ROESGEN: And it's been a long night for very patient Harry Potter fans, but the wait is finally over. Book sales began at one minute after midnight. Veronica de la Cruz works the web to see if fans think it was worth it.
Later on "house Call."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks. Coming up on "House Call" this morning, we're helping you cut through the red tape of health insurance claims. An expert answers your questions. Plus we have a 1-800 number where caseworkers are standing by ready to answer your questions.
Also, get an exclusive look inside the OR as TB patient Andrew Speaker has part of his lung removed.
And learn why some experts are saying some video games can be healthy. That's coming up at 8:30 Eastern on "House Call."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A salad bar is a great place to get a balanced meal but be careful. There are hidden calories and fat among all these healthful choices. Here are some tips for navigating a salad bar with healthy eating in mind. Tip number one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Really watch out for creamy dressings and watch out for fried or bread-type products that are cooked in oils. And then I would additionally watch out for whole dairy cheeses.
COSTELLO: Tip number two.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's definitely more beneficial to load up on the raw veggie component. That's a great filler.
COSTELLO: And finally.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Another little tip I'll suggest is maybe don't arrive to a salad bar or food bar like this starving. Maybe have an apple on the way over or a banana on the way over so that you have a little bit of fullness coming into a situation like this.
COSTELLO: There's a lot of temptation at a salad bar. Keep these tips in mind the next time you make your salad bar selections. Carol Costello, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: All right. We promise you we won't tell you the ending, but we will share some of your I-reports. Harry Potter, as you know, making a big splash as the final book in the series is unveiled. We'll have more next from the dot com desk.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROESGEN: Today's third round of play has just wrapped up at the British open and extra security measures are there this year after the recent bomb plots in London and Glasgow. Sports business analyst Rick Harrow joins us on the phone from Carnoustie, Scotland with more on the added security. What are you seeing there Rick?
RICK HARROW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The biggest change is the cell phone ban at the open. It's starting a trend that will probably impact the European tour as well. Carnoustie is a small town of about 4,000 or so. Security guards outnumber the population two to one even in the bars. Last year at Stratland (ph), Ireland for the Ryder cup, there were 400 residents and 500 police. So there is that impact that is immediately evident although so far this has gone off, as you know, without a hitch.
ROESGEN: And you know, Rick, I assume that they are confiscating the cell phones because they can be use as triggers in any kind of explosive device, right?
HARROW: Well, that's the ostensible reason, but in America the PGA tour makes you check cell phones at the door because it annoys the golfers. So many people here are looking at that as a welcome trend that will cause a little more of a quiet and pristine environment for future tournaments.
ROESGEN: How about just numbers? Numbers -- you said the small town has fewer people than there are, actually, I guess, wearing uniforms. Are there plainclothes security there?
HARROW: There are. And, of course, the metal detectors are here versus two years ago when I was here before. And of course many spectators and executives flew into Glasgow international airport a week ago and there are no noticeable changes there except for the barricade from the car bomb a couple of weeks ago. And by the way, "Sports Travel" magazine says it's about $168 billion sports travel industry. We've had major events over on our side of the pond. We've had ones here, Wimbledon and, of course, the British open. And it really shouldn't affect that number. I think people generally are going about their business.
ROESGEN: Rick, do you think that this sort of security here for the British open will lead to tighter security at major sporting events all around the world, including here in the U.S.?
HARROW: Well of course, in the United States there are court suits going on about pat downs and the legality of them. There are five NFL cities where the judges have said you can pat down. There is always the issue of convenience versus security. Security is tending to win. And, of course, over here, golf tourism is a huge business and for me, by the way, a new study suggests the odds of becoming a pro golfer are 1 in 140,000. Nevertheless, I'm playing about 216 holes over here, 12 rounds in seven days, trying to get there.
ROESGEN: Just keep going, Rick, and leave the cell phone at home.
HARROW: I'm doing it. See you later.
ROESGEN: Thanks, Rick. And we will be going back to Scotland in the 10:00 Eastern hour for a live report on today's play at the British open.
HOMES: All right. The wait is over. Harry Potter fans scooping up the latest and the last adventure starring the boy wizard. Harry Potter fans lined up at book stores across the country and got their hands on the book when it went on sale. And it went on sale a minute after midnight. And you have to be silly to think that this book is not going to be a best seller, just like all -- why even talk about it. It's a best seller, no question about it. All of them have been. There's a whole lot more going on the web about this book. But wait there's more.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But wait there's more.
HOLMES: And you have it.
DE LA CRUZ: And it's all over the web. And, you know, the web has been crawling with all things Potter. We wanted to share what we found. This has been posted to YouTube. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not in the queue. And the Harry Potter book is going to be on sale in like, I don't know, eight minutes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: Well, just based on the accents, where do you think this was shot?
HOLMES: Well, she said queue. That has to be over in London.
DE LA CRUZ: Right, the west coast of Britain. There's actually a countdown as they roll the books out. Look at that.
HOLMES: Oh, wow.
DE LA CRUZ: And this happened in stores all over the world, T.J..
HOLMES: Exciting, a book.
DE LA CRUZ: Stop, stop.
HOLMES: How wonderful
DE LA CRUZ: This book means a lot to a lot of people out there.
HOLMES: Wait until the new dictionary comes out.
DE LA CRUZ: You're horrible. You are horrible. You know, the person who shot this video said that everyone was going mad inside of this Borders bookstore. I'm going to let them have their moment, since you won't.
HOLMES: I'll let them have it. It's cute. It's nice. To see kids excited about a book, that is wonderful.
DE LA CRUZ: That was the countdown. I want to show you a couple of kids excited about this book. This is an I-report that we received from Wendi Munson in Ohio. She says her children got the first Potter book at the bookstore that they visited. They attended a party before hand and it was thrown in the mall where the books were being sold. They are very cute. They're very cute.
HOLMES: That's very cute
DE LA CRUZ: And she says that her children stayed up and read the books all night, but she's not sure if they finished them.
HOLMES: The two had to get two books? The book's in the same house. Why can't they share the book?
DE LA CRUZ: Hey, they want to read the book at the same time.
HOLMES: I'm just saying. I'm sorry. Go ahead.
DE LA CRUZ: Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.
HOLMES: I've been hearing about this boy wizard for about 12 years now.
DE LA CRUZ: OK, OK. So finally, let's go and check that quick vote. We've been asking you if you are planning on reading the new Harry Potter book. 71 percent of you say no. You feel just like T.J. You are not reading the book. And 70,000 people have voted so far. T.J., just to kind of go along with your thoughts and feelings this morning, this e-mail from Ed Baker says, what is a Potter book and why should I buy it? And that's from our viewer Ed Baker. So I know that you and Ed feel the same way. Maybe that means that we should just stop talking about Harry Potter this morning.
HOLMES: It's a phenomenon and it's a wonderful thing to get the kids reading. It doesn't appeal ...
DE LA CRUZ: Don't you think? I think it is.
HOLMES: And one of our floor directors right here is very excited.
DE LA CRUZ: She's shaking her head. She can't believe you this morning.
HOLMES: She's giddy about this book. Thank you, Veronica. I'm going to get there.
ROESGEN: T.J. I think is going to wind up watching the movies.
HOLMES: I'll go watch all the movies.
ROESGEN: Talking about being caught on camera now. They look like cute kids at first glance, but take a closer look. The police say these kids were doing a lot more than just playing with the puppies in the pet store.
HOLMES: Wow. Also, we got some more outrageous video to show you here. Teens attack an elderly woman and steal her scooter. Stick around for this horrible story here. We'll get the details of that. Pathetic. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ROESGEN: Time for a trip to the water cooler. Some crazy video this morning like this.
HOLMES: That is just ...
ROESGEN: Two young people knocking an elderly woman off of her Honda scooter just as she was about to pull into her condo garage in Kansas City. It looks like the garage almost fell on her.
HOLMES: She was -- she put up a pretty good effort. She's trying to hold on to that wheel. But the thugs finally got the scooter from her and took off.
ROESGEN: But the story has a happy ending because a local radio station and a local motorcycle dealership gave the woman a new Honda.
HOLMES: So that's good to hear. My goodness, we've seen those video out of New York, people beating up elderly people. It's horrible to see going after the elderly. Anybody really, but the elderly? Come on, guys.
Also, our Betty, little Betty on vacation now. Betty just had to be involved in the show this weekend. She e-mailed us to tell us about this custom bicycle. It's made with a Longhorn fan in mind.
ROESGEN: Look at those handle bars.
HOLMES: Yeah.
ROESGEN: This is a real Longhorn fan. It's a bike dealer in Austin, home of the University of Texas Longhorns, of course.
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