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CNN Saturday Morning News

President Campaigns in Florida; Political Analysts Review Parties' National Conventions; Child with Down Syndrome Banned from Plane Flight; U.S. Open Continues; Teachers Union on Strike in Chicago; Woman Saves Dog from Gas Chamber in North Carolina

Aired September 08, 2012 - 10:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: According to most Americans, it's the only thing that matters this election. We're talking jobs, what the August report means for November.

It's got sunny beaches and tanned bodies, but it's those 29 electoral votes that have the candidates coming back for more. All morning, we're putting Florida in focus.

His killing exposed Operation Fast and Furious. Now an arrest in Mexico for the death of the U.S. border agent.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye. It is 10:00 on the east coast, 7:00 a.m. on the west.

We begin with president Obama urging voters to stick with him in November as he hits the campaign trail in the battleground statement of Florida this morning. But a very disappointing jobs report in the heat of the summer may cool off his message. Even the president says the jobs growth is not good enough. Employers hit the brakes on hiring in August. The economy added only 96,000 jobs, well below expectations, while unemployment fell to 8.1 percent. That's largely because many people have simply quit looking for work. But the president did try to put a positive spin on things.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: After losing 800,000 jobs a month when I took office, businesses have added jobs for the 30th month in a row. We've added more than 4.6 million jobs. But we know that that's not good enough. We can do better. We need to create jobs even faster. We need to fill the hole left by this recession. We need to come out of this crisis stronger than when we went in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: The dismal jobs numbers are giving Mitt Romney a fresh opening to slam the president's economic leadership. Campaigning in Iowa and New Hampshire yesterday, the Republican presidential nominee called the employment rate a national tragedy and he said millions of unemployed Americans are paying the price for Obama's broken promises.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He said that he'd create jobs, and instead, we have unemployment now still over 8 percent for 43 straight months. He said by now, it would be down to 5.4 percent. Now, by the way, those numbers, 8.1, 5.4, what difference do they make? Let me tell you what difference they make. The difference in those numbers is 9 million Americans working. That's the difference.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Romney is taking his bid directly to the voters today. He's heading to the battleground state of Virginia, where recent polls show the president with a slight edge over Romney. He's up 49 percent-45 percent over his Republican rival. You see it there.

CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is shaping up to be a close race. So, Paul, tell us what that means for the candidates' travel schedules.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: That means you're going to see them over and over and over here in Virginia. Randi, Mitt Romney, this is his seventh trip to Virginia since the general elections started. Remember, where did he announce his running mate, Paul Ryan, last month? Not far from here.

I'm in Virginia Beach and he made the announcement close by in Norfolk. President Obama's been here seven times, seven trips since the start of the general election. And when he had his first rallies, they were in Ohio and here in Virginia. Just shows how important the state is, both sides spending a lot of money on ads, too. Check out this new ad by Mitt Romney that started running here this morning, one of three running in Virginia. This deals with the defense industry jobs and military jobs. A lot of those kinds of jobs here in Norfolk and Virginia beach.

Randi, I'm here at the military aviation museum. You can see off to the right here some of the old world war II planes, very pretty. And Mitt Romney is coming here about three hours from now, one of two rallies in Virginia today. He'll also be in Richmond, Virginia. That's the scene from here. Back to you.

KAYE: The Romney team, of course, Paul, launching this ad blitz in Virginia and other battleground states. Is there a main theme?

STEINHAUSER: Yes. You know, a lot of these ads are about jobs and about the economy. All these ads are using clips from Mitt Romney from his big speech, his acceptance speech at the Republican convention in Tampa two weeks ago now, or a week and a half ago, so you're seeing a lot of those clips. And the Romney campaign is going to continue to hammer the president on the economy. They want this election, this campaign to be all about president Obama, a referendum on what he's done, especially when it comes to jobs. The Obama campaign, Randi, it's just the opposite. They want this to be a choice election between what president Obama would do in four more years and what Mitt Romney would do if he went to the White House. Randi?

KAYE: Paul Steinhauser with the Election Express behind you, thank you.

Obama is on the road in Florida this morning, trying to push his own plan to move the nation forward. This is a live look from St. Petersburg College, where the president will speak this hour. He's kicking off a two-day bus tour in the key battleground state. Chief White House correspondent Jessica Yellin is waiting for his arrival. Jessica, good morning. Obama is selling his message, too, right? So, what groups is he targeting?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Randi. Well, here in the state of Florida, as you mentioned, an electoral- rich state that would really help the president, get him over the edge to the 270 he needs to win. A couple of key demographic groups, Latino voters heavily based in this part of Florida. Also, of course, seniors dispersed throughout the state, but here and on the east coast. Then young voters, all of them demographic groups, constituencies that he targets everywhere, but especially rich in Florida. Randi.

KAYE: And why here at a college campus? Is that to get those young voters? Because they haven't been showing him the love like they did in 2008 so far.

YELLIN: That's right. You know, in 2008, we all talked about the youth vote. What really happened there was young voters turned out in about the same numbers, but more of them went for president Obama than they have gone traditionally for one candidate over another. This year they just don't seem as excited. So, yes, at a college that used to be a two-year college, it's become a four-year college, heavy attendance, almost 70,000 students rotate in and out, and so this is a campus that draws a lot of attention. And note, I expect that you could hear him talk about some of the initiatives he's passed to try to encourage college attendance and make college more affordable for young people.

KAYE: And he's also campaigning with former Florida Republican governor Charlie crist. What do you think of that? Is that a risky move for him?

YELLIN: I don't think it's risky. I'm not sure so much as, a little maybe risky for Charlie Crist and his political future. I don't know, maybe he'll switch to democrat after this. But for the president, it does two things. One, it shows his bipartisan credentials to some extent, that he can still woo someone who's a quasi-Republican, if you consider Crist that. And two, maybe it gives him some outreach potential to those Republican voters who went for Obama in 2008 and are thinking about doing it again. Maybe it gives him some olive branch opportunity to them. Not sure. We'll see.

KAYE: And where is the president off to tomorrow?

YELLIN: Tomorrow he heads to the other coast, to the east coast of Florida, will be in Melbourne and West Palm Beach. So, we're taking a bus tour across the state.

KAYE: You sure are, racking up those miles. Jessica Yellin, thank you very much. Appreciate that.

YELLIN: Focusing on Florida, it's a toss-up right now in the presidential race. We'll check out the battle for the sunshine state, Obama versus Romney on jobs, the economy, jobs, and did I mention jobs? Yes. Maria Cardona and Amy Holmes standing by ready to tee it up and tell us what each candidate needs to do to let the sunshine in.

But first, here's a question for all of you political junkies out there. Since 1930, has any candidate won the presidential election without winning Florida? The answer's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Before the break, I asked if any candidate since 1930 has won the White House without winning Florida? Well, actually, it's happened twice. Maybe you knew this. In 1992, Bill Clinton did it, and John F. Kennedy did it back in 1960.

President Obama, of course, is in Florida this morning, trying to capitalize on his convention momentum. We said the same thing about Mitt Romney last week right after their convention. It just illustrates how important and how close the race is there, and that's why we're focusing on Florida this weekend.

Joining me now, as they do every Saturday, CNN contributor Maria Cardona and Amy Holmes, anchor for GBTV's "Real News." We'll get to Florida in a moment as we get ready for the president's appearance coming up live here on CNN, but first, Maria, let's start with you this morning. Let's take a quick look back at the Democratic convention. We know that lots of folks saying Michelle Obama knocked it out of the park. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama were no slouches either, of course. So who other than someone named Clinton or Obama really impressed you?

MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I think that one of the other speeches that really stuck out for me, and I know was a big hit at the convention and with folks around the country was our keynote speaker, the first Latino ever for a DNC keynote speaker, Julian Castro. And he really, I think, impressed the crowd not just with his personal story, but with his argument about how his personal story was not just the quintessential American story, but it was a story that was possible only in this great country and that the opportunities that were available to him to make him successful are the opportunities that are at stake in this election and that it was Obama's policies that he's put in place and will continue to put in place to make sure that that American dream that he is now fulfilling is going to be available to everybody, regardless of how much money you make, where you come from, what family you were born into, because that is the quintessential American story, and we want to make sure that that continues for generations to come. I thought it was an amazing speech.

KAYE: It was also nice to see his mom sitting there and looking on as well. Very emotional moment.

CARDONA: And his daughter. KAYE: Yes.

CARDONA: His daughter, I think, was the big rock star there.

KAYE: Amy, who did you like?

AMY HOLMES, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, I always like, as Maria was talking about, politicians who talk about the American dream and up by the bootstraps and what's great about this country, but I have to say, I really sort of loved Jennifer Granholm. I love my politics rowdy, I love my politicians off the cuff.

KAYE: She was rowdy.

HOLMES: She was. I was watching this and there was a growing sense of disbelief that it was getting bigger and bigger. Some saying it was a Howard Dean moment, but I love unscripted moments in politics, and that was certainly one of them.

KAYE: Yes, certainly. Amy, you're a registered independent.

HOLMES: I am.

KAYE: So, looking at both conventions, who do you think did a better job in the end of selling themselves to the undecided voter?

HOLMES: You know, I think that's interesting. Usually, you know, the roles are reversed, that Republicans sort of have their fringe elements that are getting people off message and they're doing the post-convention cleanup with that. In this case, I think you saw the Democrats that were of message. You saw the fracas about taking god out of the platform, putting god back in. And I think for those reasons that maybe Republicans did a better job of staying disciplined, on message, very targeted at independent voters.

And you hear with Mitt Romney's convention speech, towards voters who voted for Obama in 2008 but were disappointed with the president's performance, and he was trying to persuade those voters to switch tickets and move to the GOP. We'll see if that pitch worked, but I think it looked like, honestly, that the Republican convention was far more tailored to that audience.

KAYE: Maria, what do you think?

CARDONA: Well, clearly, I disagree with my friend, Amy.

KAYE: Really?

CARDONA: Imagine that. I think the general consensus has been that it's actually the Democratic convention that was much more on message, that was much more talking specifically about what the Democratic Party is offering in this election cycle, the contrast, the stark contrast between a party who's going to be fighting every single day for the middle class, for the workers in this country, those who have been hardest hit by the recession, versus a Republican party -- and I think Amy's right in this part, that they were specifically tailoring their message to the very small enclave of those who actually believe the message that, you know, if you trickle down -- and going back to what Clinton said, they're doubling down on trickle-down. And if your focus is on trickle-down economics, that means that you're only there to help those who have been as prosperous as Mitt Romney. And so, I think that that is not a message that is going to be resonating with swing voters, with women, with Latinos, with, frankly, the larger coalition of voters that Mitt Romney's going to need to win.

KAYE: Let's talk about Florida. The president is in Florida. The latest ORC poll has Obama with a four-point lead in the state, but that's still too close to call, of course. So, who has the advantage there and how important is the state to the final tally? Maria, I'll start with you first on that one.

CARDONA: Sure. To your point, it's a very close call right now. Obama is up by a couple points, but that's within the margin of error. So I don't think either candidate has a huge advantage right now. But I think moving forward, Obama is going to have the advantage in terms of the messages, and specifically to the audiences that are so important in winning Florida.

And I think coming out of the convention, for example, he can talk about Medicare. Clinton was beautiful in terms of really setting the record straight on where Medicare stands and the lies that Romney and Ryan have been perpetrating on that. And Latinos, let's talk about Latinos and where Mitt Romney is. I think that is going to be terrible for them in terms of their Latino message, because they have none.

Women as well, young people, folks who are losing their homes. Democrats are going to be reminding people that Mitt Romney basically said that he wants the mortgage industry to hit bottom, and that's his fix.

KAYE: All right, let me stop you there. I know you can keep going. Amy, what about you?

HOLMES: Well, interestingly, polling data showed that seniors in Florida actually liked Paul Ryan. They sort of think of him, I imagine, as their grandson if he had a little bit of ambition. So, and the push granny off the cliff ad did not do well with those senior voters. I think, as Maria says, Florida is razor-thin. It has been in past elections, as we know. I think the home foreclosure crisis in Florida is something that could hurt President Obama, who hasn't been able to turn that around in the last four years. But again, I think this will be a slugfest down to November. And these issues cut both ways for both parties.

KAYE: Yes. We only have a minute left, so quickly, Amy, starting with you. Ann Romney really trying to stay on message when she gave this interview to this Iowa television station. She was asked about her views on same-sex marriage and about employer-provided health insurance and whether or not it should cover birth control. She kept pushing let my husband handle that, I am not going to make a comment about that. How do you think she handled that? HOLMES: Well, I think that's a tough one for political wives. We know that Laura Bush, for example, she said that she was pro-choice, which was, you know, contrary to her husband's position on this. I think where Ann Romney can really be an asset to Mitt Romney and has been an asset to Mitt Romney is helping Mitt Romney connect emotionally with voters. So, when she deflected those questions, I don't know what her personal views are on that, but I don't think voters are going to be holding her accountable for those views.

KAYE: Maria, very quickly on that.

CARDONA: I agree. The candidate's wife is not the one who is pushing the policies, so I don't think it's fair to either criticize her for deflecting or criticizing her for not answering the questions. So, I think she did the right thing. I think her asset is that she is a character witness for Mitt Romney, which for right now he desperately needs, so she should continue to try to do that.

KAYE: You always get that little dig in.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: All right, listen, nice to see you both. Hopefully, you'll be watching the president speak on CNN. We'll be taking that speech live from Florida coming up a little bit later this hour. Maria Cardona, Amy Holmes, thank you both.

HOLMES: Thank you.

CARDONA: Thanks so much, Randi.

KAYE: Serena Williams dominating her opponents, and now she's earned a trip to the finals of the U.S. Open. We will take you there live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: A soggy good morning to New York City. Look at that there. It's sort of a dreary shot of Columbus Circle. You can see there's the beautiful statue normally in the middle there, but they are working on it, doing some construction there, maybe cleaning it up. But that where you're looking right now is not very far from where Serena Williams will be playing tonight under the lights at the U.S. Open. Hopefully, the rain will hold off just a short subway ride away from there.

She is one of the top power players in tennis, but a year ago Serena Williams says she was on her death bed due to a mystery illness. As the saying goes, what a difference a year makes. Serena is back in form on the court, racking up an Olympic gold medal and a Wimbledon championship in recent months, and she is looking to add to those this weekend as she plays in the U.S. Open finals.

Don Riddell joins me now from New York, also dealing with some rain there, Don. Good morning to you. So, how's it looking for Serena tonight? Do you think they'll get a chance to play? DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Honestly, I don't know. It's quite amusing, Randi. A lot of people are arriving here in t-shirts and flip-flops, obviously quite nice when they commenced their journey to flushing meadows this morning. Now it is absolutely miserable. People are walking past me absolutely drenched.

Of course, there's a way to go until the ladies final tonight, but there's three huge matches to be played on this super Saturday, two men's semifinals first, then Serena versus Victoria Azarenka tonight, and the forecast is not good. They knew the weather wasn't going to be good today, so they moved the start of play from noon up until 11:00 a.m., but I don't think they're going to be able to start at 11:00 and I think it's unlikely they're going to get all three matches today, but we can only hope.

KAYE: On the men's side, when they do finally get to play, the men's semifinals will be pretty exciting. Obviously, I'm excited to see Federer go, but Novak Djokovic is still in there, Andy Murray, correct?

RIDDELL: Yes, and I think the fans here would expect to see Djokovic/Murray final. Of course, that's no disrespect to their semifinal opponents. And Djokovic, the defending champion is really looking absolutely brilliant. And on this hard court surface, he is second to known certainly this season. In the last three hard court grand slam tournaments, he's won them. He's won 23 out of 23 matches in grand slam hard court tournaments. He hasn't dropped a set here yet this year and he's looking absolutely brilliant. Some of his tennis has been absolutely breathtaking. I would certainly expect him to get past David Ferrer and into the final to meet Andy Murray or Tomas Berdych. And Murray is hoping for the win. In the past, he's had mental issues and sort of struggled to overcome the top three players, but I think he'll fancy his chances this year if he can get to the final.

And for Serena, the fans here are expecting to see another brilliant display. She has been absolutely unstoppable in this tournament so far, six wins out of six. She hasn't dropped a set. He she's only lost 19 games. Azarenka's the world number one and the Australian open champion, but I don't think she'll get close to Serena tonight.

KAYE: No. That will be an amazing match, and hopefully, rant will stop and we'll be able to see it. Don Riddell, thank you so much.

It is a dog story that even cat lovers will find touching. A woman falls in love with a puppy in need of a home, but her adoption efforts turned to rescue after she discovers the dog's alarming background. The shocking story of Blue and thousands of others just like him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The recent financial crisis hasn't just been tearing at Americans' wallets, but their hearts, too, as many pet owners risk losing their furry friends because of the economic downturn. This week's CNN hero is helping hundreds of families keep their dogs healthy, out of shelters, and at their sides as they struggle to get back on their feet. Meet Marla Manning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good boy. Charlie means everything to us. He was diagnosed with cancer about two years ago. We went with the amputation, and he's been doing great, but a couple of days ago, he had this other growth on his chest.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Given the fact that he had an aggressive type of tumor, things like this should really come off.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I recently got laid off, and we're expecting our first baby. We were faced with this huge vet bill, and we were just at a loss.

MARLA MANNING, CNN HERO: I think we definitely will be able to help you out. I know how much you love your dog.

With the economy being what it is, people are faced with the choice of having to give up their dogs because they just can't afford them anymore. They're doing their best to get back on track, and then a crisis happens with their dog, and it's just one more thing.

I'm Marla Manning, and I lost a beloved puppy named ladybug. Now I provide temporary aid to dog owners, keeping the dogs healthy, out of shelters and with loving families.

Dogs live in the moment, they bring happiness no matter where you are in your life. If we can help with food, medical visits or even surgery to keep this family together, they're able to take that burden away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks, sweetie!

MANNING: We're going to put our maximum amount on Charlie, which is $800.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was just such a blessing and we'll be forever grateful that Charlie gets a second chance. It means so much to us.

MANNING: What we do is a tribute to Ladybug. If I had to go through the grief to find this path, then we were meant to lose her so we could be inspired to help others.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Marla has helped nearly 400 dogs in Massachusetts remain with their families. To learn more about her work, her incredible work, visit CNNheroes.com. And in just two weeks we'll be announcing the top ten CNN heroes for 2012.

A teenage boy with Down syndrome was told he was a security risk and couldn't board an airplane. Now the family is filing a lawsuit. You'll hear why the father calls it discrimination.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye. It's 31 minutes past the hour. Here are some stories that we're watching right now. Live pictures, if you take a look here, President Obama in Florida this morning. That's not him speaking there, but he will be speaking shortly. He kicks of a two-day bus tour across the state. He's got stops in Pinellas County near St. Pete and then he'll move on to Kissimmee next to Orlando. We'll take you live to the St. Pete event as soon as the president starts speaking later this hour.

The Pentagon says the bombshell tell-all "No Easy Day" recounting the Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden is wrong. CNN has learned exclusively that the head of the U.S. special operations contacted members of the covert team to find out if the book's version of the death was accurate. "No Easy Day," author and former SEAL claims that bin Laden had been shot already and was lying on the floor of his room convulsing when Matt Bissonnet and others entered. He says he shot bin Laden again until he was motionless, but senior officials say that is not what happened. According to other SEALs, they say the Al Qaeda leader was standing when they entered his room and they shot him because he was a threat.

A gunman wanted for two years in the killing of a border patrol agent is under arrest. Agent Brian Terry's death triggered a national investigation into the botched gun-smuggling sting Operation Fast and Furious. He was killed in a firefight in 2010 and two guns found at that scene were linked to "fast and furious." now Mexican police have arrested Sanchez Jesus Meza south of the border, the second arrested in the case. Three others remain on the run.

All morning we've been telling you about the 16-year-old boy with Down syndrome who wasn't allowed on an American Airlines flight because the pilot thought he was a security risk. Now the family is claiming discrimination with a lawsuit, but the airline says it is about safety. Earlier, I spoke with the boy's father, Robert Vanderhorst, on the phone.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Good morning, Robert. An incredible story of what happened with your son there at the airport. Have you heard from American airlines since the incident? And have they refunded your upgrade fee to first class?

ROBERT VANDERHORST, TEEN'S FATHER: I have not heard from either airline, American Airlines or United, since the events of last Sunday.

KAYE: CNN reached out to American airlines. They released this statement, quote "American's actions and procedures are in full compliance with the air carrier access act. We do not have a formally lodged complaint from the family, but the refund of the upgrade is in process. However, because of the denied boarding, we must respond to the family in writing within 10 days of travel. The Vanderhorst family will hear from us very soon." What do you make of that response? And tell me how your son is doing.

VANDERHORST: First of all, to the American airline response, you know, they are such chickens. They could pick up the phone and call me, they could e-mail me. I haven't heard from them directly. So, all I know is what people tell me they've said, OK?

The next thing is, you know, this has been so upsetting to my wife, my son and myself, you know, to be treated this way, and it's all because we dared to upgrade our coach tickets to first class.

KAYE: Based on the airline's statement, though, do you still plan to sue?

VANDERHORST: Absolutely. We've lawyered up.

KAYE: On what grounds?

VANDERHORST: Well, the attorneys that I've spoken to, they believe that there may be an Americans with Disability Act claim. They believe we can venue this case in California, where we have the state disabilities laws in our favor, the UNRUH act, u-n-r-u-h, and they believe there may also be some common law or statutory claims that we can also make.

KAYE: The airline has been saying it had safety concerns and they were concerned about your son's behavior, concerns about his proximity to the cockpit. What do you make of that? How was your son behaving there?

VANDERHORST: Well, the airline's statements as they relate to my son's behavior are all lies. They are defaming my son. They say that he was excited and agitated, that they spent a half hour with the family trying to calm him down. The only time they spent with us was to try to tell us that there were special rules for this little boy to ride on their plane, rules that they didn't try to impose on anyone else traveling with a child.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: They ended up flying home after being booked on a flight from united airlines, but they were given seats at the back of that airplane.

Ahead, a remarkable story you do not want to miss. Hear how this adorable dog was saved from a gas chamber in North Carolina. Now his owner has written a book about the ordeal. Turns out, this dog's story is not so uncommon. Keep it here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: For my next guest, all it took was a picture, just one picture posted online for her to fall in love, and who can blame her? This adorable little puppy was in desperate need of a home. His picture was posted on petfinder.com, and Kim Kavin was smitten. She named her new dog Blue, but what she discovered about his background might shock you. Blue was just a day away from the gas chamber, this very gas chamber right there, a fate thousands of other innocent animals face every single day across America, and you, the taxpayer, are footing the Bill. Kavin writes about her discovery in "Little Boy Blue, A Puppy's Rescue from Death Row and his Owner's Journey for Truth." And Kim Kavin joins me now from New York along with Blue. Good morning, Kim. So nice of you to bring blue to the studio this morning, he looks great.

KIM KAVIN, ANIMAL ADVOCATE: Good morning. We're trying to get him to look at the camera for you, Randi.

KAYE: I see you brought some treats, so that was a good idea. But let's talk about how you and Blue came to be. You live in New Jersey, and unbeknownst to you, Blue was in North Carolina when you found him online. Tell viewers how he made it from rural North Carolina to your home in New Jersey.

KAVIN: Well, the way that petfinder.com is working these days is that rescue groups in the south, where there are very, very high-rate kill shelters, are working hand in hand with rescue groups in the north. So, a rescuer named Rhonda Beach pulled Blue out of the shelter in rural North Carolina, and she worked with a group up in Pennsylvania which marketed him for adoption. So, when I typed my zip code in to Pet Finder, he came up, even though he was really 500 miles away. And then it was just a matter of whether he was going to come by RV or by private plane, which sounded crazy to me at first, but then I started to understand how Blue's story is really the story of rescue all across America.

KAYE: Absolutely, and you were actually able to track down the shelter where Blue was basically pulled from death row. It's in a very small town in North Carolina. You traveled there and you discovered some pretty disturbing things. Tell us about that.

KAVIN: I did. I had heard rumors before I went down there that this shelter was killing more than 90 percent of the dogs that were left in its care, unless the community intervenes. So, first thing I did was get a hold of their records through the freedom of information act. And it turned out to be true. Year after year after year, unless volunteers come in and get dogs like blue out, 95 percent of those dogs are being killed. They have very long rows of cages, very few cages for the dogs that are to be saved, and the cages sit right next to the gas chamber. The dogs can hear it, they can hear the other dogs inside of. It's rather horrible to see.

KAYE: You also write that killing dogs and cats in gas chambers is banned in many states, but in those other states, it's either legal or there are no laws on the books. North Carolina you say is the worst offender. The number, 95 percent being killed there is just horrible to hear. But we contacted Animal Control, who tells us they will now phase out the gas chamber by July 1st, 2013. Director Ronald Shaw denied that your book is the reason why and blue's story is the reason why, but he did tell us "The gas chamber's not cruel, but animal activists don't agree with it and I'm fed up with dealing with it." I want to get your response to that his comments saying that the gas chamber isn't a cruel way for animals to die.

KAVIN: Well, I think that we have a different opinion of cruelty. To me, when you put a dog like Blue into a metal box and suck the oxygen out of it while he's conscious and they scream and they cry and they claw and try to get out, that to me doesn't sound anything like euthanasia, and that's why it's banned in 22 states. That's why there's a ban before Congress right now to try to get rid of these gas chambers all over the country. And I would say that people fed up with animal people trying to save dogs like blue should do their job and start saving the dogs themselves.

KAYE: What was the attitude when you went down to the shelter? What was the attitude of the workers there? Were they sort of out of touch with what was happening to these animals?

KAVIN: No, everyone's very aware of what's going on there. And I tried very hard in "Little Boy Blue" to be fair to these folks. You know, they are dealing with -- they're in a rural area. There are not a lot of adopters. The economy is very bad right now. And they need help is what they need. They don't necessarily have the tools and the skills to do what they need to do. In some cases, they're not trying to do what they need to do. In some cases, they need a little bit of help.

KAYE: Let me share one passage from your book that really struck me, and it reads this, "If just two in four people, instead of one and four people, went to shelters instead of breeders or pet stores to get their next dog, then the entire problem of killing dogs like blue would be statistically eliminated across the country." I mean, that is pretty remarkable. So, I guess, Kim, why don't more people adopt from shelters? I mean, how do activists like yourself discourage people from going to breeders and getting those sorts of puppies?

KAVIN: I think there's two things at play there, Randi. I think the first thing is that all of us have been marketed to, since we were children, to believe that purebreds are quite simply better. Nobody's going to pay $1,000 or $2,000 for a purebred puppy if they believe that a dog like Blue who they can get for a couple hundred bucks from a shelter, is just as good. So, the first problem is marketing. We have fallen prey to marketing.

The second problem I think is that people don't want to step in to shelters, and I completely understand that. I had to go in to several of them to report "Little Boy Blue," and it's heartbreaking. And you don't want to walk in there, especially if you have kids, but that's the thing about petfinder.com and why I'm thrilled barons is donating a portion of the proceeds to the Pet Finder Foundation. You can go online like I did, click on the picture and the rescue groups have done all the hard work for you. You don't even have to get out of bed. You can adopt a dog.

KAYE: I know it is tough to take your children to the shelter, but what a great lesson to save a life of the puppies. You also write about fostering animals in need, spay and neuter them, but you have fostered several dogs, including the one you just adopted this week. This is Ginger, correct, right, Blue's new sister?

KAVIN: That's right. Spay and neuter is the ultimate solution, but we also have to help the ones who are already here, and ginger is my 19th foster dog with lulu's rescue since I wrote the book. KAYE: She is adorable.

KAVIN: We tried to adopt her out and she's like blue was, nervous around people, and probably rightfully so, and I got tired of people doing to her what they did to her. She's not unadoptable, she's wonderful. She loves us and we love her. We're a happy family.

KAYE: I think the two of them are certainly lucky to have you, as we looked at all the pictures of them. They are adorable, and please, thank blue for coming in and being on his best behavior.

KAVIN: Thank you, Randi.

KAYE: Author Kim Kavin. Once again, Kim's book is called "Little Boy Blue," and it's in stores right now. What a cute puppy.

School may get out early for hundreds of thousands of school children in Chicago. We'll tell you why the teachers are threatening to strike.

Plus, a 12-year-old girl found this class ring at the bottom of a lake, and here's the shocker, she had just met the woman who lost that same ring back in 1986.

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KAYE: Checking stories making news cross country. First to Texas, where lawmakers have approved a new highway with the highest speed limit in the country, 85 miles per hour. It's on a 41-mile stretch of highway that connects Austin to San Antonio. Critics say higher speed limits mean more deadly crashes.

Now to New York, where a man whose name is David Fortune, well, just won a fortune. He won $5 million playing a scratch-off lottery game. He says he used to be teased for his name.

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DAVID FORTUNE, LOTTERY WINNER: When I was a kid, fortune cookie, fortune teller, you know, wife was Miss Fortune. Take some time off and maybe get a new vehicle, you know and certain charities that I have in mind.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Fortune says he thought the ticket was a loser at first and nearly threw it out. After taxes, it's about $3.3 million.

And in Michigan, another story of incredible luck. A 12-year-old girl found a class ring at the bottom of lake St. Clair, and the won who had lost that same ring back in 1986 was swimming right beside that girl.

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HANNAH JOHNSTON, FOUND RING: I was reaching under and I felt, like, this circle thing that was about that tiny.

LAURIE LUKASZEWSKI, RING OWNER: I said, does it say "South Lake High School"? And she's like trying to look and read it, and she's like five feet away from me. And I run over and I'm like, yes, it's us!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: She said she had lost the ring while throwing rocks in the lake with her boyfriend more than 25 years ago. She says she's dreamed about finding it and always expected that it would be worn out, but it is in good shape and even still has her inscription right on it.

Most classrooms in the nation's third largest public schools system could be empty on Monday, and that is because teachers in Chicago are threatening to go on strike if they don't get a new contract. Negotiations are scheduled for today, but if there is no breakthrough, this would be Chicago's first teachers strike in a quarter century. And as CNN's Ted Rowlands reports, the walkout could have big repercussions around the country.

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TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mike Edmond is one of thousands of Chicago parents that has to figure out what to do with their children Monday morning if teachers go on strike.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's really going on, I don't know. I just know it's affecting my six-year-old.

ROWLANDS: More than 400,000 kids will be affected if teachers walk. At issue is pay, job security, and how to deal with new, longer school days. Teachers say they know the rest of the country is watching closely because these issues are playing out in other cities. They also believe that that playing a role here and in other cities is an antiunion sentiment that's recently intensified around the country.

BRANDON JOHNSON, CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION: It is playing a part. And I think what's most disconcerting is that you have Democratic mayors all over the country leading the charge on attempting to destroy the public sector, particularly, you know, public school teachers unions.

ROWLANDS: The democratic mayor in Chicago, of course, is Rahm Emanuel, who union leaders say is working against them. Emanuel declined an interview with CNN to address the accusation. He gave us a statement about Chicago's school children, which reads in part, "Every day they're not there is a day taken away from them that they just cannot afford. Leaders on both sides need to stay at the negotiating table and finish their job, finding a solution that is fair for our teachers and keeps our students in school."

Some parents we talked to believe the school board and mayor are playing hardball with teachers that deserve more respect. Others are not so sympathetic to teachers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They have more days off, more vacations than any other profession I know of. ROWLANDS: Negotiations went into the evening Friday. Both sides are vowing to work over the weekend to try to come up with a deal so that a strike can be averted.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Chicago.

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KAYE: And we are standing by, we should remind you, for President Obama's speech. He is expected to take the stage any minute now at a rally in the key battleground state of Florida, and we'll be sure to bring it to you live.

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KAYE: As we've been telling you, president Obama is in Florida today. You're looking there on the other side of the screen of a live look from St. Petersburg College in Pinellas County, Florida, where the president is set to speak.

Obama's approval rating now at a 15-month high in a new Gallup poll, a bit of a bounce from the DNC, from the convention. No doubt Obama will be pushing his jobs message in western Florida today. Florida, as you know, is where 29 electoral votes.

Both candidates really talking jobs. Mitt Romney's in Virginia today as well. They'll be talking jobs. Obama, as we said, is on this college campus. He's certainly trying to recapture some of the youth vote that he has lost since all the passion for him back in 2008 from that specific group. So, we'll continue to wait here. We do expect the president to come out really any moment now, and we'll bring that to you live.

Meanwhile, we have much more ahead in the next hour of CNN Saturday Morning, which starts right after a quick break.

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