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CNN SATURDAY MORNING NEWS
Oil Still Leaking on Day 61 in Gulf; Saving Wildlife From Oil Spill; Alvin Greene Wins in South Carolina; Tech Gifts for Father's Day
Aired June 19, 2010 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning, everybody. And welcome to this CNN SATURDAY MORNING on this June 19th. I'm T.J. Holmes. Thank you for starting your day right here with us. It's 8:00 where I stand here in Atlanta, Georgia. 7:00 a.m. in Chicago where they are cleaning up today after a mess.
Look at this. Cars damaged, homes damaged by trees and other things falling and flying all around after a band of thunderstorms went through the area late last night. Still, we have thousands of people without power today. Storm also blew out windows to what you know as the Sears Tower but is now officially the Willis Tower there in downtown Chicago. Our Reynolds Wolf is here with me this morning. He is going to tell us now where this dangerous band of thunderstorms is headed.
Also something we're keeping an eye on. You just don't see these that often and that makes them kind of neat, a royal wedding, this one in Sweden. She is the heir to the throne. He is the commoner, if you will. That wedding taking place today, thousands in the streets in Sweden today. We'll take you there live to tell you about this royal and this history-making wedding.
But first, let me give you some of the stories that are making headlines this hour. First, sad story, about four people dead after an Amtrak train hit a vehicle. The train hits a vehicle at a crossing in Independence, Louisiana, on Friday. The victims were all siblings. One of them a pregnant 18-year-old. She was the driver. Her brothers, ages 16, 13, 12, all killed. According to investigators, it appears, they say, that the car did not stop before it tried to cross those tracks.
Also, another story here. The FDA advisory committee says uh-uh to Viagra for women. This, like the name suggests, the nickname suggests, is meant to help women with low sex drives. The drug was first designed to treat depression and then they found some other side effects to it, if you will. The advisory committee found that the so- called little pink pill did not significantly though help a woman's libido. They're also worried about some of the side effects.
Also some security worries at the World Cup happening in South Africa. An English fan got into his team's locker room. That's not supposed to happen. And he got into the locker room not long after Prince William and Prince Harry had just reportedly left that locker room. So this was a pretty big breach of security here. But the club spokesman kind of down playing the incident because no harm was done. But South African police are now investigating.
We turn now to the oil disaster in the Gulf. We are now on day 61. Big job ahead for a lot of folks to try to clean up this spill. There's also some concern about the disaster's effect on the economy. On Monday some oil drilling companies planned to go to court to sue the government. The companies want the Obama administration to lift its six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling.
Charlotte Randolph, who's the president of Lafourche Parish in Louisiana was on "AC 360," last night. She says because of the drilling ban, companies are already planning to move and workers could be laid off.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE CORRESPONDENT: So how has it affected your parish already? I understand companies are already losing business or moving their business and people are being laid off.
CHARLOTTE RANDOLPH, PRES., LAFOURCHE PARISH, LOUISIANA: That's correct. Some of the rigs have used the force major (ph) clause in their contract and are looking -- and are shopping their rigs elsewhere in the world. I passed near a helicopter facility just this afternoon and it's normally full of vehicles from all states and most of the states in the union and it was virtually empty today.
So already this moratorium has impacted us economically. It's a very, very grave concern for us. And it's difficult for America to understand that while we're fighting the oil that's approaching our shores and disturbing our wetlands, we're asking that this industry be allowed to continue. It is something we've attempted to educate America now for the past 20 years. And right now is the only attention we're getting because the oil is coming up to the shore.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Randolph was with the president. You see in this picture here. She was with him when he visited a beach last month. She says she asked the president that time to reconsider the drilling ban because it would devastate the area. She says the president told her it was a necessary time-out.
Meantime, time is critical in protecting wildlife in the oil disaster area. Our David Mattingly is on Okaloosa Island, Florida. Tell us about their plans there. Last hour you were telling us about officials there taking it upon themselves trying to save their beaches but they're also trying to save the wildlife.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, T.J.. Everyone across the panhandle this morning, all these communities bracing for impact and here's why. We've picked these up. These are tar balls that we picked up on the beach at Okaloosa Island yesterday. They've been working really hard to clean these up. They might already all be cleaned up today and they're waiting for the next wave, whenever that might come in. We're getting confirmation this morning that tar balls just like this have also washed ashore in Panama City beach. That's east of here, showing that the oil's continuing to move east, further than it's ever been before. It's moving closer to some prime habitat areas for a very beloved endangered species, the manatee.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (on-camera): It was a very rough winter for the manatees here in Florida. Many of them died because prolonged exposure to the cold. And now there are growing concerns that if the oil comes in here, it could push this endangered species even closer to the brink of extinction. Used to be the manatee's biggest threat was getting hit by boats. Getting hit by an oil spill is unheard of and alarming.
NICOLE ADIMEY, U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE: We don't know how detrimental it will be if they inhale it, if they ingest it, if they're forging in areas where sea grass has been oiled. We have no idea how that's going to impact them.
MATTINGLY: And no one's taking any chances. As the massive BP spill moves east, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Florida has drawn up a plan to move and rescue oiled manatees. Aerial spotters will give them 72 hours notice before the oil reaches a prime manatee habitat. Realistically, how many manatee can you save in 72 hours? How many of them can you move?
ADIMEY: I don't know the answer to that question, but we're going to move as many as we possibly can.
MATTINGLY: So many unknowns on top of an already uncertain future. Ten percent of the known manatee population was just wiped out in Florida, many by the unusually frigid winter. In the waters of Florida's Crystal River, we went looking for survivors, manatees still recovering from the stress of the cold.
PATRICK ROSE, EXEC DIR., SAVE THE MANATEE CLUB: We add to this any levels of mortality from oil, we're looking at things that will take many, many, many years of recovery.
MATTINGLY: It's not hard to spot a manatee here in the warm shallow waters. But sometimes weighing over a half ton, they are hard to rescue. So the threat of an oil spill raises unsettling questions. Rescuing manatees in large numbers has never been done before.
On this trip we're looking for one of the lucky ones. It's right over here, that little thing sticking up out of the water there, that's actually the antenna or the radio device that's attached to the manatee, right over there. Coral, the same manatee I saw in February, in rehab after a winter time rescue. Now released into the wild and slowly recovering. How does she seem to be doing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She is in a nice, quiet cove, a perfect spot to be resting.
MATTINGLY: Protected.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nicely protected.
MATTINGLY: For now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, for now.
MATTINGLY: And it's protection that could easily disappear with a change of wind and current, pushing a new threat and all its unknowns closer to a beleaguered endangered species.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: These fears about the manatee right now are coming right after a week where we saw record numbers of birds being collected that had been oiled, both alive and dead, showing signs that this oil spill continues to have its effect on wildlife all across the Gulf here, T.J..
HOLMES: All right, David Mattingly for us this morning, Okaloosa. We appreciate you. Thanks so much. We'll check in with you again.
And in the next hour of CNN SATURDAY MORNING, we're taking a look at how the spill could affect your wallet. We'll talk to a Florida mayor also who is pushing a boycott of BP gas stations. That's at the top of the hour. A special half hour looking at how you could be affected by this oil spill.
Also, you've seen the devastation. You've heard the complaints. You want to help. Here's a chance to. Join us Monday night for an all- star telethon to help the people in the Gulf. Special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE" event happens at 8:00 Eastern Monday night right here on CNN.
We could see some more strong storms today. Parts of the Midwest, eastern great lakes, Reynolds Wolf, it was a nasty day yesterday. That stuff is not done yet.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: Meanwhile, what do you do out there, folks? You go into the voting booth and you don't really know who the candidates are. But you still go ahead and vote for somebody, don't you? What exactly do you do? A lot of people have creative reasons for pulling the lever, picking that name because it sounds familiar or it rhymes with this or it sounds like that. Some people voted for that guy, maybe because he has the same name as a famous singer. The fire storm now over the election of Al Greene.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back, 13 minutes past the hour right here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Unemployed military veteran Alvin Greene, he is now maybe the most famous Democratic Senate candidate in the country. He has now grabbed the nomination in South Carolina, didn't raise any campaign funds. He didn't have a website. He didn't have campaign rallies. We don't know what he had but he's got a win now. We also know he's facing some criminal charges.
Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser joins us now live with this one. In some ways you want to look at this and say, wow. That's an amazing story of the underdog coming through. In other ways you just want to scratch your head and say what in the world is going on here.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: And it's South Carolina again, T.J., the state that has given us a bunch of scandals and political controversies over the last year. They continue to do that. Alvin Greene, as you mentioned, he won the primary, which was very overshadowed.
Not many people paid attention to it in the media or people in the state. He won by about 20 points. As you said, first of all, he raised that $10,400 filing fee. That's got some Democrats in the state hinting how did he raise that money if he doesn't have a job. Was he a Republican plant? There doesn't seem to be any evidence of that.
As you also mentioned, then he went on, didn't campaign, didn't do a thing. Still won the election by about 20 points over a guy called Vick Rawl (ph), who is a former state lawmaker. Rawl just in the last couple of days said he had serious issues with the campaign. He said he thought maybe there was some irregularities, so the state Democratic executive committee met on Thursday. They decided not to overturn the results, so Alvin Greene is still, still the nominee for the Democrats.
HOLMES: And Paul, Alvin Greene didn't squeak out a victory here. He got 60 percent of the vote. So there was no fraud. There was no evidence of the machines were bad. There was no evidence that he's a Republican plant. Are a lot of people just accepting the fact that the folks went into the voting booth and they weren't informed about the candidates and they just clicked the guy on top with the name they kind of recognized?
STEINHAUSER: A lot of people are fessing up to that right about now. We've seen some quotes and interviews from people in South Carolina who voted for Alvin Greene, yeah, my cousin's last name is Greene. T.J., when you've got two people who basically nobody knows in the state -- nobody knew Alvin Greene and apparently anybody knew Vick Rawls.
So maybe often you would go in there and just make a guess. Alvin Greene's name was ahead, on top of Vick Rawls on the ballot. That could have led to this decision by voters. Either way, people are scratching their heads today. The Democratic party, they have egg on their face and they're trying to figure out what to do T.J..
HOLMES: Right now he's their guy. He's going to have to go up against Senator Demint. How is this campaign now, how in the world is this going to play out? There are some criminal charges, I believe some kind of a porn charge he's facing. Now is that going to get into the campaign and will this look like a regular campaign? We're going to see debates, things like that?
STEINHAUSER: No clue yet as to whether we're going to see debates. As for those charges you just mentioned, he is not commenting on them. We've asked him about them. Don Lemon interviewed him last weekend. Our Peter (INAUDIBLE) our political producer is down there and has questioned him about that. He's not commenting.
What they are -- he was arrested at the University of South Carolina after a student there alleged that he tried to show her pornography, pictures on a computer and that he asked to go back to her room. He's got a court date on July 12th. As for Demint, T.J., I think Demint was going to win most likely, is the heavy favorite, heavy favorite in November regardless of who the Democratic nominee is.
Remember, Demint is a popular conservative. He's the incumbent senator. He's a popular conservative in South Carolina, in a state where Republicans dominate statewide elections. So people are saying, well, if Alvin Greene wasn't the nominee and somebody else was, there may have been a chance. Demint overwhelmingly favorite in this campaign. T.J.
HOLMES: South Carolina, love some of the folks there but some of the politics, my goodness. All right, Paul, we appreciate you. We're going to be talking to you again throughout the morning. Thanks so much.
Father's Day of course tomorrow, a lot of people having trouble still picking out a Father's Day gift. Just going to go for the tie again? Well we got some tips for you from our tech guru. He's coming.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I've got this coming up for you. It's the hot new viral video. A bunch of teachers put on a show for their students to Lady Gaga. You've never seen anything like this. I've got the video, the music and the story behind it coming right up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right, 19 minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Got a group of teachers to tell you about. They're not just informing their students in class. Oh, no, they're dancing to Lady Gaga. Josh, let me go ahead and bring you in and just tell me they're not dressed like Lady Gaga, too, OK?
LEVS: They kind of are.
HOLMES: Oh no.
LEVS: Actually they were kind of inspired by it. Here's the thing. This is what's so unusual about it, is that these teachers are putting on a show for their students and not vice versa. Let's get right to it. This is the hot new viral video. As we look at it, watch the the beginning. I'll tell you a little bit about it and then we'll watch more.
This is at Holmes middle school, just like your last name T.J., Holmes middle school in Alexandria, Virginia. These teachers are putting on a show to Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" and this is for the end of the year, now a talent show. Now obviously the kids are going to be doing a lot, but some kids got an idea how about we produce our teachers dancing?
Skip to the next section. Watch what they do. They got some moves. See the male and female teachers are up there moving. (INAUDIBLE) I'm loving this. This is so hot. We've got -- I think they're up to a couple 100,000 videos already, posted on at least nine different places online. So many students were there with all of their phone cameras. All right, so you got a few guys in there. They've got their moves down.
Let's get to that third section because I want you to see the big finish and then I'll show you where you can watch this online. So many people were saying this to me this week too, including some of our producers here. Watch. They go into the audience. I'm going to go on the record and say I never had teachers that cool in middle school. I'm so impressed with these people.
Go Holmes middle school teachers. This is where you can see it, by the way, I always link all the latest greatest viral videos up on the Facebook page because Facebook makes it easy. Facebook.com/joshlevscnn.
Also to go there right now, you're going to find this other video T.J.. You might have seen this one, the dancing samba baby. Look at this kid's moves, this kind out of Brazil. We're all asking is this real? Apparently it is. None of us can find any place they could have faked this.
Look at this kid's moves. Apparently this toddler is a future samba star. No one has ever seen a kid like that. All of it, send us your latest videos and we'll show them right here. Tomorrow morning. T.J., I've got to say, these teachers, they have more talent than you ever would have guessed.
HOLMES: I want to see that school's standardized test scores, OK? They can dance. Can they teach? How about that?
LEVS: I'm sure they are as cool in the classroom.
HOLMES: Thank you. I'm skeptical about that baby, too like a lot of people are.
We'll go for some of that crazy video. Let me show you some other video you're probably not going to believe and I'll have to explain it. Let's just show it and see if you can try to figure it out. First, the ball, you hear the baby crying and yes you see a crocodile. Those two things are not supposed to mix. You see that baby being dangled over the open mouth of a crocodile.
This is in Pakistan, Pakistani pilgrims, this is part of an annual festival. It's supposed to be good luck here. This is near Karachi in southern Pakistan. Babies are dangled over the open jaws for luck. It's believed the crocodiles are sacred. Legend says the crocs grew from lies (ph) left by a saint 700 years ago. They offer goat meat and candy to the crocodiles. Caretakers say, this is important, no one has been hurt at the four-day event.
All right. Well, Father's Day tomorrow, of course, maybe you have got the perfect gift lined up. Maybe you've got your dad an iPad, something really cool. Whatever you've got, it will not top what this woman gave her dad.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Coming up on the bottom of the hour here on are this CNN SATURDAY MORNING, a lot of people trying to figure out what exactly to get dad. Tomorrow the big day. You're going to get out there and get something.
Forget about the necktie, forget about the card, Tracey Berez (ph) went a whole lot further for her Father's Day gift. She gave her 74-year-old dad a kidney to save his life. Diabetes destroyed both of his kidneys. Tracey was the only family member who matched. She didn't hesitate. After the surgery now doctors in Dallas gave her father a very encouraging prognosis, saying he can soon go back to playing basketball, tennis and swimming. She gave him a card, too, by the way, but I think the kidney was the bigger deal.
Well, most of us can't offer something that valuable or invaluable I should say for Father's Day. Still, Father's Day coming up, it's not too late, run out of time but it's not too late to give the perfect gift this year. A lot of gadgets out there. So else would we possibly bring in to tell us about the gadgets. It's Mario Armstrong.
Wait a minute, you used to be our tech guru. But you can tell you have become a little too big time because now we're call you the digital lifestyle expert?
MARIO ARMSTRONG, DIGITAL LIFESTYLE EXPERT: Hey look, that's what we live in. We live in the digital age. It's all about our digital lifestyle.
HOLMES: Did you come up with that?
ARMSTRONG: No. Someone else actually has that term. Someone else said that's what you should be called.
HOLMES: A lot of gadgets. Guys, guys like things. We like toys and what not. So where do you want to start? Give us -- I think you've got five. Let's go with number one here.
ARMSTRONG: OK.
HOLMES: Start it off.
ARMSTRONG: We got a lot to cover, so I'll do it real quick. Number one, every man in the house wants a large TV. So the 55-inch Toshiba is one of the hottest TVs out right now, the LED, really thin, beautiful crystal clear picture. But most importantly I want people, they're out there shopping for televisions to look for those televisions that are Internet or wi-fi capable because as we go forward, we're going to start seeing more capability of getting Internet video on your television set.
HOLMES: Mario, how much is a 55-inch TV going to run somebody that has all this capability?
ARMSTRONG: Yeah. You know you can find some that are a little bit less if you do your shopping and do your homework.
HOLMES: Less than what?
ARMSTRONG: You're probably going to be in the ballpark of about $1,400 to $2,000, somewhere.
HOLMES: That's a lot better than those 55-inch screens used to be.
ARMSTRONG: It's come down quite a bit.
HOLMES: All right.
ARMSTRONG: I've got a smaller one you can carry with you on the go. This is called Flo-TV, T.J.. It's 200 bucks but you carry this with you. It's a personal television viewer. So this has news, videos, movies and even network television that you can carry anywhere dad goes while you're on the road.
HOLMES: Let me ask you about that one. I've been curious about those. Do you have to download the shows and then just carry with you or are you getting live TV stream there?
ARMSTRONG: You've getting live TV. You can download some things but you are getting live TV.
HOLMES: Good picture?
ARMSTRONG: Good picture, comes in clear. And if you don't want to use another device, if you don't want to carry yet another gadget, they actually have smart phone versions that you can put on your Verizon phone or your AT&T phone.
HOLMES: Flo TV, that sounds pretty good there and you said 200 bucks. I think I heard that right. OK. They're getting cheaper. Let's go to number three.
ARMSTRONG: Ok, number three, the Me Soccer iPod docking station. This thing is really cool especially because we're in the World Cup moment.
HOLMES: Right.
ARMSTRONG: And it comes with no vuvuzela noise. But when it does, you can actually dock your iPhone and your iPod or your iPod touch into it. It's got a 15 watts subwoofer and it plays music in a -- in a 360-degrees sound. So you can sit in your room and kind of hear it from basically any area. It's about $200 but it's really great for the soccer fan that loves that music.
HOLMES: Ok, that -- I assume they make other versions of this with that -- with that kind of surround just is not in the soccer ball form.
ARMSTRONG: That's right. That's right.
HOLMES: Ok, but that's pretty cool, $200 bucks.
ARMSTRONG: But that's unique, that's different, yes and it's still soccer season.
HOLMES: All right.
ARMSTRONG: So it's a good one to hit people up with.
HOLMES: Let's go to number four then. We're still in the $200 range.
ARMSTRONG: Ok, we're coming down. So now we're coming down to $100 for what I'm wearing, the Scottie Vest. The Scottie Vest has over 22 pockets. You cannot see all the pockets. There are hidden compartments so that I can carry all my gadgets with me. For example, on the inside I have my iPad sitting on the inside of my jacket.
So you can carry all types of devices with you on the go, concealed. This is also great for travelers because you can use it as a carry-on and actually get more stuff with you through the airport.
HOLMES: Come on, Mario. Who is going to wear that? Man, you're like a member of the A-team.
ARMSTRONG: I'm B.A. Baracus.
HOLMES: Who's going to wear that?
ARMSTRONG: B.A. Baracus. So -- so no, I've been having this for quite some time. This is actually an older version jacket that I'm wearing. The newer ones look even more stylish and sleek. But you've got to think about it, people that do camping, people that go hiking or travelers that carry their devices with them.
You can put water bottles in here, newspapers, devices, keys ...
HOLMES: Ok.
ARMSTRONG: ... also headphones, all types of things in this jacket.
HOLMES: And you've got to do number five for me in about 15 seconds.
ARMSTRONG: Ok, number five. I'll do it real quick. We have the Sony Dash, which a lot of people are interested in but we'll talk more about this on the Web site. The other thing, is real quick; if you're still strung out and you can't find something, go to ThinkGeek.com and you can get a cool T-shirt for less than 40 bucks like this that actually plays the guitar. Check it out. Has a speaker right here. And I can actually play the guitar.
HOLMES: Oh, Mario.
ARMSTRONG: It's the guitar shirt from ThinkGeek, man. But what do you expect? ThinkGeek.com.
HOLMES: Mario, boy we love you. We really, really love you. How much is this shirt again to my dad?
ARMSTRONG: The shirt is I think is $39.
HOLMES: So there's $40 bucks and you get the $100 vest to go with it and you walk through the airport if you want to looking like that.
ARMSTRONG: You might not make it out.
HOLMES: Mario ...
ARMSTRONG: And the shirt's washable. You can actually wash this shirt. The shirt is washable.
HOLMES: Mario, this has been one of the better segments I've had with you, my brother. I do appreciate you. It's good to see you.
ARMSTRONG: Yes, I'm going to rock out, man. Happy Father's Day, T.J.
HOLMES: Happy Father's to you as well. We'll see you again soon.
ARMSTRONG: Ok, brother, have a good one. See you next Saturday.
HOLMES: You can join Mario every Saturday if you dare come back after that segment. He will be with us every Saturday; Mario Armstrong giving us the scoop on the latest technology.
All right, we're going to turn now back to the Gulf. Of course, we're on day 61 here now and a lot of people still waiting on some help. The Governor of Louisiana says he can't wait any longer. He says when it comes to cleaning up that oil it's time for some Cajun ingenuity.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Day 61 of the oil disaster now. And Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal is calling on a little Cajun ingenuity, workers using vacuums to siphon thousands of gallons of oil. This is not an effort being paid for by BP or by the government, just Gulf Coast residents helping themselves. Our Anderson Cooper with the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST (voice-over): On East Grand Terra Island a simple and seemingly successful experiment in cleaning up crude, a rudimentary vacuum which sucks up oil on the surface of water and sends it to a container on a nearby barge. You would think dozens of vacuums like this have been deployed all over Louisiana for weeks, but they haven't.
In fact, there're only a handful being used and they've only been running for a couple of days.
(on camera): When you see this, what do you think?
BOBBY JINDAL (R), GOVERNOR, LOUISIANA: This is exactly how we need to be fighting this oil.
COOPER (voice-over): Governor Bobby Jindal and local officials are so fed up waiting for BP to clean up oil, that they've gone ahead and are testing a few of these vacuums with the help of the National Guard.
JINDAL: We know we've got to use more aggressive, more creative solutions. This is why and I'm not telling you what ...
COOPER (on camera): You call this Cajun ingenuity.
JINDAL: Absolutely. This is south Louisiana Cajun ingenuity. You know the same people that brought you the Higgins boats are now bringing you -- the same people who brought you New Orleans Saints, LSU Tigers are now bringing you this. It's a vacuum truck on the back of a barge.
This isn't a silver bullet, but what we're saying is this in combination with the sand dredging, which is another Louisiana idea. In combination with booming only the critical passes; in combination with using dredges and rocks in the main passes -- all of those together give you true multiple lines of defense.
COOPER (voice-over): So far the Coast Guard has only authorized the limited use of these vacuums. They can only suck up a few thousand gallons of oil a day, but with larger equipment and more of it, state officials insist the vacuums could be a big help.
(on camera): Without something to actually suck up this oil what you're left with essentially are these booms which prevent the oil from spreading further in to the marshes. As you can see the oil basically congeals here on these thick globs. But in order to actually get rid of this oil they come with absorbent pad, that's the method they are using now but it's a pretty slow method and pretty ineffective.
(voice-over): To pressure BP to start using the vacuums Governor Jindal brought a group of reporters out today to demonstrate how they work. A photo-op to be sure, but the governor is willing to try just about anything to get BP's attention.
(on camera): So Governor, what's your message to BP today?
JINDAL: My bottom line message is, we're showing that it works, let's scale this up quickly, let's not wait. Don't wait for this oil to hit the coastline. The plans they've got are not enough. This idea that they're just going to come out with absorbent pads; or they are going to eventually send to shallow waters skimmers is not enough. Or that they're just going to leave the oil here is not enough.
They've got to fight this oil before it comes on our coastline. My message is this is a war. And the way we win this war is to throw everything we've got to keep this oil out of the wetlands.
COOPER: How frustrating is it that 50 plus days into this it's coming down to you coming out here with National Guard and kind of jerry-rigging the system?
JINDAL: You know at the end of the day we've said all along we're not waiting for others to come rescue us. We've got to protect our coast. The people that live down here, that work down here know what's at stake.
This is our way of life. And look, it is frustrating because we get whole day after day there'll be more skimmers tomorrow and more boom tomorrow. We say enough is enough and we're not waiting for all that.
COOPER (voice-over): He may not want to wait any longer but to vacuum this oil on a larger scale he does have to get further approval from the Coast Guard and somehow convince BP to pick up the tab.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. That report there from our Anderson Cooper. After that story was shot and aired, the Coast Guard shut down all the barges being used to suck up that oil until they could be inspected. The barges sat idle for 24 hours. Again, this is all part of being tied up in red tape. The Coast Guard then scrapped the inspection saying the barges in fact, were safe.
Well, the next hour of CNN SATURDAY MORNING we'll look at how the spill is right now affecting your wallet. Also I'm going to be talking to a Florida mayor. He is one of a number in this country who have been pushing for a boycott of BP stations. But then he changed his mind. We'll ask him what he thinks now.
Again, coming up in about 20 minutes, top of the hour right here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Also a lot of you out there you have been watching this really for the past 61 days now. If you want to help, we've got a chance for you to do so. You can join us Monday night, a special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE". Some of the biggest stars out there will be helping us and you can help as well. You can donate.
So tune in for a special "LARRY KING LIVE" on Monday; two hours right here on CNN.
Well, you might have been watching. You know that the World Cup is going on right now. But still, the Lakers/Celtics classic match-up is exactly what the NBA wanted, it's what they got. They got it on Thursday.
The finals, the Lakers, of course, won. It was one of the highest rated NBA finals in more than a decade. Our sports business analyst Rick Horrow is going to tell us what that is going to mean for the NBA moving forward.
Also, this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at that, look at that little vortex there that just spun up there. Right there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Can you believe some of these video of tornadoes slammed into South Dakota this week? Storm chasers were right there on the trail.
Our Reynolds Wolf is going to be along. He's going to have a conversation with one of those storm chasers.
That's coming up live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, about to the quarter of the top of the hour here now. I want to hand this thing over to Reynolds Wolf. We're always fascinated, Reynolds, by these pictures we see of these tornadoes. But oftentimes we don't get to delve into the mind of the person who is shooting that video.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And regarding that I can tell you sometimes trying to delve into the mind might seem a little bit of just -- just kind of crazy.
You know folks, the sheer power and fury of a tornado will make anyone run for cover, unless, of course, you happen to be this fellow.
America, I would like you to meet this guy, his name is Andy Gabrielson. He chases those big storms, these tornadoes for a living. And he's joining us via Skype from Sioux City, Iowa, to tell us what he does and how he does it.
Andy, why do you do this, man?
ANDY GABRIELSON, STORM CHASER: Well, it's been a passion of mine for quite a while. I've been interested in weather since I saw my first tornado when I was 7 years old with my dad. And it's something that I've carried out now to going out and shooting video of every extreme weather event across the country. WOLF: My goodness. Well, let's see. You said you started doing this when you were 7 years old but you've been really active just over the last couple of days. What's -- what's been going on recently?
GABRIELSON: Well there was -- there was an extremely rare event as far as I am concerned. I grew up in Minnesota and I don't remember the last time we had a tornado event quite like that across the state.
(INAUDIBLE) actually lost lives which is really unfortunate. It takes a lot of fun out of it for storm chasers. We certainly don't wake up in the morning and wish tornados to hit structures. We love to see them over the open fields of Kansas or Nebraska. It's certainly -- it's certainly a shame to see it hit towns and affect lives.
WOLF: Absolutely, no question. We often see these outbreaks take place all over different parts of the country, but not so common in Minnesota. Were there just key elements that that really fell into play to cause this event?
GABRIELSON: Yes, it was a set-up that I guess reminded me a lot of an Oklahoma set-up earlier this year where it just seemed like there was no question about it. We were going to have tornadoes across the state. It was -- everything just came together, storms formed on the warm front and we had tornadoes from northwest Minnesota to southeastern Minnesota.
WOLF: To wrap things up, Andy, we're going to let you go in a second. But I have to pin you down with something. You know people have all kinds of hobbies. Some people play golf. Others collect beanie babies. But you chase these storms.
I'm sure some people out there might think you're nuts for doing this. What would you tell those people?
GABRIELSON: I usually ask them what they do because half the time they end up telling me that they sky dive or they rock climb or they, you know, white water raft or something. I guess that's not for me. That seems pretty dangerous to me.
But everybody has something they do for fun. And that's what it's all about, man, just enjoying life.
WOLF: All right, my brother. Fair enough. Have a good one. Be safe out there. Great pictures and happy hunting to you.
Folks, we're going to do some hunting over here on the weather wall and show you what's going to happen today. Very quickly -- I'm going to give you a quick synopsis of what we can anticipate around the country.
There's a couple of key areas where we may see some strong storms and where Andy may be active later on today. A couple of those places will be right here parts of the Central Plains. This area of low pressure is going to attack low with that moisture coming in from the Gulf. Look for that to pop up roads between the hours of 3:00 and 6:00 -- 3:00 this afternoon to 6:00 this evening.
Another round of strong storms may occur in parts of New York State, mainly the western half and also the eastern half of the Great Lakes, perhaps even into the Ohio Valley and parts of the Keystone State of Pennsylvania.
That is a quick snapshot on your forecast. We have more coming up. Let's send it back to T.J.
HOLMES: All right. I love that. He made a very good point. People do all kinds of crazy stuff.
WOLF: Especially us. Well, maybe not as crazy as chasing storms.
HOLMES: Well, you do that, actually.
WOLF: We do all kinds of stuff.
HOLMES: Reynolds, we appreciate you.
WOLF: Any time man.
HOLMES: Good to talk to you.
All right. We're going to turn back to the World Cup here in just a second.
No doubt, a lot of new soccer fans tuning in right now since the USA is participating in the World Cup. The question is, will this interest now turn into bigger crowds at soccer games here in the U.S. after the cup is gone?
We're going to discuss that possibility with our guy. He always brings some swag. There he is, Rick Horrow. We're talking to him about the Lakers, about the World Cup and all things sports related right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Just ten minutes to the top of the hour. It has been a big week in sports. A lot to break down. The world has been focused on the World Cup happening in South Africa. America has been playing fairly well; a couple of let downs but playing fairly well. With all the attention on the U.S. team, could that help soccer's popularity here?
Also Pebble Beach, U.S. Open going on right now; Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods both made the cut. You're seeing the pictures there. Well, you did see the pictures of Kobe Bryant and Lakers taking their NBA championship, back-to-back championships.
I want to bring in our business and sports analyst Rick Horrow. Rick, kind sir, my friend; always good to see you.
This is good for the NBA. If you can't get Kobe and Lebron in the finals, if you can get the classic match up of the Lakers and the Celtics, that's pretty good.
RICK HORROW, CNN SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST: Most watched final game in nearly a decade. Also for $400,000 of 30-second ad time, good for television. Good for Kobe. He's 12th on this power list with Bloomberg we've done and now with five rings, it's going to be better.
Finally, you know, one courtside seat for game seven sold for $98,000. Good for that fan. I hope he was a Laker fan.
HOLMES: $98,000?
HORROW: Yes, sir. That's your salary. What is that, two weeks' worth of income for you?
HOLMES: No, man, even over the past two years I didn't collect that, I don't believe. No, no, no.
But was it driven -- was this strictly driven by the teams or was it driven by the fact that it went seven games. Was it driven by the fact it was two big markets? Was it driven by stars?
HORROW: Yes, yes, yes, yes, and yes. This is an international legacy; 35 championships or so between the two of them decided by four points in the seventh game. That is huge for the NBA, huge for sports.
HOLMES: All right. Can anything help soccer in this country, Rick? The World Cup, people are kind of into it now. But when it's over, are people going to forget about soccer in this country?
HORROW: No.
HOLMES: No.
HORROW: There's a reason why not. Ninety million of us are avid soccer fans; 18 million of us play. There are 120,000 tickets both by U.S. fans to go over there. That was big.
Whether the U.S. gets in the next round or not, in December they choose the 2008 team or 2022 venues for the World Cup. U.S. is a favorite. If they get one of those years, soccer excitement starts all over again.
HOLMES: Yes, but is that going to translate to people going to watch major league soccer games in this country? We might watch on TV but is that really -- because these are the best the U.S. has to offer. If you go watch some of the local teams you're not seeing the best soccer players in the country -- excuse me, in the world.
HORROW: Plus, 0-0 in Europe is a marvelous defensive battle; 0-0 here is boring to a lot of people.
HOLMES: Yes.
HORROW: And so it's a cultural thing. We didn't invent it therefore we don't support it. I don't believe that. I think a strong showing here and the World Cup bid may mean a different combination than the last few generations.
HOLMES: All right.
Last thing real quickly, out Pebble Beach, you've got Phil. You've got Tiger, they both made the cut. Phil is making a charge.
HORROW: Yes. He's making a charge. And he's 1 under. The bottom line about Phil is if they end up doing this deal, it will be a big deal for Phil. Everybody, he's halfway toward the major grand slam if he wins this event. Good for golf. Tiger dropped in two scores, dropped in popularity. He's got a couple of days to turn it around.
HOLMES: All right. My friend, good to see you as always. We always appreciate having you on, on CNN SATURDAY MORNING. what does the hat say? I can't even see that.
HORROW: It's Pebble Beach, the U.S. Open hat. You want it? It's in the mail. It's as good as in the mail for you. Yes right.
HOLMES: Gee, thanks. All right. Good to see you as always Rick. We'll talk to you again soon. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
HORROW: See you next week.
HOLMES: Certainly no matter where you live the oil disaster in the Gulf could have an affect on you and your wallet. That is going to be the focus of our special half hour begins in just a few minutes.
Also in that half hour talking to Florida mayor who called for a boycott of BP gas stations. But he's changed his mind since. We'll tell you why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, time now for a check of some of the big business stories that made headlines this week; the very latest and what it all means to you. We turn to our Christine Romans in New York.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: T.J., let's start out talking about your savings. And this really isn't great news for people who are trying to do the right thing and set aside some money for the future.
The national average rate for certificates of deposit money market accounts fell to 1.3 percent in May, the lowest level in at least a decade. New home construction fell sharply and more than expected in May, the first month after a home buyer tax credit expired. Housing starts down 10 percent from April. And building permits declined 5.9 percent.
American consumers are slightly more satisfied this spring, believe it or not, for the second year in a row, satisfied with products and services they received from top airlines, hotel, restaurant and express delivery companies. That report found consumers were happier in large part, T.J., because they're finding better prices and better deals. Strong improvements for Burger King, KFC, Papa John's, Hyatt and United Airlines; big drop though for Delta Air Lines, McDonald's and the postal service.
Last but certainly not least, companies that offer employees health insurance, expect another steep jump in your medical costs next year. And more will ask workers to share a bigger chunk of those expenses.
We're going to have a lot more on that story coming up on "YOUR BOTTOM LINE" in just a little bit, along with so much more about your money at 9:30 a.m. Eastern.
But for now, T.J., I'll send it back to you with more CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Hello again, everybody. Welcome back. Top of the hour here now.
I'm T.J. Holmes on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Like we do every Saturday we take this half hour, the 9:00 Eastern half hour and we spin it digging a little deeper into an issue that directly affects you.
Today we are talking about the oil spill, but we're talking about the direct impact it's having on you even if you don't live anywhere close to the region. You're talking about gas prices, food prices, even your taxes come into play here. Also an owner of a BP station telling us how this tragedy has affected his business.
We, of course, now on day 61 of this oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and that giant slick is impacting more coastline right now. Here are some of the latest developments tar balls have just come ashore in Panama City Beach, Florida. This is the furthest east that we have seen so far. The beaches still open, there's no health advisory just yet.
BP's partner meanwhile in the drilling of the well blames the spill on BP's "reckless decisions and actions." BP rejecting that allegation. The Department of the Interior also has ordered oil and gas companies to submit a well blowout prevention plan when they apply for permits.
You heard about the devastating toll the oil disaster is having on the gulf region and the fishermen, shrimpers, tourism, environment, you name it. But even if you don't live in the Gulf Coast area, the spill is having a direct impact on your pocket book.
Let's bring in our tax expert Roni Deutch. She joins us now to explain three ways you may be forced to pay because of this disaster. Roni, good morning. Good to have you back. I know we talk to you a lot around tax time but we brought you back to help us out on this one as well.
A lot of people are concerned about how this is going to affect them. They think about the seafood but the first one we're talking about here is at the gas pump.
RONI DEUTCH, TAX EXPERT: Yes, T.J., what many people are unaware of is that all oil companies must pay an eight cents tax per barrel into the oil disaster relief fund. Guess what's going to happen, T.J., the House and the Senate are going to increase that tax from eight cents all the way up to 34 cents, even 41 cents per barrel.
That means, T.J., you and I and everyone else will pay more money at the gas pump and, of course, we'll ultimately pay more money at the grocery store. Anything and everything that affects gas affects our pocket books.
HOLMES: Now, do we have an idea, it might be tough to gauge right now because that stuff will get passed on to us. Just how much, what kind of a range are we looking at and just how much our gas prices could go up?
DEUTCH: Yes, T.J., I hate to remind everyone of 2008. Here in California, gas prices went up $1 to $1.50. And when that happened, we saw throughout the United States, we had higher unemployment. Our housing crisis started. And then of course, the financial crisis took effect.
So when you say how much money, I think, T.J., with mathematical certainty we are all going to pay at least $1 more at the pump and another, what, 10 percent to 20 percent on everything we buy at the grocery store and everywhere else.
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness. That's not good news. That stuff is probably coming down the pike. Another thing here that's probably going to have people scratching their heads here. And I want to make sure I got this one right. BP could actually deduct the cost of the clean-up on their taxes?
DEUTCH: Isn't it pathetic to know that if you are criminally negligent, you can still deduct business losses on your tax return? Do you realize, T.J., that they're going to spend $20 billion to $100 billion to clean up this mess, and they get to deduct every dollar of that on their tax return?
How does that affect you and I, the taxpayer? For every $20 billion that they get to deduct, that's $4 billion less that they pay the IRS in taxes.
HOLMES: Wow.
DEUTCH: $4 billion less to the IRS who is already broke. You and I the taxpayer will be bailing this disaster out just like we bailed AIG out.
HOLMES: We are essentially here talking about writing off a disaster. Is there any talk out there of trying to -- and maybe this will start to gain some steam, but will Congress try to amend the tax code to try to prevent this from happening?
DEUTCH: We know, T.J., they love to amend the tax code. The good news is, if we can push hard on this issue, I believe Congress will do the right thing. They will not allow BP to take advantage of these incredible tax loopholes, which ultimately save them money when they deal with the IRS.
I think it's unfair because any time you're criminally negligent and you're devastating our environment, especially our ocean life, why should you benefit and not have to pay your fair share in taxes?
HOLMES: This whole thing -- it's amazing to think that this whole oil response disaster clean-up money they're putting toward it is a huge write-off for this company. One more we want to get to here.
And a lot of people and we know that BP stock has taken a hit. A lot of people might think, all right, I don't have anything. I don't have, you know, BP stocks so I'm not getting hit. That's not necessarily true.
DEUTCH: Many people are unaware of the fact that their retirement accounts, their 401(k)s, their 403Bs, their mutual funds are vested and heavily invested in the stock region. If BP stock is down 45 percent and the stock sector is down in the oil region 10 percent, we know that stock portfolios and our retirement accounts are plummeting.
Here's the next point about that, T.J., what about the 300,000 to 500,000 unemployed people because of this disaster? They're going to cash out their retirement accounts, T.J. They're going to be broke. They're going to be desperate. They're not going to be able to pay their bills, their rent, their mortgage, so they're going to cash out their retirement accounts and ultimately have to pay penalties and tax on that takeout of money and be without a retirement account. Now, is BP going to pay for that, too? I hope so.
HOLMES: Well, these are some real stark realities, Roni. We appreciate you breaking this down for us. And it's disheartening news but still is a reality that we all need to realize exactly what's happening out there.
Great information this morning. Roni, always good to see you. Thank you so much. You enjoy the rest of your Saturday.
DEUTCH: Thank you so much, T.J..
HOLMES: All right. A lot of people trying to figure out exactly how do you combat a big corporation like BP? People want to lash out at them, they do it by sounding off, they do it with protests. They do it with boycotts of BP gas stations.
Is that helping though? There are some new concern about who you're actually hurting if you boycott that local BP station. It's seven minutes past the hour. Quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: 11 minutes past the hour here on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING and bearing the brunt of public anger over BP's massive oil spill in the gulf, owners of BP branded gas stations. They say they're seeing a drop in business because of this spill. Consumers taking their protests of the oil giant to the streets and to their local gas pumps.
Also seeing organized boycotts of BP gas stations gaining traction on social media websites and while station owners say they understand why people want to lash out, they say the protests are misdirected. See those BP station owners, say the boycotts are actually hurting them, not the massive oil giant. Plus, they say the gas you buy at BP or any other station probably was drilled and refined by another company anyway.
Josh joining us to break down what happens at the pump. People don't realize BP doesn't own a single BP gas station in the country.
LEVS: They don't own any of them, which is really important to understand. And another thing to know is a lot of these local gas station owners have locked into these very, very long-term contracts. Years and years and years which, whichever company is basically their brand.
So to just jump out of that would cost a ton of money, they can't just give up being BP without giving up their livelihood and paying a lot of money that day. Let me talk you through this because I was looking online to see where is there a great article that can lay this out for you. The "Chicago Tribune" brought us to them, they did a great job. So I'm going to show you some things in an article they had.
They point out that boycotting BP gas stations, these are their words, "does not hurt BP's coffers much, at least directly. They point out we were just talking about. It doesn't own the BP stations. Now, I was looking at the numbers. There's about 11,000 BP stations in America. BP like a lot of other oil giants gave owning those local stations directly a while back. So you're not directly hitting their coffers that way.
Here's another important point. Because oil is a globally traded commodity there's no easy way to confirm which company is responsible for the gas you buy. Meaning, you go to (INAUDIBLE), you go to another station, you may be getting oil that was from one of BP's wells anyway or you might not from a BP station.
And I want to point out the other side here because they also, in this article, talked to a guy who is a public citizen. He said, "the target here is the image of the company." So there are those who say, yes, we understand exactly how the money works but we feel that boycotting makes a lot of sense at this point because it sends a message to the company which ultimately hurts the company and its image in general.
So that debate continues. That said, it is also a fact that financially you've got some of these local station owners now who are taking the brunt of this. It's just helpful to understand. I've got this story linked for you, it's up at Facebook and Twitter. My page is joshlevscnn. We're hearing from you as well, your thoughts on all sides of this.
So, T.J., hopefully people have a pretty good sense now of how this works, how that oil gets to your station. And just know that even if you skip a BP station you might still have oil from a BP well wherever you go.
HOLMES: And very important point to make, and I know people immediately want to lash out at BP. That is the quickest and easiest way to do it with a boycott. But again, Josh, so important to know, BP does not own a single one of those gas stations. It's owned by your neighbor, your friend, your teachers and everybody in your community.
Josh, appreciate that breakdown. Very necessary this morning.
And also coming up here, quarter past the hour, but after the break, a mayor who said, in fact, yes, we'd like to boycott BP as well. Now he's changed his mind about that a bit. We'll have him explain what should happen in his town now. He's coming up with us right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, 17 minutes past the hour. Now take a look at our CNN opinion research corporation poll. People were asked would the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico affect your family? Right now, overwhelmingly people believe yes, in fast it will, 89 percent saying yes. Another 11 percent saying maybe not. But Right now, it's certainly is affecting a lot of people.
The mayor of Ormond Beach, Florida, he originally thought it was a good idea to boycott BP gas stations. He changed his mind though and he's here to explain to us exactly why he changed his mind. Let's welcome in now Mayor Fred Costello. He is now asking employees and residents, in fact, to support BP. I believe I have that right. But Mr. Mayor, thank you for being here.
Let's just go back a few days, first of all. Why originally did you say that people should stay away from the BP gas stations and also why were you considering a resolution from your city council to keep city vehicles from using gas from BP gas stations?
MAYOR FRED COSTELLO, ORMOND BEACH, FLORIDA: Thank you for the opportunity, T.J.. Let's make sure we're all clear. I had advocated that we have a city vehicle boycott of BP because the city has a fuel farm. So we essentially don't buy any gas from BP anyway.
In my mind the best way that BP corporate could have leverage put upon them was from the distributors. So my goal was to get the distributors to contact corporate to get corporate to come up with some money. That was on June 11th when I sent that e-mail. That was prior to BP coming out with a $20 billion that's their initial portion, because we all believe it's going to cost them more than that. HOLMES: Now, I do want to -- Mr. Mayor, I do want to be clear. And you lost me a little bit with the BP, the corporate and the contracts and this and that.
COSTELLO: I'm sorry.
HOLMES: Is it not true, and you came out and said, I don't know what kind of statement you were trying to make. And maybe just a symbolic one. But saying publicly, coming out and saying in fact that you don't want city vehicles to use gas from BP gas stations was your mindset not to send some kind of a message to BP with your own city- type boycott?
COSTELLO: Exactly. It was city vehicles, not citizens. And that would not have cost the local distributors any money because we weren't purchasing from them anyway. So the point was to send a philosophical message to the corporate BP headquarters that if you're not careful, people are just going to start doing these boycotts that's going to spread to the citizens.
You need to step up and put some money up for the clean-up which on June 16th we were told that they did. So I initially on June 11th wanted us as city vehicles to boycott them, which we're not buying from them anyway but corporate wouldn't have known that, and so that would have sent the message.
HOLMES: Well, what kind of message -- well, I should ask you if you agree that the message that was sent from the people in your city to hear from their mayor that a boycott is going on, without sitting down with you in this kind of format, I get to ask you questions but not everybody did -- they just heard the mayor said that a city boycott. Did that end up sending the wrong message?
COSTELLO: I think it did. And the 22nd, Tuesday night, is when the resolution would have been on the agenda which I've asked to be pulled now that they've come up with the $20 billion. So we had not had a chance to vet that. It was on the 22nd agenda to hit the media sooner before that. so it did not get out there yet that it was not about citizens boycotting. It was about the city.
Now that they've stepped up with the $20 billion and the reason I'm here with you is I want America to buy from BP so that the local distributors can keep their jobs and so BP can make enough money to pay off the clean-up which I believe is going to be much more than $20 billion.
HOLMES: And it sounds like you made it clear there. But one more time and I'm going to let you go on this. But with all the boycotts you see going on, the stuff happening on social media, Facebook pages organized, you got celebrities, people coming out saying don't go to BP gas stations. Do you think all of these BP boycotts are misguided and they need to stop?
COSTELLO: Absolutely. We must support our local distributors, our local businesses. It doesn't hurt BP corporate when they boycott the local distributor. Buy from BP so they can clean it up. HOLMES: Well, Mr. Costello, we absolutely appreciate you being here to say your side and to clear some things up that certainly got out there. But thank you so much and good luck to you and your 40,000, I believe -
COSTELLO: God bless. Visit Ormond Beach. It's a beautiful place.
HOLMES: All right. There it is. Mr. Mayor, thank you so much for your time this morning.
COSTELLO: My pleasure.
HOLMES: And like we were just talking about, you have seen the signs, the Facebook pages asking for a boycott out there. You're just hearing from the mayor who was considering it. But what does it really hurt if you stop buying gas at the neighborhood BP?
Well, I spoke with one of those owners. An owner of two BP gas stations. He was in Maryland. His name is Mel Sherbert. He is also past president of the Service Station Owners of America. Let him tell you what it does when you stop buying gas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: If people stop buying gas at your BP labeled gas stations, is that hurting BP or is that hurting you, more so?
MEL SHERBERT, OWNER, PINOY ORCHARD BP: Well, it's hurting me. And it's hurting the people who supply me because even our distributors here, the people who supply me are independent. All Maryland residents, friends and neighbors, and BP will just move that little product the customer wouldn't buy to another source, to the wholesalers who market it out.
So I can't see any help for us if oil -- or the customer, for that matter, they'll get lesser service if they stop coming here. Just to change the distribution point and move the product to another point, maybe even out of the country. It doesn't make any sense.
You know, like I aid, we are the friends, neighbors, we're the local people. We're the ones that support the fire department. We're the ones who support the schools. We're the ones that support the sports teams. We're the ones that look out for the neighborhood and participate in everything. We live here. We love here. We have our families here.
So it's no different for us, or shouldn't be, though we are being hurt by it. There's no doubt about it. And if things don't improve, it's going to get worse if it's just no winners in this situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: No winners. As a reminder, they can't just take the BP sign down out front. You can't just change the name with the station. They have contracts with BP. Some of them are long term that they have to keep that BP name there. So it's not that simple either. Well, a lot of you out there would like to help in the gulf coast region. We have a way that you can do it. Join us Monday night for an all-star telethon to help the people of the Gulf Coast. A special two- hour "LARRY KING LIVE" event begins at 8:00 Eastern, Monday night, right here on CNN.
Meanwhile, it's 23 minutes past the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Let's take a look at some of the stories making headlines. Amtrak train accident. This one killed a young woman and her three brothers in rural Louisiana on Friday. Killed an 18-year- old, the driver who was seven months pregnant, also her brothers ages 16, 13, and 12. Investigators saying that the car did not stop at the crossing.
Also this morning. Back to the drawing board or back to the lab, I should say, for female Viagra. The FDA adviser committee has now put the product on hold. They say they need more conclusive data as was supposed to as the name suggests, help women with low sex drive. The decision does not affect a separate gel that's supposedly does the same thing. That gel still being studied.
And a royal wedding to tell you about. We're keeping an eye on things over in Sweden. The Crown Princess Victoria, she's marrying Daniel Westling, and even though it sounds insulting, he is a commoner. The ceremonies are supposed to start at the bottom of the hour. They met when he became her personal trainer. So, Reynolds, fairy tales, dreams do come true. It's usually in the reverse.
WOLF: A commoner?
HOLMES: Yes, that's what they call them over there.
WOLF: So in your relationship, who would be the commoner in your marriage because I'm definitely the commoner?
HOLMES: Yes, I'm the commoner.
WOLF: That's right. My wife is a princess.
HOLMES: Oh, look at that.
WOLF: She's also the king. She does it all.
HOLMES: I've been to your house. You're definitely right.
WOLF: You know what I'm saying.
HOLMES: That's how it goes.
WOLF: Absolutely. Hey, you know, it is a day that is going to be fit for a king or a queen across much of the nation. But he we had some trouble spots the last couple of days ago. It's going to be clean-up time in places like say Chicago.
Let's show you some video very quickly of what they've been dealing with. Some strong storms, straight line winds causing wide spread damage. Nearly a quarter of a million people without power this morning. Things are going to be restored as the day goes on and to clean-up oil continue.
But one bit of good news that Chicago is going to be in better shape, however, look for a chance of strong storms to develop across parts of the central plains as we go to the weather maps. You can see them here. Across parts of the weather maps, central plains. You can expect also to see another bout of severe weather possible for portions of the eastern Great Lakes, New York state, even into Ohio and into the keystone state of Pennsylvania. Very hot and muggy along the gulf coast and high temperatures today.
Check this out. Going into the 90s. But that's kind of deceptive because even though the air temperature is going to be into the 90s it's going to feel much warmer, very humid, high temperatures is going to feel like it's going to the 100s. Atlanta, 93. Phoenix, 106. San Francisco, 56. T.J., that is the latest for you. Let's send it back to you at the news desk.
HOLMES: Reynolds. Thank you, kind sir. We will both be back to talk to you here in just about 30 minutes. Top of the hour. More live news as CNN SATURDAY MORNING continues. But right now we want to hand it over to "YOUR BOTTOM LINE."
