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Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/07/22/sherrod.shirley.cnn.art.jpg caption="After her father was shot to death by a white man, "I decided to stay in the South and work for change," Shirley Sherrod said."]
Shirley Sherrod: Dad was killed by white farmer
(CNN) – Shirley Miller Sherrod has spent most of her life fighting injustice.
On the Baker County, Georgia, farm where the Miller family grew corn, peanuts, cotton and cucumbers and raised hogs, cows and goats, oldest daughter Shirley despised the work.
"I swore I would never have anything to do with a farm past high school," she said Wednesday with an easy chuckle. "I would talk to the sun as I picked cotton and picked cucumbers and worked out there in that hot field, and [say], 'This is not the life for me.' I didn't want to have anything to do with agriculture ever again."
On the night in 1965 when her father, Hosie Miller, a black man and a deacon at Thankful Baptist Church, was shot to death by a white farmer in what ostensibly was a dispute over a few cows, Sherrod - then 17 years old - changed her mind.
"I decided to stay in the South and work for change," said Sherrod, now 62, who believes her father's killing was more about a Southern black man speaking up to a white man than about who owned which animals. The all-white grand jury didn't bring charges against the shooter. Read more
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says he has apologized to Sherrod, who resigned from her Agriculture Department position under pressure this week over a video showing her making comments about a white farmer.
Vilsack said he told Sherrod by phone that the USDA would have another position for her should she want it. Sherrod answered that she needed some time to think about it, Vilsack said.
Program note: Will Shirley Sherrod reconsider working again for the USDA? She'll join us live in the studio this morning at 6:30 a.m. ET.
Sound off: We want to hear from you this morning. Add your comments to the LIVE Blog below and we'll read some of them on the show.
LIVE Blog: Chat with us during the show
Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/POLITICS/07/21/agriculture.employee.usda/t1main.sherod.02.usad.jpg caption="Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said early Wednesday he will review the case of a former USDA worker who quit after a video surfaced of her discussing a white farmer. "]
Agriculture secretary to review resignation of USDA worker
(CNN) – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said early Wednesday that he will review the case of a former Agriculture Department official who resigned after a video clip surfaced of her discussing a white farmer.
"I am of course willing and will conduct a thorough review and consider additional facts to ensure to the American people we are providing services in a fair and equitable manner," Vilsack said in a statement.
Shirley Sherrod - an African American - resigned this week under pressure after the video clip first appeared on a conservative website and later on Fox News. In the video, she seemed to say she withheld services from a white farmer.
The video initially brought condemnation from the NAACP, which it later retracted after the context of the clip became clear.
The NAACP said in a statement Tuesday that it was "snookered by Fox News" and conservative website publisher Andrew Breitbart.
"Having reviewed the full tape by Shirley Sherrod, who is the woman who was fired by the Department of Agriculture, and most importantly heard the testimony of the white farmers mentioned in this story, we now believe that the organization that edited the documents did so with the intention of deceiving millions of Americans," the statement from NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said. Read more
Sound off: We want to hear from you this morning. Add your comments to the LIVE Blog below and we'll read some of them on the show.
LIVE Blog: Chat with us during the show
Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/US/07/19/gulf.oil.disaster/mattingly.bp.letter.cnn.416×234.jpg caption="Scientists look at whether to resume collecting oil from BP's ruptured deepwater well after a seep was detected in the Gulf of Mexico, the company said Monday."]
Gulf well tests held over another day
(CNN) – Tests on the ruptured BP well in the Gulf of Mexico will go on for another 24 hours as federal and company officials try to explain "anomalous" pressure readings and possible leaks, the federal government's point man on the spill said Monday.
"There is no indication at this time this is any indication of a significant problem in the well bore, but we are running every one of these anomalies down," former Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen told reporters Monday afternoon.
The pressures recorded on the well in the four days since it was temporarily "shut in" are lower than expected, Allen said. Meanwhile, there are possible leaks of methane gas from around the well and from the inoperative blowout preventer, as well as a separate and possibly unrelated seep from the ocean floor about 3 kilometers (about 2 miles) away, he said.
Allen said scientists and engineers are still debating whether the low pressure is caused by either the well's depletion after three months of oil spewing into the Gulf or whether oil is leaking from the well into the surrounding sea floor.
"There are arguments to be made on both sides," he said. "But those discussions continue, and we're trying to develop information that will allow us to do that."
He said a joint in the capping stack placed over the damaged well appeared to be leaking a combination of oil and methane, but there appeared to be no sign that it was hindering the equipment now being used to contain the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Read more
Sound off: We want to hear from you this morning. Add your comments to the LIVE Blog below and we'll read some of them on the show.
LIVE Blog: Chat with us during the show
Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/US/07/19/gulf.oil.disaster/t1main.jpg caption="Scientists look at whether to resume collecting oil from BP's ruptured deepwater well after a seep was detected in the Gulf of Mexico, the company said Monday."]
After seep detected, BP reconsiders collection of oil
(CNN) – Testing continues and scientists are evaluating the results to decide whether to resume collecting oil from BP's ruptured deepwater well, the company said Monday.
BP's statement came hours after Thad Allen, the federal government's oil spill response director, said that testing had revealed a "detected seep a distance from the well." He ordered the company to quickly notify the government if other leaks were found.
"When seeps are detected, you are directed to marshal resources, quickly investigate, and report findings to the government in no more than four hours," Allen said in a letter to BP Chief Managing Director Bob Dudley released late Sunday.
BP's statement Monday did not mention the leak, but said the company was carrying out extensive monitoring activities around the well site. Allen's did not provide further details about where the leak was spotted or how big it is.
Allen said earlier Sunday that testing would determine whether keeping the well capped was the right solution. Pressure testing results in the well have been lower than expected, he said, which means oil could be leaking out from below.
"While we are pleased that no oil is currently being released into the Gulf of Mexico and want to take all appropriate action to keep it that way, it is important that all decisions are driven by the science," he said. "Ultimately, we must ensure no irreversible damage is done which could cause uncontrolled leakage from numerous points on the sea floor." Read more
Sound off: We want to hear from you this morning. Add your comments to the LIVE Blog below and we'll read some of them on the show.
LIVE blog: Chat with us during the show
Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
No oil leaking as BP conducts critical pressure tests in Gulf oil well
New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) - A highly anticipated test designed to measure pressure within BP's ruptured Gulf of Mexico oil well finally began Thursday, and for the first time in nearly three months, oil stopped flowing into the Gulf.
The move was lauded by a variety of officials as a positive step, accompanied by a strong note of caution that the cutoff was simply part of the test, as BP and government experts try to assess how the well is holding up.
The test got under way after two days of delays, first as government scientists scrutinized testing procedures and then as BP replaced a leaking piece of equipment known as a choke line.
The data are being particularly closely scrutinized at six-hour intervals. Higher pressure readings mean the well is containing the oil, while lower pressure means some is leaking out.
The "well integrity" test could end after one of the six-hour periods, if the results are disappointing. But it could go on for 48 hours. The longer it goes, the better indications are that the well is holding with a custom-made sealing cap. Read More
Wall Street reform: On to Obama
WASHINGTON (CNNMoney.com) - The Senate on Thursday afternoon passed the most sweeping set of changes to the financial regulatory system since the 1930s, sending the Wall Street reform bill to President Obama.
The Senate voted 60 to 39 to pass the reforms, ending more than a year-long effort to pass legislation in response to the 2008 financial crisis. Obama is expected to sign the bill into law next week.
The bill aims to strengthen consumer protection, rein in complex financial products and head off more bank bailouts.
To secure enough votes, Senate Democrats made lots of deals, which watered down the bill. For example, Wall Street banks will get wiggle room to make limited risky bets, which is tougher than the current law, but weaker than earlier drafts. Read More
Sound off: We want to hear from you this morning. Add your comments to the LIVE Blog below and we'll read some of them on the show.
LIVE blog: Chat with us during the show
Editor's Note: Welcome to American Morning's LIVE Blog where you can discuss the "most news in the morning" with us each week day. Join the live chat during the show by adding your comments below. It's your chance to share your thoughts on the day's headlines. You have a better chance of having your comment get past our moderators if you follow our rules: 1) Keep it brief 2) No writing in ALL CAPS 3) Use your real name (first name only is fine) 4) No links 5) Watch your language (that includes $#&*).
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/07/15/oil.water.art.jpg caption="An oil coated containment boom is seen close to the shore."]
Leak in equipment delays BP's efforts to stop massive oil gusher
New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) - A leak in a crucial piece of equipment may stall BP's effort to stop the massive oil gusher Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico.
The equipment, called a choke line, started leaking Wednesday, another setback for the beleaguered company in its hope of stopping the disaster. The company will need to fix the leak before it can run the vital tests that could show whether an end to the environmental disaster is finally in sight, the company said.
There was no timetable for when the leak was to be fixed, a company spokesman said early Thursday morning.
And video images of the busted oil well showed a continuous flow of ominous dark oil streaming from the ocean floor.
Even before the new delay, the process had been stalled.
U.S. officials told BP on Tuesday to proceed with an "integrity" test on the well.
But the test was delayed for a day, according to Retired Adm. Thad Allen, who is heading the government's response to the oil spill.
Allen said the officials "sat long and hard about delaying the test" and it was "not easy" to decide to delay. He said they wanted to make sure they're "getting this right" for this "significant event."
Allen added the delay was not prompted by the White House. Read More
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