[Carol Costello, Cnn Anchor:] Military recruiters across the country are taking a day off from signing up new recruits to get a refresher course on the ethics of their jobs. CNN Radio's Dick Uliano joins us now. Dick, why is a day like today necessary for military recruiters? Do we have Dick Uliano? It appears that we do not have Dick Uliano. Is that correct? Well, why don't we come back to me now until we get him? We're going to go to David McSwane. He's the teenager whose article blew the story wide open for the Army. And actually that's why they're having this one day break from recruitment, because of his investigative piece, which appeared in his high school newspaper. Good morning, David. He joins us live now.
[David Mcswane, High School Journalist:] Good morning.
[Costello:] How are you? You sound kind of sleepy.
[Mcswane:] Yes, a little bit.
[Costello:] Well, since we didn't have Dick Uliano explaining this for us, give us a little background. You did this investigative report for your high school newspaper, and you went to the recruitment center. What were you expecting to find?
[Mcswane:] Well, I went in with an open mind, and I didn't exactly know what would happen. I just wanted to do some investigative reporting and just trying to get a story, and it turned out to be a little more intense than I thought it would be. And it turned out to become a national issue.
[Costello:] Oh, it certainly did. So, you went in there to the Army recruitment officer, and he told you that the Army required a high school diploma. Or did you ask him about that?
[Mcswane:] Well, actually, the original plan was for me to get my grade equivalency diploma. It wasn't until after I purposely failed it that I was told about the fake diploma option.
[Costello:] So, this is what the Army recruitment office told you since you failed this equivalency test that they gave you. He told you to do what?
[Mcswane:] He said I can just go on the Internet and order a fake diploma, and it would get there in a couple of days. And I would need a transcript to go along with it. And he would turn it in, and everything would be all right.
[Costello:] You also told this recruiter that you had a drug problem. What was his response to that?
[Mcswane:] The very first time I met him I told him about my drug problem. I don't really have a drug problem. It was just for my article.
[Costello:] I understand.
[Mcswane:] And he said, you know, it's no big deal; that we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. And he later told me about a drug detox kit that he would help me buy that would clean out my system and give me about a three-hour winder, where I could drop a urine analysis, and I could pass the physical exam.
[Costello:] So, as he's telling you this, what is going through your mind?
[Mcswane:] At first I was little shocked, you know, just to see, you know, an Army officer acting in such a way. And then, you know, I'm just, you know, like, you know, that figures. This is what's going to happen when they're under so much intense pressure to get recruits.
[Costello:] That's definitely true. The Army, I think, they need 80,000 recruits every single year, and that's a lot of people to recruit. Another question for you. What kind of feedback are you getting about this? This has now made the national news.
[Mcswane:] You know, like you said earlier, today they're having a national stand-down day, which is unprecedented, especially in a time of war. And I think, you know, I'm certainly surprised to see a reaction from the U.S. Pentagon from a high school newspaper investigation. And, you know, a lot of people are angry, especially recruiters after, you know, some higher-up Army, you know, lieutenant colonels and such are saying, you know, these are rogue recruiters. And that, you know, these guys screwed up, and they're going to be punished. And it seems and they're denying that recruiters are punished for not meeting quota.
[Costello:] Are you going to continue following this story, David?
[Mcswane:] Yes.
[Costello:] I'm sure you are. David McSwane joining us live from Denver, Colorado, this morning. We appreciate that. And as you heard David say, military recruiters across the country are taking a day off from signing up new recruits to get a refresher course on the ethics of their jobs. We do have CNN Radio's Dick Uliano now. Dick explain to us what that is.
[Dick Uliano, Cnn Radio:] Well, Carol, a couple of points on this. Number one, military analysts say this 24-hour freeze on recruitment is a statement on the Army that they do take these charges very, very seriously, because, Carol, very rarely does the Army stand-down a unit because of problems like this. Number two, members of Congress are calling for investigations. There's even a call for a special council of the Justice Department to investigate all of this. And number three, the major general of Army recruiting, Michael Rochelle, is going to have a news conference this afternoon at 1:30 to talk more about this 24-hour freeze on recruitment, these ethics problems that have been uncovered and what the Army plans to do about it.
[Costello:] Well, you know, the first thing that pops into your mind is just how widespread is this.
[Uliano:] Exactly.
[Costello:] Does the military have an answer to this?
[Uliano:] Yes. Yes. Certainly the problems uncovered by this young journalist in Colorado are not the only ones. In fact, a spokesman for Army recruiting command says the Army is investigating nearly 500 allegations of improper conduct by recruits this year, and that's well ahead of last year when all of last year there were about 957 allegations of impropriety. So, it's not the first. Members of Congress and Pentagon officials want to know how extensive it is. And this one-day stand-down apparently will be a starting point. But, Carol, it may not be the end of this. We could see more investigations.
[Costello:] Yes. And I just want to go over some figures for our audience. The Army's goal is 80,000 recruits a year. That's 6,600 recruits a month. And the Army has missed its recruiting goal for three months now. It's the first time this has happened. So, we'll see what happens later today, because I'm sure there will be much more fallout from this. Dick Uliano, thanks for joining us live from Washington.
[Uliano:] Thanks, Carol.
[Costello:] New pictures. Have you seen these? You probably haven't seen this yet, but wait until you do. There he is. Do you see that, "Tyrant's In His Pants?" These supposedly are pictures from Saddam Hussein in prison. The picture is splashed on the cover of a British tabloid, "The Sun," as you see. The U.S. Department of Defense has condemned the release of these photographs. Officials are vowing an aggressive investigation and steps to assure the breach never, ever happens again. Of course, we'll be hearing more about that throughout the day as well. Caught on tape an amazing crash, and one police officer is grateful for his life. CNN's Bill Hemmer joins us now with a look at this controversy coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING." Good morning.
[Bill Hemmer, Cnn Anchor:] Hey, Carol. How is this guy alive? I mean, you look at this videotape, and the woman, too, the deputy who just got out of the way. Watch this here. Man, is that close! He not only survived, Carol, they say he walked away from this with barely a scratch. I don't even know how that's possible. Watch the whiplash on his neck and the way he gets chopped down in the back and thrown off to the side of that road. He is alive, and he's with us this morning. And, wow, was that a scene that we saw yesterday. Man! Also, a man on death row in Indiana asking for more time so that he can donate his liver to his sister. He is scheduled to die next week. But should he be allowed to live so that he can save his sister's life? An intriguing story. We'll talk about that this morning on a Friday edition of "AMERICAN MORNING." See you at the top of the hour, huh, Carol?
[Costello:] Yes, I'll be here. Thank you, Bill.
[Hemmer:] Bye-bye.
[Costello:] Sex offenders may not be welcome at Six Flags Amusement Parks. In fact, they will not be welcome. The company says they're reserving the right to refuse entry to registered sex offenders. That policy would stand at all 30 of the company's theme parks. The warning is actually printed on the back of all season passes. But company officials say they're not prepared to conduct background checks on all park visitors. So, that might be mighty hard to enforce. Native Americans are almost welcome in Boston. It's hard to believe, but there is still a law on the books that bans American Indians from entering the city. But state lawmakers have repealed the 330-year-old law. Now it's awaiting the governor's signature. Somehow I'm sure he'll sign that, home of the Boston Red Sox. Some high school students in Bakersfield, California, have sued the school district over their students' newspaper stories. They want the paper to print their articles about gay students at the school. The principal says he censored the articles because he was afraid of anti-gay violence. When DAYBREAK returns, ticket prices, frequent fliers and destinations. What now? Your questions about the latest airline merger are answered by our own Carrie Lee next. And help is just a call away. Or is it? A look at Internet phone technology and your safety. But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday morning.