Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

What's on Tap in D.C. Today?

Aired July 22, 2002 - 06:06   ET

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

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us now on the phone is our Washington deputy bureau chief, Steve Redisch, with a look at what's on tap there today.

Good morning -- Steve.

STEVE REDISCH, WASHINGTON DEPUTY BUREAU CHIEF: Anderson, good morning -- welcome to the mornings.

COOPER: Well, it's nice to be here.

REDISCH: They are early mornings.

President Bush is on the homeland defense beat today, going out to Argonne, Illinois. He is going to visit a lab that was involved in the development of the atomic bomb in the 1940s, and today, he'll speak about homeland defense, the importance.

It all ties into what Congress is doing in this last week of their summer session before their August break, and is trying to get the Homeland Defense Department up and running. And they've got a Friday deadline to get a bill out by both Houses, and that's what they're working on all week this week.

COOPER: I understand Ross Perot is in town as well.

REDISCH: Ross Perot makes an unusual visit to Washington today. He'll be up on Capitol Hill testifying about how his company, Perot Systems, helps California out in its energy crunch, and what Enron did to manipulate the prices for electricity out in California last year.

COOPER: Well, that should be pretty -- any sense of how long he's going to be testifying for? Is it just a one-day thing?

REDISCH: It's just a one-day thing. He'll be up there with several other people involved in the California energy crunch, and it's just unusual to see Ross Perot in Washington, especially in a position of testifying before Congress. It just should be pretty good pictures, and Ross Perot is always an interesting guy to listen to.

COOPER: Well, Chad was just talking about the heat in Washington, and a lot of -- a lot of people in Congress would like to try to get out of town. Is there any push to speed things along? REDISCH: Oh, it's a code orange day today up here, and they'd like to get out of town by Friday. They also have to wrap up corporate responsibility. Both the House and the Senate have now agreed to rules on a conference committee, which is all technical terms and all kinds of different jargon. They want to get a bill out by the end of the week and get it to President Bush to sign and then go on vacation.

COOPER: All right, cool.

Washington deputy bureau chief, Steve Redisch -- thanks very much for being with us today.

REDISCH: Talk to you tomorrow.

COOPER: All right.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.