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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Terror Alert Closes Miles of Florida Highway; Is the Spread of West Nile Virus the Work of Terrorists?
Aired September 13, 2002 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Now on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, a terror alert closes miles of Florida highway.
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EUNICE STONE, WITNESS: If they mourn September 11, what will they think about September the 13th.
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BLITZER: A concerned citizen's claim sets authorities into action.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that it is important to show that this system works.
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BLITZER: The case against Iraq, Baghdad is unbowed.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are lies. They have no evidence whatsoever that we have such weapons.
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BLITZER: The president stands firm.
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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am highly doubtful that he'll meet our demands.
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BLITZER: Will Saddam Hussein give in? I'll ask Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Friedman of "The New York Times." An influential Senator wonders about a link between terrorists and mosquitoes.
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SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: Is it coincidence that we're seeing such an increase in West Nile Virus or is that something that's being tested as a biological weapon?
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BLITZER: And, America's favorite dysfunctional mobsters are back. I'll speak with guitarist-turned-gangster Steven Van Zandt.
It's Friday, September 13, 2002. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
It's been a tense day in south Florida along a stretch of highway known as Alligator Alley. Authorities spent hours trying to answer a question with very little margin for error. Were three men they pulled over innocent travelers or terrorists involved in a deadly plot?
CNN's Mark Potter is joining us by phone. He has the very latest. Mark, tell us what's going on.
MARK POTTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the terrorism concern has come to a close and officials have announced that there is no threat after hours and hours of searching two vehicles on I-75 near Naples, Florida. Officials have concluded that neither car contained any sort of explosives. There was not even any residue of explosives and so the cars have been cleared.
Sources say that officials are actually looking now into the possibility that this may have been a hoax or the result of an indiscreet joke in a restaurant in Georgia, three young men possibly talking among themselves joking about some action on September 13. It was overheard by a patron who reported to the authorities. The authorities praised that patron but it turns out that this may not have been any sort of real threat.
The three men are still being detained for investigation but officials say they will probably be released soon. They have not been charged with anything. It appears no federal charges will be leveled.
However, Florida and Georgia officials will be talking about possible state charges if this turned out to have been a hoax, and officials here of course are counting up how many people and how much money and how much time this cost and, of course, this very important stretch of highway was closed for almost an entire day -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Mark Potter, he's been on the story all day, thanks very much for that update.
Authorities in Florida were acting on a tip from a citizen. Eunice Stone was eating with her son at a restaurant in Calhoun, Georgia when she overheard the men talking at the next table.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
STONE: Huddled together there over the booth talking and then one guy said, Do you think that will bring it down? And, I looked at my son and we were just looking at each other and he said, Well, if that don't bring it down, I have contacts. I'll get enough to bring it down. And, to me, that meant they were planning to blow up something.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BLITZER: The three men at the center of today's events are described as medical students. The sister of one of the men joins us now live from suburban Chicago.
Hana Gheith, thank you so much for joining us. Tell us about your brother. Do you believe he would engage deliberately in a hoax of this magnitude?
HANA GHEITH, SISTER OF DETAINEE: Absolutely not. This is ridiculous. I mean she didn't hear the whole conversation. The whole purpose of their trip was to find an apartment in Miami. For all she knows that's what they could have been talking about, I mean.
BLITZER: Where were they planning on going to medical school?
GHEITH: We are in medical school. We just finished our basic science program in the Caribbean and a part of the program is a nine- week program in Miami that we were all meeting down there.
My brother and his friends, which are also my classmates, are driving down there to find a place to live in order for us to continue the studies. I was planning on leaving.
BLITZER: Hana, what about the notion that they ran through that toll booth, which caused alarm bells among the police? Does that sound like something your brother and his friends would do?
GHEITH: No. My brother and our friends, we're strong Muslims that believe in God. We don't do things like this.
I mean if it happened, which I doubt it did, it might have been an accident but many people run through toll booths every day. If you're going to cause this much commotion over somebody running a tollbooth then you'd have to stop millions of Americans every day for this.
BLITZER: Initially, after the three men were arrested, were stopped, local and national law enforcement authorities were saying they were not cooperative with police in their initial questioning. Does that sound like something your brother and his friends would do, not cooperate with the police?
GHEITH: No. They have no reason not to cooperate. I'm sure they had full cooperation but I mean the commotion and frenzy that's going on over there and over the media and everything, they might have been in a state of shock if anything.
BLITZER: Is your brother and his friends, I assume you know the two friends, are they very political or are they non-political?
GHEITH: No. We're very peaceful people. I mean I know the media has stereotyped the Muslim religion as a terrorist religion but, in fact, it's a very peaceful religion. My brother is part of the MSA at Ross University in the Caribbean and even the deans know my brother there. We promote peace. We promote togetherness. He does charity work. He helps even the students with their own family problems. This is the kind of work my brother does. This is the kind of person my brother is. These allegations are absolutely ridiculous and I don't believe any of it. I'm sorry.
BLITZER: OK, Hana Gheith joining us from suburban Chicago, thank you very much for spending some time with us.
And, word of today's traffic stop spread quickly through the entire area of south Florida. Manny Diaz is the mayor of Miami and he's joining us now live. Mr. Mayor, are you as shocked as all of us if, in fact, this is as we now say a hoax?
MAYOR MANNY DIAZ, MIAMI, FLORIDA: Well, it would be quite a surprise and obviously it's been a very tense time for all of us since close to this time yesterday when we first heard from the Federal Department of Law Enforcement about this possibility.
BLITZER: What is the latest information you have received, because the initial suspicion was that terrorists were going after a target in Miami?
DIAZ: Well, we have the same information actually that you've reported. The governor and the law enforcement authorities have all issued the same information. We've been in touch all day and your information is very accurate based on what we've heard as well.
BLITZER: So you can confirm to us that this was indeed some sort of joke, a hoax, and that we went through this entire day of tension really for nothing?
DIAZ: Well, I don't think it's for nothing. I think law enforcement acted the way that we want to act. I think what this shows is that since September of last year, law enforcement has developed a strong sense of cooperation at the federal, state, and local levels, and you saw that we were prepared. We were prepared to respond to something like this. It's turned out apparently to be a hoax but nevertheless it shows that we were in a position to respond and respond quickly.
BLITZER: This kind of practical joke if, in fact, it could be described as a joke, can cause enormous economic dislocations, tourism a major part of Miami. For example, all of South Florida could be affected. What lesson do we learn from what happened today?
DIAZ: Well, obviously it does affect the local economy, but I think you know people in Miami reacted the way we want them to react. Nothing changed in terms of the lives of people in this community.
We went on the air very early on and said that we were on top of the situation, that we had no evidence whatsoever of any specific attack on any facility in Miami and that people should continue their daily lives and people did, and flights were on schedule, and the cruise ships were working, and life was normal today in Miami despite everything else that was going on.
BLITZER: Manny Diaz, the mayor of Miami, thanks for joining us on a tense day.
DIAZ: Sure.
BLITZER: Fortunately, it's turned out to be a source of not much tension after all but a very tense day indeed, appreciate it very much.
DIAZ: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Let's move on to another source of concern. The FBI now says the freighter moored off New Jersey poses no radiation threat. A spokeswoman says the levels detected are not a danger to the public, the crew, or inspectors. Apparently, the elevated radiation is coming from clay tiles. The ship was ordered back to sea Tuesday for a series of tests because of fears it might be carrying material for a nuclear weapon.
If today's traffic stop does indeed turn out to be a false alarm, and now we are reporting it has been a false alarm, it will be only the latest of many in recent days reflecting a very real concern.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ASHCROFT, ATTORNEY GENERAL: The U.S. intelligence community has also received information that one or more individuals in the Middle East are preparing for a suicide attack or attacks against U.S. interests.
BLITZER (voice-over): Maybe the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks has people on edge. Maybe the Orange alert has people watching and listening more carefully, or maybe it's the steady drumbeat of reports out of the Middle East suggesting the al Qaeda network remains active. Whatever the reason, recent days have seen an apparent upsurge in concerns about possible terrorist activity on U.S. soil.
F-16 fighters forced a twin-engine jet with Egyptian registration to land because the pilot didn't provide enough flight information. On the commercial airlines, in-flight disturbances that normally attract little media notice were the center of attention. A dispute over using the restroom forced the diversion of a Northwest Airlines flight to Arkansas.
An American Airlines flight was escorted back to Houston amid concerns about one man who switched seats and another man whose suspected knife turned out to be a comb. An Air Portugal jet en route from New York to Lisbon landed in Delaware because of what was termed an apparent miscommunication. Authorities say they're being careful.
MAYOR JAMES HAHN, LOS ANGELES: What we're doing is in abundance of caution and to respond and to be consistent with the call from our federal government. BLITZER: You didn't have to be on a plane to be inconvenienced. The Delta Airlines terminal at the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport was evacuated after a passenger set off a metal detector and kept going. A building in Atlanta's Emory University was cleared after the discovery of an envelope containing a suspicious powder, and a 41-story state office tower in Columbus, Ohio was evacuated after a window company worker said he was planting a bomb. His lawyer says it was a joke. Whatever it was, it was a false alarm like so many other reports this week.
Do we run the risk that too many false alarms will cause Americans to become complacent? Perhaps, but for the time being many people are glad someone is paying attention.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm glad that there's a heightened sense of security, although I'm not nervous about flying.
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BLITZER: A Jordanian college student, arrested just days after the September 11 terrorist attacks, is suing the United States Government. Osama al-Wadala says his civil rights were violated when he was arrested as a material witness last September 21 and wasn't released until December. Al-Wadala was acquainted with two of the September 11 hijackers. A federal judge has already ruled that the government misused the material witness statute. That decision is being appealed by federal prosecutors.
As of right now, the United States remains at the Orange level of alert status and, as we reported, the Bush administration Tuesday raised the terrorist threat level from the Code Yellow to the Code Orange signifying a high risk of attack but that move raises this key question. Can the Orange level be maintained too long?
CNN's Jeanne Meserve has some answers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ASHCROFT: The recommendation has been made to increase the national threat level currently classified at elevated risk to a heightened state of alert.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Moving the threat level up to Orange might have been the easy part.
RANDY LARSEN, SECURITY EXPERT: It's much easier to go up based on intelligence information than to move back down because what happens if you move back down at 6:00 tonight and at 8:00 there's a major attack? It sort of makes you look foolish.
MESERVE: But staying at Orange presents problems too, keep it there too long and there's a risk the threat alert system could appear meaningless, and there's the matter of stress to the public psyche and public budgets.
Preliminary survey data from the National League of Cities shows that although more than 50 percent of cities used increased caution after the alert was issued, 35 percent had no increased concern and most of them went about business as usual because they didn't feel the alert was relevant to them.
Some non-federal emergency managers complain the federal government didn't give them a game plan for moving the threat level up and they question whether there is one to move it down either.
Some experts concur the threat system is still a long way from what was envisioned.
DAVID HEYMAN, CSIS: You need to have plans. You need to have resources and you need to have, you know, training and all of those things take time and we just aren't there yet.
MESERVE (on-camera): For now, the threat level is staying right where it is. The Office of Homeland Security anticipates no change for at least another week.
Jeanne Meserve CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: U.S. friendly fire killed four Canadians in Afghanistan. Now the American pilots face criminal charges. We'll go to the Pentagon when we come back.
Plus, storm on the horizon, Hanna threatens the Gulf.
And, cold-blooded killers with a hit TV "The Sopranos" returns this Sunday. Mobster and rocker Steven Van Zandt joins us live with a preview.
But first, today's news quiz.
As a youth, "The Sopranos" character Silvio wanted to be what when he grew up, lawyer, nightclub manager, professional football player, singer? The answer coming up.
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(AUDIO GAP)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): "...of his wingman, he deferred his lead responsibilities, took a passive observer role and allowed the wingman to take actions clearly not in line with accepted procedures." Both F-16 pilots now face court marshal on four counts of Involuntary Manslaughter for the four Canadians killed by the accidental bombing, and eight counts of Assault for the eight wounded, plus charges for dereliction of duty.
But, the investigators were also highly critical of some commanders and procedures which could provide the basis of a defense if the case goes to trial. The command environment "was characterized by ineffective leadership and complacency in enforcement of discipline and standards" according to the report. Singled out was the pilot's commander, Colonel David Nichols who the report said "tended to consider himself more as one of the boys rather than a commander." He was not charged but faces administrative discipline. And, the report faulted the mission planning process finding that the F-16 pilots were not given "an adequate understanding of the airspace and ground restrictions" and had insufficient information to execute their assigned mission tasking.
MCINTYRE (on camera): Canada's defense minister said he's encouraged that the Americans are filing such serious charges showing that they take the deaths seriously. The case is now being reviewed by a three-star Air Force general who could either dismiss the charges or proceed to court marshal.
Jamie McIntyre CNN, The Pentagon.
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BLITZER: And here's your chance to weigh in on this story. Our web question of the day is this: should U.S. pilots face criminal charges in the mistaken bombing of Canadian soldiers? We'll have the results later in this program. Vote at cnn.com/wolf.
While you're there, send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.
President Bush gives a gloomy take on Iraq and Iraq strikes back with its own words. What's next in the showdown? I'll ask Thomas Friedman at "The New York Times."
Also, the latest on Vice President Dick Cheney's checkup at the hospital.
And, is something sinister behind the West Nile Virus outbreak? A U.S. Senator sounds off, but first a look at news making headlines around the world.
An Italian oil tanker is leaking off the coast of South Africa. The crew abandoned ship after an engine fire and officials fear that if the ship breaks up, it could do serious damage to nearby wetlands.
Israeli tanks, backed by helicopter gun ships, rolled into Palestinian refugee camps in Gaza as part of a crackdown on militants and suspected weapon sites. Gun battles followed and one Palestinian was killed.
Supporters of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benizir Bhutto staged an angry protest after Bhutto was barred from running in next month's election. There were two dozen arrests. Authorities say Bhutto is ineligible to run because she failed to attend a court hearing on corruption charges.
Explorers are hoping to solve one of the mysteries of Egypt's pyramids by remote control. On Monday, they'll send this small tank- like robot up a narrow 40-degree shaft inside the Great Pyramid. Two hundred feet up, it will stop at a stone hatch with cooper handles and insert a tiny television camera to see what's on the other side.
Happy Birthday, Prince Harry. The number two son of Britain's Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana turns 18 Sunday. He's not planning a big party. Reports say he's trying to shed his so-called wild child image.
Japanese couples who want to become parents have a new tool, the cell phone. A new phone service processes your personal information, then lets you know when the chances are best to conceive a child. Does it work? Here's the proof, and that's our look around the world.
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BLITZER: Welcome back.
One day after his tough speech on Iraq at the United Nations, President Bush is showing no sign of letting up in his push to have Saddam Hussein removed from power one way or the other, but the Iraqis aren't blinking, at least not yet.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice over): President Bush isn't holding his breath waiting for Saddam Hussein to let U.N. weapons inspectors back inside Iraq.
BUSH: I am highly doubtful that he'll meet our demands. I hope he does but I'm highly doubtful.
BLITZER: The president says he bases that gloomy assessment on 11 years of Iraqi violations of U.N. resolutions.
BUSH: I hope the world community knows that we're extremely serious about what I said yesterday and we expect quick resolution.
BLITZER: The Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee says the president is doing the right thing by giving the U.N. one more chance.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DE), FOREIGN RELATIONS CHMN.: I think we should just slow down, let the president approach this the way he has. I think he's being responsible the way he's doing it and I think he has a prospect of getting the world behind it.
BLITZER: Secretary of State Colin Powell wants a new U.N. resolution passed within days or a few weeks but not much longer than that.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I think that the U.N. will take it much more seriously this time around because of the determination shown by President Bush to make sure that we do something this time and not let Saddam Hussein walk away.
BLITZER: But in Baghdad, the Iraqis remain defiant. TARIQ AZIZ, IRAQI DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The return of inspectors without conditions will not solve the problem because we have had a bad experience with them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And joining us now with his special insight on all of this, "The New York Times" foreign affairs columnist Tom Friedman. He's the winner of three Pulitzer Prizes. Tom's new book is called "Longitudes & Attitudes: Exploring the World After September 11." It's just come out.
Congratulations, Tom, on the new book.
Let's talk a little bit about the Iraqis, first of all. What do you expect Saddam Hussein and his regime to do in the face of this threat from the U.S.?
THOMAS FRIEDMAN, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Well, I think these guys are gamblers for one, Wolf, but the other is that I think he will continue to probe, see where the alliance is out there, how solid it is in the west against him. He'll see where the Russians are going to go, see where the French are going to go, see to what degree at the end of the day when it comes down to writing this U.N. Security Council resolution that our allies are really ready to be as tough as our government.
BLITZER: Well, how ready are the allies to cooperate with the Bush administration?
FRIEDMAN: My sense is that at the end of the day the Chinese will kind of go along with anything we want. I think the French at the end of the day could probably be brought around. I think the problem with the Russians is simply a matter of dollars and cents.
I think as for Putin it's show me the money, Wolf. Show me the money. Guarantee that my oil companies will be taken care of in a post-Saddam Iraq, and I think he can be brought around. But it's going to be a struggle. It's not going to be easy.
BLITZER: Can the Russians, for example, be convinced that by cooperating with the U.S., getting those inspectors presumably back in, in the long term they stand to make a lot of money?
FRIEDMAN: Yes and I think it's going to be just a question of assuring Putin that Russian oil companies will not be prejudiced in an Iraq that's liberated by Americans.
BLITZER: In your new book, which includes among other things some of your columns going back to September 11, you write this from a column of February 13: "President Bush thinks the axis of evil is Iran, Iraq, and North Korea. And the Europeans think it's Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, and Condi Rice." You write that half in jest but half in truth.
FRIEDMAN: Half in truth. I mean there's no question that, you know, there is a certain hostility in Europe to this administration, some of it deserved, some of it earned by their own sort of unilateralist instincts and probably a good deal of contempt for the Europeans.
But, at the same time, some of it honor. You know, anti- Americanism, Wolf, has really replaced soccer as the most popular global sport now, so it didn't surprise me to see that reaction.
But the fact is, I think the axis of evil comment was an important one for this administration because when the bully pulpit of the U.S. presidency calls you evil, people don't like it. It triggered a debate in Iran afterwards, and to this day it's still reverberating out there.
BLITZER: Let me throw back another quote from you from the book. You write this: "There really are people who hate Christians, hate Jews, hate secularism, hate the equality of women. At some point, you have to either kill those people or be killed by them." Incredibly powerful, strong words from Tom Friedman.
FRIEDMAN: Well, I think that's what 9/11 was all about. I think, Wolf, we were hit by people who hate us for who we are not for what we did. These are people who hate us more than they love life itself very different from the Soviets. You know, we're celebrating now almost the 40th anniversary of the Cuban missile crisis.
The Cuban missile crisis was resolved peacefully, Wolf, because at the end of the day, Khrushchev, OK, loved life more than he hated us. Unfortunately, the people who hit us on 9/11 hate us more than they love life and those kind of people can only be defeated. They can't be negotiated.
BLITZER: So does that mean the U.S. just goes out and starts killing these people?
FRIEDMAN: No, it means that when you are faced with that kind of threat, you do have to search out these people around the world, and when you find them, you certainly have to interdict them any way you can.
BLITZER: Are they increasing in numbers, these people who hate America, or are they decreasing within the Muslim and Arab world, for example?
FRIEDMAN: Well, there is a pool of people out there, I think, who are frustrated by a lot of things. You know a lot of people say gee, Islam is an angry religion. I really disagree but I do think there are a lot of Muslims who are angry, Wolf, angry at us, angry at their own government because they live in the most repressive, authoritarian societies in the world.
If you change that context, okay, the context within which these people live, religion is just a mirror on your daily life and you will see, I think, a very different Islam emerge only when you change the context though. BLITZER: Tom Friedman, we read his column several times a week. We've got a book to read, "Longitudes and Attitudes." Good luck with the book. I understand it's already doing well.
FRIEDMAN: Thanks a lot.
BLITZER: Tom Friedman, thank you very much.
And be sure to join me Sunday on "LATE EDITION," the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz. "LATE EDITION," noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific.
The Gulf Coast braces for a tropical storm. When we return, we'll go to the Gulf Coast for the storm watch.
Plus, one heartbeat away. The vice president gets a clean bill of health.
And the heat is on. "The Sopranos" hit the airwaves, but will they get whacked after this season? TV mobster Steven Van Zandt will join us, live. Stay with us.
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BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. Wolf Blitzer.
Coming up, Tropical Storm Hanna lingering off the Gulf Coast. We'll go there live for the latest.
But first, let's look at some other stories making news right now.
Vice President Dick Cheney got a clean bill of health from his doctors today after a routine heart checkup. Cheney, over the years, has had four heart attacks.
He spoke afterwards with CNN's Robert Novak.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I've got more medical care, Bob, than I know what to do with. I've got doctors following me wherever I go, but I've got great care and they've taken due cautions and procedures with me and today everything went fine, so I've been signed off for another period ahead.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Good news for the vice president.
Now you can watch the full interview on issues ranging from the war on terror to the case against Iraq this weekend on CNN'S "NOVAK, HUNT & SHIELDS." This special 20th anniversary show airs Saturday, 5:30 p.m. Eastern. If you're rich, watch out. The Internal Revenue Service may be knocking on your mansion door. The IRS says it's going to focus more on high income tax cheats, those who hide incomes, engage in scams or who just flat out fail to file a return. One particular target: individuals who have accounts in tax haven countries and use a credit card to access those funds.
If you think the summer was hotter than usual, you're right. The national climatic data center says this summer in the United States was the third hottest on record, following only the Dust Bowl years of 1936 and 1934.
It's been so hot and dry that moderate to extreme drought affected more than 45 percent of the country during each of the last three months of June through August.
Hot weather isn't the main concern for people along the Gulf Coast right now, it's Tropical Storm Hanna.
John Watkins, of our affiliate WPMI, joins us from Dauphin Island, Alabama, with the latest.
JOHN WATKINS, WPMI REPORTER: Wolf, Dauphin Island is a 14-mile long barrier island. It sits about three miles off the coast of Alabama. Fifteen hundred people live here year-round, and tropical storms are, frankly, more of a nuisance than a danger.
However, beach erosion is a major concern with any kind of storm. Projections put this island somewhere in or close to the projected landfall. Today some battened down the hatches in anticipation of winds gusting up to 60 miles an hour. Most did not.
Hanna will make landfall on the rising tide. If she comes ashore west of this island, that puts it in the more damaging northeast quadrant. For now, that's the major concern, mostly for the vacation and rental homes on the island's fragile west end. Any storm coming from that area could further erode a protective sand dune built four years ago after Hurricane George completely destroyed the natural dunes.
There is one thing eerie on this island, though, on this Friday the 13th. It was 22 years and a day ago that Hurricane Frederick, a category three hurricane, devastated Dauphin Island.
Wolf, back to you.
BLITZER: Thank you, very much, John Watkins of our excellent affiliate WPMI, on the scene for us.
Let's check some other stories on this evening's news wire.
Police report no injuries, but plenty of damage from three mud slides in the central Utah town of Santaquin. The mud swamped about three dozen homes, knocked out power, flooded basements, and pushed cars down streets yesterday. One car reportedly smashed into a living room. Relieved officials say four workers survived a rail tank explosion with just minor cuts and scrapes today at a chemical plant near Freeport, Texas. The tank contained a substance used to make nylon. Company spokesmen say the flames are under control and the public is in no, repeat no, danger.
West Nile Virus, a biological weapon? What Senator Patrick Leahy said on the airwaves, and what medical experts think about it when we come back.
Also, he shares the stage with Bruce Springsteen and shares the tube with Tony Soprano. Steven Van Zandt, on the new season, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back.
Federal health officials say the West Nile Virus is in its peak transmission period and has claimed at least 54 lives in the United States this year. And two new cases reported in Massachusetts could bring the total to 56. The largest number of deaths have been in Illinois, Louisiana and Ohio.
Mosquitoes carry the virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that organ transplants can spread it as well. The CDC's latest tally of 54 dead, not including the Massachusetts cases, are among 1,295 known human West Nile cases in the country.
One of the senators targeted by anthrax through the mail last year is wondering whether terrorists may now be spreading West Nile Virus. The Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, raised that possibility yesterday in a radio interview.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: I think we have to ask ourselves is it a coincidence that we're seeing such an increase of West Nile Virus, or is that being tested as a biological weapon against us?
(END AUDIO CLIP)
Senator Leahy later acknowledged he had no evidence terrorism is involved in the epidemic. He declined our invitation for an interview.
Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is joining us now.
Elizabeth, could Senator Leahy perhaps be onto something?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know what, Wolf? We talked to experts today, and they said absolutely not. From what they can tell, they said there's no evidence that terrorism has spread this disease, and there's every evidence that just plain old biology has spread it.
West Nile Virus is an example of an emerging infection. It was first seen in Uganda in 1937 and since then has followed a pattern that would be considered normal for this type of emerging infection.
Normal microbiology does it on its own, without the help of terrorists. It spread through Europe, Africa, the Middle East. It came to the East Coast of the United States in 1999 and then came to the West Coast of the United States just this year. So the experts say they really don't see any evidence that this was spread by people.
In fact, they said if you wanted to have a weapon of mass destruction, you would not use West Nile Virus. More than 99 percent of the people who get the virus recover completely. As a matter of fact, the vast majority of these people don't feel a thing. They don't even know that they're sick. So this would not be the best choice as a weapon of mass destruction -- Wolf.
BLITZER: And so basically what you're saying, Elizabeth; I just want to be precise. The notion of the West Nile Virus being a source of potential terrorism out there, the CDC and other experts don't believe that's possible?
COHEN: They don't think that's true. They said that there's no reason to think that this would be something terrorists would do, partly, as I said, because the way that it's spread throughout the world is just the way that emerging infections usually spread throughout the world. There's nothing unusual; there's nothing weird that looks like humans were somehow involved in this. It's just anything other than just plain old biology did it.
And it's also important to remember that you don't get West Nile by inhaling it. It's not like anthrax where you can get an infection just by inhaling it. Inhaling it would really be a terrorist weapon of choice, because then you could infect a whole bunch of people at one time.
West Nile Virus is only spread by either mosquitoes or by receiving an organ donation and that's a pretty, relatively slow way of spreading things. Again, you wouldn't get it by inhaling it; you would get it by eating tainted meat or something like that.
So if a terrorist chose to do West Nile, that would be a pretty -- a not very bright choice.
BLITZER: All right. I wonder where Senator Leahy even came up with this notion. I've known him for many years. He's a very smart guy. We'll have to press him on this down the road.
Thank you very much, Elizabeth Cohen.
COHEN: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Let's turn to our justice files. A judge has postponed a hearing in the cocaine case against Florida Governor Jeb Bush's daughter because, prosecutors say, the staff at her drug rehab center are not cooperating.
Noelle Bush began a court-ordered drug rehabilitation program after an arrest in January. Police in Orlando say crack cocaine was found in her shoe at the Center for Drug-Free Living on Monday.
An Illinois man accused of stealing a guitar from the rock group Foreigner has drawn a most unusual sentence: he can never see the band again.
"The Chicago Sun-Times" reports that Jason Sanderson was accused of swiping a $6,000 instrument from the stage at an outdoor concert in Naperville.
From a rock 'n' roll lifestyle to mobster hits, "Sopranos" costar Steven Van Zandt joins us live to give us a sneak preview of the new season, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: You're looking at a live picture from Florida. The detainees -- the three detainees -- the three men arrested earlier today -- or at least picked up for questioning -- suspected in some sort of terrorist plot now determined to have been a hoax.
We see them emerging from the van. These, we believe, are the first pictures of these men in the van. It's unclear who we're looking at right now, but we're told that the three men are inside that van. They will be continued -- apparently, they're going to be questioned a little bit more.
We'll get some more information on what exactly will be their fate involving the three men who were stopped along so-called Alligator Alley in South Florida between Naples and Fort Lauderdale when they apparently raised some suspicions overheard in conversation in Calhoun, Georgia, by a woman claiming they were plotting some sort of terrorist act. They now are suggesting -- police are now confirming this was all some sort of practical joke and not necessarily anything serious.
We'll continue to monitor this story and have more on it, of course, as information becomes available.
Let's move on now. It's the hit show full of mob hits, and it's given a whole new meaning to the term, "family hour." The fourth season of "The Sopranos" kicks off Sunday night on HBO.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: A lot has happened in the world since we last saw a fresh episode of "The Sopranos," but America's favorite mob family has lost none of its edge in the 15 months since the last season ended.
JOE PANTOLIANO, ACTOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I'm talking turbo- Carrera.
BLITZER: It began as a cult favorite in 1999, and has evolved into a meteoric hit, capturing huge numbers of viewers drawn to its quirky characters, and defining the creativity that has become HBO's hallmark.
Most of the characters are back, including the man at the program's epicenter, James Gandolfini, as the therapy-seeking mob boss who might make Don Corleone contort.
JAMES GANDOLFINI, ACTOR: She did have someone close die.
LORRAINE BRACCO, ACTRESS: Jackie.
GANDOLFINI: But she brings that up whenever you ask her to clean up after herself or whatever. She's traumatized.
BRACCO: He was shot to death.
GANDOLFINI: It was tragic, that kid.
BLITZER: Realism and unpredictability are the show's strengths. Even entering its fourth season, critics never seem to complain that "The Sopranos" has gone stale, and a big reason is that virtually any character could get, literally, rubbed out at any time.
KATHERINE NARDUCCI, ACTOR: That's the biggest fear on the show. Everybody gets the script to see if they got whacked that week.
BLITZER: Even the core characters are constantly toying with death or self-destruction. Who might we lose this season? Tony Soprano himself? Or, one of his loyal capos? Paulie Walnuts, or Silvio Dante?
STEVEN VAN ZANDT, ACTOR: Let me pinch those bulldog cheeks. Come over here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Here he is now. He plays Silvio Dante, Tony Soprano's right-hand man. He also plays guitar with Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Gangster and guitarist, Steven Van Zandt, joins me now live from Los Angeles.
Steven, you're laughing. Tell us what we can expect in this new series HBO "The Sopranos."
I want to alert our viewers, just to be up front, HBO of course part of our parent AOL/Time-Warner company.
VAN ZANDT: Well, Wolf, as you know I'm not going to tell you anything at all.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: Can you tell us -- because I know you're sworn to secrecy -- how did you get involved in "The Sopranos"?
VAN ZANDT: Well, that's as unlikely as any plot. David Chase called me. He was a music fan and still is and wanted somebody different, you know, wanted some different people in this new show he was doing. And it was obviously related to New Jersey, so I guess he thought of me and, you know, one thing led to another.
BLITZER: And you obviously enjoy doing this. Don't you?
VAN ZANDT: Oh, it's so much fun, you know. Just doing something new at this stage of the game, you know, acting, that is fun. And this particular group of actors we work with we're very, very close and they're terrific people. The writing couldn't be better, I mean, you couldn't ask for more.
BLITZER: Was this your first serious attempt at acting, being on "The Sopranos"?
VAN ZANDT: Serious or not serious, yes.
BLITZER: So this was all new to you, learning how to get out -- I mean you've been on the stage for a long time, but with Bruce Springsteen. That's a different kind of acting.
VAN ZANDT: Right. That's a different kind of acting. It's a very different experience, you know. This is something that took awhile. You know, I'm happy to say I think I'm getting better every year at it, and my observing the guys around me who are just the best, it's like been the best acting school you can go to.
BLITZER: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, you've got a new album that's out, reflecting on 9/11. New Jersey not very far away, of course, from the World Trade Center. What has that all meant for you?
VAN ZANDT: Well, I think the record is a very meaningful one. Bruce just wrote a great record, and this show -- you know, the reunion show we did a couple years ago was more about getting back together and having a good time and reuniting that community that is our band and our audience.
This time it's a very different thing with the new album being mostly, well, a big part of the show. People are coming to hear the new album, which is really a unique thing for a band. Usually you have a song or two from a new album in a show. We have half the show is literally the new album.
BLITZER: People want to hear those songs?
VAN ZANDT: They're coming to hear it, and it's a very, very meaningful couple of hours, you know, for me, and every night it's just a wonderful experience right now.
BLITZER: So, if it weren't enough that the "Sopranos," the band, you also do a weekly syndicated radio show on top of all of that. A lot of us have heard that radio show. Tell our viewers who haven't what that's all about.
VAN ZANDT: Actually, that's where most of the work is. It's called "Little Steven's Underground Garage." I'm playing garage rock, which up until just a few months ago was very much an underground cult. New bands playing 60's style music.
I'll play probably 25 songs a week, and five of which are new. The other 20 set up the context for those new songs, going back to the 60's British Invasion, and The Ramones, and things like that.
Records that just don't get on the radio much anymore and they're, you know, they're my favorite songs and really, it's starting to happen again. Rock 'n' roll is really starting to come back and I feel very, very good about that. So the show happens to have good timing, you know.
But we're on 60 stations now, and adding more every week. And it's just two hours a week, but it really is my passion at the moment, you know? I love it.
BLITZER: Well, it's a lot of ours passion. Even us old time rock 'n' rollers. Rock 'n' roll is here to stay it will never die. Remember that?
VAN ZANDT: Yeah, only it did die. That's the problem. You know, traditional rock 'n' roll as would you knew it has been really, really in trouble. So it's just starting to come back now, you know. Our show and others are really making an effort now to try and bring it back.
BLITZER: Steven Van Zandt, we'll be watching "The Sopranos" Sunday night and watching your career continue to explode. Thanks for joining us.
VAN ZANDT: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: And time is running out for you to weigh in on our Web question of the day: should U.S. pilots face criminal charges in the mistaken bombing of Canadian soldiers?
Log on to cnn.com/wolf. You can vote. The results when we come back.
Earlier we asked, "As a youth, `The Sopranos' character Silvio wanted to be what when he grew up?" The answer, a singer.
The character Silvio is played by a real singer. Steven Van Zandt is an accomplished record producer, songwriter and musician.
BLITZER: And we want to just update you on our lead story. The top story, we reported the three men who earlier had been detained following a suspicion that they might have been involved in terrorism have been released.
CNN has now confirmed that the three men, picked up in South Florida along Alligator Alley, have been released and will be allowed to continue on their way. It was all a big, bad, unfortunate hoax, a joke that a woman in Calhoun, Georgia, overheard them talking about some alleged terrorism plot. They were just joking about it, they were not serious. But of course, it escalated into major tension.
We'll continue to follow this story, but the three men will continue along their way on that story.
Here's how you're weighing in on our web question of the day. Earlier, we asked, "Should U.S. pilots face criminal charges in the mistaken bombing of Canadian soldiers?" Look at this: 46 percent of you say yes; 54 percent of you say no. You can find the exact vote tally, and continue to vote, by the way, on the web site, cnn.com/wolf.
Remember, this is not a scientific poll.
And that's all the time we have today. Please join me Sunday on "LATE EDITION." Our focus, a possible U.S. war against Iraq. Among my guests, Colin Powell and the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Ariz. Sunday, noon Eastern.
Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" begins right now.
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