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CNN Live At Daybreak
War on Terror: Bush Concerns
Aired May 22, 2003 - 06:33 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Let's find out what President Bush is saying now about the war on terror.
For that, we turn to our senior White House correspondent, John King. He's at the White House.
Good morning -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.
The president continues to make the case that the United States is winning the war on terrorism. He did that again yesterday in a speech at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. But he also said that there are still a good number of terrorists trying to target the United States here at home, U.S. interests overseas. That, of course, is why the government went back to code orange, a high risk of terror alert.
The president heads into the Oval Office about 30 minutes from now just about everyday, and the first thing he gets is what they call a "threat matrix." It is a summary of what the CIA and other intelligence agencies believe is the threat of terrorist attack.
The focus now, as Barbara just noted, is overwhelmingly on any preparations that can deter attacks in the coming Memorial Day weekend. And U.S. officials say one of the reasons they raised security publicly is so that everybody can see it, including the terrorists, and then they listen in to see if the terrorists are talking to each other, making plans. That helps the government thwart potential attacks -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And while the president is working to protect the country against terrorism, he's also raising some money. Tell us about that.
KING: Well, last night, Carol, the president went to the Washington Convention Center. The new convention center opened recently. He said he was just having a small, quiet dinner with friends; $22 million the president of the United States raised at that small, quiet dinner with friends, and he didn't even stay for dinner.
What is most remarkable about this event, presidents are proven fund-raisers. This one, the money raised under the new rules -- $2,500 the maximum contribution, none of those $1 million or $500,000 soft money contributions -- an amazing display of the power of the presidency when it comes to raising money.
COSTELLO: Boy, you're not kidding, $22 million. John King reporting live from the White House this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired May 22, 2003 - 06:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Let's find out what President Bush is saying now about the war on terror.
For that, we turn to our senior White House correspondent, John King. He's at the White House.
Good morning -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.
The president continues to make the case that the United States is winning the war on terrorism. He did that again yesterday in a speech at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. But he also said that there are still a good number of terrorists trying to target the United States here at home, U.S. interests overseas. That, of course, is why the government went back to code orange, a high risk of terror alert.
The president heads into the Oval Office about 30 minutes from now just about everyday, and the first thing he gets is what they call a "threat matrix." It is a summary of what the CIA and other intelligence agencies believe is the threat of terrorist attack.
The focus now, as Barbara just noted, is overwhelmingly on any preparations that can deter attacks in the coming Memorial Day weekend. And U.S. officials say one of the reasons they raised security publicly is so that everybody can see it, including the terrorists, and then they listen in to see if the terrorists are talking to each other, making plans. That helps the government thwart potential attacks -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And while the president is working to protect the country against terrorism, he's also raising some money. Tell us about that.
KING: Well, last night, Carol, the president went to the Washington Convention Center. The new convention center opened recently. He said he was just having a small, quiet dinner with friends; $22 million the president of the United States raised at that small, quiet dinner with friends, and he didn't even stay for dinner.
What is most remarkable about this event, presidents are proven fund-raisers. This one, the money raised under the new rules -- $2,500 the maximum contribution, none of those $1 million or $500,000 soft money contributions -- an amazing display of the power of the presidency when it comes to raising money.
COSTELLO: Boy, you're not kidding, $22 million. John King reporting live from the White House this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
