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CNN Live At Daybreak
War on Terror: New Threat
Aired August 04, 2003 - 05:06 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge says he is not surprised that a terrorist is threatening the United States. Arab TV is playing an audiotape reported to be from Ayman al-Zawahri, Osama bin Laden's No. 2 man.
Our White House correspondent Dana Bash has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A purported new threat from top al Qaeda figure Ayman al-Zawahri, a high price will be paid if detainees held in Cuba by the U.S. are harmed. Whether or not it's authentic, top law enforcement officials warn the potential for another terrorist strike against the U.S. is very real.
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: We take the threat and have taken the threats since September 11 seriously.
BASH: And they can't promise it won't happen again.
JOHN ASHCROFT, ATTORNEY GENERAL: We cannot guarantee, and as a matter of fact, as soon as we guaranteed it, we would elevate the chance that it would happen.
BASH: While terrorist networks are far from destroyed, Bush officials contend they have been disabled. The attorney general notes more than 100 potential terror events have been seriously disrupted. The Homeland Security Secretary says the U.S. is aggressively addressing airline safety, especially in light of last week's warning of potential suicide hijackings.
The Bush administration this weekend stopped allowing some passengers to transit through the U.S. without a visa. And now, Ridge says he intends to enhance security on passengers from 27 friendly countries who don't need visas to enter the U.S.
RIDGE: There will be more and more a rigorous secondary screening of people generally when they come to this country.
BASH: Despite new measures, many Democrats continue to pound the administration for under funding the war on terror.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: I have a sense of urgency about this and anger that the Bush administration has not put its money where its security mouth has been. And as long as they do not, we remain dangerously unprepared for a September 11 type attack. BASH (on camera): The attorney general said he'll be asking Congress for what he calls more tools against terror, like the ability to obtain some business records without a grand jury subpoena. That's likely to spark controversy, especially among civil liberties groups.
Dana Bash, CNN, Crawford, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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 August 4, 2003 - 05:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge says he is not surprised that a terrorist is threatening the United States. Arab TV is playing an audiotape reported to be from Ayman al-Zawahri, Osama bin Laden's No. 2 man.
Our White House correspondent Dana Bash has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A purported new threat from top al Qaeda figure Ayman al-Zawahri, a high price will be paid if detainees held in Cuba by the U.S. are harmed. Whether or not it's authentic, top law enforcement officials warn the potential for another terrorist strike against the U.S. is very real.
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: We take the threat and have taken the threats since September 11 seriously.
BASH: And they can't promise it won't happen again.
JOHN ASHCROFT, ATTORNEY GENERAL: We cannot guarantee, and as a matter of fact, as soon as we guaranteed it, we would elevate the chance that it would happen.
BASH: While terrorist networks are far from destroyed, Bush officials contend they have been disabled. The attorney general notes more than 100 potential terror events have been seriously disrupted. The Homeland Security Secretary says the U.S. is aggressively addressing airline safety, especially in light of last week's warning of potential suicide hijackings.
The Bush administration this weekend stopped allowing some passengers to transit through the U.S. without a visa. And now, Ridge says he intends to enhance security on passengers from 27 friendly countries who don't need visas to enter the U.S.
RIDGE: There will be more and more a rigorous secondary screening of people generally when they come to this country.
BASH: Despite new measures, many Democrats continue to pound the administration for under funding the war on terror.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: I have a sense of urgency about this and anger that the Bush administration has not put its money where its security mouth has been. And as long as they do not, we remain dangerously unprepared for a September 11 type attack. BASH (on camera): The attorney general said he'll be asking Congress for what he calls more tools against terror, like the ability to obtain some business records without a grand jury subpoena. That's likely to spark controversy, especially among civil liberties groups.
Dana Bash, CNN, Crawford, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
