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CNN Live At Daybreak
Condoleezza Rice Still Facing the Heat; Irish Clamping Down on Smokers
Aired March 29, 2004 - 05:00 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: Still in the spotlight and facing the heat in the 9/11 investigation -- Condoleezza Rice says she has nothing to hide.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for Monday, March 29th.
I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines at this hour.
Massachusetts law makers resume their debate on same-sex marriage today. An amendment banning gay marriage but allowing civil unions could come to a vote.
Challenges to a late term abortion law will be heard in three federal courtrooms across the country today. The Partial Birth Abortion Act is on hold until a final judicial decision.
Today, those Tyco jurors could be sent home for good. A mistrial may be declared in the case against two former Tyco executives if jury problems are not resolved.
President Bush will preside over a White House ceremony today welcoming seven new countries into NATO. Among the seven are former communist strongholds Romania and Bulgaria.
British actor and novelist Peter Ustinov is dead. The actor's agent says Ustinov died last night in Switzerland. He was 82 years old.
Let's head to the forecast center and check in with Chad for a first look at today's weather -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
You're finally back.
COSTELLO: I'm finally back and I had a great time.
MYERS: Were the blossoms out in D.C.?
COSTELLO: The blossoms were indeed, out...
MYERS: Good.
COSTELLO: And so gorgeous.
MYERS: Good. Yes, the weather was great.
COSTELLO: We have pictures later.
MYERS: All right. Good. You took some pictures?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Well, good for you. All right. We'll have those on.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: Did you catch "60 Minutes" last night? Well, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice had a very public forum on 9/11 last night. It just wasn't under oath and before the panel investigating the attacks. White House critics are still upset about that.
Here's more for you from CNN's Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice insists she would like nothing more than to testify before the 9/11 Commission, but in an interview with CBS' "60 MINUTES," she said it's a matter of executive privilege and she simply can't.
"It is a longstanding principle that sitting National Security Advisers do not testify before Congress," said Rice. Many victims' family members are furious Rice won't appear in public under oath. In a transcript of the interview released by the White House, Rice offered a compromised. "I know the families are disappointed that I can't testify," said Rice. "And I'd like very much to meet with families, so that I can answer their questions."
Fellow Bush officials who did appear before the commission came to Rice's defense, saying she's getting a bum rap. But a growing number of Republicans say the White House is making a political mistake.
REP. CHRISTOPHER SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: It's been one of the stupidest things this White House has done to resist the 9/11 Commission.
BASH (on camera): The chairman of the 9/11 Commission says they'll continue to press Rice to appear at a hearing, but ruled out trying to force her to testify with a subpoena.
(voice-over): Meanwhile, Rice's former counter terror chief Richard Clarke tried to fight administration attempts to question his credibility. To congressional Republicans asking to de-classify 2002 testimony they say proves he changed his story, Clarke said he has nothing to hide. Other documents should also be made public, he said, to show the White House dragged its feet on the pre-9/11 threat of terrorism.
RICHARD CLARKE, FMR. COUNTER TERRORISM CHIEF: Let's declassify that memo I sent on January 25th. And let's declassify the National Security directive that Dr. Rice's committee approved nine months later on September 4th. And let's see if there's any difference between those two, because there isn't.
BASH: The Secretary of State believes as much as possible should be declassified.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: My bias is, and my recommendation will be, put out everything we can, because the American people should be able to read it and see it, and not just those of us who have clearances or the commission.
BASH: But a senior administration official said declassifying all the information Clarke is calling for is unlikely, because it could reveal sources and methods in fighting terrorism.
Dana Bash, CNN, Crawford, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And as Dana alluded to, some 9/11 families are not satisfied with Condoleezza Rice's invitation to meet with them. They're still calling on her to testify in public.
One group released this statement: "The Family Steering Committee demands the appearance of National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice under oath in a public hearing immediately. We believe that testifying before the Commission in a public forum is Ms. Rice's moral obligation given her responsibility as national security adviser to protect our nation. The death of nearly 3,000 innocent people warrants such a moral precedent."
Some relief for commuters in the Northeast. That tops our look at some of the news across America this morning. The north bound lanes of I-95, a major traffic corridor near Bridgeport, Connecticut, open now. Both sides were closed after an oil tanker crashed and exploded last Thursday. More than 120,000 vehicles travel that highway between Boston and New York.
The highway shooting spree around Columbus, Ohio cost law enforcement around $3 million. The "Columbus Post Dispatch" -- actually, the "Columbus Dispatch" -- reports the money was needed to investigate the 25 shootings and to provide extra police presence in the area. Charles McCoy, Jr. was charged in one of the shootings after being arrested nearly two weeks ago.
In Detroit, a 1-year-old girl was killed by a shotgun blast while sleeping in her home. Police say the infant's caretaker was checking to see if a gun was loaded. It went off. A decision has not been made on whether to file charges.
When Saddam Hussein goes on trial, he'll have one of the world's most prominent criminal defense attorneys working for him. French lawyer Jacques Verges has decided to take the case after receiving a letter from Saddam's nephew. Verges says 11 other attorneys from different nations will also assist him. Verges had previously represented Nazi war criminal Claus Barbie, French guerrilla Carlos "The Jackal," and former Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACQUES VERGES, ATTORNEY (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): In this case, his dignity was harmed and he's also being interrogated. And on top of that, the heads of the states that are enemies of Iraq are saying he's guilty. That is the case for Mr. Bush, saying Saddam Hussein is guilty and he deserves to die. Is Mr. Bush a judge?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: A member of Iraq's interim cabinet escaped unhurt when her convoy was ambushed in the northern city of Mosul.
CNN's Walter Rodgers has more.
Let's head live to Baghdad now -- hello, Walter.
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Iraq continues to bubble on a slow boil. The continuing threshold of violence here is undermining U.S. efforts to stabilize, let alone democratize, this country. In Mosul on Sunday, there was an assassination attempt on Nasreen Barwari, the public works minister in this country. This, by the way, is the second brush with assassination she's had in the past six months or so. Two other members of her convoy were killed in that assassination attempt. Two other Westerners also died in Mosul over the weekend.
In al-Najaf and Baghdad, there were passionate anti-American demonstrations on Sunday. The reason? The U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, has shut down a newspaper, "Al Hawza." The newspaper is published by the followers of the fiery Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtader al-Sadr.
The Americans say the Iraqi newspaper incites violence against U.S. troops here. Recent articles in "Al Hawza" said a U.S. missile, not a car bomb, in February was responsible for a big explosion in Iskandariyah that killed some 50 Iraqis. The newspaper also alleged that the U.S. administrator, Paul Bremer, is following "in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein."
These demonstrations that the Iraqis held on Sunday mocked the Americans for talking about democracy while shutting down dissenting newspapers that oppose the American occupation of Iraq.
Muqtader al-Sadr, incidentally, in his Friday sermon in al-Najaf, called the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center "a miracle of god." It is increasingly clear that while the Americans have one blueprint for rebuilding Iraq, the Shiites, the Sunnis, the insurgents all have their own plans, their own road map for the directions Iraq should take -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Walter Rodgers live from Baghdad this morning.
It's been almost as popular in an Irish pub as drinking. But starting today, it is lights out for this activity.
A Florida house was damaged and the homeowner hit by a van. You may be surprised at who was behind the wheel.
Another side of the gay marriage issue -- a California man gets married to his long time companion, but now he's in trouble at his workplace.
And couch potatoes, take heart. We'll tell you about one exercise that may not be all it's cracked up to be.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:12 Eastern time.
Here's what's happening now.
Condoleezza Rice says she has nothing to hide from the commission investigating the 9/11 attacks. But appearing on "60 Minutes," Rice said she will not testify publicly because that would violate what she called a longstanding principle.
Ralph Nader says he'll meet with John Kerry next month to discuss what Nader calls "their common objective -- beating President Bush in November." No comment yet from the Kerry campaign.
In money news, gasoline prices climb another $0.03 a gallon, hit another record high, averaging $1.77 a gallon for self-serve regular. Demand is still high and there is no price relief in sight.
In sports, Duke survived a furious run by underdog Xavier and move on as the only number one seed to advance to the final four. In yesterday's other regional, Georgia Tech ran away from Kansas in overtime to advance to their first final since 1990.
In culture, a hot night in Harlem as the Apollo Theater celebrated its 70th birthday. Celebrities in the seats and on stage -- acts ranging from Ashanti to Willie Nelson.
And in weather, showers and thunderstorms expected in the central part of the country. The rest of the U.S. mostly dry and mild.
Those are the latest headlines.
Well, the Irish clamping down on smokers. At midnight, Ireland's workplace smoking ban went into effect. It's the most sweeping nationwide restriction in the world. The ban includes pubs, private clubs and even the cabs of moving trucks.
Diana Muriel joining us now from Dublin with more on Ireland's smoke-free situation.
You can't even smoke in the cab of a truck?
DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. You can't smoke in any of the 200,000 odd workplaces in Ireland as of midnight on Sunday. So all of the ashtrays are being cleared out of the pubs and clubs here in Dublin. Large no smoking signs being displayed prominently and stuffing bins, as they're called, things put outside pubs for customers to put their cigarettes out before they come into the pub.
Most people reckon it'll take a couple of months for this to settle down. It's down to the landlords of the pubs, the vintners, as they call them here, to make sure that their customers don't smoke and this will be backed up by occasional inspections from the Guardi, or the police, here in Dublin and, indeed, in towns and villages all across Ireland.
And that's part of the problem. Many people say there just simply aren't enough police to enforce this ban. And in some of these small pubs that you find on the west coast of Ireland, for example, it will be almost impossible to stop people who want to smoke from smoking in the bars and pubs out there -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Diana, tell us more about not being able to smoke in the cabs of trucks. Is it because it's technically a workplace, even if you're in there by yourself?
MURIEL: That's right. It's technically a workplace. The only places that you can smoke now in Ireland is if you take a hotel room which, in a hotel which has a smoking policy for guests. You can smoke in your hotel room. You can smoke in prison and you can smoke in mental institutions (AUDIO GAP) that exist. And the government here has said they want to enforce that very, very closely, indeed. They're very serious about this new total smoking ban -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Diana Muriel reporting live this morning from Dublin, Ireland.
Time now to check the markets to see what may be in store from Wall Street, the overseas markets, that is.
And let's head live to London and Todd Benjamin -- good morning, Todd.
TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol, from the London Stock Exchange.
The market's having a decent day, with the exception of Paris, which is struggling a bit following the election result there in which the socialists did extremely well and the government did exceedingly poorly. But here in London, the FTSE is up about a half percent. The DAX in Frankfurt is up about a half percent. And over in Switzerland, that market is also up about a half percent.
The futures market in the U.S. is pointing to a higher open after a late sell-off on Friday. Although for the week last week, both the NASDAQ and the Dow were higher, snapping a two week losing streak. And here in Europe we were down in the last three weeks. So they're trying to get back on track.
In terms of the currency market today, if you know of friends who are traveling in Europe, the euro is right at 120, 130 against the dollar. It had gotten down to that 120.50 level, which is good for travelers, but it's back above 121 right now.
And if you know anyone in the City of London today, where the weather is a bit chilly, but nevertheless it's always pleasant here, sterling is at 181.64.
That's how it looks from here, Carol -- back to you.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Todd Benjamin.
We appreciate it.
It was a story right out of the movies, so we shouldn't be surprised to hear what this little girl and her mom are doing next.
And check out these pictures. We'll tell you where this twister stirred up some trouble.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MYERS: It's really real.
COSTELLO: This sofa set is, indeed, real.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: And those are real books.
MYERS: They're really old books.
COSTELLO: No one would want to read those books, but they are real books.
Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
We're starting a new little segment here in our 5:00 a.m. Eastern hour and...
MYERS: Yes. On the most uncomfortable seats in the world. But we'll make it work.
COSTELLO: Chad doesn't like it because the seat backs are very straight, because they want you to sit up straight.
MYERS: Yes. Right.
COSTELLO: So you're unused to doing that, I know.
MYERS: Obviously I'm a slouch couch.
Let's go on.
Hey, we've got mugs!
COSTELLO: The mugs are in.
MYERS: Look at those.
COSTELLO: Because we do our DAYBREAK Question of the Day. In our six o'clock hour, we're awarding people these mugs for getting the answers to the questions right. And the mugs are finally in.
MYERS: Good stuff. Great.
COSTELLO: Blue for you, pink for me.
I went to Washington, D.C. this weekend to see the cherry blossoms and I must say they were absolutely stunning.
MYERS: Good. Remember, we didn't know whether they would be out or not, because we had kind of a couple cold days in a row. But it was beautiful this weekend. They just went bing!
COSTELLO: Oh, it was so beautiful. And I took a lot of photos and we're going to do a photo book album...
MYERS: Oh, good.
COSTELLO: Is that redundant? But we're going to do that tomorrow, when we get it all looking pretty and stuff.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: I brought you back a present from Washington.
MYERS: You did? Uh-oh. Should I be scared? Oh, it's a pen. Oh, my gosh, look at this. I don't know if we probably can't even get that on there.
COSTELLO: It's a pen with Thomas Jefferson's bust on top.
MYERS: Look at that. Get it over there on my dark shirt. How great is that? Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: I love that. It cost nine bucks.
MYERS: Ooh.
COSTELLO: I don't need to tell you that.
MYERS: I'll see what I can do for you, Carol. COSTELLO: I was just kidding.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: I'm kidding.
Let's get to our Eye-Openers right now.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: Oh, a bad, bad decision and bad driving first up in our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener.
In Florida, a man was injured after his 8-year-old son hit him with the family car. The boy was told to move the van while his father cut the grass. But the short trip, oh, Chad, it went terribly wrong when the van side-swiped the riding mower before coming to rest smack dab in the middle of the living room.
MYERS: Um-hmm. Drive through house now.
COSTELLO: Um-hmm.
Remember the recent story of the Philadelphia woman who thought her daughter had died in a fire...
MYERS: Yes. Yes, right.
COSTELLO: Only to see her at a party six years later?
MYERS: Uh-huh.
COSTELLO: Well, she sold her story to a TV movie producer for a handsome six figure sum.
MYERS: Awesome.
COSTELLO: Surprise there. The producer who bought the rights is best known for bio pics on Sonny & Cher and Lucy & Desi.
MYERS: Nice. That's OK. Hey, at least she made some money out of it. Now she can raise her child.
COSTELLO: Well, maybe. A way to look at it. That's a glass half full kind of way of looking at it.
Great pictures of a tornado that touched down in Oklahoma.
MYERS: Ooh.
COSTELLO: You probably know all about this, Chad.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: It reportedly tossed a car off the road before sweeping up other debris, including farm animals. No one was injured. Farm animals...
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: What, it didn't hurt anyone, though, right?
MYERS: Well, that's good. No. You know, there's an awful lot of open land out there in Oklahoma. I lived there two years. But we went down there chasing just about three weeks ago, but obviously didn't see anything like this.
COSTELLO: No, you didn't.
MYERS: No, there were 12 of them, but they were down in Texas and we didn't have the leeway to get down to Texas. We had to stay with the crew. We were with a crew from KW-TV in Oklahoma City and we couldn't leave their viewing area, because obviously we were trying to protect their viewers, not protect the viewers in Dallas, where the storms were. So whatever. Good (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I guess.
COSTELLO: There's some logic there.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: We're going to do some DAYBREAK e-mails here right now. And I don't know if you saw Condoleezza Rice on "60 Minutes" last night.
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: She didn't say very much new, but we're going to talk about it with our friend Jimmy Barrett later.
MYERS: Oh, OK. Oh, good. OK.
COSTELLO: But I did want to read an e-mail about that. Let's see: "Everyone is wondering why Condoleezza Rice has been speaking publicly in every TV forum possible, yet will not speak in public in front of the 9/11 Commission."
Well, supposedly there is some maneuvering going on to allow her to do that, some compromise from the Bush administration to this 9/11 Commission. So we'll see what happens. We're also going to talk to Jimmy Barrett about that.
Gas prices -- gas prices in the U.S....
MYERS: $37 to fill my tank.
COSTELLO: You're kidding?
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: You're kidding?
MYERS: No. And I don't even go that far.
COSTELLO: Well, the average price of a gallon of gas is now $1.77.
MYERS: Excellent.
COSTELLO: $3.60 a gallon, though, in Canada.
MYERS: But, you know, as we went -- as we did this, I did all the math for you about three weeks ago. That's the same as paying $0.34 a gallon back in 1968, which is exactly what it was back in 1968. So, yes, we're so used to the cheap gas that inflation wise, we're still thinking that this should be, you know, really, really expensive. But, in fact, it's not what the dollar is worth as long as your buying power and your earning power has gone up since 1968 is that...
COSTELLO: Well, exactly. And the problem is is who remembers back then, because we were all children and we didn't care how much gas prices were. So I'm not sure that that is...
MYERS: Hey, I remember. A 1970 LTD four door.
COSTELLO: You would.
All right, here's what's new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
One juror's mysterious hand gesture -- could it mean a mistrial in the Tyco case?
And Israel's prime minister faces some legal troubles of his own. We're going to take you live to Jerusalem.
Plus, the health benefits of honey. How something so sweet may actually be keeping you healthy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: That would be juror number four in the Tyco trial. The controversy swirls around what she may or may not have done.
Good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
It is Monday, March 29th.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Thank you for joining us.
In an interview last night, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice said she would like to testify before the 9/11 Commission, but that protocol makes it impossible. She appeared on "60 Minutes."
In a rally in Gaza City, the new Hamas leader called President Bush an "enemy of god and of Muslims." He also said Hamas would attack Israel in retaliation for last week's killing of Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. Disagreements among member nations led to the cancellation of today's planned Arab summit in Tunisia. Egypt has offered to host a future summit if an agreement can be reached. The dispute is over greater freedoms.
Authorities in Uzbekistan have several people in custody following what they called a terrorist bomb attack near a Tashkent market this morning. Several people injured in that blast.
To the forecast center now and Chad for a look at the forecast -- good morning.
MYERS: Carol, I'm not in the forecast center anymore.
COSTELLO: You're down here with me.
MYERS: I'm right here. Yes, exactly. Hey, and they put a new weather wall up for me now so that we can actually chat and kibitz and all that down here so.
COSTELLO: I'm loving it.
MYERS: You don't have to send it to me two floors up anymore.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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Aired March 29, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Still in the spotlight and facing the heat in the 9/11 investigation -- Condoleezza Rice says she has nothing to hide.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, this is DAYBREAK for Monday, March 29th.
I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines at this hour.
Massachusetts law makers resume their debate on same-sex marriage today. An amendment banning gay marriage but allowing civil unions could come to a vote.
Challenges to a late term abortion law will be heard in three federal courtrooms across the country today. The Partial Birth Abortion Act is on hold until a final judicial decision.
Today, those Tyco jurors could be sent home for good. A mistrial may be declared in the case against two former Tyco executives if jury problems are not resolved.
President Bush will preside over a White House ceremony today welcoming seven new countries into NATO. Among the seven are former communist strongholds Romania and Bulgaria.
British actor and novelist Peter Ustinov is dead. The actor's agent says Ustinov died last night in Switzerland. He was 82 years old.
Let's head to the forecast center and check in with Chad for a first look at today's weather -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
You're finally back.
COSTELLO: I'm finally back and I had a great time.
MYERS: Were the blossoms out in D.C.?
COSTELLO: The blossoms were indeed, out...
MYERS: Good.
COSTELLO: And so gorgeous.
MYERS: Good. Yes, the weather was great.
COSTELLO: We have pictures later.
MYERS: All right. Good. You took some pictures?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Well, good for you. All right. We'll have those on.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: Did you catch "60 Minutes" last night? Well, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice had a very public forum on 9/11 last night. It just wasn't under oath and before the panel investigating the attacks. White House critics are still upset about that.
Here's more for you from CNN's Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice insists she would like nothing more than to testify before the 9/11 Commission, but in an interview with CBS' "60 MINUTES," she said it's a matter of executive privilege and she simply can't.
"It is a longstanding principle that sitting National Security Advisers do not testify before Congress," said Rice. Many victims' family members are furious Rice won't appear in public under oath. In a transcript of the interview released by the White House, Rice offered a compromised. "I know the families are disappointed that I can't testify," said Rice. "And I'd like very much to meet with families, so that I can answer their questions."
Fellow Bush officials who did appear before the commission came to Rice's defense, saying she's getting a bum rap. But a growing number of Republicans say the White House is making a political mistake.
REP. CHRISTOPHER SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: It's been one of the stupidest things this White House has done to resist the 9/11 Commission.
BASH (on camera): The chairman of the 9/11 Commission says they'll continue to press Rice to appear at a hearing, but ruled out trying to force her to testify with a subpoena.
(voice-over): Meanwhile, Rice's former counter terror chief Richard Clarke tried to fight administration attempts to question his credibility. To congressional Republicans asking to de-classify 2002 testimony they say proves he changed his story, Clarke said he has nothing to hide. Other documents should also be made public, he said, to show the White House dragged its feet on the pre-9/11 threat of terrorism.
RICHARD CLARKE, FMR. COUNTER TERRORISM CHIEF: Let's declassify that memo I sent on January 25th. And let's declassify the National Security directive that Dr. Rice's committee approved nine months later on September 4th. And let's see if there's any difference between those two, because there isn't.
BASH: The Secretary of State believes as much as possible should be declassified.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: My bias is, and my recommendation will be, put out everything we can, because the American people should be able to read it and see it, and not just those of us who have clearances or the commission.
BASH: But a senior administration official said declassifying all the information Clarke is calling for is unlikely, because it could reveal sources and methods in fighting terrorism.
Dana Bash, CNN, Crawford, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And as Dana alluded to, some 9/11 families are not satisfied with Condoleezza Rice's invitation to meet with them. They're still calling on her to testify in public.
One group released this statement: "The Family Steering Committee demands the appearance of National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice under oath in a public hearing immediately. We believe that testifying before the Commission in a public forum is Ms. Rice's moral obligation given her responsibility as national security adviser to protect our nation. The death of nearly 3,000 innocent people warrants such a moral precedent."
Some relief for commuters in the Northeast. That tops our look at some of the news across America this morning. The north bound lanes of I-95, a major traffic corridor near Bridgeport, Connecticut, open now. Both sides were closed after an oil tanker crashed and exploded last Thursday. More than 120,000 vehicles travel that highway between Boston and New York.
The highway shooting spree around Columbus, Ohio cost law enforcement around $3 million. The "Columbus Post Dispatch" -- actually, the "Columbus Dispatch" -- reports the money was needed to investigate the 25 shootings and to provide extra police presence in the area. Charles McCoy, Jr. was charged in one of the shootings after being arrested nearly two weeks ago.
In Detroit, a 1-year-old girl was killed by a shotgun blast while sleeping in her home. Police say the infant's caretaker was checking to see if a gun was loaded. It went off. A decision has not been made on whether to file charges.
When Saddam Hussein goes on trial, he'll have one of the world's most prominent criminal defense attorneys working for him. French lawyer Jacques Verges has decided to take the case after receiving a letter from Saddam's nephew. Verges says 11 other attorneys from different nations will also assist him. Verges had previously represented Nazi war criminal Claus Barbie, French guerrilla Carlos "The Jackal," and former Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACQUES VERGES, ATTORNEY (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): In this case, his dignity was harmed and he's also being interrogated. And on top of that, the heads of the states that are enemies of Iraq are saying he's guilty. That is the case for Mr. Bush, saying Saddam Hussein is guilty and he deserves to die. Is Mr. Bush a judge?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: A member of Iraq's interim cabinet escaped unhurt when her convoy was ambushed in the northern city of Mosul.
CNN's Walter Rodgers has more.
Let's head live to Baghdad now -- hello, Walter.
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Iraq continues to bubble on a slow boil. The continuing threshold of violence here is undermining U.S. efforts to stabilize, let alone democratize, this country. In Mosul on Sunday, there was an assassination attempt on Nasreen Barwari, the public works minister in this country. This, by the way, is the second brush with assassination she's had in the past six months or so. Two other members of her convoy were killed in that assassination attempt. Two other Westerners also died in Mosul over the weekend.
In al-Najaf and Baghdad, there were passionate anti-American demonstrations on Sunday. The reason? The U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, has shut down a newspaper, "Al Hawza." The newspaper is published by the followers of the fiery Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtader al-Sadr.
The Americans say the Iraqi newspaper incites violence against U.S. troops here. Recent articles in "Al Hawza" said a U.S. missile, not a car bomb, in February was responsible for a big explosion in Iskandariyah that killed some 50 Iraqis. The newspaper also alleged that the U.S. administrator, Paul Bremer, is following "in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein."
These demonstrations that the Iraqis held on Sunday mocked the Americans for talking about democracy while shutting down dissenting newspapers that oppose the American occupation of Iraq.
Muqtader al-Sadr, incidentally, in his Friday sermon in al-Najaf, called the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center "a miracle of god." It is increasingly clear that while the Americans have one blueprint for rebuilding Iraq, the Shiites, the Sunnis, the insurgents all have their own plans, their own road map for the directions Iraq should take -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Walter Rodgers live from Baghdad this morning.
It's been almost as popular in an Irish pub as drinking. But starting today, it is lights out for this activity.
A Florida house was damaged and the homeowner hit by a van. You may be surprised at who was behind the wheel.
Another side of the gay marriage issue -- a California man gets married to his long time companion, but now he's in trouble at his workplace.
And couch potatoes, take heart. We'll tell you about one exercise that may not be all it's cracked up to be.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:12 Eastern time.
Here's what's happening now.
Condoleezza Rice says she has nothing to hide from the commission investigating the 9/11 attacks. But appearing on "60 Minutes," Rice said she will not testify publicly because that would violate what she called a longstanding principle.
Ralph Nader says he'll meet with John Kerry next month to discuss what Nader calls "their common objective -- beating President Bush in November." No comment yet from the Kerry campaign.
In money news, gasoline prices climb another $0.03 a gallon, hit another record high, averaging $1.77 a gallon for self-serve regular. Demand is still high and there is no price relief in sight.
In sports, Duke survived a furious run by underdog Xavier and move on as the only number one seed to advance to the final four. In yesterday's other regional, Georgia Tech ran away from Kansas in overtime to advance to their first final since 1990.
In culture, a hot night in Harlem as the Apollo Theater celebrated its 70th birthday. Celebrities in the seats and on stage -- acts ranging from Ashanti to Willie Nelson.
And in weather, showers and thunderstorms expected in the central part of the country. The rest of the U.S. mostly dry and mild.
Those are the latest headlines.
Well, the Irish clamping down on smokers. At midnight, Ireland's workplace smoking ban went into effect. It's the most sweeping nationwide restriction in the world. The ban includes pubs, private clubs and even the cabs of moving trucks.
Diana Muriel joining us now from Dublin with more on Ireland's smoke-free situation.
You can't even smoke in the cab of a truck?
DIANA MURIEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. You can't smoke in any of the 200,000 odd workplaces in Ireland as of midnight on Sunday. So all of the ashtrays are being cleared out of the pubs and clubs here in Dublin. Large no smoking signs being displayed prominently and stuffing bins, as they're called, things put outside pubs for customers to put their cigarettes out before they come into the pub.
Most people reckon it'll take a couple of months for this to settle down. It's down to the landlords of the pubs, the vintners, as they call them here, to make sure that their customers don't smoke and this will be backed up by occasional inspections from the Guardi, or the police, here in Dublin and, indeed, in towns and villages all across Ireland.
And that's part of the problem. Many people say there just simply aren't enough police to enforce this ban. And in some of these small pubs that you find on the west coast of Ireland, for example, it will be almost impossible to stop people who want to smoke from smoking in the bars and pubs out there -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Diana, tell us more about not being able to smoke in the cabs of trucks. Is it because it's technically a workplace, even if you're in there by yourself?
MURIEL: That's right. It's technically a workplace. The only places that you can smoke now in Ireland is if you take a hotel room which, in a hotel which has a smoking policy for guests. You can smoke in your hotel room. You can smoke in prison and you can smoke in mental institutions (AUDIO GAP) that exist. And the government here has said they want to enforce that very, very closely, indeed. They're very serious about this new total smoking ban -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, Diana Muriel reporting live this morning from Dublin, Ireland.
Time now to check the markets to see what may be in store from Wall Street, the overseas markets, that is.
And let's head live to London and Todd Benjamin -- good morning, Todd.
TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol, from the London Stock Exchange.
The market's having a decent day, with the exception of Paris, which is struggling a bit following the election result there in which the socialists did extremely well and the government did exceedingly poorly. But here in London, the FTSE is up about a half percent. The DAX in Frankfurt is up about a half percent. And over in Switzerland, that market is also up about a half percent.
The futures market in the U.S. is pointing to a higher open after a late sell-off on Friday. Although for the week last week, both the NASDAQ and the Dow were higher, snapping a two week losing streak. And here in Europe we were down in the last three weeks. So they're trying to get back on track.
In terms of the currency market today, if you know of friends who are traveling in Europe, the euro is right at 120, 130 against the dollar. It had gotten down to that 120.50 level, which is good for travelers, but it's back above 121 right now.
And if you know anyone in the City of London today, where the weather is a bit chilly, but nevertheless it's always pleasant here, sterling is at 181.64.
That's how it looks from here, Carol -- back to you.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Todd Benjamin.
We appreciate it.
It was a story right out of the movies, so we shouldn't be surprised to hear what this little girl and her mom are doing next.
And check out these pictures. We'll tell you where this twister stirred up some trouble.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MYERS: It's really real.
COSTELLO: This sofa set is, indeed, real.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: And those are real books.
MYERS: They're really old books.
COSTELLO: No one would want to read those books, but they are real books.
Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
We're starting a new little segment here in our 5:00 a.m. Eastern hour and...
MYERS: Yes. On the most uncomfortable seats in the world. But we'll make it work.
COSTELLO: Chad doesn't like it because the seat backs are very straight, because they want you to sit up straight.
MYERS: Yes. Right.
COSTELLO: So you're unused to doing that, I know.
MYERS: Obviously I'm a slouch couch.
Let's go on.
Hey, we've got mugs!
COSTELLO: The mugs are in.
MYERS: Look at those.
COSTELLO: Because we do our DAYBREAK Question of the Day. In our six o'clock hour, we're awarding people these mugs for getting the answers to the questions right. And the mugs are finally in.
MYERS: Good stuff. Great.
COSTELLO: Blue for you, pink for me.
I went to Washington, D.C. this weekend to see the cherry blossoms and I must say they were absolutely stunning.
MYERS: Good. Remember, we didn't know whether they would be out or not, because we had kind of a couple cold days in a row. But it was beautiful this weekend. They just went bing!
COSTELLO: Oh, it was so beautiful. And I took a lot of photos and we're going to do a photo book album...
MYERS: Oh, good.
COSTELLO: Is that redundant? But we're going to do that tomorrow, when we get it all looking pretty and stuff.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: I brought you back a present from Washington.
MYERS: You did? Uh-oh. Should I be scared? Oh, it's a pen. Oh, my gosh, look at this. I don't know if we probably can't even get that on there.
COSTELLO: It's a pen with Thomas Jefferson's bust on top.
MYERS: Look at that. Get it over there on my dark shirt. How great is that? Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: I love that. It cost nine bucks.
MYERS: Ooh.
COSTELLO: I don't need to tell you that.
MYERS: I'll see what I can do for you, Carol. COSTELLO: I was just kidding.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: I'm kidding.
Let's get to our Eye-Openers right now.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: Oh, a bad, bad decision and bad driving first up in our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener.
In Florida, a man was injured after his 8-year-old son hit him with the family car. The boy was told to move the van while his father cut the grass. But the short trip, oh, Chad, it went terribly wrong when the van side-swiped the riding mower before coming to rest smack dab in the middle of the living room.
MYERS: Um-hmm. Drive through house now.
COSTELLO: Um-hmm.
Remember the recent story of the Philadelphia woman who thought her daughter had died in a fire...
MYERS: Yes. Yes, right.
COSTELLO: Only to see her at a party six years later?
MYERS: Uh-huh.
COSTELLO: Well, she sold her story to a TV movie producer for a handsome six figure sum.
MYERS: Awesome.
COSTELLO: Surprise there. The producer who bought the rights is best known for bio pics on Sonny & Cher and Lucy & Desi.
MYERS: Nice. That's OK. Hey, at least she made some money out of it. Now she can raise her child.
COSTELLO: Well, maybe. A way to look at it. That's a glass half full kind of way of looking at it.
Great pictures of a tornado that touched down in Oklahoma.
MYERS: Ooh.
COSTELLO: You probably know all about this, Chad.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: It reportedly tossed a car off the road before sweeping up other debris, including farm animals. No one was injured. Farm animals...
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: What, it didn't hurt anyone, though, right?
MYERS: Well, that's good. No. You know, there's an awful lot of open land out there in Oklahoma. I lived there two years. But we went down there chasing just about three weeks ago, but obviously didn't see anything like this.
COSTELLO: No, you didn't.
MYERS: No, there were 12 of them, but they were down in Texas and we didn't have the leeway to get down to Texas. We had to stay with the crew. We were with a crew from KW-TV in Oklahoma City and we couldn't leave their viewing area, because obviously we were trying to protect their viewers, not protect the viewers in Dallas, where the storms were. So whatever. Good (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I guess.
COSTELLO: There's some logic there.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: We're going to do some DAYBREAK e-mails here right now. And I don't know if you saw Condoleezza Rice on "60 Minutes" last night.
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: She didn't say very much new, but we're going to talk about it with our friend Jimmy Barrett later.
MYERS: Oh, OK. Oh, good. OK.
COSTELLO: But I did want to read an e-mail about that. Let's see: "Everyone is wondering why Condoleezza Rice has been speaking publicly in every TV forum possible, yet will not speak in public in front of the 9/11 Commission."
Well, supposedly there is some maneuvering going on to allow her to do that, some compromise from the Bush administration to this 9/11 Commission. So we'll see what happens. We're also going to talk to Jimmy Barrett about that.
Gas prices -- gas prices in the U.S....
MYERS: $37 to fill my tank.
COSTELLO: You're kidding?
MYERS: No.
COSTELLO: You're kidding?
MYERS: No. And I don't even go that far.
COSTELLO: Well, the average price of a gallon of gas is now $1.77.
MYERS: Excellent.
COSTELLO: $3.60 a gallon, though, in Canada.
MYERS: But, you know, as we went -- as we did this, I did all the math for you about three weeks ago. That's the same as paying $0.34 a gallon back in 1968, which is exactly what it was back in 1968. So, yes, we're so used to the cheap gas that inflation wise, we're still thinking that this should be, you know, really, really expensive. But, in fact, it's not what the dollar is worth as long as your buying power and your earning power has gone up since 1968 is that...
COSTELLO: Well, exactly. And the problem is is who remembers back then, because we were all children and we didn't care how much gas prices were. So I'm not sure that that is...
MYERS: Hey, I remember. A 1970 LTD four door.
COSTELLO: You would.
All right, here's what's new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
One juror's mysterious hand gesture -- could it mean a mistrial in the Tyco case?
And Israel's prime minister faces some legal troubles of his own. We're going to take you live to Jerusalem.
Plus, the health benefits of honey. How something so sweet may actually be keeping you healthy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: That would be juror number four in the Tyco trial. The controversy swirls around what she may or may not have done.
Good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
It is Monday, March 29th.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Thank you for joining us.
In an interview last night, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice said she would like to testify before the 9/11 Commission, but that protocol makes it impossible. She appeared on "60 Minutes."
In a rally in Gaza City, the new Hamas leader called President Bush an "enemy of god and of Muslims." He also said Hamas would attack Israel in retaliation for last week's killing of Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. Disagreements among member nations led to the cancellation of today's planned Arab summit in Tunisia. Egypt has offered to host a future summit if an agreement can be reached. The dispute is over greater freedoms.
Authorities in Uzbekistan have several people in custody following what they called a terrorist bomb attack near a Tashkent market this morning. Several people injured in that blast.
To the forecast center now and Chad for a look at the forecast -- good morning.
MYERS: Carol, I'm not in the forecast center anymore.
COSTELLO: You're down here with me.
MYERS: I'm right here. Yes, exactly. Hey, and they put a new weather wall up for me now so that we can actually chat and kibitz and all that down here so.
COSTELLO: I'm loving it.
MYERS: You don't have to send it to me two floors up anymore.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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