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CNN Live At Daybreak
Bush Administration Faces New Allegations About Iraq War; Spain's New Prime Minister Orders Troops in Iraq to Return Home
Aired April 19, 2004 - 06:00 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: A little more than 70 days to go until the hand over in Iraq and today explosive new allegations about the plans that led to the war in Iraq.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, April 19.
Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
First, we have the latest headlines for you now.
The homeland security secretary has a message for local authorities this morning. Tom Ridge wants them to accelerate plans to deal with terrorist attacks. Ridge says he's concerned several upcoming high profile events could give terrorists a chance to strike.
Across Israel today, traffic came to a standstill as Israelis marked Holocaust Remembrance Day. The observance honors the six million Jews killed by the Nazis in WWII.
About 500 people attended a memorial last night for Dru Sjodin. The body of the University of North Dakota student was found on Saturday. She'd been missing since November 22.
A replacement crew lifted off today for the international space station. A Russian cosmonaut and an American astronaut will take over from the crew that has been in space since October.
To the forecast center now and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The Bush administration faces new allegations about the Iraq war, specifically, who knew what and when? A new book from "Washington Post" journalist Bob Woodward says initial war plans were kept secret from key members of the Bush administration. Woodward's book, "Plan of Attack," goes on sale today.
On CBS' "60 Minutes," Woodward spoke about a conversation the president had in November of 2001 shortly after the collapse of the Taliban in Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CBS' "60 MINUTES") BOB WOODWARD, "WASHINGTON POST": President Bush, after a National Security Council meeting, takes Don Rumsfeld aside, collars him physically, and takes him into a little cubbyhole room and closes the door. And says, "What have you got in terms of plans for Iraq? What is the status of the war plan? I want you to get on it. I want you to keep it secret."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Want more?
CNN's Elaine Quijano has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Less than three months after the September 11 attacks, President Bush told Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to start drawing up plans for war in Iraq, according to Bob Woodward's new book, "Plan of Attack." In it, Woodward asserts that long before the Bush administration's diplomatic efforts publicly ended, the president's tentative war plans had already privately begun. Woodward says after that meeting with Rumsfeld, General Tommy Franks, then head of the U.S. Central Command, started building runways and pipelines and doing all the preparations in Kuwait specifically to make war possible.
Where did the money come from? According to Woodward, $700 million came from funds Congress had appeared for the war in Afghanistan, a move Woodward says happened without Congress knowing.
But administration officials defend that action.
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The secretary of defense, I am quite certain, would propose to the president things that he believes are inside his purview to do with the allocation that he gets from Congress.
QUIJANO: The book also describes a CIA briefing in December 2002 to President Bush on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capability, one of the main reasons for going to war. Woodward says the meeting left President Bush skeptical. According to "60 Minutes," Woodward wrote, "Then President Bush turns to George Tenet and says, 'This is the best we've got?'" Woodward says Tenet replied, "Don't worry, it's a slam dunk case."
A U.S. official tells CNN Tenet believed what he was saying based on intelligence then.
Just a few weeks after that, Woodward says Vice President Dick Cheney invited the Saudi ambassador, Prince Bandar, to his West Wing office and allowed him to see a secret war plan map that was supposed to be off limits to foreigners. Those who were there confirm Woodward's account.
GEN. RICHARD MYERS, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: It sounds basically correct and at that time, we were looking for support of our allies and partners in the region.
QUIJANO (on camera): Sunday, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice appeared to deny another issue raised in the book, that Saudi Ambassador Prince Bandar knew of the Iraq war plan even before Secretary of State Colin Powell. Rice said that Powell was privy to all of this and knew what the war plan was.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And you can good evening more details on this tonight. Bob Woodward will talk about his new book on CNN's "Larry King Live." That airs tonight at 9:00 Eastern time.
Eleven more American troops were killed in Iraq this weekend alone. That tops our situation report this morning. Those deaths bring the total number of U.S. troop deaths in Iraq to 700. Most were killed after President Bush declared and end to major combat. The U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, says Iraqi forces will not be ready to fight insurgents alone by the June 30 hand over date. That means a large number of U.S. troops will remain in Iraq. And two Japanese citizens kidnapped in Iraq are now free. That leaves 16 people, including nine Americans, who are still missing or being held by Iraqi insurgents.
Well, a big explosion was heard just about an hour ago in Baghdad and we've been wondering what it was.
For the latest on the situation, let's head live to Baghdad and Jim Clancy.
Any ideas -- Jim.
JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it was something that really shook us here, but it was only two blocks away. A fairly significant blast. They're saying that it was a rocket. No one knows for sure. It would appear to have landed inside a compound that was used by the Swedish embassy. But that embassy has not been operating for a dozen years, so it's unclear whether that was really the target. Also nearby was a Christian Evangelical church, a Protestant church that was located there. Still, neither one of these appear to be readily apparent targets of any insurgent attacks.
Police, Iraqi police are still on the scene investigating that, trying to piece together exactly what kind of munitions were involved, whether it was a rocket, what the target may have been. That investigation continues right now as I'm talking.
But as those security forces are on the ground, as you noted, Paul Bremer, in the bluntest terms yet, has repeated what he and his aides have been saying for some time, and that is that the U.S. is going to be doing all the heavy lifting for security here on the ground in Iraq. This is what he had to say about Iraqi security forces a little bit earlier: "It's clear that the Iraqi forces will not be able on their own to deal with these threats by June 30, when an Iraqi government assumes sovereignty. Instead, Iraq and troops from many countries, including the United States, will be partners in providing the security that Iraqis need."
Well, there may be many countries involved. Most of them are minor contributors. One of those contributors has announced over the weekend that it is pulling back its forces at the soonest time possible. The Spanish prime minister keeping an election promise, saying that he is going to withdraw Spanish troops. There are about 1,200 to 1,400 of them here now. They're in the midst of a troop rotation.
This, U.S. officials tell CNN, is not going to affect the overall performance of the coalition -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Jim Clancy live from Baghdad this morning.
Already this month, 100 American families have been told their loved ones will not be coming home from Iraq. The death toll for Iraqis this month is at least 1,000.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM WCPO)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh say can you see...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And the family of Army Reservist Keith "Matthew" Maupin is praying that he will not be added to the death toll. They had prayers for him this weekend at a Baptist church in his Ohio hometown. Maupin was shown on video surrounded by his armed abductors. They say they want to trade him for prisoners held by the United States.
The fears, the dangers, the concern -- Kellie Hamill, the wife of missing American contractor Thomas Hamill of Macon, Mississippi will talk about her concerns on "American Morning." That's coming up at 7:00 Eastern time.
MYERS: Carol, you know what time it is?
COSTELLO: Oh, I hope it's time for something good.
MYERS: It's time to give away a mug.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: And you know what? This week's, this is today's winner, from Friday actually comes from Canada.
COSTELLO: Really?
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: We have many Canadian viewers.
MYERS: And we love them all. Here are the questions from Friday. Ben Wedeman reported on an anti-American theater production. It was a play that's playing in what country? And it was in Egypt. And in his package he said Cairo. You had to figure that out by yourself, but the country is Cairo, Egypt. And then what was the price of the annual pass to America's national theme parks? And that was either $20 per day or $50 for the annual pass, because we actually gave you two different numbers, one for one and one for a day.
Anyway, I took them both. Nancy Smith from Ottawa, Ontario our winner this morning. Ottawa, good morning. A nice win yesterday by Ottawa over the Maple Leafs.
COSTELLO: Oh.
MYERS: We've got -- you've got two Canadian teams playing each other up there and it is a rivalry going on up there.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Coming up on DAYBREAK, more on that hostage situation in Iraq. We'll discuss the Reverend Jesse Jackson's involvement with one family waiting for word from a captured contractor.
Plus, how safe are you in your car? New crash test results out today. We'll go live to the testing center.
And what's the deal with this wild and wooly guy? He's causing quite a stir in one town.
This is DAYBREAK for April 19.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 6:13 Eastern time.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Spain's new prime minister has ordered his country's 1,400 troops in Iraq to return home in the shortest time possible.
The murder trial of Terry Nichols in the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building resumes this morning. It comes as families of victims and others observe today's ninth anniversary of the bombing.
In money news, the numbers are going up. A report says two in five Internet users in the United States now have access to high speed -- now have high speed access at home. Much of that growth has come since November.
In sports, the University of Connecticut's men's and women's basketball teams were honored during a parade in Hartford, Connecticut. The teams won the NCAA championships. One sign read, "U. Connecticut, You Can, You Did!" In culture, bad language is leading C-SPAN to consider a time delay of its programming. The head of C-SPAN says there's been a spike in vulgar comments on the cable network's live call-in programs -- Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Time for a little business buzz right now, after a little potty mouth and some flashing of body parts.
Federal regulators are cracking down on decency standards in the media. But several broadcast companies aren't having it.
Live now to Carrie Lee in New York.
What's this about -- Carrie?
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Carol, the "Wall Street Journal" reporting today that a group representing broadcast media is petitioning the Federal Communications Commission to overturn a March ruling finding remarks by singer Bono indecent and profane. He spoke at a live awards event in January of 2003 and now -- this is the first major industry challenge to a recent crackdown regarding indecency over the airwaves.
Now, the group includes Viacom, Fox Entertainment and the Screen Actors Guild. NBC today is also expected to file a petition. NBC aired the show originally.
So really this is a backlash against the backlash. And, of course, this also follows recent criticism of indecency in media. Clear Channel Communications, remember, fired Howard Stern after being hit by $1.5 million in fines since January.
So just the latest turn of events regarding indecency over the airwaves.
Quickly turning to stocks, a quick check on last week. You can see that the major market indices did lose some ground. The NASDAQ, in fact, has lost ground for four days in a row. We will be continuing the profit parade this week. A lot of companies reporting. 3M is one of them, one of the Dow 30. Wall Street looking for a pretty decent increase in profits, $0.87 a share versus $0.71 a year ago.
Futures, overall, though, for today's stock action looking flat to slightly weak.
So that's the latest from here, Carol, this Monday morning -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Carrie Lee reporting live from the NASDAQ market site this morning. Time to pump up the volume with our talker of the morning. Every few days, we like to tune the dial to see what's being said over the radio airwaves. This morning, the dial has landed on WBAL Radio in Baltimore, Maryland.
Chip Franklin is a libertarian talk show radio host.
Good morning, Chip.
CHIP FRANKLIN, WBAL RADIO HOST: Good morning, Carol.
Hey, you don't think the FCC will mind if I do this report in my boxers, do you?
COSTELLO: Just don't flash us.
FRANKLIN: Good idea.
My kids think it's obscene.
COSTELLO: I'm sure they do.
What do you want to talk about first? How about Bob Woodward's book, "Plan of Attack?" Already there are strong denials of what reporter Bob Woodward is saying from the Bush administration.
How will this play in Baltimore?
FRANKLIN: Well, you know, I think most of the people remember Bob Woodward's book on Director Casey. And their eyebrows go up whenever he talks anymore. And, you know, over the years, the Deep Throat thing just gets a little bit old. We'd like -- Condi Rice is already out this morning saying that the timing of the dates that the Bush administration planned the attack is questionable.
You know, I've got to believe that, you know, this is all about selling books. "Plan of Attack" is how do we get as many books up and in the bookstores and out into the homes as quick as possible?
COSTELLO: But surely Bob Woodward doesn't need to make any more money. It's not like he's broke.
FRANKLIN: Oh, it's a power. It's all these elitists. It's all about power. You know, my favorite one is about the Saudis will promise to lower oil prices before the war. The Bush administration, that's, they're screwed. If they lower the prices, then they say it's part of a plot. If they don't, then the economy hurts. How do you get around that?
COSTELLO: All right, before we go on, we want to listen to one of Woodward's claims about Dick Cheney's perceived desire to attack Iraq.
Let's listen.
We don't do that, but let me try to tell you what he said. And I hope I get it right. Apparently, Cheney was so desirous in attacking Iraq, it was almost like a fever. That's what Bob Woodward is claiming. That sounds a little extreme.
FRANKLIN: By the way, I do a great Dick Cheney impression, if you want me to do it right in there.
COSTELLO: Oh, no.
FRANKLIN: Look, I trust Dick Cheney about as far as I can throw him. The fact that he wouldn't come out and tell us what happened in those April 2000 energy meetings and his association with Halliburton and all the over bidding, he's a questionable character. He's always been. And it doesn't mean that Woodward's assertions hold any more weight, as far as I'm concerned.
COSTELLO: Why not? Well, if you say that, why not?
FRANKLIN: Well, I just think that, again, when you have so many things off the record -- it's like Clarke and -- look, this was a time when this administration obviously had to deal with, now, with the missing WMDs, also the question of whether or not this was really about terrorism here or abroad.
But the bottom line is now we're involved in a conflict, we have friends there, we can't cut out and run. We have to -- looking backwards right now is all (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COSTELLO: But I don't think that Bob Woodward is saying that. He's saying, all he's talking about is the plan to go to war and when it occurred as it applies to Iraq.
FRANKLIN: No, well, wouldn't you hope that every administration would have some plan on what to do in the eventuality they were attacked?
COSTELLO: Well, it depends on when that plan comes.
FRANKLIN: Yes, I think...
COSTELLO: If it comes when you say that you were still moving towards diplomatic means but you're already planning for war, doesn't that make a difference? That's what Bob Woodward is saying.
FRANKLIN: Well, I think that -- I think it -- when we dial the clock back and everyone remembers about how Congress easily went on board for this and how all the Americans were about protecting us, if we feel we were misled, if we feel that it was all about oil, which, let's be honest, it's all about oil. It is about oil. But it's also now about our friends and about stopping terror.
I, you know, I'm not a huge Bush apologist. I'm not a Bush apologist at all. But I believe there's really no other way to go except forward right now.
COSTELLO: All right, Chip Franklin from WBAL joining us this morning. Tomorrow, we'll have more radio talk show hosts for you.
We'll have Neal Boortz and, of course, we'll have Mike Malloy, as well, who is a liberal talk show host.
Coming up on DAYBREAK, how safe would you be if another driver sideswiped you?
Julie Vallese is live at the crash test headquarters.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: First they hit them at 40 miles per hour. Now they're slamming them in the sides. Coming up in a live report, I'll tell you how 10 popular cars did when broadsided by an SUV, when CNN's DAYBREAK continues.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
Is it time for us to chat?
MYERS: It is. We're going to talk about Duke University. And I remember classes back in Nebraska. They started at 7:30. I never took one. I just didn't sign up for them. Now Duke is actually canceling 8:00 classes and starting classes at either 8:30 or at 9:00, depending on the day.
COSTELLO: Oh, you've got to be kidding.
MYERS: I'm not. Just trying to get a little bit more sleep for the students. The students now are saying that they're getting between five and six hours of sleep a night. And...
COSTELLO: Oh, I wonder why.
MYERS: Because we used to stay up and play cards all night and then go to class. But obviously, obviously the kids have too...
COSTELLO: Yes, but you have to wonder, what is that teaching young people of America, that when you start your job your boss can say oh, you need your sleep?
MYERS: It's called...
COSTELLO: You can't start at 8:00 a.m.
MYERS: It's called flex time.
COSTELLO: Flex time?
MYERS: Obviously...
COSTELLO: What if they had our jobs, where they had to get up at 2:30 in the morning and be here by 3:00?
MYERS: Well, they wouldn't go to sleep at all.
COSTELLO: Oh, I see.
MYERS: They'd go to sleep after we got off work.
COSTELLO: Hey, maybe they have something there.
MYERS: They -- actually they might. But obviously they're trying to get some students -- when we were going to school, they said seven to eight hours of sleep was normal for a kid. I never got that. But now it's down to five or six and that's a little bit scary.
COSTELLO: But I remember in college I needed two hours of sleep and I was perfectly fine, all the way up until I was 25, and then, you know, I started -- sleep started to matter.
MYERS: Like a little child needs more sleep and an older person needs more sleep.
COSTELLO: Right.
MYERS: And at some point then you can't sleep at all.
COSTELLO: It's amazing.
Can your car handle a head-on collision? How about getting creamed from the side? A major insurance institute ran some new tests and issued quite a few failing grades.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: CNN's Julie Vallese joins us live from the institute's testing center in Ruckersville, Virginia.
Ooh, what do we have to think about this morning -- Julie?
VALLESE: Well, quite a few failing grades, indeed, just about all of them if they don't have a side impact airbag. The government tests cars inside impact crashes, but it's car to car. The Insurance Institute has bumped that up a notch, about 12 inches. And what they're doing is running one of these into the sides of cars. It actually simulates the front end of an SUV or a light truck and when it hit 10 popular mid-sized cars, inexpensive vehicles, well, the results are about as bad as these cars look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VALLESE (voice-over): All 10 vehicles tested with standard equipment failed the Insurance Institute's side impact crash tests. Only manufacturers who asked for a second test with optional equipment earned passing marks.
ADRIAN LUND, COO, INSURANCE INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY: We've got two cars, the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord, when they're fitted with their optional side impact airbag systems, that do provide good protection. So these two manufacturers have been doing their homework.
VALLESE: Chevrolet has been paying attention, as well. When fitted with a side airbag curtain, the Malibu passed.
But a side impact airbag doesn't guarantee good protection. Both the Hyundai Sonata and the Saturn L are equipped with standard side impact airbags. The Institute says the Hyundai didn't protect enough of the torso and the Saturn's airbag wasn't big enough to protect all of the dummy's head.
LUND: Just having a side impact airbag isn't enough. You've got to make sure that the side impact airbag is integrated with the vehicle structure.
VALLESE: All the other vehicles were tested without side airbags and all are rated poor by the in-depth Insurance Institute.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The side impact airbag option is a good value. There's no question. It's your life, after all.
VALLESE: Manufacturers who returned our calls, including Hyundai and General Motors, all pointed out their vehicle safety ratings for other tests expressed how severe the Institute's side impact tests are, but said it is important to collect safety information from a variety of sources, to improve overall vehicle performance.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VALLESE: Now, a voluntary standard by manufacturers may help to improve safety. Side impact airbags will be standard in half of all cars by 2007 and in all cars by 2010 -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Julie Vallese reporting live this morning from Virginia.
We're going to take a short break.
DAYBREAK will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired April 19, 2004 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: A little more than 70 days to go until the hand over in Iraq and today explosive new allegations about the plans that led to the war in Iraq.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, April 19.
Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
First, we have the latest headlines for you now.
The homeland security secretary has a message for local authorities this morning. Tom Ridge wants them to accelerate plans to deal with terrorist attacks. Ridge says he's concerned several upcoming high profile events could give terrorists a chance to strike.
Across Israel today, traffic came to a standstill as Israelis marked Holocaust Remembrance Day. The observance honors the six million Jews killed by the Nazis in WWII.
About 500 people attended a memorial last night for Dru Sjodin. The body of the University of North Dakota student was found on Saturday. She'd been missing since November 22.
A replacement crew lifted off today for the international space station. A Russian cosmonaut and an American astronaut will take over from the crew that has been in space since October.
To the forecast center now and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The Bush administration faces new allegations about the Iraq war, specifically, who knew what and when? A new book from "Washington Post" journalist Bob Woodward says initial war plans were kept secret from key members of the Bush administration. Woodward's book, "Plan of Attack," goes on sale today.
On CBS' "60 Minutes," Woodward spoke about a conversation the president had in November of 2001 shortly after the collapse of the Taliban in Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM CBS' "60 MINUTES") BOB WOODWARD, "WASHINGTON POST": President Bush, after a National Security Council meeting, takes Don Rumsfeld aside, collars him physically, and takes him into a little cubbyhole room and closes the door. And says, "What have you got in terms of plans for Iraq? What is the status of the war plan? I want you to get on it. I want you to keep it secret."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Want more?
CNN's Elaine Quijano has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Less than three months after the September 11 attacks, President Bush told Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to start drawing up plans for war in Iraq, according to Bob Woodward's new book, "Plan of Attack." In it, Woodward asserts that long before the Bush administration's diplomatic efforts publicly ended, the president's tentative war plans had already privately begun. Woodward says after that meeting with Rumsfeld, General Tommy Franks, then head of the U.S. Central Command, started building runways and pipelines and doing all the preparations in Kuwait specifically to make war possible.
Where did the money come from? According to Woodward, $700 million came from funds Congress had appeared for the war in Afghanistan, a move Woodward says happened without Congress knowing.
But administration officials defend that action.
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The secretary of defense, I am quite certain, would propose to the president things that he believes are inside his purview to do with the allocation that he gets from Congress.
QUIJANO: The book also describes a CIA briefing in December 2002 to President Bush on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capability, one of the main reasons for going to war. Woodward says the meeting left President Bush skeptical. According to "60 Minutes," Woodward wrote, "Then President Bush turns to George Tenet and says, 'This is the best we've got?'" Woodward says Tenet replied, "Don't worry, it's a slam dunk case."
A U.S. official tells CNN Tenet believed what he was saying based on intelligence then.
Just a few weeks after that, Woodward says Vice President Dick Cheney invited the Saudi ambassador, Prince Bandar, to his West Wing office and allowed him to see a secret war plan map that was supposed to be off limits to foreigners. Those who were there confirm Woodward's account.
GEN. RICHARD MYERS, CHAIRMAN, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: It sounds basically correct and at that time, we were looking for support of our allies and partners in the region.
QUIJANO (on camera): Sunday, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice appeared to deny another issue raised in the book, that Saudi Ambassador Prince Bandar knew of the Iraq war plan even before Secretary of State Colin Powell. Rice said that Powell was privy to all of this and knew what the war plan was.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And you can good evening more details on this tonight. Bob Woodward will talk about his new book on CNN's "Larry King Live." That airs tonight at 9:00 Eastern time.
Eleven more American troops were killed in Iraq this weekend alone. That tops our situation report this morning. Those deaths bring the total number of U.S. troop deaths in Iraq to 700. Most were killed after President Bush declared and end to major combat. The U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, says Iraqi forces will not be ready to fight insurgents alone by the June 30 hand over date. That means a large number of U.S. troops will remain in Iraq. And two Japanese citizens kidnapped in Iraq are now free. That leaves 16 people, including nine Americans, who are still missing or being held by Iraqi insurgents.
Well, a big explosion was heard just about an hour ago in Baghdad and we've been wondering what it was.
For the latest on the situation, let's head live to Baghdad and Jim Clancy.
Any ideas -- Jim.
JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, it was something that really shook us here, but it was only two blocks away. A fairly significant blast. They're saying that it was a rocket. No one knows for sure. It would appear to have landed inside a compound that was used by the Swedish embassy. But that embassy has not been operating for a dozen years, so it's unclear whether that was really the target. Also nearby was a Christian Evangelical church, a Protestant church that was located there. Still, neither one of these appear to be readily apparent targets of any insurgent attacks.
Police, Iraqi police are still on the scene investigating that, trying to piece together exactly what kind of munitions were involved, whether it was a rocket, what the target may have been. That investigation continues right now as I'm talking.
But as those security forces are on the ground, as you noted, Paul Bremer, in the bluntest terms yet, has repeated what he and his aides have been saying for some time, and that is that the U.S. is going to be doing all the heavy lifting for security here on the ground in Iraq. This is what he had to say about Iraqi security forces a little bit earlier: "It's clear that the Iraqi forces will not be able on their own to deal with these threats by June 30, when an Iraqi government assumes sovereignty. Instead, Iraq and troops from many countries, including the United States, will be partners in providing the security that Iraqis need."
Well, there may be many countries involved. Most of them are minor contributors. One of those contributors has announced over the weekend that it is pulling back its forces at the soonest time possible. The Spanish prime minister keeping an election promise, saying that he is going to withdraw Spanish troops. There are about 1,200 to 1,400 of them here now. They're in the midst of a troop rotation.
This, U.S. officials tell CNN, is not going to affect the overall performance of the coalition -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Jim Clancy live from Baghdad this morning.
Already this month, 100 American families have been told their loved ones will not be coming home from Iraq. The death toll for Iraqis this month is at least 1,000.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM WCPO)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh say can you see...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: And the family of Army Reservist Keith "Matthew" Maupin is praying that he will not be added to the death toll. They had prayers for him this weekend at a Baptist church in his Ohio hometown. Maupin was shown on video surrounded by his armed abductors. They say they want to trade him for prisoners held by the United States.
The fears, the dangers, the concern -- Kellie Hamill, the wife of missing American contractor Thomas Hamill of Macon, Mississippi will talk about her concerns on "American Morning." That's coming up at 7:00 Eastern time.
MYERS: Carol, you know what time it is?
COSTELLO: Oh, I hope it's time for something good.
MYERS: It's time to give away a mug.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: And you know what? This week's, this is today's winner, from Friday actually comes from Canada.
COSTELLO: Really?
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: We have many Canadian viewers.
MYERS: And we love them all. Here are the questions from Friday. Ben Wedeman reported on an anti-American theater production. It was a play that's playing in what country? And it was in Egypt. And in his package he said Cairo. You had to figure that out by yourself, but the country is Cairo, Egypt. And then what was the price of the annual pass to America's national theme parks? And that was either $20 per day or $50 for the annual pass, because we actually gave you two different numbers, one for one and one for a day.
Anyway, I took them both. Nancy Smith from Ottawa, Ontario our winner this morning. Ottawa, good morning. A nice win yesterday by Ottawa over the Maple Leafs.
COSTELLO: Oh.
MYERS: We've got -- you've got two Canadian teams playing each other up there and it is a rivalry going on up there.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Coming up on DAYBREAK, more on that hostage situation in Iraq. We'll discuss the Reverend Jesse Jackson's involvement with one family waiting for word from a captured contractor.
Plus, how safe are you in your car? New crash test results out today. We'll go live to the testing center.
And what's the deal with this wild and wooly guy? He's causing quite a stir in one town.
This is DAYBREAK for April 19.
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COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 6:13 Eastern time.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Spain's new prime minister has ordered his country's 1,400 troops in Iraq to return home in the shortest time possible.
The murder trial of Terry Nichols in the bombing of the Oklahoma City federal building resumes this morning. It comes as families of victims and others observe today's ninth anniversary of the bombing.
In money news, the numbers are going up. A report says two in five Internet users in the United States now have access to high speed -- now have high speed access at home. Much of that growth has come since November.
In sports, the University of Connecticut's men's and women's basketball teams were honored during a parade in Hartford, Connecticut. The teams won the NCAA championships. One sign read, "U. Connecticut, You Can, You Did!" In culture, bad language is leading C-SPAN to consider a time delay of its programming. The head of C-SPAN says there's been a spike in vulgar comments on the cable network's live call-in programs -- Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Time for a little business buzz right now, after a little potty mouth and some flashing of body parts.
Federal regulators are cracking down on decency standards in the media. But several broadcast companies aren't having it.
Live now to Carrie Lee in New York.
What's this about -- Carrie?
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Carol, the "Wall Street Journal" reporting today that a group representing broadcast media is petitioning the Federal Communications Commission to overturn a March ruling finding remarks by singer Bono indecent and profane. He spoke at a live awards event in January of 2003 and now -- this is the first major industry challenge to a recent crackdown regarding indecency over the airwaves.
Now, the group includes Viacom, Fox Entertainment and the Screen Actors Guild. NBC today is also expected to file a petition. NBC aired the show originally.
So really this is a backlash against the backlash. And, of course, this also follows recent criticism of indecency in media. Clear Channel Communications, remember, fired Howard Stern after being hit by $1.5 million in fines since January.
So just the latest turn of events regarding indecency over the airwaves.
Quickly turning to stocks, a quick check on last week. You can see that the major market indices did lose some ground. The NASDAQ, in fact, has lost ground for four days in a row. We will be continuing the profit parade this week. A lot of companies reporting. 3M is one of them, one of the Dow 30. Wall Street looking for a pretty decent increase in profits, $0.87 a share versus $0.71 a year ago.
Futures, overall, though, for today's stock action looking flat to slightly weak.
So that's the latest from here, Carol, this Monday morning -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Carrie Lee reporting live from the NASDAQ market site this morning. Time to pump up the volume with our talker of the morning. Every few days, we like to tune the dial to see what's being said over the radio airwaves. This morning, the dial has landed on WBAL Radio in Baltimore, Maryland.
Chip Franklin is a libertarian talk show radio host.
Good morning, Chip.
CHIP FRANKLIN, WBAL RADIO HOST: Good morning, Carol.
Hey, you don't think the FCC will mind if I do this report in my boxers, do you?
COSTELLO: Just don't flash us.
FRANKLIN: Good idea.
My kids think it's obscene.
COSTELLO: I'm sure they do.
What do you want to talk about first? How about Bob Woodward's book, "Plan of Attack?" Already there are strong denials of what reporter Bob Woodward is saying from the Bush administration.
How will this play in Baltimore?
FRANKLIN: Well, you know, I think most of the people remember Bob Woodward's book on Director Casey. And their eyebrows go up whenever he talks anymore. And, you know, over the years, the Deep Throat thing just gets a little bit old. We'd like -- Condi Rice is already out this morning saying that the timing of the dates that the Bush administration planned the attack is questionable.
You know, I've got to believe that, you know, this is all about selling books. "Plan of Attack" is how do we get as many books up and in the bookstores and out into the homes as quick as possible?
COSTELLO: But surely Bob Woodward doesn't need to make any more money. It's not like he's broke.
FRANKLIN: Oh, it's a power. It's all these elitists. It's all about power. You know, my favorite one is about the Saudis will promise to lower oil prices before the war. The Bush administration, that's, they're screwed. If they lower the prices, then they say it's part of a plot. If they don't, then the economy hurts. How do you get around that?
COSTELLO: All right, before we go on, we want to listen to one of Woodward's claims about Dick Cheney's perceived desire to attack Iraq.
Let's listen.
We don't do that, but let me try to tell you what he said. And I hope I get it right. Apparently, Cheney was so desirous in attacking Iraq, it was almost like a fever. That's what Bob Woodward is claiming. That sounds a little extreme.
FRANKLIN: By the way, I do a great Dick Cheney impression, if you want me to do it right in there.
COSTELLO: Oh, no.
FRANKLIN: Look, I trust Dick Cheney about as far as I can throw him. The fact that he wouldn't come out and tell us what happened in those April 2000 energy meetings and his association with Halliburton and all the over bidding, he's a questionable character. He's always been. And it doesn't mean that Woodward's assertions hold any more weight, as far as I'm concerned.
COSTELLO: Why not? Well, if you say that, why not?
FRANKLIN: Well, I just think that, again, when you have so many things off the record -- it's like Clarke and -- look, this was a time when this administration obviously had to deal with, now, with the missing WMDs, also the question of whether or not this was really about terrorism here or abroad.
But the bottom line is now we're involved in a conflict, we have friends there, we can't cut out and run. We have to -- looking backwards right now is all (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COSTELLO: But I don't think that Bob Woodward is saying that. He's saying, all he's talking about is the plan to go to war and when it occurred as it applies to Iraq.
FRANKLIN: No, well, wouldn't you hope that every administration would have some plan on what to do in the eventuality they were attacked?
COSTELLO: Well, it depends on when that plan comes.
FRANKLIN: Yes, I think...
COSTELLO: If it comes when you say that you were still moving towards diplomatic means but you're already planning for war, doesn't that make a difference? That's what Bob Woodward is saying.
FRANKLIN: Well, I think that -- I think it -- when we dial the clock back and everyone remembers about how Congress easily went on board for this and how all the Americans were about protecting us, if we feel we were misled, if we feel that it was all about oil, which, let's be honest, it's all about oil. It is about oil. But it's also now about our friends and about stopping terror.
I, you know, I'm not a huge Bush apologist. I'm not a Bush apologist at all. But I believe there's really no other way to go except forward right now.
COSTELLO: All right, Chip Franklin from WBAL joining us this morning. Tomorrow, we'll have more radio talk show hosts for you.
We'll have Neal Boortz and, of course, we'll have Mike Malloy, as well, who is a liberal talk show host.
Coming up on DAYBREAK, how safe would you be if another driver sideswiped you?
Julie Vallese is live at the crash test headquarters.
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JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: First they hit them at 40 miles per hour. Now they're slamming them in the sides. Coming up in a live report, I'll tell you how 10 popular cars did when broadsided by an SUV, when CNN's DAYBREAK continues.
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COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
Is it time for us to chat?
MYERS: It is. We're going to talk about Duke University. And I remember classes back in Nebraska. They started at 7:30. I never took one. I just didn't sign up for them. Now Duke is actually canceling 8:00 classes and starting classes at either 8:30 or at 9:00, depending on the day.
COSTELLO: Oh, you've got to be kidding.
MYERS: I'm not. Just trying to get a little bit more sleep for the students. The students now are saying that they're getting between five and six hours of sleep a night. And...
COSTELLO: Oh, I wonder why.
MYERS: Because we used to stay up and play cards all night and then go to class. But obviously, obviously the kids have too...
COSTELLO: Yes, but you have to wonder, what is that teaching young people of America, that when you start your job your boss can say oh, you need your sleep?
MYERS: It's called...
COSTELLO: You can't start at 8:00 a.m.
MYERS: It's called flex time.
COSTELLO: Flex time?
MYERS: Obviously...
COSTELLO: What if they had our jobs, where they had to get up at 2:30 in the morning and be here by 3:00?
MYERS: Well, they wouldn't go to sleep at all.
COSTELLO: Oh, I see.
MYERS: They'd go to sleep after we got off work.
COSTELLO: Hey, maybe they have something there.
MYERS: They -- actually they might. But obviously they're trying to get some students -- when we were going to school, they said seven to eight hours of sleep was normal for a kid. I never got that. But now it's down to five or six and that's a little bit scary.
COSTELLO: But I remember in college I needed two hours of sleep and I was perfectly fine, all the way up until I was 25, and then, you know, I started -- sleep started to matter.
MYERS: Like a little child needs more sleep and an older person needs more sleep.
COSTELLO: Right.
MYERS: And at some point then you can't sleep at all.
COSTELLO: It's amazing.
Can your car handle a head-on collision? How about getting creamed from the side? A major insurance institute ran some new tests and issued quite a few failing grades.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: CNN's Julie Vallese joins us live from the institute's testing center in Ruckersville, Virginia.
Ooh, what do we have to think about this morning -- Julie?
VALLESE: Well, quite a few failing grades, indeed, just about all of them if they don't have a side impact airbag. The government tests cars inside impact crashes, but it's car to car. The Insurance Institute has bumped that up a notch, about 12 inches. And what they're doing is running one of these into the sides of cars. It actually simulates the front end of an SUV or a light truck and when it hit 10 popular mid-sized cars, inexpensive vehicles, well, the results are about as bad as these cars look.
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VALLESE (voice-over): All 10 vehicles tested with standard equipment failed the Insurance Institute's side impact crash tests. Only manufacturers who asked for a second test with optional equipment earned passing marks.
ADRIAN LUND, COO, INSURANCE INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY: We've got two cars, the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord, when they're fitted with their optional side impact airbag systems, that do provide good protection. So these two manufacturers have been doing their homework.
VALLESE: Chevrolet has been paying attention, as well. When fitted with a side airbag curtain, the Malibu passed.
But a side impact airbag doesn't guarantee good protection. Both the Hyundai Sonata and the Saturn L are equipped with standard side impact airbags. The Institute says the Hyundai didn't protect enough of the torso and the Saturn's airbag wasn't big enough to protect all of the dummy's head.
LUND: Just having a side impact airbag isn't enough. You've got to make sure that the side impact airbag is integrated with the vehicle structure.
VALLESE: All the other vehicles were tested without side airbags and all are rated poor by the in-depth Insurance Institute.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The side impact airbag option is a good value. There's no question. It's your life, after all.
VALLESE: Manufacturers who returned our calls, including Hyundai and General Motors, all pointed out their vehicle safety ratings for other tests expressed how severe the Institute's side impact tests are, but said it is important to collect safety information from a variety of sources, to improve overall vehicle performance.
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VALLESE: Now, a voluntary standard by manufacturers may help to improve safety. Side impact airbags will be standard in half of all cars by 2007 and in all cars by 2010 -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Julie Vallese reporting live this morning from Virginia.
We're going to take a short break.
DAYBREAK will be right back.
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