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American Morning

Tony Blair Seeking to Clarify Confusion About Role of Foreign Troops in Iraq After Transfer of Power; Aspirin & Breast Cancer

Aired May 26, 2004 - 08:31   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody. Just about half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING. Lots of confusion today about just what Iraqi sovereignty will mean for coalition troops stationed in that country. The United States, Britain, Iraqi officials, the U.N., all are weighing in.
Barbara Starr is going to help us sort it out this morning and give us an answer on that.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Also former U.S. ally Iraqi Governing Council member Ahmed Chalabi now under investigation for possibly giving U.S. secrets to Iran. In a moment, we'll talk to a former CIA officer who worked closely with Chalabi back in the mid-'90s. He said he witnessed some interaction there. We'll get to the heart of it in a moment.

O'BRIEN: British Prime Minister tony blair is seeking to clarify some confusion about the role of foreign troops in Iraq after the transfer of power there. Some comments by Mr. Blair yesterday pointed toward a perceived rift between London and the Bush administration. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us this morning with more.

Hey, Barbara, good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.

Well, even with Tony Blair's latest statements seeking to clarify his position, there are still an awful lot of questions about who will be in charge of U.S. and coalition troops after June 30th.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): When Iraq takes control of its government five week from now, what happens if the U.S. orders a military operation against insurgents and the Iraqis oppose it. From Tony Blair in London to Colin Powell in Washington to United Nations headquarters in New York, there is confusion. In London, Prime Minister Blair.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TONY BLAIR, PRIME MINISTER OF LONDON: If there's a political decision as to whether you go into a place like Fallujah in a particular way, that has to be done with the consent of the Iraqi government, and the final political control remains with the Iraqi government. That's what the transfer of sovereignty means. But in Washington, Secretary of State Powell said if U.S. forces tried to accomplish their mission, find themselves at odds with Iraqi military units...

COLIN POWELL, SECY. OF STATE: The U.S. forces remain under U.S. command, and will do what is necessary to protect themselves.

STARR: At the United Nations, all of this is to be sorted out. A new proposed U.S./British resolution may add to the uncertainty. The proposed resolution has no definite timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces, only a call for a review after one year.

And an exchange of letters still must be worked out, detailing Iraqi military cooperation with the coalition. At the Pentagon, plans continue for sending troops to Iraq for at least two years, until Iraq can assure its security.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: Now Tony Blair says that what he means to say, of course, is that coalition troops will be under coalition command. But still, a great deal of confusion. Here's just one example: President Bush has not issued an exit date for U.S. and coalition troops out of Iraq, but the new Iraqi interim defense minister said yesterday he believes foreign troops will be out of his country within a matter of months -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon. Barbara, thanks -- Bill.

HEMMER: U.N. officials in Iraq are getting closer to naming those who will fill the top four government positions after the transfer of power at the end of June. Last week, Iraqi forces and U.S. troops raided the offices of one Iraqi, Ahmed Chalabi, who was once thought to be a favorite for a top position. There are allegations that a member of Chalabi's staff passed U.S. secrets to Iran.

Robert Behr is the author of "Sleeping with the Devil: How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude." He's also a former CIA officer, worked directly with Chalabi back in 1995.

Bob, good morning. And welcome back here on AMERICAN MORNING. Lay the foundation for us. You say he's at the center of the storm that caused the U.S. to go to war. A bit of a background now. Why do you allege that?

ROBERT BEHR, FMR. CIA OFFICER: Well, for a start, he was providing information to the CIA for many years through the early '90s. It was closely filtered by the CIA, and most of it wasn't worth even passing on. And what happened in 1995 and '96, he cut his connections with the CIA. It was a mutual decision. He then appealed to political Washington, Congress, certain institutes in Washington and the Pentagon, bypassing this filter, and a lot of this information found its way eventually into assessments. That's where it went wrong. He provided defectors to the DIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency. He provided a lot of the background reporting to the press, "The New York Times," "Washington Post." This whole drumbeat for war, he was behind it. Now he's saying he just provided defectors, and it was up to us to filter it. Those filters were gone.

HEMMER: Take it to the next step then. How did he manipulate, as you say, manipulate the U.S. media? In what way?

BEHR: Well, what would happen is he'd give a report to the Defense Department and then he'd give it to one of the major newspapers who would call the Defense Department to confirm the information so it was what we call circular reporting. There wasn't any independent reporting.

You know, the weapon labs, these mobile weapon labs, he was behind this apparently. He was...

HEMMER: If I could, Bob, back in 1995, what did you witness with him and his connections with Iran?

BEHR: You know, frankly, Chalabi was very honest about his connections with Iran. He said, look, Iran is crucial to the future of Iraq. I have to deal with the Iranians. I are to deal with the government. I have to deal with the intelligence services. At one point, when I was in Iraq in March 1995, he tried to introduce me to two Iranian intelligence officers. Of course I had to refuse. No back channels to Iran. But he was very clear about his relations, and he was very clear that once Saddam fell, he would have to deal with Tehran.

Now what happened apparently now is he went a little too far, or his aides did.

HEMMER: Did the U.S. ignore his connections? Did they consider his ties with Tehran, and if so, how did they view that?

BEHR: I don't know what got into this current administration. But in the early '90s, we were quite aware that people around Chalabi, his chief of intelligence, were dealing with Iran as agents. They were fulfilling missions for the Iranian Intelligence Service. The cia certainly was aware of this, and this is one of the reasons the CIA cut its relations with chalabi.

HEMMER: Look into the crystal ball for us. I don't know if it's through the month of June, or past that point, but Lakthar Brahimi, the U.N. envoy apparently is at odds with Ahmad Chalabi, as a lot of people we find this days well.

If that's the case, what is his future in a government there in Iraq?

BEHR: It's going to depend on the Iranians. Curretnly, the Iranians are supporting him in their press. They seem to get along with him well enough, and I think what Chalabi is counting on, is the United States leaving soner rather than later, and that he's got to deal with Tehran as somebody who's loyal and frank with them, and I think that's what we're seeing is the shift of influence from Washington to Tehran.

HEMMER: It is an interesting subplot, nonetheless, and we'll continue to track it.

Thanks you, Robert Baer there in D.C. Good to talk to you, Bob. Thanks.

BEHR: Thanks, Bill.

O'BRIEN: Still to come on AMERICAN MORNING, intelligence about a major terrorist attack on U.S. soil this summer. We talk to the homeland security director this morning. We'll hear from him in just a moment.

HEMMER: Also today, one more use for Aspirin preventing cancer, but don't start taking one a day just yet, we are told. We'll explain it, let you know what we find out, in a moment, on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Dr. Sanjay Gupta is off today.

But in medical news this morning, we know that Aspirin helps to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Well, now researchers have added another deadly disease to the list: breast cancer. A Columbia University study found that women who took Aspirin at least once a week lowered their risk of breast cancer by 20 percent. Women who use Aspirin seven or more times a week had a 28 percent lower risk.

Mary Beth Terry is an epidemiologist at Columbia Marman School of Public Health, led the study. She joins us this morning.

Nice to have you. Thanks for talking to us about this.

MARY BETH TERRY, MARMAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, EPIDEMIOLOGIST: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Give us a sense of what investigators took from this study, that there's this clear link between Aspirin and breast cancer, but are there specifics that are answered, like how much Aspirin you should be taking?

TERRY: Sure. Our study is actually just one of about a dozen studies now suggesting an association between Aspirin and breast cancer.

What our study adds to the literature that's growing now suggesting a link is that we specifically looked among those women who had hormone receptive positive breast cancer, and we saw a stronger association against those women.

O'BRIEN: When you say hormone receptive positive breast cancer, that's a specific kind of breast cancer. What percentage of the population that has breast cancer has that kind of breast cancer?

TERRY: Right, actually, the majority. In fact, about two-thirds of women have hormone receptive positive cancer.

O'BRIEN: So it's a huge find then.

TERRY: Exactly, and you see it more among postmenopausal women in particular.

O'BRIEN: Why do researchers think there's this link? I mean, why does Aspirin have this interaction, apparently at least it seems, with women's hormones?

TERRY: Well, there's some laboratory data, actually a lot of laboratory data over the past decade has been suggesting that Aspirin use might work by preventing estrogen production. So that's exciting because there might be -- this is the first human study to look at this biological mechanism.

O'BRIEN: So is the takeaway from this study every woman out there, especially postmenopausal women, should be taking at least an aspirin a day?

TERRY: No, it's still too early to advise that. In fact, there's actually even stronger data that Aspirin may be protective against colorectal cancer. But doctors are still not advising that. We're one step closer, which is very exciting, but I think we'd like to see a replication of our results, and some more laboratory data, and in particular, we need to know more about dose of Aspirin that's appropriate, and also timing.

O'BRIEN: Were certain doses used, or was it sort of just women who were taking Aspirin were polled?

TERRY: We did a study in humans, and we asked them to recall their Aspirin use, and we asked them to recall that by tablets per week. So we didn't have exact dosage.

O'BRIEN: So then, what is the -- as you well know, all women look at this medical information, and they say, OK, so what do I do now? Aspirin? No Aspirin? Do I talk to my doctor. What's the best advice you give women?

TERRY: Right. I think right now, again, it's too early for breast cancer prevention, though among women are currently taking Aspirin for heart disease prevention, or arthritis or other indications, they might have this additional benefit. But because Aspirin, as you know, has a number of side effects, it's not something that should be universally used, and a woman should discuss it with her doctor and consider her whole health profile before taking it.

O'BRIEN: Ulcers, stress, things like that.

Mary Beth Terry, epidemiologist over at Columbia, nice to have you. Thanks for coming in to talk about your study, appreciate it.

TERRY: Great. Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, feel like your office space is shrinking? Well, you know what, you might be right. That story is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Developing news. Straightaway to Heidi Collins for a look at that and other news today.

Heidi, good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Bill. And good morning to you, everyone.

This just in to CNN now: We are getting word of at least two explosions in Karachi, Pakistan. The police said the blast went off near the residence of the American consul general. We know of at least seven people being wounded, so of course we will keep our eye on this story for you.

There is credible information of potential terror attacks in the U.S. in the next few months. But homeland security secretary Tom Ridge says there are no plans to raise the nation's terror threat level.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECY.: There is absolutely nothing specific enough or that rises to the level where we would presently, today, as we speak, make a recommendation to the president to raise the threat level.

What I think it's important for America to know is we don't need to raise the threat level in order to continue to work every day to improve security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The information is said to be highly credible, but not specific. Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI director Robert Mueller will hold a press conference at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time today. They will discuss an intensive plan to prevent attacks.

A nuclear scientist and Shiite Muslim is the leading candidate to be prime minister of Iraqi's interim government. His name is Hussain Al Shahristani (ph). A final decision has not yet been made, but he is said to be the favorite of U.N. envoy Lakthar Brahimi. Brahimi is working with Iraqis to choose the top interim officials.

The prices for name brand medicines, particularly used by seniors, is going up much faster than inflation. According to the American Association of Retired People and Families, drug prices rose more than three times the rate of overall inflation last year. The findings were part of two independent studies done by the watchdog groups. Generic drugs were not included in the study.

And apparently, eight is not enough for a family in Arkansas. Try 15. Yes, Jackson Levi Dugar was born at 10:52 a.m. on Sunday, at 7 pounds, 8 ounces. Mom is doing fine, according to her husband. And the rest of the brood all have names that begin with 'J' as well. Had to get creative there.

HEMMER: Fifteen?

O'BRIEN: How cute. I wonder if that's 15 kid, or 13 kids, two parents.

HEMMER: What have you guys done lately?

O'BRIEN: I know. I've got to catch up.

HEMMER: Not much.

O'BRIEN: I'm making my contribution. What about the rest of you? That's a lot of kids.

HEMMER: Thank you, Heidi.

Office space apparently shrinking. One company's president may have taken off with millions. Andy's "Minding Your Business," has the answer to all this and more.

Good morning, Drew.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE": The office space situation, something a lot of us suspect intuitively. Now a story in "The New York Times" laying it out. Yes, office space is shrinking in this country. New studies, new work showing that all across the board here.

Let's check this out: General clerical space down 10 percent. Professional space down 14 percent. And, you know, they have this little anecdote. They talk about Pricewaterhousecoopers, the big accounting and consulting firm. They have a million square feet, 3,500 employees. They're now moving into an office space of 800,000 square feet, 200,000 square feet less, the same amount of people. They are not downsizing. They are just squeezing us and squeezing us and squeezing.

HEMMER: What's up with this company? The president what, sent an e-mail or made a phone call and said, I've taken millions?

SERWER: This is self-tattletailing. I mean, remember we had the bonehead business move of the month. I think I have to do the bonehead business move of the week, or maybe day. They are coming fast and furious.

OK, this is a company called Toda America, which is a subsidiary of a Japanese company. It's a construction firm in Schaumburg, Illinois. Apparently, the president, a gentleman named Hasashi Shimizu (ph), had a falling out with his boss back in Tokyo. So he sent a little e-mail saying, ha, ha ha, I'm leaving, and I took $4.6 million, ha ha ha.

HEMMER: They fired him? SERWER: Well, it's not hard to track someone like that down, some rocket scientist like that. And you know where they found him?

HEMMER: South Beach?

SERWER: Las Vegas, Nevada. They found him in Vegas. They busted him in the Rio Suites Hotels down there, a casino.

O'BRIEN: He should have just gone to Rio, not the Rio Suites Hotel.

SERWER: Yes, South America, not Las Vegas.

O'BRIEN: And then send the e-mail.

SERWER: Right, you know, he says, I know what I've done is a crime in the e-mail.

O'BRIEN: Oh, man. What's his lawyer going do?

SERWER: He's going to plead insanity.

O'BRIEN: Of course.

SERWER: Temporary gambling insanity.

O'BRIEN: It might work.

HEMMER: The markets were booming yesterday, by the way, triple- digit gains for the Dow 30.

SERWER: Yes, and I think a lot of people are suggesting stocks have been oversold. You know, we've been down day after day, week after week. And what happened here is we really picked up a little bit the approximate cause. Oil prices slipping a little bit, not too much. This morning, though, futures are down. The report about possible terrorism weighing heavily on Wall Street. Also there's some economic news. So it was a little soft this morning, so we'll be tracking that for you.

HEMMER: Below 41 bucks a barrel, huh? That's a bargain.

SERWER: Yes, that's a good deal.

HEMMER: Come and get it.

O'BRIEN: All right, Andy. Thanks very much.

SERWER: You're welcome.

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, in our next hour, are U.S. forces getting closer to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada Al Sadr? Word of a key arrest today.

Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Thank you. You doing the blocking of the side shot.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Trying to help your profile.

O'BRIEN: I totally appreciate it. I owe you $10 each and every day.

Time to check in with Jack and "The Cafferty File."

Hello.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: How're you doing.

Wednesday, Things people said over the last week that got our attention, starting with this: "I am not exaggerating." This is Fidel Castro's doctor, reporting that the Cuban president, who is now 77, could live to be 140 years old. Now there's a little something to look forward to.

"Too much information. Whatever happened to earth tones?" Democratic strategist Donna Brazile on the see-thru dress worn by Senator Kerry's daughter, Alexandra, at the Cannes Film Festival. I love Donna Brazile.

"Basically, I think they're making a wrong judgment here, although I would have loved to have that judgment made in my case in 1976," tennis player Renee Richards, who used to be Richard Raskin (ph), who played on the women's tennis tour in the 1970s after having himself altered. He was talking about the Olympic Committee's decision to let transsexuals compete in the Olympic Games, but no steroids.

"He's going to come out as 'Hassel the Hoff.' I promise you, the Hoff will surprise people with his rap skills and humor," rapper Ice-T talking about producing 'Baywatch' star David Hasselhoff's first hip- hop album. That's the second thing I'm looking forward to after Fidel Castro looking to 140 is David Hasselhoff's hip-hop album.

O'BRIEN: Hassel the Hoff.

CAFFERTY: "It's retarded. I'm 17 years old. My mother would never let me," actress Lindsay Lohan on rumors that she has had breast-enhancement surgery.

O'BRIEN: That's nice to hear. There's been a lot of rumors about that young lady. I like to hear a 17-year-old say, my mother wouldn't let me.

CAFFERTY: That doesn't mean she wouldn't get it done. That just means she said her mother wouldn't let her. Not all 17-year-olds do everything their mother says.

HEMMER: Four daughters.

CAFFERTY: Been there, experienced much of that. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, thanks.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: In a moment here, a troubling new report about just how many al Qaeda operatives may be working around the world. Back in a moment with that story, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired May 26, 2004 - 08:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody. Just about half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING. Lots of confusion today about just what Iraqi sovereignty will mean for coalition troops stationed in that country. The United States, Britain, Iraqi officials, the U.N., all are weighing in.
Barbara Starr is going to help us sort it out this morning and give us an answer on that.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Also former U.S. ally Iraqi Governing Council member Ahmed Chalabi now under investigation for possibly giving U.S. secrets to Iran. In a moment, we'll talk to a former CIA officer who worked closely with Chalabi back in the mid-'90s. He said he witnessed some interaction there. We'll get to the heart of it in a moment.

O'BRIEN: British Prime Minister tony blair is seeking to clarify some confusion about the role of foreign troops in Iraq after the transfer of power there. Some comments by Mr. Blair yesterday pointed toward a perceived rift between London and the Bush administration. Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us this morning with more.

Hey, Barbara, good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.

Well, even with Tony Blair's latest statements seeking to clarify his position, there are still an awful lot of questions about who will be in charge of U.S. and coalition troops after June 30th.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): When Iraq takes control of its government five week from now, what happens if the U.S. orders a military operation against insurgents and the Iraqis oppose it. From Tony Blair in London to Colin Powell in Washington to United Nations headquarters in New York, there is confusion. In London, Prime Minister Blair.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TONY BLAIR, PRIME MINISTER OF LONDON: If there's a political decision as to whether you go into a place like Fallujah in a particular way, that has to be done with the consent of the Iraqi government, and the final political control remains with the Iraqi government. That's what the transfer of sovereignty means. But in Washington, Secretary of State Powell said if U.S. forces tried to accomplish their mission, find themselves at odds with Iraqi military units...

COLIN POWELL, SECY. OF STATE: The U.S. forces remain under U.S. command, and will do what is necessary to protect themselves.

STARR: At the United Nations, all of this is to be sorted out. A new proposed U.S./British resolution may add to the uncertainty. The proposed resolution has no definite timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. forces, only a call for a review after one year.

And an exchange of letters still must be worked out, detailing Iraqi military cooperation with the coalition. At the Pentagon, plans continue for sending troops to Iraq for at least two years, until Iraq can assure its security.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: Now Tony Blair says that what he means to say, of course, is that coalition troops will be under coalition command. But still, a great deal of confusion. Here's just one example: President Bush has not issued an exit date for U.S. and coalition troops out of Iraq, but the new Iraqi interim defense minister said yesterday he believes foreign troops will be out of his country within a matter of months -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon. Barbara, thanks -- Bill.

HEMMER: U.N. officials in Iraq are getting closer to naming those who will fill the top four government positions after the transfer of power at the end of June. Last week, Iraqi forces and U.S. troops raided the offices of one Iraqi, Ahmed Chalabi, who was once thought to be a favorite for a top position. There are allegations that a member of Chalabi's staff passed U.S. secrets to Iran.

Robert Behr is the author of "Sleeping with the Devil: How Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude." He's also a former CIA officer, worked directly with Chalabi back in 1995.

Bob, good morning. And welcome back here on AMERICAN MORNING. Lay the foundation for us. You say he's at the center of the storm that caused the U.S. to go to war. A bit of a background now. Why do you allege that?

ROBERT BEHR, FMR. CIA OFFICER: Well, for a start, he was providing information to the CIA for many years through the early '90s. It was closely filtered by the CIA, and most of it wasn't worth even passing on. And what happened in 1995 and '96, he cut his connections with the CIA. It was a mutual decision. He then appealed to political Washington, Congress, certain institutes in Washington and the Pentagon, bypassing this filter, and a lot of this information found its way eventually into assessments. That's where it went wrong. He provided defectors to the DIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency. He provided a lot of the background reporting to the press, "The New York Times," "Washington Post." This whole drumbeat for war, he was behind it. Now he's saying he just provided defectors, and it was up to us to filter it. Those filters were gone.

HEMMER: Take it to the next step then. How did he manipulate, as you say, manipulate the U.S. media? In what way?

BEHR: Well, what would happen is he'd give a report to the Defense Department and then he'd give it to one of the major newspapers who would call the Defense Department to confirm the information so it was what we call circular reporting. There wasn't any independent reporting.

You know, the weapon labs, these mobile weapon labs, he was behind this apparently. He was...

HEMMER: If I could, Bob, back in 1995, what did you witness with him and his connections with Iran?

BEHR: You know, frankly, Chalabi was very honest about his connections with Iran. He said, look, Iran is crucial to the future of Iraq. I have to deal with the Iranians. I are to deal with the government. I have to deal with the intelligence services. At one point, when I was in Iraq in March 1995, he tried to introduce me to two Iranian intelligence officers. Of course I had to refuse. No back channels to Iran. But he was very clear about his relations, and he was very clear that once Saddam fell, he would have to deal with Tehran.

Now what happened apparently now is he went a little too far, or his aides did.

HEMMER: Did the U.S. ignore his connections? Did they consider his ties with Tehran, and if so, how did they view that?

BEHR: I don't know what got into this current administration. But in the early '90s, we were quite aware that people around Chalabi, his chief of intelligence, were dealing with Iran as agents. They were fulfilling missions for the Iranian Intelligence Service. The cia certainly was aware of this, and this is one of the reasons the CIA cut its relations with chalabi.

HEMMER: Look into the crystal ball for us. I don't know if it's through the month of June, or past that point, but Lakthar Brahimi, the U.N. envoy apparently is at odds with Ahmad Chalabi, as a lot of people we find this days well.

If that's the case, what is his future in a government there in Iraq?

BEHR: It's going to depend on the Iranians. Curretnly, the Iranians are supporting him in their press. They seem to get along with him well enough, and I think what Chalabi is counting on, is the United States leaving soner rather than later, and that he's got to deal with Tehran as somebody who's loyal and frank with them, and I think that's what we're seeing is the shift of influence from Washington to Tehran.

HEMMER: It is an interesting subplot, nonetheless, and we'll continue to track it.

Thanks you, Robert Baer there in D.C. Good to talk to you, Bob. Thanks.

BEHR: Thanks, Bill.

O'BRIEN: Still to come on AMERICAN MORNING, intelligence about a major terrorist attack on U.S. soil this summer. We talk to the homeland security director this morning. We'll hear from him in just a moment.

HEMMER: Also today, one more use for Aspirin preventing cancer, but don't start taking one a day just yet, we are told. We'll explain it, let you know what we find out, in a moment, on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Dr. Sanjay Gupta is off today.

But in medical news this morning, we know that Aspirin helps to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Well, now researchers have added another deadly disease to the list: breast cancer. A Columbia University study found that women who took Aspirin at least once a week lowered their risk of breast cancer by 20 percent. Women who use Aspirin seven or more times a week had a 28 percent lower risk.

Mary Beth Terry is an epidemiologist at Columbia Marman School of Public Health, led the study. She joins us this morning.

Nice to have you. Thanks for talking to us about this.

MARY BETH TERRY, MARMAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, EPIDEMIOLOGIST: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Give us a sense of what investigators took from this study, that there's this clear link between Aspirin and breast cancer, but are there specifics that are answered, like how much Aspirin you should be taking?

TERRY: Sure. Our study is actually just one of about a dozen studies now suggesting an association between Aspirin and breast cancer.

What our study adds to the literature that's growing now suggesting a link is that we specifically looked among those women who had hormone receptive positive breast cancer, and we saw a stronger association against those women.

O'BRIEN: When you say hormone receptive positive breast cancer, that's a specific kind of breast cancer. What percentage of the population that has breast cancer has that kind of breast cancer?

TERRY: Right, actually, the majority. In fact, about two-thirds of women have hormone receptive positive cancer.

O'BRIEN: So it's a huge find then.

TERRY: Exactly, and you see it more among postmenopausal women in particular.

O'BRIEN: Why do researchers think there's this link? I mean, why does Aspirin have this interaction, apparently at least it seems, with women's hormones?

TERRY: Well, there's some laboratory data, actually a lot of laboratory data over the past decade has been suggesting that Aspirin use might work by preventing estrogen production. So that's exciting because there might be -- this is the first human study to look at this biological mechanism.

O'BRIEN: So is the takeaway from this study every woman out there, especially postmenopausal women, should be taking at least an aspirin a day?

TERRY: No, it's still too early to advise that. In fact, there's actually even stronger data that Aspirin may be protective against colorectal cancer. But doctors are still not advising that. We're one step closer, which is very exciting, but I think we'd like to see a replication of our results, and some more laboratory data, and in particular, we need to know more about dose of Aspirin that's appropriate, and also timing.

O'BRIEN: Were certain doses used, or was it sort of just women who were taking Aspirin were polled?

TERRY: We did a study in humans, and we asked them to recall their Aspirin use, and we asked them to recall that by tablets per week. So we didn't have exact dosage.

O'BRIEN: So then, what is the -- as you well know, all women look at this medical information, and they say, OK, so what do I do now? Aspirin? No Aspirin? Do I talk to my doctor. What's the best advice you give women?

TERRY: Right. I think right now, again, it's too early for breast cancer prevention, though among women are currently taking Aspirin for heart disease prevention, or arthritis or other indications, they might have this additional benefit. But because Aspirin, as you know, has a number of side effects, it's not something that should be universally used, and a woman should discuss it with her doctor and consider her whole health profile before taking it.

O'BRIEN: Ulcers, stress, things like that.

Mary Beth Terry, epidemiologist over at Columbia, nice to have you. Thanks for coming in to talk about your study, appreciate it.

TERRY: Great. Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, feel like your office space is shrinking? Well, you know what, you might be right. That story is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Developing news. Straightaway to Heidi Collins for a look at that and other news today.

Heidi, good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Bill. And good morning to you, everyone.

This just in to CNN now: We are getting word of at least two explosions in Karachi, Pakistan. The police said the blast went off near the residence of the American consul general. We know of at least seven people being wounded, so of course we will keep our eye on this story for you.

There is credible information of potential terror attacks in the U.S. in the next few months. But homeland security secretary Tom Ridge says there are no plans to raise the nation's terror threat level.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECY.: There is absolutely nothing specific enough or that rises to the level where we would presently, today, as we speak, make a recommendation to the president to raise the threat level.

What I think it's important for America to know is we don't need to raise the threat level in order to continue to work every day to improve security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The information is said to be highly credible, but not specific. Attorney General John Ashcroft and FBI director Robert Mueller will hold a press conference at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time today. They will discuss an intensive plan to prevent attacks.

A nuclear scientist and Shiite Muslim is the leading candidate to be prime minister of Iraqi's interim government. His name is Hussain Al Shahristani (ph). A final decision has not yet been made, but he is said to be the favorite of U.N. envoy Lakthar Brahimi. Brahimi is working with Iraqis to choose the top interim officials.

The prices for name brand medicines, particularly used by seniors, is going up much faster than inflation. According to the American Association of Retired People and Families, drug prices rose more than three times the rate of overall inflation last year. The findings were part of two independent studies done by the watchdog groups. Generic drugs were not included in the study.

And apparently, eight is not enough for a family in Arkansas. Try 15. Yes, Jackson Levi Dugar was born at 10:52 a.m. on Sunday, at 7 pounds, 8 ounces. Mom is doing fine, according to her husband. And the rest of the brood all have names that begin with 'J' as well. Had to get creative there.

HEMMER: Fifteen?

O'BRIEN: How cute. I wonder if that's 15 kid, or 13 kids, two parents.

HEMMER: What have you guys done lately?

O'BRIEN: I know. I've got to catch up.

HEMMER: Not much.

O'BRIEN: I'm making my contribution. What about the rest of you? That's a lot of kids.

HEMMER: Thank you, Heidi.

Office space apparently shrinking. One company's president may have taken off with millions. Andy's "Minding Your Business," has the answer to all this and more.

Good morning, Drew.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE": The office space situation, something a lot of us suspect intuitively. Now a story in "The New York Times" laying it out. Yes, office space is shrinking in this country. New studies, new work showing that all across the board here.

Let's check this out: General clerical space down 10 percent. Professional space down 14 percent. And, you know, they have this little anecdote. They talk about Pricewaterhousecoopers, the big accounting and consulting firm. They have a million square feet, 3,500 employees. They're now moving into an office space of 800,000 square feet, 200,000 square feet less, the same amount of people. They are not downsizing. They are just squeezing us and squeezing us and squeezing.

HEMMER: What's up with this company? The president what, sent an e-mail or made a phone call and said, I've taken millions?

SERWER: This is self-tattletailing. I mean, remember we had the bonehead business move of the month. I think I have to do the bonehead business move of the week, or maybe day. They are coming fast and furious.

OK, this is a company called Toda America, which is a subsidiary of a Japanese company. It's a construction firm in Schaumburg, Illinois. Apparently, the president, a gentleman named Hasashi Shimizu (ph), had a falling out with his boss back in Tokyo. So he sent a little e-mail saying, ha, ha ha, I'm leaving, and I took $4.6 million, ha ha ha.

HEMMER: They fired him? SERWER: Well, it's not hard to track someone like that down, some rocket scientist like that. And you know where they found him?

HEMMER: South Beach?

SERWER: Las Vegas, Nevada. They found him in Vegas. They busted him in the Rio Suites Hotels down there, a casino.

O'BRIEN: He should have just gone to Rio, not the Rio Suites Hotel.

SERWER: Yes, South America, not Las Vegas.

O'BRIEN: And then send the e-mail.

SERWER: Right, you know, he says, I know what I've done is a crime in the e-mail.

O'BRIEN: Oh, man. What's his lawyer going do?

SERWER: He's going to plead insanity.

O'BRIEN: Of course.

SERWER: Temporary gambling insanity.

O'BRIEN: It might work.

HEMMER: The markets were booming yesterday, by the way, triple- digit gains for the Dow 30.

SERWER: Yes, and I think a lot of people are suggesting stocks have been oversold. You know, we've been down day after day, week after week. And what happened here is we really picked up a little bit the approximate cause. Oil prices slipping a little bit, not too much. This morning, though, futures are down. The report about possible terrorism weighing heavily on Wall Street. Also there's some economic news. So it was a little soft this morning, so we'll be tracking that for you.

HEMMER: Below 41 bucks a barrel, huh? That's a bargain.

SERWER: Yes, that's a good deal.

HEMMER: Come and get it.

O'BRIEN: All right, Andy. Thanks very much.

SERWER: You're welcome.

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, in our next hour, are U.S. forces getting closer to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada Al Sadr? Word of a key arrest today.

Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Thank you. You doing the blocking of the side shot.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Trying to help your profile.

O'BRIEN: I totally appreciate it. I owe you $10 each and every day.

Time to check in with Jack and "The Cafferty File."

Hello.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: How're you doing.

Wednesday, Things people said over the last week that got our attention, starting with this: "I am not exaggerating." This is Fidel Castro's doctor, reporting that the Cuban president, who is now 77, could live to be 140 years old. Now there's a little something to look forward to.

"Too much information. Whatever happened to earth tones?" Democratic strategist Donna Brazile on the see-thru dress worn by Senator Kerry's daughter, Alexandra, at the Cannes Film Festival. I love Donna Brazile.

"Basically, I think they're making a wrong judgment here, although I would have loved to have that judgment made in my case in 1976," tennis player Renee Richards, who used to be Richard Raskin (ph), who played on the women's tennis tour in the 1970s after having himself altered. He was talking about the Olympic Committee's decision to let transsexuals compete in the Olympic Games, but no steroids.

"He's going to come out as 'Hassel the Hoff.' I promise you, the Hoff will surprise people with his rap skills and humor," rapper Ice-T talking about producing 'Baywatch' star David Hasselhoff's first hip- hop album. That's the second thing I'm looking forward to after Fidel Castro looking to 140 is David Hasselhoff's hip-hop album.

O'BRIEN: Hassel the Hoff.

CAFFERTY: "It's retarded. I'm 17 years old. My mother would never let me," actress Lindsay Lohan on rumors that she has had breast-enhancement surgery.

O'BRIEN: That's nice to hear. There's been a lot of rumors about that young lady. I like to hear a 17-year-old say, my mother wouldn't let me.

CAFFERTY: That doesn't mean she wouldn't get it done. That just means she said her mother wouldn't let her. Not all 17-year-olds do everything their mother says.

HEMMER: Four daughters.

CAFFERTY: Been there, experienced much of that. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, thanks.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: In a moment here, a troubling new report about just how many al Qaeda operatives may be working around the world. Back in a moment with that story, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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