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CNN Live At Daybreak
Remembering Reagan: Paying Tribute; Today's Talker; Transit of Venus
Aired June 08, 2004 - 06:30 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.
(WEATHER BREAK)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Thousands of people are remembering Ronald Reagan this morning. Crowds have been filing into the Reagan Library all night long in an outpouring of emotion and respect for the former president.
For more, let's head out to the Reagan Library in Simi Valley and CNN's Chris Lawrence.
Good morning -- Chris.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
This is really the last chance for many people here on the West Coast to say their goodbyes to President Reagan. The shuttle buses continue to bring people in by the thousands.
Now, let's take you for a look inside as we give you another live look as people begin to walk by the casket, some 17,000 yesterday, some 60,000 expected by the end of the night tonight. Some of the people here tell us they waited more than six hours to pay their respects.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE (voice over): The death of President Ronald Reagan has inspired thousands of strangers to offer their sympathy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is the first president I ever voted for, and he's the best president we've ever had.
LAWRENCE: For some, Ronald Reagan was controversial in life, but in death, seems to be inspiring a unity he never achieved as president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's hard to dislike -- you know, Republicans and Democrats alike, it's hard to dislike somebody that's so personable as Mr. Reagan was.
LAWRENCE: On Monday, his body was carried into the library and a military Honor Guard posted alongside the casket. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife were among those paying tribute.
Security concerns prevent parking at the library, so everyone is being bussed in from a nearby college. And since they can't take them to the casket, people are leaving mementos on the street outside -- flags, flowers and jars of his favorite jelly beans.
But for all of the talk of the man as president and politician, it's still a family that's lost a husband and father. With one last touch on her husband's flag-draped coffin, Nancy Reagan whispered to him and said goodbye to the only partners she's known for 52 years of marriage.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
And the Reagans will have the rest of the day to mourn privately before a very busy Wednesday takes them to Washington, D.C. and a state funeral in the nation's capital -- Carol.
COSTELLO: CNN's Chris Lawrence reporting live from Simi Valley, California, today.
We've been asking you this question all morning long: Should Ronald Reagan be put on the $10 bill, replacing Alexander Hamilton? There is a push to do that. Daybreak@CNN.com.
We wanted to read some of your responses. A lot of you are not for replacing Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right.
COSTELLO: In fact, this is from Denver from Courtney (ph). She says: "If we have to replace the space shuttle Columbia, why don't we name it after the former president, President Reagan?"
MYERS: And then from Denny (ph): "A great idea for a truly great American."
"This would be an honorable way to update with our new 21st century money." That's from Juliet (ph) in Tennessee.
And then another one here says: "Not only a role model, but also an ethical person and a humanitarian," from Jeremy in Dallas.
COSTELLO: This is from Tom from Woodbridge, Virginia. He says: "The legacy people" -- that's the people behind the push to put Reagan on the $10 bill. He says: "The legacy people are going too far. If they have their way, the whole country will eventually be called the United States of Reagan."
MYERS: Yes, and the Reagan monument for the Washington Monument and so on.
COSTELLO: Yes. Thanks for your -- oh, go ahead. One more.
MYERS: Ken says: "Let's not forget double-digit inflation, deficit-spending, Iran-Contra, trickle-down economics. One airport is enough."
COSTELLO: All right, thank you for your e-mails this morning.
MYERS: Thanks, Ken. COSTELLO: Daybreak@CNN.com.
Still to come on DAYBREAK -- you know, we're going to the Gallup Poll now.
MYERS: Are we?
COSTELLO: Yes, we are.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: Because they have brand new numbers and new numbers concerning Ronald Reagan. So, let's join Frank Newport live in Princeton, New Jersey.
Frank, show us the numbers you have for us this morning.
FRANK NEWPORT, GALLUP POLL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Good morning, Carol.
In fact, we have new and old numbers. The interesting point about the public's perception of Reagan, he's become very revered now over the last 15 years. While he was in office, his approval ratings were actually just about average.
Here's a question we asked over this last weekend. We happened to be in the field asking this when we heard of Reagan's death. This was Thursday through Sunday. How will he go down in history? This is high. These are strong numbers. Fifteen percent say he will be an outstanding president. And this is the key: 40 percent of Americans say he will be above average. That's well above half of Americans giving him these top two categories.
Putting this in perspective, that's the most positive of these ratings for any president that we just tested over the weekend since John F. Kennedy. The only other one that did higher was Franklin Roosevelt.
So, looking back, Americans are very positive on Reagan.
But here's what I mentioned. This is the average job approval rating for Reagan while he was in office: 53 percent, that second from left there. That is slightly below average for all U.S. presidents contemporaneously while they were in office. It was higher than Carter's average on the left. But look at the right: George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton both had higher average ratings while in office than did Ronald Reagan. He had some real problems with the economy, and later in his term with Iran-Contra -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Interesting. OK. So, let's check out some modern history and talk about President Bush's job approval rating.
NEWPORT: Well, he is doing OK, not much changed: 49 percent job approval rating for Bush overall. It was 47 a couple of weeks ago in our last CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup Poll. Not much changed there, still below 50 percent. Here is some breakouts on approval ratings for Bush right now as the weekend went through: World affairs, 44 percent, key this week, he's at that G-8 Summit; Iraq, low, 41; economy, low, 41; still Bush's strength, terrorism, 56 percent job approval on handling that.
How is he stacking up against John Kerry? Kerry has actually moved to a slight lead now, Carol.
These things move up and down from week to week, but in our last poll among likely voters, Kerry has moved up to a slight lead. But that's happened before. I still think the race is very close for president.
COSTELLO: Well, with the margin of error, it's pretty much dead even, isn't it?
NEWPORT: That's right. Kerry has a slight lead now, a little more than the margin of error, but these things basically are very close at this point. No one of the two major candidates has moved out demonstrably ahead of the other, at least as of the weekend.
COSTELLO: OK. So, let's run the gamut now and talk about gas prices and how Americans are coping.
NEWPORT: Fascinating data to hear. Guess what? We gave Americans a list of things that said, Which of these have you done because of the high price of gas? This isn't a great shock. I'm sure you and I are doing this: shopping around for the cheapest gas station.
COSTELLO: Chad Myers.
NEWPORT: I mean, I'll drive -- I'll spend five gallons of gas, I think, to save 10 cents per gallon. It's kind of stupid in a way, but I do it. And look at this: 69 percent of Americans do as well.
You see the other list here. Some of the major things economists are worried about, like cutting back on other expenses or significantly altering vacation plans, there's actually a fairly low percent of American doing those so far as a result of the high price of gas.
COSTELLO: Frank Newport, thanks for the interesting numbers this morning.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, star gazers have a rare reason to get out their telescopes. In parts of this country and the world this morning, take a look at that little black dot there. Venus. We'll take a peek at the planet on the move.
When we come back, remembering a president from both sides of the political spectrum.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: It wasn't hard to come up with our hot talker of the morning. It's Ronald Reagan, of course, and this idea to put his likeness on the $10 bill.
Joining us for our usual Tuesday debate, conservative Libertarian talk master Neal Boortz and liberal talk master Mike Malloy.
Welcome, gentlemen.
Mike, should we start with you? Should President Reagan be on the $10 bill?
MIKE MALLOY, LIBERAL TALK SHOW HOST: Oh, boy, I hate to be the skunk at the picnic here, Carol, but I -- no. Just a quick answer: no. You asked a simple question. The simple answer: no.
COSTELLO: Neal?
NEAL BOORTZ, CONSERVATIVE TALK SHOW HOST: No.
COSTELLO: Really?
BOORTZ: No, we name enough things after politicians. Here in Atlanta, you can't drive on a street that's not named after a politician. So, he's got an airport. I think that that's great. It's a testament. And let's stick with tradition on the $10 bill.
COSTELLO: This period of mourning, Mike, it's a long period of mourning. Is it too much?
MALLOY: I -- well, I don't know. You know, John Donne, the English poet, "For Whom the Bell Tolls," I don't celebrate anybody's death, Carol.
But I think what is happening here, we are losing sight -- according to the polls you just had up there, we're losing sight of what the Reagan presidency was all about. It was the first Republican president who consciously made an effort to destroy the social contract that's held this country together. This is a president who got us into Lebanon, and when American soldiers were blown to pieces, two days later he invaded Grenada.
There's an awful lot here. This is a man who celebrated the apartheid government in South Africa. I'm sorry. I -- again, I feel badly for Nancy Reagan. I hope she's successful in her attempts with stem cell research. But Ronald Reagan is not a great president -- was not a great president.
COSTELLO: Neal? Neal, respond.
BOORTZ: Well, I think that a lot of presidential historians agree, certainly among the top 10, top 8 was the latest list I saw. I'm going to agree with Mike on this stem cell research. It's time to start getting the religiosity out of that and get on with it.
MALLOY: Yes.
BOORTZ: My father also died of Alzheimer's disease. But this is the first president that said, hey, we're not just going to contain communism; we're going to defeat it. And we did. And we now see a similar move to defeat Islamic terrorism and bring democracy to the Middle East.
MALLOY: Well...
BOORTZ: It's an unpopular -- it's an unpopular stance with some people. I understand. But at least Ronald Reagan had the courage to say, we're going on the offensive. And thank goodness he did.
MALLOY: Well...
COSTELLO: Well, Neal, was he one of our greatest presidents?
BOORTZ: I think so. I really do, because he ushered in, and, of course, he had a pretty good playing field after -- it was messed up so thoroughly by Jimmy Carter. But he ushered in a 17-year boom in our economy, interrupted by one small glitch. That is unprecedented in the history of this country.
COSTELLO: Mike, what do you suppose touches people about Ronald Reagan?
MALLOY: I think the same thing that touches people about Walt Disney. He was great on camera. He was a very personable man. But when Neal talks about, and a lot of people on the right talk about Reagan's influence on stopping communism, you're leaving out the solidarity movement in Poland. You're leaving out Baklava Hovel (ph). You're leaving out Gorbachev.
History conspired to bring an end to communism, the Soviet communism. Ronald Reagan was a cheerleader for it, but -- and he was willing to spend an awful lot of money to do it. But Ronald Reagan no more brought down communism than my good friend, Neal Boortz, did.
BOORTZ: Well, I'm not -- and I did my part. I'm not leaving out Gorbachev. In fact, I'm quoting Gorbachev. It was Gorbachev himself that said that it was Ronald Reagan's determination to proceed with the strategic defense initiative and other projects that made basically the Soviet Union throw in the towel. We cannot compete. It is going to crush our economy. We will erupt into revolution in this country if we try to fight this American and his spending plans on defense. No, I'm not leaving Gorbachev out.
MALLOY: Well, I...
BOORTZ: Gorbachev, unlike Mike, recognized the role that Ronald Reagan played in the demise of communism.
MALLOY: Yes, I think Gorbachev wants to continue his teaching jobs in this country. Gorbachev -- I read the same article, Neal, the op-ed piece in "The New York Times." And I can appreciate what Gorbachev said. But when you leave out the pope, the Polish pope, don't forget the solidarity movement. The end of communism, as far as I'm concerned, began with the Polish solidarity movement, and the Polish pope was strongly behind that.
So, Ronald Reagan -- you know, just like his liberating the Nazi death camps, which never happened, Ronald Reagan's role in ending in communism was minimal, at best. Sorry, but that's...
BOORTZ: Well...
MALLOY: I think history will prove that.
BOORTZ: I'm not going to minimize the pope's role or solidarity, but I am going to at least give credit to Ronald Reagan for the immense role that he played in that scenario.
COSTELLO: Neal Boortz, Mike Malloy, thanks for the debate this morning.
BOORTZ: Our pleasure.
MALLOY: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: We appreciate it.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:45 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
Security is extremely tight as the G-8 Summit gets under way at a resort on Georgia's coast. President Bush is hosting the meeting and hopes to mend some fences with countries critical of the Iraq war.
Suicide car bombs explode in two Iraqi cities, leaving at least 11 people dead. In Baquba (ph), one U.S. soldier and one Iraqi civilian were killed. In Mosul, at least nine Iraqi civilians killed.
In money news, how do you say "Home Depot" in Chinese? The company is looking at the Asian market and has named an executive to head Home Depot Asia. The home-improvement store is already in Canada and Mexico.
In sports, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Tommy Maddox has agreed to a one-year contract extension through 2007. That means he'll be with the team after first-round draft pick Ben Rothlesberg (ph) succeeds him.
In culture, has it Magic's way. Former NBA star Magic Johnson will be the franchise owner of 30 Burger King restaurants in African- American communities, Atlanta, Dallas, Miami and Birmingham, Alabama.
(WEATHER BREAK)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, planets on the move. OK. Technically that happens every day, I know. But how often do we get to see one in motion? Our resident expert on all things galactic, Miles O'Brien (UNINTELLIGIBLE) right now. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: That is something that has been seen only six times since the telescope was invented way back in the year 1600. It's called the transit of Venus. Translation: Venus will pass between the Earth and the sun, creating a kind of mini-eclipse.
Our space correspondent, Miles O'Brien, was so excited about this...
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Wait a minute. What happened to expert...
COSTELLO: ... he didn't sleep all night.
O'BRIEN: What happened to expert on things galactic?
COSTELLO: Oh, all things galactic?
O'BRIEN: I was going to put that on my business card. You know, mine. I'm writing that down, as a matter of fact, right now. Expert on all things galactic.
COSTELLO: Expert on all things galactic.
O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: I think that's a cool title.
O'BRIEN: Yes, so says Carol Costello.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
O'BRIEN: I'm (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
Anyway, yes, things galactic, there's a little black spot on the sun today.
COSTELLO: Oh, you stole that line.
O'BRIEN: It's the same old thing as 1882. It doesn't rhyme. Lose the banner, please, Michael. There you go. There's Venus. There's Venus. Take a look at it right down there, and that is the little black spot that we're talking about. We're at the tail end of this transit of Venus across the sun, kind of a celestial line dance, if you will.
COSTELLO: Where is this?
O'BRIEN: Where is what?
COSTELLO: Where is this picture being taken?
O'BRIEN: Oh, this is from Greenwich, England. All right, just to orient you -- I probably got a little ahead of myself -- this big orb here is the sun. This is Venus there, that little thing right there. That gives you a little sense of perspective, doesn't it? OK? COSTELLO: It certainly does.
O'BRIEN: Let's look at a close-up. We have a close-up, as a matter of fact. The telescope actually zoomed in a while ago. It's on tape. And we'll show you a little bit more of what this disk looks like. There, that's a better shot. Now you've got an idea of what we're talking about here.
Now, in the day when they were trying to figure out about orbits of planets and the distance of the sun to the Earth, this was a great tool for them to figure out how to do that. By measuring the time it takes to get from there to there, they could learn all kinds of things about orbital mechanics.
Of course, we know all of that now, but there are some intriguing scientific possibilities in addition to the "gee whiz" factor. Another expert on things galactic is Rick Feinberg. He joins us now on the telephone from Florence. He's overlooking the Catsa (ph), not far from...
COSTELLO: Just like Galileo all those years ago.
O'BRIEN: Not far from where Galileo was under house arrest. You remember that little inquisition problem he had.
COSTELLO: That the Earth was round and -- yes, they got really mad at him.
O'BRIEN: He got out of it with Johnnie Cochran, as I recall correctly.
COSTELLO: Oh, gee!
O'BRIEN: But in any case, Rick Feinberg is with us.
Rick, just paint a picture for us, if you would.
RICK FEINBERG, EDITOR, "SKY AND TELESCOPE": All right, Miles. It's a beautiful day here in Florence, Italy. I'm just south of the River Arno, opposite the historic city center, high in the hills at Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory, which overlooks the city. The sun is almost directly overhead. It's just past local noon here. And we have had a beautiful blue sky all day long. I've been up since the early morning watching Venus move across the sun. And it has been just a wonderful day.
O'BRIEN: All right. Well, try to put this into words then, for somebody such as yourself as an editor of "Sky and Telescope," this is a big event, isn't it?
FEINBERG: It is. No one alive before today had seen one, because the last one happened 122 years ago. And amateur astronomers in particular have been very eagerly awaiting this event for many years, and I know that hundreds and hundreds of them have traveled around the world, as I have, to get into a position where we could see the whole thing from start to finish. And it's -- you know, visually, it's not all that spectacular. It's just a little black dot on the sun.
But the fact that it moves slowly and you can see the solar system in action, you know, Isaac Newton's clockwork of the solar system, you can see it in action. It makes the whole thing quite fascinating, and I feel very privileged to be here under a beautiful blue Tuscan sky observing this phenomenon.
O'BRIEN: Privileged indeed. I mentioned just a few moments ago that there is -- we were talking a little bit earlier about the potential science which is embedded in all of this. Why don't you explain that to people what that dot on the sun might do to help folks who are looking for, say, other planets in other solar systems?
FEINBERG: Well, it's a very interesting situation. Astronomers have discovered more than 100 planets around other stars, but they've done it by observing how the star affects the -- or, sorry. How the planet affects the star's life by tugging the star back and forth with its gravity. It's a very inefficient way to search for planets.
NASA and other space agencies are now looking at monitoring thousands of stars at a time and looking for little tiny changes in brightness exactly analogous to having a planet like Venus cross in front of the sun.
Today, the sun is one/one thousandth less bright than it was yesterday, because we have this little black thing in front of it. And astronomers will be able to measure similar changes in brightness around other stars and deduce the presence of planets. So, they're looking at this one today to make sure they can do these measurements with the required precision.
O'BRIEN: Rick Feinberg with "Sky and Telescope," who has the very rough duty as part of his job to be in Florence today.
FEINBERG: Yes, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
O'BRIEN: Somebody has got to do it. He's there with a group of people watching the transit of Venus.
OK, so you know the trivia questions, right? Where is the day longer than the year? The answer is Venus.
COSTELLO: Venus.
O'BRIEN: It takes 227 days for the planet to go around the sun, 234 days for it to...
COSTELLO: And the sun rises in the...
O'BRIEN: And the sun, if you were on Venus -- and you wouldn't want to be on Venus because it's about 850 degrees in the shade, there is no shade, of course, but 850 degrees -- the sun would rise in the west and set in the east, because it has a retrograde rotation.
COSTELLO: Interesting.
O'BRIEN: That means backwards.
COSTELLO: So, if you want to see it here in the United States, at 7:06 Eastern Time go outside in New York City...
O'BRIEN: Yes, quickly, yes.
COSTELLO: ... or around these parts and...
O'BRIEN: Northeastern United States you might get a glimpse just as the sun comes up. But, please, folks, I don't have them with me. Yes, I do.
COSTELLO: Wear your eye protection.
O'BRIEN: You've got to wear these things.
COSTELLO: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Don't look at the sun. You know, your mother was right when she told you about that, or reflected it on a piece of paper.
COSTELLO: Advice taken. We've got to toss it to a break because we have to announce the winner of the DAYBREAK coffee mug.
O'BRIEN: Please.
COSTELLO: We'll be back.
MYERS: The nameless face (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COSTELLO: They don't want their ages mentioned, but it is their birthday.
MYERS: We're almost out of time, so we have to do this real fast.
COSTELLO: OK.
MYERS: The winner of yesterday's mug from Oklahoma, from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, Buddy Brown. You win the DAYBREAK coffee mug that looks like this.
COSTELLO: Congrats.
MYERS: Now, on to today's questions. I have 20 seconds to read this, so here we go.
In what year will the next transit of Venus occur? That's the same thing we were looking at with Miles O'Brien. And, what was Ronald Reagan's approval rating when he was in office?
COSTELLO: Oh!
MYERS: Frank Newport gave you that a few minutes ago.
COSTELLO: Yes, tough questions this morning. MYERS: Daybreak@CNN.com.
COSTELLO: Daybreak@CNN.com. Thank you for joining us this morning. I'm Carol Costello along with Chad Myers.
MYERS: Out of time.
COSTELLO: "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.
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Aired June 8, 2004 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(WEATHER BREAK)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Thousands of people are remembering Ronald Reagan this morning. Crowds have been filing into the Reagan Library all night long in an outpouring of emotion and respect for the former president.
For more, let's head out to the Reagan Library in Simi Valley and CNN's Chris Lawrence.
Good morning -- Chris.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
This is really the last chance for many people here on the West Coast to say their goodbyes to President Reagan. The shuttle buses continue to bring people in by the thousands.
Now, let's take you for a look inside as we give you another live look as people begin to walk by the casket, some 17,000 yesterday, some 60,000 expected by the end of the night tonight. Some of the people here tell us they waited more than six hours to pay their respects.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE (voice over): The death of President Ronald Reagan has inspired thousands of strangers to offer their sympathy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is the first president I ever voted for, and he's the best president we've ever had.
LAWRENCE: For some, Ronald Reagan was controversial in life, but in death, seems to be inspiring a unity he never achieved as president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's hard to dislike -- you know, Republicans and Democrats alike, it's hard to dislike somebody that's so personable as Mr. Reagan was.
LAWRENCE: On Monday, his body was carried into the library and a military Honor Guard posted alongside the casket. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife were among those paying tribute.
Security concerns prevent parking at the library, so everyone is being bussed in from a nearby college. And since they can't take them to the casket, people are leaving mementos on the street outside -- flags, flowers and jars of his favorite jelly beans.
But for all of the talk of the man as president and politician, it's still a family that's lost a husband and father. With one last touch on her husband's flag-draped coffin, Nancy Reagan whispered to him and said goodbye to the only partners she's known for 52 years of marriage.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
And the Reagans will have the rest of the day to mourn privately before a very busy Wednesday takes them to Washington, D.C. and a state funeral in the nation's capital -- Carol.
COSTELLO: CNN's Chris Lawrence reporting live from Simi Valley, California, today.
We've been asking you this question all morning long: Should Ronald Reagan be put on the $10 bill, replacing Alexander Hamilton? There is a push to do that. Daybreak@CNN.com.
We wanted to read some of your responses. A lot of you are not for replacing Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right.
COSTELLO: In fact, this is from Denver from Courtney (ph). She says: "If we have to replace the space shuttle Columbia, why don't we name it after the former president, President Reagan?"
MYERS: And then from Denny (ph): "A great idea for a truly great American."
"This would be an honorable way to update with our new 21st century money." That's from Juliet (ph) in Tennessee.
And then another one here says: "Not only a role model, but also an ethical person and a humanitarian," from Jeremy in Dallas.
COSTELLO: This is from Tom from Woodbridge, Virginia. He says: "The legacy people" -- that's the people behind the push to put Reagan on the $10 bill. He says: "The legacy people are going too far. If they have their way, the whole country will eventually be called the United States of Reagan."
MYERS: Yes, and the Reagan monument for the Washington Monument and so on.
COSTELLO: Yes. Thanks for your -- oh, go ahead. One more.
MYERS: Ken says: "Let's not forget double-digit inflation, deficit-spending, Iran-Contra, trickle-down economics. One airport is enough."
COSTELLO: All right, thank you for your e-mails this morning.
MYERS: Thanks, Ken. COSTELLO: Daybreak@CNN.com.
Still to come on DAYBREAK -- you know, we're going to the Gallup Poll now.
MYERS: Are we?
COSTELLO: Yes, we are.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: Because they have brand new numbers and new numbers concerning Ronald Reagan. So, let's join Frank Newport live in Princeton, New Jersey.
Frank, show us the numbers you have for us this morning.
FRANK NEWPORT, GALLUP POLL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Good morning, Carol.
In fact, we have new and old numbers. The interesting point about the public's perception of Reagan, he's become very revered now over the last 15 years. While he was in office, his approval ratings were actually just about average.
Here's a question we asked over this last weekend. We happened to be in the field asking this when we heard of Reagan's death. This was Thursday through Sunday. How will he go down in history? This is high. These are strong numbers. Fifteen percent say he will be an outstanding president. And this is the key: 40 percent of Americans say he will be above average. That's well above half of Americans giving him these top two categories.
Putting this in perspective, that's the most positive of these ratings for any president that we just tested over the weekend since John F. Kennedy. The only other one that did higher was Franklin Roosevelt.
So, looking back, Americans are very positive on Reagan.
But here's what I mentioned. This is the average job approval rating for Reagan while he was in office: 53 percent, that second from left there. That is slightly below average for all U.S. presidents contemporaneously while they were in office. It was higher than Carter's average on the left. But look at the right: George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton both had higher average ratings while in office than did Ronald Reagan. He had some real problems with the economy, and later in his term with Iran-Contra -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Interesting. OK. So, let's check out some modern history and talk about President Bush's job approval rating.
NEWPORT: Well, he is doing OK, not much changed: 49 percent job approval rating for Bush overall. It was 47 a couple of weeks ago in our last CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup Poll. Not much changed there, still below 50 percent. Here is some breakouts on approval ratings for Bush right now as the weekend went through: World affairs, 44 percent, key this week, he's at that G-8 Summit; Iraq, low, 41; economy, low, 41; still Bush's strength, terrorism, 56 percent job approval on handling that.
How is he stacking up against John Kerry? Kerry has actually moved to a slight lead now, Carol.
These things move up and down from week to week, but in our last poll among likely voters, Kerry has moved up to a slight lead. But that's happened before. I still think the race is very close for president.
COSTELLO: Well, with the margin of error, it's pretty much dead even, isn't it?
NEWPORT: That's right. Kerry has a slight lead now, a little more than the margin of error, but these things basically are very close at this point. No one of the two major candidates has moved out demonstrably ahead of the other, at least as of the weekend.
COSTELLO: OK. So, let's run the gamut now and talk about gas prices and how Americans are coping.
NEWPORT: Fascinating data to hear. Guess what? We gave Americans a list of things that said, Which of these have you done because of the high price of gas? This isn't a great shock. I'm sure you and I are doing this: shopping around for the cheapest gas station.
COSTELLO: Chad Myers.
NEWPORT: I mean, I'll drive -- I'll spend five gallons of gas, I think, to save 10 cents per gallon. It's kind of stupid in a way, but I do it. And look at this: 69 percent of Americans do as well.
You see the other list here. Some of the major things economists are worried about, like cutting back on other expenses or significantly altering vacation plans, there's actually a fairly low percent of American doing those so far as a result of the high price of gas.
COSTELLO: Frank Newport, thanks for the interesting numbers this morning.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, star gazers have a rare reason to get out their telescopes. In parts of this country and the world this morning, take a look at that little black dot there. Venus. We'll take a peek at the planet on the move.
When we come back, remembering a president from both sides of the political spectrum.
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COSTELLO: It wasn't hard to come up with our hot talker of the morning. It's Ronald Reagan, of course, and this idea to put his likeness on the $10 bill.
Joining us for our usual Tuesday debate, conservative Libertarian talk master Neal Boortz and liberal talk master Mike Malloy.
Welcome, gentlemen.
Mike, should we start with you? Should President Reagan be on the $10 bill?
MIKE MALLOY, LIBERAL TALK SHOW HOST: Oh, boy, I hate to be the skunk at the picnic here, Carol, but I -- no. Just a quick answer: no. You asked a simple question. The simple answer: no.
COSTELLO: Neal?
NEAL BOORTZ, CONSERVATIVE TALK SHOW HOST: No.
COSTELLO: Really?
BOORTZ: No, we name enough things after politicians. Here in Atlanta, you can't drive on a street that's not named after a politician. So, he's got an airport. I think that that's great. It's a testament. And let's stick with tradition on the $10 bill.
COSTELLO: This period of mourning, Mike, it's a long period of mourning. Is it too much?
MALLOY: I -- well, I don't know. You know, John Donne, the English poet, "For Whom the Bell Tolls," I don't celebrate anybody's death, Carol.
But I think what is happening here, we are losing sight -- according to the polls you just had up there, we're losing sight of what the Reagan presidency was all about. It was the first Republican president who consciously made an effort to destroy the social contract that's held this country together. This is a president who got us into Lebanon, and when American soldiers were blown to pieces, two days later he invaded Grenada.
There's an awful lot here. This is a man who celebrated the apartheid government in South Africa. I'm sorry. I -- again, I feel badly for Nancy Reagan. I hope she's successful in her attempts with stem cell research. But Ronald Reagan is not a great president -- was not a great president.
COSTELLO: Neal? Neal, respond.
BOORTZ: Well, I think that a lot of presidential historians agree, certainly among the top 10, top 8 was the latest list I saw. I'm going to agree with Mike on this stem cell research. It's time to start getting the religiosity out of that and get on with it.
MALLOY: Yes.
BOORTZ: My father also died of Alzheimer's disease. But this is the first president that said, hey, we're not just going to contain communism; we're going to defeat it. And we did. And we now see a similar move to defeat Islamic terrorism and bring democracy to the Middle East.
MALLOY: Well...
BOORTZ: It's an unpopular -- it's an unpopular stance with some people. I understand. But at least Ronald Reagan had the courage to say, we're going on the offensive. And thank goodness he did.
MALLOY: Well...
COSTELLO: Well, Neal, was he one of our greatest presidents?
BOORTZ: I think so. I really do, because he ushered in, and, of course, he had a pretty good playing field after -- it was messed up so thoroughly by Jimmy Carter. But he ushered in a 17-year boom in our economy, interrupted by one small glitch. That is unprecedented in the history of this country.
COSTELLO: Mike, what do you suppose touches people about Ronald Reagan?
MALLOY: I think the same thing that touches people about Walt Disney. He was great on camera. He was a very personable man. But when Neal talks about, and a lot of people on the right talk about Reagan's influence on stopping communism, you're leaving out the solidarity movement in Poland. You're leaving out Baklava Hovel (ph). You're leaving out Gorbachev.
History conspired to bring an end to communism, the Soviet communism. Ronald Reagan was a cheerleader for it, but -- and he was willing to spend an awful lot of money to do it. But Ronald Reagan no more brought down communism than my good friend, Neal Boortz, did.
BOORTZ: Well, I'm not -- and I did my part. I'm not leaving out Gorbachev. In fact, I'm quoting Gorbachev. It was Gorbachev himself that said that it was Ronald Reagan's determination to proceed with the strategic defense initiative and other projects that made basically the Soviet Union throw in the towel. We cannot compete. It is going to crush our economy. We will erupt into revolution in this country if we try to fight this American and his spending plans on defense. No, I'm not leaving Gorbachev out.
MALLOY: Well, I...
BOORTZ: Gorbachev, unlike Mike, recognized the role that Ronald Reagan played in the demise of communism.
MALLOY: Yes, I think Gorbachev wants to continue his teaching jobs in this country. Gorbachev -- I read the same article, Neal, the op-ed piece in "The New York Times." And I can appreciate what Gorbachev said. But when you leave out the pope, the Polish pope, don't forget the solidarity movement. The end of communism, as far as I'm concerned, began with the Polish solidarity movement, and the Polish pope was strongly behind that.
So, Ronald Reagan -- you know, just like his liberating the Nazi death camps, which never happened, Ronald Reagan's role in ending in communism was minimal, at best. Sorry, but that's...
BOORTZ: Well...
MALLOY: I think history will prove that.
BOORTZ: I'm not going to minimize the pope's role or solidarity, but I am going to at least give credit to Ronald Reagan for the immense role that he played in that scenario.
COSTELLO: Neal Boortz, Mike Malloy, thanks for the debate this morning.
BOORTZ: Our pleasure.
MALLOY: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: We appreciate it.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:45 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
Security is extremely tight as the G-8 Summit gets under way at a resort on Georgia's coast. President Bush is hosting the meeting and hopes to mend some fences with countries critical of the Iraq war.
Suicide car bombs explode in two Iraqi cities, leaving at least 11 people dead. In Baquba (ph), one U.S. soldier and one Iraqi civilian were killed. In Mosul, at least nine Iraqi civilians killed.
In money news, how do you say "Home Depot" in Chinese? The company is looking at the Asian market and has named an executive to head Home Depot Asia. The home-improvement store is already in Canada and Mexico.
In sports, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Tommy Maddox has agreed to a one-year contract extension through 2007. That means he'll be with the team after first-round draft pick Ben Rothlesberg (ph) succeeds him.
In culture, has it Magic's way. Former NBA star Magic Johnson will be the franchise owner of 30 Burger King restaurants in African- American communities, Atlanta, Dallas, Miami and Birmingham, Alabama.
(WEATHER BREAK)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, planets on the move. OK. Technically that happens every day, I know. But how often do we get to see one in motion? Our resident expert on all things galactic, Miles O'Brien (UNINTELLIGIBLE) right now. We'll be right back.
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COSTELLO: That is something that has been seen only six times since the telescope was invented way back in the year 1600. It's called the transit of Venus. Translation: Venus will pass between the Earth and the sun, creating a kind of mini-eclipse.
Our space correspondent, Miles O'Brien, was so excited about this...
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: Wait a minute. What happened to expert...
COSTELLO: ... he didn't sleep all night.
O'BRIEN: What happened to expert on things galactic?
COSTELLO: Oh, all things galactic?
O'BRIEN: I was going to put that on my business card. You know, mine. I'm writing that down, as a matter of fact, right now. Expert on all things galactic.
COSTELLO: Expert on all things galactic.
O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: I think that's a cool title.
O'BRIEN: Yes, so says Carol Costello.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
O'BRIEN: I'm (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
Anyway, yes, things galactic, there's a little black spot on the sun today.
COSTELLO: Oh, you stole that line.
O'BRIEN: It's the same old thing as 1882. It doesn't rhyme. Lose the banner, please, Michael. There you go. There's Venus. There's Venus. Take a look at it right down there, and that is the little black spot that we're talking about. We're at the tail end of this transit of Venus across the sun, kind of a celestial line dance, if you will.
COSTELLO: Where is this?
O'BRIEN: Where is what?
COSTELLO: Where is this picture being taken?
O'BRIEN: Oh, this is from Greenwich, England. All right, just to orient you -- I probably got a little ahead of myself -- this big orb here is the sun. This is Venus there, that little thing right there. That gives you a little sense of perspective, doesn't it? OK? COSTELLO: It certainly does.
O'BRIEN: Let's look at a close-up. We have a close-up, as a matter of fact. The telescope actually zoomed in a while ago. It's on tape. And we'll show you a little bit more of what this disk looks like. There, that's a better shot. Now you've got an idea of what we're talking about here.
Now, in the day when they were trying to figure out about orbits of planets and the distance of the sun to the Earth, this was a great tool for them to figure out how to do that. By measuring the time it takes to get from there to there, they could learn all kinds of things about orbital mechanics.
Of course, we know all of that now, but there are some intriguing scientific possibilities in addition to the "gee whiz" factor. Another expert on things galactic is Rick Feinberg. He joins us now on the telephone from Florence. He's overlooking the Catsa (ph), not far from...
COSTELLO: Just like Galileo all those years ago.
O'BRIEN: Not far from where Galileo was under house arrest. You remember that little inquisition problem he had.
COSTELLO: That the Earth was round and -- yes, they got really mad at him.
O'BRIEN: He got out of it with Johnnie Cochran, as I recall correctly.
COSTELLO: Oh, gee!
O'BRIEN: But in any case, Rick Feinberg is with us.
Rick, just paint a picture for us, if you would.
RICK FEINBERG, EDITOR, "SKY AND TELESCOPE": All right, Miles. It's a beautiful day here in Florence, Italy. I'm just south of the River Arno, opposite the historic city center, high in the hills at Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory, which overlooks the city. The sun is almost directly overhead. It's just past local noon here. And we have had a beautiful blue sky all day long. I've been up since the early morning watching Venus move across the sun. And it has been just a wonderful day.
O'BRIEN: All right. Well, try to put this into words then, for somebody such as yourself as an editor of "Sky and Telescope," this is a big event, isn't it?
FEINBERG: It is. No one alive before today had seen one, because the last one happened 122 years ago. And amateur astronomers in particular have been very eagerly awaiting this event for many years, and I know that hundreds and hundreds of them have traveled around the world, as I have, to get into a position where we could see the whole thing from start to finish. And it's -- you know, visually, it's not all that spectacular. It's just a little black dot on the sun.
But the fact that it moves slowly and you can see the solar system in action, you know, Isaac Newton's clockwork of the solar system, you can see it in action. It makes the whole thing quite fascinating, and I feel very privileged to be here under a beautiful blue Tuscan sky observing this phenomenon.
O'BRIEN: Privileged indeed. I mentioned just a few moments ago that there is -- we were talking a little bit earlier about the potential science which is embedded in all of this. Why don't you explain that to people what that dot on the sun might do to help folks who are looking for, say, other planets in other solar systems?
FEINBERG: Well, it's a very interesting situation. Astronomers have discovered more than 100 planets around other stars, but they've done it by observing how the star affects the -- or, sorry. How the planet affects the star's life by tugging the star back and forth with its gravity. It's a very inefficient way to search for planets.
NASA and other space agencies are now looking at monitoring thousands of stars at a time and looking for little tiny changes in brightness exactly analogous to having a planet like Venus cross in front of the sun.
Today, the sun is one/one thousandth less bright than it was yesterday, because we have this little black thing in front of it. And astronomers will be able to measure similar changes in brightness around other stars and deduce the presence of planets. So, they're looking at this one today to make sure they can do these measurements with the required precision.
O'BRIEN: Rick Feinberg with "Sky and Telescope," who has the very rough duty as part of his job to be in Florence today.
FEINBERG: Yes, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.
O'BRIEN: Somebody has got to do it. He's there with a group of people watching the transit of Venus.
OK, so you know the trivia questions, right? Where is the day longer than the year? The answer is Venus.
COSTELLO: Venus.
O'BRIEN: It takes 227 days for the planet to go around the sun, 234 days for it to...
COSTELLO: And the sun rises in the...
O'BRIEN: And the sun, if you were on Venus -- and you wouldn't want to be on Venus because it's about 850 degrees in the shade, there is no shade, of course, but 850 degrees -- the sun would rise in the west and set in the east, because it has a retrograde rotation.
COSTELLO: Interesting.
O'BRIEN: That means backwards.
COSTELLO: So, if you want to see it here in the United States, at 7:06 Eastern Time go outside in New York City...
O'BRIEN: Yes, quickly, yes.
COSTELLO: ... or around these parts and...
O'BRIEN: Northeastern United States you might get a glimpse just as the sun comes up. But, please, folks, I don't have them with me. Yes, I do.
COSTELLO: Wear your eye protection.
O'BRIEN: You've got to wear these things.
COSTELLO: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Don't look at the sun. You know, your mother was right when she told you about that, or reflected it on a piece of paper.
COSTELLO: Advice taken. We've got to toss it to a break because we have to announce the winner of the DAYBREAK coffee mug.
O'BRIEN: Please.
COSTELLO: We'll be back.
MYERS: The nameless face (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COSTELLO: They don't want their ages mentioned, but it is their birthday.
MYERS: We're almost out of time, so we have to do this real fast.
COSTELLO: OK.
MYERS: The winner of yesterday's mug from Oklahoma, from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, Buddy Brown. You win the DAYBREAK coffee mug that looks like this.
COSTELLO: Congrats.
MYERS: Now, on to today's questions. I have 20 seconds to read this, so here we go.
In what year will the next transit of Venus occur? That's the same thing we were looking at with Miles O'Brien. And, what was Ronald Reagan's approval rating when he was in office?
COSTELLO: Oh!
MYERS: Frank Newport gave you that a few minutes ago.
COSTELLO: Yes, tough questions this morning. MYERS: Daybreak@CNN.com.
COSTELLO: Daybreak@CNN.com. Thank you for joining us this morning. I'm Carol Costello along with Chad Myers.
MYERS: Out of time.
COSTELLO: "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.
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