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American Morning

U.S. Transfers Saddam to Iraqi Custody; Courts Look to Protect Kids From Internet Porn; Cassini Spacecraft Set to Orbit Saturn

Aired June 30, 2004 - 7:00   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
No longer a prisoner of war today, Saddam Hussein is a prisoner of Iraq.

Six Flags Over Texas and under water. Floods that are anything but amusing there.

And the planet with 31 moons and seven sets of rings, now an amazing $3 billion spacecraft about to join them in orbit.

The anticipation over Saturn on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, welcome everybody.

Iraq is topping our headlines this morning. The U.S. has transferred Saddam Hussein to the Iraqi government for his eventual trial. That happened just a few hours ago.

We're going to talk this morning with the former coalition spokesman while he was in Iraq, Dan Senor.

We'll also hear from Barbara Starr at the Pentagon about a decision that's raising lots of eyebrows to activate Reserve members who were all but out of the military.

HEMMER: Also this hour, what can Congress and the courts do now to keep pornography away from kids surfing the Internet?

We'll talk to Jeff Toobin about the controversial Supreme Court decision. Also tell you what parents can still do to protect their children online. Jeff stops by in a moment.

O'BRIEN: Also this morning, a stunning revelation yesterday in the Scott Peterson trial. Testimony suggesting, perhaps, that Peterson had been considering ways of disposing of a body for many years. We'll find out about that just ahead.

HEMMER: That case just gets more and more interesting every day.

O'BRIEN: It does.

HEMMER: Jack, good morning. JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

Most popular search request on Google during the month of May was "American Idol." The second most popular search request on Google during the month of May was Nick Berg, the businessman who was beheaded by terrorists.

We'll take a look at the way the Internet is impacting the way traditional news media cover terrorism.

HEMMER: And a great topic, too.

Thank you, Jack.

CAFFERTY: No problem. I'm glad you liked it.

HEMMER: Indeed. Every day.

O'BRIEN: Let's go to Iraq now.

Deposed dictator Saddam Hussein now in Iraqi legal custody. The handover of Saddam and 11 other former Iraqi leaders made official just a short time ago.

Chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour live for us this morning in Baghdad with much more on this story.

Christiane, good morning.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

The process began last night when the Iraqi government presented formal papers to the Americans here requesting that Saddam's legal custody be transferred to them.

It was effective when the head of the special Iraqi tribunal with a judge went to the detention facility where Americans are guarding Saddam Hussein and informed him personally that he was no longer a prisoner of war protected under international conventions, but now he was under the Iraqi legal system. He was a suspected criminal under the Iraqi legal system.

They told that also to the 11 other members of his regime who have also been issued these arrest warrants.

We're told that Saddam looked quite stunned, didn't know what was going on, said he wanted to ask some questions but was told, no, that would happen at a formal court appearance, which is planned for tomorrow here in Iraq.

They will have an arraignment, we are told, and at that point they will be formally told the charges and then the process is that many months later they get formally indicted once the crime base and all the evidence has been gathered -- enough to present an indictment and only later after that will they come to trial -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Christiane Amanpour for us this morning. Christiane, thanks -- Bill.

HEMMER: More follow up on that story throughout the morning.

Also, about 6,000 former Army soldiers will soon find themselves back in the ranks, whether they want it or not. The Army today expected to formally announce the first large activation of what's called the Individual Ready Reserves since the first Gulf War.

Barbara Starr at the Pentagon with more details on this now.

Good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.

Well, with the military stretched so thin in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army indeed is now reaching deep into its pockets for new troops.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): In the 1991 Persian Gulf War, the Army called up thousands of people to duty who never expected to hear from Uncle Sam.

(on camera): How many of you don't want to be back here?

SOLDIERS: (SHOUTING)

STARR (voice-over): Now, 13 years later, because of the pressures of Iraq and a force stretched thin, it's happening again.

The Army shortly will begin notifying 5,600 members of the so- called Individual Ready Reserve that they are headed to Iraq or Afghanistan later this year for up to 18 months of duty, and it's not voluntary.

This reserve force headed for the combat zone is made up of people who had left the military but still owe the Army some part of their eight-year service obligation.

Everyone is watching closely.

MAJ. GEN. ROBERT NESTER (RET.), RESERVE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION: I think it's important to understand that they'll take some special care and feeling -- that they'll have some family support issues and things like that.

STARR: They will serve as truck drivers, engineers, military police and in other support jobs in National Guard and reserve units headed overseas.

Most of the troops are expected to come from California, Texas, New York and Delaware. The Army has used individuals from the Reserve in recent years to fill particular jobs, but this deployment of such a large number indicates a long-term problem, experts say, in finding more troops to fill the rotation requirement overseas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: Now Army officials say they know people taken from their civilian lives and sent to Iraq or Afghanistan are going to be very unhappy about it, but the Army says there simply is no alternative -- Bill.

HEMMER: Barbara, the status for this missing Marine has now changed. What is happening with his case to change that status?

STARR: Indeed, the Marine Corps yesterday made it official that Corporal Wassef Hassoun is now listed as captured now that this videotape you see here has been shown around the world. They do believe he is being held by these people, certainly against his will. They are looking for him.

However, the circumstances in which he became missing still are under investigation.

The working theory is that somewhere around June 19th or 20th he left his base in Iraq of his own free will. It is believed, the working theory is that this man was having some problems and was trying to make his way to his family in Lebanon when somehow he fell into the hands of insurgents. Now listed as captured -- Bill.

HEMMER: Barbara Starr, thanks for that at the Pentagon -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: A federal law designed to shield children from online pornography is once again on hold. It happened just before the Supreme Court adjourned its session yesterday.

A little bit earlier this morning I spoke with our senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin about the high court's decision and asked him if the decision was seen as a big win for the porn industry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: One of the problems with this law is that it didn't just regulate pornography; it had a much broader scope -- the word "anything harmful to minors," which could mean a lot of things.

But basically what the court said was this law required the content providers, the distributors of this harmful or pornographic material to put some sort of censor on their side of the technology.

And what the court said was we want the lower court, the district court, to look at whether it would work better if the recipients had to use filters, if the parents, if the computer owners, the users of the Internet had to use some sort of screen. Wouldn't that be a better solution that restricted less speech?

O'BRIEN: What other industries were concerned about this law?

TOOBIN: Arts, sex education. Any distributor of information that potentially is controversial was potentially under this law. That was another problem with the law.

O'BRIEN: So they think the law was just too broad?

TOOBIN: The law was too broad, and you know, this case is sort of like the Supreme Court's Groundhog Day. They have dealt with this issue three times in the last few years and they can never, you know, get together with Congress on it and now Congress -- now it's likely to be back for a fourth time.

O'BRIEN: So, then, what happened yesterday -- does that change anything that parents need to be doing to protect their children when it comes to specifically pornography?

TOOBIN: Well, in fact, what they -- what the justices said was parents really are in charge of this. Parents should do a better job than we can do, which is, you know, get a filter on your kids computer. That's a more effective technology.

Remember, another thing the court pointed out is that a lot of pornography comes from overseas Web sites, which this law couldn't do anything about. But if you put a filter on your kid's computer you can take care of the problem much better than the government can.

O'BRIEN: In addition to all of that, the technology is changing so fast, isn't it? That's going to have a big impact on this law.

TOOBIN: And that's another reason why the court had a problem with this. Remember, you know, when this law was passed the whole issue of wireless wasn't really on the map, because every Internet -- everybody's computer was attached to a phone.

Now, you know, you don't need a phone anymore. That's the kind of change that, you know, is very hard to deal with because it always takes time for these cases to work their way through the courts.

O'BRIEN: The Supreme Court also weighed in on another case. It involved a guy who was convicted of possessing child pornography and it ended up that he had to register as a sex offender.

TOOBIN: For the rest of his life. This was the California Supreme Court. The California Supreme Court said that even though he only pled guilty to a misdemeanor and was only sentenced to 60 days in prison, for the rest of his life he is going to have to register as a sex offender wherever he goes anywhere in the state and, you know, that does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment.

O'BRIEN: There are some people who have said that that was too much punishment, that it was unfair considering the scope of his crime. TOOBIN: In fact, the California Supreme Court 21 years ago had said that that was too much, and the court overruled their own precedent, said, you know, we used to think this was too strong.

But, you know, I think that's indicative of just how concerned a lot of courts are about actual child pornography users as opposed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which dealt with this very vague idea of protecting children from pornography.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Jeff Toobin from a little bit earlier this morning.

Some advice for parents: Make sure your Internet provider gives you parental controls on your household computers. Set these up so your kids can't get access to Web site pornography or adult chat rooms.

Secondly, install pornography-blocking software on your home computer. Many that can really be easily installed.

And, last and some say really the most important: Talk to your kids about Internet porn and adult chat rooms as well, and warn them about the sexual predators who might be lurking online and tell them to talk to you if someone makes some kind of unwanted advance or wants pictures or other personal information about them -- Bill.

HEMMER: Soledad, 10 minutes past the hour.

To Drew Griffin this morning at the CNN Center. A look at other news and we start there in Iraq. Drew, good morning.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks Bill.

Two American troops there have come under fire again.

According to military sources, 11 U.S. soldiers wounded today in a mortar attack on a U.S. Army base. This is near the Baghdad International Airport. At least 10 mortar rounds fired in the attack, starting a fire. You can see the black smoke rising there from the scene.

Israel's high court is calling for changes to the West Bank's security barrier. The court ruled a 19-mile section of that fence must be re-routed, saying that the current path would hamper the lives of thousands of Palestinians. Israel says the barrier that's still under construction is needed to keep out suicide bombers.

Back here in the U.S. -- turning to sports. News now of a record 4,000 career strikeouts for Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson. Let's go to the top of the 8th last night.

Johnson strikes out San Diego third baseman Jeff Cirillo. Johnson one of four pitchers to reach this mark of 4,000 strikeouts, but it was bittersweet. The Diamondbacks lost to the Padres 3-2. And another day of drenching rains across Texas. Visitors got more adventure than they planned for at Six Flags Over Texas. This is in Arlington, Texas. The amusement park closed after torrential downpours. Nobody hurt when a nearby creek overflowed.

The waters gushing through the park, Bill, looked like a whitewater ride, only it was real.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: Saddam Hussein yet again in legal custody of Iraq as of today.

Dan Senor was a top coalition adviser during the occupation. For more than a year he was in Baghdad; this morning he's at the White House.

Dan, welcome home. Good morning to you.

DAN SENOR, FORMER CPA SR. ADVISER: Thank you, Bill. Good to be home.

HEMMER: Can you argue for us why Saddam Hussein right now in terms of legal custody is any more than symbolism for the Iraqi people and the world?

SENOR: Well, from a purely practical standpoint, the Iraqis will be in charge of the legal proceedings, the Iraqi judges, Iraqi prosecutors. The Iraqi special tribunal was established by the Iraqi Governing Council, it was the first act the Iraqi Governing Council took last July after they were formed.

This is something that the Iraqis are deeply committed to. They have asked us to help with the security of Saddam Hussein, which is why we will maintain the physical custody. The last thing they want is Saddam Hussein being killed or being freed.

But as far as the legal proceedings are concerned, and the state of Saddam Hussein, it is in the hands of the Iraqi people.

HEMMER: You say being killed or set free. How much of that is a concern?

SENOR: Well, I think given the environment in which we're operating, it's something we have to consider, and that's really what the request of the prime minister for us to play a role in the physical custody is a manifestation of.

HEMMER: What does that say also, Dan, from half a world away right now about the security matters in Iraq?

SENOR: It tells us that the security of Iraq continues to be the primary challenge for the Iraqi people and for us.

We have made a realistic assessment, as have the Iraqis, that Iraq is the central front in the war on terrorism. We have two groups of people there: those affiliated with Abu Musab Zarqawi, the al Qaeda affiliate and his terror network, trying to undermine what is going on there, the progress being made; and you have former elements of the regime, Saddam Hussein's regime, who are trying to turn the clock back to some version of Saddam.

Sometimes they work independently, sometimes they collaborate, and they are posing problems for the Iraqis. But I don't think it's wise to overlook the seriousness of the new Iraqi government on the security front.

Prime Minister Allawi is a man who has literally had assassination attempts against him by Saddam Hussein, took an ax to the head, was hospitalized for a year. This is a man who has been organizing against Saddam Hussein for three decades and I think if anyone is going to get tough on the security it's him.

HEMMER: Can you look down the road; can you say when the Iraqis are going to have physical custody? Is that possible at this point? And if it's not possible, what does that say?

SENOR: Well, I don't think it's easy to have a speculative discussion about when they'll be ready. They'll be ready at some point.

Look, the Iraqi security services are not where we hoped they would be and that is why the Iraqis have asked us to continue to play a role across the board in Iraq after June 30th recognizing that there will still be a significant terrorist threat there.

But I also think, Bill, you -- we should all take a look and credit the many men and women in the Iraqi security services who performed heroically. Three hundred and fifty Iraqi police have given their lives in the line of duty.

These are serious people, they are committed, they are patriotic, they need to be professionalized, they need better training. We are deploying billions of dollars in that effort, and they'll get there.

HEMMER: Dan, I know that you would point to countless things that went well for the coalition. I'm going to take a different tact right now given the security situation on the ground.

There was a very interesting piece in "Time" magazine about a week and a half ago with Ambassador Bremer talking about two critical decisions: one, allowing the military and Baath Party members essentially to go home, that was more than a year ago; and the other one was shutting down the newspaper of Muqtada al-Sadr.

As you look back, are those the two critical points in which the coalition took missteps in Iraq?

SENOR: No, Bill.

I think -- I continue to believe that disbanding the army was one of the single most important decisions Ambassador Bremer made. I don't think people here realize the extent to which Saddam's army was associated in the eyes of most Iraqis with Saddam's horrors. If you asked most Kurdish Iraqis, they will tell you when they think of Saddam's army, they will tell you that they think of gas attacks against the Kurds in Halabja up north.

If you ask most Shia Iraqis what they think of Saddam's army, they think of their loved ones being buried in mass graves.

Many Sunnis when they think of Saddam's army think of being engaged in reckless wars.

So I think it was the right thing to do from a symbolic standpoint and from a practical standpoint.

HEMMER: Welcome home. Come back again, OK?

Dan Senor.

SENOR: Thanks, Bill. I will.

HEMMER: Thanks -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Time now for the Cafferty File, he's got the "Question of the Day."

Good morning.

CAFFERTY: You know what will be interesting is to see how much coverage Al Jazeera gives to the Saddam Hussein court proceedings.

HEMMER: Very true.

A lot of Arab analysts right now are saying that the Arab world is looking at this, the first dictator ever to go on trial.

CAFFERTY: Yes. It will be interesting.

Anyway, on to the "Question of the Day."

When Nicholas Berg was beheaded last month, the "Los Angeles Times" reports that his name was the second most popular search request on Goggle after "American Idol."

Last week, Paul Johnson was the most popular search on Goggle. He, too, was murdered by terrorists.

According to cbsnews.com, any stories that contain graphic violence such as the prison abuse at Abu Ghraib, the attacks on Americans where they hung the bodies from the bridges in Fallujah, cause an astronomical spike in viewing online.

All of which puts traditional news media in a bit of a quandary.

With an obvious appetite for violence as displayed by the statistics on the Internet, the question is this: How much coverage should traditional media give to terrorist kidnappings and beheadings?

You can e-mail us your thoughts on that at am@cnn.com.

The coverage that these events get plays right into the terrorists' hands. If nobody knew the awful things they were doing; if it wasn't available to an audience worldwide, it wouldn't have nearly the effect that it has by virtue of the fact that anybody who is interested can find a tape of people getting their heads cut off, which is pretty tough stuff.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: In World War II, you know, the American Army clamped down on the U.S. press and did not allow reports of Nazi terrorism at the end of the war as we headed toward June of '45.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

O'BRIEN: Interesting question.

Jack, thanks.

CAFFERTY: Sure.

O'BRIEN: Let's get right to business news now this morning.

All eyes are on the Federal Reserve today wrapping up a meeting on interest rates this morning. What can we expect really this afternoon?

Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business." Two-fifteen is the time, right?

SERWER: That's right.

And sure as the sun is going to set in the West this afternoon, Soledad, that's how likely most observers think it is that the Federal Reserve will announce at 2:15 it's raising the Fed funds rate by a quarter point to 1.25 percent. Not really putting on the brakes as much as it is taking the foot off the accelerator.

Other possible scenarios -- what if it doesn't raise rates?

Well, that means that it doesn't think the economy is picking up fast -- that's not a good idea.

Also, what happens if it raises by half a point? That means it thinks the economy is overheating.

What we want to see is the ball right down the fairway here. We want to see this happen at 1.25 percent. A lot of people thinking the Fed will raise rates a couple of times this fall as we head toward the end of the year.

What does that mean to everyone out there? Obviously, if you have CDs or a savings account, you're going to be getting more money but that's not as important, probably as everyone who has got loans, particularly mortgages.

Let's take a look. Fannie Mae ran some numbers here this morning to show someone with a $200,000 one-year adjustable rate mortgage and you can see your monthly increase by the end of the year.

This is assuming a couple of rate hikes, say to 1.75 percent on a benchmark rate. So that's real money there -- $160 a month.

What about credit cards? Not as much impact there. Because the rate hike is so small on, say, if you have a $10,000 balance, you're just talking about, say, $25 more a year.

Fixed rates -- this is interesting -- credit card rates -- you think they're fixed. They can still rise because what does that mean? It just means they need to give you 15 days notice. I love that. But it's likely that those won't raise as much.

And obviously we'll be covering this at 2:15. I think I'm going to be joining the network then, too.

HEMMER: Thanks a lot.

(CROSSTALK)

CAFFERTY: Oh, really?

SERWER: Yes.

CAFFERTY: I'll be home.

O'BRIEN: As surely as the sun will rise.

SERWER: You can tune in.

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

CAFFERTY: I'll be watching.

HEMMER: Quarter point. You know what we call that? Easy money.

SERWER: Still pretty low rates; that's the important thing.

HEMMER: Indeed, yes.

In a moment here the mysteries of Saturn. Why astronomers think one of the many moons orbiting the ringed planet may hold the keys to our own origins.

O'BRIEN: Also ahead this morning, caught on tape. Police say they have their best clue yet in a serial robbery case.

HEMMER: Also Scott Peterson's trial. Allegations that he talked to a friend about how to dispose of a human body.

Those stories and more when we continue on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone.

Now to outer space. The Cassini spacecraft on course to reach Saturn and begin orbiting the planet later today.

It involves a crucial maneuver through Saturn's rings and there are many.

Here's our space correspondent, Miles O'Brien.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a ringer of a planet and it may soon give up some humdingers about our origins, or so astronomers hope as the Cassini spacecraft hones in on Saturn.

The $3 billion craft is making a 49,000-mile-an-hour beeline for a gap in those rocky rings and must thread the needle twice, hopefully avoiding a mission-ending collision, to enter Saturn's orbit.

ROBERT MITCHELL, CASSINI PROJECT MANAGER: We have considerable evidence to tell us that this gap is clean, clear of any particles, any debris of any size. There will probably be some very fine dust grains that the spacecraft is well equipped to handle.

M. O'BRIEN: Candice Hansen started working on Cassini 14 years ago. Its periless arrival in Saturn's orbit will make for some tense moments for her.

CANDICE HANSEN, CASSINI SCIENTIST: I have spent 14 years sort of waiting for this night to occur and until it's passed there will always be this oh, my God, things could go terribly wrong. Not that any of us expect that. But, still, it is a very critical event.

M. O'BRIEN: So long as Cassini doesn't get dinged by the rings, it will embark on a four-year tour of Saturn and some of its 31 known moons.

It's already whizzed by Phoebe. Only 130 miles across, the tiny moon is pocked with craters and laced with ice. It caught a glimpse of the Iapetus, 890 miles in diameter with its light and dark hemispheres, and Titan, a moon that is more like a planet.

HANSEN: It's bigger than Pluto, it's even a little bigger than Mercury and it's got this thick atmosphere, exotic surface geology. It's got a lot of things that intrigue us.

M. O'BRIEN: Come January, Cassini will send a Wok-shaped probe called Hoigans (ph) toward a landing on Titan. Perpetually enshrouded by clouds, this moon is an intriguing mystery for astronomers. They believe Earth might have looked like Titan long ago.

MITCHELL: So Titan today, the scientists believe, may very well be a body in a frozen vault just like what Earth was 3 billion or 4 billion years ago.

So the chance to study it and see what Earth may have looked like then, to get some clues as to how Earth may have evolved to be what we know it today is quite an exciting prospect.

M. O'BRIEN: It will be the most remote landing ever attempted, but there are other hoops Cassini must jump through first.

Miles O'Brien, CNN, Pasadena, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Miles, thanks for that.

As part of our ongoing coverage of Cassini's mission of Saturn, Neil de Grasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium here in New York, is our guest back with us again tomorrow morning on AMERICAN MORNING.

And, Soledad, you know, he wears his enthusiasm for Saturn right on his sleeve. Very excited.

O'BRIEN: All right, Bill, thanks.

Still to come this morning, your morning dose of "90 Second Pop."

Janet Jackson does something she hasn't done since her infamous wardrobe malfunction at the Super Bowl. But what was her latest TV appearance just as diva-worthy?

And Marlon Brando -- is he living in poverty?

That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired June 30, 2004 - 7:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
No longer a prisoner of war today, Saddam Hussein is a prisoner of Iraq.

Six Flags Over Texas and under water. Floods that are anything but amusing there.

And the planet with 31 moons and seven sets of rings, now an amazing $3 billion spacecraft about to join them in orbit.

The anticipation over Saturn on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, welcome everybody.

Iraq is topping our headlines this morning. The U.S. has transferred Saddam Hussein to the Iraqi government for his eventual trial. That happened just a few hours ago.

We're going to talk this morning with the former coalition spokesman while he was in Iraq, Dan Senor.

We'll also hear from Barbara Starr at the Pentagon about a decision that's raising lots of eyebrows to activate Reserve members who were all but out of the military.

HEMMER: Also this hour, what can Congress and the courts do now to keep pornography away from kids surfing the Internet?

We'll talk to Jeff Toobin about the controversial Supreme Court decision. Also tell you what parents can still do to protect their children online. Jeff stops by in a moment.

O'BRIEN: Also this morning, a stunning revelation yesterday in the Scott Peterson trial. Testimony suggesting, perhaps, that Peterson had been considering ways of disposing of a body for many years. We'll find out about that just ahead.

HEMMER: That case just gets more and more interesting every day.

O'BRIEN: It does.

HEMMER: Jack, good morning. JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

Most popular search request on Google during the month of May was "American Idol." The second most popular search request on Google during the month of May was Nick Berg, the businessman who was beheaded by terrorists.

We'll take a look at the way the Internet is impacting the way traditional news media cover terrorism.

HEMMER: And a great topic, too.

Thank you, Jack.

CAFFERTY: No problem. I'm glad you liked it.

HEMMER: Indeed. Every day.

O'BRIEN: Let's go to Iraq now.

Deposed dictator Saddam Hussein now in Iraqi legal custody. The handover of Saddam and 11 other former Iraqi leaders made official just a short time ago.

Chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour live for us this morning in Baghdad with much more on this story.

Christiane, good morning.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

The process began last night when the Iraqi government presented formal papers to the Americans here requesting that Saddam's legal custody be transferred to them.

It was effective when the head of the special Iraqi tribunal with a judge went to the detention facility where Americans are guarding Saddam Hussein and informed him personally that he was no longer a prisoner of war protected under international conventions, but now he was under the Iraqi legal system. He was a suspected criminal under the Iraqi legal system.

They told that also to the 11 other members of his regime who have also been issued these arrest warrants.

We're told that Saddam looked quite stunned, didn't know what was going on, said he wanted to ask some questions but was told, no, that would happen at a formal court appearance, which is planned for tomorrow here in Iraq.

They will have an arraignment, we are told, and at that point they will be formally told the charges and then the process is that many months later they get formally indicted once the crime base and all the evidence has been gathered -- enough to present an indictment and only later after that will they come to trial -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Christiane Amanpour for us this morning. Christiane, thanks -- Bill.

HEMMER: More follow up on that story throughout the morning.

Also, about 6,000 former Army soldiers will soon find themselves back in the ranks, whether they want it or not. The Army today expected to formally announce the first large activation of what's called the Individual Ready Reserves since the first Gulf War.

Barbara Starr at the Pentagon with more details on this now.

Good morning.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.

Well, with the military stretched so thin in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army indeed is now reaching deep into its pockets for new troops.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): In the 1991 Persian Gulf War, the Army called up thousands of people to duty who never expected to hear from Uncle Sam.

(on camera): How many of you don't want to be back here?

SOLDIERS: (SHOUTING)

STARR (voice-over): Now, 13 years later, because of the pressures of Iraq and a force stretched thin, it's happening again.

The Army shortly will begin notifying 5,600 members of the so- called Individual Ready Reserve that they are headed to Iraq or Afghanistan later this year for up to 18 months of duty, and it's not voluntary.

This reserve force headed for the combat zone is made up of people who had left the military but still owe the Army some part of their eight-year service obligation.

Everyone is watching closely.

MAJ. GEN. ROBERT NESTER (RET.), RESERVE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION: I think it's important to understand that they'll take some special care and feeling -- that they'll have some family support issues and things like that.

STARR: They will serve as truck drivers, engineers, military police and in other support jobs in National Guard and reserve units headed overseas.

Most of the troops are expected to come from California, Texas, New York and Delaware. The Army has used individuals from the Reserve in recent years to fill particular jobs, but this deployment of such a large number indicates a long-term problem, experts say, in finding more troops to fill the rotation requirement overseas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR: Now Army officials say they know people taken from their civilian lives and sent to Iraq or Afghanistan are going to be very unhappy about it, but the Army says there simply is no alternative -- Bill.

HEMMER: Barbara, the status for this missing Marine has now changed. What is happening with his case to change that status?

STARR: Indeed, the Marine Corps yesterday made it official that Corporal Wassef Hassoun is now listed as captured now that this videotape you see here has been shown around the world. They do believe he is being held by these people, certainly against his will. They are looking for him.

However, the circumstances in which he became missing still are under investigation.

The working theory is that somewhere around June 19th or 20th he left his base in Iraq of his own free will. It is believed, the working theory is that this man was having some problems and was trying to make his way to his family in Lebanon when somehow he fell into the hands of insurgents. Now listed as captured -- Bill.

HEMMER: Barbara Starr, thanks for that at the Pentagon -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: A federal law designed to shield children from online pornography is once again on hold. It happened just before the Supreme Court adjourned its session yesterday.

A little bit earlier this morning I spoke with our senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin about the high court's decision and asked him if the decision was seen as a big win for the porn industry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: One of the problems with this law is that it didn't just regulate pornography; it had a much broader scope -- the word "anything harmful to minors," which could mean a lot of things.

But basically what the court said was this law required the content providers, the distributors of this harmful or pornographic material to put some sort of censor on their side of the technology.

And what the court said was we want the lower court, the district court, to look at whether it would work better if the recipients had to use filters, if the parents, if the computer owners, the users of the Internet had to use some sort of screen. Wouldn't that be a better solution that restricted less speech?

O'BRIEN: What other industries were concerned about this law?

TOOBIN: Arts, sex education. Any distributor of information that potentially is controversial was potentially under this law. That was another problem with the law.

O'BRIEN: So they think the law was just too broad?

TOOBIN: The law was too broad, and you know, this case is sort of like the Supreme Court's Groundhog Day. They have dealt with this issue three times in the last few years and they can never, you know, get together with Congress on it and now Congress -- now it's likely to be back for a fourth time.

O'BRIEN: So, then, what happened yesterday -- does that change anything that parents need to be doing to protect their children when it comes to specifically pornography?

TOOBIN: Well, in fact, what they -- what the justices said was parents really are in charge of this. Parents should do a better job than we can do, which is, you know, get a filter on your kids computer. That's a more effective technology.

Remember, another thing the court pointed out is that a lot of pornography comes from overseas Web sites, which this law couldn't do anything about. But if you put a filter on your kid's computer you can take care of the problem much better than the government can.

O'BRIEN: In addition to all of that, the technology is changing so fast, isn't it? That's going to have a big impact on this law.

TOOBIN: And that's another reason why the court had a problem with this. Remember, you know, when this law was passed the whole issue of wireless wasn't really on the map, because every Internet -- everybody's computer was attached to a phone.

Now, you know, you don't need a phone anymore. That's the kind of change that, you know, is very hard to deal with because it always takes time for these cases to work their way through the courts.

O'BRIEN: The Supreme Court also weighed in on another case. It involved a guy who was convicted of possessing child pornography and it ended up that he had to register as a sex offender.

TOOBIN: For the rest of his life. This was the California Supreme Court. The California Supreme Court said that even though he only pled guilty to a misdemeanor and was only sentenced to 60 days in prison, for the rest of his life he is going to have to register as a sex offender wherever he goes anywhere in the state and, you know, that does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment.

O'BRIEN: There are some people who have said that that was too much punishment, that it was unfair considering the scope of his crime. TOOBIN: In fact, the California Supreme Court 21 years ago had said that that was too much, and the court overruled their own precedent, said, you know, we used to think this was too strong.

But, you know, I think that's indicative of just how concerned a lot of courts are about actual child pornography users as opposed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which dealt with this very vague idea of protecting children from pornography.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Jeff Toobin from a little bit earlier this morning.

Some advice for parents: Make sure your Internet provider gives you parental controls on your household computers. Set these up so your kids can't get access to Web site pornography or adult chat rooms.

Secondly, install pornography-blocking software on your home computer. Many that can really be easily installed.

And, last and some say really the most important: Talk to your kids about Internet porn and adult chat rooms as well, and warn them about the sexual predators who might be lurking online and tell them to talk to you if someone makes some kind of unwanted advance or wants pictures or other personal information about them -- Bill.

HEMMER: Soledad, 10 minutes past the hour.

To Drew Griffin this morning at the CNN Center. A look at other news and we start there in Iraq. Drew, good morning.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks Bill.

Two American troops there have come under fire again.

According to military sources, 11 U.S. soldiers wounded today in a mortar attack on a U.S. Army base. This is near the Baghdad International Airport. At least 10 mortar rounds fired in the attack, starting a fire. You can see the black smoke rising there from the scene.

Israel's high court is calling for changes to the West Bank's security barrier. The court ruled a 19-mile section of that fence must be re-routed, saying that the current path would hamper the lives of thousands of Palestinians. Israel says the barrier that's still under construction is needed to keep out suicide bombers.

Back here in the U.S. -- turning to sports. News now of a record 4,000 career strikeouts for Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson. Let's go to the top of the 8th last night.

Johnson strikes out San Diego third baseman Jeff Cirillo. Johnson one of four pitchers to reach this mark of 4,000 strikeouts, but it was bittersweet. The Diamondbacks lost to the Padres 3-2. And another day of drenching rains across Texas. Visitors got more adventure than they planned for at Six Flags Over Texas. This is in Arlington, Texas. The amusement park closed after torrential downpours. Nobody hurt when a nearby creek overflowed.

The waters gushing through the park, Bill, looked like a whitewater ride, only it was real.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: Saddam Hussein yet again in legal custody of Iraq as of today.

Dan Senor was a top coalition adviser during the occupation. For more than a year he was in Baghdad; this morning he's at the White House.

Dan, welcome home. Good morning to you.

DAN SENOR, FORMER CPA SR. ADVISER: Thank you, Bill. Good to be home.

HEMMER: Can you argue for us why Saddam Hussein right now in terms of legal custody is any more than symbolism for the Iraqi people and the world?

SENOR: Well, from a purely practical standpoint, the Iraqis will be in charge of the legal proceedings, the Iraqi judges, Iraqi prosecutors. The Iraqi special tribunal was established by the Iraqi Governing Council, it was the first act the Iraqi Governing Council took last July after they were formed.

This is something that the Iraqis are deeply committed to. They have asked us to help with the security of Saddam Hussein, which is why we will maintain the physical custody. The last thing they want is Saddam Hussein being killed or being freed.

But as far as the legal proceedings are concerned, and the state of Saddam Hussein, it is in the hands of the Iraqi people.

HEMMER: You say being killed or set free. How much of that is a concern?

SENOR: Well, I think given the environment in which we're operating, it's something we have to consider, and that's really what the request of the prime minister for us to play a role in the physical custody is a manifestation of.

HEMMER: What does that say also, Dan, from half a world away right now about the security matters in Iraq?

SENOR: It tells us that the security of Iraq continues to be the primary challenge for the Iraqi people and for us.

We have made a realistic assessment, as have the Iraqis, that Iraq is the central front in the war on terrorism. We have two groups of people there: those affiliated with Abu Musab Zarqawi, the al Qaeda affiliate and his terror network, trying to undermine what is going on there, the progress being made; and you have former elements of the regime, Saddam Hussein's regime, who are trying to turn the clock back to some version of Saddam.

Sometimes they work independently, sometimes they collaborate, and they are posing problems for the Iraqis. But I don't think it's wise to overlook the seriousness of the new Iraqi government on the security front.

Prime Minister Allawi is a man who has literally had assassination attempts against him by Saddam Hussein, took an ax to the head, was hospitalized for a year. This is a man who has been organizing against Saddam Hussein for three decades and I think if anyone is going to get tough on the security it's him.

HEMMER: Can you look down the road; can you say when the Iraqis are going to have physical custody? Is that possible at this point? And if it's not possible, what does that say?

SENOR: Well, I don't think it's easy to have a speculative discussion about when they'll be ready. They'll be ready at some point.

Look, the Iraqi security services are not where we hoped they would be and that is why the Iraqis have asked us to continue to play a role across the board in Iraq after June 30th recognizing that there will still be a significant terrorist threat there.

But I also think, Bill, you -- we should all take a look and credit the many men and women in the Iraqi security services who performed heroically. Three hundred and fifty Iraqi police have given their lives in the line of duty.

These are serious people, they are committed, they are patriotic, they need to be professionalized, they need better training. We are deploying billions of dollars in that effort, and they'll get there.

HEMMER: Dan, I know that you would point to countless things that went well for the coalition. I'm going to take a different tact right now given the security situation on the ground.

There was a very interesting piece in "Time" magazine about a week and a half ago with Ambassador Bremer talking about two critical decisions: one, allowing the military and Baath Party members essentially to go home, that was more than a year ago; and the other one was shutting down the newspaper of Muqtada al-Sadr.

As you look back, are those the two critical points in which the coalition took missteps in Iraq?

SENOR: No, Bill.

I think -- I continue to believe that disbanding the army was one of the single most important decisions Ambassador Bremer made. I don't think people here realize the extent to which Saddam's army was associated in the eyes of most Iraqis with Saddam's horrors. If you asked most Kurdish Iraqis, they will tell you when they think of Saddam's army, they will tell you that they think of gas attacks against the Kurds in Halabja up north.

If you ask most Shia Iraqis what they think of Saddam's army, they think of their loved ones being buried in mass graves.

Many Sunnis when they think of Saddam's army think of being engaged in reckless wars.

So I think it was the right thing to do from a symbolic standpoint and from a practical standpoint.

HEMMER: Welcome home. Come back again, OK?

Dan Senor.

SENOR: Thanks, Bill. I will.

HEMMER: Thanks -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Time now for the Cafferty File, he's got the "Question of the Day."

Good morning.

CAFFERTY: You know what will be interesting is to see how much coverage Al Jazeera gives to the Saddam Hussein court proceedings.

HEMMER: Very true.

A lot of Arab analysts right now are saying that the Arab world is looking at this, the first dictator ever to go on trial.

CAFFERTY: Yes. It will be interesting.

Anyway, on to the "Question of the Day."

When Nicholas Berg was beheaded last month, the "Los Angeles Times" reports that his name was the second most popular search request on Goggle after "American Idol."

Last week, Paul Johnson was the most popular search on Goggle. He, too, was murdered by terrorists.

According to cbsnews.com, any stories that contain graphic violence such as the prison abuse at Abu Ghraib, the attacks on Americans where they hung the bodies from the bridges in Fallujah, cause an astronomical spike in viewing online.

All of which puts traditional news media in a bit of a quandary.

With an obvious appetite for violence as displayed by the statistics on the Internet, the question is this: How much coverage should traditional media give to terrorist kidnappings and beheadings?

You can e-mail us your thoughts on that at am@cnn.com.

The coverage that these events get plays right into the terrorists' hands. If nobody knew the awful things they were doing; if it wasn't available to an audience worldwide, it wouldn't have nearly the effect that it has by virtue of the fact that anybody who is interested can find a tape of people getting their heads cut off, which is pretty tough stuff.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: In World War II, you know, the American Army clamped down on the U.S. press and did not allow reports of Nazi terrorism at the end of the war as we headed toward June of '45.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

O'BRIEN: Interesting question.

Jack, thanks.

CAFFERTY: Sure.

O'BRIEN: Let's get right to business news now this morning.

All eyes are on the Federal Reserve today wrapping up a meeting on interest rates this morning. What can we expect really this afternoon?

Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business." Two-fifteen is the time, right?

SERWER: That's right.

And sure as the sun is going to set in the West this afternoon, Soledad, that's how likely most observers think it is that the Federal Reserve will announce at 2:15 it's raising the Fed funds rate by a quarter point to 1.25 percent. Not really putting on the brakes as much as it is taking the foot off the accelerator.

Other possible scenarios -- what if it doesn't raise rates?

Well, that means that it doesn't think the economy is picking up fast -- that's not a good idea.

Also, what happens if it raises by half a point? That means it thinks the economy is overheating.

What we want to see is the ball right down the fairway here. We want to see this happen at 1.25 percent. A lot of people thinking the Fed will raise rates a couple of times this fall as we head toward the end of the year.

What does that mean to everyone out there? Obviously, if you have CDs or a savings account, you're going to be getting more money but that's not as important, probably as everyone who has got loans, particularly mortgages.

Let's take a look. Fannie Mae ran some numbers here this morning to show someone with a $200,000 one-year adjustable rate mortgage and you can see your monthly increase by the end of the year.

This is assuming a couple of rate hikes, say to 1.75 percent on a benchmark rate. So that's real money there -- $160 a month.

What about credit cards? Not as much impact there. Because the rate hike is so small on, say, if you have a $10,000 balance, you're just talking about, say, $25 more a year.

Fixed rates -- this is interesting -- credit card rates -- you think they're fixed. They can still rise because what does that mean? It just means they need to give you 15 days notice. I love that. But it's likely that those won't raise as much.

And obviously we'll be covering this at 2:15. I think I'm going to be joining the network then, too.

HEMMER: Thanks a lot.

(CROSSTALK)

CAFFERTY: Oh, really?

SERWER: Yes.

CAFFERTY: I'll be home.

O'BRIEN: As surely as the sun will rise.

SERWER: You can tune in.

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

CAFFERTY: I'll be watching.

HEMMER: Quarter point. You know what we call that? Easy money.

SERWER: Still pretty low rates; that's the important thing.

HEMMER: Indeed, yes.

In a moment here the mysteries of Saturn. Why astronomers think one of the many moons orbiting the ringed planet may hold the keys to our own origins.

O'BRIEN: Also ahead this morning, caught on tape. Police say they have their best clue yet in a serial robbery case.

HEMMER: Also Scott Peterson's trial. Allegations that he talked to a friend about how to dispose of a human body.

Those stories and more when we continue on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone.

Now to outer space. The Cassini spacecraft on course to reach Saturn and begin orbiting the planet later today.

It involves a crucial maneuver through Saturn's rings and there are many.

Here's our space correspondent, Miles O'Brien.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a ringer of a planet and it may soon give up some humdingers about our origins, or so astronomers hope as the Cassini spacecraft hones in on Saturn.

The $3 billion craft is making a 49,000-mile-an-hour beeline for a gap in those rocky rings and must thread the needle twice, hopefully avoiding a mission-ending collision, to enter Saturn's orbit.

ROBERT MITCHELL, CASSINI PROJECT MANAGER: We have considerable evidence to tell us that this gap is clean, clear of any particles, any debris of any size. There will probably be some very fine dust grains that the spacecraft is well equipped to handle.

M. O'BRIEN: Candice Hansen started working on Cassini 14 years ago. Its periless arrival in Saturn's orbit will make for some tense moments for her.

CANDICE HANSEN, CASSINI SCIENTIST: I have spent 14 years sort of waiting for this night to occur and until it's passed there will always be this oh, my God, things could go terribly wrong. Not that any of us expect that. But, still, it is a very critical event.

M. O'BRIEN: So long as Cassini doesn't get dinged by the rings, it will embark on a four-year tour of Saturn and some of its 31 known moons.

It's already whizzed by Phoebe. Only 130 miles across, the tiny moon is pocked with craters and laced with ice. It caught a glimpse of the Iapetus, 890 miles in diameter with its light and dark hemispheres, and Titan, a moon that is more like a planet.

HANSEN: It's bigger than Pluto, it's even a little bigger than Mercury and it's got this thick atmosphere, exotic surface geology. It's got a lot of things that intrigue us.

M. O'BRIEN: Come January, Cassini will send a Wok-shaped probe called Hoigans (ph) toward a landing on Titan. Perpetually enshrouded by clouds, this moon is an intriguing mystery for astronomers. They believe Earth might have looked like Titan long ago.

MITCHELL: So Titan today, the scientists believe, may very well be a body in a frozen vault just like what Earth was 3 billion or 4 billion years ago.

So the chance to study it and see what Earth may have looked like then, to get some clues as to how Earth may have evolved to be what we know it today is quite an exciting prospect.

M. O'BRIEN: It will be the most remote landing ever attempted, but there are other hoops Cassini must jump through first.

Miles O'Brien, CNN, Pasadena, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Miles, thanks for that.

As part of our ongoing coverage of Cassini's mission of Saturn, Neil de Grasse Tyson, director of the Hayden Planetarium here in New York, is our guest back with us again tomorrow morning on AMERICAN MORNING.

And, Soledad, you know, he wears his enthusiasm for Saturn right on his sleeve. Very excited.

O'BRIEN: All right, Bill, thanks.

Still to come this morning, your morning dose of "90 Second Pop."

Janet Jackson does something she hasn't done since her infamous wardrobe malfunction at the Super Bowl. But what was her latest TV appearance just as diva-worthy?

And Marlon Brando -- is he living in poverty?

That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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