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American Morning
President Bill Clinton Undergoes Heart Surgery This Hour
Aired September 06, 2004 - 08:00 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: She's about to do it again, today.
One of the most important days in Bill Clinton's life, the former president undergoing heart bypass surgery at this hour.
And who's in and who's out in the John Kerry campaign? Changes at the top for the final election stretch on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: This is AMERICAN MORNING. Here's Bill Hemmer.
HEMMER: Good morning, everyone, 8:00 here in Melbourne, Florida on the East Coast as the day starts to dawn on this Labor Day across the U.S.
And so many people, millions of people here in Florida waking up, yet again, today without power and electricity and also so many assessing the damage that was brought on by Frances.
(AUDIO GAP)
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Bill. We're having a few audio problems there from Melbourne, Florida. We're going to try and clear up that situation.
Also ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, a lot of political news this Labor Day. We're going to hear from a major supporter of John Kerry's, the secretary of the AFL-CIO joining us in a few minutes to talk about the economy and why the unions are backing Senator Kerry. That's coming up.
Also, Jack has the day off, but AMERICAN MORNING regulator Toure will be with us this morning. For now, let's go to Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta with stories now in the news.
Good morning, again, Betty.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Kelly.
Saddam Hussein's right hand man Izzat Ibrahim Al-Douri is not in Iraqi custody. In the last 15 minutes, Iraqi ministry officials confirmed to CNN that medical tests proved a captured suspect is not Al-Douri. Now, the man was one of 150 people captured during a raid over the weekend.
Former president, Bill Clinton, is now undergoing heart bypass surgery. Surgeons monitored Clinton for the past hours waiting for blood-thinning medicine to clear his system before beginning the procedure.
Coming up, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is live at New York's Columbia Presbyterian Hospital with the latest on that operation.
Russians are mourning the 340 victims of a standoff at a school near the Chechen border. Families and neighbors are now heading to the cemeteries where as many as 100 children, parents and teachers will be buried this morning.
Russian officials say they have detained a man in connection with those killings, but it's not clear when and where he was arrested. The man denied any involvement in the siege.
Japan is recovering after a powerful typhoon slammed into its southern islands. More than 20 people are reported hurt, and more rain is expected to spawn mudslides in the area.
Also, two earthquakes shook major cities and caused buildings to sway in Tokyo.
Kelly, back to you. Good morning.
WALLACE: Thanks again, Betty, we appreciate that.
We want to bring you an update on what's going on with former president, Bill Clinton's, surgery. We're going to turn now to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who is outside New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Good morning, again, Sanjay. What can you tell us? We know that surgery is now under way.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
Yes, I've been talking to sources inside the hospital. We're hearing that the operation is under way. It is being performed by Dr. Craig Smith. He's chairman of the department of cardio thoracic surgery.
Perhaps most importantly, we're hearing that this operation is being done in the traditional way. It does involve an incision up and down the sternum, opening the chest cavity and stopping the heart, stopping the heart and then performing the bypass operations, restarting the heart at the end of the procedure.
Kelly, we've been talking a lot about the possibility of a keyhole-type operation, where the operation is performed on a beating heart from sources inside the hospital; now we're hearing that's not going to happen.
In fact, the heart is being stopped, possibly right about now even, Kelly.
WALLACE: Any estimation of how long such a procedure, such a surgery should take? GUPTA: Usually the operation will take about four to five hours perhaps. He will probably be groggy, if not asleep, until late into the afternoon. But I think you're going to be surprised, as is everyone, how awake you'll see him, probably by later on this evening.
He'll be in the intensive care unit overnight and then probably out to the general care floor in a day or so, so pretty quick recovery, most likely, Kelly.
WALLACE: OK, Sanjay, thanks for the update. Sanjay Gupta reporting outside New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Now we want to go back to more coverage of Hurricane Frances and Bill in Melbourne, Florida. Hi, again, Bill.
HEMMER: Hey, Kelly, thanks. I was saying earlier this storm lasted so long, 30 hours in length over the east coast of Florida, with it 400 miles wide.
And the damage really is up and down this coast. You can drive for literally 100 miles and still see some remnants of the damage that was caused by Frances over the weekend.
But now this storm is still forming. In fact, it's moving toward the panhandle. Tom Foreman is watching the situation there in the Gulf in Carrabelle, Florida; and Kathleen Koch back with us again in St. Augustine, America's oldest city.
Let's start with where Frances is headed today. Here's Tom with that. Good morning, Tom.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. It is exactly as you described here, it's just that people are waiting for the damage you've had down there. We've had a little bit of it.
The peak wind gusts a few feet from where I'm standing right now so far have been 54 miles an hour. That's not a whole lot, but enough to bring some trees down. And much to the credit of various power units around here, they were out last night restoring power immediately trying to stay ahead of this, so they have as little damage as possible.
Now, one of the big concerns with any hurricane is location and timing. The location here was hit by Bonnie a few weeks ago, not much happened there. But this week, over the next few hours, what they're going to be watching here is the timing of this storm sweeping in because it will arrive at the same time that high tide comes in.
So, you have two forces working together. Some of these low- lying roads around here can flood very, very easily, even from a big rainstorm. So, people are watching that, hoping that folks don't wind up stranded.
At the moment, they're feeling like this may not be too bad here; but after all they've seen over the past few days, they're certainly not wanting to take chances -- Bill? HEMMER: Indeed, the words gone out. Tom, thanks for that. Tom Foreman in Carrabelle.
Kathleen Koch in St. Augustine, where the storm has moved through. Kathleen, good morning there.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. Well, as you can see, this is how people throughout the state of Florida are coping this morning. It is light by candlelight, flashlight, lantern, whatever you can find.
We're in one of the major hotels here in St. Augustine, Cosamonica (ph). They've done better than most. We actually provided them with the light powered off of our generator. But they, amazingly, even came up this morning with a hot breakfast, scrambled eggs, sausage, hot coffee.
But two-thirds of this county of 150,000 people is estimated to be without power primarily because so many of the huge, old oak trees came down on the power lines. They're out checking the lines. Now, they have no idea when they'll be able to restore power, so needless to say, airports are shut down in this area.
The flooding in the street was not as bad as we worried that it might be here because much of this old, historic downtown part of St. Augustine is below sea level, so they were really very fortunate, a lot more fortunate than they might have been.
There was some damage to some homes in the area. A condominium south of town had its roof ripped off and had to be evacuated in the middle of the night.
We're still under a tropical storm warning here and also a flood watch. The winds are still whipping around outside. A good bit of rain is still coming down. But again, the word from folks at the emergency operations center here in St. Johns County is, again, that they are very fortunate -- Bill?
HEMMER: All right, Kathleen, thanks for that.
Really up and down the east coast, that is the scene that you will find in every town on the east coast of Florida. People just buying their time, waiting for the power to come back, waiting for it to be safe for them to come back to their homes.
We're in the Barrier Islands. This area was evacuated first last Thursday, actually, and then again on Friday. That's when the word went out first to these people to get out and clear out.
We're back here today because we've been given permission by the police. And they are allowing residents to come back, so far as they can prove that they live here, to come back and inspect the damage, if they have any, at their homes and businesses.
Chad Myers back with me again, today. And Chad, good morning to you. And you've had a long weekend yourself, buddy. Good morning. CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Bill.
Yes, now the latest stats on Frances. Now it's back in the Gulf of Mexico, and it has a potential to strengthen. But the 8:00 advisory does not have it strengthening.
Sixty-five mile per hour, those are the maximum winds, just drifting to the north and maybe a little bit toward the northwest. Because it is drifting and not moving too much, it's over that very warm water. That indicates the potential for this storm to get stronger.
Right now, though, just tropical storm Frances. It is not a hurricane anymore because it has lost its hurricane wind force.
Next things we have to worry about is another storm way out in the Atlantic. We'll worry about that later on. But for now, we're still worried about Frances.
The rest of the country not worried about it, too much, really a very nice Labor Day for most of the U.S. The northeast looks absolutely terrific. A couple showers through the Central Plains but nothing, really, else across the country for this Labor Day weekend.
And I guess finally the folks here finally get to take a little bit of a breather and maybe pick up some of this stuff. At least up here in Melbourne, the winds were not as strong as they are about 20 miles down to our south.
We were down to a place called Barefoot Bay yesterday; and it didn't look quite like Punta Gorda, but you get the idea. All of the aluminum siding from all of the mobile homes out there all flying all over the place.
The good news is there were absolutely no injuries at all because of the evacuation. I think folks really here -- I don't want to say got lucky because there's damage -- but at least there was no fatalities that we know of, at least in this county.
Bill, back to you.
HEMMER: Well, isn't that the truth, yes. What a silver lining in there, too. Chad, thanks for that.
And a lot of people packing an awful lot of patience over the weekend and yet again today, too.
Down in Sewalls Point, Florida, far south of our location here, that's where the eye came on shore late Saturday night, early Sunday morning. There is damage down there to talk about.
Jason Carroll is inspecting that for us today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chris Nunnelee woke up early Sunday to see what Hurricane Frances had done and found a 70-foot tree toppled over in his front yard.
CHRIS NUNNELEEE, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: When I heard it fall, it was certainly a hollow feeling thinking, oh, God, what was that? But fortunately, no damage, we're all safe.
CARROLL: Nunnelee lives in Sewalls Point, a peninsula 50 miles north of West Palm Beach. It's where the eye of Frances came ashore.
MINDY NUNNELEE, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: This is our safe room.
CARROLL: The Nunnelee family rode out the storm at home in this closet.
NUNNELEE: It was quite scary. Very windy, you would hear trees falling or splitting and things hitting the plywood.
CARROLL: Most in Sewalls Point heeded warnings and evacuated. This is what many will come home to: docks gone, front yards buried by trees, storm surge carried a boat into this backyard.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not really sure who's boat it is, but they will be very disappointed when they find it.
CARROLL (on camera): The force of Frances was so strong, it uprooted massive trees like this one. The storm surge so powerful, it caused roadways like this to collapse.
(voice-over) The few who stayed checked on the homes of the many who had left.
KEN WOODS, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: It looks better than we expected. We were really worried because he lives, as you can see about 40, 50 feet right off water.
CARROLL: They've already started clearing the streets here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got this whole town to clean up. We've just started.
CARROLL: Soon more will be coming home and most will have a home to return to.
Surprisingly, there was little structural damage. Many here thought being in the path of the eye would be much worse, they are grateful it was not.
Jason Carroll, CNN, Sewalls Point, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Jason, thanks for that.
I want to get back to Tallahassee now. Colleen Castille is the secretary of environmental protection. She's my guest now. And good morning on this Labor Day, and welcome to AMERICAN MORNING.
What can your agency do for the people of Florida now?
COLLEEN CASTILLE, SECRETARY FLORIDA DEP: Good morning, Bill. We have - are experiencing massive power outages in the state of Florida. There is some utilities out in 53 of 67 of Florida's counties, and we're working closely and quickly to restore that electricity.
We have approximately 15,000 line and tree crews that have begun moving into the state of Florida and removing debris and restoring electricity to our customers.
HEMMER: In the immediate term, we talked last hour with the spokesperson from Florida Power and Light. That's the company that controls electricity for about half of your residents, eight million in total for that company. When can they expect to get the lights back on?
CASTILLE: Well, as you know, we're going through damage assessments. And some people have had their electricity restored. But the massive number of outages that we have will have us probably working for up to two weeks to restore electricity.
But in that ensuing two weeks, customers will receive their electricity.
HEMMER: Well listen, there was a report this morning in the "New York Times" that says there's an estimate out there, that between Charley and now Frances, that Florida may suffer $40 billion in damage.
Does that sound right to you, that figure?
CASTILLE: I have not talked with the insurance folks. But those numbers are not -- are a little more expensive than what I've seen.
HEMMER: All right. And also here in Melbourne, there was an effort over the past three year, they spent millions, about $15 million to try and restore the beach.
Do you know, at this point, how much surf damage has been done by Frances?
CASTILLE: We began our assessments on this morning, and so we will know later today. We just know basically from the weather and the fact that Hurricane Frances did sit offshore for approximately 24 hours just pounding the surf, so we are expecting extensive damage on our beaches.
HEMMER: Erosion has to be a chief concern, too.
Thank you. Colleen Castille is the secretary of environmental protection, my guest in Tallahassee, Florida.
Much more in a moment here from Florida.
I want to back to Kelly Wallace yet again, though, who is watching the rest of the news back there. Kelly, good morning again.
WALLACE: Good morning, again to you, Bill.
Still to come -- the latest job numbers appear to be good news for the White House, but there are those who beg to differ. We'll talk to the AFL-CIO.
Plus, the latest on former President Clinton's heart surgery going on at this hour, doctors think there are lessons we can all learn. We'll have a look.
Plus we'll go back to Bill in Florida, that state taking a pounding from Frances, a live update. That's all ahead right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: President Bush's boost in the polls from last week's Republican National Convention has some Democrats very worried. Congressional correspondent Ed Henry is live this morning from Cannonsburg, Pennsylvania.
Good morning, Ed. I want to ask you about reports that...
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
WALLACE: Let me ask...
HENRY: Labor Day is a traditional kickoff.
WALLACE: Go ahead, Ed.
HENRY: I'm sorry, Kelly.
WALLACE: You go ahead.
HENRY: Labor Day is a traditional kickoff of the final stretch of the presidential campaign. And with the clock ticking, there's a lot of pressure on John Kerry to crank up his campaign another notch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY (voice-over): President Bush has surged out of his convention with a bump in the polls and a united GOP. Senator John Kerry is taking heat from fellow Democrats, who think he's been caught flatfooted. So, the candidate is vowing to get more aggressive.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to take the wood to them over the course of these next two months, and we're going to show the difference in these parties.
HENRY: Not a moment too soon for anxious Democrats like Senator Chris Dodd. He told the "New York Times" Kerry had, "a very confused message in August, and the Republicans had a very clear and concise one." A "Newsweek" poll conducted on Thursday and Friday gives the president an 11-point edge.
MARY BETH CAHILL, KERRY CAMPAIGN MANAGER: We always thought that President Bush was going to get a bounce of about 12 percent. Some polls show it even, some show us down two.
HENRY: Kerry hopes to shift the focus to his perceived strength, domestic issues. He has a new Medicare ad taking aim at a promise the president made in his convention speech about prescription drugs.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now seniors are getting immediate help.
CAMPAIGN COMMERCIAL: The very next day George Bush imposes the biggest Medicare premium increase in history.
HENRY: On the stump, Kerry slammed the 17 percent hike for doctors visits.
KERRY: Now let me ask you something, who are they going to send the bill to? Are they going to send the bill to Halliburton?
CROWD: No.
KERRY: Are they going to send the bill to Ken Lay at Enron?
CROWD: No.
KERRY: You bet they're not. They're going to send the bill to our senior citizens.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: In about 20 minutes, John Kerry will be holding one of his front porch events right here in Cannonsburg, Pennsylvania just outside Pittsburgh. And in addition to talking about Medicare, since it's Labor Day, he will also be talking about another major domestic issue, jobs and the econom -- Kelly?
WALLACE: And I apologize for my confusion at the top of your report. But I wanted to ask you about reports that former President Clinton got on the phone and was talking to Senator John Kerry for about 90 minutes over the weekend to give him some campaign advice.
What do you know about that?
HENRY: That's right. CNN has confirmed that in fact there was this conversation between Senator Kerry and former President Clinton from his hospital bed on Saturday evening to talk about a little campaign advice.
This comes at a time when the campaign is facing a lot of heat from Democrats, who they think were too slow to react to the Swift Boat controversy. And a lot of staff changes coming in. Today, John Sasso, a Boston strategist, is taking on a higher profile. Also a lot of former Clinton aides coming into this campaign, like Joe Lockhart, Doug Sosnik.
Some people are suggesting there will be tension between the Kerry and Clinton camps. But I can tell you other Kerry advisers are saying they always knew that right after Labor Day it would be all hands on deck, the more the merrier -- Kelly?
WALLACE: Ed, thanks for rolling with me this morning. Congressional correspondent, Ed Henry, traveling with the Kerry campaign this week.
Well, as we've been talking about, former president, Bill Clinton, he is now undergoing heart bypass surgery. He was admitted to New York Presbyterian Hospital Friday after experiencing chest pains and shortness of breath.
The former president later called Larry King to talk about his condition.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, 42ND PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, some of this is genetic, and I may have done some damage in those years when I was too careless about what I ate. So, for whatever reason, I've got a problem, and I've got a chance to deal with it. And I feel that I really got --
Let me say this, that Republicans aren't the only people who want for four more years here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: The former president showing his sense of humor.
Dr. David Adams from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine is here to tell us all about Mr. Clinton's procedure.
Dr. Adams, thanks for joining us.
DR. DAVID ADAMS, MT. SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: My pleasure.
What can you tell us about the exact procedure that the former president is undergoing right now?
ADAMS: Well we just heard a report that he's going to have a conventional operation, which means they're going to work through the front. They're going to open the sternum and use the heart, lung machine to arrest his heart while they sew the bypass grafts festal (ph) to these blockages.
WALLACE: How risky is this procedure?
ADAMS: This is a very safe operation. His overall risk should be about one in 200. WALLACE: So, very -- fairly safe. How long after the procedure for recovery before that former president, who was on the phone with John Kerry over the weekend, might want to get out and do some campaigning for the Democratic presidential nominee.
ADAMS: Well, we'll see if he's on the phone tonight. I might give him a day or two. He'll be in the hospital four or five days. And I bet spends the next two or three weeks at home recovering with his family.
I would expect to see him out, within a month, back on the road.
WALLACE: You know, so much has been said about Bill Clinton, in the past year or so losing weight, going on the South Beach diet, exercising. Is there any way that those activities could have reversed years of bad behavior when it comes to fast food?
ADAMS: Well, it's never too late to start practicing good health for cardiovascular disease. And clearly diet, exercise -- these are the important things -- controlling your blood pressure, these are all important in terms of preventing progression of disease.
I think in his case, genetic predisposition probably is still the most important variable, and that's not something we can alter.
WALLACE: So, in the former president's case, genetic predisposition. Also eating fast food? I mean, what other factors do you think contributed to the president's fairly severe heart disease right now?
ADAMS: No, I think genetic predisposition is the most important. And I think being overweight, having the high cholesterol and not exercising, these are all other risk factors that all of us have to watch in order to enjoy good cardiovascular health.
WALLACE: And the former president has said he feels lucky that he went to his doctor with chest pains, that this condition had been discovered. What are the lessons here for really all of us based on the former president's experience?
ADAMS: I think the lessons are to exercise, see our doctor, watch our cholesterol; and when we have any symptoms, take them very seriously because President Clinton now is in a hospital. He's been safely diagnosed without any damage to his heart, and he's going to enjoy a normal, healthy life.
WALLACE: Dr. David Adams, from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Good advice for all of our viewers. Thanks for joining us today.
ADAMS: Thank you.
WALLACE: And now back to Hurricane Frances and Bill in Melbourne, Florida.
Hi again, Bill.
HEMMER: Hey, Kelly, thanks again.
We're waiting to figure out how long it's going to take for the power to come back on. Some estimates say it could be as long as a week. We'll talk with the city manager in Melbourne, talk about what this city suffered through.
Also, south of here, Sean Callebs standing by with more devastation from Frances. All in all, we are told, Florida got off pretty well so far.
Back in a moment here live in Melbourne after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: Jack Cafferty has the day off. We hope he is enjoying himself.
Joining us today, Toure with the "Question of the Day."
I made a rhyme.
TOURE: Look at you rolling with Ed, chilling with Toure.
WALLACE: That wasn't exactly rolling. That was rocky. Rocky.
TOURE: But now your chilling.
WALLACE: Now I'm -- because you're here.
TOURE: Kobe Bryant's criminal quagmire ended abruptly last week when his accuser dropped her charges against him. A civil settlement hasn't been announced yet, but legal experts say she probably already knows how much she's going to get.
Guilty or innocent, Kobe Bryant's image has clearly taken a hit. Once he had the top-selling jersey in the league and his commercials from McDonald's and Sprite were everywhere, now his jersey has dropped to number seven in sales, and his endorsers have run scared.
Can he return being an endorsement king? Has his image changed forever, or will America's short memory be his saving grace? Sure he wasn't convicted, but do you feel comfortable with your kids buying french fries from an admitted adulterer?
What will be Kobe Bryant's future as a product endorser? That's our "Question of the Day."
G from Ohio says, "I think the world understands. He's an excellent basketball player but also a sleaze ball. Why would anyone want someone of his moral turpitude to endorse any product? And why would any parent want their child to emulate him?"
Toughs words.
Dale from Philadelphia, where Kobe's initially from, well, at least as an American, "He should be pitching expensive jewelry. Yo, guys, when you mess up and your wife needs calming, consider a nice piece of bling. It'll take her mind of your abysmal lack of self- control."
Could you see Kobe for DeBeers? That's great.
WALLACE: Love it.
TOURE: Dan from Brooklyn, my hood, says, "Let's see. Can Kobe be popular again after admitting to adultery? Ah, let's see, is Bill Clinton popular?"
Very good.
And Mel from Cornwall-on-Hudson, who always e-mails, "It would really have to depend on what the product is. If he were trying to plug a detergent for its ability to remove bloodstains, maybe not." Ouch. "If it were the national association of criminal defense lawyers, maybe so."
Interesting.
WALLACE: Wow, we've got people fired up out there.
TOURE: I know, I know. They're excited on Labor Day.
WALLACE: More to come on this AMERICAN MORNING. Toure, thanks so much.
TOURE: Thank you.
Still to come, jobs and the economy could be the issues that decide the election. The White House is upbeat, but should the president be worried?
We'll talk with one of the most powerful unions in the country.
That's all ahead right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
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Aired September 6, 2004 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: She's about to do it again, today.
One of the most important days in Bill Clinton's life, the former president undergoing heart bypass surgery at this hour.
And who's in and who's out in the John Kerry campaign? Changes at the top for the final election stretch on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: This is AMERICAN MORNING. Here's Bill Hemmer.
HEMMER: Good morning, everyone, 8:00 here in Melbourne, Florida on the East Coast as the day starts to dawn on this Labor Day across the U.S.
And so many people, millions of people here in Florida waking up, yet again, today without power and electricity and also so many assessing the damage that was brought on by Frances.
(AUDIO GAP)
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Bill. We're having a few audio problems there from Melbourne, Florida. We're going to try and clear up that situation.
Also ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, a lot of political news this Labor Day. We're going to hear from a major supporter of John Kerry's, the secretary of the AFL-CIO joining us in a few minutes to talk about the economy and why the unions are backing Senator Kerry. That's coming up.
Also, Jack has the day off, but AMERICAN MORNING regulator Toure will be with us this morning. For now, let's go to Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta with stories now in the news.
Good morning, again, Betty.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Kelly.
Saddam Hussein's right hand man Izzat Ibrahim Al-Douri is not in Iraqi custody. In the last 15 minutes, Iraqi ministry officials confirmed to CNN that medical tests proved a captured suspect is not Al-Douri. Now, the man was one of 150 people captured during a raid over the weekend.
Former president, Bill Clinton, is now undergoing heart bypass surgery. Surgeons monitored Clinton for the past hours waiting for blood-thinning medicine to clear his system before beginning the procedure.
Coming up, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is live at New York's Columbia Presbyterian Hospital with the latest on that operation.
Russians are mourning the 340 victims of a standoff at a school near the Chechen border. Families and neighbors are now heading to the cemeteries where as many as 100 children, parents and teachers will be buried this morning.
Russian officials say they have detained a man in connection with those killings, but it's not clear when and where he was arrested. The man denied any involvement in the siege.
Japan is recovering after a powerful typhoon slammed into its southern islands. More than 20 people are reported hurt, and more rain is expected to spawn mudslides in the area.
Also, two earthquakes shook major cities and caused buildings to sway in Tokyo.
Kelly, back to you. Good morning.
WALLACE: Thanks again, Betty, we appreciate that.
We want to bring you an update on what's going on with former president, Bill Clinton's, surgery. We're going to turn now to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who is outside New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Good morning, again, Sanjay. What can you tell us? We know that surgery is now under way.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
Yes, I've been talking to sources inside the hospital. We're hearing that the operation is under way. It is being performed by Dr. Craig Smith. He's chairman of the department of cardio thoracic surgery.
Perhaps most importantly, we're hearing that this operation is being done in the traditional way. It does involve an incision up and down the sternum, opening the chest cavity and stopping the heart, stopping the heart and then performing the bypass operations, restarting the heart at the end of the procedure.
Kelly, we've been talking a lot about the possibility of a keyhole-type operation, where the operation is performed on a beating heart from sources inside the hospital; now we're hearing that's not going to happen.
In fact, the heart is being stopped, possibly right about now even, Kelly.
WALLACE: Any estimation of how long such a procedure, such a surgery should take? GUPTA: Usually the operation will take about four to five hours perhaps. He will probably be groggy, if not asleep, until late into the afternoon. But I think you're going to be surprised, as is everyone, how awake you'll see him, probably by later on this evening.
He'll be in the intensive care unit overnight and then probably out to the general care floor in a day or so, so pretty quick recovery, most likely, Kelly.
WALLACE: OK, Sanjay, thanks for the update. Sanjay Gupta reporting outside New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Now we want to go back to more coverage of Hurricane Frances and Bill in Melbourne, Florida. Hi, again, Bill.
HEMMER: Hey, Kelly, thanks. I was saying earlier this storm lasted so long, 30 hours in length over the east coast of Florida, with it 400 miles wide.
And the damage really is up and down this coast. You can drive for literally 100 miles and still see some remnants of the damage that was caused by Frances over the weekend.
But now this storm is still forming. In fact, it's moving toward the panhandle. Tom Foreman is watching the situation there in the Gulf in Carrabelle, Florida; and Kathleen Koch back with us again in St. Augustine, America's oldest city.
Let's start with where Frances is headed today. Here's Tom with that. Good morning, Tom.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. It is exactly as you described here, it's just that people are waiting for the damage you've had down there. We've had a little bit of it.
The peak wind gusts a few feet from where I'm standing right now so far have been 54 miles an hour. That's not a whole lot, but enough to bring some trees down. And much to the credit of various power units around here, they were out last night restoring power immediately trying to stay ahead of this, so they have as little damage as possible.
Now, one of the big concerns with any hurricane is location and timing. The location here was hit by Bonnie a few weeks ago, not much happened there. But this week, over the next few hours, what they're going to be watching here is the timing of this storm sweeping in because it will arrive at the same time that high tide comes in.
So, you have two forces working together. Some of these low- lying roads around here can flood very, very easily, even from a big rainstorm. So, people are watching that, hoping that folks don't wind up stranded.
At the moment, they're feeling like this may not be too bad here; but after all they've seen over the past few days, they're certainly not wanting to take chances -- Bill? HEMMER: Indeed, the words gone out. Tom, thanks for that. Tom Foreman in Carrabelle.
Kathleen Koch in St. Augustine, where the storm has moved through. Kathleen, good morning there.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill. Well, as you can see, this is how people throughout the state of Florida are coping this morning. It is light by candlelight, flashlight, lantern, whatever you can find.
We're in one of the major hotels here in St. Augustine, Cosamonica (ph). They've done better than most. We actually provided them with the light powered off of our generator. But they, amazingly, even came up this morning with a hot breakfast, scrambled eggs, sausage, hot coffee.
But two-thirds of this county of 150,000 people is estimated to be without power primarily because so many of the huge, old oak trees came down on the power lines. They're out checking the lines. Now, they have no idea when they'll be able to restore power, so needless to say, airports are shut down in this area.
The flooding in the street was not as bad as we worried that it might be here because much of this old, historic downtown part of St. Augustine is below sea level, so they were really very fortunate, a lot more fortunate than they might have been.
There was some damage to some homes in the area. A condominium south of town had its roof ripped off and had to be evacuated in the middle of the night.
We're still under a tropical storm warning here and also a flood watch. The winds are still whipping around outside. A good bit of rain is still coming down. But again, the word from folks at the emergency operations center here in St. Johns County is, again, that they are very fortunate -- Bill?
HEMMER: All right, Kathleen, thanks for that.
Really up and down the east coast, that is the scene that you will find in every town on the east coast of Florida. People just buying their time, waiting for the power to come back, waiting for it to be safe for them to come back to their homes.
We're in the Barrier Islands. This area was evacuated first last Thursday, actually, and then again on Friday. That's when the word went out first to these people to get out and clear out.
We're back here today because we've been given permission by the police. And they are allowing residents to come back, so far as they can prove that they live here, to come back and inspect the damage, if they have any, at their homes and businesses.
Chad Myers back with me again, today. And Chad, good morning to you. And you've had a long weekend yourself, buddy. Good morning. CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Bill.
Yes, now the latest stats on Frances. Now it's back in the Gulf of Mexico, and it has a potential to strengthen. But the 8:00 advisory does not have it strengthening.
Sixty-five mile per hour, those are the maximum winds, just drifting to the north and maybe a little bit toward the northwest. Because it is drifting and not moving too much, it's over that very warm water. That indicates the potential for this storm to get stronger.
Right now, though, just tropical storm Frances. It is not a hurricane anymore because it has lost its hurricane wind force.
Next things we have to worry about is another storm way out in the Atlantic. We'll worry about that later on. But for now, we're still worried about Frances.
The rest of the country not worried about it, too much, really a very nice Labor Day for most of the U.S. The northeast looks absolutely terrific. A couple showers through the Central Plains but nothing, really, else across the country for this Labor Day weekend.
And I guess finally the folks here finally get to take a little bit of a breather and maybe pick up some of this stuff. At least up here in Melbourne, the winds were not as strong as they are about 20 miles down to our south.
We were down to a place called Barefoot Bay yesterday; and it didn't look quite like Punta Gorda, but you get the idea. All of the aluminum siding from all of the mobile homes out there all flying all over the place.
The good news is there were absolutely no injuries at all because of the evacuation. I think folks really here -- I don't want to say got lucky because there's damage -- but at least there was no fatalities that we know of, at least in this county.
Bill, back to you.
HEMMER: Well, isn't that the truth, yes. What a silver lining in there, too. Chad, thanks for that.
And a lot of people packing an awful lot of patience over the weekend and yet again today, too.
Down in Sewalls Point, Florida, far south of our location here, that's where the eye came on shore late Saturday night, early Sunday morning. There is damage down there to talk about.
Jason Carroll is inspecting that for us today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chris Nunnelee woke up early Sunday to see what Hurricane Frances had done and found a 70-foot tree toppled over in his front yard.
CHRIS NUNNELEEE, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: When I heard it fall, it was certainly a hollow feeling thinking, oh, God, what was that? But fortunately, no damage, we're all safe.
CARROLL: Nunnelee lives in Sewalls Point, a peninsula 50 miles north of West Palm Beach. It's where the eye of Frances came ashore.
MINDY NUNNELEE, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: This is our safe room.
CARROLL: The Nunnelee family rode out the storm at home in this closet.
NUNNELEE: It was quite scary. Very windy, you would hear trees falling or splitting and things hitting the plywood.
CARROLL: Most in Sewalls Point heeded warnings and evacuated. This is what many will come home to: docks gone, front yards buried by trees, storm surge carried a boat into this backyard.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not really sure who's boat it is, but they will be very disappointed when they find it.
CARROLL (on camera): The force of Frances was so strong, it uprooted massive trees like this one. The storm surge so powerful, it caused roadways like this to collapse.
(voice-over) The few who stayed checked on the homes of the many who had left.
KEN WOODS, HURRICANE SURVIVOR: It looks better than we expected. We were really worried because he lives, as you can see about 40, 50 feet right off water.
CARROLL: They've already started clearing the streets here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got this whole town to clean up. We've just started.
CARROLL: Soon more will be coming home and most will have a home to return to.
Surprisingly, there was little structural damage. Many here thought being in the path of the eye would be much worse, they are grateful it was not.
Jason Carroll, CNN, Sewalls Point, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Jason, thanks for that.
I want to get back to Tallahassee now. Colleen Castille is the secretary of environmental protection. She's my guest now. And good morning on this Labor Day, and welcome to AMERICAN MORNING.
What can your agency do for the people of Florida now?
COLLEEN CASTILLE, SECRETARY FLORIDA DEP: Good morning, Bill. We have - are experiencing massive power outages in the state of Florida. There is some utilities out in 53 of 67 of Florida's counties, and we're working closely and quickly to restore that electricity.
We have approximately 15,000 line and tree crews that have begun moving into the state of Florida and removing debris and restoring electricity to our customers.
HEMMER: In the immediate term, we talked last hour with the spokesperson from Florida Power and Light. That's the company that controls electricity for about half of your residents, eight million in total for that company. When can they expect to get the lights back on?
CASTILLE: Well, as you know, we're going through damage assessments. And some people have had their electricity restored. But the massive number of outages that we have will have us probably working for up to two weeks to restore electricity.
But in that ensuing two weeks, customers will receive their electricity.
HEMMER: Well listen, there was a report this morning in the "New York Times" that says there's an estimate out there, that between Charley and now Frances, that Florida may suffer $40 billion in damage.
Does that sound right to you, that figure?
CASTILLE: I have not talked with the insurance folks. But those numbers are not -- are a little more expensive than what I've seen.
HEMMER: All right. And also here in Melbourne, there was an effort over the past three year, they spent millions, about $15 million to try and restore the beach.
Do you know, at this point, how much surf damage has been done by Frances?
CASTILLE: We began our assessments on this morning, and so we will know later today. We just know basically from the weather and the fact that Hurricane Frances did sit offshore for approximately 24 hours just pounding the surf, so we are expecting extensive damage on our beaches.
HEMMER: Erosion has to be a chief concern, too.
Thank you. Colleen Castille is the secretary of environmental protection, my guest in Tallahassee, Florida.
Much more in a moment here from Florida.
I want to back to Kelly Wallace yet again, though, who is watching the rest of the news back there. Kelly, good morning again.
WALLACE: Good morning, again to you, Bill.
Still to come -- the latest job numbers appear to be good news for the White House, but there are those who beg to differ. We'll talk to the AFL-CIO.
Plus, the latest on former President Clinton's heart surgery going on at this hour, doctors think there are lessons we can all learn. We'll have a look.
Plus we'll go back to Bill in Florida, that state taking a pounding from Frances, a live update. That's all ahead right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: President Bush's boost in the polls from last week's Republican National Convention has some Democrats very worried. Congressional correspondent Ed Henry is live this morning from Cannonsburg, Pennsylvania.
Good morning, Ed. I want to ask you about reports that...
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
WALLACE: Let me ask...
HENRY: Labor Day is a traditional kickoff.
WALLACE: Go ahead, Ed.
HENRY: I'm sorry, Kelly.
WALLACE: You go ahead.
HENRY: Labor Day is a traditional kickoff of the final stretch of the presidential campaign. And with the clock ticking, there's a lot of pressure on John Kerry to crank up his campaign another notch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY (voice-over): President Bush has surged out of his convention with a bump in the polls and a united GOP. Senator John Kerry is taking heat from fellow Democrats, who think he's been caught flatfooted. So, the candidate is vowing to get more aggressive.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to take the wood to them over the course of these next two months, and we're going to show the difference in these parties.
HENRY: Not a moment too soon for anxious Democrats like Senator Chris Dodd. He told the "New York Times" Kerry had, "a very confused message in August, and the Republicans had a very clear and concise one." A "Newsweek" poll conducted on Thursday and Friday gives the president an 11-point edge.
MARY BETH CAHILL, KERRY CAMPAIGN MANAGER: We always thought that President Bush was going to get a bounce of about 12 percent. Some polls show it even, some show us down two.
HENRY: Kerry hopes to shift the focus to his perceived strength, domestic issues. He has a new Medicare ad taking aim at a promise the president made in his convention speech about prescription drugs.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now seniors are getting immediate help.
CAMPAIGN COMMERCIAL: The very next day George Bush imposes the biggest Medicare premium increase in history.
HENRY: On the stump, Kerry slammed the 17 percent hike for doctors visits.
KERRY: Now let me ask you something, who are they going to send the bill to? Are they going to send the bill to Halliburton?
CROWD: No.
KERRY: Are they going to send the bill to Ken Lay at Enron?
CROWD: No.
KERRY: You bet they're not. They're going to send the bill to our senior citizens.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: In about 20 minutes, John Kerry will be holding one of his front porch events right here in Cannonsburg, Pennsylvania just outside Pittsburgh. And in addition to talking about Medicare, since it's Labor Day, he will also be talking about another major domestic issue, jobs and the econom -- Kelly?
WALLACE: And I apologize for my confusion at the top of your report. But I wanted to ask you about reports that former President Clinton got on the phone and was talking to Senator John Kerry for about 90 minutes over the weekend to give him some campaign advice.
What do you know about that?
HENRY: That's right. CNN has confirmed that in fact there was this conversation between Senator Kerry and former President Clinton from his hospital bed on Saturday evening to talk about a little campaign advice.
This comes at a time when the campaign is facing a lot of heat from Democrats, who they think were too slow to react to the Swift Boat controversy. And a lot of staff changes coming in. Today, John Sasso, a Boston strategist, is taking on a higher profile. Also a lot of former Clinton aides coming into this campaign, like Joe Lockhart, Doug Sosnik.
Some people are suggesting there will be tension between the Kerry and Clinton camps. But I can tell you other Kerry advisers are saying they always knew that right after Labor Day it would be all hands on deck, the more the merrier -- Kelly?
WALLACE: Ed, thanks for rolling with me this morning. Congressional correspondent, Ed Henry, traveling with the Kerry campaign this week.
Well, as we've been talking about, former president, Bill Clinton, he is now undergoing heart bypass surgery. He was admitted to New York Presbyterian Hospital Friday after experiencing chest pains and shortness of breath.
The former president later called Larry King to talk about his condition.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, 42ND PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, some of this is genetic, and I may have done some damage in those years when I was too careless about what I ate. So, for whatever reason, I've got a problem, and I've got a chance to deal with it. And I feel that I really got --
Let me say this, that Republicans aren't the only people who want for four more years here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: The former president showing his sense of humor.
Dr. David Adams from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine is here to tell us all about Mr. Clinton's procedure.
Dr. Adams, thanks for joining us.
DR. DAVID ADAMS, MT. SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: My pleasure.
What can you tell us about the exact procedure that the former president is undergoing right now?
ADAMS: Well we just heard a report that he's going to have a conventional operation, which means they're going to work through the front. They're going to open the sternum and use the heart, lung machine to arrest his heart while they sew the bypass grafts festal (ph) to these blockages.
WALLACE: How risky is this procedure?
ADAMS: This is a very safe operation. His overall risk should be about one in 200. WALLACE: So, very -- fairly safe. How long after the procedure for recovery before that former president, who was on the phone with John Kerry over the weekend, might want to get out and do some campaigning for the Democratic presidential nominee.
ADAMS: Well, we'll see if he's on the phone tonight. I might give him a day or two. He'll be in the hospital four or five days. And I bet spends the next two or three weeks at home recovering with his family.
I would expect to see him out, within a month, back on the road.
WALLACE: You know, so much has been said about Bill Clinton, in the past year or so losing weight, going on the South Beach diet, exercising. Is there any way that those activities could have reversed years of bad behavior when it comes to fast food?
ADAMS: Well, it's never too late to start practicing good health for cardiovascular disease. And clearly diet, exercise -- these are the important things -- controlling your blood pressure, these are all important in terms of preventing progression of disease.
I think in his case, genetic predisposition probably is still the most important variable, and that's not something we can alter.
WALLACE: So, in the former president's case, genetic predisposition. Also eating fast food? I mean, what other factors do you think contributed to the president's fairly severe heart disease right now?
ADAMS: No, I think genetic predisposition is the most important. And I think being overweight, having the high cholesterol and not exercising, these are all other risk factors that all of us have to watch in order to enjoy good cardiovascular health.
WALLACE: And the former president has said he feels lucky that he went to his doctor with chest pains, that this condition had been discovered. What are the lessons here for really all of us based on the former president's experience?
ADAMS: I think the lessons are to exercise, see our doctor, watch our cholesterol; and when we have any symptoms, take them very seriously because President Clinton now is in a hospital. He's been safely diagnosed without any damage to his heart, and he's going to enjoy a normal, healthy life.
WALLACE: Dr. David Adams, from the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Good advice for all of our viewers. Thanks for joining us today.
ADAMS: Thank you.
WALLACE: And now back to Hurricane Frances and Bill in Melbourne, Florida.
Hi again, Bill.
HEMMER: Hey, Kelly, thanks again.
We're waiting to figure out how long it's going to take for the power to come back on. Some estimates say it could be as long as a week. We'll talk with the city manager in Melbourne, talk about what this city suffered through.
Also, south of here, Sean Callebs standing by with more devastation from Frances. All in all, we are told, Florida got off pretty well so far.
Back in a moment here live in Melbourne after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WALLACE: Jack Cafferty has the day off. We hope he is enjoying himself.
Joining us today, Toure with the "Question of the Day."
I made a rhyme.
TOURE: Look at you rolling with Ed, chilling with Toure.
WALLACE: That wasn't exactly rolling. That was rocky. Rocky.
TOURE: But now your chilling.
WALLACE: Now I'm -- because you're here.
TOURE: Kobe Bryant's criminal quagmire ended abruptly last week when his accuser dropped her charges against him. A civil settlement hasn't been announced yet, but legal experts say she probably already knows how much she's going to get.
Guilty or innocent, Kobe Bryant's image has clearly taken a hit. Once he had the top-selling jersey in the league and his commercials from McDonald's and Sprite were everywhere, now his jersey has dropped to number seven in sales, and his endorsers have run scared.
Can he return being an endorsement king? Has his image changed forever, or will America's short memory be his saving grace? Sure he wasn't convicted, but do you feel comfortable with your kids buying french fries from an admitted adulterer?
What will be Kobe Bryant's future as a product endorser? That's our "Question of the Day."
G from Ohio says, "I think the world understands. He's an excellent basketball player but also a sleaze ball. Why would anyone want someone of his moral turpitude to endorse any product? And why would any parent want their child to emulate him?"
Toughs words.
Dale from Philadelphia, where Kobe's initially from, well, at least as an American, "He should be pitching expensive jewelry. Yo, guys, when you mess up and your wife needs calming, consider a nice piece of bling. It'll take her mind of your abysmal lack of self- control."
Could you see Kobe for DeBeers? That's great.
WALLACE: Love it.
TOURE: Dan from Brooklyn, my hood, says, "Let's see. Can Kobe be popular again after admitting to adultery? Ah, let's see, is Bill Clinton popular?"
Very good.
And Mel from Cornwall-on-Hudson, who always e-mails, "It would really have to depend on what the product is. If he were trying to plug a detergent for its ability to remove bloodstains, maybe not." Ouch. "If it were the national association of criminal defense lawyers, maybe so."
Interesting.
WALLACE: Wow, we've got people fired up out there.
TOURE: I know, I know. They're excited on Labor Day.
WALLACE: More to come on this AMERICAN MORNING. Toure, thanks so much.
TOURE: Thank you.
Still to come, jobs and the economy could be the issues that decide the election. The White House is upbeat, but should the president be worried?
We'll talk with one of the most powerful unions in the country.
That's all ahead right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
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