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American Morning
Bush Makes State Visit to Canada; Kofi Annan's Son Linked to Company in Oil-for-Food Scandal; Penalty Phase to Begin for Scott Peterson
Aired November 30, 2004 - 09:00 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.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: President Bush is leaving for Canada this hour. His first official trip, and protesters are ready.
A dramatic day of testimony ahead in the Scott Peterson trial. What will the jury hear as it decides on life or death?
And taking military recruiting into the fast lane. A big pitch to NASCAR fans and why it's working on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
S. O'BRIEN: Bill Hemmer is actually off today. Good morning. Welcome, everybody. Miles O'Brien, though, is filling in.
Nice to have you. Thank you very much for helping us out.
MILES O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: It's good to be here for yet another hour. All right.
S. O'BRIEN: That sounds so funny.
JACK CAFFERTY, CO-HOST: Speak for yourself.
M. O'BRIEN: Some of the -- some of the stories we're following this morning for you, on a more serious note. Another possible al Qaeda videotape under the microscope. The tape showing Osama bin Laden's right-hand man came to light yesterday. We'll talk with a former member of the National Security Council about the message and who it might have been intended for.
S. O'BRIEN: Also this morning, medical science could take a lie detection test to a whole new level by going right to the part of the brain that the lie actually comes from. Sanjay's going to tell us about this discovery. They can actually see a lie as it's happening.
Will you stop touching my stuff on the desk?
CAFFERTY: Excuse me? Don't put your stuff on the desk.
S. O'BRIEN: He's, like, touching my computer and my papers.
M. O'BRIEN: Is there a line there?
S. O'BRIEN: My papers. Is everything all right today? M. O'BRIEN: That's my -- that's my line there.
S. O'BRIEN: OK. All right.
CAFFERTY: The e-mail question of the day this morning has to do with the U.N. oil-for-food program, which is beginning to resemble a compost heap, the odor coming off this thing.
Turns out that Kofi Annan's kid was apparently taking payment from one of the Swiss companies that had a lucrative oil-for-food contract for the last five years. And nobody knew about it until the "New York Sun" did a little first class reporting and brought the story to light.
So we're wondering if it's time for Mr. Annan and his family to pack up and find a new address. AM@CNN.com.
Let me put this back.
S. O'BRIEN: Exactly. You think? Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: You're welcome.
M. O'BRIEN: Thanks. Let's check the headlines now. Heidi Collins here with that.
Good morning, Heidi.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you guys. And good morning, everybody.
Now in the news this morning, authorities in Colorado believe they have found the body of NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol's 14- year-old son. The body was found last night beneath the wreckage of the crashed jet. A total of three people were killed in Sunday's crash. Ebersol and his older son did survive.
The man accused in the Wisconsin deer hunter shootings faces a judge this hour. Chai Vang has been charged with six counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Due to security concerns, Vang will reportedly make his court appearance in a room at the jail instead of the courthouse.
And there is word this morning the president of the NAACP is stepping down, according to the "Baltimore Sun." Kweisi Mfume will announce his resignation today. The group's legal counsel is expected to be named interim president until a replacement is found.
And today is the last official day of this year's hurricane season. A lot of people happy to hear that. Hurricanes Charlie, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne killed more than 100 people and cost Floridians, as you see from the damage here, more than $20 billion in damages. The state legislature is set to convene next month to discuss post-hurricane tax and insurance measures.
And Fein (ph), producer Ted Fein (ph) has been doing a little research on that. He says the real loser here is Nicole, because that would have been the name of the next hurricane, Nicole. But the year is through and so we never get to use her name because next year we start with the A's.
S. O'BRIEN: Poor Nicole. But I've got to tell you, everybody else in Florida, especially, they are saying whatever. Yes. Good news for them. Thanks, Heidi.
President Bush traveling to Canada today for a two-day visit with Prime Minister Paul Martin. The two leaders are expected to discuss a number of issues, including terrorism and border control.
Elaine Quijano is live for us at the White House this morning.
Hi, Elaine. Good morning.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.
This will be President Bush's first state visit since his re- election, a sign that he really wants to reach out to Canadians and try and move past some of the bad feelings left over from the Iraq invasion.
Now the president last met with Prime Minister Martin, the Canadian prime minister, in Chile less than two weeks ago. But the two men, of course, have met several times before that, including here at the White House back in April.
Now, in Canada, where many people firmly oppose the Iraq invasion, as I mentioned, sore feelings still linger, and Canada did not send troops to join that effort.
The atmosphere that will be greeting the president, one of tight security, as always. Officials are expecting protests, people expressing their anti-war sentiments.
The situation in Iraq likely to come up on the agenda, as well as a number of other items. And those include border security, trade issues, and the war on terrorism.
And on that last point, Soledad, the president will be traveling from Ottawa, his first stop today, and heading to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to talk about the war on terrorism.
Now, many Americans may not realize that in the immediate days after the September 11 attacks, thousands of Americans found themselves stranded because, as you remember, flights were grounded and diverted. Well, in that particular area around Halifax, Canadians opened up their homes.
President Bush will draw attention to them. He will thank them for their efforts, then also talk about the larger war on terrorism. All of it meant to reach out to Canadians, perhaps a fresh start both U.S. and Canadian officials are hoping for here, a chance to move forward and improve those strained relations -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Some strong fence mending measures to talk about. Elaine Quijano for us this morning. Elaine, thanks -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Fresh calls for the resignation of U.N. Secretary- General Kofi Annan. We've been talking about that all morning. This following a report saying that Annan's son may have been on the payroll of a company hired by the U.N.
CNN's senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth joins us with more.
Good morning, Richard.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
During this unfolding oil-for-food scandal, Kofi Annan, the U.N. chief, has certainly had his problems. But now, revelations about his son represent a new personal and political low.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH (voice-over): The oil-for-food controversy has now turned into a family affair at the highest levels. United Nations Secretary- General Kofi Annan says he was unaware that his son got paid by a Swiss company at the heart of the oil-for-food story for years longer than previously acknowledged.
Is Annan angry with his son, Kojo, for not telling him?
KOFI ANNAN, SECRETARY-GENERAL, UNITED NATIONS: Naturally, I was very disappointed and surprised, yes.
ROTH: Annan's son was hired as a consultant by the company Cotecna, which won the contract to inspect humanitarian goods going into Iraq under the oil-for-food program. But the company says he was assigned to West Africa and there was no connection with oil-for-food.
Kofi Annan says he did not expect the relationship to continue.
ANNAN: I have warm family relations with my son. But he's in a different field. He's an independent. He's a grown man. And I don't get involved with his activities, and he doesn't get involved in mine.
ROTH: But the failure by the company or the U.N. twice to state the length of the Annan family ties to the company, right up until corruption stories broke big this year, adds more fuel to a number of American opinion makers who are calling for Kofi Annan to resign. The U.N. chief declined to answer those calls but knows it could look bad.
ANNAN: The deception problem for the U.N., or the perception of conflict of interest, I understand that.
ROTH: The U.S., a proponent of the original oil-for-food program, is concerned about this Annan disclosure.
JOHN DANFORTH, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: This deserves very careful attention, a very close investigation. And let all the facts come out. ROTH: The U.N. says it checked in 1998 after a press report and was told Kojo Annan was not linked to the company which won the bid to inspect all for food. Now it's all in the hands of the U.N.-approved investigation, run by former Fed chairman Paul Volcker.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH: Representatives for Kojo Annan and the Swiss company Cotecna say they are fully cooperating with the Volcker probe -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Richard, does the United Nations have clear-cut nepotism rules in these sorts of situations?
ROTH: No, not necessarily. But the U.N. says it's surprised that Kojo Annan turned up working for Cotecna. Seems a little surprising because his father is the secretary-general.
But this does represent serious problems for Annan. If he can't show that he really knew what his son was doing with oil-for-food, critics will say perhaps some people in his administration may have been working too closely with Iraq on the oil-for-food scandal, could have been accepting bribes.
Nothing proven yet against Kojo Annan, Kofi Annan or anyone in the U.N. First Volcker report in January, full report middle of next year.
M. O'BRIEN: Richard Roth at the U.N., thank you very much.
As I mentioned just a moment ago, we've been talking about this all morning with Jack. More of his e-mails, actually your e-mails, are coming up soon. We appreciate them -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Life or death for Scott Peterson? That's what jurors will have to decide as the double murder trial now moves into its penalty phase.
Dean Johnson is a former San Mateo County prosecutor, joining us from Redwood City, California, to talk about all of the developments.
Nice to see you. Any prices that the state supreme court basically shot down some of the things that Mark Geragos was hoping to get through?
DEAN JOHNSON, FORMER SAN MATEO COUNTY PROSECUTOR: No, that was no surprise whatsoever. In fact the opposite would have been a huge surprise.
Remember, Mark Geragos' writs to the supreme court were requesting a new jury, a change of venue based on press coverage of the guilt phase verdict.
There are only twelve people who haven't seen the press coverage of that guilt phase verdict. They're already on the jury. And certainly, the supreme court said these people are the most qualified to decide the penalty phase of this case.
S. O'BRIEN: Maybe the most emotional testimony will begin today. We're expecting to hear at some point soon from Sharon Rocha -- Rocha, rather, Laci's mother.
Let's take you back, though, to 2003, in April, after Scott Peterson was arrested, and listen to what she had to say. You were there. It was heart wrenching.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHARON ROCHA, LACI'S MOTHER: Soon after Laci went missing, I made a promise to her that if she's been harmed, we will seek justice for her and Conner, and make sure that that person responsible for their disappearance -- for their deaths, will be punished.
I can only hope that the sound of Laci's voice begging for her life and begging for the life of her unborn child is heard over and over and over again in the mind of that person every day for the rest of his life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: One has to imagine that that's the tone that we are going to hear again as Sharon Rocha talks to the jurors and asks them to give Scott Peterson the death penalty.
JOHNSON: Well, I think there's no question about it, that Sharon Rocha right now is the most important person in that courtroom. She has an extraordinary rapport with this jury. Every time she smiles, which she does occasionally, this jury, I think, thinks of Laci Peterson.
And this jury is going to give her whatever she asks. And whatever she sees as justice, they will do.
S. O'BRIEN: At the same time, we will eventually hear from Scott Peterson's mother. One has to imagine, again, that that is going to be emotional, as a mother, begging twelve people to spare her son's life. She gets to go last. That truly does give that side the advantage, doesn't it?
JOHNSON: Well, you know, it's hard to say who has the advantage. I know that the fact that Jackie and Lee Peterson, Scott's parents, have testified, and have generally been seen as lacking credibility, is going to make it very difficult for them to get up and beg for their son's life.
In effect, they're going to say to this jury, "You don't know Scott Peterson."
I think the jury is going to respond and say, "You know, Lee and Jackie, you don't know Scott Peterson. The Scott Peterson that you raised is a very different person from the man who's sitting in this courtroom right now."
S. O'BRIEN: Outside the mother's testimony, what other things will the jurors be looking at as they consider life or death?
JOHNSON: I think there are two factors that the prosecution will raise. First of all, is obviously the victim impact in the broader sense. Not just the family, but the community that went on a wild goose chase because of the lies that Scott Peterson told them, the police that were misdirected.
Scott Peterson's complete lack of remorse. The fact that he was chatting up his girlfriend while the rest of the community was involved in a candlelight vigil.
From the defense standpoint, the strongest points they can make, this is Scott Peterson's first offense. No history of violence. No prior felony convictions.
S. O'BRIEN: Dean Johnson, the former San Mateo County prosecutor, joining us with insight, as always. Dean, thanks, we'll continue to chat with you.
JOHNSON: Thank you, Soledad.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's check the weather now. Rob Marciano at the weather center in Atlanta.
Good morning, Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Rob.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, the old-fashioned lie detector test might soon be extinct. Dr. Gupta says a brainy replacement is on the horizon. We'll explain.
M. O'BRIEN: Also the Army puts the pedal to the metal. Kind of a new twist on the term drafting, if you get my drift. Uncle Sam teams up with NASCAR to bolster the ranks.
S. O'BRIEN: And al Qaeda's No. 2 man says he has a new message for America, but is he really trying to reach a different audience? That's ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Experts are analyzing the latest al Qaeda videotape. Ayman al-Zawahiri is said to be Osama bin Laden's right-hand man. He was shown on a tape yesterday vowing to continue the fight against America.
Steve Simon is a Middle East and terrorism expert for the Rand Corporation. He's in our Washington bureau this morning.
Nice to see you, Steve. Thanks for being with us.
STEVE SIMON, TERRORISM EXPERT, RAND CORPORATION: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: What do you make of the tone of this tape?
SIMON: Well, you have Zawahiri trying to appeal to two audiences. His tone doesn't differ that much from his previous appearances. He's -- he comes across as a bit petulant.
But, you know, he's trying to tell his fellow Muslims that he's still there, and he and bin Laden still count for something, even though they're hidden away. And he's trying to reach Americans, as well, telling them that they are responsible for what their governments do.
S. O'BRIEN: Three tapes since September. Is there some kind of message in that?
SIMON: Well, statistically, attacks do follow within about a 60- day period of tapes like this. Whether the statistical pattern holds in this case, we'll see.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's listen to a little bit of this tape. As you say, he addresses the American people directly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI, SECOND IN COMMAND, AL QAEDA (through translator): We are telling the American nation, elect who you want, Bush, Kerry, or even Satan himself. This is not important to us. What's important to us is to cleanse our land from the attackers and the invaders. And to fight everybody who fights us, and steals our wealth.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: You have said that this tape is not only for Americans, but for Muslims in America, and Muslims everywhere. Why do you think that's the point?
SIMON: Well, bin Laden and Zawahiri are leaders of what has become a worldwide movement. But at the same time, they're basically invisible. They're in hiding. They're in a remote area. They don't have regular contact with the movement.
And they, therefore, have a need to establish themselves in the minds of followers of the movement, as the leaders, even though they're in hiding and they have no direct control over events. Their way of doing this is to appear on videotapes that we -- that they know will be circulated very widely.
Basically, they're putting their footprint on the movement and making sure that their followers are focused on the right objectives.
S. O'BRIEN: Steve Simon, the senior analyst at Rand Corporation. Nice to have you. Thanks for talking with us this morning.
SIMON: Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, what could have caused the crash of that charter jet was carrying NBC Sports chief Dick Ebersol? We're going to hear from the head of the NTSB, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack's back with more e-mail.
CAFFERTY: Yes. That U.N. oil-for-food program is getting curiouser and curiouser. Now it turns out Kofi Annan's son was taking payments from a Swiss company that had a lucrative oil-for-food contract. His dad, the secretary-general of the U.N., professed not to know a thing about it.
There are several investigations under way into what happened to the $64 billion. That's how much oil was taken out of Iraq in the oil-for-food program.
So we're asking if it's maybe time for Kofi Annan to step down.
Robin in Atlanta, Georgia, "Kofi Annan should resign immediately. As long as he's secretary-general, the U.N. will never have credibility in the global arena again under his leadership. This incident further defines how self-interest at the highest level of the United Nations directly affected millions of starving people in the Middle East."
Johnny in Vicksburg, Mississippi disagrees: "I'm tired of hearing everyone bash the U.N. Just like democracy it may not be perfect, but it's the best thing we've got so far in bringing different countries, cultures and societies together."
Maura writes from Ontario, "Yes, of course he should step down. He should have done so ages ago. Not for a second do I believe he didn't know what his son was up to. And why was his son involved in the oil-for-food program to begin with? Is this not a conflict of interest?"
And Tiffany writes, from Norfolk, Virginia, "The United Nations building is sitting on a valuable piece of real estate in Manhattan. If we get rid of Kofi Annan and his useless tea party companions we could open up something that could actually be useful, like a Jack Cafferty Living Library and Museum."
S. O'BRIEN: What's with the living library? Usually, they give you -- you get that kind of...
CAFFERTY: Well, so far today. I mean, it's early, 9:25, but I'm still thumping around. Jack Cafferty Living Library and Museum.
They could use that real estate for -- to a better purpose. Put these guys in, you know, a Quonset hut in Newark and let them do their meetings there and, you know, get something worthwhile over here.
S. O'BRIEN: Then they wouldn't be able to get all that money back from the diplomats, who park and don't pay their parking tickets. CAFFERTY: And then don't pay their park -- or their kids who come here and commit crimes and are never prosecuted. They're just simply sent home. Or all the other rampant abuses that are pulled off at the expense of our country and our laws and our society by these foreign free loaders that come here under the guise of doing diplomatic business at the United Nations.
S. O'BRIEN: How do you really feel, Jack?
CAFFERTY: How much time have we got?
M. O'BRIEN: OK. I think it should be a new Trump Tower. And there's got to be a reality show in all this.
CAFFERTY: There you go.
M. O'BRIEN: I don't know. All right, thank you.
A plague of biblical proportions has descended on the Canary Islands. You've got to wait for this, Jack. This is good. Locusts, 100 million of them. Who did the counting?
Anyway, it's grounding airplanes, blocking drivers' view of roads, scaring off the tourists. Where's Charlton Heston when you need them?
They're harmless to people but extremely dangerous to crops. The locusts made the 60-mile flight from North Africa, where they've already caused devastation there.
Now, in the Bible locusts are the eighth plague, for those of you counting at home. Up next...
CAFFERTY: How many have we got to go?
M. O'BRIEN: Darkness. Darkness is next. Yes, No. 9.
S. O'BRIEN: Even if they're not dangerous to people, yuck.
CAFFERTY: It's icky.
M. O'BRIEN: It's icky.
CAFFERTY: As your children would say, it's big time icky.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Still to come on the program, something not icky at all, Dr. Gupta explaining how your brain -- you brain blows your cover when you lie.
Plus, one of the most popular sports in America helps the military fill its ranks. We'll tell you how when AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired November 30, 2004 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: President Bush is leaving for Canada this hour. His first official trip, and protesters are ready.
A dramatic day of testimony ahead in the Scott Peterson trial. What will the jury hear as it decides on life or death?
And taking military recruiting into the fast lane. A big pitch to NASCAR fans and why it's working on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
S. O'BRIEN: Bill Hemmer is actually off today. Good morning. Welcome, everybody. Miles O'Brien, though, is filling in.
Nice to have you. Thank you very much for helping us out.
MILES O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: It's good to be here for yet another hour. All right.
S. O'BRIEN: That sounds so funny.
JACK CAFFERTY, CO-HOST: Speak for yourself.
M. O'BRIEN: Some of the -- some of the stories we're following this morning for you, on a more serious note. Another possible al Qaeda videotape under the microscope. The tape showing Osama bin Laden's right-hand man came to light yesterday. We'll talk with a former member of the National Security Council about the message and who it might have been intended for.
S. O'BRIEN: Also this morning, medical science could take a lie detection test to a whole new level by going right to the part of the brain that the lie actually comes from. Sanjay's going to tell us about this discovery. They can actually see a lie as it's happening.
Will you stop touching my stuff on the desk?
CAFFERTY: Excuse me? Don't put your stuff on the desk.
S. O'BRIEN: He's, like, touching my computer and my papers.
M. O'BRIEN: Is there a line there?
S. O'BRIEN: My papers. Is everything all right today? M. O'BRIEN: That's my -- that's my line there.
S. O'BRIEN: OK. All right.
CAFFERTY: The e-mail question of the day this morning has to do with the U.N. oil-for-food program, which is beginning to resemble a compost heap, the odor coming off this thing.
Turns out that Kofi Annan's kid was apparently taking payment from one of the Swiss companies that had a lucrative oil-for-food contract for the last five years. And nobody knew about it until the "New York Sun" did a little first class reporting and brought the story to light.
So we're wondering if it's time for Mr. Annan and his family to pack up and find a new address. AM@CNN.com.
Let me put this back.
S. O'BRIEN: Exactly. You think? Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: You're welcome.
M. O'BRIEN: Thanks. Let's check the headlines now. Heidi Collins here with that.
Good morning, Heidi.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you guys. And good morning, everybody.
Now in the news this morning, authorities in Colorado believe they have found the body of NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol's 14- year-old son. The body was found last night beneath the wreckage of the crashed jet. A total of three people were killed in Sunday's crash. Ebersol and his older son did survive.
The man accused in the Wisconsin deer hunter shootings faces a judge this hour. Chai Vang has been charged with six counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Due to security concerns, Vang will reportedly make his court appearance in a room at the jail instead of the courthouse.
And there is word this morning the president of the NAACP is stepping down, according to the "Baltimore Sun." Kweisi Mfume will announce his resignation today. The group's legal counsel is expected to be named interim president until a replacement is found.
And today is the last official day of this year's hurricane season. A lot of people happy to hear that. Hurricanes Charlie, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne killed more than 100 people and cost Floridians, as you see from the damage here, more than $20 billion in damages. The state legislature is set to convene next month to discuss post-hurricane tax and insurance measures.
And Fein (ph), producer Ted Fein (ph) has been doing a little research on that. He says the real loser here is Nicole, because that would have been the name of the next hurricane, Nicole. But the year is through and so we never get to use her name because next year we start with the A's.
S. O'BRIEN: Poor Nicole. But I've got to tell you, everybody else in Florida, especially, they are saying whatever. Yes. Good news for them. Thanks, Heidi.
President Bush traveling to Canada today for a two-day visit with Prime Minister Paul Martin. The two leaders are expected to discuss a number of issues, including terrorism and border control.
Elaine Quijano is live for us at the White House this morning.
Hi, Elaine. Good morning.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.
This will be President Bush's first state visit since his re- election, a sign that he really wants to reach out to Canadians and try and move past some of the bad feelings left over from the Iraq invasion.
Now the president last met with Prime Minister Martin, the Canadian prime minister, in Chile less than two weeks ago. But the two men, of course, have met several times before that, including here at the White House back in April.
Now, in Canada, where many people firmly oppose the Iraq invasion, as I mentioned, sore feelings still linger, and Canada did not send troops to join that effort.
The atmosphere that will be greeting the president, one of tight security, as always. Officials are expecting protests, people expressing their anti-war sentiments.
The situation in Iraq likely to come up on the agenda, as well as a number of other items. And those include border security, trade issues, and the war on terrorism.
And on that last point, Soledad, the president will be traveling from Ottawa, his first stop today, and heading to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to talk about the war on terrorism.
Now, many Americans may not realize that in the immediate days after the September 11 attacks, thousands of Americans found themselves stranded because, as you remember, flights were grounded and diverted. Well, in that particular area around Halifax, Canadians opened up their homes.
President Bush will draw attention to them. He will thank them for their efforts, then also talk about the larger war on terrorism. All of it meant to reach out to Canadians, perhaps a fresh start both U.S. and Canadian officials are hoping for here, a chance to move forward and improve those strained relations -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Some strong fence mending measures to talk about. Elaine Quijano for us this morning. Elaine, thanks -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Fresh calls for the resignation of U.N. Secretary- General Kofi Annan. We've been talking about that all morning. This following a report saying that Annan's son may have been on the payroll of a company hired by the U.N.
CNN's senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth joins us with more.
Good morning, Richard.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
During this unfolding oil-for-food scandal, Kofi Annan, the U.N. chief, has certainly had his problems. But now, revelations about his son represent a new personal and political low.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH (voice-over): The oil-for-food controversy has now turned into a family affair at the highest levels. United Nations Secretary- General Kofi Annan says he was unaware that his son got paid by a Swiss company at the heart of the oil-for-food story for years longer than previously acknowledged.
Is Annan angry with his son, Kojo, for not telling him?
KOFI ANNAN, SECRETARY-GENERAL, UNITED NATIONS: Naturally, I was very disappointed and surprised, yes.
ROTH: Annan's son was hired as a consultant by the company Cotecna, which won the contract to inspect humanitarian goods going into Iraq under the oil-for-food program. But the company says he was assigned to West Africa and there was no connection with oil-for-food.
Kofi Annan says he did not expect the relationship to continue.
ANNAN: I have warm family relations with my son. But he's in a different field. He's an independent. He's a grown man. And I don't get involved with his activities, and he doesn't get involved in mine.
ROTH: But the failure by the company or the U.N. twice to state the length of the Annan family ties to the company, right up until corruption stories broke big this year, adds more fuel to a number of American opinion makers who are calling for Kofi Annan to resign. The U.N. chief declined to answer those calls but knows it could look bad.
ANNAN: The deception problem for the U.N., or the perception of conflict of interest, I understand that.
ROTH: The U.S., a proponent of the original oil-for-food program, is concerned about this Annan disclosure.
JOHN DANFORTH, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: This deserves very careful attention, a very close investigation. And let all the facts come out. ROTH: The U.N. says it checked in 1998 after a press report and was told Kojo Annan was not linked to the company which won the bid to inspect all for food. Now it's all in the hands of the U.N.-approved investigation, run by former Fed chairman Paul Volcker.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH: Representatives for Kojo Annan and the Swiss company Cotecna say they are fully cooperating with the Volcker probe -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Richard, does the United Nations have clear-cut nepotism rules in these sorts of situations?
ROTH: No, not necessarily. But the U.N. says it's surprised that Kojo Annan turned up working for Cotecna. Seems a little surprising because his father is the secretary-general.
But this does represent serious problems for Annan. If he can't show that he really knew what his son was doing with oil-for-food, critics will say perhaps some people in his administration may have been working too closely with Iraq on the oil-for-food scandal, could have been accepting bribes.
Nothing proven yet against Kojo Annan, Kofi Annan or anyone in the U.N. First Volcker report in January, full report middle of next year.
M. O'BRIEN: Richard Roth at the U.N., thank you very much.
As I mentioned just a moment ago, we've been talking about this all morning with Jack. More of his e-mails, actually your e-mails, are coming up soon. We appreciate them -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Life or death for Scott Peterson? That's what jurors will have to decide as the double murder trial now moves into its penalty phase.
Dean Johnson is a former San Mateo County prosecutor, joining us from Redwood City, California, to talk about all of the developments.
Nice to see you. Any prices that the state supreme court basically shot down some of the things that Mark Geragos was hoping to get through?
DEAN JOHNSON, FORMER SAN MATEO COUNTY PROSECUTOR: No, that was no surprise whatsoever. In fact the opposite would have been a huge surprise.
Remember, Mark Geragos' writs to the supreme court were requesting a new jury, a change of venue based on press coverage of the guilt phase verdict.
There are only twelve people who haven't seen the press coverage of that guilt phase verdict. They're already on the jury. And certainly, the supreme court said these people are the most qualified to decide the penalty phase of this case.
S. O'BRIEN: Maybe the most emotional testimony will begin today. We're expecting to hear at some point soon from Sharon Rocha -- Rocha, rather, Laci's mother.
Let's take you back, though, to 2003, in April, after Scott Peterson was arrested, and listen to what she had to say. You were there. It was heart wrenching.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHARON ROCHA, LACI'S MOTHER: Soon after Laci went missing, I made a promise to her that if she's been harmed, we will seek justice for her and Conner, and make sure that that person responsible for their disappearance -- for their deaths, will be punished.
I can only hope that the sound of Laci's voice begging for her life and begging for the life of her unborn child is heard over and over and over again in the mind of that person every day for the rest of his life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: One has to imagine that that's the tone that we are going to hear again as Sharon Rocha talks to the jurors and asks them to give Scott Peterson the death penalty.
JOHNSON: Well, I think there's no question about it, that Sharon Rocha right now is the most important person in that courtroom. She has an extraordinary rapport with this jury. Every time she smiles, which she does occasionally, this jury, I think, thinks of Laci Peterson.
And this jury is going to give her whatever she asks. And whatever she sees as justice, they will do.
S. O'BRIEN: At the same time, we will eventually hear from Scott Peterson's mother. One has to imagine, again, that that is going to be emotional, as a mother, begging twelve people to spare her son's life. She gets to go last. That truly does give that side the advantage, doesn't it?
JOHNSON: Well, you know, it's hard to say who has the advantage. I know that the fact that Jackie and Lee Peterson, Scott's parents, have testified, and have generally been seen as lacking credibility, is going to make it very difficult for them to get up and beg for their son's life.
In effect, they're going to say to this jury, "You don't know Scott Peterson."
I think the jury is going to respond and say, "You know, Lee and Jackie, you don't know Scott Peterson. The Scott Peterson that you raised is a very different person from the man who's sitting in this courtroom right now."
S. O'BRIEN: Outside the mother's testimony, what other things will the jurors be looking at as they consider life or death?
JOHNSON: I think there are two factors that the prosecution will raise. First of all, is obviously the victim impact in the broader sense. Not just the family, but the community that went on a wild goose chase because of the lies that Scott Peterson told them, the police that were misdirected.
Scott Peterson's complete lack of remorse. The fact that he was chatting up his girlfriend while the rest of the community was involved in a candlelight vigil.
From the defense standpoint, the strongest points they can make, this is Scott Peterson's first offense. No history of violence. No prior felony convictions.
S. O'BRIEN: Dean Johnson, the former San Mateo County prosecutor, joining us with insight, as always. Dean, thanks, we'll continue to chat with you.
JOHNSON: Thank you, Soledad.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's check the weather now. Rob Marciano at the weather center in Atlanta.
Good morning, Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Rob.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, the old-fashioned lie detector test might soon be extinct. Dr. Gupta says a brainy replacement is on the horizon. We'll explain.
M. O'BRIEN: Also the Army puts the pedal to the metal. Kind of a new twist on the term drafting, if you get my drift. Uncle Sam teams up with NASCAR to bolster the ranks.
S. O'BRIEN: And al Qaeda's No. 2 man says he has a new message for America, but is he really trying to reach a different audience? That's ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Experts are analyzing the latest al Qaeda videotape. Ayman al-Zawahiri is said to be Osama bin Laden's right-hand man. He was shown on a tape yesterday vowing to continue the fight against America.
Steve Simon is a Middle East and terrorism expert for the Rand Corporation. He's in our Washington bureau this morning.
Nice to see you, Steve. Thanks for being with us.
STEVE SIMON, TERRORISM EXPERT, RAND CORPORATION: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: What do you make of the tone of this tape?
SIMON: Well, you have Zawahiri trying to appeal to two audiences. His tone doesn't differ that much from his previous appearances. He's -- he comes across as a bit petulant.
But, you know, he's trying to tell his fellow Muslims that he's still there, and he and bin Laden still count for something, even though they're hidden away. And he's trying to reach Americans, as well, telling them that they are responsible for what their governments do.
S. O'BRIEN: Three tapes since September. Is there some kind of message in that?
SIMON: Well, statistically, attacks do follow within about a 60- day period of tapes like this. Whether the statistical pattern holds in this case, we'll see.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's listen to a little bit of this tape. As you say, he addresses the American people directly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI, SECOND IN COMMAND, AL QAEDA (through translator): We are telling the American nation, elect who you want, Bush, Kerry, or even Satan himself. This is not important to us. What's important to us is to cleanse our land from the attackers and the invaders. And to fight everybody who fights us, and steals our wealth.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: You have said that this tape is not only for Americans, but for Muslims in America, and Muslims everywhere. Why do you think that's the point?
SIMON: Well, bin Laden and Zawahiri are leaders of what has become a worldwide movement. But at the same time, they're basically invisible. They're in hiding. They're in a remote area. They don't have regular contact with the movement.
And they, therefore, have a need to establish themselves in the minds of followers of the movement, as the leaders, even though they're in hiding and they have no direct control over events. Their way of doing this is to appear on videotapes that we -- that they know will be circulated very widely.
Basically, they're putting their footprint on the movement and making sure that their followers are focused on the right objectives.
S. O'BRIEN: Steve Simon, the senior analyst at Rand Corporation. Nice to have you. Thanks for talking with us this morning.
SIMON: Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, what could have caused the crash of that charter jet was carrying NBC Sports chief Dick Ebersol? We're going to hear from the head of the NTSB, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack's back with more e-mail.
CAFFERTY: Yes. That U.N. oil-for-food program is getting curiouser and curiouser. Now it turns out Kofi Annan's son was taking payments from a Swiss company that had a lucrative oil-for-food contract. His dad, the secretary-general of the U.N., professed not to know a thing about it.
There are several investigations under way into what happened to the $64 billion. That's how much oil was taken out of Iraq in the oil-for-food program.
So we're asking if it's maybe time for Kofi Annan to step down.
Robin in Atlanta, Georgia, "Kofi Annan should resign immediately. As long as he's secretary-general, the U.N. will never have credibility in the global arena again under his leadership. This incident further defines how self-interest at the highest level of the United Nations directly affected millions of starving people in the Middle East."
Johnny in Vicksburg, Mississippi disagrees: "I'm tired of hearing everyone bash the U.N. Just like democracy it may not be perfect, but it's the best thing we've got so far in bringing different countries, cultures and societies together."
Maura writes from Ontario, "Yes, of course he should step down. He should have done so ages ago. Not for a second do I believe he didn't know what his son was up to. And why was his son involved in the oil-for-food program to begin with? Is this not a conflict of interest?"
And Tiffany writes, from Norfolk, Virginia, "The United Nations building is sitting on a valuable piece of real estate in Manhattan. If we get rid of Kofi Annan and his useless tea party companions we could open up something that could actually be useful, like a Jack Cafferty Living Library and Museum."
S. O'BRIEN: What's with the living library? Usually, they give you -- you get that kind of...
CAFFERTY: Well, so far today. I mean, it's early, 9:25, but I'm still thumping around. Jack Cafferty Living Library and Museum.
They could use that real estate for -- to a better purpose. Put these guys in, you know, a Quonset hut in Newark and let them do their meetings there and, you know, get something worthwhile over here.
S. O'BRIEN: Then they wouldn't be able to get all that money back from the diplomats, who park and don't pay their parking tickets. CAFFERTY: And then don't pay their park -- or their kids who come here and commit crimes and are never prosecuted. They're just simply sent home. Or all the other rampant abuses that are pulled off at the expense of our country and our laws and our society by these foreign free loaders that come here under the guise of doing diplomatic business at the United Nations.
S. O'BRIEN: How do you really feel, Jack?
CAFFERTY: How much time have we got?
M. O'BRIEN: OK. I think it should be a new Trump Tower. And there's got to be a reality show in all this.
CAFFERTY: There you go.
M. O'BRIEN: I don't know. All right, thank you.
A plague of biblical proportions has descended on the Canary Islands. You've got to wait for this, Jack. This is good. Locusts, 100 million of them. Who did the counting?
Anyway, it's grounding airplanes, blocking drivers' view of roads, scaring off the tourists. Where's Charlton Heston when you need them?
They're harmless to people but extremely dangerous to crops. The locusts made the 60-mile flight from North Africa, where they've already caused devastation there.
Now, in the Bible locusts are the eighth plague, for those of you counting at home. Up next...
CAFFERTY: How many have we got to go?
M. O'BRIEN: Darkness. Darkness is next. Yes, No. 9.
S. O'BRIEN: Even if they're not dangerous to people, yuck.
CAFFERTY: It's icky.
M. O'BRIEN: It's icky.
CAFFERTY: As your children would say, it's big time icky.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Still to come on the program, something not icky at all, Dr. Gupta explaining how your brain -- you brain blows your cover when you lie.
Plus, one of the most popular sports in America helps the military fill its ranks. We'll tell you how when AMERICAN MORNING continues.
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