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American Morning
Significance of Announcement by North Korea That It's Pulling Out of Disarmament Talks; Three Fishermen Describe Experience When Boat Sank Off Massachusetts Coast
Aired February 10, 2005 - 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: Good morning.
Is the pope's health crisis now over? Pope John Paul II leaving the hospital today. The Vatican says he's cured.
A desperate rescue at sea. Three fishermen saved as their boat goes down. They tell their story to us live this morning.
And the big announcement from Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles -- royal wedding bells are ringing on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody.
Lots to talk about this morning.
A developing story out of North Korea. For the first time, the country publicly announcing it has nuclear weapons. And the North is saying it will pull out of six party talks on that subject. Why all this right now? We're going to get into that with Ambassador Wendy Sherman. She obviously served in the Clinton administration. We'll talk to her.
HEMMER: Also, Soledad, this hour, a little presidential speculation so far. Kelly Wallace looking at whether or not former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is trying to set himself up for a campaign bid at the White House. If he is, he may have a pretty good head start, we're told. We'll get to that this hour, as well.
O'BRIEN: I'm going to guess yes, he is.
We'll see what she has to say.
HEMMER: All right.
O'BRIEN: Mr. Cafferty -- good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What was the question?
O'BRIEN: Giuliani setting himself up to be president one day.
CAFFERTY: I hope so. The country could use Giuliani. Coming up in the "Cafferty File," a story we've been reporting for the past month in "The File." We have another update on the crazy for you -- why are you laughing?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm just laughing at you.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: The cackles from across the room.
CAFFERTY: I'm trying to do my...
O'BRIEN: Oh, sorry.
Go ahead.
CAFFERTY: ... my tease here for "The File."
COSTELLO: Sorry.
CAFFERTY: This is a very important moment in the program.
COSTELLO: I apologize deeply...
CAFFERTY: I can't work...
COSTELLO: ... from within myself.
CAFFERTY: I can't work when I'm distracted. It's very difficult.
Coming up in the "Cafferty File," an update on the crazy for you teddy bear, the one that comes with a straitjacket and commitment papers. British viewers soon to be tuning in their TVs to torture. And a man who's older than dirt, almost, besides me.
O'BRIEN: Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: That's all I have at this time.
Please carry on, Ms. Costello. I didn't mean to interrupt.
COSTELLO: OK.
You're just a hoot, Jack, kind of.
O'BRIEN: Let's go right to the headlines, OK?
COSTELLO: Good morning, everyone.
Now in the news, Pope John Paul II is being released from a Rome hospital today. We start with good news. The Vatican making that announcement just a few hours ago, saying the people is well enough to leave. The 84-year-old pontiff first checked into the hospital February 1 for breathing problems related to a respiratory infection. New attacks this morning on Iraqi and American security forces. In Baghdad, a car bomb went off just moments after a U.S. military convoy passed by, killing at least three people. In a separate attack, a second car bomb exploded near an Iraqi police patrol near the Iraqi capital. Police have detained some two dozen people in connection with that blast.
Israel canceling a meeting today with Palestinian officials after a mortar attack in Gaza. Sources say Palestinian militants fired dozens of mortar bombs and rockets at an Israeli settlement in Gaza. The militants say the attack was in retaliation for the killing of a Palestinian man by Israeli forces. Today's talks were meant to be a follow-up to Tuesday's Middle East summit in Egypt.
Let's talk a little sports now. Some controversy for you this morning.
Eagles' quarterback Donovan McNabb says he was not sick during the Super Bowl. Teammates have claimed he was ill in the fourth quarter and had trouble calling plays. McNabb, really upset about these remarks, says he's not making any excuses but he's willing to take the blame for the loss. And his teammates were trying to say he was so ill that that kind of messed up his play. He's angry at that, saying hey, I made mistakes, but it wasn't because I was ill.
HEMMER: I have a theory on this.
O'BRIEN: What's that?
HEMMER: I think he had a concussion.
COSTELLO: Oh, because he was hit in the jaw.
HEMMER: He was hit in the jaw at the end of the second quarter and oftentimes it takes about an hour for all of those conditions to set in. They say he was disoriented at times, felt like he was going to throw up often in the fourth quarter.
COSTELLO: Yes, but he threw a great pass right after that.
HEMMER: That he did. I mean he didn't lose consciousness, for crying out loud.
O'BRIEN: And it sounds like he's saying...
HEMMER: But...
O'BRIEN: He sounds like he's saying no, I didn't have a concussion. I was fine.
COSTELLO: So let him alone, Bill.
HEMMER: It's just my theory.
O'BRIEN: Hey, you know, more power to him, you know?
HEMMER: Just my theory.
O'BRIEN: A lot of people take the easy way out and say I wasn't feeling well.
HEMMER: He's a tough, tough, tough hombre.
Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Sure.
HEMMER: We want to go back to North Korea right now.
It should avoid further isolation by returning to disarmament talks. That's the word from the secretary of state. Condoleezza Rice's response today to North Korea's announcement that it will pull out of the talks and will bolster its nuclear weapons arsenal and has manufactured nukes for self-defense. The quotes from earlier today.
Ambassador Wendy Sherman advised the Clinton administration on North Korea.
She's back with us today, live in D.C.
Good morning to you.
AMB. WENDY SHERMAN, CLINTON ADMINISTRATION ADVISER: Good morning.
HEMMER: Why is North Korea doing this now, do you believe?
SHERMAN: I believe North Korea is doing this, in part, to up the ante for forthcoming talks, which will return again at some point. They said they would suspend, but not end their participation in those talks. They said they needed their nuclear arsenal as a deterrent. And I think the White House recently sent an envoy to the region, particularly to China, which is really one of the leaders in these talks, to say North Korea is sharing its nuclear technology with countries like Libya. You have to get them back to the table. And I think this is North Korea's response to that and to Condi Rice's comments.
HEMMER: A couple of things here.
How much of this is a negotiating ploy on behalf of Pyongyang?
SHERMAN: I think it is a negotiating ploy, but it is a very dangerous negotiating ploy because North Korea's very good at getting themselves into a box which they cannot get out of. Time and time again in negotiations they've put themselves up against a wall and then found it very difficult to get back to the negotiating table.
So I think the U.S. or one of our other parties in the talks are going to have to take some action. The U.S. announce a new envoy, announced something that allows North Korea to save face, to get back to these talks, because North Korea's having nuclear weapons is very, very dangerous. HEMMER: One other thought here. Iran is out there, too, in the headlines regarding this same topic -- nuclear envy.
Is that a possibility coming out of North Korea at this point, with Iran getting so much attention recently?
SHERMAN: Bill, I think you make a very good point. It's not only the potential for nuclear envy, but North Korea is seeing the United States take a very tough line toward Iran, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saying yesterday that we might push for sanctions against Iran, that Iran knows what consequences are coming. And North Korea looks at our posture toward Iran and wonders if we don't have the same hostile policy toward them.
So the two absolutely interact with each other.
HEMMER: Ambassador Sherman, thanks for coming back.
And we'll speak again.
SHERMAN: Thank you.
HEMMER: All right -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: A dramatic rescue at sea to talk about this morning.
Three fishermen were reeled in by the Coast Guard yesterday while their boat was sinking just 45 miles off the Massachusetts coast. Richard Shatford, Lewis Mitchell and Brian Clancy are safe and sound. They're in Gloucester, Massachusetts this morning, and they join us with their story.
Gentlemen, thank you very much for being with us.
I've got to imagine a huge relief this morning.
Brian, we're going to begin with you.
What happened? I heard that you radioed in a may day around 1:30 in the afternoon.
Tell us what happened before then.
RICHARD SHATFORD: You're Brian, right?
O'BRIEN: Not all of you at once. You know, anybody who wants to tackle that question, guys.
LEWIS MITCHELL: Go ahead, Rick.
BRIAN CLANCY: On, what, the mayday?
O'BRIEN: Sure, go ahead. Tell me what...
SHATFORD: Could you repeat the question?
O'BRIEN: Sure, I'd be happy to.
What happened? I had heard that you guys radioed in the may day around 1:30 in the afternoon.
Tell -- give us a sense of what was happening up to that point.
SHATFORD: We started taking on water probably about a half hour prior to that and tried to figure out where it was coming in and what to do to prevent it. But it just kept coming on and at that point it got a little bit too much water and it started getting in the engine compartment and the engine started bogging down. And so I radioed a may day. And Brian and Louis got the safety equipment out and we got up on the roof and we got everything together and got into the raft.
O'BRIEN: When you radioed in the may day, did they get right back to you? Did you know that help was on the way?
SHATFORD: I did. I did. I didn't get an immediate response and I repeated my may day. And somebody came back -- I didn't know who it was. They asked my position and I gave it. I then went down forward and started passing up the survival suits and the life rafts to Louis and Brian.
And Louis called down and said the guy wants me back on the radio. So I went back up and repeated the position. And then I knew he had it.
So once -- I felt safe getting in the life raft. I knew that they had our position.
O'BRIEN: Louis and Brian, either one of you guys can answer this, what was it like when you suddenly saw that Coast Guard chopper hovering up above you? Because, you know, you all sound and look pretty calm right now, but I've got to imagine you were pretty nervous.
MITCHELL: Well, it was a quick ride home.
CLANCY: It was relieving. It was good to see something there.
O'BRIEN: You are the most low key survivors I have ever seen. Give me a sense of how afraid you were. I mean you two -- you guys act like this was just another walk in the park for you.
MITCHELL: It's part of the job.
CLANCY: Just working.
SHATFORD: It's not a walk in the park, but when things happen as quick as they did, you don't have time to get flustered or whatever. And if you do, then, you know, maybe we wouldn't be here today. But I've got a couple of good guys and they handled everything well and we came out of it all right.
O'BRIEN: Well, we're really glad to hear that. And also kudos to the Coast Guard, who played a role, obviously, in that rescue, and that you were able to get in touch with them.
Thanks, guys, for talking to us.
We certainly appreciate it.
SHATFORD: I just want to say that Donovan McNabb played a great game, but they lost to the champs.
O'BRIEN: You know -- now they want to talk about football. You know what? I don't know that much about football. I can't help you with football.
HEMMER: I was thinking, why don't you ask them about Tom Brady, maybe you'd get a little more out of them. I bet these guys are headed for Fenway Park right after this interview.
O'BRIEN: Yes, I think they want to talk about the Patriots and not about their rescue.
A couple of nice guys.
HEMMER: Here's Jack.
A huge story from London breaking a few hours ago.
CAFFERTY: Huge.
HEMMER: Good morning.
CAFFERTY: Huge.
HEMMER: Yes.
CAFFERTY: Yes. Prince Charles is going to make an honest woman out of this gal he's been shacking up with for all these years, Camilla Parker Bowles. They're going to get married on April the 8th. They've been living together, don't get upset. They've been living together since some time after Diana died. But it's funny, when they go out in public, they have to sit separately. I'm not sure I understand the hypocrisy of that, but it's true.
Charles says he and Parker Bowles are absolutely delighted about the wedding. It'll take place at a civil ceremony at Windsor Castle. They have apparently figured out a way to grease the Church of England so that there's no big outcry from them. The queen is happy. Everybody's happy.
Richard Quest is happy because he's out there in front of Buckingham Palace and he has more on this thing -- good morning.
Is he there?
This is working as well as the fishermen interview.
There he is -- hey, Richard.
What's up?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're cruising for a bruising this morning, Jack.
CAFFERTY: What?
QUEST: I'm not going to let you pour water on this one. It is a happy day in the sense that Charles and Camilla have decided to regularize their less than regular relationship. You're right, they have been living together for the last several years, either in the country home of Highgrove or at Clarence House. But now, on April the 8th, they will get married in a civil ceremony which will then be blessed by the archbishop of Canterbury in what's called a service of prayer and dedication.
The archbishop says that he is delighted that they will provide a source of comfort and strength to each other.
CAFFERTY: I thought the church looked down on divorce. And both these people are divorced.
QUEST: Well, yes, Charles is divorced, but his wife, of course, Diana, Princess of Wales, has passed on. So that wasn't really a problem where he was concerned.
Look, look, let's not beat around the bush, Jack. There was not getting over this problem, that a divorcee could not get remarried in the Church of England according to traditional church law. And this is how they've got over it.
What we won't have -- and we just had a briefing from Charles' advisers -- what we won't have is Queen Camilla. Instead, she will become the Duchess of Wales, and then when he becomes king, she will become the prince's consort.
So, yes, Jack, I mean one has to be honest. They are trying to square this traditionalist circle, if you like, and try and get over these knotty problems. And I think that they've probably done the best job they can in the circumstances to do that.
CAFFERTY: Thank you, Richard.
Richard Quest reporting outside Buckingham Palace in London.
O'BRIEN: Weather now.
Chad Myers at the CNN Center.
He's got the latest forecast for us.
Hey -- Chad, good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And good morning, Soledad.
(WEATHER REPORT) HEMMER: In a moment here, the newest recruits in the Iraqi insurgency are not from Iraq. This morning, what's become the latest breeding ground for terrorists. We're on terror's trail on that in a minute.
O'BRIEN: And will it be Rudy in 2008? The rock star in the Republican Party. But there's a really big roadblock to running for president. We'll explain just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Has Europe become a terrorist breeding ground?
We follow terror's trail this morning from Europe all the way to Iraq, where U.S. forces are holding three French citizens captured fighting with the insurgency.
The arrests highlight the problem of European jihadists. In Germany last month, authorities rounded up more than 20 suspects with ties to a terrorist group linked to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Terrorism analyst Sajjan Gohel is of the Asia Pacific Foundation.
He's in London for us this morning.
Sajjan, nice to see you, as always.
Thanks for being with us.
Are there any numbers, any actual legitimate estimate of how many Europeans are involved with the insurgency?
SAJJAN GOHEL, TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, that's a very important question, Soledad. And the problem is that the European security agencies do not have a firm figure as to how many of their citizens are going abroad. For example, we do know that a sizable number have gone to Iraq via Syria to carry out attacks against the coalition forces. Certainly a lot of them have joined not just Abu Musab al- Zarqawi's group, but other insurgent terrorist groups. And certainly, as we are witnessing, a lot of them have now been arrested in Iraq, a lot of them have been arrested in Europe planning attacks.
And the problem is that this will probably grow, because Europe has long been a playground for terrorist activities.
O'BRIEN: When you say sizable numbers, and a lot of them, give me a sense? Is that numbers in the many dozens, in the hundreds, in the thousands?
GOHEL: We know in Iraq in itself, there are something like 20,000 plus insurgents. It's largely believed that a lot of them are Sunni Iraqis, but there are also a sizable number of foreigners. Let's not forget that al-Zarqawi himself is a Palestinian-Jordanian. He's an outsider.
It's largely believed that a lot of European Muslims have gone to Iraq. has become a rallying point, a calling card, just like Afghanistan was during the mid-'80s when the State of the Union was occupying the country. A lot of the jihadists now see Iraq as a potential cesspool for terrorism, another opportunity to carry out dangerous terrorist attacks. And certainly it's a big concern for European agencies with the fact that a lot of their citizens are going abroad to carry out deadly attacks.
O'BRIEN: Afghanistan was also, of course, a place where many of these wannabe jihadists got a lot of training.
Are you seeing training camps within Europe?
GOHEL: Well, there is a big difference from Afghanistan with the training camps. For example, today's terrorist doesn't need a big field to be trained, equipped to carry out military type tactics. What you're seeing is that terrorists today are being trained in buildings and houses to carry out car bomb attacks, explosives. They're taught to train, how to use these detonations. Certainly there is more sophistication involved. And that is the problem is that it's very difficult to identify the enemy because it's invisible. It's immersed in the fabric of society. They don't wear a uniform and no smart missile or any type of bomb could actually detect them. It's a big problem. It's a big concern.
And what is, of course, worrying is that a lot of them are being tracked, identified by what are called handlers, who see them as potential terrorists. They're sent to countries like Syria, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan for further indoctrination and training. And then they're sent off, of course, to Iraq. And as we see, a lot of them are now carrying out attacks.
O'BRIEN: Europeans, do you think, doing enough to track and monitor and capture these terrorists?
GOHEL: A lot has been done by the security agencies in Europe to try and stop plots, particularly in Germany. For example, at the end of last month, in January, two individuals were arrested in Mainz and in Bonn for planning to send suicide bombers to Iraq, as well as to buy uranium to create, perhaps, a dirty bomb and use it in Iraq.
What's concerning about that arrest is that President Bush is due to come to Germany, in Mainz, to meet Gerhardt Schroeder, the chancellor. And the fact that an arrest took place there is a concern. The German authorities are still trying to unravel whether there was a plot to attack U.S. interests in Germany itself.
Certainly more needs to be done. But the problem is that you're dealing with so many different countries that have to pool their resources together. They each have a piece of the puzzle that forms a big picture.
But putting that together is very difficult. It's going to be very arduous. And the big fear is that those European Muslims that have gone to Iraq may come back to Europe and turn the playground of Europe into a battleground, just as we saw in Madrid with the train bombings last year.
O'BRIEN: Yes, one would imagine that is a big fear.
Sajjan Gohel joining us this morning.
Sajjan, thank you very much for your insight.
Appreciate it.
GOHEL: My pleasure.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: About 22 minutes past the hour now.
It seemed like a pretty good idea at the time. Two girls bake cookies, deliver them to a neighbor. In return, they get hit with a big, fat lawsuit. Their side of the story still to come here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Welcome back.
And to the Question of the Day with Jack.
CAFFERTY: Queen Camilla -- unlike after the Prince's decision today that in the event he becomes king, Camilla Parker Bowles would not be the queen, but something called prince's consort. But it is possible. Prince Charles could go to the British parliament, ask their permission to crown Camilla as the queen of England. A British poll last year indicated more Britons support Prince Charles marrying Camilla than oppose it. And most people in the poll, 38 percent, don't care.
But we care, which is why we're asking this question -- should Camilla Parker Bowles be the next queen of England?
Susan in California writes: "Queen Camilla seems wrong, doesn't it? However, we on this side of the pond have no say. Actually, those on the other side of the pond have no say, either. The royals shall do whatever they wish. Dam the torpedoes!"
D.W. in Crescent City: "Not queen. British royalty is almost entirely a matter of tradition. It would be like us changing the designate of Old Glory. Following the Torean tradition, she could be named royal consort."
I don't know why I read that, I just told you that.
Robert in Tacoma, Washington: "Does it really matter? I don't keep up with all that goes on over there. As long as the Prince is happy or king, or whatever. Happiness is the only necessity and communication is the answer."
O'BRIEN: That's very new agey. CAFFERTY: Yes.
Tamie in Midland, Michigan: "No, she should not. The Prince is clearly a cad. This only reinforces the pity for what Diana had to deal w."
And Tony in Roscoe, Illinois: "It's OK with me, but we all know the real queen of England is Elton John."
HEMMER: "Tiny Dancer."
Didn't Diana say one time that three is a crowd in a marriage?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: She said that in an interview after they were divorced.
O'BRIEN: Yes. She wasn't a big fan of Camilla Parker Bowles.
HEMMER: Implying, obviously, that a little something, something was going on there, right, Jack?
CAFFERTY: Well, I don't know. She could probably -- why would she have married that goofy guy anyway? She could have done a lot better than that jug head prince she got hooked up with.
HEMMER: Goofy?
O'BRIEN: That whole princess title thing, though. It has a big draw.
CAFFERTY: Yes, but look at the in-laws. She was...
HEMMER: She was...
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: She was 19 when she got married. That ceremony was enormous. I don't think the world has seen a wedding like that since. We're, what, 24 years down the road. And this is not going to -- this is not a church, right? This is Windsor Castle. This is a civil ceremony and...
CAFFERTY: Yes.
HEMMER: And it's played down.
CAFFERTY: They can't get married in a church because they're divorce. The church -- it's one of these hypocritical things that churches do. Remember when Sinatra got his church annulled by the Catholic Church in this country? Sinatra? Hello! You know, they work around it when the people involved have a certain pedigree, as they say.
O'BRIEN: Or annulments when people have like five kids. I never understood that either. CAFFERTY: Yes, well, if your name is Frank, you can get it done.
O'BRIEN: Thank you, Jack.
We appreciate it.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
O'BRIEN: Well, it looks like lots of Republicans want Rudy Giuliani to run for the White House in 2008. But experts say there is at least one serious obstacle in the way. We'll take a look at that obstacle ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired February 10, 2005 - 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: Good morning.
Is the pope's health crisis now over? Pope John Paul II leaving the hospital today. The Vatican says he's cured.
A desperate rescue at sea. Three fishermen saved as their boat goes down. They tell their story to us live this morning.
And the big announcement from Britain's Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles -- royal wedding bells are ringing on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody.
Lots to talk about this morning.
A developing story out of North Korea. For the first time, the country publicly announcing it has nuclear weapons. And the North is saying it will pull out of six party talks on that subject. Why all this right now? We're going to get into that with Ambassador Wendy Sherman. She obviously served in the Clinton administration. We'll talk to her.
HEMMER: Also, Soledad, this hour, a little presidential speculation so far. Kelly Wallace looking at whether or not former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is trying to set himself up for a campaign bid at the White House. If he is, he may have a pretty good head start, we're told. We'll get to that this hour, as well.
O'BRIEN: I'm going to guess yes, he is.
We'll see what she has to say.
HEMMER: All right.
O'BRIEN: Mr. Cafferty -- good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What was the question?
O'BRIEN: Giuliani setting himself up to be president one day.
CAFFERTY: I hope so. The country could use Giuliani. Coming up in the "Cafferty File," a story we've been reporting for the past month in "The File." We have another update on the crazy for you -- why are you laughing?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm just laughing at you.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: The cackles from across the room.
CAFFERTY: I'm trying to do my...
O'BRIEN: Oh, sorry.
Go ahead.
CAFFERTY: ... my tease here for "The File."
COSTELLO: Sorry.
CAFFERTY: This is a very important moment in the program.
COSTELLO: I apologize deeply...
CAFFERTY: I can't work...
COSTELLO: ... from within myself.
CAFFERTY: I can't work when I'm distracted. It's very difficult.
Coming up in the "Cafferty File," an update on the crazy for you teddy bear, the one that comes with a straitjacket and commitment papers. British viewers soon to be tuning in their TVs to torture. And a man who's older than dirt, almost, besides me.
O'BRIEN: Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: That's all I have at this time.
Please carry on, Ms. Costello. I didn't mean to interrupt.
COSTELLO: OK.
You're just a hoot, Jack, kind of.
O'BRIEN: Let's go right to the headlines, OK?
COSTELLO: Good morning, everyone.
Now in the news, Pope John Paul II is being released from a Rome hospital today. We start with good news. The Vatican making that announcement just a few hours ago, saying the people is well enough to leave. The 84-year-old pontiff first checked into the hospital February 1 for breathing problems related to a respiratory infection. New attacks this morning on Iraqi and American security forces. In Baghdad, a car bomb went off just moments after a U.S. military convoy passed by, killing at least three people. In a separate attack, a second car bomb exploded near an Iraqi police patrol near the Iraqi capital. Police have detained some two dozen people in connection with that blast.
Israel canceling a meeting today with Palestinian officials after a mortar attack in Gaza. Sources say Palestinian militants fired dozens of mortar bombs and rockets at an Israeli settlement in Gaza. The militants say the attack was in retaliation for the killing of a Palestinian man by Israeli forces. Today's talks were meant to be a follow-up to Tuesday's Middle East summit in Egypt.
Let's talk a little sports now. Some controversy for you this morning.
Eagles' quarterback Donovan McNabb says he was not sick during the Super Bowl. Teammates have claimed he was ill in the fourth quarter and had trouble calling plays. McNabb, really upset about these remarks, says he's not making any excuses but he's willing to take the blame for the loss. And his teammates were trying to say he was so ill that that kind of messed up his play. He's angry at that, saying hey, I made mistakes, but it wasn't because I was ill.
HEMMER: I have a theory on this.
O'BRIEN: What's that?
HEMMER: I think he had a concussion.
COSTELLO: Oh, because he was hit in the jaw.
HEMMER: He was hit in the jaw at the end of the second quarter and oftentimes it takes about an hour for all of those conditions to set in. They say he was disoriented at times, felt like he was going to throw up often in the fourth quarter.
COSTELLO: Yes, but he threw a great pass right after that.
HEMMER: That he did. I mean he didn't lose consciousness, for crying out loud.
O'BRIEN: And it sounds like he's saying...
HEMMER: But...
O'BRIEN: He sounds like he's saying no, I didn't have a concussion. I was fine.
COSTELLO: So let him alone, Bill.
HEMMER: It's just my theory.
O'BRIEN: Hey, you know, more power to him, you know?
HEMMER: Just my theory.
O'BRIEN: A lot of people take the easy way out and say I wasn't feeling well.
HEMMER: He's a tough, tough, tough hombre.
Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Sure.
HEMMER: We want to go back to North Korea right now.
It should avoid further isolation by returning to disarmament talks. That's the word from the secretary of state. Condoleezza Rice's response today to North Korea's announcement that it will pull out of the talks and will bolster its nuclear weapons arsenal and has manufactured nukes for self-defense. The quotes from earlier today.
Ambassador Wendy Sherman advised the Clinton administration on North Korea.
She's back with us today, live in D.C.
Good morning to you.
AMB. WENDY SHERMAN, CLINTON ADMINISTRATION ADVISER: Good morning.
HEMMER: Why is North Korea doing this now, do you believe?
SHERMAN: I believe North Korea is doing this, in part, to up the ante for forthcoming talks, which will return again at some point. They said they would suspend, but not end their participation in those talks. They said they needed their nuclear arsenal as a deterrent. And I think the White House recently sent an envoy to the region, particularly to China, which is really one of the leaders in these talks, to say North Korea is sharing its nuclear technology with countries like Libya. You have to get them back to the table. And I think this is North Korea's response to that and to Condi Rice's comments.
HEMMER: A couple of things here.
How much of this is a negotiating ploy on behalf of Pyongyang?
SHERMAN: I think it is a negotiating ploy, but it is a very dangerous negotiating ploy because North Korea's very good at getting themselves into a box which they cannot get out of. Time and time again in negotiations they've put themselves up against a wall and then found it very difficult to get back to the negotiating table.
So I think the U.S. or one of our other parties in the talks are going to have to take some action. The U.S. announce a new envoy, announced something that allows North Korea to save face, to get back to these talks, because North Korea's having nuclear weapons is very, very dangerous. HEMMER: One other thought here. Iran is out there, too, in the headlines regarding this same topic -- nuclear envy.
Is that a possibility coming out of North Korea at this point, with Iran getting so much attention recently?
SHERMAN: Bill, I think you make a very good point. It's not only the potential for nuclear envy, but North Korea is seeing the United States take a very tough line toward Iran, with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saying yesterday that we might push for sanctions against Iran, that Iran knows what consequences are coming. And North Korea looks at our posture toward Iran and wonders if we don't have the same hostile policy toward them.
So the two absolutely interact with each other.
HEMMER: Ambassador Sherman, thanks for coming back.
And we'll speak again.
SHERMAN: Thank you.
HEMMER: All right -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: A dramatic rescue at sea to talk about this morning.
Three fishermen were reeled in by the Coast Guard yesterday while their boat was sinking just 45 miles off the Massachusetts coast. Richard Shatford, Lewis Mitchell and Brian Clancy are safe and sound. They're in Gloucester, Massachusetts this morning, and they join us with their story.
Gentlemen, thank you very much for being with us.
I've got to imagine a huge relief this morning.
Brian, we're going to begin with you.
What happened? I heard that you radioed in a may day around 1:30 in the afternoon.
Tell us what happened before then.
RICHARD SHATFORD: You're Brian, right?
O'BRIEN: Not all of you at once. You know, anybody who wants to tackle that question, guys.
LEWIS MITCHELL: Go ahead, Rick.
BRIAN CLANCY: On, what, the mayday?
O'BRIEN: Sure, go ahead. Tell me what...
SHATFORD: Could you repeat the question?
O'BRIEN: Sure, I'd be happy to.
What happened? I had heard that you guys radioed in the may day around 1:30 in the afternoon.
Tell -- give us a sense of what was happening up to that point.
SHATFORD: We started taking on water probably about a half hour prior to that and tried to figure out where it was coming in and what to do to prevent it. But it just kept coming on and at that point it got a little bit too much water and it started getting in the engine compartment and the engine started bogging down. And so I radioed a may day. And Brian and Louis got the safety equipment out and we got up on the roof and we got everything together and got into the raft.
O'BRIEN: When you radioed in the may day, did they get right back to you? Did you know that help was on the way?
SHATFORD: I did. I did. I didn't get an immediate response and I repeated my may day. And somebody came back -- I didn't know who it was. They asked my position and I gave it. I then went down forward and started passing up the survival suits and the life rafts to Louis and Brian.
And Louis called down and said the guy wants me back on the radio. So I went back up and repeated the position. And then I knew he had it.
So once -- I felt safe getting in the life raft. I knew that they had our position.
O'BRIEN: Louis and Brian, either one of you guys can answer this, what was it like when you suddenly saw that Coast Guard chopper hovering up above you? Because, you know, you all sound and look pretty calm right now, but I've got to imagine you were pretty nervous.
MITCHELL: Well, it was a quick ride home.
CLANCY: It was relieving. It was good to see something there.
O'BRIEN: You are the most low key survivors I have ever seen. Give me a sense of how afraid you were. I mean you two -- you guys act like this was just another walk in the park for you.
MITCHELL: It's part of the job.
CLANCY: Just working.
SHATFORD: It's not a walk in the park, but when things happen as quick as they did, you don't have time to get flustered or whatever. And if you do, then, you know, maybe we wouldn't be here today. But I've got a couple of good guys and they handled everything well and we came out of it all right.
O'BRIEN: Well, we're really glad to hear that. And also kudos to the Coast Guard, who played a role, obviously, in that rescue, and that you were able to get in touch with them.
Thanks, guys, for talking to us.
We certainly appreciate it.
SHATFORD: I just want to say that Donovan McNabb played a great game, but they lost to the champs.
O'BRIEN: You know -- now they want to talk about football. You know what? I don't know that much about football. I can't help you with football.
HEMMER: I was thinking, why don't you ask them about Tom Brady, maybe you'd get a little more out of them. I bet these guys are headed for Fenway Park right after this interview.
O'BRIEN: Yes, I think they want to talk about the Patriots and not about their rescue.
A couple of nice guys.
HEMMER: Here's Jack.
A huge story from London breaking a few hours ago.
CAFFERTY: Huge.
HEMMER: Good morning.
CAFFERTY: Huge.
HEMMER: Yes.
CAFFERTY: Yes. Prince Charles is going to make an honest woman out of this gal he's been shacking up with for all these years, Camilla Parker Bowles. They're going to get married on April the 8th. They've been living together, don't get upset. They've been living together since some time after Diana died. But it's funny, when they go out in public, they have to sit separately. I'm not sure I understand the hypocrisy of that, but it's true.
Charles says he and Parker Bowles are absolutely delighted about the wedding. It'll take place at a civil ceremony at Windsor Castle. They have apparently figured out a way to grease the Church of England so that there's no big outcry from them. The queen is happy. Everybody's happy.
Richard Quest is happy because he's out there in front of Buckingham Palace and he has more on this thing -- good morning.
Is he there?
This is working as well as the fishermen interview.
There he is -- hey, Richard.
What's up?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're cruising for a bruising this morning, Jack.
CAFFERTY: What?
QUEST: I'm not going to let you pour water on this one. It is a happy day in the sense that Charles and Camilla have decided to regularize their less than regular relationship. You're right, they have been living together for the last several years, either in the country home of Highgrove or at Clarence House. But now, on April the 8th, they will get married in a civil ceremony which will then be blessed by the archbishop of Canterbury in what's called a service of prayer and dedication.
The archbishop says that he is delighted that they will provide a source of comfort and strength to each other.
CAFFERTY: I thought the church looked down on divorce. And both these people are divorced.
QUEST: Well, yes, Charles is divorced, but his wife, of course, Diana, Princess of Wales, has passed on. So that wasn't really a problem where he was concerned.
Look, look, let's not beat around the bush, Jack. There was not getting over this problem, that a divorcee could not get remarried in the Church of England according to traditional church law. And this is how they've got over it.
What we won't have -- and we just had a briefing from Charles' advisers -- what we won't have is Queen Camilla. Instead, she will become the Duchess of Wales, and then when he becomes king, she will become the prince's consort.
So, yes, Jack, I mean one has to be honest. They are trying to square this traditionalist circle, if you like, and try and get over these knotty problems. And I think that they've probably done the best job they can in the circumstances to do that.
CAFFERTY: Thank you, Richard.
Richard Quest reporting outside Buckingham Palace in London.
O'BRIEN: Weather now.
Chad Myers at the CNN Center.
He's got the latest forecast for us.
Hey -- Chad, good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And good morning, Soledad.
(WEATHER REPORT) HEMMER: In a moment here, the newest recruits in the Iraqi insurgency are not from Iraq. This morning, what's become the latest breeding ground for terrorists. We're on terror's trail on that in a minute.
O'BRIEN: And will it be Rudy in 2008? The rock star in the Republican Party. But there's a really big roadblock to running for president. We'll explain just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Has Europe become a terrorist breeding ground?
We follow terror's trail this morning from Europe all the way to Iraq, where U.S. forces are holding three French citizens captured fighting with the insurgency.
The arrests highlight the problem of European jihadists. In Germany last month, authorities rounded up more than 20 suspects with ties to a terrorist group linked to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Terrorism analyst Sajjan Gohel is of the Asia Pacific Foundation.
He's in London for us this morning.
Sajjan, nice to see you, as always.
Thanks for being with us.
Are there any numbers, any actual legitimate estimate of how many Europeans are involved with the insurgency?
SAJJAN GOHEL, TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, that's a very important question, Soledad. And the problem is that the European security agencies do not have a firm figure as to how many of their citizens are going abroad. For example, we do know that a sizable number have gone to Iraq via Syria to carry out attacks against the coalition forces. Certainly a lot of them have joined not just Abu Musab al- Zarqawi's group, but other insurgent terrorist groups. And certainly, as we are witnessing, a lot of them have now been arrested in Iraq, a lot of them have been arrested in Europe planning attacks.
And the problem is that this will probably grow, because Europe has long been a playground for terrorist activities.
O'BRIEN: When you say sizable numbers, and a lot of them, give me a sense? Is that numbers in the many dozens, in the hundreds, in the thousands?
GOHEL: We know in Iraq in itself, there are something like 20,000 plus insurgents. It's largely believed that a lot of them are Sunni Iraqis, but there are also a sizable number of foreigners. Let's not forget that al-Zarqawi himself is a Palestinian-Jordanian. He's an outsider.
It's largely believed that a lot of European Muslims have gone to Iraq. has become a rallying point, a calling card, just like Afghanistan was during the mid-'80s when the State of the Union was occupying the country. A lot of the jihadists now see Iraq as a potential cesspool for terrorism, another opportunity to carry out dangerous terrorist attacks. And certainly it's a big concern for European agencies with the fact that a lot of their citizens are going abroad to carry out deadly attacks.
O'BRIEN: Afghanistan was also, of course, a place where many of these wannabe jihadists got a lot of training.
Are you seeing training camps within Europe?
GOHEL: Well, there is a big difference from Afghanistan with the training camps. For example, today's terrorist doesn't need a big field to be trained, equipped to carry out military type tactics. What you're seeing is that terrorists today are being trained in buildings and houses to carry out car bomb attacks, explosives. They're taught to train, how to use these detonations. Certainly there is more sophistication involved. And that is the problem is that it's very difficult to identify the enemy because it's invisible. It's immersed in the fabric of society. They don't wear a uniform and no smart missile or any type of bomb could actually detect them. It's a big problem. It's a big concern.
And what is, of course, worrying is that a lot of them are being tracked, identified by what are called handlers, who see them as potential terrorists. They're sent to countries like Syria, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan for further indoctrination and training. And then they're sent off, of course, to Iraq. And as we see, a lot of them are now carrying out attacks.
O'BRIEN: Europeans, do you think, doing enough to track and monitor and capture these terrorists?
GOHEL: A lot has been done by the security agencies in Europe to try and stop plots, particularly in Germany. For example, at the end of last month, in January, two individuals were arrested in Mainz and in Bonn for planning to send suicide bombers to Iraq, as well as to buy uranium to create, perhaps, a dirty bomb and use it in Iraq.
What's concerning about that arrest is that President Bush is due to come to Germany, in Mainz, to meet Gerhardt Schroeder, the chancellor. And the fact that an arrest took place there is a concern. The German authorities are still trying to unravel whether there was a plot to attack U.S. interests in Germany itself.
Certainly more needs to be done. But the problem is that you're dealing with so many different countries that have to pool their resources together. They each have a piece of the puzzle that forms a big picture.
But putting that together is very difficult. It's going to be very arduous. And the big fear is that those European Muslims that have gone to Iraq may come back to Europe and turn the playground of Europe into a battleground, just as we saw in Madrid with the train bombings last year.
O'BRIEN: Yes, one would imagine that is a big fear.
Sajjan Gohel joining us this morning.
Sajjan, thank you very much for your insight.
Appreciate it.
GOHEL: My pleasure.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: About 22 minutes past the hour now.
It seemed like a pretty good idea at the time. Two girls bake cookies, deliver them to a neighbor. In return, they get hit with a big, fat lawsuit. Their side of the story still to come here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Welcome back.
And to the Question of the Day with Jack.
CAFFERTY: Queen Camilla -- unlike after the Prince's decision today that in the event he becomes king, Camilla Parker Bowles would not be the queen, but something called prince's consort. But it is possible. Prince Charles could go to the British parliament, ask their permission to crown Camilla as the queen of England. A British poll last year indicated more Britons support Prince Charles marrying Camilla than oppose it. And most people in the poll, 38 percent, don't care.
But we care, which is why we're asking this question -- should Camilla Parker Bowles be the next queen of England?
Susan in California writes: "Queen Camilla seems wrong, doesn't it? However, we on this side of the pond have no say. Actually, those on the other side of the pond have no say, either. The royals shall do whatever they wish. Dam the torpedoes!"
D.W. in Crescent City: "Not queen. British royalty is almost entirely a matter of tradition. It would be like us changing the designate of Old Glory. Following the Torean tradition, she could be named royal consort."
I don't know why I read that, I just told you that.
Robert in Tacoma, Washington: "Does it really matter? I don't keep up with all that goes on over there. As long as the Prince is happy or king, or whatever. Happiness is the only necessity and communication is the answer."
O'BRIEN: That's very new agey. CAFFERTY: Yes.
Tamie in Midland, Michigan: "No, she should not. The Prince is clearly a cad. This only reinforces the pity for what Diana had to deal w."
And Tony in Roscoe, Illinois: "It's OK with me, but we all know the real queen of England is Elton John."
HEMMER: "Tiny Dancer."
Didn't Diana say one time that three is a crowd in a marriage?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: She said that in an interview after they were divorced.
O'BRIEN: Yes. She wasn't a big fan of Camilla Parker Bowles.
HEMMER: Implying, obviously, that a little something, something was going on there, right, Jack?
CAFFERTY: Well, I don't know. She could probably -- why would she have married that goofy guy anyway? She could have done a lot better than that jug head prince she got hooked up with.
HEMMER: Goofy?
O'BRIEN: That whole princess title thing, though. It has a big draw.
CAFFERTY: Yes, but look at the in-laws. She was...
HEMMER: She was...
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: She was 19 when she got married. That ceremony was enormous. I don't think the world has seen a wedding like that since. We're, what, 24 years down the road. And this is not going to -- this is not a church, right? This is Windsor Castle. This is a civil ceremony and...
CAFFERTY: Yes.
HEMMER: And it's played down.
CAFFERTY: They can't get married in a church because they're divorce. The church -- it's one of these hypocritical things that churches do. Remember when Sinatra got his church annulled by the Catholic Church in this country? Sinatra? Hello! You know, they work around it when the people involved have a certain pedigree, as they say.
O'BRIEN: Or annulments when people have like five kids. I never understood that either. CAFFERTY: Yes, well, if your name is Frank, you can get it done.
O'BRIEN: Thank you, Jack.
We appreciate it.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
O'BRIEN: Well, it looks like lots of Republicans want Rudy Giuliani to run for the White House in 2008. But experts say there is at least one serious obstacle in the way. We'll take a look at that obstacle ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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