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American Morning
Iraq's Election Results; Mall Shooting; Grammy Awards
Aired February 14, 2005 - 9:01 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, CNN ANCHOR: A massive explosion in Beirut, Lebanon. Terrorists this morning have killed the country's former prime minister.
In the Philippines, bombs going off in three cities. One of the most feared terror groups claiming responsibility.
A celebration in Iraq. Election results are in, but who's going to control the government?
And at the Grammys...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONNIE RAITT, SINGER: "Genius..."
GARY SINISE, ACTOR: "Loves Company," Ray Charles.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: The late great Ray Charles is a big winner at the Grammy Awards. His voice still growing strong on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning everybody. 9:00 hour here in New York City. Happy Valentine's Day.
And to you, as well, my darling.
O'BRIEN: Thank you. And thanks for the chocolate, the flowers and -- you know, it was nothing, zero.
HEMMER: You're welcome. Call Brad.
Lots to talk about Iraq today, especially with the results of the election. Shiites winning 48 percent of the vote there. Will that lead now to a religious government in Iraq? We'll talk to a reporter on the scene there with "The Washington Post."
Anthony Shadid is back with us today. He has some insight on what comes next. So we'll talk to him in a moment live in the Iraqi capital.
O'BRIEN: Also, jury selection in the Michael Jackson trial is getting under way in earnest in California. What exactly are the lawyers looking for? We're going to talk with a jury consultant about that.
HEMMER: All right.
Jack, what's on your mind? Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Taser stun guns for the home. The company would like to market a civilian version of this thing to replace firearms in American homes to be used for self protection. It costs about a thousand bucks.
Would you buy one? AM@CNN.com is the e-mail address.
O'BRIEN: All right, Jack. Thank you.
Well, one of the key play players in Mideast politics has been killed in a massive explosion in Beirut. An apparent car bomb went off this morning in the Lebanese capital. The destruction is enormous. Car fires, smoke, debris littering the luxurious seaside center of the city.
Rafik Hariri, influential in capitals from Washington to Riyadh, was locked in a power struggle over the role of Syria in Lebanon. His motorcade was targeted. That's according to reports from the scene. Television pictures showed a person on fire that was climbing out of a burning car. Those pictures really horrific to see this morning.
HEMMER: And our bureau chief, Brent Sadler, saying in 25 years of coverage throughout the Middle East he has yet to see an explosion with that much intensity right along the waterfront there in Beirut.
O'BRIEN: Blowing out windows, apparently. More than a mile away in some cases.
HEMMER: There's some questions about U.S. relations now because Rafik Hariri was on good relations with the U.S. president, George Bush. So a story that will be told throughout the day here. We'll examine it throughout the morning.
O'BRIEN: No question.
Let's get to other stories making headlines this morning with Heidi Collins.
Good morning.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. And quite a bit going on this morning, guys. And good morning to you, everybody.
"Now in the News," authorities in the Philippines are tightening security throughout the country this hour following a series of deadly bombings there. One of the blasts going off in a bus in Manila.
Two other explosions going off in two other cities in the southern Philippines. At least three people have been killed in the attacks. We'll keep our eye on this one for you as well.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meeting today in Washington with South Korea's foreign minister. Topping their agenda is North Korea's nuclear weapons program. North Korea has been pushing for direct access to the United States, but South Korea's foreign minister tells CNN six-party nuclear talks should continue.
In Business news, a Valentine's Day union worth calling home about. CNN has learned Verizon Communications is acquiring MCI for more than $6.7 billion. The deal comes two week after another baby bell, SBC Communications, agreed to pay $16 billion for AT&T.
And a happy ending for the infant boy known as "Baby 81." There he is.
DNA test results confirm the baby is the biological son of the couple fighting for custody. As many as nine couples have claimed they were the baby's parents. The family is set to be reunited in court on Wednesday.
What a day that will be for them.
HEMMER: Yes, indeed. Thank you, Heidi.
Election results now in for Iraq. The Shiite coalition won about 48 percent of the vote, earning them about 130 of the 275 seats in the new national assembly.
The main Kurdish parties got 26 percent. And that's about 70 seats in the assembly. And a bloc led by the current prime minister, Ayad Allawi, got 14 percent, or about 40 seats. The remaining 35 seats set to be divided among the minor parties.
Anthony Shadid of "The Washington Post" is in Baghdad, is back with us now here on AMERICAN MORNING.
And welcome back here. I want to pull just a small clip from your opening paragraph of your article this morning on the front page of "The Washington Post". You say, "The Shiites fell short of a symbolically, symbolically important majority."
Meaning what, symbolically, Anthony?
ANTHONY SHADID, "WASHINGTON POST": Well, I think the number itself wouldn't have mattered that much because it was -- they were pretty assured pretty close of having a majority. Symbolically, though, having an actual majority would have given them more clout in negotiations that were splitting positions in the government.
Now, the Shiite List is expected to want the prime minister's job, as well as what may be a very key position, the chairman of the Constitutional Committee, which will draft Iraq's permanent constitution. They still probably will get those, but they may have a little bit less leverage in these negotiation, a little less clout as they try to divvy up the post of the president, two deputy presidents, the speaker of parliament, and then the cabinet itself. HEMMER: So if that's among the Shiites, can the Kurds make more demands as a result of their elections? Because everybody has said they did stronger than expected.
SHADID: Right now the Kurds, I think, are looking for the position of president. Now, that's a largely ceremonial post.
Jalal Talabani, the head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan -- this is one of the two main Kurdish parties -- is said to be in line to assume that position. Now, this would be a dramatic statement. It would probably be the first time in an Arab country, a majority Arab country, where a person from the ethnic minority has assumed the president through democratic elections. It will make a statement about, I think, Iraq's changing landscape, a pretty dramatic one at that.
HEMMER: What is being spoken on the street now? What are Iraqis saying as a result?
SHADID: Well, I think there's a certain amount of anticipation about what comes next, about this government being formed. There has been some -- there was some disquiet over the length that it took for the results to be announced. And, you know, as is often the case in Iraq, it gave rights to conspiracy theories, questions of why it was taking so long.
I think a lot of people are looking toward the formation of the government now to see what it will actually do. It's going to face huge problems.
There's everything from widespread joblessness and persistent blackouts, a lack of electricity in the country, to the more, you know, ominous questions of the constitution itself, and then a great persistent Sunni-led insurgency in the central part of the country. These are all things that the legislature is going to have to tackle. And I think people are waiting for some of this negotiation, this horse trading to be settled so that they can actually assume some of the responsibilities of handling these issues.
HEMMER: What happens next, Anthony?
SHADID: Well, they're expected to probably finish these negotiations within a week. Now, it will probably be very aggressive negotiations, as they usually are around these types of things. But once that -- the body is set, once the government is set, then the legislature will begin its task.
What's next ahead for that legislature is a deadline of August 15, by which it's supposed to finish the constitution. Then it goes to referendum two months later. And then hopefully by the end of the year a permanent government will be elected.
What we're looking at I think with the government itself is probably the announcement of all of the positions at one time. The negotiations are going on about the president, the two deputy presidents, the prime minister, the cabinet. They could be announced slowly, you know, position by position. But I think a lot of people here are expecting to see everything announced at one time and the government pretty much will take shape in one declaration.
HEMMER: All right. Anthony, thanks. Stay safe over there. Anthony Shadid, "Washington Post," his story this morning, again, on the front page of the paper down in D.C.
Thanks, Anthony.
Here's Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Police in Upstate New York are still searching for the motive this morning as to why a 24-year-old man would open fire inside a crowded mall. CNN's Alina Cho reports from the town of Ulster, New York.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A quiet Sunday afternoon at a mall in Upstate New York suddenly turned chaotic when shots rang out at a Best Buy.
ALI AFSHAR, WITNESS: I looked up and I saw about 80 to 90 people come running like frantically in all different directions. And they were just screaming and yelling. And they went running. And I grabbed one of them and I asked him like what was going on? And he said that there's a guy with a gun and he's shooting people.
CHO: Police say the gunman, carrying an assault style rifle, opened fire. Among the wounded, a 20-year-old National Guardsman working as a recruiter. Another man was injured by flying debris.
WAYNE OLSON, NEW YORK STATE POLICE: We consider it fortunate that more people were not struck. A Sunday afternoon in a crowded mall is -- it really has all the potential in the world for disaster.
CHO: While most people were running for their lives, one man decided to shadow the gunman until, he says, the suspect ran out of ammunition and dropped his weapon.
KEITH LAZARCHIK, WITNESS: And I picked up the gun and the shooter, he just took a couple steps and he put his hands up and he just, I guess, surrendered. And the two guys, they took him down.
CHO: Police say the suspect is a 24-year-old man. So far, police will not talk about a motive.
For mall workers and shoppers alike, what started out as a fairly routine Sunday will be remembered as anything but.
AFSHAR: You come to work hoping not to be dodging bullets when you come in the morning. And this is Valentine's Day, you know, you're hoping to have a good sales day, and now I'm running for my life.
CHO: Alina Cho, CNN, Kingston, New York. (END VIDEO TAPE)
O'BRIEN: The shooter's being held without bail. The wounded National Guardsman might actually lose his leg.
HEMMER: Wow.
Eleven minutes now past the hour. Ray Charles is gone, but his genius certainly lives on. The legendary Ray was the big winner at the Grammys last night in L.A. And our pop culture correspondent, Toure, back with us live in Los Angeles.
Decent show last night. Fun to watch, anyway, you thought?
TOURE, CNN POP CULTURE, CORRESPONDENT: It was -- yes, it was actually a great show for once. Listen, the Grammys was surprisingly compelling and fun to watch. An all-around great show, except for La Lopez.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOURE (voice-over): The 47th Grammys were a tribute to the late Ray Charles.
JOE ADAMS, RAY CHARLES' MANAGER: Humbly we accept the Grammy. Sincerely, we say thanks.
TOURE: He won eight Grammys, including album and record of the year for "Genius Loves Company: A Collection of Duets," including one with Norah Jones, who grabbed three herself.
NORAH JONES, SINGER: To stand, you know, two feet away from Ray Charles and watch him sing -- and I didn't even want to open my mouth.
TOURE: Alicia Keys won four, including best R&B contemporary. Kanye West lost best new artist to Maroon 5. When we won best rap album, no one knew what he'd say. But he was classy.
KANYE WEST, SINGER: If you have the opportunity to play this game of life, you need to appreciate every moment.
TOURE: His speech moved a lot of people.
BONO, GRAMMY WINNER: It's not jive. He's not doing it because it looks good in the ghetto. He's doing it because it's on his mind and in his heart.
TOURE: Kanye took us to church, performing "Jesus Walks." And Melissa Etheridge, bald from her battle with cancer, brought down the house, covering Janis Joplin's "Another Little Piece of My Heart" with Joss Stone.
The show's only sour note arrived when the J.Lo and Marc Anthony duet devolved into a Spanish soap opera disaster.
(END VIDEOTAPE) TOURE: There were no wardrobe malfunctions but La Lopez surely had a career malfunction. Some fun facts from the Grammys last night.
Loretta Lynn got no nominations at the Country Music Awards, but her album won best country album last night. Jon Stewart won best comedy album. Bill Clinton won best spoken word for "My Life."
Rod Stewart finally won after 13 nominations. He's no longer the Susan Lucci of the Grammys. Congrats to him.
And Britney Spears won her first Grammy for best dance recording. If they'll give her a Grammy, then anyone can win.
By the way, Jimi Hendrix and Curtis Mayfield are still Grammyless.
HEMMER: All right. Fun, fast facts there. Come on home, will you?
TOURE: I will.
HEMMER: A decent show. See you, Toure, back in New York City. Live in L.A. this morning -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Time to check the weather now. Chad Myers it at the CNN Center with the latest forecast.
Hey, Chad. Good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Soledad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: All right, Chad. Thanks. You know, you're welcome to sing the forecast anytime you want.
MYERS: I resist.
O'BRIEN: I encourage it, actually. No, don't resist. Give into it. Thanks, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
HEMMER: Is there new reason to believe the U.S. can be planning an attack on Iran? Live to Washington for details and a revealing new report. We'll get into that.
O'BRIEN: Also, a Kansas woman in a coma-like state stunned everybody by talking for the first time in 20 years. Now she's shocking everybody all over again. We'll explain.
HEMMER: Also, a former child star and one-time defender of Michael Jackson now speaking out. His allegations still to come after this on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) O'BRIEN: Today in the Michael Jackson molestation trial lawyers will resume screening possible jurors. What is each side looking for?
Richard Gabriel is a jury consultant who worked for the defense in the O.J. Simpson case. He's in Los Angeles this morning.
Nice to see you, Richard. Thank you for being with us.
RICHARD GABRIEL, JURY CONSULTANT: Good morning, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Good morning.
There was an eight-page questionnaire two week ago. Now it moves into the sort of face-to-face phase. What exactly is the benefit of the face-to-face that you don't get out of the questionnaire?
GABRIEL: Well, this is where the jurors get to reveal really any life experiences, as well as fundamental attitudes that they have about some of these very, very inflammatory and key issues in the case, and where the judge and the attorneys really get to evaluate what types of potential biases or life experiences may tip them one way or the other toward each side. It's really very important part of the process to really delve into what jurors' attitudes are about these issues in the case.
O'BRIEN: You worked for the defense in the O.J. Simpson case. Give me a sense of what the defense in this particular case is looking for in the juror, the perfect juror, if you will?
GABRIEL: Well, it's difficult to find a perfect juror in these cases because the other side gets to exercise preemptory challenges against who you think is going to be great for you. However, I think the defense is looking for jurors who have -- what I call more neuterant family values, people who are very open, people who don't have necessarily any taboos about sexuality or about affection, who aren't going to be inflamed about the necessarily pornography or adult material. I think they're also looking for jurors that are going to be skeptical about the prosecution's motives or even about parental motives in this -- in this particular instance.
O'BRIEN: How about the prosecution? Obviously the complete opposite of the person you just described?
GABRIEL: Well, I think so. I think the prosecution is going to be looking for people who have rigid sort of morality and sort of more authoritarian, people who are going to be -- have a lot of rules about affection and about touching, who are going to have a very strong reaction to the pornographic material. And even who have some sort of experience, people that they know that have had prior experience with some sort of inappropriate sexual contact.
O'BRIEN: As a jury consultant, I'd be curious to know how you determine, or if it's part of your job to help determine who is trying to get on the jury for inappropriate reasons. Maybe they want to write a book or they want to throw the case one way or the other. Can you often tell, do you think? GABRIEL: Well, you can tell. And mostly it's important to get the jurors themselves to open up, to really disclose who they are in their fundamental attitudes.
Sometimes their wording may be a little bit too perfect, sometimes they may say the exact right things. Or sometimes it's a glance or a gesture that may tell you that they're not being entirely candid with you. Those are the clues that you're looking for to try and tell whether somebody has a hidden agenda.
O'BRIEN: Do you think Michael Jackson's defense team has to embrace that he's a little bit strange? I mean, make that kind of his being, as opposed to saying, as Michael Jackson -- I'm paraphrasing -- has said, you know, I'm not -- I feel badly when people say "Jacko" and I'm strange and things like that. You know, to kind of say, yes, he's a weird guy, it's part of his lifestyle?
GABRIEL: Well, I think so. I think these jurors have to know by the end of this trial really who Michael Jackson is as a man, as a person. And that includes how he was raised, the values that he acquired, and also the sort of what he has done in creating Neverland, an experience for the children and the parents there. If jurors don't feel like they know who he is and embrace his little eccentricities, I feel it's going to be hard for them to embrace the choices that he's made.
O'BRIEN: Interesting strategy there. Richard Gabriel, jury consultant. Nice to see you. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
GABRIEL: Thank you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, as you all know, it's Valentine's Day. But if you still can't find that perfect somebody, you've got some help. A professional matchmaker tells us the three things that men and women are looking for. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
Stay with us
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: We're back with Jack and the "Question of the Day," which involves Tasers.
CAFFERTY: Stun guns, that's right. The manufacturer wants to -- pardon me -- wants to market a civilian model. It would be less powerful than the one used by the police and the military. It costs about a thousand dollars.
And so we were curious whether you would go out and buy one of these to protect your home. The company would like to see people buy these instead of firearms. The idea, I guess, being that these are non-lethal.
Depending on the circumstances, if your home is invaded, maybe you don't want non-lethal. Maybe you want the other kind. Stan in Champagne, Illinois, "No, I would not buy a Taser, nor do I relish the thought of someone walking up behind me in the parking lot some evening and mugging me with one. Tasers in the hand of the public is a remarkably stupid idea."
John in Ontario writes: "When the bad guys are armed with Tasers I'll defend myself with one. As a card-carrying member of the NRA, I smell a rat."
Jim in Spruce Grove, Alberta, "It would be great to have a Taser gun to keep the moose around here from scratching themselves against my house. But the government won't allow citizens to own them."
I guess that's a problem in Alberta. We don't have moose here in New York.
Bill in Fort Wayne, Indiana, "I bought one six months ago. The results are phenomenal. The wife no longer reaches for the remote, the kids are the best behaved on the block, and the dog finally responds to 'Heel.' I may get one for the office."
I like that.
O'BRIEN: You would like that.
HEMMER: Sales were way up? Sales were way up, right?
CAFFERTY: Huh?
HEMMER: Sales were way up at a time? And it went back down, the stock.
CAFFERTY: Well, the stock price went from $38 as recently as December to $13. Now, there's an investigation about some of the claims made. There have been some safety issues raised. There have been instances where the cops have used them and there have been other problems that have accrued they think as a result of the stun gun.
So, yes. It was a high-flying stock.
HEMMER: What about airlines? They use them, air marshals?
CAFFERTY: I don't know. I think air marshals are armed, if I'm not mistaken. But I wouldn't swear to it.
Does anybody know? Staff goes, "Huh, air marshals?"
O'BRIEN: Yes, air marshals have guns.
CAFFERTY: Guns, right?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: Not Tasers.
O'BRIEN: Yes, that's an interesting point. Who wants to be mugged by somebody with a Taser? Please.
CAFFERTY: Well, that's the thing. If they start selling these, the criminals will have them.
O'BRIEN: Yes, no background check.
CAFFERTY: And you walk into a 7-Eleven or something and start doing holdups with these, and, I mean, it's -- you know, there's a downside, I guess. But we're having a little fun, a few yuks, with the question.
O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: Yes.
O'BRIEN: A short break and we'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Ahead on "90-Second Pop"...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the Grammy goes to...
O'BRIEN: Usher and Alicia Keys were big Grammy wins. But in the end, everybody really loves Ray.
Plus, the most memorable Grammy moment might be the one everybody wants to forget. What is the deal with J.Lo and Marc Anthony?
All that and more, later on AMERICAN MORNING.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Aired February 14, 2005 - 9:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A massive explosion in Beirut, Lebanon. Terrorists this morning have killed the country's former prime minister.
In the Philippines, bombs going off in three cities. One of the most feared terror groups claiming responsibility.
A celebration in Iraq. Election results are in, but who's going to control the government?
And at the Grammys...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BONNIE RAITT, SINGER: "Genius..."
GARY SINISE, ACTOR: "Loves Company," Ray Charles.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: The late great Ray Charles is a big winner at the Grammy Awards. His voice still growing strong on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning everybody. 9:00 hour here in New York City. Happy Valentine's Day.
And to you, as well, my darling.
O'BRIEN: Thank you. And thanks for the chocolate, the flowers and -- you know, it was nothing, zero.
HEMMER: You're welcome. Call Brad.
Lots to talk about Iraq today, especially with the results of the election. Shiites winning 48 percent of the vote there. Will that lead now to a religious government in Iraq? We'll talk to a reporter on the scene there with "The Washington Post."
Anthony Shadid is back with us today. He has some insight on what comes next. So we'll talk to him in a moment live in the Iraqi capital.
O'BRIEN: Also, jury selection in the Michael Jackson trial is getting under way in earnest in California. What exactly are the lawyers looking for? We're going to talk with a jury consultant about that.
HEMMER: All right.
Jack, what's on your mind? Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Taser stun guns for the home. The company would like to market a civilian version of this thing to replace firearms in American homes to be used for self protection. It costs about a thousand bucks.
Would you buy one? AM@CNN.com is the e-mail address.
O'BRIEN: All right, Jack. Thank you.
Well, one of the key play players in Mideast politics has been killed in a massive explosion in Beirut. An apparent car bomb went off this morning in the Lebanese capital. The destruction is enormous. Car fires, smoke, debris littering the luxurious seaside center of the city.
Rafik Hariri, influential in capitals from Washington to Riyadh, was locked in a power struggle over the role of Syria in Lebanon. His motorcade was targeted. That's according to reports from the scene. Television pictures showed a person on fire that was climbing out of a burning car. Those pictures really horrific to see this morning.
HEMMER: And our bureau chief, Brent Sadler, saying in 25 years of coverage throughout the Middle East he has yet to see an explosion with that much intensity right along the waterfront there in Beirut.
O'BRIEN: Blowing out windows, apparently. More than a mile away in some cases.
HEMMER: There's some questions about U.S. relations now because Rafik Hariri was on good relations with the U.S. president, George Bush. So a story that will be told throughout the day here. We'll examine it throughout the morning.
O'BRIEN: No question.
Let's get to other stories making headlines this morning with Heidi Collins.
Good morning.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. And quite a bit going on this morning, guys. And good morning to you, everybody.
"Now in the News," authorities in the Philippines are tightening security throughout the country this hour following a series of deadly bombings there. One of the blasts going off in a bus in Manila.
Two other explosions going off in two other cities in the southern Philippines. At least three people have been killed in the attacks. We'll keep our eye on this one for you as well.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meeting today in Washington with South Korea's foreign minister. Topping their agenda is North Korea's nuclear weapons program. North Korea has been pushing for direct access to the United States, but South Korea's foreign minister tells CNN six-party nuclear talks should continue.
In Business news, a Valentine's Day union worth calling home about. CNN has learned Verizon Communications is acquiring MCI for more than $6.7 billion. The deal comes two week after another baby bell, SBC Communications, agreed to pay $16 billion for AT&T.
And a happy ending for the infant boy known as "Baby 81." There he is.
DNA test results confirm the baby is the biological son of the couple fighting for custody. As many as nine couples have claimed they were the baby's parents. The family is set to be reunited in court on Wednesday.
What a day that will be for them.
HEMMER: Yes, indeed. Thank you, Heidi.
Election results now in for Iraq. The Shiite coalition won about 48 percent of the vote, earning them about 130 of the 275 seats in the new national assembly.
The main Kurdish parties got 26 percent. And that's about 70 seats in the assembly. And a bloc led by the current prime minister, Ayad Allawi, got 14 percent, or about 40 seats. The remaining 35 seats set to be divided among the minor parties.
Anthony Shadid of "The Washington Post" is in Baghdad, is back with us now here on AMERICAN MORNING.
And welcome back here. I want to pull just a small clip from your opening paragraph of your article this morning on the front page of "The Washington Post". You say, "The Shiites fell short of a symbolically, symbolically important majority."
Meaning what, symbolically, Anthony?
ANTHONY SHADID, "WASHINGTON POST": Well, I think the number itself wouldn't have mattered that much because it was -- they were pretty assured pretty close of having a majority. Symbolically, though, having an actual majority would have given them more clout in negotiations that were splitting positions in the government.
Now, the Shiite List is expected to want the prime minister's job, as well as what may be a very key position, the chairman of the Constitutional Committee, which will draft Iraq's permanent constitution. They still probably will get those, but they may have a little bit less leverage in these negotiation, a little less clout as they try to divvy up the post of the president, two deputy presidents, the speaker of parliament, and then the cabinet itself. HEMMER: So if that's among the Shiites, can the Kurds make more demands as a result of their elections? Because everybody has said they did stronger than expected.
SHADID: Right now the Kurds, I think, are looking for the position of president. Now, that's a largely ceremonial post.
Jalal Talabani, the head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan -- this is one of the two main Kurdish parties -- is said to be in line to assume that position. Now, this would be a dramatic statement. It would probably be the first time in an Arab country, a majority Arab country, where a person from the ethnic minority has assumed the president through democratic elections. It will make a statement about, I think, Iraq's changing landscape, a pretty dramatic one at that.
HEMMER: What is being spoken on the street now? What are Iraqis saying as a result?
SHADID: Well, I think there's a certain amount of anticipation about what comes next, about this government being formed. There has been some -- there was some disquiet over the length that it took for the results to be announced. And, you know, as is often the case in Iraq, it gave rights to conspiracy theories, questions of why it was taking so long.
I think a lot of people are looking toward the formation of the government now to see what it will actually do. It's going to face huge problems.
There's everything from widespread joblessness and persistent blackouts, a lack of electricity in the country, to the more, you know, ominous questions of the constitution itself, and then a great persistent Sunni-led insurgency in the central part of the country. These are all things that the legislature is going to have to tackle. And I think people are waiting for some of this negotiation, this horse trading to be settled so that they can actually assume some of the responsibilities of handling these issues.
HEMMER: What happens next, Anthony?
SHADID: Well, they're expected to probably finish these negotiations within a week. Now, it will probably be very aggressive negotiations, as they usually are around these types of things. But once that -- the body is set, once the government is set, then the legislature will begin its task.
What's next ahead for that legislature is a deadline of August 15, by which it's supposed to finish the constitution. Then it goes to referendum two months later. And then hopefully by the end of the year a permanent government will be elected.
What we're looking at I think with the government itself is probably the announcement of all of the positions at one time. The negotiations are going on about the president, the two deputy presidents, the prime minister, the cabinet. They could be announced slowly, you know, position by position. But I think a lot of people here are expecting to see everything announced at one time and the government pretty much will take shape in one declaration.
HEMMER: All right. Anthony, thanks. Stay safe over there. Anthony Shadid, "Washington Post," his story this morning, again, on the front page of the paper down in D.C.
Thanks, Anthony.
Here's Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Police in Upstate New York are still searching for the motive this morning as to why a 24-year-old man would open fire inside a crowded mall. CNN's Alina Cho reports from the town of Ulster, New York.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A quiet Sunday afternoon at a mall in Upstate New York suddenly turned chaotic when shots rang out at a Best Buy.
ALI AFSHAR, WITNESS: I looked up and I saw about 80 to 90 people come running like frantically in all different directions. And they were just screaming and yelling. And they went running. And I grabbed one of them and I asked him like what was going on? And he said that there's a guy with a gun and he's shooting people.
CHO: Police say the gunman, carrying an assault style rifle, opened fire. Among the wounded, a 20-year-old National Guardsman working as a recruiter. Another man was injured by flying debris.
WAYNE OLSON, NEW YORK STATE POLICE: We consider it fortunate that more people were not struck. A Sunday afternoon in a crowded mall is -- it really has all the potential in the world for disaster.
CHO: While most people were running for their lives, one man decided to shadow the gunman until, he says, the suspect ran out of ammunition and dropped his weapon.
KEITH LAZARCHIK, WITNESS: And I picked up the gun and the shooter, he just took a couple steps and he put his hands up and he just, I guess, surrendered. And the two guys, they took him down.
CHO: Police say the suspect is a 24-year-old man. So far, police will not talk about a motive.
For mall workers and shoppers alike, what started out as a fairly routine Sunday will be remembered as anything but.
AFSHAR: You come to work hoping not to be dodging bullets when you come in the morning. And this is Valentine's Day, you know, you're hoping to have a good sales day, and now I'm running for my life.
CHO: Alina Cho, CNN, Kingston, New York. (END VIDEO TAPE)
O'BRIEN: The shooter's being held without bail. The wounded National Guardsman might actually lose his leg.
HEMMER: Wow.
Eleven minutes now past the hour. Ray Charles is gone, but his genius certainly lives on. The legendary Ray was the big winner at the Grammys last night in L.A. And our pop culture correspondent, Toure, back with us live in Los Angeles.
Decent show last night. Fun to watch, anyway, you thought?
TOURE, CNN POP CULTURE, CORRESPONDENT: It was -- yes, it was actually a great show for once. Listen, the Grammys was surprisingly compelling and fun to watch. An all-around great show, except for La Lopez.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOURE (voice-over): The 47th Grammys were a tribute to the late Ray Charles.
JOE ADAMS, RAY CHARLES' MANAGER: Humbly we accept the Grammy. Sincerely, we say thanks.
TOURE: He won eight Grammys, including album and record of the year for "Genius Loves Company: A Collection of Duets," including one with Norah Jones, who grabbed three herself.
NORAH JONES, SINGER: To stand, you know, two feet away from Ray Charles and watch him sing -- and I didn't even want to open my mouth.
TOURE: Alicia Keys won four, including best R&B contemporary. Kanye West lost best new artist to Maroon 5. When we won best rap album, no one knew what he'd say. But he was classy.
KANYE WEST, SINGER: If you have the opportunity to play this game of life, you need to appreciate every moment.
TOURE: His speech moved a lot of people.
BONO, GRAMMY WINNER: It's not jive. He's not doing it because it looks good in the ghetto. He's doing it because it's on his mind and in his heart.
TOURE: Kanye took us to church, performing "Jesus Walks." And Melissa Etheridge, bald from her battle with cancer, brought down the house, covering Janis Joplin's "Another Little Piece of My Heart" with Joss Stone.
The show's only sour note arrived when the J.Lo and Marc Anthony duet devolved into a Spanish soap opera disaster.
(END VIDEOTAPE) TOURE: There were no wardrobe malfunctions but La Lopez surely had a career malfunction. Some fun facts from the Grammys last night.
Loretta Lynn got no nominations at the Country Music Awards, but her album won best country album last night. Jon Stewart won best comedy album. Bill Clinton won best spoken word for "My Life."
Rod Stewart finally won after 13 nominations. He's no longer the Susan Lucci of the Grammys. Congrats to him.
And Britney Spears won her first Grammy for best dance recording. If they'll give her a Grammy, then anyone can win.
By the way, Jimi Hendrix and Curtis Mayfield are still Grammyless.
HEMMER: All right. Fun, fast facts there. Come on home, will you?
TOURE: I will.
HEMMER: A decent show. See you, Toure, back in New York City. Live in L.A. this morning -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Time to check the weather now. Chad Myers it at the CNN Center with the latest forecast.
Hey, Chad. Good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Soledad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: All right, Chad. Thanks. You know, you're welcome to sing the forecast anytime you want.
MYERS: I resist.
O'BRIEN: I encourage it, actually. No, don't resist. Give into it. Thanks, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
HEMMER: Is there new reason to believe the U.S. can be planning an attack on Iran? Live to Washington for details and a revealing new report. We'll get into that.
O'BRIEN: Also, a Kansas woman in a coma-like state stunned everybody by talking for the first time in 20 years. Now she's shocking everybody all over again. We'll explain.
HEMMER: Also, a former child star and one-time defender of Michael Jackson now speaking out. His allegations still to come after this on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) O'BRIEN: Today in the Michael Jackson molestation trial lawyers will resume screening possible jurors. What is each side looking for?
Richard Gabriel is a jury consultant who worked for the defense in the O.J. Simpson case. He's in Los Angeles this morning.
Nice to see you, Richard. Thank you for being with us.
RICHARD GABRIEL, JURY CONSULTANT: Good morning, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Good morning.
There was an eight-page questionnaire two week ago. Now it moves into the sort of face-to-face phase. What exactly is the benefit of the face-to-face that you don't get out of the questionnaire?
GABRIEL: Well, this is where the jurors get to reveal really any life experiences, as well as fundamental attitudes that they have about some of these very, very inflammatory and key issues in the case, and where the judge and the attorneys really get to evaluate what types of potential biases or life experiences may tip them one way or the other toward each side. It's really very important part of the process to really delve into what jurors' attitudes are about these issues in the case.
O'BRIEN: You worked for the defense in the O.J. Simpson case. Give me a sense of what the defense in this particular case is looking for in the juror, the perfect juror, if you will?
GABRIEL: Well, it's difficult to find a perfect juror in these cases because the other side gets to exercise preemptory challenges against who you think is going to be great for you. However, I think the defense is looking for jurors who have -- what I call more neuterant family values, people who are very open, people who don't have necessarily any taboos about sexuality or about affection, who aren't going to be inflamed about the necessarily pornography or adult material. I think they're also looking for jurors that are going to be skeptical about the prosecution's motives or even about parental motives in this -- in this particular instance.
O'BRIEN: How about the prosecution? Obviously the complete opposite of the person you just described?
GABRIEL: Well, I think so. I think the prosecution is going to be looking for people who have rigid sort of morality and sort of more authoritarian, people who are going to be -- have a lot of rules about affection and about touching, who are going to have a very strong reaction to the pornographic material. And even who have some sort of experience, people that they know that have had prior experience with some sort of inappropriate sexual contact.
O'BRIEN: As a jury consultant, I'd be curious to know how you determine, or if it's part of your job to help determine who is trying to get on the jury for inappropriate reasons. Maybe they want to write a book or they want to throw the case one way or the other. Can you often tell, do you think? GABRIEL: Well, you can tell. And mostly it's important to get the jurors themselves to open up, to really disclose who they are in their fundamental attitudes.
Sometimes their wording may be a little bit too perfect, sometimes they may say the exact right things. Or sometimes it's a glance or a gesture that may tell you that they're not being entirely candid with you. Those are the clues that you're looking for to try and tell whether somebody has a hidden agenda.
O'BRIEN: Do you think Michael Jackson's defense team has to embrace that he's a little bit strange? I mean, make that kind of his being, as opposed to saying, as Michael Jackson -- I'm paraphrasing -- has said, you know, I'm not -- I feel badly when people say "Jacko" and I'm strange and things like that. You know, to kind of say, yes, he's a weird guy, it's part of his lifestyle?
GABRIEL: Well, I think so. I think these jurors have to know by the end of this trial really who Michael Jackson is as a man, as a person. And that includes how he was raised, the values that he acquired, and also the sort of what he has done in creating Neverland, an experience for the children and the parents there. If jurors don't feel like they know who he is and embrace his little eccentricities, I feel it's going to be hard for them to embrace the choices that he's made.
O'BRIEN: Interesting strategy there. Richard Gabriel, jury consultant. Nice to see you. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
GABRIEL: Thank you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, as you all know, it's Valentine's Day. But if you still can't find that perfect somebody, you've got some help. A professional matchmaker tells us the three things that men and women are looking for. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
Stay with us
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: We're back with Jack and the "Question of the Day," which involves Tasers.
CAFFERTY: Stun guns, that's right. The manufacturer wants to -- pardon me -- wants to market a civilian model. It would be less powerful than the one used by the police and the military. It costs about a thousand dollars.
And so we were curious whether you would go out and buy one of these to protect your home. The company would like to see people buy these instead of firearms. The idea, I guess, being that these are non-lethal.
Depending on the circumstances, if your home is invaded, maybe you don't want non-lethal. Maybe you want the other kind. Stan in Champagne, Illinois, "No, I would not buy a Taser, nor do I relish the thought of someone walking up behind me in the parking lot some evening and mugging me with one. Tasers in the hand of the public is a remarkably stupid idea."
John in Ontario writes: "When the bad guys are armed with Tasers I'll defend myself with one. As a card-carrying member of the NRA, I smell a rat."
Jim in Spruce Grove, Alberta, "It would be great to have a Taser gun to keep the moose around here from scratching themselves against my house. But the government won't allow citizens to own them."
I guess that's a problem in Alberta. We don't have moose here in New York.
Bill in Fort Wayne, Indiana, "I bought one six months ago. The results are phenomenal. The wife no longer reaches for the remote, the kids are the best behaved on the block, and the dog finally responds to 'Heel.' I may get one for the office."
I like that.
O'BRIEN: You would like that.
HEMMER: Sales were way up? Sales were way up, right?
CAFFERTY: Huh?
HEMMER: Sales were way up at a time? And it went back down, the stock.
CAFFERTY: Well, the stock price went from $38 as recently as December to $13. Now, there's an investigation about some of the claims made. There have been some safety issues raised. There have been instances where the cops have used them and there have been other problems that have accrued they think as a result of the stun gun.
So, yes. It was a high-flying stock.
HEMMER: What about airlines? They use them, air marshals?
CAFFERTY: I don't know. I think air marshals are armed, if I'm not mistaken. But I wouldn't swear to it.
Does anybody know? Staff goes, "Huh, air marshals?"
O'BRIEN: Yes, air marshals have guns.
CAFFERTY: Guns, right?
O'BRIEN: Yes.
HEMMER: Not Tasers.
O'BRIEN: Yes, that's an interesting point. Who wants to be mugged by somebody with a Taser? Please.
CAFFERTY: Well, that's the thing. If they start selling these, the criminals will have them.
O'BRIEN: Yes, no background check.
CAFFERTY: And you walk into a 7-Eleven or something and start doing holdups with these, and, I mean, it's -- you know, there's a downside, I guess. But we're having a little fun, a few yuks, with the question.
O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: Yes.
O'BRIEN: A short break and we'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Ahead on "90-Second Pop"...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the Grammy goes to...
O'BRIEN: Usher and Alicia Keys were big Grammy wins. But in the end, everybody really loves Ray.
Plus, the most memorable Grammy moment might be the one everybody wants to forget. What is the deal with J.Lo and Marc Anthony?
All that and more, later on AMERICAN MORNING.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
