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American Morning

Author and Journalist Hunter S. Thompson Has Died; Former Presidents Clinton, Bush Say Tsunami Devastation Worse Than Imagined

Aired February 21, 2005 - 09:31   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: Good morning. Welcome, everybody. Mr. Hemmer's got the day off. Miles O'Brien been kind enough to fill in.
Good morning.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It's good to be here. And we wish we were with Hemmer snowboarding, but we also have to soldier on here, don't we? We'll get back to those secret tapes of President Bush in just a few moments. We've been talking about them all morning.

A little while ago, I spoke to Doug Wead. He's the man who made those tapes without Mr. Bush's consent. We'll find out he did it, why he released the tapes and whether he agrees with folks who call this a deep betrayal of a person he calls friend.

S. O'BRIEN: Also this morning, what was it like to cover the big stories of the Nixon era when Hunter S. Thompson was on the beat. Bruce Morton was a reporter back then. He saw Thompson's unique style close up. He's going to share some of his memories.

Before all that, though, let's get a look at the headlines again with Heidi Collins.

Good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and good morning to you once again, everyone.

Now in the news this morning, President Bush preparing to meet later today with French President Jacques Chirac. The president delivering a speech in Brussels, Belgium one hour ago, calling for a new era of trans-Atlantic unity. The president speaking before European allies, asking for democratic support in Iraq and in the Middle East. He also urged Syria to end its occupation in Lebanon. It is the president's first major address during a five-day visit to Europe.

Some 500 Palestinian prisoners winning their freedom today. The release, that is, from prison in southern Israel in what's being seen as a goodwill gesture. The prisoners were freed as part of a cease- fire agreement made earlier this month in the Mideast summit in Egypt.

A flash-flood watch in effect this morning in parts of Southern California. At least one person was reportedly killed after plunging into an enormous sinkhole caused by the rain. At least two other deaths are being blamed on the storms. The wet weather expected to continue through tomorrow, possibly triggering more landslides.

And here in New York City, it's the wonderful world of toys. More than 5,000 new toys on display from a Spongebob station and Beanie Babies to The Homeys and singing robots. It's all part of the American International Toy Fair now under way until Wednesday.

Miles, I think they knew you were here.

M. O'BRIEN: I am going to to the toy fair. Now I know what to do with my day.

S. O'BRIEN: Around the corner from my house.

M. O'BRIEN: I'm going. You think they'll let me in. Don't you have to have some kind of credentials, like toy credentials?

S. O'BRIEN: You can go. No.

COLLINS: Just act like a kid.

M. O'BRIEN: Just that gleam in your eye, which is easy.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Heidi, thanks.

Author and gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson has died. According to his family, Thompson fatally shot himself at his home in Colorado yesterday. Among Thompson's well-known pieces were "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," as well as his work covering the 1972 election.

CNN national correspondent Bruce Morton with Thompson on the '72 campaign trail. Bruce Morton joins us this morning.

Nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.

BRUCE MORTON, CNN NATL. CORRESPONDENT: A pleasure.

S. O'BRIEN: We've heard stories about Hunter S. Thompson being crazy, and wild and stoned while he was working. Give us a sense of what he was like when you were working right next to him.

MORTON: That's very well put, Soledad, he was crazy, and wild and stoned.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you.

MORTON: He'd perked the campaign plane or the campaign bus up a whole lot, he'd come out and say, had hey, weird stuff's going to happen, Hunter is here. He was also, it's fair to say, a very good writer. You read his stuff in "Rolling Stone" magazine, and maybe it wasn't what you've seen and maybe it wasn't what had happened, but by golly, it was good stuff and it was fun.

S. O'BRIEN: How was he viewed by other journalists who were on that bus?

MORTON: As a gifted eccentric, I think, you know, we were a few years older, probably. We were much more familiar with scotch whiskey than we were with any of the interesting chemicals that Hunter might come aboard with, but he was good at it. Wonderful, funny descriptions. Ed Muskie, who was the Democratic front-runner for a while that year, he described as constantly stoned on some mysterious African drug none of us had ever heard of. Well, you looked at Muskie sometimes and who knew.

Richard Nixon, he said he had an interview once, but they him promise he would only talk about football. Nixon liked football. The last time I heard from Hunter, heard from, not saw, the campaign was over, I think early 1973, and I got a phone call, saying the CIA has me, can you lend me 20 bucks. I said 20 bucks is no problem, but I don't think they'll let me in at Langway. You just never knew with him. He was a free spirit and a gifted one.

S. O'BRIEN: What kind of an impact do you think he had on political journalism?

MORTON: Well, I don't think he had very much impact on traditional political journalism. If you were writing for "The New York Times," they wouldn't let you write like Hunter. If you were writing for CBS News, as I was, they wouldn't let you either. I think a lot of young journalists said, hey, this is a fun style, I'm going to fool around with this and see where it goes.

S. O'BRIEN: He's going to be greatly missed, I think it's fair to say, really someone who brought his personal style and made a big impact on people.

Bruce Morton with his memories. Thanks for talking with us, Bruce. We certainly appreciate it -- Miles.

MORTON: Thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: Former Presidents Clinton and Bush say the tsunami devastation is worse than imagined. They toured some of the worst-hit areas over the weekend. Both say the recovery effort is working, but it has a long way to go.

Aneesh Raman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The former presidents came to see firsthand images they insist the world must not forget. Amidst endless debris and grateful villages in Aceh, Indonesia, the two confronted nature's brutality.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's humbling, because you realize just a mat of a few feet determined whether mothers, and fathers and children lived or died.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: the devastation on the ground is worse than I expected. Just leveled where there were schools, houses. It's just flat, flat land. It was -- I've never seen anything like it, ever.

RAMAN: The three-day, four-nation tour had a simple purpose, confirming for Americans who have given so much that their money is getting to those in need, and asking that they give more. The reconstruction process here will have no definable end. It is simply the region's new reality.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH: I think there's much more to be done, and we feel it much more strongly having been in this town that was ravaged by the storm.

RAMAN: Like the empty landscape of Aceh, each stop brought to light differing aspects of the tsunami's aftermath. In Phuket, Thailand, orphans presented the two with drawings of the waves that killed their parents, a poignant moment both said they would never forget.

And in Sri Lanka a visit to a trauma center, helping survivors deal with untold loss. Meeting with heads of state, the former presidents also conveyed America's commitment to help in the years ahead.

RAMAN (on camera): As they return home, Clinton and Bush Sr. carry with them the hope white the effects will be felt for generations, so will the world's empathy. This unparalleled disaster deserves nothing less.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Bangkok.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: The presidents say, would-be donors can find many reliable charities at Freedom Corp's Web site. That's at www.usafreedomcorpscorps.gov -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Southern California is take taking a pounding from violent weather causing floods and deadly rock slides, even a huge tornado-like waterspout was seen off of Huntington Beach. In the Los Angeles area, at least three people are now reported killed. One, a city worker, was swept into a sinkhole that was 30 feet deep. The others, people trapped in the mud and rock slides.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: History on tape, a family friend secretly records conversations with George W. Bush while he was still the governor of Texas. What they reveal about the man who would be president, up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Some private conversations from President Bush's past now in the public this morning. The secret tapes appear to reveal the president acknowledged using drugs. They also offer a foreshadowing of his future political positions.

Elaine Quijano with our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON: In the secretly taped conversations first reported in the "New York Times," then Texas governor George W. Bush candidly discusses his reasons for not answering a question - did he ever use drugs.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER GOVERNOR OF TEXAS: Well, Doug, but it's not - it doesn't matter - cocaine. It'd be the same with marijuana. I wouldn't answer the marijuana question. You know why? Because I don't want some little kid doing what I tried.

DOUG WEAD, FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT: Yes. And it never stops.

BUSH: But you've got to understand. I want to be president. I want to lead. I want to set - do you want your little kid to say, "Hey, Daddy. President Bush tried marijuana. I think I will."

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Mr. Bush also discusses his religious faith and his dealings with Christian conservatives. At one point he bluntly states he will not give in to pressure to criticize gay people.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

WEAD: You promised you would not appoint gays to office.

BUSH: No. What I said was, I wouldn't fire gays. I'm not going to discriminate against people.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: CNN did not independently authenticate the tapes - a process that can take days. But Tom Owen, the expert who authenticated the tapes for the "New York Times," says he spent eight days analyzing excerpts before reaching his conclusion.

TOM OWEN, OWL INVESTIGATIONS, AUDIO VOICE AUTHENTICATION: In listening to the tapes over and over and in listening to various samples of George W. Bush's voice, at that time and later, I have concluded that it is the president's voice.

QUIJANO: The man who recorded the tapes, Doug Wead, has a book coming out. We could not reach Wead on Sunday, but he told the "New York Times" the recordings were carried out in states where it was legal.

CNN could not independently verify his claim.

Wead told ABC's "Good Morning America: Weekend Edition," he made the recordings for their historical value.

WEAD: If I had had a chance to tape record Gandhi or had conversations with Churchill, I probably would have recorded them too.

QUIJANO: But some say history will record the secret tapes as a betrayal.

STUART ROTHENBERG, POLITICAL ANALYST: On a continuum of violations of personal relationship and personal confidences, this is probably the Super Bowl of them all.

QUIJANO: The White House issued a one-sentence response, saying these were casual conversations with somebody he considered a friend.

Historians say there is value in the recordings.

ALAN LICHTMAN, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: When presidents write their memoirs, they're carefully doctored and carefully tailored. So, candid talk by presidents, even before they enter office, is like gold for historians.

QUIJANO: The tapes were reportedly made in 1998 through part of 2000. Experts say, based on the excerpts released, they are far from scandalous and reveal a consistency - a man deeply religious, whose private conversations echo his public positions.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: Now we were able to reach Mr. Wead after Elaine Quijano filed the report. As a matter of fact, he was our guest here last hour mere on AMERICAN MORNING. Among the many questions I asked him was I asked him to respond to a particular quote, which was near the end of that "New York Times" article. He told the reporter, I just felt that the historical point I was making trumped a personal relationship. Meaning his friendship with the president. Let's listen to Mr. Wead's response to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG WEAD. FMR. GEORGE H.W. BUSH ADVISER: Well, this isn't about money. I could sell tapes.

M. O'BRIEN: Well, it's going help your book, isn't it?

WEAD: Well, my book could have been released before the election. It would have been a runaway bestseller. It would have been driven by partisan...

M. O'BRIEN: But clearly people are going to go buy that book today after seeing this, right?

WEAD: My publicist said I lost a million dollars by delaying the book after the election, where it would have been driven by partisan interests. But I hope it sells. I'm a historian, and he's president, and he has to lead, he has to set an example. I had to write about the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, the Bushes. I attempted to vet the stories with all three families.

M. O'BRIEN: Is the president your friend still?

WEAD: He's my friend, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

M. O'BRIEN: All right, just to be clear, that was not the question I asked him that engendered that response. I was asking him actually if he felt that these tapes would help sales of his books, and that is the response I got from that. That other question not related to that response, just to clarify the record there -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: A little clarification. Thanks, Miles.

A short break is ahead. AMERICAN MORNING is back right after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Vioxx may get new life and be back on the market after Merck pulled the arthritis drug last September due to concerns it had caused heart problems and strokes.

Dr. Steven Nissen is part of an FDA advisory board that looked into Vioxx and the other painkillers and issued recommendations for those drugs just last week. He's in Cleveland, Ohio. Nice to see you, doctor. Thank you very much for talking with us.

DR. STEVEN NISSEN, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, CLEVELAND CLINIC HEART CTR.: Nice to join you again.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you. Will we see Vioxx back on the market?

NISSEN: That's not entirely clear. What we did last week is we reviewed all of the scientific evidence for the three drugs: Celebrex, Vioxx and Bextra. And we decided that all three drugs could increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. But we didn't assign the same amount of risk to each of the drugs.

The committee felt that Vioxx was the riskiest of the drugs and Celebrex was least risky, particularly if Celebrex is taken at the lowest dose of 200 milligrams. The vote on whether Vioxx might be able to be marketed again was quite close. It was 17-15. And that kind of puts it back in the hands of the FDA. So I don't think it's a sure thing that we're going to see Vioxx back on the market.

S. O'BRIEN: I know one of the recommendations was something called the black box warning? What exactly is that?

NISSEN: There were actually three key recommendations. The first of those is to put a black boxed warning, which is exactly what it sounds like. In the product literature, the manufacturer has to put a bold-faced warning and a big black box. It's the first thing that the doctor sees in the product literature or in any advertisement for the drug.

But in addition, a very important decision was to recommend to the FDA that they ban all direct-to-consumer advertising for all three of these drugs. That's going to mean that those ads are going to disappear from the airwaves, which we think was driving a lot of the excessive use of the drugs. And the third decision, very important for patients, is that a patient will receive a handout from their pharmacist when they get the drug that's going to spell the risks out very clearly.

S. O'BRIEN: To what degree is the real issue the dose? I guess the basic question would be, do the benefits outweigh the risks when you're talking about certain doses?

NISSEN: Well, if you give these drugs to a high enough risk patient -- a patient with heart disease, we think any dose can be risky. But in lower-risk individuals, keeping the dose down and keeping the duration of therapy down is an important strategy for staying away from heart and stroke risks from these drugs. Celebrex, at its lowest dose of 200 milligrams a day, we really didn't see a lot of evidence that suggested that there's any harm there. But I think if you give it to the wrong patient, you could easily get into trouble.

S. O'BRIEN: You voted against -- when you say the 17-15 vote, you voted against allowing Vioxx back on the market. Why is that?

NISSEN: Well, I thought the evidence on Vioxx was much stronger. Vioxx, unlike the other two drugs, pushes up the blood pressure about five or six millimeters of mercury. And over a long period of time, elevating blood pressure by that amount can really lead to excessive risk of heart disease and stroke. I really thought Vioxx was the outlyer here.

And I actually hope the FDA does not bring it back and I hope Merck doesn't bring it back. But what the committee was saying was that the potential existed, primarily because it's the only one of the three drugs approved for children. And children with rheumatoid arthritis are an important group of people.

S. O'BRIEN: When does the FDA make its decision?

NISSEN: I think they're going to move very quickly on this. You know, it's been an awful lot of scrutiny by the media and the public over the handling of these drugs. The FDA wants to act responsibly. These black box warnings are going to get added quickly. I think the patients' circulars are going to developed quickly and I hope that we'll get this behind us over the next three or four months.

S. O'BRIEN: Dr. Steven Nissen joining us. Nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.

NISSEN: You bet. S. O'BRIEN: Miles?

M. O'BRIEN: Final check on the "Question of the Day." Jack's here.

CAFFERTY: You kind of wonder if the FDA decision -- if they approve putting these drugs back on the market, that will have any affect on the any of these lawsuits.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, exactly.

CAFFERTY: Interesting thing to conjure. Should President Bush suspend Russia's membership in the G-8? The G-8 is the eight industrialized democracies. Russia's been a little undemocratic in a couple of areas lately, so there is a movement in the country -- John McCain and Joe Lieberman introduced legislation to have Russia removed from that group of nations.

Marlene writes: "No, the Russians should be encouraged to remain in the G-8. When they became free, they did not have the tools to make a democracy work. Their economy was old, slow and unable to reap the benefits of a free society. What they need is help."

John in Missouri: "Putin's the closest thing to an American style executive leader all of Europe has seen. It's only fair to give him time to cleanse self-interest and corruption. At least his methods don't appear to use a bullet in the back of the head, yet."

And Dean in New Jersey writes: "No, President Bush should maintain Russia's membership in the G-8, but take all of the screws out of Putin's chair just before their next meeting." Silly.

S. O'BRIEN: You know, if someone can find something that's funny in that is I think, you know...

CAFFERTY: We take what is offered.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, thank you.

CAFFERTY: And we're grateful.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, we are. Each and every day. Thanks.

Looking to get your kids into best college possible? CNN LIVE TODAY has a top five tips on getting into an Ivy League school. That's coming up in the next hour with Daryn and Rick. AMERICAN MORNING is back in a just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Guess what? We're out of time. Didn't it feel like today went by so fast?

M. O'BRIEN: Just flew by. Flew by. Just like that. It seemed like three hours.

S. O'BRIEN: Jack, we'll see you again this time tomorrow.

CAFFERTY: I got to call my wife, shoveled the deck at my house.

M. O'BRIEN: This just into CNN...

CAFFERTY: There's news and then there's news. Don't say we ever do good news. This is damn good news.

S. O'BRIEN: You realize you're going to pay. Your wife calls you to tell you she shoveled your deck?

CAFFERTY: There's a hidden agenda, you're suggesting?

S. O'BRIEN: Maybe not even so hidden. You're going to find out in about 35 minutes.

M. O'BRIEN: I think a dented vehicle might be in the picture. Who knows? I don't know.

S. O'BRIEN: We're out of time here. Let's go down to Daryn and Rick at the CNN Center Atlanta. Take you through the next few hours. Good morning, guys.

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Aired February 21, 2005 - 09:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome, everybody. Mr. Hemmer's got the day off. Miles O'Brien been kind enough to fill in.
Good morning.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It's good to be here. And we wish we were with Hemmer snowboarding, but we also have to soldier on here, don't we? We'll get back to those secret tapes of President Bush in just a few moments. We've been talking about them all morning.

A little while ago, I spoke to Doug Wead. He's the man who made those tapes without Mr. Bush's consent. We'll find out he did it, why he released the tapes and whether he agrees with folks who call this a deep betrayal of a person he calls friend.

S. O'BRIEN: Also this morning, what was it like to cover the big stories of the Nixon era when Hunter S. Thompson was on the beat. Bruce Morton was a reporter back then. He saw Thompson's unique style close up. He's going to share some of his memories.

Before all that, though, let's get a look at the headlines again with Heidi Collins.

Good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and good morning to you once again, everyone.

Now in the news this morning, President Bush preparing to meet later today with French President Jacques Chirac. The president delivering a speech in Brussels, Belgium one hour ago, calling for a new era of trans-Atlantic unity. The president speaking before European allies, asking for democratic support in Iraq and in the Middle East. He also urged Syria to end its occupation in Lebanon. It is the president's first major address during a five-day visit to Europe.

Some 500 Palestinian prisoners winning their freedom today. The release, that is, from prison in southern Israel in what's being seen as a goodwill gesture. The prisoners were freed as part of a cease- fire agreement made earlier this month in the Mideast summit in Egypt.

A flash-flood watch in effect this morning in parts of Southern California. At least one person was reportedly killed after plunging into an enormous sinkhole caused by the rain. At least two other deaths are being blamed on the storms. The wet weather expected to continue through tomorrow, possibly triggering more landslides.

And here in New York City, it's the wonderful world of toys. More than 5,000 new toys on display from a Spongebob station and Beanie Babies to The Homeys and singing robots. It's all part of the American International Toy Fair now under way until Wednesday.

Miles, I think they knew you were here.

M. O'BRIEN: I am going to to the toy fair. Now I know what to do with my day.

S. O'BRIEN: Around the corner from my house.

M. O'BRIEN: I'm going. You think they'll let me in. Don't you have to have some kind of credentials, like toy credentials?

S. O'BRIEN: You can go. No.

COLLINS: Just act like a kid.

M. O'BRIEN: Just that gleam in your eye, which is easy.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Heidi, thanks.

Author and gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson has died. According to his family, Thompson fatally shot himself at his home in Colorado yesterday. Among Thompson's well-known pieces were "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," as well as his work covering the 1972 election.

CNN national correspondent Bruce Morton with Thompson on the '72 campaign trail. Bruce Morton joins us this morning.

Nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.

BRUCE MORTON, CNN NATL. CORRESPONDENT: A pleasure.

S. O'BRIEN: We've heard stories about Hunter S. Thompson being crazy, and wild and stoned while he was working. Give us a sense of what he was like when you were working right next to him.

MORTON: That's very well put, Soledad, he was crazy, and wild and stoned.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you.

MORTON: He'd perked the campaign plane or the campaign bus up a whole lot, he'd come out and say, had hey, weird stuff's going to happen, Hunter is here. He was also, it's fair to say, a very good writer. You read his stuff in "Rolling Stone" magazine, and maybe it wasn't what you've seen and maybe it wasn't what had happened, but by golly, it was good stuff and it was fun.

S. O'BRIEN: How was he viewed by other journalists who were on that bus?

MORTON: As a gifted eccentric, I think, you know, we were a few years older, probably. We were much more familiar with scotch whiskey than we were with any of the interesting chemicals that Hunter might come aboard with, but he was good at it. Wonderful, funny descriptions. Ed Muskie, who was the Democratic front-runner for a while that year, he described as constantly stoned on some mysterious African drug none of us had ever heard of. Well, you looked at Muskie sometimes and who knew.

Richard Nixon, he said he had an interview once, but they him promise he would only talk about football. Nixon liked football. The last time I heard from Hunter, heard from, not saw, the campaign was over, I think early 1973, and I got a phone call, saying the CIA has me, can you lend me 20 bucks. I said 20 bucks is no problem, but I don't think they'll let me in at Langway. You just never knew with him. He was a free spirit and a gifted one.

S. O'BRIEN: What kind of an impact do you think he had on political journalism?

MORTON: Well, I don't think he had very much impact on traditional political journalism. If you were writing for "The New York Times," they wouldn't let you write like Hunter. If you were writing for CBS News, as I was, they wouldn't let you either. I think a lot of young journalists said, hey, this is a fun style, I'm going to fool around with this and see where it goes.

S. O'BRIEN: He's going to be greatly missed, I think it's fair to say, really someone who brought his personal style and made a big impact on people.

Bruce Morton with his memories. Thanks for talking with us, Bruce. We certainly appreciate it -- Miles.

MORTON: Thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: Former Presidents Clinton and Bush say the tsunami devastation is worse than imagined. They toured some of the worst-hit areas over the weekend. Both say the recovery effort is working, but it has a long way to go.

Aneesh Raman reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The former presidents came to see firsthand images they insist the world must not forget. Amidst endless debris and grateful villages in Aceh, Indonesia, the two confronted nature's brutality.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's humbling, because you realize just a mat of a few feet determined whether mothers, and fathers and children lived or died.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: the devastation on the ground is worse than I expected. Just leveled where there were schools, houses. It's just flat, flat land. It was -- I've never seen anything like it, ever.

RAMAN: The three-day, four-nation tour had a simple purpose, confirming for Americans who have given so much that their money is getting to those in need, and asking that they give more. The reconstruction process here will have no definable end. It is simply the region's new reality.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH: I think there's much more to be done, and we feel it much more strongly having been in this town that was ravaged by the storm.

RAMAN: Like the empty landscape of Aceh, each stop brought to light differing aspects of the tsunami's aftermath. In Phuket, Thailand, orphans presented the two with drawings of the waves that killed their parents, a poignant moment both said they would never forget.

And in Sri Lanka a visit to a trauma center, helping survivors deal with untold loss. Meeting with heads of state, the former presidents also conveyed America's commitment to help in the years ahead.

RAMAN (on camera): As they return home, Clinton and Bush Sr. carry with them the hope white the effects will be felt for generations, so will the world's empathy. This unparalleled disaster deserves nothing less.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Bangkok.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: The presidents say, would-be donors can find many reliable charities at Freedom Corp's Web site. That's at www.usafreedomcorpscorps.gov -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Southern California is take taking a pounding from violent weather causing floods and deadly rock slides, even a huge tornado-like waterspout was seen off of Huntington Beach. In the Los Angeles area, at least three people are now reported killed. One, a city worker, was swept into a sinkhole that was 30 feet deep. The others, people trapped in the mud and rock slides.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: History on tape, a family friend secretly records conversations with George W. Bush while he was still the governor of Texas. What they reveal about the man who would be president, up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Some private conversations from President Bush's past now in the public this morning. The secret tapes appear to reveal the president acknowledged using drugs. They also offer a foreshadowing of his future political positions.

Elaine Quijano with our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT, WASHINGTON: In the secretly taped conversations first reported in the "New York Times," then Texas governor George W. Bush candidly discusses his reasons for not answering a question - did he ever use drugs.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER GOVERNOR OF TEXAS: Well, Doug, but it's not - it doesn't matter - cocaine. It'd be the same with marijuana. I wouldn't answer the marijuana question. You know why? Because I don't want some little kid doing what I tried.

DOUG WEAD, FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT: Yes. And it never stops.

BUSH: But you've got to understand. I want to be president. I want to lead. I want to set - do you want your little kid to say, "Hey, Daddy. President Bush tried marijuana. I think I will."

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Mr. Bush also discusses his religious faith and his dealings with Christian conservatives. At one point he bluntly states he will not give in to pressure to criticize gay people.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

WEAD: You promised you would not appoint gays to office.

BUSH: No. What I said was, I wouldn't fire gays. I'm not going to discriminate against people.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

QUIJANO: CNN did not independently authenticate the tapes - a process that can take days. But Tom Owen, the expert who authenticated the tapes for the "New York Times," says he spent eight days analyzing excerpts before reaching his conclusion.

TOM OWEN, OWL INVESTIGATIONS, AUDIO VOICE AUTHENTICATION: In listening to the tapes over and over and in listening to various samples of George W. Bush's voice, at that time and later, I have concluded that it is the president's voice.

QUIJANO: The man who recorded the tapes, Doug Wead, has a book coming out. We could not reach Wead on Sunday, but he told the "New York Times" the recordings were carried out in states where it was legal.

CNN could not independently verify his claim.

Wead told ABC's "Good Morning America: Weekend Edition," he made the recordings for their historical value.

WEAD: If I had had a chance to tape record Gandhi or had conversations with Churchill, I probably would have recorded them too.

QUIJANO: But some say history will record the secret tapes as a betrayal.

STUART ROTHENBERG, POLITICAL ANALYST: On a continuum of violations of personal relationship and personal confidences, this is probably the Super Bowl of them all.

QUIJANO: The White House issued a one-sentence response, saying these were casual conversations with somebody he considered a friend.

Historians say there is value in the recordings.

ALAN LICHTMAN, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: When presidents write their memoirs, they're carefully doctored and carefully tailored. So, candid talk by presidents, even before they enter office, is like gold for historians.

QUIJANO: The tapes were reportedly made in 1998 through part of 2000. Experts say, based on the excerpts released, they are far from scandalous and reveal a consistency - a man deeply religious, whose private conversations echo his public positions.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: Now we were able to reach Mr. Wead after Elaine Quijano filed the report. As a matter of fact, he was our guest here last hour mere on AMERICAN MORNING. Among the many questions I asked him was I asked him to respond to a particular quote, which was near the end of that "New York Times" article. He told the reporter, I just felt that the historical point I was making trumped a personal relationship. Meaning his friendship with the president. Let's listen to Mr. Wead's response to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG WEAD. FMR. GEORGE H.W. BUSH ADVISER: Well, this isn't about money. I could sell tapes.

M. O'BRIEN: Well, it's going help your book, isn't it?

WEAD: Well, my book could have been released before the election. It would have been a runaway bestseller. It would have been driven by partisan...

M. O'BRIEN: But clearly people are going to go buy that book today after seeing this, right?

WEAD: My publicist said I lost a million dollars by delaying the book after the election, where it would have been driven by partisan interests. But I hope it sells. I'm a historian, and he's president, and he has to lead, he has to set an example. I had to write about the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, the Bushes. I attempted to vet the stories with all three families.

M. O'BRIEN: Is the president your friend still?

WEAD: He's my friend, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

M. O'BRIEN: All right, just to be clear, that was not the question I asked him that engendered that response. I was asking him actually if he felt that these tapes would help sales of his books, and that is the response I got from that. That other question not related to that response, just to clarify the record there -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: A little clarification. Thanks, Miles.

A short break is ahead. AMERICAN MORNING is back right after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Vioxx may get new life and be back on the market after Merck pulled the arthritis drug last September due to concerns it had caused heart problems and strokes.

Dr. Steven Nissen is part of an FDA advisory board that looked into Vioxx and the other painkillers and issued recommendations for those drugs just last week. He's in Cleveland, Ohio. Nice to see you, doctor. Thank you very much for talking with us.

DR. STEVEN NISSEN, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, CLEVELAND CLINIC HEART CTR.: Nice to join you again.

S. O'BRIEN: Thank you. Will we see Vioxx back on the market?

NISSEN: That's not entirely clear. What we did last week is we reviewed all of the scientific evidence for the three drugs: Celebrex, Vioxx and Bextra. And we decided that all three drugs could increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. But we didn't assign the same amount of risk to each of the drugs.

The committee felt that Vioxx was the riskiest of the drugs and Celebrex was least risky, particularly if Celebrex is taken at the lowest dose of 200 milligrams. The vote on whether Vioxx might be able to be marketed again was quite close. It was 17-15. And that kind of puts it back in the hands of the FDA. So I don't think it's a sure thing that we're going to see Vioxx back on the market.

S. O'BRIEN: I know one of the recommendations was something called the black box warning? What exactly is that?

NISSEN: There were actually three key recommendations. The first of those is to put a black boxed warning, which is exactly what it sounds like. In the product literature, the manufacturer has to put a bold-faced warning and a big black box. It's the first thing that the doctor sees in the product literature or in any advertisement for the drug.

But in addition, a very important decision was to recommend to the FDA that they ban all direct-to-consumer advertising for all three of these drugs. That's going to mean that those ads are going to disappear from the airwaves, which we think was driving a lot of the excessive use of the drugs. And the third decision, very important for patients, is that a patient will receive a handout from their pharmacist when they get the drug that's going to spell the risks out very clearly.

S. O'BRIEN: To what degree is the real issue the dose? I guess the basic question would be, do the benefits outweigh the risks when you're talking about certain doses?

NISSEN: Well, if you give these drugs to a high enough risk patient -- a patient with heart disease, we think any dose can be risky. But in lower-risk individuals, keeping the dose down and keeping the duration of therapy down is an important strategy for staying away from heart and stroke risks from these drugs. Celebrex, at its lowest dose of 200 milligrams a day, we really didn't see a lot of evidence that suggested that there's any harm there. But I think if you give it to the wrong patient, you could easily get into trouble.

S. O'BRIEN: You voted against -- when you say the 17-15 vote, you voted against allowing Vioxx back on the market. Why is that?

NISSEN: Well, I thought the evidence on Vioxx was much stronger. Vioxx, unlike the other two drugs, pushes up the blood pressure about five or six millimeters of mercury. And over a long period of time, elevating blood pressure by that amount can really lead to excessive risk of heart disease and stroke. I really thought Vioxx was the outlyer here.

And I actually hope the FDA does not bring it back and I hope Merck doesn't bring it back. But what the committee was saying was that the potential existed, primarily because it's the only one of the three drugs approved for children. And children with rheumatoid arthritis are an important group of people.

S. O'BRIEN: When does the FDA make its decision?

NISSEN: I think they're going to move very quickly on this. You know, it's been an awful lot of scrutiny by the media and the public over the handling of these drugs. The FDA wants to act responsibly. These black box warnings are going to get added quickly. I think the patients' circulars are going to developed quickly and I hope that we'll get this behind us over the next three or four months.

S. O'BRIEN: Dr. Steven Nissen joining us. Nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.

NISSEN: You bet. S. O'BRIEN: Miles?

M. O'BRIEN: Final check on the "Question of the Day." Jack's here.

CAFFERTY: You kind of wonder if the FDA decision -- if they approve putting these drugs back on the market, that will have any affect on the any of these lawsuits.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, exactly.

CAFFERTY: Interesting thing to conjure. Should President Bush suspend Russia's membership in the G-8? The G-8 is the eight industrialized democracies. Russia's been a little undemocratic in a couple of areas lately, so there is a movement in the country -- John McCain and Joe Lieberman introduced legislation to have Russia removed from that group of nations.

Marlene writes: "No, the Russians should be encouraged to remain in the G-8. When they became free, they did not have the tools to make a democracy work. Their economy was old, slow and unable to reap the benefits of a free society. What they need is help."

John in Missouri: "Putin's the closest thing to an American style executive leader all of Europe has seen. It's only fair to give him time to cleanse self-interest and corruption. At least his methods don't appear to use a bullet in the back of the head, yet."

And Dean in New Jersey writes: "No, President Bush should maintain Russia's membership in the G-8, but take all of the screws out of Putin's chair just before their next meeting." Silly.

S. O'BRIEN: You know, if someone can find something that's funny in that is I think, you know...

CAFFERTY: We take what is offered.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, thank you.

CAFFERTY: And we're grateful.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, we are. Each and every day. Thanks.

Looking to get your kids into best college possible? CNN LIVE TODAY has a top five tips on getting into an Ivy League school. That's coming up in the next hour with Daryn and Rick. AMERICAN MORNING is back in a just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Guess what? We're out of time. Didn't it feel like today went by so fast?

M. O'BRIEN: Just flew by. Flew by. Just like that. It seemed like three hours.

S. O'BRIEN: Jack, we'll see you again this time tomorrow.

CAFFERTY: I got to call my wife, shoveled the deck at my house.

M. O'BRIEN: This just into CNN...

CAFFERTY: There's news and then there's news. Don't say we ever do good news. This is damn good news.

S. O'BRIEN: You realize you're going to pay. Your wife calls you to tell you she shoveled your deck?

CAFFERTY: There's a hidden agenda, you're suggesting?

S. O'BRIEN: Maybe not even so hidden. You're going to find out in about 35 minutes.

M. O'BRIEN: I think a dented vehicle might be in the picture. Who knows? I don't know.

S. O'BRIEN: We're out of time here. Let's go down to Daryn and Rick at the CNN Center Atlanta. Take you through the next few hours. Good morning, guys.

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