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CNN Live Today

A Texas Man Is Charged with Murder; Bush Wins NATO Pledges; Kim Jong Il Signals Interest in Nuclear Talks; Powerful Quake Hits Iran

Aired February 22, 2005 - 10:00   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.


RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR: We'll be focusing on a lot of big stories including that situation out in Texas. There's an arrest, but we still don't know where the mother or the son are. So it's somewhat perplexing at this point.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: We're going to check in on that. Right now, let's take a look at what's happening now in the news.

Starting with that story out of Texas, an Amber Alert case in Texas with an arrest but still many questions. Police act on a tip overnight, find something in a house, then book a man on one capital murder charge. But the two missing people police have been looking for are still apparently missing.

President Bush pays a visit to NATO headquarters, continuing his reconciliation trip to Europe. Mr. Bush's day includes meetings with NATO and European Union leaders and the new president of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko. Aides say that President Bush's meeting with French President Jacques Chirac last night was extremely cordial.

More rain is expected in saturated Southern California today. The latest series of storms has threatened another round of landslides. Dozens of homes have been evacuated. In Northern California, a woman was killed in an avalanche. Weather is being blamed for six deaths in the state since the weekend.

Stormy weather also caused problems in north Georgia last night. Thunderstorms pounded the area. Hail damaged cars. At least nine houses were hit by lightning causing four fires. One woman was killed when she lost control of her car in the heavy rain.

Did you feel that rain and thunder last night here in Atlanta?

SANCHEZ: Unbelievable. Hail as well, by the way.

KAGAN: Yes. We had it all.

SANCHEZ: It was hail up there.

KAGAN: Yes. It was. Good morning. Good morning. I'm Daryn Kagan.

SANCHEZ: And I'm Rick Sanchez.

As Daryn mentioned there's an arrest in the case of a missing woman and her 7-year-old son. However, we still don't know where they are or what their official condition is. This we do know, a Fort Worth man is charged this morning with capital murder. That happened just before we went on the air. Now, it is not certain what Stephen Barbee's connection is to this woman and her son. The pair have been missing since Saturday.

Because there are so many questions in this case, let's turn things over right away to CNN's Ed Lavandera.

Ed, what have you found out so far?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do know it is a busy morning, continues to be a busy morning for investigators out of Fort Worth who have been working this case since Saturday afternoon, when 34-year-old Lisa Underwood was first reported missing along with her 7-year-old son Jayden. As we've been reporting, Ms. Underwood is also 7 months pregnant.

At 3:15 this morning Central Time, 37-year-old Stephen Barbee was booked into a jail in Tyler, Texas, which is east of the Dallas/Fort Worth area. About a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Booked into that jail on a capitol murder charge. Which of course, suggest the worse. But at this point there's still no information as to the whereabouts of the Underwood family.

Mr. Barbee -- Fort Worth police had also overnight had gone into a home in the Fort Worth area and had said that they were looking for something. They said they had found what they were looking for. But police at this point not saying exactly what that is. So there's still a lot of questions around this case.

Of course, all of this stems from the fact that when police entered Ms. Underwood's home in Fort Worth on Sunday, they had found what we're told is a significant amount of blood in the house. And that of course, they had reason to suspect foul play. They just found her car north of the Fort Worth area yesterday morning, and had been working what they described as a crime scene all day yesterday. Even mounting -- using mounted police on mounted horse combing through the area.

We do understand that Fort Worth police will be holding a press conference here in a short while this morning. Perhaps we'll get more details as to what exactly has gone on overnight. And we'll update you as fast as we can -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Quick question, Ed. We do know that she was pregnant. Do we know if Mr. Barbee is perhaps the father of the unborn child?

LAVANDERA: So far we haven't been able to get anything like that. In fact, we've been asking those questions. If there is any relation. If any at all, we can't even say if there is a connection at this point. And of course, that's one of the many unanswered questions so far.

SANCHEZ: And of course, just to -- because it is a little bit confusing I imagine for the audience. He's been charged with capital murder, but we still don't know anything about whether the bodies have been found or anything about the conditions, right?

LAVANDERA: Yes. You would imagine, and not to get too far out on a limb here but you imagine if there has been a charge of capital murder filed already, that they have reason to do that. Beyond me, I can't get too far out on a limb here.

SANCHEZ: Yes. I know. I know.

LAVANDERA: But you understand that they must have something to be able to make that charge with.

SANCHEZ: It's almost even tough to talk about, isn't it?

LAVANDERA: Right.

SANCHEZ: Ed Lavandera following the story for us. Obviously any developments, we'll bring them to you right away.

Daryn, over to you.

KAGAN: Right now, we want to get the latest from Southern California where we continue to follow record-breaking weather conditions. And this development overnight; a home was swept away bay mudslide with a woman trapped inside. To get to the victim, a specially trained search and rescue team tore apart part of the dining room wall.

She told them she was trapped in the bathroom, pinned between the wall and the commode and that she couldn't feel her legs. She was finally rescued and raced to an awaiting ambulance.

And here's another one for you. This one is in Thousand Palms, California. And this time it is not mud but fast moving water. Workers managed to get a harness on this driver to try to get him out of the car. They say he tried to drive through a flooded ditch in a mobile home park. And instead he got stuck. They did, as you can see, finally get him out as well.

Dozens of homes in Southern California have been evacuated. There's a concern that sliding hillsides could destroy them. Landslides have already been reported in a half dozen communities including Glendale.

That's where our Chris Lawrence is this morning.

Chris, good morning.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Daryn. It's a crisp, cool morning. The sun is poking through. And some of the workers are taking advantage of this window of opportunity to start sweeping some of that mud out of the way. But you know, they're really racing the clock because it is only a matter of time before that rain starts coming down again. And these slopes are so soaked and unstable that that mud is bound to start flowing down hill again.

Steve Reidinger lives right here in the neighborhood. You saw firsthand just how fast it could come down the hill.

STEVE REIDINGER, GLENDALE, CA. RESIDENT: The ravine in the canyon here, just turned into a raging river of water and mud in no time. We had an hour's cloud burst yesterday afternoon that was as strong a rain as I've ever seen. And it just turned into a muddy river here.

We broke out the shovels, all the neighbors chipped in. And we just tried to control the mud and water some. I didn't want it to erode any of my property across the street, but that mud and water comes down so strong. It tore off an iron gate as it came through between the houses here. And it is unbelievable strong. It stops cars. Six inches of mud stops cars right in its tracks.

LAWRENCE: Steve is definitely going to be keeping an eye on his house over the next day or so. Wen he talked about the power, you get sense of that when you look out in Bel Air, just how powerful that mud can be. When it came down in Bel Air, it just literally collapsed an entire backyard, took the deck, barbecue grill, an entire swimming pool, took it right down the hill.

And I know this is hard to visualize but imagine all the water in your neighbor's swimming pool getting dumped right into your home. Well, that's exactly what happened. When that pool came crashing down hill, all the water spilled out. And it added about 20,000 gallons of water to the mudslide. All that mud just came crashing right through a neighbor's home, right at the bottom of the hill.

And as we take a look here now live back here in Glendale, you can see the workers still trying to push some of that mud out of the way. They say this is some of the worst weather they have ever seen in this area. And they say it's tough because there are times when, like now, the sun's poking out. They think it looks OK. Looks OK. It looks like we've got a handle on it. And then all of a sudden the rain would start in so hard that, one of the workers told us, it was like we thought that rain would never stop.

Now, so far 14 homes have been evacuated here in Glendale. But the way this storm has been coming in waves, they say it is really hard to predict how many other homes will have to be evacuated, and whether the people who live here will be able to stay -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Chris Lawrence, live from Glendale, California. Thank you.

It's so bad that the mayor of Los Angeles, James Hahn, has declared a state of emergency. I'll have a chance to talk with him. Coming up, Mayor James Hahn here live on CNN.

SANCHEZ: And of course, a question a lot of Californians are going to be asking themselves, when is going to stop?

KAGAN: Enough already.

SANCHEZ: Exactly. Jacqui Jeras is standing by. And well, a lot of people are hoping you have the answer for them, Jacqui.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: This developing story we want to bring to you. The Supreme Court has decided it will hear a challenge to the nation's only physician-assisted suicide law. And that takes place in Oregon. It has been in place since 1998. John Ashcroft had filed the appeal before he resigned or put in his letter of resignation in November.

He says that physician-assisted suicide is not a legitimate medical purpose. Interestingly enough, however, this may not end up being a medical argument but a state's rights argument. Oregon arguing that the regulation of doctors generally has been the sole responsibility of the states.

So we'll be tracking that. The Supreme Court once again looking deciding to hear the challenge about the nation's only assisted suicide law.

SANCHEZ: We'll also going to be tracking the president's travels. Boy, has he been busy lately. He's out in Europe. He's been talking to NATO leaders. Held a news conference, as a matter of fact, that we monitored here just a short time ago. He did get a contribution to the mission in Iraq. We're going to tell you exactly what that is straight ahead.

KAGAN: A little bit later, Michael Jackson back from the flu and back in court today. We'll tell you what to expect.

SANCHEZ: And from the court of law to the court of public opinion, steroids and spring training, an admitted user meets his fans for the first time. What was the reaction? You're going to find out, as CNN LIVE TODAY rolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: This morning, President Bush continues to try and find common ground with Europeans, many of which are still upset over what they call the president's unsubstantiated rush to invade Iraq.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is covering the president's trip. And she's joining us now from Brussels with an update on how things went this morning.

Suzanne, over to you.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good Rick. Actually, it is really a big day for President Bush. Back-to-back summits with NATO as well as the European Union. You can see President Bush early this morning taking a class photo with the other members of NATO.

He has come here really to try to establish a more civil tone with European allies, as well as to seek additional help in training Iraqi forces. That is really the first step to a U.S. exit strategy. It seems that the president has been successful on both fronts, all 26 members of NATO pledging some sort of support in helping train Iraqi forces.

The tone also seems to have improved dramatically here. This was an organization just two years ago that felt that President Bush largely ignored them, denigrated them, felt that they were irrelevant. They faced a crisis over their split over the Iraq War.

Well, President Bush today as well as the secretary-general of NATO saying, both of them, that they believe this is an organization that is relevant, this is vital. They are putting their difference aside over the Iraq War and looking to move ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: NATO is the most successful alliance in the history of the world. Think about that: the most successful alliance in the history of the world. Because of NATO, Europe is whole and united, and at peace. And that's a milestone in the history of liberty.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, all 26 members saying that they're going to contribute something. Whether or not it is training Iraqi troops, trying to help inside Iraq or outside of their countries, like Germany and France. Or whether or not it is just financial contributions, all of them saying they'll move forward.

Some looking at this, however, as very moderate contribution, perhaps even a token. But President Bush today in the press conference saying that he believes that the mere contributions in and of themselves are very significant.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BUSH: NATO is providing an officer training mission, which is vital. Every contribution matters. And every country ought to be proud of the fact that they're contributing to the world's newest democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And Rick, of course, many people are saying here that perhaps sometimes it's style that also makes substance. President Bush saying that this is a listening tour. He wants them to know that he's paying attention to their concerns.

Another sign, of course, that perhaps things are changing. Just yesterday, President Bush dined with French President Jacques Chirac, one of his harshest critics of the Iraq War. The two of them having filet of beef, and French fries. Yes, not Freedom fries but French fries. President Bush putting the French back into the French fries -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Maybe tomorrow they'll go crazy and go with the French toast as well. Suzanne Malveaux with quite a beautiful background there in Belgium. We thank you -- Daryn. KAGAN: Well, looking ahead on the president's itinerary when he meets with Vladimir Putin on Thursday, he'll have democracy on his mind. Mr. Bush says he plans to talk about Western concerns that the Russian leader has turned away from democratic reforms, like free speech. A Bush aide says the president will not be holding back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN BARTLETT, COMMS. DIR., WHITE HOUSE: President Bush and President Putin have a very strong constructive relationship. In which when they have dialogue, they can have a free throwing frank conversation on the issues of the day.

We've been able to use that type of dialogue to accomplish a lot of good things. The Moscow Treaty that reduced the number of ballistic missiles. Other aspects of working with NATO that are important to both the United States and to Russia.

There is some decisions, obviously, that President Bush is looking forward to hearing explanations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The Bush/Putin summit will take place in the Slovak capital of Bratislava.

SANCHEZ: Another international issue on the Bush administration radar is North Korea's nuclear program, as I'm sure you have followed if you've been watching us here on CNN. It now appears that that country's leader in Pyongyang is ready to resume talks in some form.

With more now on Kim Jong Il's comments, let's check in with CNN's Stan Grant who is in Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN GRANT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): These are the first comments attributed to Kim Jong Il in the two weeks since North Korea walked away from the six-party talks and announced that it indeed had nuclear weapons.

Now, Kim Jong Il is saying he would come back to the negotiating process when it showed more maturity, and when he saw more sincerity from the United States. That is open to interpretation. Analysts are saying it could mean that Kim Jong Il is seeking, once again, assurances of security from the U.S. for Pyongyang's future.

Now, these comments come after meeting with Wong Kar Wai, the Chinese envoy who visited Pyongyang over the weekend. He took a message from China's President Hu Jintao, saying that it was in China's and North Korea's interests to have a nuclear free peninsula. Kim Jong Il says that he is committed to de-nuclearization, and does not oppose the six-party talk process.

Now, there have been conflicting signals coming out of North Korea over the past week or so, initially saying they would come back to the talks if the United States guaranteed co-existence and noninterference. Later saying that North Korea saw no future in the one on one talks with the United States.

As far as the U.S. is concerned, comments attributed to Chris Hill, the chief U.S. negotiator on this issue, saying it is very much in North Korea's interests and the interests of North Korea's future to come back to the six-party talks.

Stan Grant, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Entire villages are flattened. Dozens are dead. Still, believe it or not, it could have been much worse. We'll have the latest from this earthquake's epicenter.

SANCHEZ: Also, what can we expect from Michael Jackson and his legal team as they return to court today? We're going to have that for you as CNN LIVE TODAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: To Iran now. Rescuers are desperately working to save people trapped by a magnitude 6.4 earthquake in Iran. The quake hit central Iran this morning just before 6:00 local time. Iranian television reporting at least 270 people are dead, hundreds more injured.

CNN's Matthew Chance has the latest developments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): By all accounts, this was a powerful quake, measuring 6.4 in magnitude. A number of remote mud-brick villages are known to be badly hit. Local residents are shown scrambling to pull loved ones from the rubble. Iranian authorities say the main towns in Kerman Province, near the epicenter, have escaped significant damage.

But hospitals in the area inundated with casualties. Authorities say thousands need treatment. Many others are without shelter, facing a night of freezing weather conditions.

But it could have been much worse. Seismologists say the depth of the epicenter, at 26 miles from the earth's surface, may have limited the damage.

DAVID APPLEGATE, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: The seismic energy is dissipating as it moves up through the crust. In other words, the nearest person to this earthquake is essentially 26 miles above as opposed to being just a few miles above. So there's more time for the energy to dissipate. And that means less intense shaking.

CHANCE: It was in this same remote area of southeastern Iran that an even more powerful earthquake struck over a year ago. Then the historic city of Bam was virtually destroyed and more than 26,000 people killed. Now, as then, it may take days for the full extent of the devastation to emerge.

Matthew Chance, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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Aired February 22, 2005 - 10:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CO-ANCHOR: We'll be focusing on a lot of big stories including that situation out in Texas. There's an arrest, but we still don't know where the mother or the son are. So it's somewhat perplexing at this point.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: We're going to check in on that. Right now, let's take a look at what's happening now in the news.

Starting with that story out of Texas, an Amber Alert case in Texas with an arrest but still many questions. Police act on a tip overnight, find something in a house, then book a man on one capital murder charge. But the two missing people police have been looking for are still apparently missing.

President Bush pays a visit to NATO headquarters, continuing his reconciliation trip to Europe. Mr. Bush's day includes meetings with NATO and European Union leaders and the new president of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko. Aides say that President Bush's meeting with French President Jacques Chirac last night was extremely cordial.

More rain is expected in saturated Southern California today. The latest series of storms has threatened another round of landslides. Dozens of homes have been evacuated. In Northern California, a woman was killed in an avalanche. Weather is being blamed for six deaths in the state since the weekend.

Stormy weather also caused problems in north Georgia last night. Thunderstorms pounded the area. Hail damaged cars. At least nine houses were hit by lightning causing four fires. One woman was killed when she lost control of her car in the heavy rain.

Did you feel that rain and thunder last night here in Atlanta?

SANCHEZ: Unbelievable. Hail as well, by the way.

KAGAN: Yes. We had it all.

SANCHEZ: It was hail up there.

KAGAN: Yes. It was. Good morning. Good morning. I'm Daryn Kagan.

SANCHEZ: And I'm Rick Sanchez.

As Daryn mentioned there's an arrest in the case of a missing woman and her 7-year-old son. However, we still don't know where they are or what their official condition is. This we do know, a Fort Worth man is charged this morning with capital murder. That happened just before we went on the air. Now, it is not certain what Stephen Barbee's connection is to this woman and her son. The pair have been missing since Saturday.

Because there are so many questions in this case, let's turn things over right away to CNN's Ed Lavandera.

Ed, what have you found out so far?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we do know it is a busy morning, continues to be a busy morning for investigators out of Fort Worth who have been working this case since Saturday afternoon, when 34-year-old Lisa Underwood was first reported missing along with her 7-year-old son Jayden. As we've been reporting, Ms. Underwood is also 7 months pregnant.

At 3:15 this morning Central Time, 37-year-old Stephen Barbee was booked into a jail in Tyler, Texas, which is east of the Dallas/Fort Worth area. About a 2 1/2 hour drive from the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Booked into that jail on a capitol murder charge. Which of course, suggest the worse. But at this point there's still no information as to the whereabouts of the Underwood family.

Mr. Barbee -- Fort Worth police had also overnight had gone into a home in the Fort Worth area and had said that they were looking for something. They said they had found what they were looking for. But police at this point not saying exactly what that is. So there's still a lot of questions around this case.

Of course, all of this stems from the fact that when police entered Ms. Underwood's home in Fort Worth on Sunday, they had found what we're told is a significant amount of blood in the house. And that of course, they had reason to suspect foul play. They just found her car north of the Fort Worth area yesterday morning, and had been working what they described as a crime scene all day yesterday. Even mounting -- using mounted police on mounted horse combing through the area.

We do understand that Fort Worth police will be holding a press conference here in a short while this morning. Perhaps we'll get more details as to what exactly has gone on overnight. And we'll update you as fast as we can -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Quick question, Ed. We do know that she was pregnant. Do we know if Mr. Barbee is perhaps the father of the unborn child?

LAVANDERA: So far we haven't been able to get anything like that. In fact, we've been asking those questions. If there is any relation. If any at all, we can't even say if there is a connection at this point. And of course, that's one of the many unanswered questions so far.

SANCHEZ: And of course, just to -- because it is a little bit confusing I imagine for the audience. He's been charged with capital murder, but we still don't know anything about whether the bodies have been found or anything about the conditions, right?

LAVANDERA: Yes. You would imagine, and not to get too far out on a limb here but you imagine if there has been a charge of capital murder filed already, that they have reason to do that. Beyond me, I can't get too far out on a limb here.

SANCHEZ: Yes. I know. I know.

LAVANDERA: But you understand that they must have something to be able to make that charge with.

SANCHEZ: It's almost even tough to talk about, isn't it?

LAVANDERA: Right.

SANCHEZ: Ed Lavandera following the story for us. Obviously any developments, we'll bring them to you right away.

Daryn, over to you.

KAGAN: Right now, we want to get the latest from Southern California where we continue to follow record-breaking weather conditions. And this development overnight; a home was swept away bay mudslide with a woman trapped inside. To get to the victim, a specially trained search and rescue team tore apart part of the dining room wall.

She told them she was trapped in the bathroom, pinned between the wall and the commode and that she couldn't feel her legs. She was finally rescued and raced to an awaiting ambulance.

And here's another one for you. This one is in Thousand Palms, California. And this time it is not mud but fast moving water. Workers managed to get a harness on this driver to try to get him out of the car. They say he tried to drive through a flooded ditch in a mobile home park. And instead he got stuck. They did, as you can see, finally get him out as well.

Dozens of homes in Southern California have been evacuated. There's a concern that sliding hillsides could destroy them. Landslides have already been reported in a half dozen communities including Glendale.

That's where our Chris Lawrence is this morning.

Chris, good morning.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Daryn. It's a crisp, cool morning. The sun is poking through. And some of the workers are taking advantage of this window of opportunity to start sweeping some of that mud out of the way. But you know, they're really racing the clock because it is only a matter of time before that rain starts coming down again. And these slopes are so soaked and unstable that that mud is bound to start flowing down hill again.

Steve Reidinger lives right here in the neighborhood. You saw firsthand just how fast it could come down the hill.

STEVE REIDINGER, GLENDALE, CA. RESIDENT: The ravine in the canyon here, just turned into a raging river of water and mud in no time. We had an hour's cloud burst yesterday afternoon that was as strong a rain as I've ever seen. And it just turned into a muddy river here.

We broke out the shovels, all the neighbors chipped in. And we just tried to control the mud and water some. I didn't want it to erode any of my property across the street, but that mud and water comes down so strong. It tore off an iron gate as it came through between the houses here. And it is unbelievable strong. It stops cars. Six inches of mud stops cars right in its tracks.

LAWRENCE: Steve is definitely going to be keeping an eye on his house over the next day or so. Wen he talked about the power, you get sense of that when you look out in Bel Air, just how powerful that mud can be. When it came down in Bel Air, it just literally collapsed an entire backyard, took the deck, barbecue grill, an entire swimming pool, took it right down the hill.

And I know this is hard to visualize but imagine all the water in your neighbor's swimming pool getting dumped right into your home. Well, that's exactly what happened. When that pool came crashing down hill, all the water spilled out. And it added about 20,000 gallons of water to the mudslide. All that mud just came crashing right through a neighbor's home, right at the bottom of the hill.

And as we take a look here now live back here in Glendale, you can see the workers still trying to push some of that mud out of the way. They say this is some of the worst weather they have ever seen in this area. And they say it's tough because there are times when, like now, the sun's poking out. They think it looks OK. Looks OK. It looks like we've got a handle on it. And then all of a sudden the rain would start in so hard that, one of the workers told us, it was like we thought that rain would never stop.

Now, so far 14 homes have been evacuated here in Glendale. But the way this storm has been coming in waves, they say it is really hard to predict how many other homes will have to be evacuated, and whether the people who live here will be able to stay -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Chris Lawrence, live from Glendale, California. Thank you.

It's so bad that the mayor of Los Angeles, James Hahn, has declared a state of emergency. I'll have a chance to talk with him. Coming up, Mayor James Hahn here live on CNN.

SANCHEZ: And of course, a question a lot of Californians are going to be asking themselves, when is going to stop?

KAGAN: Enough already.

SANCHEZ: Exactly. Jacqui Jeras is standing by. And well, a lot of people are hoping you have the answer for them, Jacqui.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: This developing story we want to bring to you. The Supreme Court has decided it will hear a challenge to the nation's only physician-assisted suicide law. And that takes place in Oregon. It has been in place since 1998. John Ashcroft had filed the appeal before he resigned or put in his letter of resignation in November.

He says that physician-assisted suicide is not a legitimate medical purpose. Interestingly enough, however, this may not end up being a medical argument but a state's rights argument. Oregon arguing that the regulation of doctors generally has been the sole responsibility of the states.

So we'll be tracking that. The Supreme Court once again looking deciding to hear the challenge about the nation's only assisted suicide law.

SANCHEZ: We'll also going to be tracking the president's travels. Boy, has he been busy lately. He's out in Europe. He's been talking to NATO leaders. Held a news conference, as a matter of fact, that we monitored here just a short time ago. He did get a contribution to the mission in Iraq. We're going to tell you exactly what that is straight ahead.

KAGAN: A little bit later, Michael Jackson back from the flu and back in court today. We'll tell you what to expect.

SANCHEZ: And from the court of law to the court of public opinion, steroids and spring training, an admitted user meets his fans for the first time. What was the reaction? You're going to find out, as CNN LIVE TODAY rolls on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: This morning, President Bush continues to try and find common ground with Europeans, many of which are still upset over what they call the president's unsubstantiated rush to invade Iraq.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is covering the president's trip. And she's joining us now from Brussels with an update on how things went this morning.

Suzanne, over to you.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good Rick. Actually, it is really a big day for President Bush. Back-to-back summits with NATO as well as the European Union. You can see President Bush early this morning taking a class photo with the other members of NATO.

He has come here really to try to establish a more civil tone with European allies, as well as to seek additional help in training Iraqi forces. That is really the first step to a U.S. exit strategy. It seems that the president has been successful on both fronts, all 26 members of NATO pledging some sort of support in helping train Iraqi forces.

The tone also seems to have improved dramatically here. This was an organization just two years ago that felt that President Bush largely ignored them, denigrated them, felt that they were irrelevant. They faced a crisis over their split over the Iraq War.

Well, President Bush today as well as the secretary-general of NATO saying, both of them, that they believe this is an organization that is relevant, this is vital. They are putting their difference aside over the Iraq War and looking to move ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: NATO is the most successful alliance in the history of the world. Think about that: the most successful alliance in the history of the world. Because of NATO, Europe is whole and united, and at peace. And that's a milestone in the history of liberty.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, all 26 members saying that they're going to contribute something. Whether or not it is training Iraqi troops, trying to help inside Iraq or outside of their countries, like Germany and France. Or whether or not it is just financial contributions, all of them saying they'll move forward.

Some looking at this, however, as very moderate contribution, perhaps even a token. But President Bush today in the press conference saying that he believes that the mere contributions in and of themselves are very significant.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BUSH: NATO is providing an officer training mission, which is vital. Every contribution matters. And every country ought to be proud of the fact that they're contributing to the world's newest democracy.

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MALVEAUX: And Rick, of course, many people are saying here that perhaps sometimes it's style that also makes substance. President Bush saying that this is a listening tour. He wants them to know that he's paying attention to their concerns.

Another sign, of course, that perhaps things are changing. Just yesterday, President Bush dined with French President Jacques Chirac, one of his harshest critics of the Iraq War. The two of them having filet of beef, and French fries. Yes, not Freedom fries but French fries. President Bush putting the French back into the French fries -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Maybe tomorrow they'll go crazy and go with the French toast as well. Suzanne Malveaux with quite a beautiful background there in Belgium. We thank you -- Daryn. KAGAN: Well, looking ahead on the president's itinerary when he meets with Vladimir Putin on Thursday, he'll have democracy on his mind. Mr. Bush says he plans to talk about Western concerns that the Russian leader has turned away from democratic reforms, like free speech. A Bush aide says the president will not be holding back.

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DAN BARTLETT, COMMS. DIR., WHITE HOUSE: President Bush and President Putin have a very strong constructive relationship. In which when they have dialogue, they can have a free throwing frank conversation on the issues of the day.

We've been able to use that type of dialogue to accomplish a lot of good things. The Moscow Treaty that reduced the number of ballistic missiles. Other aspects of working with NATO that are important to both the United States and to Russia.

There is some decisions, obviously, that President Bush is looking forward to hearing explanations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The Bush/Putin summit will take place in the Slovak capital of Bratislava.

SANCHEZ: Another international issue on the Bush administration radar is North Korea's nuclear program, as I'm sure you have followed if you've been watching us here on CNN. It now appears that that country's leader in Pyongyang is ready to resume talks in some form.

With more now on Kim Jong Il's comments, let's check in with CNN's Stan Grant who is in Beijing.

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STAN GRANT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): These are the first comments attributed to Kim Jong Il in the two weeks since North Korea walked away from the six-party talks and announced that it indeed had nuclear weapons.

Now, Kim Jong Il is saying he would come back to the negotiating process when it showed more maturity, and when he saw more sincerity from the United States. That is open to interpretation. Analysts are saying it could mean that Kim Jong Il is seeking, once again, assurances of security from the U.S. for Pyongyang's future.

Now, these comments come after meeting with Wong Kar Wai, the Chinese envoy who visited Pyongyang over the weekend. He took a message from China's President Hu Jintao, saying that it was in China's and North Korea's interests to have a nuclear free peninsula. Kim Jong Il says that he is committed to de-nuclearization, and does not oppose the six-party talk process.

Now, there have been conflicting signals coming out of North Korea over the past week or so, initially saying they would come back to the talks if the United States guaranteed co-existence and noninterference. Later saying that North Korea saw no future in the one on one talks with the United States.

As far as the U.S. is concerned, comments attributed to Chris Hill, the chief U.S. negotiator on this issue, saying it is very much in North Korea's interests and the interests of North Korea's future to come back to the six-party talks.

Stan Grant, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Entire villages are flattened. Dozens are dead. Still, believe it or not, it could have been much worse. We'll have the latest from this earthquake's epicenter.

SANCHEZ: Also, what can we expect from Michael Jackson and his legal team as they return to court today? We're going to have that for you as CNN LIVE TODAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: To Iran now. Rescuers are desperately working to save people trapped by a magnitude 6.4 earthquake in Iran. The quake hit central Iran this morning just before 6:00 local time. Iranian television reporting at least 270 people are dead, hundreds more injured.

CNN's Matthew Chance has the latest developments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): By all accounts, this was a powerful quake, measuring 6.4 in magnitude. A number of remote mud-brick villages are known to be badly hit. Local residents are shown scrambling to pull loved ones from the rubble. Iranian authorities say the main towns in Kerman Province, near the epicenter, have escaped significant damage.

But hospitals in the area inundated with casualties. Authorities say thousands need treatment. Many others are without shelter, facing a night of freezing weather conditions.

But it could have been much worse. Seismologists say the depth of the epicenter, at 26 miles from the earth's surface, may have limited the damage.

DAVID APPLEGATE, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: The seismic energy is dissipating as it moves up through the crust. In other words, the nearest person to this earthquake is essentially 26 miles above as opposed to being just a few miles above. So there's more time for the energy to dissipate. And that means less intense shaking.

CHANCE: It was in this same remote area of southeastern Iran that an even more powerful earthquake struck over a year ago. Then the historic city of Bam was virtually destroyed and more than 26,000 people killed. Now, as then, it may take days for the full extent of the devastation to emerge.

Matthew Chance, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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