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American Morning

Pope Back in Hospital; Bush-Putin Meeting; Jackson Jurors

Aired February 24, 2005 - 08:59   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. Nine o'clock here in New York. And now you're looking live at a picture of President Bush, the first lady and Mrs. Putin and Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, now meeting in the Slovak capital of Bratislava. The two men will then go into meetings for about a period of about two hours, it appears. Then they join a press conference after that, set to hit about 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
This is also considered by many observers to be the critical meeting of this entire five-day tour in Europe. The president has expressed his concerns about some of the anti-Democratic measures being taken by Vladimir Putin when it comes to freedom of the press in Russia, and also some anti-business measures, as well. That will be on the agenda today.

But also, with the disagreements, we expect to have some agreement, some agreement on nuclear testing, and some agreements also on finding a way to keep secure the nuclear plants throughout the country of Russia. Again, a sore spot right now in the current war on terror. We will get to all of that as the president's tour continues there in Bratislava.

We heard him with a speech about three hours ago. We will see the president again in about 2.5 hours, live from Slovakia.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Many people, of course, will be watching very closely the public remarks that the president, American President Bush, makes when he is in this joint news conference, clearly trying to detect a sense of tone and change in his attitude towards the Russian president.

Welcome back, everybody.

Let's talk about our other top story this morning as well. Pope John Paul II, he's been taken back to the hospital early this morning. Apparently a relapse of the respiratory problems that sent him to the hospital three weeks ago.

Let's get right to Walt Rodgers this morning. He's in Rome.

WALTER RODGERS, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Soledad.

The pope's flu is proving quite stubborn. He was released from hospital 13 days ago. They thought he was on the mend.

He was rushed back to hospital about four hours ago, as I speak. The doctors in the Vatican were saying that, in fact, the pope was having difficulty breathing again, congestion and a recurring fever. Those are the same conditions, by the way, that sent his holiness to hospital on the 1st of February.

No more information than that. It's rather sparse. Still, when the pope was taken to the Gemelli Clinic here in Rome, we're given to believe he was conscious the entire time. He was on a stretcher in the ambulance and was seen sitting fairly upright. And those who saw him going into the hospital say he was conscious and, again, upright on that stretcher.

We're not expecting another medical bulletin until sometime perhaps late tomorrow morning. But any time you have someone 84 years old, and as infirmed as this pope is, being taken back to hospital in 13 days, there is moderate cause for alarm -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Yes, certainly. We're going to continue to watch that story.

Walt, thank you for that update. And as soon as we get more information, of course we'll check back with you -- Bill.

HEMMER: So, then, from Rome to Slovakia, back here in New York. Talking about news from L.A. with Heidi Collins.

Good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: That's right. Something to tell everybody about quickly here.

"Now in the News" this morning, this just into CNN. A large fire in Los Angeles this morning. The fire broke out at a commercial building in San Pedro. No word on injuries. But as you can see, some pretty big flames there.

We're looking at a live shot coming in. Once again, we will continue to follow this story at a commercial building in Los Angeles, and bring those details to you just as soon as we get them.

Meanwhile, overseas now, more attacks throughout Iraq this morning. Two U.S. soldiers killed in roadside bombings in the northern part of the country as American forces continue operations there to root out insurgents.

And a suicide car bombing in Saddam Hussein's home town of Tikrit. Officials confirm at least 12 policemen were killed in the blast. Dozens are injured.

In Florida, Terri Schiavo will remain on a feeding tube for now. That's because a judge has extended a temporary ruling keeping Schiavo's husband from pulling her feeding tube.

The judge says he needs more time to decide whether Schiavo's parents should be able to pursue other medical or legal options. The parents also want to have Schiavo's husband removed as her legal guardian. And back to California now. The prosecution set to begin its cross-examination in the Robert Blake murder case. The defense rested yesterday. Blake never took the stand. The jurors heard from him in a videotaped interview.

The prosecution begins its rebuttal today. More witnesses are expected to testify.

Soledad, over to you now.

O'BRIEN: All right, Heidi. Thanks.

The Bush-Putin summit marks the final stop on Mr. Bush's European trip, and also the first U.S.-Russia summit since the president's inaugural pledge to spread freedom around the world. Joining us this morning, Adrian Karatnycky. He's from Freedom House, a nonpartisan organization that promotes democratic values and human rights.

Nice to see you. Thanks for coming in to talk with us.

ADRIAN KARATNYCKY, FREEDOM HOUSE: Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Your organization downgraded Russia for the first time since 1989, I think, to not free. Explain what the status means anyway and why the downgrade.

KARATNYCKY: Well, the status means that there is an absence of substantial political freedoms in that country. So any country that is not free has constraints on its media, constraints on the competitiveness of its political processes, and a growing environment of repression and pressure. And we see all these characteristics in Russia mounting since Putin assumed power in 1999, and accelerating since he was re-elected last year.

You've seen prosecutions of businessmen which many believe were motivated because of their political independence and criticism. We've seen the concentration of media, where all six TV stations, national TV stations are controlled by the Kremlin. We've seen a concentration of power in the print media. So, again, the Kremlin and the state companies that the Russian government controls have taken over a broad array of independent media, independent voices in that country.

At the same time, we've also seen that political parties that have been set up that look like their opposition parties are actually parties that are controlled by the security services or by people with close relations to the security services. And finally, in the last five years, the number of people from the security services, military, the interior ministry, and the former KGB, the FSB, are now in 25 percent of the civilian key leadership posts in the parliament and in the government and in the governorships throughout Russia.

O'BRIEN: So you're seeing a definite clear move backward.

KARATNYCKY: Right. So... O'BRIEN: Now, obviously, you're watching very closely what happens, what is said, and what comes out of the discussions in Bratislava. What would you like to hear from President Bush when he takes the mic at the news conference?

KARATNYCKY: Well, I think we've already heard in his remarks two days ago some emphasis on the erosion of liberties in Russia and the -- in a sense, the beginning of a dialogue not so much with Mr. Putin, which is also an important dialogue, but with the Russian people.

The Russian media cannot avoid the statements that -- while they are controlled, they cannot avoid the statements of major world leaders, certainly not the president of the United States. This is a sort of a live feed. Hearing some of these issues advanced, even in a polite way, in a deferential way with Mr. Putin, will have an important impact in starting a debate in Russia which has been suppressed by Mr. Putin and the media he controls.

O'BRIEN: You also say that there should be a new U.S. policy toward Russia. Envision for me, what does that policy look like to you?

KARATNYCKY: Well, I think that President Bush is signaling the beginning of balancing the interests of the domestic developments inside Russia with and linking them to Russia's external behavior. I think that the model is that countries that are more transparent, that have some checks and balances, that have a media that can keep on top of what leaders are doing, is going to ensure better performance and more reliable alliance structures.

Russia is needed in the nuclear, you know, nonproliferation regimen. It is needed in the war on terrorism. But how it conducts that war should be checked, as it is in most democratic countries by skeptical media, by political opposition and the like.

O'BRIEN: What do you make of the resolution that Senator Lieberman and Senator McCain penned really to potentially suspend Russia from the group of eight industrialized nations? It seems that the president certainly, I think is it fair to say, isn't running with the ball on that, isn't really -- isn't really taking that advice.

KARATNYCKY: I think the most important fact is that this kind of legislation raises to a much higher level and gets the attention of the Russian people and of the Russian political leadership. And that really is the most important first step in this change in policy, to stimulate a debate, because is it the people in the end that matter.

We've just seen in places like the Ukraine and in Georgia, and in places around the world, people power, civic action reversing efforts by leaders to restrict freedom of speech, to restrict citizens' rights. And trying to stimulate some of that kind of pressure through a broader debate, a broader global debate using global media and the Russian media to the extent that it is possible is extremely important.

O'BRIEN: Adrian Karatnycky from Freedom House. Thank you for talking with us. Appreciate it.

KARATNYCKY: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Bill.

HEMMER: Soledad, I mentioned a few moments ago it is perhaps the most important meeting on President Bush's European tour under way at this hour. Mr. Bush going head to head with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And on the table today, a number of issues now putting a bit of strain on U.S.-Russian relations.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux is live in Bratislava, Slovakia, with us now.

Hello there, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bill, of course this really is a very important meeting, as you had mentioned, between President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two of them meeting at this medieval castle in Bratislava.

It is important to say and important to note that four years ago much has changed. President Bush said he looked into Putin's eyes, he saw the soul of a man that he could trust. And now, of course, there are a lot of concerns that the relationship has somewhat cooled.

White House officials will tell you a lot of concerns that the president has -- namely retreating from these democratic reforms. Putin has said before that democracy must take place at its own pace.

Also, of course, these attempts to interfere in the affairs of its neighbors, the Ukraine, as well as Georgia. Again, Putin saying he believes that President Bush taking a stand is also interfering in the matter. And then, of course, Putin's cooperation with Iran and what Putin is calling a nuclear energy program, what the United States sees as a nuclear weapons program.

We've heard the president comment over the last couple of days, he believes their strong friendship is what's going to allow him to try to convince him not to pursue those retreats of democratic reforms, but rather to convince him that that is not the way to go. Now, earlier today, President Bush delivered a message to the Slovak people, not only to them, but as well to Russia, saying that he believes a retreat from democracy means possible isolation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Victory in this struggle will not come easily or quickly. But we have reason to hope. Iraqis have demonstrated their courage and their determination to live in freedom. And that has inspired the world. It is the same determination we saw in Kiev's Independence Square, in Tblisi's Freedom Square, and in this square almost 17 years ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MALVEAUX: Bill, the message is very clear from the president. Essentially, he is saying that democracy is the way to prevent this kind of isolation from the rest of the world. That is clearly going to be one of the number one subjects that they are going to be talking about at this summit. And, of course, there is some good news that will come out of this conference. Not only the fact that they're talking, but they're also agreeing on a number of issues when it comes to security in fighting terrorism, a number of initiatives that they'll be announcing later this afternoon -- Bill.

HEMMER: We'll watch for that, Suzanne. Also watching for reaction on Iran and that country's proposed nuclear ambitions.

This is the press conference. You'll see it live when it happens. Now expected today at about 11:30 Eastern Time, two hours and 9 minutes away. And again, CNN will have it live from Bratislava when it happens -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: After just five days in court, lawyers in the Michael Jackson child molestation case have agreed on a jury. A jury of four men, eight women has been selected. The jury selection was finished, in fact, much more quickly than many legal experts had expected.

Jury consultant Richard Gabriel joins us from Los Angeles.

Nice to see you, Richard. Thanks for talking with us.

RICHARD GABRIEL, JURY CONSULTANT: Good to see you, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Five days. Are you surprised by that, just five days?

GABRIEL: It is very quick for a trial of this magnitude and scope. I think everybody expected a lot more in-depth questioning of these jurors in chambers. I think they expected much more extensive questioning by the judge, and just a longer process overall.

O'BRIEN: So who, then, if it favors anybody, does it favor, the prosecution or the defense?

GABRIEL: Well, typically, a quick jury selection favors the prosecution just because defense is looking clearly for jurors that they can find out how backgrounds that may be inclined them one way or the other. It can hurt both sides because, quite frankly, there's very little that we actually know about these jurors.

Both sides have to be concerned with hidden agendas, with things that may probably incline the juror one way or the other. And without extensive jury selection, it's just hard to know.

O'BRIEN: The speed of picking a jury, is this any indication of how fast this trial could actually go?

GABRIEL: Well, I think it could. I mean, this judge has signaled that he's not going to treat this trial as necessarily any different than a criminal defendant. He's narrowly interpreted that he's just looking at things that could excuse a person for cause. And he's kept a really tight rein on a lot of the time periods in here. So he could move this trial right along.

O'BRIEN: When you look at who is on the jury, we've got eight women, four men, ages somewhere between 20 and 79. There are no African-Americans. No blacks are on this jury. Isn't this something that could be grounds for appeal later on?

GABRIEL: Well, probably not. And the thing is that a person is entitled to a jury of his peers, but it has to also be a representative cross-section of the community.

Santa Barbara County only has 2 or 3 percent African-American population. And so the whole pool was reflective of it.

I do know that two African-Americans were -- did come into the panel and were excused by the prosecution over protests by the defense. But a long ways down the road, the appellate court probably will take a look at the this and say, I don't think it is grounds for a mistrial or an appeal.

O'BRIEN: Eight parents are on the jury. No real surprise. I'm not a jury consultant, but I don't feel that's a huge surprise there. Who does that help?

GABRIEL: Well, I think it is going to be actually one of the core issues in this case. I thing parents can cut both ways. I think it's a double-edged sword.

Parents can be horrified by the allegations and can sit there and say, boy, the conduct here is so inappropriate that it crosses the line into what they consider to be pedophilia. On the other hand, parents can be extremely critical of the mother in this case, which I think is what the defense is counting on, in terms of providing a motivation for maybe a future lawsuit down the road.

O'BRIEN: Richard Gabriel is a jury consultant out of Los Angeles. Nice to see you, Richard, as always. Thanks.

GABRIEL: Thank you, Soledad.

HEMMER: As you were talking, Soledad, we're watching this fire in downtown Los Angeles. A bit of information on it right now.

Apparently it's -- firefighters are using chainsaws to get the smoke out of there. It spread very quickly, and near apartment buildings, as well, which is a major concern.

About 6:15 in the morning there local time in southern California. Very dangerous. Clearly, that is evident from the overhead aerial picture we're getting here.

Also, businesses are attached to this building. Don't know what type of building is on fire right now. Firefighters clearly trying to contain it in this urban setting here. Trying to surround it. And that fire has intensified, too.

So a number of people also evacuated from a nearby apartment building. When we get more, we'll pass it along to you. But that is a blaze there in downtown L.A.

Let's get a break here. In a moment, heart failure kills thousands of Americans every year. But too many people miss the warning signs because they're looking for the wrong ones. We'll get some advice this hour.

Also, does life exist in the ice found on Mars? We'll look at why the latest discovery could be significant.

Back in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. European scientists think they found a frozen sea on Mars. The logic goes, where there's ice, there's water, where there's water, there could be bacteria. And bacteria is life.

So then, is there life on Mars? Or are we just reaching way out here today?

Astrophysicist Charles Liu from the American Museum of Natural History is here.

Welcome back, Charles.

CHARLES LIU, ASTROPHYSICIST: Thanks a lot.

HEMMER: Nice to see you. The significance near the equator on Mars with this ice is what, do you believe?

LIU: Well, the ice that's been found on Mars up to this point has been, say, in the polar regions. But this is a sea that's maybe 100 feet deep in some places. And it's the size of New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, all put together. So this is an extremely...

HEMMER: It's huge.

LIU: ... interesting and large body of water. And it's in an area where Mars could have been warm at one time in the past.

HEMMER: Is it that big, did we miss it before?

LIU: Well, it was buried by at least some volcanic ash and possibly layers of rock. But our technology is developing by leaps and bounds. So, yes, we had missed it before. But we're finally getting the cameras, the eyes that we have.

HEMMER: So the ice is the issue today. A week ago we were talking about methane.

LIU: Yes.

HEMMER: Is there any correlation between what was released last week and the ice today?

LIU: Well, what we have to do is to find methane and ice in the same place, in a warm location or a potentially warm in the past kind of location. All these things together form a tripod of information where we can deduce that life may exist in those location.

So methane by itself is no big deal, ice by itself is no big deal. All of it together is...

(CROSSTALK)

HEMMER: How long then would it take for scientists realistically to be able to determine whether or not microorganisms are, in fact, living today on planet Mars?

LIU: When we send new equipment down to Mars. We're thinking five, 10 years optimistically. But the technology could exist. It's just a matter of getting all that stuff to Mars. And over the next decade or so, we may have a definitive answer.

HEMMER: I'll tell you how interested our viewers are, apparently, in this story. At one point, this was the most read story on our Web site at cnn.com.

Another story to talk about, this discovery in Fox, Alaska. I'm not quite sure where Fox is in the state of Alaska. Apparently a bacteria believed to be 30,000 years old has been discovered. What is the significance of that, Charles?

LIU: Well, it's a great new discovery. A few years ago, no one would have thought about talking about astronomy and biology in the same breath. But these bacteria, which were discovered about five years ago and have been very carefully studied by scientists at NASA and the University of Alabama, seem to suggest yet again that life is very resilient.

And something that can be frozen for 30,000 years or more in the permafrost in Alaska can come right back to life when it is thawed. That gives a lot of broad leeway that life could still exist on Mars. Maybe long ago when conditions were better it was alive. Maybe now it's in some state of suspended animation. But that's wild speculation at this point.

HEMMER: But the study also says that apparently this bacteria is able to swim around and move around. And go where?

LIU: Well, it doesn't go very far. These bacteria are very tiny.

But the fact that they can move, it's a great thing. I don't know how else to describe it except for the fact that it's so exciting that discoveries both on Earth and on Mars are bringing us closer and closer to the possibility that we'll find microorganisms or life of any kind on other planets.

HEMMER: I imagine it's a pretty good time to be an astrophysicist, huh?

LIU: I'm a very lucky guy.

HEMMER: Charles Liu, thank you...

LIU: Always a pleasure.

HEMMER: ... for coming in again.

LIU: Thanks so much.

HEMMER: All right.

Here's Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, Jamie Foxx might very well end up as the face of this year's Oscars, but the story of "Ray" is already the face of unprecedented diversity at the awards. We'll explain just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: We're back with Jack and the "Question of the Day."

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Picking the jury, Soledad, fits the rest of the Michael Jackson story: strange. Jackson is accused of molesting a little boy, and yet eight of the 12 jurors are parents, six moms, two dads.

One juror's sister was a rape victim, one juror's grandson is a registered sex offender. There are no African Americans on the jury.

Between the cosmetic surgeries, the dangling of the babies off the balcony, the Peter Pan lifestyle, where is Michael Jackson going to find a jury of his peers? They found a jury. The question is this: Can Michael Jackson get a fair trial?

Charles in Savannah writes, "More appropriate, can the prosecution get a fair trial? Jackson's already portraying himself as the victim and using his massive wealth to smear the alleged victim and the D.A. Forget about whether he's really guilty. He only needs one holdout juror. Don't tell me he won't get one of them."

Stewart in Parma, Ohio, writes, "Michael is strange and the jury is strange. Just wait for the verdict. Hint: start looking for the other glove. If it fits, you must acquit."

Pretty clever.

Owen in Reading, Massachusetts, "The words 'fair' and 'impartial' simply do not apply. Jackson's too rich, too loved, too hated, too weird. How can the average American pass judgment on this man without noting at least once that he looks like mangled wax fruit? Jackson removed himself from our cozy little world a long time ago."

And Edward in Ottawa writes, "Jackson could get a fair trial if the jury is stocked with your contributors. Think about it. We spend our mornings breaking down your textbook questions into three sentence answers. If they're read, we do victory laps around our home. We're loony enough to be on that jury."

(LAUGHTER)

HEMMER: Time to move to Santa Barbara.

CAFFERTY: And those are my people. Oh, and lots of mail from people around Fuquay Varina, in North Carolina, which is near Raleigh. And they all said we pronounced it correctly.

HEMMER: Did they?

CAFFERTY: Yes. And apparently we have some viewers down in that part of the country. So...

HEMMER: What does that mean, by the way?

CAFFERTY: Fuquay Varina?

HEMMER: Yes.

CAFFERTY: Oh, they said -- they said Varina -- one of the guys who wrote said Varina was Jefferson Davis's wife's name, and you best not be messing around with that name if you don't want to start another civil war.

Now, what the first part of it, Fuquay, means, I'm not even going to venture a guess. But Varina has to do with Jeff Davis' wife.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

HEMMER: Getting back to the developing story of Italy, for the second time now in two weeks Pope John Paul II now back in the hospital. His condition in a moment. Live in Rome after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired February 24, 2005 - 08:59   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. Nine o'clock here in New York. And now you're looking live at a picture of President Bush, the first lady and Mrs. Putin and Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, now meeting in the Slovak capital of Bratislava. The two men will then go into meetings for about a period of about two hours, it appears. Then they join a press conference after that, set to hit about 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
This is also considered by many observers to be the critical meeting of this entire five-day tour in Europe. The president has expressed his concerns about some of the anti-Democratic measures being taken by Vladimir Putin when it comes to freedom of the press in Russia, and also some anti-business measures, as well. That will be on the agenda today.

But also, with the disagreements, we expect to have some agreement, some agreement on nuclear testing, and some agreements also on finding a way to keep secure the nuclear plants throughout the country of Russia. Again, a sore spot right now in the current war on terror. We will get to all of that as the president's tour continues there in Bratislava.

We heard him with a speech about three hours ago. We will see the president again in about 2.5 hours, live from Slovakia.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Many people, of course, will be watching very closely the public remarks that the president, American President Bush, makes when he is in this joint news conference, clearly trying to detect a sense of tone and change in his attitude towards the Russian president.

Welcome back, everybody.

Let's talk about our other top story this morning as well. Pope John Paul II, he's been taken back to the hospital early this morning. Apparently a relapse of the respiratory problems that sent him to the hospital three weeks ago.

Let's get right to Walt Rodgers this morning. He's in Rome.

WALTER RODGERS, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Soledad.

The pope's flu is proving quite stubborn. He was released from hospital 13 days ago. They thought he was on the mend.

He was rushed back to hospital about four hours ago, as I speak. The doctors in the Vatican were saying that, in fact, the pope was having difficulty breathing again, congestion and a recurring fever. Those are the same conditions, by the way, that sent his holiness to hospital on the 1st of February.

No more information than that. It's rather sparse. Still, when the pope was taken to the Gemelli Clinic here in Rome, we're given to believe he was conscious the entire time. He was on a stretcher in the ambulance and was seen sitting fairly upright. And those who saw him going into the hospital say he was conscious and, again, upright on that stretcher.

We're not expecting another medical bulletin until sometime perhaps late tomorrow morning. But any time you have someone 84 years old, and as infirmed as this pope is, being taken back to hospital in 13 days, there is moderate cause for alarm -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Yes, certainly. We're going to continue to watch that story.

Walt, thank you for that update. And as soon as we get more information, of course we'll check back with you -- Bill.

HEMMER: So, then, from Rome to Slovakia, back here in New York. Talking about news from L.A. with Heidi Collins.

Good morning.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: That's right. Something to tell everybody about quickly here.

"Now in the News" this morning, this just into CNN. A large fire in Los Angeles this morning. The fire broke out at a commercial building in San Pedro. No word on injuries. But as you can see, some pretty big flames there.

We're looking at a live shot coming in. Once again, we will continue to follow this story at a commercial building in Los Angeles, and bring those details to you just as soon as we get them.

Meanwhile, overseas now, more attacks throughout Iraq this morning. Two U.S. soldiers killed in roadside bombings in the northern part of the country as American forces continue operations there to root out insurgents.

And a suicide car bombing in Saddam Hussein's home town of Tikrit. Officials confirm at least 12 policemen were killed in the blast. Dozens are injured.

In Florida, Terri Schiavo will remain on a feeding tube for now. That's because a judge has extended a temporary ruling keeping Schiavo's husband from pulling her feeding tube.

The judge says he needs more time to decide whether Schiavo's parents should be able to pursue other medical or legal options. The parents also want to have Schiavo's husband removed as her legal guardian. And back to California now. The prosecution set to begin its cross-examination in the Robert Blake murder case. The defense rested yesterday. Blake never took the stand. The jurors heard from him in a videotaped interview.

The prosecution begins its rebuttal today. More witnesses are expected to testify.

Soledad, over to you now.

O'BRIEN: All right, Heidi. Thanks.

The Bush-Putin summit marks the final stop on Mr. Bush's European trip, and also the first U.S.-Russia summit since the president's inaugural pledge to spread freedom around the world. Joining us this morning, Adrian Karatnycky. He's from Freedom House, a nonpartisan organization that promotes democratic values and human rights.

Nice to see you. Thanks for coming in to talk with us.

ADRIAN KARATNYCKY, FREEDOM HOUSE: Good morning.

O'BRIEN: Your organization downgraded Russia for the first time since 1989, I think, to not free. Explain what the status means anyway and why the downgrade.

KARATNYCKY: Well, the status means that there is an absence of substantial political freedoms in that country. So any country that is not free has constraints on its media, constraints on the competitiveness of its political processes, and a growing environment of repression and pressure. And we see all these characteristics in Russia mounting since Putin assumed power in 1999, and accelerating since he was re-elected last year.

You've seen prosecutions of businessmen which many believe were motivated because of their political independence and criticism. We've seen the concentration of media, where all six TV stations, national TV stations are controlled by the Kremlin. We've seen a concentration of power in the print media. So, again, the Kremlin and the state companies that the Russian government controls have taken over a broad array of independent media, independent voices in that country.

At the same time, we've also seen that political parties that have been set up that look like their opposition parties are actually parties that are controlled by the security services or by people with close relations to the security services. And finally, in the last five years, the number of people from the security services, military, the interior ministry, and the former KGB, the FSB, are now in 25 percent of the civilian key leadership posts in the parliament and in the government and in the governorships throughout Russia.

O'BRIEN: So you're seeing a definite clear move backward.

KARATNYCKY: Right. So... O'BRIEN: Now, obviously, you're watching very closely what happens, what is said, and what comes out of the discussions in Bratislava. What would you like to hear from President Bush when he takes the mic at the news conference?

KARATNYCKY: Well, I think we've already heard in his remarks two days ago some emphasis on the erosion of liberties in Russia and the -- in a sense, the beginning of a dialogue not so much with Mr. Putin, which is also an important dialogue, but with the Russian people.

The Russian media cannot avoid the statements that -- while they are controlled, they cannot avoid the statements of major world leaders, certainly not the president of the United States. This is a sort of a live feed. Hearing some of these issues advanced, even in a polite way, in a deferential way with Mr. Putin, will have an important impact in starting a debate in Russia which has been suppressed by Mr. Putin and the media he controls.

O'BRIEN: You also say that there should be a new U.S. policy toward Russia. Envision for me, what does that policy look like to you?

KARATNYCKY: Well, I think that President Bush is signaling the beginning of balancing the interests of the domestic developments inside Russia with and linking them to Russia's external behavior. I think that the model is that countries that are more transparent, that have some checks and balances, that have a media that can keep on top of what leaders are doing, is going to ensure better performance and more reliable alliance structures.

Russia is needed in the nuclear, you know, nonproliferation regimen. It is needed in the war on terrorism. But how it conducts that war should be checked, as it is in most democratic countries by skeptical media, by political opposition and the like.

O'BRIEN: What do you make of the resolution that Senator Lieberman and Senator McCain penned really to potentially suspend Russia from the group of eight industrialized nations? It seems that the president certainly, I think is it fair to say, isn't running with the ball on that, isn't really -- isn't really taking that advice.

KARATNYCKY: I think the most important fact is that this kind of legislation raises to a much higher level and gets the attention of the Russian people and of the Russian political leadership. And that really is the most important first step in this change in policy, to stimulate a debate, because is it the people in the end that matter.

We've just seen in places like the Ukraine and in Georgia, and in places around the world, people power, civic action reversing efforts by leaders to restrict freedom of speech, to restrict citizens' rights. And trying to stimulate some of that kind of pressure through a broader debate, a broader global debate using global media and the Russian media to the extent that it is possible is extremely important.

O'BRIEN: Adrian Karatnycky from Freedom House. Thank you for talking with us. Appreciate it.

KARATNYCKY: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Bill.

HEMMER: Soledad, I mentioned a few moments ago it is perhaps the most important meeting on President Bush's European tour under way at this hour. Mr. Bush going head to head with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And on the table today, a number of issues now putting a bit of strain on U.S.-Russian relations.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux is live in Bratislava, Slovakia, with us now.

Hello there, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bill, of course this really is a very important meeting, as you had mentioned, between President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The two of them meeting at this medieval castle in Bratislava.

It is important to say and important to note that four years ago much has changed. President Bush said he looked into Putin's eyes, he saw the soul of a man that he could trust. And now, of course, there are a lot of concerns that the relationship has somewhat cooled.

White House officials will tell you a lot of concerns that the president has -- namely retreating from these democratic reforms. Putin has said before that democracy must take place at its own pace.

Also, of course, these attempts to interfere in the affairs of its neighbors, the Ukraine, as well as Georgia. Again, Putin saying he believes that President Bush taking a stand is also interfering in the matter. And then, of course, Putin's cooperation with Iran and what Putin is calling a nuclear energy program, what the United States sees as a nuclear weapons program.

We've heard the president comment over the last couple of days, he believes their strong friendship is what's going to allow him to try to convince him not to pursue those retreats of democratic reforms, but rather to convince him that that is not the way to go. Now, earlier today, President Bush delivered a message to the Slovak people, not only to them, but as well to Russia, saying that he believes a retreat from democracy means possible isolation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Victory in this struggle will not come easily or quickly. But we have reason to hope. Iraqis have demonstrated their courage and their determination to live in freedom. And that has inspired the world. It is the same determination we saw in Kiev's Independence Square, in Tblisi's Freedom Square, and in this square almost 17 years ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MALVEAUX: Bill, the message is very clear from the president. Essentially, he is saying that democracy is the way to prevent this kind of isolation from the rest of the world. That is clearly going to be one of the number one subjects that they are going to be talking about at this summit. And, of course, there is some good news that will come out of this conference. Not only the fact that they're talking, but they're also agreeing on a number of issues when it comes to security in fighting terrorism, a number of initiatives that they'll be announcing later this afternoon -- Bill.

HEMMER: We'll watch for that, Suzanne. Also watching for reaction on Iran and that country's proposed nuclear ambitions.

This is the press conference. You'll see it live when it happens. Now expected today at about 11:30 Eastern Time, two hours and 9 minutes away. And again, CNN will have it live from Bratislava when it happens -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: After just five days in court, lawyers in the Michael Jackson child molestation case have agreed on a jury. A jury of four men, eight women has been selected. The jury selection was finished, in fact, much more quickly than many legal experts had expected.

Jury consultant Richard Gabriel joins us from Los Angeles.

Nice to see you, Richard. Thanks for talking with us.

RICHARD GABRIEL, JURY CONSULTANT: Good to see you, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Five days. Are you surprised by that, just five days?

GABRIEL: It is very quick for a trial of this magnitude and scope. I think everybody expected a lot more in-depth questioning of these jurors in chambers. I think they expected much more extensive questioning by the judge, and just a longer process overall.

O'BRIEN: So who, then, if it favors anybody, does it favor, the prosecution or the defense?

GABRIEL: Well, typically, a quick jury selection favors the prosecution just because defense is looking clearly for jurors that they can find out how backgrounds that may be inclined them one way or the other. It can hurt both sides because, quite frankly, there's very little that we actually know about these jurors.

Both sides have to be concerned with hidden agendas, with things that may probably incline the juror one way or the other. And without extensive jury selection, it's just hard to know.

O'BRIEN: The speed of picking a jury, is this any indication of how fast this trial could actually go?

GABRIEL: Well, I think it could. I mean, this judge has signaled that he's not going to treat this trial as necessarily any different than a criminal defendant. He's narrowly interpreted that he's just looking at things that could excuse a person for cause. And he's kept a really tight rein on a lot of the time periods in here. So he could move this trial right along.

O'BRIEN: When you look at who is on the jury, we've got eight women, four men, ages somewhere between 20 and 79. There are no African-Americans. No blacks are on this jury. Isn't this something that could be grounds for appeal later on?

GABRIEL: Well, probably not. And the thing is that a person is entitled to a jury of his peers, but it has to also be a representative cross-section of the community.

Santa Barbara County only has 2 or 3 percent African-American population. And so the whole pool was reflective of it.

I do know that two African-Americans were -- did come into the panel and were excused by the prosecution over protests by the defense. But a long ways down the road, the appellate court probably will take a look at the this and say, I don't think it is grounds for a mistrial or an appeal.

O'BRIEN: Eight parents are on the jury. No real surprise. I'm not a jury consultant, but I don't feel that's a huge surprise there. Who does that help?

GABRIEL: Well, I think it is going to be actually one of the core issues in this case. I thing parents can cut both ways. I think it's a double-edged sword.

Parents can be horrified by the allegations and can sit there and say, boy, the conduct here is so inappropriate that it crosses the line into what they consider to be pedophilia. On the other hand, parents can be extremely critical of the mother in this case, which I think is what the defense is counting on, in terms of providing a motivation for maybe a future lawsuit down the road.

O'BRIEN: Richard Gabriel is a jury consultant out of Los Angeles. Nice to see you, Richard, as always. Thanks.

GABRIEL: Thank you, Soledad.

HEMMER: As you were talking, Soledad, we're watching this fire in downtown Los Angeles. A bit of information on it right now.

Apparently it's -- firefighters are using chainsaws to get the smoke out of there. It spread very quickly, and near apartment buildings, as well, which is a major concern.

About 6:15 in the morning there local time in southern California. Very dangerous. Clearly, that is evident from the overhead aerial picture we're getting here.

Also, businesses are attached to this building. Don't know what type of building is on fire right now. Firefighters clearly trying to contain it in this urban setting here. Trying to surround it. And that fire has intensified, too.

So a number of people also evacuated from a nearby apartment building. When we get more, we'll pass it along to you. But that is a blaze there in downtown L.A.

Let's get a break here. In a moment, heart failure kills thousands of Americans every year. But too many people miss the warning signs because they're looking for the wrong ones. We'll get some advice this hour.

Also, does life exist in the ice found on Mars? We'll look at why the latest discovery could be significant.

Back in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.

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HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. European scientists think they found a frozen sea on Mars. The logic goes, where there's ice, there's water, where there's water, there could be bacteria. And bacteria is life.

So then, is there life on Mars? Or are we just reaching way out here today?

Astrophysicist Charles Liu from the American Museum of Natural History is here.

Welcome back, Charles.

CHARLES LIU, ASTROPHYSICIST: Thanks a lot.

HEMMER: Nice to see you. The significance near the equator on Mars with this ice is what, do you believe?

LIU: Well, the ice that's been found on Mars up to this point has been, say, in the polar regions. But this is a sea that's maybe 100 feet deep in some places. And it's the size of New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, all put together. So this is an extremely...

HEMMER: It's huge.

LIU: ... interesting and large body of water. And it's in an area where Mars could have been warm at one time in the past.

HEMMER: Is it that big, did we miss it before?

LIU: Well, it was buried by at least some volcanic ash and possibly layers of rock. But our technology is developing by leaps and bounds. So, yes, we had missed it before. But we're finally getting the cameras, the eyes that we have.

HEMMER: So the ice is the issue today. A week ago we were talking about methane.

LIU: Yes.

HEMMER: Is there any correlation between what was released last week and the ice today?

LIU: Well, what we have to do is to find methane and ice in the same place, in a warm location or a potentially warm in the past kind of location. All these things together form a tripod of information where we can deduce that life may exist in those location.

So methane by itself is no big deal, ice by itself is no big deal. All of it together is...

(CROSSTALK)

HEMMER: How long then would it take for scientists realistically to be able to determine whether or not microorganisms are, in fact, living today on planet Mars?

LIU: When we send new equipment down to Mars. We're thinking five, 10 years optimistically. But the technology could exist. It's just a matter of getting all that stuff to Mars. And over the next decade or so, we may have a definitive answer.

HEMMER: I'll tell you how interested our viewers are, apparently, in this story. At one point, this was the most read story on our Web site at cnn.com.

Another story to talk about, this discovery in Fox, Alaska. I'm not quite sure where Fox is in the state of Alaska. Apparently a bacteria believed to be 30,000 years old has been discovered. What is the significance of that, Charles?

LIU: Well, it's a great new discovery. A few years ago, no one would have thought about talking about astronomy and biology in the same breath. But these bacteria, which were discovered about five years ago and have been very carefully studied by scientists at NASA and the University of Alabama, seem to suggest yet again that life is very resilient.

And something that can be frozen for 30,000 years or more in the permafrost in Alaska can come right back to life when it is thawed. That gives a lot of broad leeway that life could still exist on Mars. Maybe long ago when conditions were better it was alive. Maybe now it's in some state of suspended animation. But that's wild speculation at this point.

HEMMER: But the study also says that apparently this bacteria is able to swim around and move around. And go where?

LIU: Well, it doesn't go very far. These bacteria are very tiny.

But the fact that they can move, it's a great thing. I don't know how else to describe it except for the fact that it's so exciting that discoveries both on Earth and on Mars are bringing us closer and closer to the possibility that we'll find microorganisms or life of any kind on other planets.

HEMMER: I imagine it's a pretty good time to be an astrophysicist, huh?

LIU: I'm a very lucky guy.

HEMMER: Charles Liu, thank you...

LIU: Always a pleasure.

HEMMER: ... for coming in again.

LIU: Thanks so much.

HEMMER: All right.

Here's Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, Jamie Foxx might very well end up as the face of this year's Oscars, but the story of "Ray" is already the face of unprecedented diversity at the awards. We'll explain just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: We're back with Jack and the "Question of the Day."

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Picking the jury, Soledad, fits the rest of the Michael Jackson story: strange. Jackson is accused of molesting a little boy, and yet eight of the 12 jurors are parents, six moms, two dads.

One juror's sister was a rape victim, one juror's grandson is a registered sex offender. There are no African Americans on the jury.

Between the cosmetic surgeries, the dangling of the babies off the balcony, the Peter Pan lifestyle, where is Michael Jackson going to find a jury of his peers? They found a jury. The question is this: Can Michael Jackson get a fair trial?

Charles in Savannah writes, "More appropriate, can the prosecution get a fair trial? Jackson's already portraying himself as the victim and using his massive wealth to smear the alleged victim and the D.A. Forget about whether he's really guilty. He only needs one holdout juror. Don't tell me he won't get one of them."

Stewart in Parma, Ohio, writes, "Michael is strange and the jury is strange. Just wait for the verdict. Hint: start looking for the other glove. If it fits, you must acquit."

Pretty clever.

Owen in Reading, Massachusetts, "The words 'fair' and 'impartial' simply do not apply. Jackson's too rich, too loved, too hated, too weird. How can the average American pass judgment on this man without noting at least once that he looks like mangled wax fruit? Jackson removed himself from our cozy little world a long time ago."

And Edward in Ottawa writes, "Jackson could get a fair trial if the jury is stocked with your contributors. Think about it. We spend our mornings breaking down your textbook questions into three sentence answers. If they're read, we do victory laps around our home. We're loony enough to be on that jury."

(LAUGHTER)

HEMMER: Time to move to Santa Barbara.

CAFFERTY: And those are my people. Oh, and lots of mail from people around Fuquay Varina, in North Carolina, which is near Raleigh. And they all said we pronounced it correctly.

HEMMER: Did they?

CAFFERTY: Yes. And apparently we have some viewers down in that part of the country. So...

HEMMER: What does that mean, by the way?

CAFFERTY: Fuquay Varina?

HEMMER: Yes.

CAFFERTY: Oh, they said -- they said Varina -- one of the guys who wrote said Varina was Jefferson Davis's wife's name, and you best not be messing around with that name if you don't want to start another civil war.

Now, what the first part of it, Fuquay, means, I'm not even going to venture a guess. But Varina has to do with Jeff Davis' wife.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.

CAFFERTY: Yes.

HEMMER: Getting back to the developing story of Italy, for the second time now in two weeks Pope John Paul II now back in the hospital. His condition in a moment. Live in Rome after this.

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