Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

Who is Dennis Rader?; 'The War Room'; Dirty Medical Secret

Aired March 01, 2005 - 05:30   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.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
"Now in the News."

The man accused of being the BTK killer appears before a judge today for the first time. Dennis Rader is expected to appear via video hookup from a Wichita, Kansas jail to hear the 10 murder charges against him.

The first witness in the Michael Jackson case is expected to be called today. That will come after the defense finishes its opening statement.

And "The Chicago Sun-Times" is reporting a federal judge found the bodies of her husband and 89-year-old mother when she came home from work last night. A white supremacist was convicted last year of trying to hire someone to kill the judge. Police have not said if they suspect a connection.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in London this morning for today's Mideast conference. The meeting is aimed at getting more international support for the new Palestinian government.

To the Forecast Center and, Chad, is it over? Is the Noreaster ending?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Depends on where you are. For you, not yet, no. But you know southern parts of Staten Island, it's already stopped. And the snow, the back line is actually moving on up from the south to the north. This last line of snow here for you New York City.

(WEATHER REPORT)

It's calming down for you -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank goodness, because it was really nasty. But it didn't get nasty until 8:00, just like you said.

MYERS: Right. After dark we knew that that's when the most moisture was going to be in the storm.

COSTELLO: You're a genius.

MYERS: Yes, well, I have computers. COSTELLO: Thank you -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: All right, many people in Park City, Kansas view BTK as a monster, as an evil person; but they're finding it hard to believe that their neighbor, Dennis Rader, is the man now believed to be that serial killer.

CNN's Jonathan Freed has all of the latest information for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If the allegations are true, then Dennis Rader has led a double life for 30 years, managing to hide in plain sight. Since police accused him of being Wichita's infamous serial killer, the BTK strangler, people who know him are struggling to figure out who he really is.

DEE STUART, EX-CITY COUNSELOR: This is the man that we knew as our compliance officer, the man I would speak to at City Hall. I don't know that man.

FREED: Dee Stuart is a former city counselor in Rader's home of Park City, just north of Wichita. She used to see Rader around City Hall where they'd give each other a friendly wave. Rader worked as the compliance officer, telling people to put their trash cans away and working as the dog catcher. Stuart is running for mayor. And a few days before he was arrested, Rader stopped by her house to inform her some campaign signs were illegally placed.

(on camera): When he rang your doorbell last week, would you have let him in?

STUART: Yes, absolutely. He wasn't BTK he was Dennis Rader. He was somebody I knew.

FREED (voice-over): Rader is known for being a real stickler with rules, which was, after all, his job. But some say he overdid it. One neighbor felt harassed by Rader and his rulebook.

ERIC LOWRY, NEIGHBOR: We've been doing it for 13 years. It's just like a normal thing, you know. I'm glad it's over. You know I don't care if he's BTK or what, he's gone. He's not going to bother me anymore, so that's good for me.

FREED (on camera): We're trying to answer the question who is this guy? What's your impression of him?

DANNY SAVILLE, LAWYER: He didn't like to lose.

FREED (voice-over): Danny Saville is a lawyer who challenged Dennis Rader in court a few years ago.

SAVILLE: He was very, very focused on winning.

FREED: So focused, Saville says, that Rader had prepared an inch thick document, complete with photos, for a couple of $25 dog fines.

SAVILLE: I could see him killing a dog in a heartbeat. I mean he was the dog catcher, you know, and he seemed very cold, very meticulous.

FREED: Rader was recently elected president of his church, a Lutheran congregation now stunned, unable to comprehend that the scout master, husband and father of two might be the murderer they've been praying for years would be caught.

PASTOR MICHAEL CLARK, CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH: He was kind of a soft-spoken person, a person who people respected, and he was there. He responded to people. I saw him interact with people every Sunday morning in church in a very positive, healthy way.

FREED: Many here feel regardless of whether or not he's found guilty that the accusations have already taken away the man they knew.

STUART: This is black magic. It's there. He's there and then he's gone.

FREED: Jonathan Freed, CNN, Wichita, Kansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: One man says he doesn't have any doubts about Dennis Rader. Steve Relford witnessed the 1977 murder of his mother. Police say she died at the hands of the BTK killer. Now Relford says he's sure police have the right man.

He talked to CNN's Paula Zahn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE RELFORD, SON OF BTK VICTIM: There is no doubt in my mind. Dennis Rader is the BTK, as far as I am concerned.

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: You've lived with the fear that perhaps this crime would never be solved. Is there any sense of relief for you today?

RELFORD: There is, but there's not. And the reason I say that is because he is not convicted.

ZAHN: How did the brutal murder of your mother, a murder which you witnessed, change you?

RELFORD: Made me rebel against everything I ever believed in, turned me into an alcoholic, a drug addict, tattooed up. I would never have been like this if my mother was still living.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The BTK suspect faces an initial court appearance later today. An international conference with Palestinian leaders, rallies in the streets of Beirut, is democracy on the march in the Middle East? We'll talk about that next in today's "War Room."

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: To "The War Room" now to talk democracy. Did the war in Iraq and the elections there start something big? After all, Saudi Arabia held elections for the first time, Egypt is allowing other candidates to run for office and the Lebanese people managed to kick their government to the curb.

To Atlanta and our senior international editor David Clinch.

David, can the recent events be compared to the end of the Cold War, perhaps?

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Well that is a great question, Carol. And we heard the president yesterday using the phrase "freedom is on the march." "Exciting times," President Bush said yesterday. And clearly fascinating events. As you said, Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Palestinians, reform and signs of democracy everywhere. And as you say, started, according to the Bush administration, by the introduction of democracy in Iraq.

But there is, of course, a very distinct difference between what's happening in the Middle East and what happened after the Cold War. For instance, the countries of Eastern Europe were a lot more stable and had been so for a lot longer than the countries in the Middle East.

And there's a big question facing the Bush administration right now, they're very encouraged by these signs of democracy. But democracy and instability come, in some ways, hand in hand in that region. And always the risk that if you go too far too fast that instability can lead to terrorism. And that is a big problem.

COSTELLO: Well, and when we say democracy, it isn't the type of democracy that America has. I think people misunderstand that, especially in Egypt, let's say.

CLINCH: Well, yes, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, great examples. Mubarak, President Mubarak there saying he'll allow somebody else to stand. Well somebody else, as well as him, that's far from saying that it will be a fair and free election. In Saudi Arabia some signs of democracy, but women still can't vote there. Even in Iraq, a lot of people unable, at this point, or unwilling to vote. So, yes, not democracy as we know it.

And again, we saw yesterday signs, intelligence saying Osama bin Laden is asking Zarqawi in Iraq to help attack the United States. So in the midst of this progress, always the chance that the instability that comes with that progress can lead to greater danger for the United States.

So a balance that the Bush administration, Secretary Rice in London today, the conference there, watching very closely. Encouraging, but warning signs that there is always a risk for violence and instability, and again, direct violence against the United States. That's the issue they have to keep their eye on.

COSTELLO: Of course, but let's leave the audience with some sense of optimism, and there is reason to be optimistic.

CLINCH: Right. I mean I remember we were talking just before the Iraqi elections and I used the phrase "let's not be too cynical here." And we did see a quite remarkable display of democracy there. And the signs from Lebanon yesterday, people power, the Cedar Revolution it's being called, a chance for that country, Lebanon, to join in with this progress towards democracy.

So the Bush administration claiming some credit there, and definitely encouraging signs, just a very difficult and dangerous balance that they have to keep their eye on.

COSTELLO: David Clinch, live in Atlanta, thank you.

CLINCH: Bye -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports, 5:43 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Right now Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is attending a conference in London aimed at bolstering the Palestinian Authority. European and Arab foreign ministers are there, but Israel is not.

U.S. intelligence has picked up chatter from Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenant in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The communication suggests bin Laden wants Zarqawi to plan terror strikes here in the United States.

In money news, a judge has ruled that a $107 million judgment against DuPont will stick. The class action lawsuit alleged a chemical used in making Teflon contaminated water supplies near a DuPont plant in West Virginia.

In culture, E! Entertainment Television will reenact daily highlights from the Michael Jackson child molestation trial since cameras are banned from the courtroom.

In sports, a tennis upset, Venus Williams has lost a first round match for the first time in four years. Italy's Silvia Farina Elia beat Williams 7-5, 7-6 at the Women's Open in Dubai.

To the Forecast Center now.

Good morning -- Chad.

MYERS: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Back to you.

COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.

Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

You go there expecting to get better, not worse. Ahead on DAYBREAK, a look at how hospitals have become breeding grounds for deadly infections.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The salt trucks are out, the snowplows, too. There is another winter blast in the northeast, so let's head live now to reporter Leon Collins of CNN affiliate WFSB in New Haven, Connecticut. And we understand he is not ready yet.

So, let's go to our "Health Headlines." "Health Headlines" now.

Turning to health news, are you a tanning bed fan? If so, listen to this, Nordic nations, where sunlight is scarce, are calling on the European Union to impose tighter limits on the strength of sun beds or tanning beds. And they're warning their citizens they're more at risk than others of contracting skin cancer from tanning beds.

Cannabis-based drugs, you know as found in marijuana, are on the fast track. Britain's GW Pharmaceuticals says it's accelerating plans to introduce some medicines into the United States.

And a poultry market cleaner in Vietnam has reportedly contracted Bird Flu. The virus has killed 47 people in Asia. Experts fear it could mutate into a form dangerous to humans and unleash a global influenza pandemic.

You know the worst place to be when you're sick might actually be in the hospital. Two million people a year contract dangerous infections in the hospital and up to 90,000 die annually from them.

CNN's Christine Romans has more on the germ factor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the dirty secret of medicine, nasty germs lurking in the hospital, the nursing home, the ambulance, causing deadly infections. Health care associated infections kill more than 200 people a day. They add more than 12 days to an infected patient's hospital stay. And according to the Centers for Disease Control, they cost $4.5 billion a year. The number one culprit, an appallingly small number of health professionals who properly wash their hands.

DENNIS O'LEARY, JOINT COMM. ACCRETION HEALTHCARE ORG.: I think in good hospitals, we may be at 50 percent, and in ones that are not quite as good, it's much lower.

ROMANS: Busy doctors are rushing from patient to patient, sporadically using surgical gloves or leaving them on too long.

KEITH KAYE, DUKE UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: You're supposed to be able to sing happy birthday in its completion while you're washing your hands. You should be washing you're hands during the entire song. That's pretty hard to do if you're taking care of 20 patients.

ROMANS: Making it worse, 70 percent of these infections are resistant to antibiotics. Patients are older, undergoing new medical procedures.

KATHY WARYE, APIC: The very things that are prolonging our life and making our medical treatments more effective, are also exposing us to risk for infection.

ROMANS: Blood and urinary tract infections, pneumonia, surgical site infections. What you catch in the hospital, by some estimates, is the eighth leading cause of death in America.

DR. DENISE CARDO, CDC: We have made some progress, but still not good enough. And we need to do better. And we can do better, because we know what is needed to be done.

ROMANS: Safety experts urge patients to ask their doctors if they've washed up. Currently only four states require hospitals to report health care-associated infections, 30 more states are considering it.

(on camera): The CDC has issued guidelines to states as they start to track hospital infections. Health care advocates hope that better reporting will save lives.

Christine Romans, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/health.

We've been asking you this morning about American high schools: do you think they're getting the job done? Bill Gates called American high schools obsolete. Ahead in the 6:00 hour of DAYBREAK, we'll find out how a group of governors and what they're doing to make their schools more competitive.

Also ahead at 6:00, a fair trial for the BTK killer, is the media making it impossible?

You're watching DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time to check out our "Web Clicks" this morning,...

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: ... because we're always interested in what people are clicking on to on CNN.com. And one of the most popular stories is...

MYERS: "Private Ryan" not indecent.

COSTELLO: ... "Private Ryan."

MYERS: Remember that? Remember that, back that whole thing, like 60-some stations didn't run this, the ABC stations, during "Private Ryan" because they thought that maybe the FCC was going to give them a fine for running it. Well now...

COSTELLO: I think the FCC was threatening to do that because of the bad language and the...

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: ... intense violence in this film. But apparently the FCC changed its mind and says hey, it's OK, we won't fine you. If you ran "Private Ryan," that's OK with us.

Another popular story on the Web is about the millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett. He's off on a high-flying attempt to become the first person to complete a non-stop solo flight in a single-engine airplane.

MYERS: It's a funky looking plane.

COSTELLO: Isn't it.

MYERS: I mean where's he sitting, in the middle, I guess. I guess those pods on the outside are fuel tanks. And so he's going to try to go all the way around the world. This has been canceled a couple times, not because of technical issues, but because he has to plan on using the jet stream as a tailwind because he doesn't want to meet -- he doesn't want to fly against the jet stream, he wants to fly with it. It will get him better gas mileage, obviously, or fuel mileage.

COSTELLO: And of course...

MYERS: And then as he goes around, he can make it, and he'll be the first one to ever do that.

COSTELLO: Of course weight is really important. He is surviving on milkshakes through the whole trip. Eighty-three percent of the weight of that plane is in fuel.

MYERS: He's not going to like do something with Slim Fast and say how he lost five pounds in 24 hours or anything, is he?

COSTELLO: Well that would help finance the trip, wouldn't it?

MYERS: You never know. Hey, you know what, you always can go to CNN.com, and on the upper right side it says most popular. I do it every morning because I really like to see what you guys are clicking on.

COSTELLO: It's always interesting, isn't it?

MYERS: It is.

COSTELLO: Time to read some e-mail. And we've been asking the question this morning do you think your kid is getting a good education in high school? Because Bill Gates came out yesterday saying that American high schools are obsolete and we must do something about them to better prepare our kids for the world out there.

And we've been getting a lot of interesting e-mail this morning -- Chad.

MYERS: I have one here from Nashville from Jason (ph). He's actually a college junior. And says, you know what, college is so much more difficult than high school, you can't really believe it. High school is just inefficient. It isn't obsolete. He feels that the high school education he received was worthwhile, but he believes they were just too laid back and that they need to go over more things more quickly and not such a slow process in high school. Because I'll tell you what, when you get into college, you crank it up. You're working a lot harder than you're working in high school.

COSTELLO: Well, and it's all up to you, too, you don't have mom and dad sitting next to you saying do your homework, do your homework.

MYERS: That's right.

COSTELLO: This is from Terry (ph). I substituted recently in an area high school. I found the students there receiving virtually no direction. I don't think that high schools are obsolete, but I do believe that we have become so concerned with what someone may sue for that we have handicapped the teacher's ability to instruct.

MYERS: Got one from a professor out in Kansas. He thinks that the problem is that they are trying to lower the standards so low so that everybody feels included and that no one actually fails out anymore. That he feels that this grade inflation needs to be reduced and that a rigorous testing system needs to be put in so people aren't getting out of high school without really getting a high school education.

COSTELLO: Well we're going to talk much more about this, and we're going to have an expert in from a group called Achieve that America's governors have put together to improve the education in America. We'll talk about that in the next hour of DAYBREAK, which starts right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired March 1, 2005 - 05:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
"Now in the News."

The man accused of being the BTK killer appears before a judge today for the first time. Dennis Rader is expected to appear via video hookup from a Wichita, Kansas jail to hear the 10 murder charges against him.

The first witness in the Michael Jackson case is expected to be called today. That will come after the defense finishes its opening statement.

And "The Chicago Sun-Times" is reporting a federal judge found the bodies of her husband and 89-year-old mother when she came home from work last night. A white supremacist was convicted last year of trying to hire someone to kill the judge. Police have not said if they suspect a connection.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is in London this morning for today's Mideast conference. The meeting is aimed at getting more international support for the new Palestinian government.

To the Forecast Center and, Chad, is it over? Is the Noreaster ending?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Depends on where you are. For you, not yet, no. But you know southern parts of Staten Island, it's already stopped. And the snow, the back line is actually moving on up from the south to the north. This last line of snow here for you New York City.

(WEATHER REPORT)

It's calming down for you -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank goodness, because it was really nasty. But it didn't get nasty until 8:00, just like you said.

MYERS: Right. After dark we knew that that's when the most moisture was going to be in the storm.

COSTELLO: You're a genius.

MYERS: Yes, well, I have computers. COSTELLO: Thank you -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: All right, many people in Park City, Kansas view BTK as a monster, as an evil person; but they're finding it hard to believe that their neighbor, Dennis Rader, is the man now believed to be that serial killer.

CNN's Jonathan Freed has all of the latest information for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If the allegations are true, then Dennis Rader has led a double life for 30 years, managing to hide in plain sight. Since police accused him of being Wichita's infamous serial killer, the BTK strangler, people who know him are struggling to figure out who he really is.

DEE STUART, EX-CITY COUNSELOR: This is the man that we knew as our compliance officer, the man I would speak to at City Hall. I don't know that man.

FREED: Dee Stuart is a former city counselor in Rader's home of Park City, just north of Wichita. She used to see Rader around City Hall where they'd give each other a friendly wave. Rader worked as the compliance officer, telling people to put their trash cans away and working as the dog catcher. Stuart is running for mayor. And a few days before he was arrested, Rader stopped by her house to inform her some campaign signs were illegally placed.

(on camera): When he rang your doorbell last week, would you have let him in?

STUART: Yes, absolutely. He wasn't BTK he was Dennis Rader. He was somebody I knew.

FREED (voice-over): Rader is known for being a real stickler with rules, which was, after all, his job. But some say he overdid it. One neighbor felt harassed by Rader and his rulebook.

ERIC LOWRY, NEIGHBOR: We've been doing it for 13 years. It's just like a normal thing, you know. I'm glad it's over. You know I don't care if he's BTK or what, he's gone. He's not going to bother me anymore, so that's good for me.

FREED (on camera): We're trying to answer the question who is this guy? What's your impression of him?

DANNY SAVILLE, LAWYER: He didn't like to lose.

FREED (voice-over): Danny Saville is a lawyer who challenged Dennis Rader in court a few years ago.

SAVILLE: He was very, very focused on winning.

FREED: So focused, Saville says, that Rader had prepared an inch thick document, complete with photos, for a couple of $25 dog fines.

SAVILLE: I could see him killing a dog in a heartbeat. I mean he was the dog catcher, you know, and he seemed very cold, very meticulous.

FREED: Rader was recently elected president of his church, a Lutheran congregation now stunned, unable to comprehend that the scout master, husband and father of two might be the murderer they've been praying for years would be caught.

PASTOR MICHAEL CLARK, CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH: He was kind of a soft-spoken person, a person who people respected, and he was there. He responded to people. I saw him interact with people every Sunday morning in church in a very positive, healthy way.

FREED: Many here feel regardless of whether or not he's found guilty that the accusations have already taken away the man they knew.

STUART: This is black magic. It's there. He's there and then he's gone.

FREED: Jonathan Freed, CNN, Wichita, Kansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: One man says he doesn't have any doubts about Dennis Rader. Steve Relford witnessed the 1977 murder of his mother. Police say she died at the hands of the BTK killer. Now Relford says he's sure police have the right man.

He talked to CNN's Paula Zahn.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE RELFORD, SON OF BTK VICTIM: There is no doubt in my mind. Dennis Rader is the BTK, as far as I am concerned.

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: You've lived with the fear that perhaps this crime would never be solved. Is there any sense of relief for you today?

RELFORD: There is, but there's not. And the reason I say that is because he is not convicted.

ZAHN: How did the brutal murder of your mother, a murder which you witnessed, change you?

RELFORD: Made me rebel against everything I ever believed in, turned me into an alcoholic, a drug addict, tattooed up. I would never have been like this if my mother was still living.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The BTK suspect faces an initial court appearance later today. An international conference with Palestinian leaders, rallies in the streets of Beirut, is democracy on the march in the Middle East? We'll talk about that next in today's "War Room."

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: To "The War Room" now to talk democracy. Did the war in Iraq and the elections there start something big? After all, Saudi Arabia held elections for the first time, Egypt is allowing other candidates to run for office and the Lebanese people managed to kick their government to the curb.

To Atlanta and our senior international editor David Clinch.

David, can the recent events be compared to the end of the Cold War, perhaps?

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Well that is a great question, Carol. And we heard the president yesterday using the phrase "freedom is on the march." "Exciting times," President Bush said yesterday. And clearly fascinating events. As you said, Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Palestinians, reform and signs of democracy everywhere. And as you say, started, according to the Bush administration, by the introduction of democracy in Iraq.

But there is, of course, a very distinct difference between what's happening in the Middle East and what happened after the Cold War. For instance, the countries of Eastern Europe were a lot more stable and had been so for a lot longer than the countries in the Middle East.

And there's a big question facing the Bush administration right now, they're very encouraged by these signs of democracy. But democracy and instability come, in some ways, hand in hand in that region. And always the risk that if you go too far too fast that instability can lead to terrorism. And that is a big problem.

COSTELLO: Well, and when we say democracy, it isn't the type of democracy that America has. I think people misunderstand that, especially in Egypt, let's say.

CLINCH: Well, yes, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, great examples. Mubarak, President Mubarak there saying he'll allow somebody else to stand. Well somebody else, as well as him, that's far from saying that it will be a fair and free election. In Saudi Arabia some signs of democracy, but women still can't vote there. Even in Iraq, a lot of people unable, at this point, or unwilling to vote. So, yes, not democracy as we know it.

And again, we saw yesterday signs, intelligence saying Osama bin Laden is asking Zarqawi in Iraq to help attack the United States. So in the midst of this progress, always the chance that the instability that comes with that progress can lead to greater danger for the United States.

So a balance that the Bush administration, Secretary Rice in London today, the conference there, watching very closely. Encouraging, but warning signs that there is always a risk for violence and instability, and again, direct violence against the United States. That's the issue they have to keep their eye on.

COSTELLO: Of course, but let's leave the audience with some sense of optimism, and there is reason to be optimistic.

CLINCH: Right. I mean I remember we were talking just before the Iraqi elections and I used the phrase "let's not be too cynical here." And we did see a quite remarkable display of democracy there. And the signs from Lebanon yesterday, people power, the Cedar Revolution it's being called, a chance for that country, Lebanon, to join in with this progress towards democracy.

So the Bush administration claiming some credit there, and definitely encouraging signs, just a very difficult and dangerous balance that they have to keep their eye on.

COSTELLO: David Clinch, live in Atlanta, thank you.

CLINCH: Bye -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports, 5:43 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Right now Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is attending a conference in London aimed at bolstering the Palestinian Authority. European and Arab foreign ministers are there, but Israel is not.

U.S. intelligence has picked up chatter from Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenant in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The communication suggests bin Laden wants Zarqawi to plan terror strikes here in the United States.

In money news, a judge has ruled that a $107 million judgment against DuPont will stick. The class action lawsuit alleged a chemical used in making Teflon contaminated water supplies near a DuPont plant in West Virginia.

In culture, E! Entertainment Television will reenact daily highlights from the Michael Jackson child molestation trial since cameras are banned from the courtroom.

In sports, a tennis upset, Venus Williams has lost a first round match for the first time in four years. Italy's Silvia Farina Elia beat Williams 7-5, 7-6 at the Women's Open in Dubai.

To the Forecast Center now.

Good morning -- Chad.

MYERS: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Back to you.

COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.

Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

You go there expecting to get better, not worse. Ahead on DAYBREAK, a look at how hospitals have become breeding grounds for deadly infections.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The salt trucks are out, the snowplows, too. There is another winter blast in the northeast, so let's head live now to reporter Leon Collins of CNN affiliate WFSB in New Haven, Connecticut. And we understand he is not ready yet.

So, let's go to our "Health Headlines." "Health Headlines" now.

Turning to health news, are you a tanning bed fan? If so, listen to this, Nordic nations, where sunlight is scarce, are calling on the European Union to impose tighter limits on the strength of sun beds or tanning beds. And they're warning their citizens they're more at risk than others of contracting skin cancer from tanning beds.

Cannabis-based drugs, you know as found in marijuana, are on the fast track. Britain's GW Pharmaceuticals says it's accelerating plans to introduce some medicines into the United States.

And a poultry market cleaner in Vietnam has reportedly contracted Bird Flu. The virus has killed 47 people in Asia. Experts fear it could mutate into a form dangerous to humans and unleash a global influenza pandemic.

You know the worst place to be when you're sick might actually be in the hospital. Two million people a year contract dangerous infections in the hospital and up to 90,000 die annually from them.

CNN's Christine Romans has more on the germ factor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the dirty secret of medicine, nasty germs lurking in the hospital, the nursing home, the ambulance, causing deadly infections. Health care associated infections kill more than 200 people a day. They add more than 12 days to an infected patient's hospital stay. And according to the Centers for Disease Control, they cost $4.5 billion a year. The number one culprit, an appallingly small number of health professionals who properly wash their hands.

DENNIS O'LEARY, JOINT COMM. ACCRETION HEALTHCARE ORG.: I think in good hospitals, we may be at 50 percent, and in ones that are not quite as good, it's much lower.

ROMANS: Busy doctors are rushing from patient to patient, sporadically using surgical gloves or leaving them on too long.

KEITH KAYE, DUKE UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: You're supposed to be able to sing happy birthday in its completion while you're washing your hands. You should be washing you're hands during the entire song. That's pretty hard to do if you're taking care of 20 patients.

ROMANS: Making it worse, 70 percent of these infections are resistant to antibiotics. Patients are older, undergoing new medical procedures.

KATHY WARYE, APIC: The very things that are prolonging our life and making our medical treatments more effective, are also exposing us to risk for infection.

ROMANS: Blood and urinary tract infections, pneumonia, surgical site infections. What you catch in the hospital, by some estimates, is the eighth leading cause of death in America.

DR. DENISE CARDO, CDC: We have made some progress, but still not good enough. And we need to do better. And we can do better, because we know what is needed to be done.

ROMANS: Safety experts urge patients to ask their doctors if they've washed up. Currently only four states require hospitals to report health care-associated infections, 30 more states are considering it.

(on camera): The CDC has issued guidelines to states as they start to track hospital infections. Health care advocates hope that better reporting will save lives.

Christine Romans, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/health.

We've been asking you this morning about American high schools: do you think they're getting the job done? Bill Gates called American high schools obsolete. Ahead in the 6:00 hour of DAYBREAK, we'll find out how a group of governors and what they're doing to make their schools more competitive.

Also ahead at 6:00, a fair trial for the BTK killer, is the media making it impossible?

You're watching DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time to check out our "Web Clicks" this morning,...

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: ... because we're always interested in what people are clicking on to on CNN.com. And one of the most popular stories is...

MYERS: "Private Ryan" not indecent.

COSTELLO: ... "Private Ryan."

MYERS: Remember that? Remember that, back that whole thing, like 60-some stations didn't run this, the ABC stations, during "Private Ryan" because they thought that maybe the FCC was going to give them a fine for running it. Well now...

COSTELLO: I think the FCC was threatening to do that because of the bad language and the...

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: ... intense violence in this film. But apparently the FCC changed its mind and says hey, it's OK, we won't fine you. If you ran "Private Ryan," that's OK with us.

Another popular story on the Web is about the millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett. He's off on a high-flying attempt to become the first person to complete a non-stop solo flight in a single-engine airplane.

MYERS: It's a funky looking plane.

COSTELLO: Isn't it.

MYERS: I mean where's he sitting, in the middle, I guess. I guess those pods on the outside are fuel tanks. And so he's going to try to go all the way around the world. This has been canceled a couple times, not because of technical issues, but because he has to plan on using the jet stream as a tailwind because he doesn't want to meet -- he doesn't want to fly against the jet stream, he wants to fly with it. It will get him better gas mileage, obviously, or fuel mileage.

COSTELLO: And of course...

MYERS: And then as he goes around, he can make it, and he'll be the first one to ever do that.

COSTELLO: Of course weight is really important. He is surviving on milkshakes through the whole trip. Eighty-three percent of the weight of that plane is in fuel.

MYERS: He's not going to like do something with Slim Fast and say how he lost five pounds in 24 hours or anything, is he?

COSTELLO: Well that would help finance the trip, wouldn't it?

MYERS: You never know. Hey, you know what, you always can go to CNN.com, and on the upper right side it says most popular. I do it every morning because I really like to see what you guys are clicking on.

COSTELLO: It's always interesting, isn't it?

MYERS: It is.

COSTELLO: Time to read some e-mail. And we've been asking the question this morning do you think your kid is getting a good education in high school? Because Bill Gates came out yesterday saying that American high schools are obsolete and we must do something about them to better prepare our kids for the world out there.

And we've been getting a lot of interesting e-mail this morning -- Chad.

MYERS: I have one here from Nashville from Jason (ph). He's actually a college junior. And says, you know what, college is so much more difficult than high school, you can't really believe it. High school is just inefficient. It isn't obsolete. He feels that the high school education he received was worthwhile, but he believes they were just too laid back and that they need to go over more things more quickly and not such a slow process in high school. Because I'll tell you what, when you get into college, you crank it up. You're working a lot harder than you're working in high school.

COSTELLO: Well, and it's all up to you, too, you don't have mom and dad sitting next to you saying do your homework, do your homework.

MYERS: That's right.

COSTELLO: This is from Terry (ph). I substituted recently in an area high school. I found the students there receiving virtually no direction. I don't think that high schools are obsolete, but I do believe that we have become so concerned with what someone may sue for that we have handicapped the teacher's ability to instruct.

MYERS: Got one from a professor out in Kansas. He thinks that the problem is that they are trying to lower the standards so low so that everybody feels included and that no one actually fails out anymore. That he feels that this grade inflation needs to be reduced and that a rigorous testing system needs to be put in so people aren't getting out of high school without really getting a high school education.

COSTELLO: Well we're going to talk much more about this, and we're going to have an expert in from a group called Achieve that America's governors have put together to improve the education in America. We'll talk about that in the next hour of DAYBREAK, which starts right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com