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CNN Live At Daybreak
Italian Journalist Wounded by U.S. Troops Has Harsh Words for Pentagon
Aired March 08, 2005 - 05:00 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a terrible accident or something else? An Italian journalist wounded by U.S. troops has some harsh words for the Pentagon. But Washington is talking back.
Plus, the U.S. Naval Academy -- is it in step with producing the best officers? One professor is raising questions.
And a married couple both in the military return from Iraq to the surprise of a lifetime.
It is Tuesday, March 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, President Bush gives a major speech about the war on terrorism this morning before the National Defense University. CNN does plan live coverage for you. That will come your way at 10:15 Eastern.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says this man, Undersecretary of State John Bolton, will be nominated to be the new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton, an outspoken critic of the world body, has been the administration's point man on non-proliferation matters.
Los Angeles voters head to the polls today. It's a wide open mayoral primary that threatens a second term sought by Mayor James Hahn.
And another demonstration planned today in the Lebanese capital of Beirut. This time the pro-Syrian group Hezbollah is calling for today's protest. It follows the anti-Syrian demonstration in the capital.
To the forecast center now -- good morning, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Did you stay dry, Carol?
COSTELLO: You know, as soon as I walked out of the house this morning, it began raining. I got in the car and it stopped.
MYERS: Well, that's good.
COSTELLO: Well, no, it rained on me on the way from the house to the car.
MYERS: Well, you didn't have to drive in the rain.
COSTELLO: That's true.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: Your wind chill tomorrow morning as you get in the car, Carol, will be zero.
COSTELLO: I don't even want to listen to you anymore, frankly.
MYERS: Would you rather be wet or zero?
COSTELLO: I don't know, it's a toss up.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, I think.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
More details coming to light this morning on that U.S. military shooting of Italians in Iraq. A senior U.S. official says the checkpoint where the shooting occurred was set up to secure the passage of John Negroponte, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq. An Italian intelligence agent was killed in Friday's shooting and a freed journalist was wounded.
The U.S. is calling it a horrible mistake. The journalist isn't buying it, and she is speaking out.
More now from CNN's Alessio Vinci.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Giuliana Sgrena doesn't want to hear about the U.S. explanation that Friday's shooting was a tragic mistake.
GIULIANA SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I think that light has to be shed on everything that happened, if it was a case of lack of communication or a case of specificity, or if it was a case of excessive use of fire. This has to come to light with an exact answer, not with the excuse of an incredible accident.
VINCI: Sgrena works for the communist newspaper "Il Manifesto." She has filed dozens of reports from Iraq, mostly critical of the U.S. invasion and military presence there.
In a phone interview with CNN, she disputes key parts of the explanation put forward by the U.S. military, for example, that the car was approaching the checkpoint too fast and that there were repeated warnings to stop.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It was not a checkpoint. It was not a checkpoint because the tank was not on the road. It was parked on the side of the road. There was no indication that it was a checkpoint. They gave no signals to stop, as they do at normal Iraqi checkpoints.
VINCI: Without backing up her claim with solid proof, Sgrena does not rule out the possibility the attack may have been premeditated.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It is not up to me to say that it wasn't an ambush. It is up to those who did this action. They have to demonstrate that there were valid reasons to do what they did.
VINCI: The U.S. has promised a full investigation. Sgrena wants more. She wants the U.S. military in Iraq to be more accountable for its mistakes.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I can understand if they were scared and they started to shoot. But this is not acceptable, not even in Iraq. Why so many people have been killed? The American forces have to deal with this problem, then they can begin to understand why so many people are hostile toward the occupation forces, starting from the people of Iraq.
VINCI (on camera): Italians are waiting impatiently for the result of the investigation. Until then, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will remain under pressure from political opponents and the general public alike to rethink his commitment in Iraq, where Italy has close to 3,000 troops.
Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: As a result of all of this, Italy's participation in Iraq is coming under intense pressure. Today Italy's foreign minister addresses elected officials on the circumstances surrounding that shooting that killed that Italian official.
Barbara Starr has more on the incident.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even as Nicola Calipari's funeral was underway in Rome, the U.S. began investigating his shooting death and the wounding of journalist Giuliana Sgrena by U.S. troops at a checkpoint near Baghdad Airport Friday night. Another man in the car also was wounded.
Bush administration officials deny any suggestion Sgrena was targeted.
RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: There's absolutely no shred of truth to the idea that we somehow did this on purpose.
STARR: U.S. officials say the soldiers did not know who was in the car. It is not clear if the Italians notified the U.S. they were going to travel that night. Sgrena says the car was not speeding and that no warning was given, contrary to U.S. accounts. In an article for her newspaper, "Il Manifesto," she wrote her captors had warned her the Americans don't want you to go back.
The road to Baghdad Airport is particularly dangerous.
SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: It is a road where suicide bombers have carried out attacks. It is a road where regime elements have fired on coalition forces.
STARR: The White House says the troops have a tough job.
MCCLELLAN: Oftentimes they are having to make split second decisions in order to protect their own security and safety.
STARR: Bulgaria is demanding to know how one of its soldiers was killed in an apparent friendly fire attack. According to the defense minister, gunfire erupted Friday southeast of Baghdad when the troops tried to stop a car. The Bulgarians then came under attack from the U.S., the government statement said, noting: "A communications facility of the U.S. Army is located 150 meters away.
(on camera): In both cases, the shootings initially appeared to be the result of lack of communication. How could the soldiers not know who they were shooting at?
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: In "News Across America" this morning, questions about her leadership have led University of Colorado President Elizabeth Hoffman to resign. Hoffman says those questions made it impossible for her to fix the university's problems. The school has been dealing with controversy over a tenured professor's comments on 9/11 and with a sexual assault and recruiting scandal involving the football team. Hoffman's resignation is effective June 30, or when a successor is named.
A Wisconsin woman faces several charges after police found her teenaged daughter chained to a bed. The 15-year-old girl called police on her cell phone. She told police she was handcuffed for allegedly taking a backpack full of marijuana out of the house. The mother is charged with abuse, false important and drug possession.
Police think an illegal meth lab may have been the cause of a house explosion over the weekend. The blast in Garland, Texas, near Dallas, destroyed part of the house. Police say they don't know if anyone was injured because all of the occupants of the house fled the scene. Coming up on Friday on DAYBREAK, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour will join us to talk about a new law intended to curb meth production. Oh, she is everywhere. Not Martha Stewart, Kirstie Alley.
Chad, do you know this?
MYERS: Well, I heard about a new show. They've had commercials running ad nauseam.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
She's fat, she's an actress. The show is called "Fat Actress." It premiered last night.
Let's watch a clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "FAT ACTRESS," COURTESY SHOWTIME)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, that's good news because I have an offer for you.
KIRSTIE ALLEY, ACTRESS: A job offer?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's from Jenny Craig.
Kirstie?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: She's just weighed herself, Chad.
You know, some people find all of this rather vile. Alley's not just fat, she's slovenly. I mean look at her. She's outrageous in her views on being fat in Hollywood. It's a different kind of show. She invites you to lose weight with her.
You know, she appeared on "LARRY KING LIVE" last night.
Let's listen to what she had to say.
Oh, we don't have the bite from "LARRY KING," but she was on "LARRY KING" last night. And she was talking about how, you know, kind of chubby men get roles in Hollywood, but fat women don't.
MYERS: Well, is this kind of a live show? Is this a -- I don't get it.
COSTELLO: It's sort of a pseudo reality show. You know...
MYERS: And it's already on tape and she's already lost the weight or she's losing it week by week with everybody else?
COSTELLO: OK, let me run through the history.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: She appeared in so many tabloids in these disgusting, slovenly, fat photos, that she decided to take out her revenge in developing a reality show of her as a fat actress trying to lose weight to get a better job in Hollywood. The irony here is she created a sitcom, a reality sitcom, and she's making money off of being fat, so to speak.
MYERS: How are the ratings?
COSTELLO: Well, I don't know. It was premier -- the premier was last night, so I don't know yet.
MYERS: Oh. OK.
COSTELLO: But the question this morning is -- I just found it so interesting that she's tackling her problem with being overweight in this way and she's inviting others to tackle it along with her.
MYERS: But...
COSTELLO: And she's very honest about what it means to be heavy. You know, she gets on the scale and she falls on the floor and she cries, which is dramatic, but I've cried after I've gotten off the scale many times.
MYERS: Oh.
COSTELLO: Because you look at the number and you can't believe it and she's reacting in a real way.
MYERS: I wonder if this doesn't become not politically correct somehow, as well, too. I mean it depends on where -- it depends on where the funnies come from, I guess.
COSTELLO: Well, you know, well, we were wondering about that, that exact question. So "Fat Actress," helpful or harmful?
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Will it help you lose weight? We want to know this morning. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com. Or has Kirstie Alley lost it?
Still to come on DAYBREAK...
MYERS: Not yet.
COSTELLO: ... you can't take it with you, but you can go in style. At 19 minutes past, we'll show you some custom made coffins.
Plus, a controversy at the Naval Academy. At 29 minutes past, we'll tell you what has people talking.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT) COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
President Bush expected to have an update on the war on terror during a speech today at the National Defense University. CNN will bring you live coverage beginning at 10:15 Eastern. That's this morning, by the way.
The Senate has defeated two measures that would have raised the minimum wage above the current $5.15 an hour. The last minimum wage hike was back in 1996.
In money news, Boeing's CEO, he agreed to resign after he broke the company's code of conduct. An investigation found that he was having a personal relationship, as in an affair, with a female executive. The company says his actions showed poor judgment.
In culture, rapper Ja Rule won't serve any time after pleading guilty to assault in Toronto. He apologized to the city for the June 2004 incident. Ja Rule was fined $1,200 for giving a guy a black eye outside of a downtown nightclub.
In sports, oh, Chad, the Detroit Lions added one of Peyton Manning's favorite targets to their own arsenal.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: Tight end Marcus Pollard, baby.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: He caught 29 passes last season. He had six touchdowns.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: I think it's the Lions' season this coming season, don't you?
MYERS: Who's the number one quarterback?
COSTELLO: Well, Joey Harrington.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: But I'm sure that with all of the weapons he has now, he'll be great.
MYERS: OK.
Should I take that to the bank?
COSTELLO: No. MYERS: Maybe not.
COSTELLO: Maybe not.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: But look how warm in Vegas and Phoenix. Carol, it's 79. When you were in Vegas, what did it do? It rained the entire time.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
MYERS: Now it's beautiful. Let's go this weekend.
COSTELLO: You're really depressing me this morning.
Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Those of the...
MYERS: But you got to see Barry Manilow.
COSTELLO: Yes, I did get to meet Barry Manilow. And he was awesome.
Still ahead on DAYBREAK, going out in style -- designer coffins. Would you believe this? They hint at how you lived life.
And still ahead, what turns you on? Will a picture do it? It may depend on how you're wired.
You're watching DAYBREAK for a Thursday. I mean a Tuesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: You live your life in style, so why not leave it in the same way? That seems to be the thought behind some creative coffins.
Jeff Koinange takes us to Ghana for a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From across the street, it looks like a giant wooden toy store. Up close, though, it's clear this is no ordinary carpentry shop and owner Pa Joe is no ordinary carpenter. For the 59-year-old is a custom coffin designer and these are what he calls his masterpieces. From chickens to snakes to luxury cars, and even this, a giant beer bottle, a bier in the shape of a beer.
(on camera): So who will be buried in a beer bottle?
PA JOE: Two or three different people. Maybe you are a bar owner.
KOINANGE: A bar owner?
PA JOE: A bar owner. A resident or owner.
KOINANGE: Yes?
PA JOE: Or you like the beer. Or you do the beer.
KOINANGE (voice-over): In Ghana, like many parts of Africa, religion plays a critical role in everyday life and those who don't worship in churches or mosques instead idolize inanimate objects, choosing to be buried in coffins signifying their past professions. Like this airplane made for a pilot, this piece of military hardware for a soldier and this running shoe for an athlete.
(on camera): Pa Joe boasts that he's the best design coffin carpenter in the land. And he insists there's simply no design that he can't reproduce. His motto -- if you can dream it, he can make it.
(voice-over): And no order is too eccentric or bizarre. Like this giant phone ordered by a local cell phone employee.
(on camera): And it says there you can check your voice mail.
PA JOE: You can check it. You can.
KOINANGE (voice-over): Tourists flock to Pa Joe's.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is fascinating. I've never -- I've been to so many countries before, but I've never seen anything similar to this. It's very beautiful, very colorful.
KOINANGE: The average completion time, depending, of course, on detail and complexity, anywhere from three to six weeks. And they're not cheap, either. Prices can set one back anywhere from $800 to $2,000, a year's wages for most here. Pa Joe says many Ghanaians are dead serious about their mode of departure into the afterlife. And some foreigners can see why.
GABRIELLE, ITALIAN TOURIST: I would like to be buried inside one of these.
KOINANGE: And while some would consider scenes like this a mockery of religion, Pa Joe sees it differently. He is, you might say, granting a final wish while at the same time continuing a tradition that dates back centuries. And just as he, too, was trained by a generation of carpenters, Pa Joe spends much of his time these days training the next group of aspiring custom coffin makers. It just seems such a shame that these carefully crafted caskets will last much longer aboveground than they will below.
Jeff Koinange, CNN, Accra, Ghana.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Fascinating, isn't it?
MYERS: Some great artwork there. I'm not sure I'd want to, you know, bury it.
COSTELLO: Exactly. It's too beautiful to bury.
MYERS: Exactly.
COSTELLO: Time for some "Late Night Laughs" now.
We've been telling you a lot about Syria's planned pullback of troops in Lebanon. Well, Comedy Central's Jon Stewart has his own version of the Syrian plan.
Here's his take.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART, COURTESY COMEDY CENTRAL)
JON STEWART, HOST: Syria will pull out in two phases, with its troops first relocating to Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley by the end of the month. The Bekaa Valley, of course, best known as the setting of the young adult book series, "Sweet Bekaa Valley High."
Oh my god, did you see what Fatima wore to gym class?
While most Lebanese oppose the occupation, pro-Syrian demonstrators took to the streets in large -- moderate numbers -- to show their support for Assad. And what they lacked in size they made up for in misdirected passion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MYERS: You know, most people think that his news is actually all correct. That's the funny part.
COSTELLO: It's a strange thing that's happening in this country now.
MYERS: He is so good to watch. It's so fun.
COSTELLO: All right, time for some more strange stories.
Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye-Openers."
There must be something in the water in Nebraska, Chad.
MYERS: Of course there is.
COSTELLO: Of course.
This cow gave birth to healthy triplets. That is very rare for a cow. Something like a one in 100,000 chance of a cow having triplets. Mama cow is taking care of all three, which her owner is also surprised by this. Adding to the surprise, another cow on the farm gave birth to twin calves just a few days after the triplets were born. Cute.
MYERS: Oh, they are so cute.
COSTELLO: Oh, they are cute.
MYERS: I can't stop looking at them.
COSTELLO: And then we slaughter them and eat them.
A Wisconsin hunter has proposed open season on wayward kitties. He says free roaming domesticated cats should be considered fair game by anyone with a hunting license. An advisory vote on a proposal is set for April 11. some say the measure could help save the wild bird population. Somehow I don't think that one will stick.
A former well-endowed stripper, Chad...
MYERS: Yes? Yes?
COSTELLO: ... sold one of her extra large breast implants on eBay. Guess how much it went for?
MYERS: I don't know. But I just saw on top it said reserve met, $14,000.
COSTELLO: It went up to $16,000 when all was said and done. Online casino goldenpalace.com bought the implant. And you may or may not remember Tawny Peaks.
MYERS: Yes, I don't know her. I never heard of her.
COSTELLO: And if you knew her, you would never admit it anyway.
MYERS: Well, that is true.
But she said she kept the other one for good measure.
COSTELLO: Really?
MYERS: Yes. She only sold one.
COSTELLO: Maybe she framed it and hung it -- or maybe she's using it as a pillow.
MYERS: I'm frightened.
COSTELLO: Anyway, she and her 69HH breasts were sued in 1998 by a man who said he suffered whiplash after getting hit in the head by her chest. I'm talking about Tawny here. She was found not guilty by the People's Court.
We just thought we'd bring you up to date.
MYERS: I'm just not going on that one.
COSTELLO: Hey, it's early. A pillow fight broke out in downtown Tel Aviv, but oddly enough, it wasn't the work of one of those flash mobs. It's called mobile clubbing. The concept started in London, where people would spill out into the streets to dance and act crazy.
Talking about crazy, let's talk about Kirstie Alley's new TV reality show, "Fat Actress." We've been asking you this morning if it's helpful or harmful to watch it if you want to lose weight along with Kirstie Alley. And many of our viewers apparently watched "Fat Actress" last night.
MYERS: Well, you know, is it on Showtime? Is that what I'm getting now?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: So you actually have to have Showtime to actually see it?
COSTELLO: Yes. Yes.
MYERS: A lot of people that watched it actually liked it. But go ahead.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
This is from Kevin from Illinois. He says: "I find the show refreshing in this time when so many actresses seem to be afflicted with Lara Flynn Boyle disease."
But the only thing, Kevin, is she's trying to lose weight and she's, you know, she's joined Weight Watchers. She's already lost 20 pounds.
MYERS: But...
COSTELLO: So her goal is to become more Lara Flynn Boyle-like.
MYERS: Exactly. Right.
But Stephen (ph) in California said he missed it. He said: "I watched the debut and I missed something because I didn't see any plans to lose any weight. Maybe it comes in the next show. What I did see wasn't especially attractive and the humor was very predictable. I do appealed Kirstie Alley, though, for getting out there and trying to do this."
COSTELLO: I think she's really funny.
This is from Joy in Los Angeles: "I applaud Kirstie Alley for cashing in on something the tabloids taunted her about for years. The show is a shock for Hollywood because they like to pretend heavy women don't exist, let alone have talent. I welcome a show like this. It shakes things up a bit. I really hope the show sticks around."
MYERS: OK. COSTELLO: Yes, thank you for your e-mails. Daybreak@cnn.com if you want to continue to weigh in, so to speak. "Fat Actress," helpful or harmful?
MYERS: Oh, heavy.
COSTELLO: We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired March 8, 2005 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a terrible accident or something else? An Italian journalist wounded by U.S. troops has some harsh words for the Pentagon. But Washington is talking back.
Plus, the U.S. Naval Academy -- is it in step with producing the best officers? One professor is raising questions.
And a married couple both in the military return from Iraq to the surprise of a lifetime.
It is Tuesday, March 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
Now in the news, President Bush gives a major speech about the war on terrorism this morning before the National Defense University. CNN does plan live coverage for you. That will come your way at 10:15 Eastern.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says this man, Undersecretary of State John Bolton, will be nominated to be the new U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton, an outspoken critic of the world body, has been the administration's point man on non-proliferation matters.
Los Angeles voters head to the polls today. It's a wide open mayoral primary that threatens a second term sought by Mayor James Hahn.
And another demonstration planned today in the Lebanese capital of Beirut. This time the pro-Syrian group Hezbollah is calling for today's protest. It follows the anti-Syrian demonstration in the capital.
To the forecast center now -- good morning, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Did you stay dry, Carol?
COSTELLO: You know, as soon as I walked out of the house this morning, it began raining. I got in the car and it stopped.
MYERS: Well, that's good.
COSTELLO: Well, no, it rained on me on the way from the house to the car.
MYERS: Well, you didn't have to drive in the rain.
COSTELLO: That's true.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: Your wind chill tomorrow morning as you get in the car, Carol, will be zero.
COSTELLO: I don't even want to listen to you anymore, frankly.
MYERS: Would you rather be wet or zero?
COSTELLO: I don't know, it's a toss up.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, I think.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
More details coming to light this morning on that U.S. military shooting of Italians in Iraq. A senior U.S. official says the checkpoint where the shooting occurred was set up to secure the passage of John Negroponte, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq. An Italian intelligence agent was killed in Friday's shooting and a freed journalist was wounded.
The U.S. is calling it a horrible mistake. The journalist isn't buying it, and she is speaking out.
More now from CNN's Alessio Vinci.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Giuliana Sgrena doesn't want to hear about the U.S. explanation that Friday's shooting was a tragic mistake.
GIULIANA SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I think that light has to be shed on everything that happened, if it was a case of lack of communication or a case of specificity, or if it was a case of excessive use of fire. This has to come to light with an exact answer, not with the excuse of an incredible accident.
VINCI: Sgrena works for the communist newspaper "Il Manifesto." She has filed dozens of reports from Iraq, mostly critical of the U.S. invasion and military presence there.
In a phone interview with CNN, she disputes key parts of the explanation put forward by the U.S. military, for example, that the car was approaching the checkpoint too fast and that there were repeated warnings to stop.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It was not a checkpoint. It was not a checkpoint because the tank was not on the road. It was parked on the side of the road. There was no indication that it was a checkpoint. They gave no signals to stop, as they do at normal Iraqi checkpoints.
VINCI: Without backing up her claim with solid proof, Sgrena does not rule out the possibility the attack may have been premeditated.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It is not up to me to say that it wasn't an ambush. It is up to those who did this action. They have to demonstrate that there were valid reasons to do what they did.
VINCI: The U.S. has promised a full investigation. Sgrena wants more. She wants the U.S. military in Iraq to be more accountable for its mistakes.
SGRENA (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I can understand if they were scared and they started to shoot. But this is not acceptable, not even in Iraq. Why so many people have been killed? The American forces have to deal with this problem, then they can begin to understand why so many people are hostile toward the occupation forces, starting from the people of Iraq.
VINCI (on camera): Italians are waiting impatiently for the result of the investigation. Until then, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will remain under pressure from political opponents and the general public alike to rethink his commitment in Iraq, where Italy has close to 3,000 troops.
Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: As a result of all of this, Italy's participation in Iraq is coming under intense pressure. Today Italy's foreign minister addresses elected officials on the circumstances surrounding that shooting that killed that Italian official.
Barbara Starr has more on the incident.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even as Nicola Calipari's funeral was underway in Rome, the U.S. began investigating his shooting death and the wounding of journalist Giuliana Sgrena by U.S. troops at a checkpoint near Baghdad Airport Friday night. Another man in the car also was wounded.
Bush administration officials deny any suggestion Sgrena was targeted.
RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: There's absolutely no shred of truth to the idea that we somehow did this on purpose.
STARR: U.S. officials say the soldiers did not know who was in the car. It is not clear if the Italians notified the U.S. they were going to travel that night. Sgrena says the car was not speeding and that no warning was given, contrary to U.S. accounts. In an article for her newspaper, "Il Manifesto," she wrote her captors had warned her the Americans don't want you to go back.
The road to Baghdad Airport is particularly dangerous.
SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: It is a road where suicide bombers have carried out attacks. It is a road where regime elements have fired on coalition forces.
STARR: The White House says the troops have a tough job.
MCCLELLAN: Oftentimes they are having to make split second decisions in order to protect their own security and safety.
STARR: Bulgaria is demanding to know how one of its soldiers was killed in an apparent friendly fire attack. According to the defense minister, gunfire erupted Friday southeast of Baghdad when the troops tried to stop a car. The Bulgarians then came under attack from the U.S., the government statement said, noting: "A communications facility of the U.S. Army is located 150 meters away.
(on camera): In both cases, the shootings initially appeared to be the result of lack of communication. How could the soldiers not know who they were shooting at?
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: In "News Across America" this morning, questions about her leadership have led University of Colorado President Elizabeth Hoffman to resign. Hoffman says those questions made it impossible for her to fix the university's problems. The school has been dealing with controversy over a tenured professor's comments on 9/11 and with a sexual assault and recruiting scandal involving the football team. Hoffman's resignation is effective June 30, or when a successor is named.
A Wisconsin woman faces several charges after police found her teenaged daughter chained to a bed. The 15-year-old girl called police on her cell phone. She told police she was handcuffed for allegedly taking a backpack full of marijuana out of the house. The mother is charged with abuse, false important and drug possession.
Police think an illegal meth lab may have been the cause of a house explosion over the weekend. The blast in Garland, Texas, near Dallas, destroyed part of the house. Police say they don't know if anyone was injured because all of the occupants of the house fled the scene. Coming up on Friday on DAYBREAK, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour will join us to talk about a new law intended to curb meth production. Oh, she is everywhere. Not Martha Stewart, Kirstie Alley.
Chad, do you know this?
MYERS: Well, I heard about a new show. They've had commercials running ad nauseam.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
She's fat, she's an actress. The show is called "Fat Actress." It premiered last night.
Let's watch a clip.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "FAT ACTRESS," COURTESY SHOWTIME)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, that's good news because I have an offer for you.
KIRSTIE ALLEY, ACTRESS: A job offer?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's from Jenny Craig.
Kirstie?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: She's just weighed herself, Chad.
You know, some people find all of this rather vile. Alley's not just fat, she's slovenly. I mean look at her. She's outrageous in her views on being fat in Hollywood. It's a different kind of show. She invites you to lose weight with her.
You know, she appeared on "LARRY KING LIVE" last night.
Let's listen to what she had to say.
Oh, we don't have the bite from "LARRY KING," but she was on "LARRY KING" last night. And she was talking about how, you know, kind of chubby men get roles in Hollywood, but fat women don't.
MYERS: Well, is this kind of a live show? Is this a -- I don't get it.
COSTELLO: It's sort of a pseudo reality show. You know...
MYERS: And it's already on tape and she's already lost the weight or she's losing it week by week with everybody else?
COSTELLO: OK, let me run through the history.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: She appeared in so many tabloids in these disgusting, slovenly, fat photos, that she decided to take out her revenge in developing a reality show of her as a fat actress trying to lose weight to get a better job in Hollywood. The irony here is she created a sitcom, a reality sitcom, and she's making money off of being fat, so to speak.
MYERS: How are the ratings?
COSTELLO: Well, I don't know. It was premier -- the premier was last night, so I don't know yet.
MYERS: Oh. OK.
COSTELLO: But the question this morning is -- I just found it so interesting that she's tackling her problem with being overweight in this way and she's inviting others to tackle it along with her.
MYERS: But...
COSTELLO: And she's very honest about what it means to be heavy. You know, she gets on the scale and she falls on the floor and she cries, which is dramatic, but I've cried after I've gotten off the scale many times.
MYERS: Oh.
COSTELLO: Because you look at the number and you can't believe it and she's reacting in a real way.
MYERS: I wonder if this doesn't become not politically correct somehow, as well, too. I mean it depends on where -- it depends on where the funnies come from, I guess.
COSTELLO: Well, you know, well, we were wondering about that, that exact question. So "Fat Actress," helpful or harmful?
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Will it help you lose weight? We want to know this morning. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com. Or has Kirstie Alley lost it?
Still to come on DAYBREAK...
MYERS: Not yet.
COSTELLO: ... you can't take it with you, but you can go in style. At 19 minutes past, we'll show you some custom made coffins.
Plus, a controversy at the Naval Academy. At 29 minutes past, we'll tell you what has people talking.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT) COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
President Bush expected to have an update on the war on terror during a speech today at the National Defense University. CNN will bring you live coverage beginning at 10:15 Eastern. That's this morning, by the way.
The Senate has defeated two measures that would have raised the minimum wage above the current $5.15 an hour. The last minimum wage hike was back in 1996.
In money news, Boeing's CEO, he agreed to resign after he broke the company's code of conduct. An investigation found that he was having a personal relationship, as in an affair, with a female executive. The company says his actions showed poor judgment.
In culture, rapper Ja Rule won't serve any time after pleading guilty to assault in Toronto. He apologized to the city for the June 2004 incident. Ja Rule was fined $1,200 for giving a guy a black eye outside of a downtown nightclub.
In sports, oh, Chad, the Detroit Lions added one of Peyton Manning's favorite targets to their own arsenal.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: Tight end Marcus Pollard, baby.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: He caught 29 passes last season. He had six touchdowns.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: I think it's the Lions' season this coming season, don't you?
MYERS: Who's the number one quarterback?
COSTELLO: Well, Joey Harrington.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: But I'm sure that with all of the weapons he has now, he'll be great.
MYERS: OK.
Should I take that to the bank?
COSTELLO: No. MYERS: Maybe not.
COSTELLO: Maybe not.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: But look how warm in Vegas and Phoenix. Carol, it's 79. When you were in Vegas, what did it do? It rained the entire time.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
MYERS: Now it's beautiful. Let's go this weekend.
COSTELLO: You're really depressing me this morning.
Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Those of the...
MYERS: But you got to see Barry Manilow.
COSTELLO: Yes, I did get to meet Barry Manilow. And he was awesome.
Still ahead on DAYBREAK, going out in style -- designer coffins. Would you believe this? They hint at how you lived life.
And still ahead, what turns you on? Will a picture do it? It may depend on how you're wired.
You're watching DAYBREAK for a Thursday. I mean a Tuesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: You live your life in style, so why not leave it in the same way? That seems to be the thought behind some creative coffins.
Jeff Koinange takes us to Ghana for a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From across the street, it looks like a giant wooden toy store. Up close, though, it's clear this is no ordinary carpentry shop and owner Pa Joe is no ordinary carpenter. For the 59-year-old is a custom coffin designer and these are what he calls his masterpieces. From chickens to snakes to luxury cars, and even this, a giant beer bottle, a bier in the shape of a beer.
(on camera): So who will be buried in a beer bottle?
PA JOE: Two or three different people. Maybe you are a bar owner.
KOINANGE: A bar owner?
PA JOE: A bar owner. A resident or owner.
KOINANGE: Yes?
PA JOE: Or you like the beer. Or you do the beer.
KOINANGE (voice-over): In Ghana, like many parts of Africa, religion plays a critical role in everyday life and those who don't worship in churches or mosques instead idolize inanimate objects, choosing to be buried in coffins signifying their past professions. Like this airplane made for a pilot, this piece of military hardware for a soldier and this running shoe for an athlete.
(on camera): Pa Joe boasts that he's the best design coffin carpenter in the land. And he insists there's simply no design that he can't reproduce. His motto -- if you can dream it, he can make it.
(voice-over): And no order is too eccentric or bizarre. Like this giant phone ordered by a local cell phone employee.
(on camera): And it says there you can check your voice mail.
PA JOE: You can check it. You can.
KOINANGE (voice-over): Tourists flock to Pa Joe's.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is fascinating. I've never -- I've been to so many countries before, but I've never seen anything similar to this. It's very beautiful, very colorful.
KOINANGE: The average completion time, depending, of course, on detail and complexity, anywhere from three to six weeks. And they're not cheap, either. Prices can set one back anywhere from $800 to $2,000, a year's wages for most here. Pa Joe says many Ghanaians are dead serious about their mode of departure into the afterlife. And some foreigners can see why.
GABRIELLE, ITALIAN TOURIST: I would like to be buried inside one of these.
KOINANGE: And while some would consider scenes like this a mockery of religion, Pa Joe sees it differently. He is, you might say, granting a final wish while at the same time continuing a tradition that dates back centuries. And just as he, too, was trained by a generation of carpenters, Pa Joe spends much of his time these days training the next group of aspiring custom coffin makers. It just seems such a shame that these carefully crafted caskets will last much longer aboveground than they will below.
Jeff Koinange, CNN, Accra, Ghana.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Fascinating, isn't it?
MYERS: Some great artwork there. I'm not sure I'd want to, you know, bury it.
COSTELLO: Exactly. It's too beautiful to bury.
MYERS: Exactly.
COSTELLO: Time for some "Late Night Laughs" now.
We've been telling you a lot about Syria's planned pullback of troops in Lebanon. Well, Comedy Central's Jon Stewart has his own version of the Syrian plan.
Here's his take.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART, COURTESY COMEDY CENTRAL)
JON STEWART, HOST: Syria will pull out in two phases, with its troops first relocating to Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley by the end of the month. The Bekaa Valley, of course, best known as the setting of the young adult book series, "Sweet Bekaa Valley High."
Oh my god, did you see what Fatima wore to gym class?
While most Lebanese oppose the occupation, pro-Syrian demonstrators took to the streets in large -- moderate numbers -- to show their support for Assad. And what they lacked in size they made up for in misdirected passion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MYERS: You know, most people think that his news is actually all correct. That's the funny part.
COSTELLO: It's a strange thing that's happening in this country now.
MYERS: He is so good to watch. It's so fun.
COSTELLO: All right, time for some more strange stories.
Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye-Openers."
There must be something in the water in Nebraska, Chad.
MYERS: Of course there is.
COSTELLO: Of course.
This cow gave birth to healthy triplets. That is very rare for a cow. Something like a one in 100,000 chance of a cow having triplets. Mama cow is taking care of all three, which her owner is also surprised by this. Adding to the surprise, another cow on the farm gave birth to twin calves just a few days after the triplets were born. Cute.
MYERS: Oh, they are so cute.
COSTELLO: Oh, they are cute.
MYERS: I can't stop looking at them.
COSTELLO: And then we slaughter them and eat them.
A Wisconsin hunter has proposed open season on wayward kitties. He says free roaming domesticated cats should be considered fair game by anyone with a hunting license. An advisory vote on a proposal is set for April 11. some say the measure could help save the wild bird population. Somehow I don't think that one will stick.
A former well-endowed stripper, Chad...
MYERS: Yes? Yes?
COSTELLO: ... sold one of her extra large breast implants on eBay. Guess how much it went for?
MYERS: I don't know. But I just saw on top it said reserve met, $14,000.
COSTELLO: It went up to $16,000 when all was said and done. Online casino goldenpalace.com bought the implant. And you may or may not remember Tawny Peaks.
MYERS: Yes, I don't know her. I never heard of her.
COSTELLO: And if you knew her, you would never admit it anyway.
MYERS: Well, that is true.
But she said she kept the other one for good measure.
COSTELLO: Really?
MYERS: Yes. She only sold one.
COSTELLO: Maybe she framed it and hung it -- or maybe she's using it as a pillow.
MYERS: I'm frightened.
COSTELLO: Anyway, she and her 69HH breasts were sued in 1998 by a man who said he suffered whiplash after getting hit in the head by her chest. I'm talking about Tawny here. She was found not guilty by the People's Court.
We just thought we'd bring you up to date.
MYERS: I'm just not going on that one.
COSTELLO: Hey, it's early. A pillow fight broke out in downtown Tel Aviv, but oddly enough, it wasn't the work of one of those flash mobs. It's called mobile clubbing. The concept started in London, where people would spill out into the streets to dance and act crazy.
Talking about crazy, let's talk about Kirstie Alley's new TV reality show, "Fat Actress." We've been asking you this morning if it's helpful or harmful to watch it if you want to lose weight along with Kirstie Alley. And many of our viewers apparently watched "Fat Actress" last night.
MYERS: Well, you know, is it on Showtime? Is that what I'm getting now?
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: So you actually have to have Showtime to actually see it?
COSTELLO: Yes. Yes.
MYERS: A lot of people that watched it actually liked it. But go ahead.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
This is from Kevin from Illinois. He says: "I find the show refreshing in this time when so many actresses seem to be afflicted with Lara Flynn Boyle disease."
But the only thing, Kevin, is she's trying to lose weight and she's, you know, she's joined Weight Watchers. She's already lost 20 pounds.
MYERS: But...
COSTELLO: So her goal is to become more Lara Flynn Boyle-like.
MYERS: Exactly. Right.
But Stephen (ph) in California said he missed it. He said: "I watched the debut and I missed something because I didn't see any plans to lose any weight. Maybe it comes in the next show. What I did see wasn't especially attractive and the humor was very predictable. I do appealed Kirstie Alley, though, for getting out there and trying to do this."
COSTELLO: I think she's really funny.
This is from Joy in Los Angeles: "I applaud Kirstie Alley for cashing in on something the tabloids taunted her about for years. The show is a shock for Hollywood because they like to pretend heavy women don't exist, let alone have talent. I welcome a show like this. It shakes things up a bit. I really hope the show sticks around."
MYERS: OK. COSTELLO: Yes, thank you for your e-mails. Daybreak@cnn.com if you want to continue to weigh in, so to speak. "Fat Actress," helpful or harmful?
MYERS: Oh, heavy.
COSTELLO: We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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