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CNN Live At Daybreak
A Suicide Bomber Strikes in Baghdad; Is Mount Saint Helens Just Blowing Off Steam?
Aired March 09, 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 message written across the skies. Is Mount Saint Helens just blowing off steam or is this the real thing?
Plus, adult magazines, electronic bells and accusations of lies upon lies, just another day in the Michael Jackson trial.
And a 3,000-year-old mystery -- was King Tut murdered? It's a "CSI" moment from the land of the pharaohs.
This is Wednesday, March 9.
You are watching 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, a suicide bomber strikes in Baghdad, but this time the bomb is carried in a garbage truck. A huge hole has been blown in the street. There are deaths and there are injuries.
Let's head live now to Baghdad and Aneesh Raman for more -- hello, Aneesh.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning to you.
A scene of immense destruction after that attack this morning. It occurred around 6:30 a.m. local time. Ministry officials say that the car bomb that was used, as you say, a garbage truck was driving through a courtyard outside the Ministry of Agriculture. It was then fired upon by guards. It detonated. Two guards were killed. Twenty- two others were wounded. As you say, a scene of just immense destruction. Forty cars that were used by that ministry were damaged.
The intended target, according to officials, was the hotel called Al-Sadr next to the Ministry of Agriculture and known to house a large number of Westerners. They think that they prevented it from getting there because it tried to skirt around security checkpoints going through that courtyard.
The number of casualties, though, could have been dramatically higher had it happened later in the day, when people would have been arriving to work at the ministry, or, Carol, if it had reached its likely intended target, that hotel. COSTELLO: There was another incident in Iraq, 19 bodies found in a house.
Can you tell us more about that incident, as well, Aneesh?
RAMAN: Yes, officials just making it known today that 19 bodies have been found west of Baghdad, near the Syrian-Iraqi border. They were all shot to death. At least one of them is a woman. When they were killed and by whom is not yet known, but it comes a day after some 15 beheaded bodies were found south of the capital city. Disturbing news. Part of the backdrop as this country tries to push forward with its political landscape -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Aneesh Raman reporting live from Baghdad.
Thank you.
Also in the news this morning, former President Clinton says he feels fine. He's set to undergo follow-up surgery tomorrow at a New York hospital. He had a buildup of fluid and scar tissue from last fall's heart bypass surgery.
In Rome, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi prepares to go before parliament this morning. He'll talk about the controversy swirling around a deadly shooting in Baghdad and the presence of Italian troops in that country.
It's batter up in Congress, almost. Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco and Jason Giambi are among several current or former baseball stars who could be subpoenaed as soon as today to testify about steroid use.
The Mount Saint Helens watch is on again. The volcano has sent a plume of smoke and ash nearly six miles into the air. Mount Saint Helens has been rumbling on and off since September.
And oh, what a long winter this has been for the Northeast. Snow, ice and wind chills as low as 24 below are making travel very difficult this morning. Whiteout conditions caused Boston's Logan Airport to close last night.
And here in New York, Chad, black ice everywhere.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, exactly.
We knew this was going to happen, Carol, because it rained all morning yesterday and then that cold air slammed through. It did not get a chance to evaporate before the snow continued to fall on top of it and so it just added to the problem. And it is literally everywhere. It is really difficult to walk around New York City, Philadelphia, Trenton, Camden, Boston, Hartford, all the way up the East Coast, where this water just kind of froze to the surface. Even as far south as Washington, D.C., it was raining one minute and then snowing like you couldn't believe the next minute. And then all of that stuff froze on contact.
Look at these wind chill factors right now -- New York City zero; Boston, six below. It may be very hard just getting into your car today because the locks were wet when it was 40 and then it froze overnight. So you may want to give yourself a little extra time not only scraping, but trying to get that key into the lock. And don't turn it too hard because you don't want to break that key off.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Oh, the weather is so nasty up here.
MYERS: It is very, very cold. It's dangerously cold. Please take care of the pets today. Don't leave them outside when you go to work, because it is literally that cold.
COSTELLO: It certainly is.
Good advice.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: It is estimated there are 50,000 names on the government's terror watch lists. But you may be surprised that being on that list does not mean you can't walk into a gun shop, plop down a wad of cash and walk out with a rifle or pistol or worse.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve has more on that from our America's Bureau.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A person on a terrorist watch list might have an easier time buying a high powered firearm than boarding a commercial airliner.
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: I'm just utterly appalled that people on terror watch lists can buy guns. What are we doing to ourselves?
MESERVE: A new report from the Government Accountability Office says last year, background checks on gun buyers found 58 matches with government terror watch lists. In 47 of those cases, the person listed went on to get his or her gun. Being on a list of suspected terrorists does not disqualify a buyer the way a felony conviction or mental illness would.
ROBERT MUELLER, FBI DIRECTOR: We ought to look at the law and see what modifications could be made.
MESERVE: If someone on the watch list is trying to buy a gun, the FBI is notified. But by law, the records of the transaction are destroyed after 24 hours. Gun control advocates argue that this could hamper terrorism investigations.
SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG (D), NEW JERSEY: It's incomprehensible. If you put this question to the American people and say should we go out of our way to help a terrorist get a gun and conceal his background, absolutely not.
MESERVE: Experts estimate there are more than 50,000 names on the often criticized government watch lists, watch lists that have kept the likes of Senator Ted Kennedy from flying.
What is needed, says one expert, is discretion.
RICHARD FALKENRATH, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: There's a wide range of different reasons that people get on watch lists. Not all of them, it seems to me, should be disqualifying for buying a gun.
MESERVE: But Sanford Abrams has a different point of view. He sells guns.
SANFORD ABRAMS, MARYLAND GUN DEALER: There's no right to fly an airplane in this country. There is a right to own a firearm.
MESERVE: A collision between constitutional rights and the war on terror.
For CNN's America Bureau, Jeanne Meserve, Washington.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: And you can count on CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
In other "News Across America" this morning, juveniles or terrorists? Las Vegas police say they aren't sure who was behind the theft of 1,700 blank driver's licenses. The thieves took the blanks and license making equipment after ramming their vehicle through the back wall of the DMV. Police say the thieves could make fake I.D.s to buy beer or they could use them to board airplanes.
A California woman in jail after leaving her 5-year-old daughter in the car while gambling in a Lake Tahoe area casino. The girl was left in the unlocked car for around five hours, and it was overnight. Police say they also found about six grams of crystal meth in the car. The woman, who says she just lost track of time, now faces child endangerment and drug possession charges.
Rescuers used a helicopter to reach two teenage girls who got stuck on a rock in Hawaii. The teenagers were ledge diving when they were surprised that the surf was so strong. The chopper was brought in when firefighters decided it was too dangerous to send rescuers into the water. There's the happy ending.
Police officers in Texas had to pry two people from a car involved in a police chase. Officers broke out the car windows when the suspects refused to get out of the car. It all began in Dallas following reports of the robbery.
He is signing off. Tonight is newsman Dan Rather's last night at the CBS anchor desk after 24 years in the big seat. The CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll asks how much of what Dan Rather says you believe. Twenty-three percent of respondents say all or most; 29 percent believe some; 25 percent say they believe little of what he says; and 19 percent say they believe almost nothing of what he says. As for his broadcasts, 35 percent of those polled say the CBS Evening News is too liberal; 13 percent call the broadcast too conservative; and 37 percent say they're about right.
Now, let's compare those figures to most news broadcasts. Forty- two percent of respondents say news shows are too liberal in general; 25 percent say they're too conservative; and 28 percent says the news is just about right.
Sort of like the Goldilocks and the three bears comment at the end there.
Who could forget Dan Ratherisms?
And, Chad, come in and help me with this, because he had so many Dan Ratherisms, like, "We had a slight hitch in our giddy-up, but we corrected that."
MYERS: Exactly.
You know, no matter what happens to Dan Rather's career or what happened to him in the past couple of years, he was -- he's an amazing newsman.
Here's one over here. We had that "slight giddy-up."
I have one here, though, and I loved it, about some of the election night stuff in 2000. "The situation in Ohio would give aspirin a headache."
COSTELLO: Where did he come up with these? I've always wondered that.
MYERS: I don't know. Wait until you get this one. And this one was as soon as it was starting to really show up that Kerry wasn't going to make it here in the election: "No question now that Kerry is rapidly reaching the point where he's got his back to the wall, his shirttails are on fire and the bill collector is at the door."
You have to stay up nights thinking of some of these Dan Ratherisms. And we have quite a few very funny ones to share with you today.
COSTELLO: Yes. We're going to share more throughout the broadcast with you.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: But, you know, as I say, this is officially the day that Dan Rather steps down. Twenty-four years working in journalism and he steps down.
MYERS: Yes. COSTELLO: And you know the controversy surrounding Dan Rather.
MYERS: Of course.
COSTELLO: I'm not going to go into that again. And by now you know the vitriol. And by that I mean what some of his colleagues are saying about him as he leaves the desk, like his predecessor, the man many call Uncle Walter.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WALTER CRONKITE, FORMER CBS ANCHOR: It's quite a tribute to him that he, that CBS held onto him so long under those circumstances. It surprised quite a few people at CBS and elsewhere that without being able to pull up the ratings beyond third in a three-man field, that they tolerated his being there for so long.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: So you would have been happier if Bob Schieffer would have replaced Dan Rather a while ago?
CRONKITE: I would have thought so, certainly. If not Bob, someone else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ouch.
MYERS: Carol, you and I both worked for CBS affiliates 10, 15 years ago. And you -- I remember how proud I was to have Dan Rather on my network.
COSTELLO: I remember meeting him. He was a nice guy. But you know the controversy -- OK, we're going to go on with this. Cronkite is joined by Don Hewitt of "60 Minutes" and others. Today we're wondering why so vicious? Why is all this vicious stuff coming from colleagues of Dan Rather? Our e-mail question for this morning is this: fond farewell or good riddance? What good-bye does Dan Rather reserve? Let us know what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
And in our 6:00 hour, we'll talk to Lloyd Grove with the "New York Daily News" about exactly why Rather's colleagues are being so darned mean to Dan.
MYERS: They are.
COSTELLO: Oh, he has some good inside goop for us. So it should be interesting.
We are on a seek and find mission ahead on this hump day on CNN DAYBREAK.
At 20 minutes past the hour, searching for the truth in the molestation trial of Michael Jackson.
And at 42 minutes after, searching through ancient artifacts -- the death of an Egyptian king.
And at 51 minutes past, searching for health with former President Bill Clinton.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:16 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
A large plume of smoke and ash from Mount Saint Helens billowed thousands of feet into the air. In fact, it still is billowing thousands of feet into the air. Ash from the volcano has fallen on communities as far as 75 miles away from the mountain.
President Bill Clinton will be teeing it off today at a charity golf tournament, even though he's scheduled for heart surgery tomorrow. His doctors say the surgery is to remove scar tissue. It's not an emergency. They ad his recent travels to South Asia had nothing to do with the problem.
In money news, McDonald's is launching a new healthy lifestyle initiative. The plan includes new menu items and new TV commercials. The company will also produce a series of Ronald McDonald videos aimed at teaching children how to eat right.
In culture, the City of Boston is offering a new guided tour service and Aerosmith's Steven Tyler will be your guide. You can use your cell phone to access a taped message from Tyler that will lead you through the city's top attractions.
In sports, Lebron James lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first win since last month. The 19-point win over the Orlando Magic snapped a six game losing streak for the Cavs.
To the forecast center and Chad.
MYERS: It's cold out there, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The brother of Michael Jackson's accuser is expected to resume testimony today in the pop star's child molestation trial. The defense has been going after the boy's credibility.
We get more details from CNN's Miguel Marquez.
He's in Santa Maria, California.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There were no major points scored in the cross-examination of the accuser's brother, but many things did come out.
(voice-over): Among them, the boy testified that he lied in an earlier deposition in which his family was suing J.C. Penney. He testified then that his parents never fought and his father never beat him. Defense attorneys say the accuser's family lies when there's a profit motive.
And if there was a got you moment, it was about adult magazines. The prosecution showed a picture of an adult magazine seized at Neverland Ranch to this witness. Jackson's defense showed the same picture to the witness and he said that that was the magazine he saw then. And that's when Jackson's lawyer announced that the magazine was actually from August, 2003, long after the family had been to Neverland Ranch and when they weren't invited back.
(on camera): The boy also testified that an electronic bell sounds every time one enters Michael Jackson's bedroom, the bottom floor of Michael Jackson's two story bedroom. He said it sounded the two occasions when he saw Jackson molesting his brother and believed, he told defense attorneys, that Jackson didn't hear it because the door was closed to the upper part of his bedroom.
The cross-examination of this witness is expected to continue for at least the rest of this day.
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Santa Maria, California.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Harvard says 119 Business School applicants will not be heading there because they're computer hackers. In our "Class Notes" this morning, the school's dean says it was unethical at best for students to hack into the school's admissions site to see if they'd been accepted. Harvard says those who did the deed can reapply, but not this year.
For the children of troops killed in Iraq or Afghanistan, a chance to go to college for free. Widener University in suburban Philadelphia says it will offer four full scholarships each year to those children. The program will provide $25,000 a year for each recipient.
And students from two California community colleges won't be studying this summer in Spain. That's because trustees voted to cancel the summer abroad program because of Spain's lack of support for the war effort in Iraq. Spain pulled its 1,300 troops out last year, after the Madrid train bombings. Critics say the move wrongly interjects politics into an academic environment.
Here are some of the new things we're working for you just ahead on DAYBREAK.
We'll look at the fear and confusion that can face drivers and the military personnel at checkpoints in Iraq.
And we'll see how modern technology might help solve what could be an ancient murder mystery.
You are watching DAYBREAK for Wednesday, March 9.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: I know you felt like salsaing, didn't you?
Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye-Opener," though.
Twelve of Maryland's best baggers gathered in Martinsburg to test their skills. Grocery groupies -- and there are grocery groupies -- they watched as the cream of the crop tried to get the Cream of Wheat into plastic bags. The top bagger moves onto the state competition and a chance to compete in the national bagger finals in Las Vegas.
Now, don't be afraid or grossed out by these pictures. It's just a normal kitten with a little something extra. See it there? It's a two-faced cat. It was just a few hours old when this video was shot. The owner says the kitten is healthy and nursing, just like its other brothers and sisters. They're just not sure if it's eating enough for two.
Wow! That was something else.
MYERS: You couldn't see with it -- such a darned face, he couldn't really see all that. But OK.
COSTELLO: It was wacky looking.
Anyway, now to take a double take on Jay Leno for you in our "Late Night Laughs" segment.
Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
JAY LENO, HOST: As I'm sure you know, Martha Stewart is now under what they call house arrest. And today they announced the rules of that. You know, she's got that huge estate there in New York. Bedford, New York, I think it is? Like they said today, she will not be allowed to go horseback riding on her estate.
Why? What are they afraid she's a flight risk? Is that why? Is that a problem, catching a 63-year-old woman on horseback?
Hey, O.J. fled in a Ford Bronco. We got him. I mean what is that? There she goes! Get her!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC) LENO: And the head of OPEC said today they are concerned about high oil prices. Not concerned enough, of course, to lower them, just concerned about high prices.
In fact, gas is so expensive now, today I saw Jose Canseco and Barry Bonds carrying their cars.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Because you know the Department of Energy is -- it's predicting that gas prices will, on average, be $2.18 a gallon by summertime.
MYERS: I paid $2.05 yesterday.
COSTELLO: Oh, that's insane.
MYERS: That was for the cheap stuff.
COSTELLO: It's insane.
MYERS: Yes, and the really good stuff was at -- usually in my neighborhood it's $0.10 more. Now it's $0.15 more for the middle and then the upper. So it was like $2.35 for the good stuff. And I know in New York City in some spots, I've seen numbers $2.85 and $3.05 for gas already in downtown New York City.
COSTELLO: Well, I haven't seen those yet and I don't want to see them.
MYERS: Hello.
COSTELLO: Hey, let's get back to Jay Leno for just a second, because he also took some serious jabs at Dan Rather.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
LENO: It's Dan Rather's final night as the CBS anchorman. Yes. My god, it seems like just yesterday he was making up his first story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: We're talking about Dan Rather this morning.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: And, you know, this is his last night on the anchor desk and he's going out in such a bad way. So we're asking you for comments about Dan Rather.
MYERS: All the great years.
COSTELLO: And you have some more Dan Ratherisms to share as I go through our e-mail box right now.
MYERS: "He swept through the South like a tornado through a trailer park."
"And this election swings like one of those pendulum things."
Those are the two. Actually, I have another Dan Ratherisms, although it's a -- it's something funny. He says: "Don't let the door hit you in the giddy-up, Dan."
COSTELLO: Oh, I like that one.
MYERS: And I've got another one. I've got a Jeffism here. "Rather's leaving makes me happier than a spotted calf sitting in the sunshine under a wagon in the tall grass."
COSTELLO: What other anchor would come up with stuff like that?
exactly.
MYERS: Well, our viewers are awake this morning so...
COSTELLO: We're asking your opinions right now and I do have a couple of e-mails from viewers.
MYERS: Go ahead.
COSTELLO: This is from Vermont. Let me go up here. This is from Brad. He said: "In the early '70s, I remember Dan Rather as the reporter who took on the White House over the Vietnam War. He was my champion. And then something changed after he took over the CBS Evening News. It's as if he took on this Don Quixote personality. His heart was in the right place, but he chose his fights at the wrong times and in the wrong way. But I'll miss him anyway."
MYERS: Wes has a good one. He says: "Dan Rather will go down in history as one of the greatest broadcast journalists of all time because of his rather tenuous questioning of Nixon during the Watergate and his historically significant interviews with Saddam Hussein. His colleagues should stop sniping and let him retire in peace with the respect that he deserves."
COSTELLO: OK, let's see, let me find another one here. There's a lot coming in.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: It seems more than appropriate to air a comprehensive retrospective of Mr. Rather's entire career on CBS, as he finally gives up the big desk. As for those media jerks who so viciously condemn the man, I wonder which one of them would be willing to have their entire career judged based on their very worst day ever."
Keep those e-mails coming.
We appreciate it. That was David from Sylvania, Ohio.
Daybreak@cnn.com.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired March 9, 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 message written across the skies. Is Mount Saint Helens just blowing off steam or is this the real thing?
Plus, adult magazines, electronic bells and accusations of lies upon lies, just another day in the Michael Jackson trial.
And a 3,000-year-old mystery -- was King Tut murdered? It's a "CSI" moment from the land of the pharaohs.
This is Wednesday, March 9.
You are watching 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, a suicide bomber strikes in Baghdad, but this time the bomb is carried in a garbage truck. A huge hole has been blown in the street. There are deaths and there are injuries.
Let's head live now to Baghdad and Aneesh Raman for more -- hello, Aneesh.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning to you.
A scene of immense destruction after that attack this morning. It occurred around 6:30 a.m. local time. Ministry officials say that the car bomb that was used, as you say, a garbage truck was driving through a courtyard outside the Ministry of Agriculture. It was then fired upon by guards. It detonated. Two guards were killed. Twenty- two others were wounded. As you say, a scene of just immense destruction. Forty cars that were used by that ministry were damaged.
The intended target, according to officials, was the hotel called Al-Sadr next to the Ministry of Agriculture and known to house a large number of Westerners. They think that they prevented it from getting there because it tried to skirt around security checkpoints going through that courtyard.
The number of casualties, though, could have been dramatically higher had it happened later in the day, when people would have been arriving to work at the ministry, or, Carol, if it had reached its likely intended target, that hotel. COSTELLO: There was another incident in Iraq, 19 bodies found in a house.
Can you tell us more about that incident, as well, Aneesh?
RAMAN: Yes, officials just making it known today that 19 bodies have been found west of Baghdad, near the Syrian-Iraqi border. They were all shot to death. At least one of them is a woman. When they were killed and by whom is not yet known, but it comes a day after some 15 beheaded bodies were found south of the capital city. Disturbing news. Part of the backdrop as this country tries to push forward with its political landscape -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Aneesh Raman reporting live from Baghdad.
Thank you.
Also in the news this morning, former President Clinton says he feels fine. He's set to undergo follow-up surgery tomorrow at a New York hospital. He had a buildup of fluid and scar tissue from last fall's heart bypass surgery.
In Rome, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi prepares to go before parliament this morning. He'll talk about the controversy swirling around a deadly shooting in Baghdad and the presence of Italian troops in that country.
It's batter up in Congress, almost. Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco and Jason Giambi are among several current or former baseball stars who could be subpoenaed as soon as today to testify about steroid use.
The Mount Saint Helens watch is on again. The volcano has sent a plume of smoke and ash nearly six miles into the air. Mount Saint Helens has been rumbling on and off since September.
And oh, what a long winter this has been for the Northeast. Snow, ice and wind chills as low as 24 below are making travel very difficult this morning. Whiteout conditions caused Boston's Logan Airport to close last night.
And here in New York, Chad, black ice everywhere.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, exactly.
We knew this was going to happen, Carol, because it rained all morning yesterday and then that cold air slammed through. It did not get a chance to evaporate before the snow continued to fall on top of it and so it just added to the problem. And it is literally everywhere. It is really difficult to walk around New York City, Philadelphia, Trenton, Camden, Boston, Hartford, all the way up the East Coast, where this water just kind of froze to the surface. Even as far south as Washington, D.C., it was raining one minute and then snowing like you couldn't believe the next minute. And then all of that stuff froze on contact.
Look at these wind chill factors right now -- New York City zero; Boston, six below. It may be very hard just getting into your car today because the locks were wet when it was 40 and then it froze overnight. So you may want to give yourself a little extra time not only scraping, but trying to get that key into the lock. And don't turn it too hard because you don't want to break that key off.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Oh, the weather is so nasty up here.
MYERS: It is very, very cold. It's dangerously cold. Please take care of the pets today. Don't leave them outside when you go to work, because it is literally that cold.
COSTELLO: It certainly is.
Good advice.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: It is estimated there are 50,000 names on the government's terror watch lists. But you may be surprised that being on that list does not mean you can't walk into a gun shop, plop down a wad of cash and walk out with a rifle or pistol or worse.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve has more on that from our America's Bureau.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A person on a terrorist watch list might have an easier time buying a high powered firearm than boarding a commercial airliner.
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: I'm just utterly appalled that people on terror watch lists can buy guns. What are we doing to ourselves?
MESERVE: A new report from the Government Accountability Office says last year, background checks on gun buyers found 58 matches with government terror watch lists. In 47 of those cases, the person listed went on to get his or her gun. Being on a list of suspected terrorists does not disqualify a buyer the way a felony conviction or mental illness would.
ROBERT MUELLER, FBI DIRECTOR: We ought to look at the law and see what modifications could be made.
MESERVE: If someone on the watch list is trying to buy a gun, the FBI is notified. But by law, the records of the transaction are destroyed after 24 hours. Gun control advocates argue that this could hamper terrorism investigations.
SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG (D), NEW JERSEY: It's incomprehensible. If you put this question to the American people and say should we go out of our way to help a terrorist get a gun and conceal his background, absolutely not.
MESERVE: Experts estimate there are more than 50,000 names on the often criticized government watch lists, watch lists that have kept the likes of Senator Ted Kennedy from flying.
What is needed, says one expert, is discretion.
RICHARD FALKENRATH, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: There's a wide range of different reasons that people get on watch lists. Not all of them, it seems to me, should be disqualifying for buying a gun.
MESERVE: But Sanford Abrams has a different point of view. He sells guns.
SANFORD ABRAMS, MARYLAND GUN DEALER: There's no right to fly an airplane in this country. There is a right to own a firearm.
MESERVE: A collision between constitutional rights and the war on terror.
For CNN's America Bureau, Jeanne Meserve, Washington.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: And you can count on CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
In other "News Across America" this morning, juveniles or terrorists? Las Vegas police say they aren't sure who was behind the theft of 1,700 blank driver's licenses. The thieves took the blanks and license making equipment after ramming their vehicle through the back wall of the DMV. Police say the thieves could make fake I.D.s to buy beer or they could use them to board airplanes.
A California woman in jail after leaving her 5-year-old daughter in the car while gambling in a Lake Tahoe area casino. The girl was left in the unlocked car for around five hours, and it was overnight. Police say they also found about six grams of crystal meth in the car. The woman, who says she just lost track of time, now faces child endangerment and drug possession charges.
Rescuers used a helicopter to reach two teenage girls who got stuck on a rock in Hawaii. The teenagers were ledge diving when they were surprised that the surf was so strong. The chopper was brought in when firefighters decided it was too dangerous to send rescuers into the water. There's the happy ending.
Police officers in Texas had to pry two people from a car involved in a police chase. Officers broke out the car windows when the suspects refused to get out of the car. It all began in Dallas following reports of the robbery.
He is signing off. Tonight is newsman Dan Rather's last night at the CBS anchor desk after 24 years in the big seat. The CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll asks how much of what Dan Rather says you believe. Twenty-three percent of respondents say all or most; 29 percent believe some; 25 percent say they believe little of what he says; and 19 percent say they believe almost nothing of what he says. As for his broadcasts, 35 percent of those polled say the CBS Evening News is too liberal; 13 percent call the broadcast too conservative; and 37 percent say they're about right.
Now, let's compare those figures to most news broadcasts. Forty- two percent of respondents say news shows are too liberal in general; 25 percent say they're too conservative; and 28 percent says the news is just about right.
Sort of like the Goldilocks and the three bears comment at the end there.
Who could forget Dan Ratherisms?
And, Chad, come in and help me with this, because he had so many Dan Ratherisms, like, "We had a slight hitch in our giddy-up, but we corrected that."
MYERS: Exactly.
You know, no matter what happens to Dan Rather's career or what happened to him in the past couple of years, he was -- he's an amazing newsman.
Here's one over here. We had that "slight giddy-up."
I have one here, though, and I loved it, about some of the election night stuff in 2000. "The situation in Ohio would give aspirin a headache."
COSTELLO: Where did he come up with these? I've always wondered that.
MYERS: I don't know. Wait until you get this one. And this one was as soon as it was starting to really show up that Kerry wasn't going to make it here in the election: "No question now that Kerry is rapidly reaching the point where he's got his back to the wall, his shirttails are on fire and the bill collector is at the door."
You have to stay up nights thinking of some of these Dan Ratherisms. And we have quite a few very funny ones to share with you today.
COSTELLO: Yes. We're going to share more throughout the broadcast with you.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: But, you know, as I say, this is officially the day that Dan Rather steps down. Twenty-four years working in journalism and he steps down.
MYERS: Yes. COSTELLO: And you know the controversy surrounding Dan Rather.
MYERS: Of course.
COSTELLO: I'm not going to go into that again. And by now you know the vitriol. And by that I mean what some of his colleagues are saying about him as he leaves the desk, like his predecessor, the man many call Uncle Walter.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WALTER CRONKITE, FORMER CBS ANCHOR: It's quite a tribute to him that he, that CBS held onto him so long under those circumstances. It surprised quite a few people at CBS and elsewhere that without being able to pull up the ratings beyond third in a three-man field, that they tolerated his being there for so long.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: So you would have been happier if Bob Schieffer would have replaced Dan Rather a while ago?
CRONKITE: I would have thought so, certainly. If not Bob, someone else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ouch.
MYERS: Carol, you and I both worked for CBS affiliates 10, 15 years ago. And you -- I remember how proud I was to have Dan Rather on my network.
COSTELLO: I remember meeting him. He was a nice guy. But you know the controversy -- OK, we're going to go on with this. Cronkite is joined by Don Hewitt of "60 Minutes" and others. Today we're wondering why so vicious? Why is all this vicious stuff coming from colleagues of Dan Rather? Our e-mail question for this morning is this: fond farewell or good riddance? What good-bye does Dan Rather reserve? Let us know what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
And in our 6:00 hour, we'll talk to Lloyd Grove with the "New York Daily News" about exactly why Rather's colleagues are being so darned mean to Dan.
MYERS: They are.
COSTELLO: Oh, he has some good inside goop for us. So it should be interesting.
We are on a seek and find mission ahead on this hump day on CNN DAYBREAK.
At 20 minutes past the hour, searching for the truth in the molestation trial of Michael Jackson.
And at 42 minutes after, searching through ancient artifacts -- the death of an Egyptian king.
And at 51 minutes past, searching for health with former President Bill Clinton.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It's 5:16 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
A large plume of smoke and ash from Mount Saint Helens billowed thousands of feet into the air. In fact, it still is billowing thousands of feet into the air. Ash from the volcano has fallen on communities as far as 75 miles away from the mountain.
President Bill Clinton will be teeing it off today at a charity golf tournament, even though he's scheduled for heart surgery tomorrow. His doctors say the surgery is to remove scar tissue. It's not an emergency. They ad his recent travels to South Asia had nothing to do with the problem.
In money news, McDonald's is launching a new healthy lifestyle initiative. The plan includes new menu items and new TV commercials. The company will also produce a series of Ronald McDonald videos aimed at teaching children how to eat right.
In culture, the City of Boston is offering a new guided tour service and Aerosmith's Steven Tyler will be your guide. You can use your cell phone to access a taped message from Tyler that will lead you through the city's top attractions.
In sports, Lebron James lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first win since last month. The 19-point win over the Orlando Magic snapped a six game losing streak for the Cavs.
To the forecast center and Chad.
MYERS: It's cold out there, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: The brother of Michael Jackson's accuser is expected to resume testimony today in the pop star's child molestation trial. The defense has been going after the boy's credibility.
We get more details from CNN's Miguel Marquez.
He's in Santa Maria, California.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There were no major points scored in the cross-examination of the accuser's brother, but many things did come out.
(voice-over): Among them, the boy testified that he lied in an earlier deposition in which his family was suing J.C. Penney. He testified then that his parents never fought and his father never beat him. Defense attorneys say the accuser's family lies when there's a profit motive.
And if there was a got you moment, it was about adult magazines. The prosecution showed a picture of an adult magazine seized at Neverland Ranch to this witness. Jackson's defense showed the same picture to the witness and he said that that was the magazine he saw then. And that's when Jackson's lawyer announced that the magazine was actually from August, 2003, long after the family had been to Neverland Ranch and when they weren't invited back.
(on camera): The boy also testified that an electronic bell sounds every time one enters Michael Jackson's bedroom, the bottom floor of Michael Jackson's two story bedroom. He said it sounded the two occasions when he saw Jackson molesting his brother and believed, he told defense attorneys, that Jackson didn't hear it because the door was closed to the upper part of his bedroom.
The cross-examination of this witness is expected to continue for at least the rest of this day.
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Santa Maria, California.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Harvard says 119 Business School applicants will not be heading there because they're computer hackers. In our "Class Notes" this morning, the school's dean says it was unethical at best for students to hack into the school's admissions site to see if they'd been accepted. Harvard says those who did the deed can reapply, but not this year.
For the children of troops killed in Iraq or Afghanistan, a chance to go to college for free. Widener University in suburban Philadelphia says it will offer four full scholarships each year to those children. The program will provide $25,000 a year for each recipient.
And students from two California community colleges won't be studying this summer in Spain. That's because trustees voted to cancel the summer abroad program because of Spain's lack of support for the war effort in Iraq. Spain pulled its 1,300 troops out last year, after the Madrid train bombings. Critics say the move wrongly interjects politics into an academic environment.
Here are some of the new things we're working for you just ahead on DAYBREAK.
We'll look at the fear and confusion that can face drivers and the military personnel at checkpoints in Iraq.
And we'll see how modern technology might help solve what could be an ancient murder mystery.
You are watching DAYBREAK for Wednesday, March 9.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: I know you felt like salsaing, didn't you?
Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye-Opener," though.
Twelve of Maryland's best baggers gathered in Martinsburg to test their skills. Grocery groupies -- and there are grocery groupies -- they watched as the cream of the crop tried to get the Cream of Wheat into plastic bags. The top bagger moves onto the state competition and a chance to compete in the national bagger finals in Las Vegas.
Now, don't be afraid or grossed out by these pictures. It's just a normal kitten with a little something extra. See it there? It's a two-faced cat. It was just a few hours old when this video was shot. The owner says the kitten is healthy and nursing, just like its other brothers and sisters. They're just not sure if it's eating enough for two.
Wow! That was something else.
MYERS: You couldn't see with it -- such a darned face, he couldn't really see all that. But OK.
COSTELLO: It was wacky looking.
Anyway, now to take a double take on Jay Leno for you in our "Late Night Laughs" segment.
Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
JAY LENO, HOST: As I'm sure you know, Martha Stewart is now under what they call house arrest. And today they announced the rules of that. You know, she's got that huge estate there in New York. Bedford, New York, I think it is? Like they said today, she will not be allowed to go horseback riding on her estate.
Why? What are they afraid she's a flight risk? Is that why? Is that a problem, catching a 63-year-old woman on horseback?
Hey, O.J. fled in a Ford Bronco. We got him. I mean what is that? There she goes! Get her!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC) LENO: And the head of OPEC said today they are concerned about high oil prices. Not concerned enough, of course, to lower them, just concerned about high prices.
In fact, gas is so expensive now, today I saw Jose Canseco and Barry Bonds carrying their cars.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Because you know the Department of Energy is -- it's predicting that gas prices will, on average, be $2.18 a gallon by summertime.
MYERS: I paid $2.05 yesterday.
COSTELLO: Oh, that's insane.
MYERS: That was for the cheap stuff.
COSTELLO: It's insane.
MYERS: Yes, and the really good stuff was at -- usually in my neighborhood it's $0.10 more. Now it's $0.15 more for the middle and then the upper. So it was like $2.35 for the good stuff. And I know in New York City in some spots, I've seen numbers $2.85 and $3.05 for gas already in downtown New York City.
COSTELLO: Well, I haven't seen those yet and I don't want to see them.
MYERS: Hello.
COSTELLO: Hey, let's get back to Jay Leno for just a second, because he also took some serious jabs at Dan Rather.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO," COURTESY NBC)
LENO: It's Dan Rather's final night as the CBS anchorman. Yes. My god, it seems like just yesterday he was making up his first story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: We're talking about Dan Rather this morning.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: And, you know, this is his last night on the anchor desk and he's going out in such a bad way. So we're asking you for comments about Dan Rather.
MYERS: All the great years.
COSTELLO: And you have some more Dan Ratherisms to share as I go through our e-mail box right now.
MYERS: "He swept through the South like a tornado through a trailer park."
"And this election swings like one of those pendulum things."
Those are the two. Actually, I have another Dan Ratherisms, although it's a -- it's something funny. He says: "Don't let the door hit you in the giddy-up, Dan."
COSTELLO: Oh, I like that one.
MYERS: And I've got another one. I've got a Jeffism here. "Rather's leaving makes me happier than a spotted calf sitting in the sunshine under a wagon in the tall grass."
COSTELLO: What other anchor would come up with stuff like that?
exactly.
MYERS: Well, our viewers are awake this morning so...
COSTELLO: We're asking your opinions right now and I do have a couple of e-mails from viewers.
MYERS: Go ahead.
COSTELLO: This is from Vermont. Let me go up here. This is from Brad. He said: "In the early '70s, I remember Dan Rather as the reporter who took on the White House over the Vietnam War. He was my champion. And then something changed after he took over the CBS Evening News. It's as if he took on this Don Quixote personality. His heart was in the right place, but he chose his fights at the wrong times and in the wrong way. But I'll miss him anyway."
MYERS: Wes has a good one. He says: "Dan Rather will go down in history as one of the greatest broadcast journalists of all time because of his rather tenuous questioning of Nixon during the Watergate and his historically significant interviews with Saddam Hussein. His colleagues should stop sniping and let him retire in peace with the respect that he deserves."
COSTELLO: OK, let's see, let me find another one here. There's a lot coming in.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: It seems more than appropriate to air a comprehensive retrospective of Mr. Rather's entire career on CBS, as he finally gives up the big desk. As for those media jerks who so viciously condemn the man, I wonder which one of them would be willing to have their entire career judged based on their very worst day ever."
Keep those e-mails coming.
We appreciate it. That was David from Sylvania, Ohio.
Daybreak@cnn.com.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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