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American Morning

Surprise Move in Washington May Keep Terri Schiavo Alive in Florida; Baseball's Boss Under Oath

Aired March 18, 2005 - 07:00   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Working against the clock, a surprise move in Washington may keep Terri Schiavo alive in Florida. Details of a remarkable legal tactic ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will suspend any player who tests positive for an illegal steroid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Baseball's boss under oath: promises to clean up the sport as lawmakers come out swinging against an all-star lineup.

And a killing spree in the city of Brotherly Love: more than 20 murders in a week. Philly officials begging for help, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

Good morning. Welcome everybody. Bill hemmer's got the day off, wrapping up his vacation. But Rob Marciano's been helping us out. Appreciate that.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: I've had a good time. Thanks for helping me.

O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.

Ahead this morning, what have police learned from a convicted sex offender in the disappearance of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford? We're going to talk to Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, about that.

MARCIANO: Also, gas prices have hit a nationwide record high, and some analysts say we haven't seen the top.

Coming up, we're going to break down the actual cost of a gallon of gas. Just see how much Americans are really paying for it.

O'BRIEN: It's expensive, isn't it?

MARCIANO: Yes, it is high.

Also this morning, Jack's going to join us. He's got the question of the day, as always. But first, Congress intervening in a last-ditch effort to save Terri Schiavo's life. The feeding tube of the brain-damaged Florida woman is supposed to be removed today, 1:00 Eastern this afternoon. But House committee says it will issue a subpoena today to try to stop doctors from doing so. Committee leaders had this to say about the issue -- quote -- "Later this morning, we're going to issue a subpoena, which will require hospice administrators and attending physicians to preserve nutrition and hydration for Terri Schiavo to allow Congress to fully understand the procedures and practices that are currently keeping her alive. This inquiry should give hope to Terri, and her parents and her friends and the millions of people throughout the world praying for her safety."

Well, it is not known exactly who is going to be issued a subpoena. The maneuver comes after lawmakers in the House and the Senate failed to pass legislation to keep Schiavo alive before they recessed for spring break.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JAMES SENSENBRENNER (R), WISCONSIN: What's going on in Florida regarding Terri Schiavo is nothing short of inhumane. She's facing what amounts to a death sentence, ensuring that she will slowly starve to death over a matter of weeks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Florida legislature is considering its own legislation on this matter. There's no need to enact radical legislation unconsidered for the whole country just for this one case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Five years ago, the same House committee used subpoena power in a similar way to protect Elian Gonzalez from being returned to Cuba. Much more on the story obviously throughout the morning right here on CNN -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Police say a convicted sex offender is cooperating in the investigation into 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford's disappearance. Forty-six-year-old John Couey was taken into custody Thursday in Augusta, Georgia for violating probation in Florida. Couey will face a judge this afternoon. He has not been charged in Jessica's disappearance. She was reported missing more than three weeks ago.

Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, joins me live now from Homosassa Springs, Florida.

Mark, I know it's been a long three weeks for you. Thank you very much for joining us.

You've to feel a little better. They've got Couey. They're saying he's now more and more interesting as the day goes along. How do you feel today, compared to, say, two days ago?

MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER OF MISSING GIRL: Well, the last thing I heard the sheriff say was that he wanted to question Couey, and that was all he wanted. I'm taking it like a grain of salt. I'm going to will continue with my search until the sheriff tells me he's found my daughter.

MARCIANO: Have the police told you anything about what John Couey has told them?

LUNSFORD: No, no, they haven't said anything to me. I haven't seen them yet.

MARCIANO: He's got a long list of things in his past, none of which is murder. So that alone should make you a little bit more optimistic if, indeed, he becomes a bigger player in this case, do you think?

LUNSFORD: Well, like I said, because I've gotten excited over some things in the last three weeks and it's been a letdown, this time i've decided I'm just going to continue with my search, and I'm not going to bite into anything until the sheriff tells me exactly himself.

MARCIANO: OK, well, let's talk about your search. Marc Klaas has stepped in. His daughter was abducted and murdered over a decade ago. He's stepped in to help with your search. What has he done and how is that search going?

LUNSFORD: Well, they've given me a lot of information. They'll be here this weekend to help me conduct the search. They're going to come down here and just train me some more, help me out, help me get volunteers.

MARCIANO: Police say Couey is the most promising lead in this case, but they do have other leads.

Let's listen to what Sheriff Jeff Dawsy had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS CO. FLA.: We're not stymied now. We're still following leads. We are aggressively, like I said, we're probably following about 40 really quality leads today. And, you know, one of those leads may be the answer, and then Couey is not even in the game. Right now, Couey is one of the hottest leads, and we need, as I said, we need to take him out of the mix.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARCIANO: Mark, do you know anything about the other leads they're talking about? They haven't told us anything?

LUNSFORD: No I haven't heard anything about any other leads.

MARCIANO: Well, it's been a long three weeks, as I can imagine as a parent, a gut-wrenching three weeks. How are you holding up?

LUNSFORD: Well, With the support of the community, and my daughter, I don't have any choice but to keep going, you know, I just, I just keep going. MARCIANO: Thanks very much for joining us. Our hearts go out to you, Mr. Lunsford, and we certainly wish the best and hope that you find your daughter alive and well -- Soledad.

LUNSFORD: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Tough times for that family.

Well, there is no joy in Major League Baseball this morning. After an all-star roundup of players and league officials were summoned to Congress on Thursday for a heated hearing on steroids. There were some tough questions and some answers about the sport's growing scandal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BUD SELIG, MLB COMMISSIONER: I will suspend any player who tests positive for an illegal steroid. There will be no exceptions.

O'BRIEN (voice-over): Baseball commissioner Bud Selig on Capitol Hill and under oath, swearing by baseball's new zero-tolerance policy towards steroid use. Committee members weren't buying it.

REP. CHRIS SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: Why should someone have five strikes before they're out? I'd like to go right down the list. Why five strikes?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congressman, let me begin by saying...

SHAYS: I'm not going to have you begin. I'd like the commissioner. Why five strikes, commissioner?

SELIG: Because that's the negotiated policy right now, Congressman. That's the best we could do in collective bargaining.

O'BRIEN: All in all, baseball took a beating in Congress Thursday. The commissioner followed an all-star lineup of players, past and present, who testified before a House committee. They included Jose Canseco, whose tell-all book "Juiced" claims steroid use among Major League players was rampant. He said he couldn't tell all to Congress without immunity.

JOSE CANSECO, FMR. MLB PLAYER: It's unfortunate the committee has made this decision as it will not be able to fully investigate the steroid issue without all testimony, and the issue will continue to plague the sport.

O'BRIEN: One of the players implicated in canseco's book, Rafael Palmeiro, used the occasion to set the record straight.

RAFAEL PALMEIRO, MLB PLAYER: I have never used steroids, period. I do not know how to say it any more clearly than that. Never.

O'BRIEN: Mark McGwire, who broke baseball's single season home run record in 1998, was also a target of canseco's book. There's speculation over whether his baseball record and others were fueled by steroids. McGwire owned up to nothing.

MARK MCGWIRE, FMR. MLB PLAYER: Asking me or any other player to answer questions about who took steroids in front of television cameras will not solve the problem.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't want to comment? Are you taking the Fifth?

MCGWIRE: I'm not here to discuss the past. I'm here to be positive about this subject.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm trying to be positive too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Very contentious there, both the players and the committee members expressing concern about increased steroid use by young athletes. The committee chairman, Congressman Tom Davis, says that he hopes the hearings can send a clear message about the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, a city in crisis. A record number of murders in Philadelphia and a plea for help. A desperate measure to stop the killings. That's ahead.

MARCIANO: And a plot to kidnap David Letterman's young son. It's foiled. We have the details ahead.

O'BRIEN: Also two years ago, the first bombs fell on Baghdad. CNN's Nic Robertson was there. Ahead, Nic joins us with a firsthand account of what life is like there in Baghdad today.

AMERICAN MORNING is back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARCIANO: Late night talk show host David Letterman is breathing a sigh of relief. A suspected plot to kidnap Letterman's 16-month-old son and his nanny has been foiled. Forty-three-year-old Kelly Frank is under arrest this morning in Montana. He was a painter at Letterman's Montana ranch.

Letterman and his long-time girlfriend released this statement: "Regina and I would like to express our endless gratitude to the FBI and law-enforcement professionals. We will be grateful for their tireless efforts in and determination to vigorously pursue this situation. Police say Frank had planned on asking for $5 million ransom" -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Philadelphia is reeling after a spate of recent killings. A rash of murders leaves 23 people dead in 10 days. There have been 80 homicides so far this year, up from 68 at this time last year. More than 80 percent of Philadelphia's homicides this year were committed with handguns, prompting city officials to ask Governor Ed Rendell to intervene and impose stricter gun laws.

Philadelphia's Mayor, John Street, joins us this morning.

Nice to see you, Mr. Mayor. Thanks for talking to us.

MYR. JOHN STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: Good morning to you.

O'BRIEN: And good morning to you.

Explain the spike to me.

STREET: Well, it's difficult to explain. Our police department has been working night and day, reviewing everything we're doing to try to figure out whether or not there's any pattern to this. And so far, we can't see any partner. It seems to be all over the city, and most of the violence seems to be random in nature, people just sort of getting involved in arguments and solving their problems with the use of a deadly weapon on each other, and we're concerned about it.

O'BRIEN: I know you've written to request a meeting with the governor. But in the short-term, what are you planning to do to try to fix this problem?

STREET: Well, we've done a number of different things in the city. We'll continue to do them. We implemented a huge anti-drug program called the Safe Streets program. And we have a program called the Grip program, where we're getting as many guns off the street as we can. Overall, crime is down in our city. And even homicides are down from the mid '90s high of about as many as 500 in our city. But we're concerned because of this recent spat of homicides. We don't think that it's a long-term pattern, but it is -- we're unhappy with any homicides, and the impact that it has on the quality of life in our city and the families that are involved in it is something that we can't tolerate.

Gun laws in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are probably as lenient and as lax as anywhere in the country, and I've contacted the governor and said we need you to help us get more tools in our arsenal to fight the proliferation of guns, and gun permitting and easy gun access, because we are -- our police department, and we know when people have guns and disputes come up, they're more likely to use them and create homicides and other kind of problems than not.

O'BRIEN: Forgive me for interrupting you there, but I want to follow up on that point -- isn't, by the same token, the theory that lots of criminals aren't going and getting the gun permits. They're not going through the process of buying guns the legal way. And so I know that you're considering a moratorium for sales, gun sales. To some degree, won't that just not work work?

STREET: Well, we do believe that a moratorium on gun permits will be helpful. I want to point out that although people are not getting gun permits legally and going out and using them, the fact that so many people can so easily get a gun, and then those guns get in the hands of people who use them illegally. In other words, it is now possible, in our commonwealth, for people to go by 50, 20, you know, 30, 100 guns, and they may get them all lawfully, but those guns find their way into the hands of people who either use them as instruments of crimes, or homicides or other things, and just we have to curtail the ease with in which we get guns and the way people can walk the streets of our commonwealth with guns. If you have a gun, you're likely to use it.

O'BRIEN: I know that you've also been solving lots of the crimes without the public's help and you'd like more people to be witnesses to these crimes come forward. I've read that the D.A. is now going to volunteer to move people out of their homes in order to protect them, is that the case?

STREET: Well, we have a witness-protection program in the city, as do most cities, and we have tried to make it clear to those people who witness violence, or who have information about violent acts, that we can protect you if it becomes necessary. We run into those situations where people have information that could lead to the arrest or conviction of people organized in drug activity, and it is important that people know that if you come forward and testify, we can take care of you. So we've been looking on that angle too.

O'BRIEN: Is it sense that you can't protect them? is that why the offer is being made to potentially move them out of their homes?

STREET: Well, no we have always been able to protect them, and we have always had such a program. But in our efforts to go after some of the big drug kingpins and the folks who are really at the heart of the illegal drug trade, we just need to make it known to more people that if they do come forward and testify, that there is a way for them to be protected. This is something that we've always done, but as we crackdown on crime, and drugs and illegal narcotics and all of that, we do have instances where people have been threatened, and I'm sure this happens in all cities. And we want people to know we can take care of you.

O'BRIEN: John Street is the mayor of Philadelphia. Mr. Mayor, thank you for talking with us. I know you had back surgery recently and are recovering. So we certainly appreciate that -- Rob.

STREET: Thank you. Thank you so much.

MARCIANO: In New Jersey, a man faces charges of carjacking a prison van at gunpoint, then leading police on a 70-mile chase. Police say it began when a man approached a van at a highway work detail Thursday and told everybody, including five prisoners, to get out. The van then took off, hitting several vehicles and blowing out three tires before flipping over. The man then climbed out of the van and was swarmed by police.

O'BRIEN: Remarkable pictures there.

Martha Stewart, she's working on a plan to get the bracelet off of her ankle well before her five months are up. Andy Serwer's got details on that, just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARCIANO: Martha Stewart out of prison, now wants out of the house. Plus, is apple paying CEO Steve Jobs too little money. Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business."

So Martha's out of the big house now; now she wants to have her own house.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Yes, and this is pretty interesting stuff. Yesterday, a federal court decided that they could send her case back to a another court to possibly change her sentence back to the original judge for resentencing. And of course what Martha's going to argue, her lawyers are going to argue, that she should be released from house arrest and have her ankle bracelet taken off.

Now how is this possible? The request follows a recent Supreme Court decision that sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional. It's very unclear at this point what Judge Miriam Cedarbaum will do with this, but it's a small victory for Martha Stewart, obviously.

As far as Steve Jobs goes, how about this -- you take a company back from the brink, you introduce a revolutionary product and the stock triples. So shouldn't this guy have a giant pay day. Well, Steve Jobs doesn't think so. His salary for last year, according to recent documents just came out -- $1. He's paying himself one dollar.

Now, you're going to say the guy has a huge position of the stock, and yes he does. He's worth $2.6 billion. But here's the thing, though, that's interesting. Listen to this. Richest guy in the world, Bill Gates, $48 billion in net worth. He pays himself $550,000. Warren Buffett, $41 billion, he pays himself $100,000. Michael Dell, $14 billion, he pays himself $950,000. So these very wealthy guys still pay themselves hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Steve Jobs says no.

O'BRIEN: There's got to be good tax implications for only paying yourself a buck when everything else is stock options.

SERWER: I'm sure that's true, that Steve has some kind of angle going on.

MARCIANO: And he wears the same turtleneck and jeans, so he doesn't spend a lot on clothes.

SERWER: He shops at The Gap, that's right.

O'BRIEN: Thanks, Andy.

SERWER: You're welcome.

O'BRIEN: What's the Question of the Day, Mr. Cafferty?

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Congress, Soledad, stepped into the Terri Schiavo case. On the day that her feeding tube was scheduled to be removed, the House committee on government reform late night issued a subpoena to Schiavo's doctors ordering them not to remove the tube. Schiavo's husband has been petitioning her case for seven years. Florida state courts have repeatedly said that Terri Schiavo would won't want to live in her persistent vegetative state, which has been her husband's position.

But in the final week of Schiavo's life, Congress has decided it should be involved in this. They have passed legislation granting federal courts the power to review decisions handed up by state courts, including Florida's. The question is this, does the federal government have the right to intervene in the case of Terri Schiavo? am@CNN.com.

O'BRIEN: I think this is a fascinating turn of events in this case. And you're right, it's been seven years that they've been wrangling through this, and every 11th-hour decision is then topped by another decision.

CAFFERTY: When is the government going to figure out that we've had enough, that we collectively have had enough?

SERWER: And how did it go from the judges to Congress? How did Congress get involved?

CAFFERTY: I mean, it's interesting that the Republicans are all for states' rights when it comes to things like the vote totals in Ohio. But when it comes to a state court in Florida -- of course, who is the governor of Florida? Oh, yes, Jeb Bush. Gee, I almost forgot.

O'BRIEN: We'll be getting lots of e-mail on that, I'm imagining.

Thanks, Jack.

Much more AMERICAN MORNING is coming up. Ahead on "90-Second Pop," a sneak preview of a scary sequel, "The Ring 2." It seems to have everything that terrified audiences the first time. But is a 'PG' rating holding it back?

And big trouble for Lil' Kim. Her words have stirred up plenty of anger before. Now she's facing 20 years in prison for what she said, coming up on "90-Second Pop."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired March 18, 2005 - 07:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Working against the clock, a surprise move in Washington may keep Terri Schiavo alive in Florida. Details of a remarkable legal tactic ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will suspend any player who tests positive for an illegal steroid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Baseball's boss under oath: promises to clean up the sport as lawmakers come out swinging against an all-star lineup.

And a killing spree in the city of Brotherly Love: more than 20 murders in a week. Philly officials begging for help, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

Good morning. Welcome everybody. Bill hemmer's got the day off, wrapping up his vacation. But Rob Marciano's been helping us out. Appreciate that.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: I've had a good time. Thanks for helping me.

O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.

Ahead this morning, what have police learned from a convicted sex offender in the disappearance of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford? We're going to talk to Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, about that.

MARCIANO: Also, gas prices have hit a nationwide record high, and some analysts say we haven't seen the top.

Coming up, we're going to break down the actual cost of a gallon of gas. Just see how much Americans are really paying for it.

O'BRIEN: It's expensive, isn't it?

MARCIANO: Yes, it is high.

Also this morning, Jack's going to join us. He's got the question of the day, as always. But first, Congress intervening in a last-ditch effort to save Terri Schiavo's life. The feeding tube of the brain-damaged Florida woman is supposed to be removed today, 1:00 Eastern this afternoon. But House committee says it will issue a subpoena today to try to stop doctors from doing so. Committee leaders had this to say about the issue -- quote -- "Later this morning, we're going to issue a subpoena, which will require hospice administrators and attending physicians to preserve nutrition and hydration for Terri Schiavo to allow Congress to fully understand the procedures and practices that are currently keeping her alive. This inquiry should give hope to Terri, and her parents and her friends and the millions of people throughout the world praying for her safety."

Well, it is not known exactly who is going to be issued a subpoena. The maneuver comes after lawmakers in the House and the Senate failed to pass legislation to keep Schiavo alive before they recessed for spring break.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JAMES SENSENBRENNER (R), WISCONSIN: What's going on in Florida regarding Terri Schiavo is nothing short of inhumane. She's facing what amounts to a death sentence, ensuring that she will slowly starve to death over a matter of weeks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Florida legislature is considering its own legislation on this matter. There's no need to enact radical legislation unconsidered for the whole country just for this one case.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Five years ago, the same House committee used subpoena power in a similar way to protect Elian Gonzalez from being returned to Cuba. Much more on the story obviously throughout the morning right here on CNN -- Rob.

MARCIANO: Police say a convicted sex offender is cooperating in the investigation into 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford's disappearance. Forty-six-year-old John Couey was taken into custody Thursday in Augusta, Georgia for violating probation in Florida. Couey will face a judge this afternoon. He has not been charged in Jessica's disappearance. She was reported missing more than three weeks ago.

Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, joins me live now from Homosassa Springs, Florida.

Mark, I know it's been a long three weeks for you. Thank you very much for joining us.

You've to feel a little better. They've got Couey. They're saying he's now more and more interesting as the day goes along. How do you feel today, compared to, say, two days ago?

MARK LUNSFORD, FATHER OF MISSING GIRL: Well, the last thing I heard the sheriff say was that he wanted to question Couey, and that was all he wanted. I'm taking it like a grain of salt. I'm going to will continue with my search until the sheriff tells me he's found my daughter.

MARCIANO: Have the police told you anything about what John Couey has told them?

LUNSFORD: No, no, they haven't said anything to me. I haven't seen them yet.

MARCIANO: He's got a long list of things in his past, none of which is murder. So that alone should make you a little bit more optimistic if, indeed, he becomes a bigger player in this case, do you think?

LUNSFORD: Well, like I said, because I've gotten excited over some things in the last three weeks and it's been a letdown, this time i've decided I'm just going to continue with my search, and I'm not going to bite into anything until the sheriff tells me exactly himself.

MARCIANO: OK, well, let's talk about your search. Marc Klaas has stepped in. His daughter was abducted and murdered over a decade ago. He's stepped in to help with your search. What has he done and how is that search going?

LUNSFORD: Well, they've given me a lot of information. They'll be here this weekend to help me conduct the search. They're going to come down here and just train me some more, help me out, help me get volunteers.

MARCIANO: Police say Couey is the most promising lead in this case, but they do have other leads.

Let's listen to what Sheriff Jeff Dawsy had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS CO. FLA.: We're not stymied now. We're still following leads. We are aggressively, like I said, we're probably following about 40 really quality leads today. And, you know, one of those leads may be the answer, and then Couey is not even in the game. Right now, Couey is one of the hottest leads, and we need, as I said, we need to take him out of the mix.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARCIANO: Mark, do you know anything about the other leads they're talking about? They haven't told us anything?

LUNSFORD: No I haven't heard anything about any other leads.

MARCIANO: Well, it's been a long three weeks, as I can imagine as a parent, a gut-wrenching three weeks. How are you holding up?

LUNSFORD: Well, With the support of the community, and my daughter, I don't have any choice but to keep going, you know, I just, I just keep going. MARCIANO: Thanks very much for joining us. Our hearts go out to you, Mr. Lunsford, and we certainly wish the best and hope that you find your daughter alive and well -- Soledad.

LUNSFORD: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Tough times for that family.

Well, there is no joy in Major League Baseball this morning. After an all-star roundup of players and league officials were summoned to Congress on Thursday for a heated hearing on steroids. There were some tough questions and some answers about the sport's growing scandal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BUD SELIG, MLB COMMISSIONER: I will suspend any player who tests positive for an illegal steroid. There will be no exceptions.

O'BRIEN (voice-over): Baseball commissioner Bud Selig on Capitol Hill and under oath, swearing by baseball's new zero-tolerance policy towards steroid use. Committee members weren't buying it.

REP. CHRIS SHAYS (R), CONNECTICUT: Why should someone have five strikes before they're out? I'd like to go right down the list. Why five strikes?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congressman, let me begin by saying...

SHAYS: I'm not going to have you begin. I'd like the commissioner. Why five strikes, commissioner?

SELIG: Because that's the negotiated policy right now, Congressman. That's the best we could do in collective bargaining.

O'BRIEN: All in all, baseball took a beating in Congress Thursday. The commissioner followed an all-star lineup of players, past and present, who testified before a House committee. They included Jose Canseco, whose tell-all book "Juiced" claims steroid use among Major League players was rampant. He said he couldn't tell all to Congress without immunity.

JOSE CANSECO, FMR. MLB PLAYER: It's unfortunate the committee has made this decision as it will not be able to fully investigate the steroid issue without all testimony, and the issue will continue to plague the sport.

O'BRIEN: One of the players implicated in canseco's book, Rafael Palmeiro, used the occasion to set the record straight.

RAFAEL PALMEIRO, MLB PLAYER: I have never used steroids, period. I do not know how to say it any more clearly than that. Never.

O'BRIEN: Mark McGwire, who broke baseball's single season home run record in 1998, was also a target of canseco's book. There's speculation over whether his baseball record and others were fueled by steroids. McGwire owned up to nothing.

MARK MCGWIRE, FMR. MLB PLAYER: Asking me or any other player to answer questions about who took steroids in front of television cameras will not solve the problem.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't want to comment? Are you taking the Fifth?

MCGWIRE: I'm not here to discuss the past. I'm here to be positive about this subject.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm trying to be positive too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Very contentious there, both the players and the committee members expressing concern about increased steroid use by young athletes. The committee chairman, Congressman Tom Davis, says that he hopes the hearings can send a clear message about the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, a city in crisis. A record number of murders in Philadelphia and a plea for help. A desperate measure to stop the killings. That's ahead.

MARCIANO: And a plot to kidnap David Letterman's young son. It's foiled. We have the details ahead.

O'BRIEN: Also two years ago, the first bombs fell on Baghdad. CNN's Nic Robertson was there. Ahead, Nic joins us with a firsthand account of what life is like there in Baghdad today.

AMERICAN MORNING is back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARCIANO: Late night talk show host David Letterman is breathing a sigh of relief. A suspected plot to kidnap Letterman's 16-month-old son and his nanny has been foiled. Forty-three-year-old Kelly Frank is under arrest this morning in Montana. He was a painter at Letterman's Montana ranch.

Letterman and his long-time girlfriend released this statement: "Regina and I would like to express our endless gratitude to the FBI and law-enforcement professionals. We will be grateful for their tireless efforts in and determination to vigorously pursue this situation. Police say Frank had planned on asking for $5 million ransom" -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Philadelphia is reeling after a spate of recent killings. A rash of murders leaves 23 people dead in 10 days. There have been 80 homicides so far this year, up from 68 at this time last year. More than 80 percent of Philadelphia's homicides this year were committed with handguns, prompting city officials to ask Governor Ed Rendell to intervene and impose stricter gun laws.

Philadelphia's Mayor, John Street, joins us this morning.

Nice to see you, Mr. Mayor. Thanks for talking to us.

MYR. JOHN STREET, PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: Good morning to you.

O'BRIEN: And good morning to you.

Explain the spike to me.

STREET: Well, it's difficult to explain. Our police department has been working night and day, reviewing everything we're doing to try to figure out whether or not there's any pattern to this. And so far, we can't see any partner. It seems to be all over the city, and most of the violence seems to be random in nature, people just sort of getting involved in arguments and solving their problems with the use of a deadly weapon on each other, and we're concerned about it.

O'BRIEN: I know you've written to request a meeting with the governor. But in the short-term, what are you planning to do to try to fix this problem?

STREET: Well, we've done a number of different things in the city. We'll continue to do them. We implemented a huge anti-drug program called the Safe Streets program. And we have a program called the Grip program, where we're getting as many guns off the street as we can. Overall, crime is down in our city. And even homicides are down from the mid '90s high of about as many as 500 in our city. But we're concerned because of this recent spat of homicides. We don't think that it's a long-term pattern, but it is -- we're unhappy with any homicides, and the impact that it has on the quality of life in our city and the families that are involved in it is something that we can't tolerate.

Gun laws in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are probably as lenient and as lax as anywhere in the country, and I've contacted the governor and said we need you to help us get more tools in our arsenal to fight the proliferation of guns, and gun permitting and easy gun access, because we are -- our police department, and we know when people have guns and disputes come up, they're more likely to use them and create homicides and other kind of problems than not.

O'BRIEN: Forgive me for interrupting you there, but I want to follow up on that point -- isn't, by the same token, the theory that lots of criminals aren't going and getting the gun permits. They're not going through the process of buying guns the legal way. And so I know that you're considering a moratorium for sales, gun sales. To some degree, won't that just not work work?

STREET: Well, we do believe that a moratorium on gun permits will be helpful. I want to point out that although people are not getting gun permits legally and going out and using them, the fact that so many people can so easily get a gun, and then those guns get in the hands of people who use them illegally. In other words, it is now possible, in our commonwealth, for people to go by 50, 20, you know, 30, 100 guns, and they may get them all lawfully, but those guns find their way into the hands of people who either use them as instruments of crimes, or homicides or other things, and just we have to curtail the ease with in which we get guns and the way people can walk the streets of our commonwealth with guns. If you have a gun, you're likely to use it.

O'BRIEN: I know that you've also been solving lots of the crimes without the public's help and you'd like more people to be witnesses to these crimes come forward. I've read that the D.A. is now going to volunteer to move people out of their homes in order to protect them, is that the case?

STREET: Well, we have a witness-protection program in the city, as do most cities, and we have tried to make it clear to those people who witness violence, or who have information about violent acts, that we can protect you if it becomes necessary. We run into those situations where people have information that could lead to the arrest or conviction of people organized in drug activity, and it is important that people know that if you come forward and testify, we can take care of you. So we've been looking on that angle too.

O'BRIEN: Is it sense that you can't protect them? is that why the offer is being made to potentially move them out of their homes?

STREET: Well, no we have always been able to protect them, and we have always had such a program. But in our efforts to go after some of the big drug kingpins and the folks who are really at the heart of the illegal drug trade, we just need to make it known to more people that if they do come forward and testify, that there is a way for them to be protected. This is something that we've always done, but as we crackdown on crime, and drugs and illegal narcotics and all of that, we do have instances where people have been threatened, and I'm sure this happens in all cities. And we want people to know we can take care of you.

O'BRIEN: John Street is the mayor of Philadelphia. Mr. Mayor, thank you for talking with us. I know you had back surgery recently and are recovering. So we certainly appreciate that -- Rob.

STREET: Thank you. Thank you so much.

MARCIANO: In New Jersey, a man faces charges of carjacking a prison van at gunpoint, then leading police on a 70-mile chase. Police say it began when a man approached a van at a highway work detail Thursday and told everybody, including five prisoners, to get out. The van then took off, hitting several vehicles and blowing out three tires before flipping over. The man then climbed out of the van and was swarmed by police.

O'BRIEN: Remarkable pictures there.

Martha Stewart, she's working on a plan to get the bracelet off of her ankle well before her five months are up. Andy Serwer's got details on that, just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MARCIANO: Martha Stewart out of prison, now wants out of the house. Plus, is apple paying CEO Steve Jobs too little money. Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business."

So Martha's out of the big house now; now she wants to have her own house.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Yes, and this is pretty interesting stuff. Yesterday, a federal court decided that they could send her case back to a another court to possibly change her sentence back to the original judge for resentencing. And of course what Martha's going to argue, her lawyers are going to argue, that she should be released from house arrest and have her ankle bracelet taken off.

Now how is this possible? The request follows a recent Supreme Court decision that sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional. It's very unclear at this point what Judge Miriam Cedarbaum will do with this, but it's a small victory for Martha Stewart, obviously.

As far as Steve Jobs goes, how about this -- you take a company back from the brink, you introduce a revolutionary product and the stock triples. So shouldn't this guy have a giant pay day. Well, Steve Jobs doesn't think so. His salary for last year, according to recent documents just came out -- $1. He's paying himself one dollar.

Now, you're going to say the guy has a huge position of the stock, and yes he does. He's worth $2.6 billion. But here's the thing, though, that's interesting. Listen to this. Richest guy in the world, Bill Gates, $48 billion in net worth. He pays himself $550,000. Warren Buffett, $41 billion, he pays himself $100,000. Michael Dell, $14 billion, he pays himself $950,000. So these very wealthy guys still pay themselves hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Steve Jobs says no.

O'BRIEN: There's got to be good tax implications for only paying yourself a buck when everything else is stock options.

SERWER: I'm sure that's true, that Steve has some kind of angle going on.

MARCIANO: And he wears the same turtleneck and jeans, so he doesn't spend a lot on clothes.

SERWER: He shops at The Gap, that's right.

O'BRIEN: Thanks, Andy.

SERWER: You're welcome.

O'BRIEN: What's the Question of the Day, Mr. Cafferty?

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Congress, Soledad, stepped into the Terri Schiavo case. On the day that her feeding tube was scheduled to be removed, the House committee on government reform late night issued a subpoena to Schiavo's doctors ordering them not to remove the tube. Schiavo's husband has been petitioning her case for seven years. Florida state courts have repeatedly said that Terri Schiavo would won't want to live in her persistent vegetative state, which has been her husband's position.

But in the final week of Schiavo's life, Congress has decided it should be involved in this. They have passed legislation granting federal courts the power to review decisions handed up by state courts, including Florida's. The question is this, does the federal government have the right to intervene in the case of Terri Schiavo? am@CNN.com.

O'BRIEN: I think this is a fascinating turn of events in this case. And you're right, it's been seven years that they've been wrangling through this, and every 11th-hour decision is then topped by another decision.

CAFFERTY: When is the government going to figure out that we've had enough, that we collectively have had enough?

SERWER: And how did it go from the judges to Congress? How did Congress get involved?

CAFFERTY: I mean, it's interesting that the Republicans are all for states' rights when it comes to things like the vote totals in Ohio. But when it comes to a state court in Florida -- of course, who is the governor of Florida? Oh, yes, Jeb Bush. Gee, I almost forgot.

O'BRIEN: We'll be getting lots of e-mail on that, I'm imagining.

Thanks, Jack.

Much more AMERICAN MORNING is coming up. Ahead on "90-Second Pop," a sneak preview of a scary sequel, "The Ring 2." It seems to have everything that terrified audiences the first time. But is a 'PG' rating holding it back?

And big trouble for Lil' Kim. Her words have stirred up plenty of anger before. Now she's facing 20 years in prison for what she said, coming up on "90-Second Pop."

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