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American Morning

Refinery Explosion; Schiavo Legal Options; 'Faith in America'

Aired March 24, 2005 - 07:31   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: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody. It's just about half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
In just a few minutes, Court TV's Lisa Bloom is going to join us. She's going to give us a roadmap of the remaining legal options in the Terri Schiavo case.

Also this morning, the search for victims in that massive refinery explosion in Texas. The president of BP America is going to join us in a little bit.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Also in a moment here, our special series, "Faith in America," continues today. We look today at black churches and how they could be discovering a new role as political powerbrokers among Republicans. We'll get to that.

First, across town, here's Carol Costello with the headlines.

Carol -- good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. And good morning to all of you.

"Now in the News."

Kyrgyzstan's president fleeing his office as thousands of protestors stormed the main government building there. That's in the old Soviet Union. The demonstrators are angry about recent elections and want the president's resignation. There are some reports of clashes with riot police, but no major violence. European officials are monitoring the situation.

President Bush is spending the day at his Crawford, Texas, ranch after playing host to leaders from Mexico and Canada. The three met Wednesday, announcing the formation of the so-called Social and Prosperity Partnership of North America. It's aimed at strengthening border safety and promoting economic growth.

Pop diva Whitney Houston is apparently back in rehab. A publicist is confirming the singer checked herself into a substance abuse program. It's not clear where and when. Houston had been in rehab at least once before. She checked into a facility one year ago after publicly admitting she had used cocaine, marijuana and pills.

And the woman held hostage by the suspected courthouse shooter in Atlanta, Brian Nichols, is being rewarded for her heroic efforts. Ashley Smith will be presented with a $10,000 check from the governor of Georgia during a ceremony this afternoon. Smith is also expected to receive more than $50,000 from other officials and agencies who promised rewards in that case. So she will get the money. It's a sure thing now.

Back to you.

O'BRIEN: Well, that's good news. All right, Carol, thanks.

Let's take you right to that explosion at the BP oil refinery in Texas. Oil company officials say 14 workers were killed, more than 100 other workers and residents injured. Witnesses say black smoke and flames could be seen for miles. Terrorism is being ruled out as a possible cause.

Joining us this morning from the scene in Texas City, Texas, is Ross Pillari. He is the president of BP Americas.

Thank you for being with us. We certainly appreciate your time. And we have to start by saying our condolences. You've lost a large number of employees. You've had many, many of your employees and nearby residents as well injured. And so for that, we send condolences to you.

ROSS PILLARI, PRESIDENT, BP AMERICAS: Thank you very much.

O'BRIEN: Do you have any idea at this time what exactly happened?

PILLARI: No, it's a little too early to determine exactly what happened. We were in the middle of a turnaround process, which is a routine maintenance program at the refinery. But right now, we've been spending all of our time -- excuse me -- sorting out exactly what's happened with the people rather than with the equipment.

O'BRIEN: I know that you've had contractors in during this turnaround process in addition to some of the regular workers and the staff workers. Have you been able to account for all of the people? How many people have you not been able to account for?

PILLARI: Well, we've been able to account for everybody except one person, and this one person we know by our records checked last night, checked out of the refinery. But we haven't yet -- they haven't yet made contact with us or their families. So, we're still checking up on just that one person.

O'BRIEN: I know that the FBI was pretty quickly dispatched into the area. Any indication that there was any kind of sabotage? I know terrorism has been ruled out.

PILLARI: No, there's no indication of any sabotage or terrorism. It's not unusual for the FBI or other authorities to contact us whenever we have something like this happen. It's pretty routine.

O'BRIEN: Industry experts have pointed out that explosions at refineries like yours -- and yours is one of the biggest -- often happen during that turnaround process. Why is that? Why would that process be one of the times when explosions are likely to happen?

PILLARI: I think, you know, we find in our refineries any time you're taking equipment either up into an operation or down from an operation, you're making a major change. So those are usually the times of highest risk versus the times when you're just in routine operation.

O'BRIEN: It is known that OSHA found some serious safety violations in the past year at that particular refinery. Had those violations all been resolved prior to this explosion?

PILLARI: Yes, we do believe all of those had been resolved, and we do believe we've learned a lot. And as of now, we see no indication of any linkage back to those.

O'BRIEN: What kinds of lessons were learned? One of these previous problems resulted in deaths as well.

PILLARI: Well, I think, you know, all of the lessons you always learn time over time is it's good training. It's constant routine going over of the issues all the time, and just making sure people are alert and aware. Large manufacturing facilities like this are in inherently dangerous. And that's what we always have to keep reminding everybody of.

O'BRIEN: I know that the explosion happened in one part of the plant. Have the other parts been affected as well? Have you had to shut down the entire plant? Or can it operate with the one part of the plant that's closed off?

PILLARI: The rest of the plant is operating normally. Everything else is running. We've not had to shut everything else down. However, we have made sure that everybody has taken another look at the safety issues all around the area that was involved.

O'BRIEN: Well, obviously, we're going to talk again when the cause of this terrible explosion is known. Ross Pillari, the president of BP Americas, joining us this morning. Thanks for your time.

PILLARI: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Bill.

HEMMER: It's about 24 minutes now before the hour. We're going to go back to the Terri Schiavo matter now, because the legal avenues can be confusing and confounding, especially if you were following the hour-to-hour developments from yesterday. Let's follow that legal bouncing ball this morning with Lisa Bloom from Court TV, with me now.

Good morning to you.

LISA BLOOM, COURT TV: Good morning.

HEMMER: There are three jurisdictions basically we can examine right now. First at the federal level. BLOOM: Right.

HEMMER: What are the options at this point?

BLOOM: Well, it's all up to the U.S. Supreme Court now. It wouldn't be in the federal courts, because this is a private family and medical matter. Traditionally, it's left to the state court.

But, as you know, over the weekend, Congress passed an extraordinary bill.

Now, on Tuesday, this matter initially was decided by a federal district judge, who said the feeding tube should not be reinserted. Yesterday, that matter was taken up on appeal, and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, like the federal court for that jurisdiction, said, again, the feeding tube should not be reinserted.

The matter then went up to the full panel -- it's called the onbank (ph) panel -- yesterday, the 11-court panel. And they said again essentially that the plea of the parents was denied.

So now, Justice Kennedy of the U.S. Supreme Court will initially decide whether the Supreme Court should hear this matter. And then the full Supreme Court should rule, probably as early as today.

HEMMER: You think so?

BLOOM: Yes.

HEMMER: Today?

BLOOM: Yes, absolutely, because this is a life-or-death matter. This is her sixth day. They've got to rule.

HEMMER: So, if it's then decided the U.S. Supreme Court at some point, possibly today, at the state level back in Florida, her parents, her family have been very active. What are the options that we see today there?

BLOOM: That's right. Well, there's a new issue in the state court. Of course, Judge Greer (ph) in the state court has ruled repeatedly that the feeding tube should be removed. There's a new matter, though. Jeb Bush yesterday said that essentially that there's abuse going on by the husband, and that the social services agency should have custody of her. There was a new affidavit filed yesterday by a neurologist, saying that she does have a minimal level of consciousness. And we expect a ruling on that as well today.

HEMMER: Back in the statehouse in Tallahassee, though, there has been a lot of movement, too, by the Senate. What can you tell us about what the options that may or may not be left at this point? And part of that is based on what the governor did yesterday, too.

BLOOM: Well, exactly. And there are fewer and fewer options really, because the state legislature has already tried to pass a special bill years ago, saying that the feeding tube should be reinserted. That's been struck down as unconstitutional.

Yesterday, a new measure was introduced, saying that anyone in a persistent vegetative state should have feeding required under Florida law. But there just simply isn't the legislative will to get that passed. And so, it has not passed thus far.

HEMMER: All right, now, listen. As we scan the horizon, what surprises are possible out there that we have not considered?

BLOOM: You know, Bill, It's always possible that a private resolution could be reached between the husband and the parents of Terri Schiavo. It's been 12 years of litigation. It seems unlikely on a human level, but that's always possible. If another guardian came in, if somebody else assumed custody of Terri, a different decision could be made.

You know, this is one of the most complex legal matters in Florida since the 2000 election. And they say bad cases make bad law. I think that's the case here. It's very hard for courts to rule on such an expedited matter. Perhaps a private resolution could still be reached.

HEMMER: What is your sense then? Where does it end up? Does it end up back in the state? Is that where it's determined, the state of Florida?

BLOOM: Well, of course, time is ticking away for Terri, and she may expire before the courts have a chance to rule. Courts like to have a full briefing, full arguments in case like this. They simply don't have the time for it. Because of 12 years of litigation, it seems unlikely that a private resolution will be reached at this point.

HEMMER: All right, Lisa, thanks. Lisa Bloom, thanks for taking us through there.

BLOOM: Thank you.

HEMMER: It's 20 minutes now before the hour. Let's go back to Soledad with more.

O'BRIEN: All right. And let's take you right to the weather now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: Well, Sony's much-hyped Playstation portable is now on store shelves, but you might have trouble getting your hands on one. We'll tell you why ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. Here's Jack again and the "Question of the Day."

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you, Bill. Terri Schiavo's parents are making another last-ditch effort to get the Supreme Court of the United States to hear the case of their daughter. Congress and the president threw the jurisdiction of this thing into the laps of the federal courts with that rather unusual bit of late-night skullduggery they pulled off last weekend, passing a piece of legislation specifically for Terri Schiavo.

A federal appeals court has refused to hear the thing or order the tube reinserted. The Supreme Court in the past has declined to hear this case.

We want to know whether you think they ought to hear it this morning.

Mel in New York writes: "The only way the Supremes ought get involved with the Schiavo case would be to hear it with a view towards ruling whether such invasive private bills as this one are constitutional or not. I suspect they're not, and the federal courts need to establish precedent to send the president and Congress back to their own business."

Jerry in Georgia writes: "Absolutely, the Supreme Court should send a message to Congress to stay out of the judicial branch of government. States rights should upheld and the right of the individual responsible for making life and death decisions as determined by the court should be upheld."

Tammy writes: "No. It's time for everyone to butt the out of this very private family matter. The parents and the Bush family should be ashamed of themselves for putting their daughter in this political media circus."

Jane in Florida writes: "They should hear the case. If they find no federal issues involved, they should explain carefully how our justice system works. Public officials are jeopardizing that system for political gains."

And Lynn in Florida writes this in response to the suggestion that I made that this story is being over-covered to death: "Hey, Jack, stop complaining about having to hear about this and it being run into the ground. It could be worse, and you could be the one in that state. I bet you wouldn't be tired of them running it into the ground then, would you?"

I might ask for the thing to be pulled out just to get away from the noise.

O'BRIEN: Interesting responses. You know, I think at the end of the day, it certainly enlightened people about the role of Congress and how laws are not supposed to necessarily be made for one individual.

HEMMER: I'd fight for you, though.

CAFFERTY: That would be another reason to ask for the tube to be removed right there. Yank this thing out and get me out of here. HEMMER: Get me out of here.

O'BRIEN: Let's talk about business news, shall we? Moving right along, as they way. Sony's long-anticipated PSP, the Playstation portable, is now on the shelves. But it won't stay that way for very long.

Gerri Willis is in for Andy Serwer. He's on vacation, so she's "Minding Your Business."

Good morning.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I tell you, I'm obsessed with this thing, the PSP.

O'BRIEN: You like it, huh?

WILLIS: It has really great resolution, a fabulous little machine here. It's going to set you back about $250. It's the handheld version of Playstation II. Analysts are already saying that there may not be enough of these made already. We'll see, I guess.

It's going to cost you $40 to $50 for a game, though. We're looking at Wayne Gretzky's hockey game here. Twenty dollars to play movies, which is the big innovation here. And it plays music as well. But, you know, the movies you get to choose from, Soledad, you're going to love this. Do you want to see "Hell Boy" or "Resident Evil 2?" I don't know.

O'BRIEN: Oh.

WILLIS: I could go for some other stuff.

HEMMER: "Hell Boy."

WILLIS: Here's the cool thing about this that I want to show you. Everything is on these little items. The movies, the games, the music all goes on this. Sony wants to you buy these from them.

O'BRIEN: Of course.

WILLIS: So, it could limit how popular this is, because you can't use your old games.

O'BRIEN: Or conversely, make Sony's new product wildly popular.

WILLIS: Absolutely.

O'BRIEN: Very, very interesting.

WILLIS: Dan Sieberg is going to be here in the 9:00 hour to tell us a little bit about how it works and to demo it, because, you know, I couldn't pull it off.

O'BRIEN: Well, you just got it. You know, you're learning still. You're learning still. All right, Gerri, thanks. HEMMER: They think it's the next iPod, right?

WILLIS: It can't compete with my iPod. Nothing competes with my iPod.

HEMMER: That may be true. Thank you, Gerri.

We're going to get back to our series, "Faith in America," right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Now to our series, "Faith in America," this week. President Bush may have evangelicals to thank for his second term. Proof of the prominent role religion can play in politics.

This morning, Dan Lothian looks at how black churches in America are also trying to make a difference there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): From homeless to a Harvard degree, Reverend Alex Hurt is empowering African-Americans in Brockton, Massachusetts, just outside Boston, using his church as a springboard to create jobs, a school and low-income housing.

REVEREND ALEX HURT, KINGDOM CHURCH: But that's OK, because I got the gospel of life.

LOTHIAN: It may sound like a traditional urban ministry, but it isn't. Reverend Hurt is part of a growing number of black evangelicals finding common ground with a Republican administration.

HURT: For the first time, both parties are needing to take seriously the votes, the aspirations and hopes of the black church.

LOTHIAN: President Bush has been reaching out. He invited black clergy to the White House as he began his second term, a relationship often with differing opinions on many issues, but common thinking on social values.

HURT: We can be very supportive of this faith-based initiative and disagree with strenuously with him about Iraq. We can be incredibly supportive of him on some of his social initiatives, primarily I'm talking about gay marriage, but also be incredibly against his tax cuts.

LOTHIAN: Orphaned at eight, Hurt was sleeping in an abandoned slaughter house by 16. Long nights at a public library sparked his journey to Harvard. His values are rooted in faith, shaped by a hard life.

(on camera): Now he and other like-minded black ministers want to use their growing influence to impact policy from the pulpit, rallying the faithful around social values. (voice over): It's just one slice of the evangelical community using its power base to tackle new themes. For example, Reverend Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals and an avid scuba driver. He's literally wading into new waters, fighting global warming.

REVEREND TED HAGGARD, NEW LIFE CHURCH: I have observed the decline in the quality of corral reefs.

LOTHIAN: While he doesn't agree with the environmentalists' mantra, Haggard and other religious leaders who recently held high- level meetings on Capitol Hill say, as believers, this fight makes sense.

HAGGARD: We have a responsibility to care for the earth. We are the stewards of the earth.

LOTHIAN: And from a growing number of small conservative law schools, an evangelical movement to educate future lawyers on how they can build faith into their opinions, whether in government or in the courts.

What do Americans think about this? In a Gallup/CNN/"USA Today" poll conducted last year, 48 percent said the church or organized religion currently has too much political influence, 40 percent said too little.

And in another survey, 64 percent said religious leaders should not try to influence politicians in their positions on the issues.

So religion rises to a new kind of prominence.

(voice over): Professor Richard Parker, who teaches religion, politics and public policy at Harvard University, says this growing influence raises an important issue.

RICHARD PARKER, HARVARD UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR: The question is whether or not in pursuing religiously-framed values an element of intolerance or destruction of opponent's values is part of the process.

LOTHIAN: But Reverend Hurt believes there is power in connecting the spiritual and the material.

HURT: And we have to be engaged in the public square. These things aren't mutually exclusive.

LOTHIAN: Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: And tomorrow, continuing our series, "Faith in America," we'll look at the impact of religion in music.

In a moment here, should the government be involved in life-and- death decisions? The politics behind Terri Schiavo's right-to-die case when we continue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: A close call to tell you about in Florida. Animal control had their hands full with a feisty gator. There she is. More on that and today's top stories are just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.

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Aired March 24, 2005 - 07:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody. It's just about half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING.
In just a few minutes, Court TV's Lisa Bloom is going to join us. She's going to give us a roadmap of the remaining legal options in the Terri Schiavo case.

Also this morning, the search for victims in that massive refinery explosion in Texas. The president of BP America is going to join us in a little bit.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Also in a moment here, our special series, "Faith in America," continues today. We look today at black churches and how they could be discovering a new role as political powerbrokers among Republicans. We'll get to that.

First, across town, here's Carol Costello with the headlines.

Carol -- good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. And good morning to all of you.

"Now in the News."

Kyrgyzstan's president fleeing his office as thousands of protestors stormed the main government building there. That's in the old Soviet Union. The demonstrators are angry about recent elections and want the president's resignation. There are some reports of clashes with riot police, but no major violence. European officials are monitoring the situation.

President Bush is spending the day at his Crawford, Texas, ranch after playing host to leaders from Mexico and Canada. The three met Wednesday, announcing the formation of the so-called Social and Prosperity Partnership of North America. It's aimed at strengthening border safety and promoting economic growth.

Pop diva Whitney Houston is apparently back in rehab. A publicist is confirming the singer checked herself into a substance abuse program. It's not clear where and when. Houston had been in rehab at least once before. She checked into a facility one year ago after publicly admitting she had used cocaine, marijuana and pills.

And the woman held hostage by the suspected courthouse shooter in Atlanta, Brian Nichols, is being rewarded for her heroic efforts. Ashley Smith will be presented with a $10,000 check from the governor of Georgia during a ceremony this afternoon. Smith is also expected to receive more than $50,000 from other officials and agencies who promised rewards in that case. So she will get the money. It's a sure thing now.

Back to you.

O'BRIEN: Well, that's good news. All right, Carol, thanks.

Let's take you right to that explosion at the BP oil refinery in Texas. Oil company officials say 14 workers were killed, more than 100 other workers and residents injured. Witnesses say black smoke and flames could be seen for miles. Terrorism is being ruled out as a possible cause.

Joining us this morning from the scene in Texas City, Texas, is Ross Pillari. He is the president of BP Americas.

Thank you for being with us. We certainly appreciate your time. And we have to start by saying our condolences. You've lost a large number of employees. You've had many, many of your employees and nearby residents as well injured. And so for that, we send condolences to you.

ROSS PILLARI, PRESIDENT, BP AMERICAS: Thank you very much.

O'BRIEN: Do you have any idea at this time what exactly happened?

PILLARI: No, it's a little too early to determine exactly what happened. We were in the middle of a turnaround process, which is a routine maintenance program at the refinery. But right now, we've been spending all of our time -- excuse me -- sorting out exactly what's happened with the people rather than with the equipment.

O'BRIEN: I know that you've had contractors in during this turnaround process in addition to some of the regular workers and the staff workers. Have you been able to account for all of the people? How many people have you not been able to account for?

PILLARI: Well, we've been able to account for everybody except one person, and this one person we know by our records checked last night, checked out of the refinery. But we haven't yet -- they haven't yet made contact with us or their families. So, we're still checking up on just that one person.

O'BRIEN: I know that the FBI was pretty quickly dispatched into the area. Any indication that there was any kind of sabotage? I know terrorism has been ruled out.

PILLARI: No, there's no indication of any sabotage or terrorism. It's not unusual for the FBI or other authorities to contact us whenever we have something like this happen. It's pretty routine.

O'BRIEN: Industry experts have pointed out that explosions at refineries like yours -- and yours is one of the biggest -- often happen during that turnaround process. Why is that? Why would that process be one of the times when explosions are likely to happen?

PILLARI: I think, you know, we find in our refineries any time you're taking equipment either up into an operation or down from an operation, you're making a major change. So those are usually the times of highest risk versus the times when you're just in routine operation.

O'BRIEN: It is known that OSHA found some serious safety violations in the past year at that particular refinery. Had those violations all been resolved prior to this explosion?

PILLARI: Yes, we do believe all of those had been resolved, and we do believe we've learned a lot. And as of now, we see no indication of any linkage back to those.

O'BRIEN: What kinds of lessons were learned? One of these previous problems resulted in deaths as well.

PILLARI: Well, I think, you know, all of the lessons you always learn time over time is it's good training. It's constant routine going over of the issues all the time, and just making sure people are alert and aware. Large manufacturing facilities like this are in inherently dangerous. And that's what we always have to keep reminding everybody of.

O'BRIEN: I know that the explosion happened in one part of the plant. Have the other parts been affected as well? Have you had to shut down the entire plant? Or can it operate with the one part of the plant that's closed off?

PILLARI: The rest of the plant is operating normally. Everything else is running. We've not had to shut everything else down. However, we have made sure that everybody has taken another look at the safety issues all around the area that was involved.

O'BRIEN: Well, obviously, we're going to talk again when the cause of this terrible explosion is known. Ross Pillari, the president of BP Americas, joining us this morning. Thanks for your time.

PILLARI: Thank you.

O'BRIEN: Bill.

HEMMER: It's about 24 minutes now before the hour. We're going to go back to the Terri Schiavo matter now, because the legal avenues can be confusing and confounding, especially if you were following the hour-to-hour developments from yesterday. Let's follow that legal bouncing ball this morning with Lisa Bloom from Court TV, with me now.

Good morning to you.

LISA BLOOM, COURT TV: Good morning.

HEMMER: There are three jurisdictions basically we can examine right now. First at the federal level. BLOOM: Right.

HEMMER: What are the options at this point?

BLOOM: Well, it's all up to the U.S. Supreme Court now. It wouldn't be in the federal courts, because this is a private family and medical matter. Traditionally, it's left to the state court.

But, as you know, over the weekend, Congress passed an extraordinary bill.

Now, on Tuesday, this matter initially was decided by a federal district judge, who said the feeding tube should not be reinserted. Yesterday, that matter was taken up on appeal, and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, like the federal court for that jurisdiction, said, again, the feeding tube should not be reinserted.

The matter then went up to the full panel -- it's called the onbank (ph) panel -- yesterday, the 11-court panel. And they said again essentially that the plea of the parents was denied.

So now, Justice Kennedy of the U.S. Supreme Court will initially decide whether the Supreme Court should hear this matter. And then the full Supreme Court should rule, probably as early as today.

HEMMER: You think so?

BLOOM: Yes.

HEMMER: Today?

BLOOM: Yes, absolutely, because this is a life-or-death matter. This is her sixth day. They've got to rule.

HEMMER: So, if it's then decided the U.S. Supreme Court at some point, possibly today, at the state level back in Florida, her parents, her family have been very active. What are the options that we see today there?

BLOOM: That's right. Well, there's a new issue in the state court. Of course, Judge Greer (ph) in the state court has ruled repeatedly that the feeding tube should be removed. There's a new matter, though. Jeb Bush yesterday said that essentially that there's abuse going on by the husband, and that the social services agency should have custody of her. There was a new affidavit filed yesterday by a neurologist, saying that she does have a minimal level of consciousness. And we expect a ruling on that as well today.

HEMMER: Back in the statehouse in Tallahassee, though, there has been a lot of movement, too, by the Senate. What can you tell us about what the options that may or may not be left at this point? And part of that is based on what the governor did yesterday, too.

BLOOM: Well, exactly. And there are fewer and fewer options really, because the state legislature has already tried to pass a special bill years ago, saying that the feeding tube should be reinserted. That's been struck down as unconstitutional.

Yesterday, a new measure was introduced, saying that anyone in a persistent vegetative state should have feeding required under Florida law. But there just simply isn't the legislative will to get that passed. And so, it has not passed thus far.

HEMMER: All right, now, listen. As we scan the horizon, what surprises are possible out there that we have not considered?

BLOOM: You know, Bill, It's always possible that a private resolution could be reached between the husband and the parents of Terri Schiavo. It's been 12 years of litigation. It seems unlikely on a human level, but that's always possible. If another guardian came in, if somebody else assumed custody of Terri, a different decision could be made.

You know, this is one of the most complex legal matters in Florida since the 2000 election. And they say bad cases make bad law. I think that's the case here. It's very hard for courts to rule on such an expedited matter. Perhaps a private resolution could still be reached.

HEMMER: What is your sense then? Where does it end up? Does it end up back in the state? Is that where it's determined, the state of Florida?

BLOOM: Well, of course, time is ticking away for Terri, and she may expire before the courts have a chance to rule. Courts like to have a full briefing, full arguments in case like this. They simply don't have the time for it. Because of 12 years of litigation, it seems unlikely that a private resolution will be reached at this point.

HEMMER: All right, Lisa, thanks. Lisa Bloom, thanks for taking us through there.

BLOOM: Thank you.

HEMMER: It's 20 minutes now before the hour. Let's go back to Soledad with more.

O'BRIEN: All right. And let's take you right to the weather now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: Well, Sony's much-hyped Playstation portable is now on store shelves, but you might have trouble getting your hands on one. We'll tell you why ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Welcome back, everyone. Here's Jack again and the "Question of the Day."

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you, Bill. Terri Schiavo's parents are making another last-ditch effort to get the Supreme Court of the United States to hear the case of their daughter. Congress and the president threw the jurisdiction of this thing into the laps of the federal courts with that rather unusual bit of late-night skullduggery they pulled off last weekend, passing a piece of legislation specifically for Terri Schiavo.

A federal appeals court has refused to hear the thing or order the tube reinserted. The Supreme Court in the past has declined to hear this case.

We want to know whether you think they ought to hear it this morning.

Mel in New York writes: "The only way the Supremes ought get involved with the Schiavo case would be to hear it with a view towards ruling whether such invasive private bills as this one are constitutional or not. I suspect they're not, and the federal courts need to establish precedent to send the president and Congress back to their own business."

Jerry in Georgia writes: "Absolutely, the Supreme Court should send a message to Congress to stay out of the judicial branch of government. States rights should upheld and the right of the individual responsible for making life and death decisions as determined by the court should be upheld."

Tammy writes: "No. It's time for everyone to butt the out of this very private family matter. The parents and the Bush family should be ashamed of themselves for putting their daughter in this political media circus."

Jane in Florida writes: "They should hear the case. If they find no federal issues involved, they should explain carefully how our justice system works. Public officials are jeopardizing that system for political gains."

And Lynn in Florida writes this in response to the suggestion that I made that this story is being over-covered to death: "Hey, Jack, stop complaining about having to hear about this and it being run into the ground. It could be worse, and you could be the one in that state. I bet you wouldn't be tired of them running it into the ground then, would you?"

I might ask for the thing to be pulled out just to get away from the noise.

O'BRIEN: Interesting responses. You know, I think at the end of the day, it certainly enlightened people about the role of Congress and how laws are not supposed to necessarily be made for one individual.

HEMMER: I'd fight for you, though.

CAFFERTY: That would be another reason to ask for the tube to be removed right there. Yank this thing out and get me out of here. HEMMER: Get me out of here.

O'BRIEN: Let's talk about business news, shall we? Moving right along, as they way. Sony's long-anticipated PSP, the Playstation portable, is now on the shelves. But it won't stay that way for very long.

Gerri Willis is in for Andy Serwer. He's on vacation, so she's "Minding Your Business."

Good morning.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I tell you, I'm obsessed with this thing, the PSP.

O'BRIEN: You like it, huh?

WILLIS: It has really great resolution, a fabulous little machine here. It's going to set you back about $250. It's the handheld version of Playstation II. Analysts are already saying that there may not be enough of these made already. We'll see, I guess.

It's going to cost you $40 to $50 for a game, though. We're looking at Wayne Gretzky's hockey game here. Twenty dollars to play movies, which is the big innovation here. And it plays music as well. But, you know, the movies you get to choose from, Soledad, you're going to love this. Do you want to see "Hell Boy" or "Resident Evil 2?" I don't know.

O'BRIEN: Oh.

WILLIS: I could go for some other stuff.

HEMMER: "Hell Boy."

WILLIS: Here's the cool thing about this that I want to show you. Everything is on these little items. The movies, the games, the music all goes on this. Sony wants to you buy these from them.

O'BRIEN: Of course.

WILLIS: So, it could limit how popular this is, because you can't use your old games.

O'BRIEN: Or conversely, make Sony's new product wildly popular.

WILLIS: Absolutely.

O'BRIEN: Very, very interesting.

WILLIS: Dan Sieberg is going to be here in the 9:00 hour to tell us a little bit about how it works and to demo it, because, you know, I couldn't pull it off.

O'BRIEN: Well, you just got it. You know, you're learning still. You're learning still. All right, Gerri, thanks. HEMMER: They think it's the next iPod, right?

WILLIS: It can't compete with my iPod. Nothing competes with my iPod.

HEMMER: That may be true. Thank you, Gerri.

We're going to get back to our series, "Faith in America," right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Now to our series, "Faith in America," this week. President Bush may have evangelicals to thank for his second term. Proof of the prominent role religion can play in politics.

This morning, Dan Lothian looks at how black churches in America are also trying to make a difference there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): From homeless to a Harvard degree, Reverend Alex Hurt is empowering African-Americans in Brockton, Massachusetts, just outside Boston, using his church as a springboard to create jobs, a school and low-income housing.

REVEREND ALEX HURT, KINGDOM CHURCH: But that's OK, because I got the gospel of life.

LOTHIAN: It may sound like a traditional urban ministry, but it isn't. Reverend Hurt is part of a growing number of black evangelicals finding common ground with a Republican administration.

HURT: For the first time, both parties are needing to take seriously the votes, the aspirations and hopes of the black church.

LOTHIAN: President Bush has been reaching out. He invited black clergy to the White House as he began his second term, a relationship often with differing opinions on many issues, but common thinking on social values.

HURT: We can be very supportive of this faith-based initiative and disagree with strenuously with him about Iraq. We can be incredibly supportive of him on some of his social initiatives, primarily I'm talking about gay marriage, but also be incredibly against his tax cuts.

LOTHIAN: Orphaned at eight, Hurt was sleeping in an abandoned slaughter house by 16. Long nights at a public library sparked his journey to Harvard. His values are rooted in faith, shaped by a hard life.

(on camera): Now he and other like-minded black ministers want to use their growing influence to impact policy from the pulpit, rallying the faithful around social values. (voice over): It's just one slice of the evangelical community using its power base to tackle new themes. For example, Reverend Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals and an avid scuba driver. He's literally wading into new waters, fighting global warming.

REVEREND TED HAGGARD, NEW LIFE CHURCH: I have observed the decline in the quality of corral reefs.

LOTHIAN: While he doesn't agree with the environmentalists' mantra, Haggard and other religious leaders who recently held high- level meetings on Capitol Hill say, as believers, this fight makes sense.

HAGGARD: We have a responsibility to care for the earth. We are the stewards of the earth.

LOTHIAN: And from a growing number of small conservative law schools, an evangelical movement to educate future lawyers on how they can build faith into their opinions, whether in government or in the courts.

What do Americans think about this? In a Gallup/CNN/"USA Today" poll conducted last year, 48 percent said the church or organized religion currently has too much political influence, 40 percent said too little.

And in another survey, 64 percent said religious leaders should not try to influence politicians in their positions on the issues.

So religion rises to a new kind of prominence.

(voice over): Professor Richard Parker, who teaches religion, politics and public policy at Harvard University, says this growing influence raises an important issue.

RICHARD PARKER, HARVARD UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR: The question is whether or not in pursuing religiously-framed values an element of intolerance or destruction of opponent's values is part of the process.

LOTHIAN: But Reverend Hurt believes there is power in connecting the spiritual and the material.

HURT: And we have to be engaged in the public square. These things aren't mutually exclusive.

LOTHIAN: Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: And tomorrow, continuing our series, "Faith in America," we'll look at the impact of religion in music.

In a moment here, should the government be involved in life-and- death decisions? The politics behind Terri Schiavo's right-to-die case when we continue.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: A close call to tell you about in Florida. Animal control had their hands full with a feisty gator. There she is. More on that and today's top stories are just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.

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