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CNN Live At Daybreak

Schiavo Saga; Intelligence Report; First Lady's Trip; Pope's Feeding Tube; Zimbabwe Elections

Aired March 31, 2005 - 05:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello.
Here are some stories "Now in the News."

The U.S. Supreme Court refused again last night to hear an appeal by Terri Schiavo's parents. They want their severely brain-damaged daughter's feeding tube reinserted. That feeding tube was removed on March 18.

A White House appointed commission reports today on false intelligence regarding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The commission is expected to question the independence of analysts who prepare the national intelligence estimates.

Voters in Zimbabwe are electing members of Parliament today. One hundred twenty seats are at stake. Another 30 seats will be filled with members appointed by Robert Mugabe who has been president for a quarter century.

An American citizen and three Romanian journalists were kidnapped Monday in Iraq. Al Jazeera TV showed video of the four. The U.S. State Department, citing privacy considerations, has not identified the American.

And look at this picture, lightning hitting the top of the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington. The state was slammed with winds, rain, hail, lightning and snow.

Chad Myers in Atlanta.

Chad, you know those pictures look rather ominous.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.

WALLACE: But you're saying that it's not very dangerous at all?

MYERS: Not really. Actually, it's the best place to hit. There are 25 lightning rods on that thing, 24 around the outside and one right in the middle. Looks like it did hit the very highest one right in the middle. Lightning usually hits the highest object that it can. And those lightning rods are well grounded and everybody inside well protected when that happens, so. It happens many, many times a year, you just don't get pictures of it like that. That's a great shot from KING, our affiliate out there. (WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: It is amazing the technology there, though.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Every time we see that flash, a bolt of lightning.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Very, very savvy -- Chad.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: OK, talk to you a little bit more in a few minutes.

MYERS: Sounds good.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

To our top story again this morning, the Terri Schiavo case. For the second time this week, the Supreme Court has refused to intervene.

CNN's Sean Callebs is outside the Florida hospice where Schiavo is being cared for.

Good morning again to you, Sean. What has been the reaction from the Schindler's and their supporters to the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well I think that it's one of disappointment. If you think back on it, over the last several mornings, the Schindler family has always had something to look forward to, their emissaries going to Washington, D.C. trying to drum up support from congressional leaders. There were legal filings still floating around and they had a ray of hope out there that perhaps either an appeals court in Atlanta or the U.S. Supreme Court would step in, intervene in this case and make an effort to have the feeding tube reinserted.

But basically, at this point, we heard their attorney last night say that they believe they have exhausted all serious legal avenues at this point. There are still some nebulous things out there, but certainly their best hopes were dashed yesterday when the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as the U.S. appellate court in Atlanta, chose not to intervene in this.

We know that Bobby Schindler, brother of Terri Schiavo, who's only 13 months younger than Terri, he spent the night in the building just behind us. And as far as I know, it is the first time he has spent the entire night here. He came out and talked to us several hours ago and clearly weighing on the family. He simply can't sleep. He would like to go in and spend some time with his sister, Kelly, but because Michael Schiavo is in there, the Schindler family cannot go in and visit Terri unless Michael Schiavo is not in there. WALLACE: Sean, reading into that the fact that Bobby Schindler spent the first night, you think it's the first time, as far as you know, over these days right near the hospice, family getting any indication that we are in what could be the final hours here?

CALLEBS: You know we've talked to them over the past several days, and really the family has not talked about what appears to be the inevitable at this point. They have not talked about Terri passing away, what their wishes are. They still hold out hope. And we heard that yesterday from Mr. Schindler. He came out and said that without question he believes his daughter is still fighting.

WALLACE: OK, Sean, we will keep talking to you throughout the day on DAYBREAK.

Sean Callebs, reporting from Pinellas Park, Florida, thanks so much.

And a CNN "Security Watch" for you now, President Bush gets to hear the details today of the final report from a commission charged with investigating intelligence failures on Iraq's WMDs. As you all know, we're talking weapons of mass destruction.

And as CNN national security correspondent David Ensor reports, the panel found plenty of blame to go around.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush was briefed on the recommendations of his bipartisan commission on intelligence. Sources say the report offers harsh criticisms of intelligence failings on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and other issues and suggests more changes are needed.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We will carefully consider the recommendations and act quickly on the recommendations as well.

ENSOR: The commission report will charge, sources say, that at the newly created National Counterterrorism Center, where the CIA, FBI and other intelligence agencies work alongside each other, there still is not enough intelligence sharing. One analyst doesn't always know what's on the other analyst's computer, the same stovepiping problem that hurt the U.S. prior to the 9/11 attacks.

John McLaughlin is the former Deputy Director of Central Intelligence.

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: In this business, there's always a tension between the obvious need to share and, on the other hand, the need to be careful about sources and methods, that is, not to expose sources to danger to their lives and so forth.

ENSOR: The commission's recommendations will set the scene for next month's hearings on the nomination of Ambassador John Negroponte to be the first Director of National Intelligence and of General Michael Hayden to be his deputy.

One major question not resolved by the new intelligence reform law is who in the new system will be in charge of secret intelligence operations against terrorists.

MCLAUGHLIN: Much of that is to be worked out, because the legislation allows you to draw a number of conclusions on that point.

ENSOR (on camera): A senior U.S. official says the White House is already planning a series of executive orders to implement some of the recommendations of the commission. The official said it's not clear to him yet whether Congress will also need to get into the act with additional legislation.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And we'll be talking to White House correspondent Elaine Quijano in the 6:00 hour of DAYBREAK about that report.

And of course we want you to know stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Well as Terri Schiavo's family struggles with the ravages of her illness, so does the Vatican. It's dealing with the pope's health problems. And we'll tell you what promises the U.S. first lady made to women in Afghanistan. You are watching DAYBREAK for a Thursday morning. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

First Lady Laura Bush is back from a quick trip to Afghanistan. On her return flight, she talked about the importance of the U.S. commitment to that country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAURA BUSH, U.S. FIRST LADY: The history of Afghanistan is actually that they've been abandoned over the years. We, the United States, poured a lot of money into Afghanistan during the Soviet War and then we left when the Soviets did. And they don't want to be abandoned by the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: As for Afghanistan's president, he says the first lady's visit was worth much more than money, even if it was for only six hours.

CNN's Zain Verjee has details on the trip.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Until the last minute, her trip was a secret. America's first lady landed in Kabul, Afghanistan, amid heavy security. Laura Bush brought a message from American women to Afghan women.

BUSH: We want to encourage them to send their girls to school, to get educated.

VERJEE: Speaking at a teacher's training institute, Laura Bush, a former teacher and librarian, drove home her message saying, "democracies must give women basic tools to succeed."

BUSH: And the most critical tool of all is education.

VERJEE: Wearing an Afghan scarf on her shoulders, Mrs. Bush met with Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai. She spent time talking to teachers and students, and even bought some local cookies for a dollar.

BUSH: Very good deal.

VERJEE: Mrs. Bush committed millions of dollars to fund an international school and an American university in Afghanistan. Under the repressive Taliban regime, women were banned from attending school. They also had to be clad top to toe in a veil or face severe beating.

BUSH: It's an extraordinary privilege to be with you today, to celebrate the incredible progress that's been made by the people of Afghanistan over the past four years. I have especially watched with great pride as courageous women across your country have taken on leadership roles, as students, teachers, judges, doctors, business and community leaders, ministers, and governor.

VERJEE: In spite of the progress, women still face hurdles. Not everyone in Afghanistan likes the changes, and conservative customs mean women's movements are still restricted. Warlords and remnants of the Taliban regime, according to human rights groups, have intimidated and sometimes beaten women who have tried to break out of traditional roles.

Still, according to the United Nations, nearly two-and-a-half million girls are enrolled in schools today, an accomplishment that Laura Bush credited, at least in part, to the presence of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Zain Verjee reporting on First Lady Laura Bush's visit to Afghanistan.

Right now there are some 17,000 U.S. troops in that country.

Well your news, money, weather and sports. It's about 45 minutes after the hour, and here is what is all new this morning. Late last night, the U.S. Supreme Court again refused to hear an emergency appeal from Terri Schiavo's parents. This latest rejection comes nearly two weeks after the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube was removed.

A presidential commission reports this morning on intelligence failures regarding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. The panel also will recommend how to improve the nation's intelligence agencies.

In money, Wal-Mart is hoping to lure serious music lovers with the help of Quincy Jones. "The Wall Street Journal" says Jones is helping the retailer design a high-end sound system to knock your socks off for about 500 bucks.

In culture, Robert Redford's production company is teaming up to produce a film based on the life of Jackie Robinson. Redford also will play the part of Branch Rickey, the Dodgers executive who signed Robinson to play in the Major Leagues.

In sports, Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash notched a triple double, I'm still trying to learn what that means, in leading his team to a 29-point lead over the Philadelphia 76ers. The win clinches the Pacific Division Title for the Suns. Their first in a decade.

Chad, not putting you on the spot, but what is a triple double in basketball?

MYERS: I think it's rebounds, assists and points. You have double digits on all of them, more than 10 of each one.

WALLACE: I knew you would know the answer to that.

MYERS: I think that's a triple double.

WALLACE: You know everything.

MYERS: I know the daily double and I know quinella and I know trifecta and all that kind of stuff, but that's a different game all together.

WALLACE: OK.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Kelly, back to you.

WALLACE: Chad, that's why I like sitting in for Carol Costello,...

MYERS: Because you get the weekend off?

WALLACE: ... I learn something knew every time I do this.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: OK, thanks so much. We'll talk to you in a few minutes.

News now about Pope John Paul II. Last year the pope said a feeding tube is not an extraordinary measure. Well now the pontiff himself is getting extra nutrition from a tube, but Vatican experts are quick to point out that the pope's situation is drastically different than that of Terri Schiavo.

CNN's Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): Vatican officials say the nasal feeding tube is a temporary measure meant to increase the pope's intake of calories and to help speed the pope's recovery. They insist it is not an emergency procedure to keep the pope alive. Nobody at the Vatican is drawing parallels between Terri Schiavo and the frail condition of the pope. And Vatican analysts agree the two cases are quite different.

JOHN ALLEN, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: The pope is not unconscious. The pope continues to be lucid, therefore, we have to assume is calling the shots for himself about his course of treatment. Obviously, Terri Schiavo is not.

Secondly, this is not immediately life-threatening in the case of the pope. In the case of Schiavo, if the -- obviously, when the water and nutrition is withdrawn, she dies. With the case of the pope, this does not appear to be that kind of situation.

Apparently what is happening is that he is having difficulty swallowing solid or semi-solid food. That accounts for the fact that he has noticeably lost weight in recent days. This is an attempt to make sure he gets the nutrition he needs so he doesn't get dangerously underweight.

VINCI: Pope John Paul II himself wrote on the subject a year ago, saying that doctors have a moral duty to preserve life and that "the administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural way of preserving life, not a medical procedure."

Church officials say they are against keeping a person alive at all costs, especially if medical intervention prolongs the patient's agony. But the Vatican insists artificially feeding and hydrating a person in a vegetative state does not constitute aggressive therapy. And because Terri Schiavo has not been pronounced brain-dead, Vatican officials say she must be kept alive.

CARDINAL JAVIER LOZANO BARRAGAN, PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR HEALTH: The end of the life is a question that is only in the hands of God. This is our belief. It is not something that must be in the hands of politicians or in the hands of the physicians, but in the hands of God only.

VINCI: But the debate over Schiavo's fate has once more raised questions that no one inside or outside the Vatican has answered, what would happen should the pope become incapacitated? Should he one day require artificial means to breathe, eat and drink, for how long should these machines be kept on? And who would make the decision to pull the plug?

FATHER BRIAN JOHNSTONE, MORAL THEOLOGIAN: There is no provision in Canon Law for dealing with a situation where the pope himself simply is not in a position to make decisions, so that would cause considerable difficulty.

VINCI (on camera): Combining the dilemma of an incapacitated pope with the ability of modern medicine to keep a person alive for a long time has led some to suggest future popes should be bound by age limit. A proposal senior Vatican officials here are dismissing, saying it is God who chooses the pope, and only God can decide when his term expires.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

It is parliamentary election day in Zimbabwe where President Robert Mugabe has ruled for 25 years and where thousands of farms have been seized from white owners and given to black settlers.

CNN's Jeff Koinange visited one threatened farm in Zimbabwe.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE CAMPBELL, MOUNT CARMEL FARM: I think we're being targeted to make it as unpleasant as possible for us here.

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mike Campbell and his son-in-law, Ben Freeth, are two of a fast disappearing breed in Zimbabwe. They are commercial white farmers growing mangos and citrus fruits mainly for export. But under a government land redistribution policy now in its fifth year, they have been forced to give up half their land.

BEN FREETH, MOUNT CARMEL FARM: It's quite frightening when you look at the number of people because of their color of their skin that have actually been chased off their farms.

KOINANGE: Both men find it difficult to hide their anger at what they call the government's deliberate policy targeting what it calls non-Africans. Mike Campbell says his family has farmed here for more than 200 years.

CAMPBELL: And I'm as much an African as they are, even though my skin is white.

KOINANGE: Since 2000, several white farmers and scores of black farm workers have been killed in clashes. Hundreds more have been injured or forced to flee the country.

(on camera): Now to put things in a bit of perspective, up to four years ago there were as many as 400 commercial white farmers in this area alone. That number is now down to just 50, many of them forced off their lands. But for some, like Mike Campbell, he insists there's only one way that he will be forced to leave his land.

CAMPBELL: And if they want to kill me, they can kill me. I mean I think there are 12 farmers that already have been killed. If my fate has got to be like that, well so be it.

KOINANGE (voice-over): President Mugabe told CNN that the land doesn't belong to farmers like Campbell.

ROBERT MUGABE, ZIMBABWE PRESIDENT: The land is ours. It's not European. It's our land. And we have taken it. We have given it to the rightful people. Those of the white extraction who happen to be in the country and are farming are welcome to do so, but they must do so on the basis of equality with us.

KOINANGE: In the middle of Campbell's farm, a cluster of shacks, evidence on the ground of Mugabe's resettlement policy. The white farmers don't talk to their so-called tenets, but we wanted to know why they've settled here. They showed us their parched land where they had planted maize and other crops. All they want, they say, is a chance to live side by side with the farmers.

NATASHA NAKAMORO, SETTLER: If we share the land, half, that will be good. So because we don't have somewhere to go, so if we share, I think it will be fair.

KOINANGE: In a country once known as the breadbasket of Africa, land is everything. The struggle to control it will not go away with this election, nor will the hardships of millions of Zimbabweans who often go hungry.

Jeff Koinange, CNN, Mount Carmel Farm in eastern Zimbabwe.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: All new in the second hour of DAYBREAK, the minuteman project on the border. Sounds patriotic and innocent enough, but some call them vigilantes, others call them possibly dangerous and now the government is watching.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired March 31, 2005 - 05:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace in today for Carol Costello.
Here are some stories "Now in the News."

The U.S. Supreme Court refused again last night to hear an appeal by Terri Schiavo's parents. They want their severely brain-damaged daughter's feeding tube reinserted. That feeding tube was removed on March 18.

A White House appointed commission reports today on false intelligence regarding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The commission is expected to question the independence of analysts who prepare the national intelligence estimates.

Voters in Zimbabwe are electing members of Parliament today. One hundred twenty seats are at stake. Another 30 seats will be filled with members appointed by Robert Mugabe who has been president for a quarter century.

An American citizen and three Romanian journalists were kidnapped Monday in Iraq. Al Jazeera TV showed video of the four. The U.S. State Department, citing privacy considerations, has not identified the American.

And look at this picture, lightning hitting the top of the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington. The state was slammed with winds, rain, hail, lightning and snow.

Chad Myers in Atlanta.

Chad, you know those pictures look rather ominous.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.

WALLACE: But you're saying that it's not very dangerous at all?

MYERS: Not really. Actually, it's the best place to hit. There are 25 lightning rods on that thing, 24 around the outside and one right in the middle. Looks like it did hit the very highest one right in the middle. Lightning usually hits the highest object that it can. And those lightning rods are well grounded and everybody inside well protected when that happens, so. It happens many, many times a year, you just don't get pictures of it like that. That's a great shot from KING, our affiliate out there. (WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: It is amazing the technology there, though.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Every time we see that flash, a bolt of lightning.

MYERS: Yes.

WALLACE: Very, very savvy -- Chad.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: OK, talk to you a little bit more in a few minutes.

MYERS: Sounds good.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

To our top story again this morning, the Terri Schiavo case. For the second time this week, the Supreme Court has refused to intervene.

CNN's Sean Callebs is outside the Florida hospice where Schiavo is being cared for.

Good morning again to you, Sean. What has been the reaction from the Schindler's and their supporters to the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well I think that it's one of disappointment. If you think back on it, over the last several mornings, the Schindler family has always had something to look forward to, their emissaries going to Washington, D.C. trying to drum up support from congressional leaders. There were legal filings still floating around and they had a ray of hope out there that perhaps either an appeals court in Atlanta or the U.S. Supreme Court would step in, intervene in this case and make an effort to have the feeding tube reinserted.

But basically, at this point, we heard their attorney last night say that they believe they have exhausted all serious legal avenues at this point. There are still some nebulous things out there, but certainly their best hopes were dashed yesterday when the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as the U.S. appellate court in Atlanta, chose not to intervene in this.

We know that Bobby Schindler, brother of Terri Schiavo, who's only 13 months younger than Terri, he spent the night in the building just behind us. And as far as I know, it is the first time he has spent the entire night here. He came out and talked to us several hours ago and clearly weighing on the family. He simply can't sleep. He would like to go in and spend some time with his sister, Kelly, but because Michael Schiavo is in there, the Schindler family cannot go in and visit Terri unless Michael Schiavo is not in there. WALLACE: Sean, reading into that the fact that Bobby Schindler spent the first night, you think it's the first time, as far as you know, over these days right near the hospice, family getting any indication that we are in what could be the final hours here?

CALLEBS: You know we've talked to them over the past several days, and really the family has not talked about what appears to be the inevitable at this point. They have not talked about Terri passing away, what their wishes are. They still hold out hope. And we heard that yesterday from Mr. Schindler. He came out and said that without question he believes his daughter is still fighting.

WALLACE: OK, Sean, we will keep talking to you throughout the day on DAYBREAK.

Sean Callebs, reporting from Pinellas Park, Florida, thanks so much.

And a CNN "Security Watch" for you now, President Bush gets to hear the details today of the final report from a commission charged with investigating intelligence failures on Iraq's WMDs. As you all know, we're talking weapons of mass destruction.

And as CNN national security correspondent David Ensor reports, the panel found plenty of blame to go around.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush was briefed on the recommendations of his bipartisan commission on intelligence. Sources say the report offers harsh criticisms of intelligence failings on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and other issues and suggests more changes are needed.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We will carefully consider the recommendations and act quickly on the recommendations as well.

ENSOR: The commission report will charge, sources say, that at the newly created National Counterterrorism Center, where the CIA, FBI and other intelligence agencies work alongside each other, there still is not enough intelligence sharing. One analyst doesn't always know what's on the other analyst's computer, the same stovepiping problem that hurt the U.S. prior to the 9/11 attacks.

John McLaughlin is the former Deputy Director of Central Intelligence.

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: In this business, there's always a tension between the obvious need to share and, on the other hand, the need to be careful about sources and methods, that is, not to expose sources to danger to their lives and so forth.

ENSOR: The commission's recommendations will set the scene for next month's hearings on the nomination of Ambassador John Negroponte to be the first Director of National Intelligence and of General Michael Hayden to be his deputy.

One major question not resolved by the new intelligence reform law is who in the new system will be in charge of secret intelligence operations against terrorists.

MCLAUGHLIN: Much of that is to be worked out, because the legislation allows you to draw a number of conclusions on that point.

ENSOR (on camera): A senior U.S. official says the White House is already planning a series of executive orders to implement some of the recommendations of the commission. The official said it's not clear to him yet whether Congress will also need to get into the act with additional legislation.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And we'll be talking to White House correspondent Elaine Quijano in the 6:00 hour of DAYBREAK about that report.

And of course we want you to know stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Well as Terri Schiavo's family struggles with the ravages of her illness, so does the Vatican. It's dealing with the pope's health problems. And we'll tell you what promises the U.S. first lady made to women in Afghanistan. You are watching DAYBREAK for a Thursday morning. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And welcome back.

First Lady Laura Bush is back from a quick trip to Afghanistan. On her return flight, she talked about the importance of the U.S. commitment to that country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAURA BUSH, U.S. FIRST LADY: The history of Afghanistan is actually that they've been abandoned over the years. We, the United States, poured a lot of money into Afghanistan during the Soviet War and then we left when the Soviets did. And they don't want to be abandoned by the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: As for Afghanistan's president, he says the first lady's visit was worth much more than money, even if it was for only six hours.

CNN's Zain Verjee has details on the trip.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Until the last minute, her trip was a secret. America's first lady landed in Kabul, Afghanistan, amid heavy security. Laura Bush brought a message from American women to Afghan women.

BUSH: We want to encourage them to send their girls to school, to get educated.

VERJEE: Speaking at a teacher's training institute, Laura Bush, a former teacher and librarian, drove home her message saying, "democracies must give women basic tools to succeed."

BUSH: And the most critical tool of all is education.

VERJEE: Wearing an Afghan scarf on her shoulders, Mrs. Bush met with Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai. She spent time talking to teachers and students, and even bought some local cookies for a dollar.

BUSH: Very good deal.

VERJEE: Mrs. Bush committed millions of dollars to fund an international school and an American university in Afghanistan. Under the repressive Taliban regime, women were banned from attending school. They also had to be clad top to toe in a veil or face severe beating.

BUSH: It's an extraordinary privilege to be with you today, to celebrate the incredible progress that's been made by the people of Afghanistan over the past four years. I have especially watched with great pride as courageous women across your country have taken on leadership roles, as students, teachers, judges, doctors, business and community leaders, ministers, and governor.

VERJEE: In spite of the progress, women still face hurdles. Not everyone in Afghanistan likes the changes, and conservative customs mean women's movements are still restricted. Warlords and remnants of the Taliban regime, according to human rights groups, have intimidated and sometimes beaten women who have tried to break out of traditional roles.

Still, according to the United Nations, nearly two-and-a-half million girls are enrolled in schools today, an accomplishment that Laura Bush credited, at least in part, to the presence of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Zain Verjee reporting on First Lady Laura Bush's visit to Afghanistan.

Right now there are some 17,000 U.S. troops in that country.

Well your news, money, weather and sports. It's about 45 minutes after the hour, and here is what is all new this morning. Late last night, the U.S. Supreme Court again refused to hear an emergency appeal from Terri Schiavo's parents. This latest rejection comes nearly two weeks after the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube was removed.

A presidential commission reports this morning on intelligence failures regarding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. The panel also will recommend how to improve the nation's intelligence agencies.

In money, Wal-Mart is hoping to lure serious music lovers with the help of Quincy Jones. "The Wall Street Journal" says Jones is helping the retailer design a high-end sound system to knock your socks off for about 500 bucks.

In culture, Robert Redford's production company is teaming up to produce a film based on the life of Jackie Robinson. Redford also will play the part of Branch Rickey, the Dodgers executive who signed Robinson to play in the Major Leagues.

In sports, Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash notched a triple double, I'm still trying to learn what that means, in leading his team to a 29-point lead over the Philadelphia 76ers. The win clinches the Pacific Division Title for the Suns. Their first in a decade.

Chad, not putting you on the spot, but what is a triple double in basketball?

MYERS: I think it's rebounds, assists and points. You have double digits on all of them, more than 10 of each one.

WALLACE: I knew you would know the answer to that.

MYERS: I think that's a triple double.

WALLACE: You know everything.

MYERS: I know the daily double and I know quinella and I know trifecta and all that kind of stuff, but that's a different game all together.

WALLACE: OK.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Kelly, back to you.

WALLACE: Chad, that's why I like sitting in for Carol Costello,...

MYERS: Because you get the weekend off?

WALLACE: ... I learn something knew every time I do this.

MYERS: OK.

WALLACE: OK, thanks so much. We'll talk to you in a few minutes.

News now about Pope John Paul II. Last year the pope said a feeding tube is not an extraordinary measure. Well now the pontiff himself is getting extra nutrition from a tube, but Vatican experts are quick to point out that the pope's situation is drastically different than that of Terri Schiavo.

CNN's Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): Vatican officials say the nasal feeding tube is a temporary measure meant to increase the pope's intake of calories and to help speed the pope's recovery. They insist it is not an emergency procedure to keep the pope alive. Nobody at the Vatican is drawing parallels between Terri Schiavo and the frail condition of the pope. And Vatican analysts agree the two cases are quite different.

JOHN ALLEN, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: The pope is not unconscious. The pope continues to be lucid, therefore, we have to assume is calling the shots for himself about his course of treatment. Obviously, Terri Schiavo is not.

Secondly, this is not immediately life-threatening in the case of the pope. In the case of Schiavo, if the -- obviously, when the water and nutrition is withdrawn, she dies. With the case of the pope, this does not appear to be that kind of situation.

Apparently what is happening is that he is having difficulty swallowing solid or semi-solid food. That accounts for the fact that he has noticeably lost weight in recent days. This is an attempt to make sure he gets the nutrition he needs so he doesn't get dangerously underweight.

VINCI: Pope John Paul II himself wrote on the subject a year ago, saying that doctors have a moral duty to preserve life and that "the administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural way of preserving life, not a medical procedure."

Church officials say they are against keeping a person alive at all costs, especially if medical intervention prolongs the patient's agony. But the Vatican insists artificially feeding and hydrating a person in a vegetative state does not constitute aggressive therapy. And because Terri Schiavo has not been pronounced brain-dead, Vatican officials say she must be kept alive.

CARDINAL JAVIER LOZANO BARRAGAN, PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR HEALTH: The end of the life is a question that is only in the hands of God. This is our belief. It is not something that must be in the hands of politicians or in the hands of the physicians, but in the hands of God only.

VINCI: But the debate over Schiavo's fate has once more raised questions that no one inside or outside the Vatican has answered, what would happen should the pope become incapacitated? Should he one day require artificial means to breathe, eat and drink, for how long should these machines be kept on? And who would make the decision to pull the plug?

FATHER BRIAN JOHNSTONE, MORAL THEOLOGIAN: There is no provision in Canon Law for dealing with a situation where the pope himself simply is not in a position to make decisions, so that would cause considerable difficulty.

VINCI (on camera): Combining the dilemma of an incapacitated pope with the ability of modern medicine to keep a person alive for a long time has led some to suggest future popes should be bound by age limit. A proposal senior Vatican officials here are dismissing, saying it is God who chooses the pope, and only God can decide when his term expires.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.

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WALLACE: And welcome back.

It is parliamentary election day in Zimbabwe where President Robert Mugabe has ruled for 25 years and where thousands of farms have been seized from white owners and given to black settlers.

CNN's Jeff Koinange visited one threatened farm in Zimbabwe.

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MIKE CAMPBELL, MOUNT CARMEL FARM: I think we're being targeted to make it as unpleasant as possible for us here.

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mike Campbell and his son-in-law, Ben Freeth, are two of a fast disappearing breed in Zimbabwe. They are commercial white farmers growing mangos and citrus fruits mainly for export. But under a government land redistribution policy now in its fifth year, they have been forced to give up half their land.

BEN FREETH, MOUNT CARMEL FARM: It's quite frightening when you look at the number of people because of their color of their skin that have actually been chased off their farms.

KOINANGE: Both men find it difficult to hide their anger at what they call the government's deliberate policy targeting what it calls non-Africans. Mike Campbell says his family has farmed here for more than 200 years.

CAMPBELL: And I'm as much an African as they are, even though my skin is white.

KOINANGE: Since 2000, several white farmers and scores of black farm workers have been killed in clashes. Hundreds more have been injured or forced to flee the country.

(on camera): Now to put things in a bit of perspective, up to four years ago there were as many as 400 commercial white farmers in this area alone. That number is now down to just 50, many of them forced off their lands. But for some, like Mike Campbell, he insists there's only one way that he will be forced to leave his land.

CAMPBELL: And if they want to kill me, they can kill me. I mean I think there are 12 farmers that already have been killed. If my fate has got to be like that, well so be it.

KOINANGE (voice-over): President Mugabe told CNN that the land doesn't belong to farmers like Campbell.

ROBERT MUGABE, ZIMBABWE PRESIDENT: The land is ours. It's not European. It's our land. And we have taken it. We have given it to the rightful people. Those of the white extraction who happen to be in the country and are farming are welcome to do so, but they must do so on the basis of equality with us.

KOINANGE: In the middle of Campbell's farm, a cluster of shacks, evidence on the ground of Mugabe's resettlement policy. The white farmers don't talk to their so-called tenets, but we wanted to know why they've settled here. They showed us their parched land where they had planted maize and other crops. All they want, they say, is a chance to live side by side with the farmers.

NATASHA NAKAMORO, SETTLER: If we share the land, half, that will be good. So because we don't have somewhere to go, so if we share, I think it will be fair.

KOINANGE: In a country once known as the breadbasket of Africa, land is everything. The struggle to control it will not go away with this election, nor will the hardships of millions of Zimbabweans who often go hungry.

Jeff Koinange, CNN, Mount Carmel Farm in eastern Zimbabwe.

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WALLACE: All new in the second hour of DAYBREAK, the minuteman project on the border. Sounds patriotic and innocent enough, but some call them vigilantes, others call them possibly dangerous and now the government is watching.

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