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American Morning
Violence Increasing in Iraq; Questions Over Moussaoui's Competency
Aired April 21, 2005 - 08:00 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: A chopper possibly shot down, a car bombing, an assassination attempt, a multiple execution. Violence is way up in Iraq and now 50 bodies may lead to a wider national split.
Macauley Culkin may take the stand today in the Michael Jackson trial. His story could turn the tide in this case.
And the thrill rides are supposed to be scary when they're moving. This one got that way when it stopped 900 feet in the air. Two girls describe their rescue on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
HEMMER: Good morning, everybody.
Almost 8:00 here in New York.
Soledad is off today.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Carol Costello.
Good morning to you.
HEMMER: In a moment here, the judge says Zacarias Moussaoui is mentally competent to plead guilty to involvement in the attacks of 9/11. His mother says he's only doing it because he's not in the right mind. We'll talk to the mother's attorney in a moment here.
COSTELLO: Also, Boston's big dig. Do you know about this? It's a traffic tunnel. It's also a $15 billion nightmare. The government says, though, don't worry about the leaks and the cracks and those big chunks falling off. We'll find out what's going on under the streets of Boston.
HEMMER: Standard maintenance, right?
COSTELLO: Yes, right.
HEMMER: That's a beautiful construction project. It really transformed that town, downtown.
COSTELLO: If it worked, it would be great.
HEMMER: Well, I think it works for the most part. It's all right, yes.
Hey -- Jack, what's happening?
Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
Coming up in "The Cafferty File," you'll soon have to send your kid to an Ivy League school in a Brinks truck.
Robots ride to the rescue aboard camels in the Middle East.
And a Vietnam vet waits in line for an hour-and-a-half to let Jane Fonda know he remembers.
HEMMER: Ooh.
Thank you, Jack.
Valerie Morris with us today and the headlines, top of the hour now -- Valerie, good morning.
VALERIE MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to all of you again.
And good morning to you.
Now in the news, Russia and NATO today signing an agreement for greater military cooperation. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is among the NATO representatives meeting in Lithuania. The new deal with Russia paves the way for joint military exercises and eventually even greater military cooperation.
Meantime back in Washington, Social Security reform is topping President Bush's agenda again this morning. He's scheduled to make a speech on the subject two hours from now at a convention for insurance agents. It's being held in Washington.
Investigators near Little Rock, Arkansas are sifting through debris. They are trying to figure out what started a fire at a mobile home. At least six people were killed in Wednesday's blaze, including five young children. The identities of the victims are not being released.
Florida's state legislature is moving quickly on a bill to require either life in prison or lifetime monitoring of dangerous sex offenders. The bill is named after this little girl, Jessica Lunsford. She was murdered last month in Homosassa, Florida. Wednesday, prosecutors revealed more details about her death. They claim the suspect, John Couey, sexually abused the 9-year-old and then buried her alive. They say she was found in a kneeling position clutching a stuffed dolphin.
NASA is pushing back the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The space agency says it needs more time to complete some testing and engineering work. The new launch date is May 22. That's one week later than originally planned. The Discovery is scheduled for a 12- day mission to make repairs to the International Space Station.
And you are up to date -- back to Carol and Bill.
HEMMER: All right, thanks, Valerie.
COSTELLO: Thanks, Valerie.
New developments in Iraq this morning. U.S. military sources tell CNN that nine people died today when a commercial helicopter went down between Baghdad and Tikrit. Also, Iraqi officials say 50 bodies found in the Tigris River may be Shiite hostages.
Let's head live now to Baghdad, where CNN's Ryan Chilcote is standing by with the very latest -- Ryan, what do we know about this helicopter crash?
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, well, what we know at this point -- and all of this information is coming from U.S. officials -- is that a commercial helicopter has gone down somewhere between Baghdad and Tikrit. Now, these U.S. officials believe that this helicopter was shot down, killing all nine individuals on board. They believe that three of the nine individuals were crew members and that six were passengers. They believe that all three crew members were Belgians. They just don't know the nationalities of the passengers at this point -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ryan, there's been a considerable amount of other violence in the country over the past 24 hours.
What's happening there?
CHILCOTE: Well, it's been a, really, a series of violence and also the location, in two different locations in Iraq, of bodies. And we start just south of Baghdad. The Iraqi president just yesterday saying that they found the bodies of more than 50 Iraqis in the Tigris. And since then, we've spoken with Iraqi police officials, who tell us that they have recovered the bodies of 57 Iraqis from the Tigris over the course of a two week period, something in the ball park of two to three individuals a day over that period.
They say that they were effectively floating down the Tigris and that they were caught up on a makeshift portable dam. That's where those bodies were recovered from. They say that the bodies include the bodies of women and children. And they have been photographing them, trying to identify them and burying them. But so far they've only managed to identify one of those bodies.
That is just one location in Iraq where they've located these bodies. There is a separate set of -- a separate find in the northwest of the country, in the city of Hadifa. That's where Iraqi police tell CNN 20 Iraqi soldiers were abducted by insurgents while they were on leave. They were in civilian dress. They were abducted from the cars they were in on the highway, brought to a soccer stadium. And a short while later their bodies were found lined up against a bloodstained wall there. And in the capital, violence again, both overnight and today. Overnight, an attempted assassination attempt against the interim, the Iraqi interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi. He escaped that assassination attempt. It was an enormous car bomb -- we actually felt it here -- that went off at a checkpoint just outside of his party headquarters. Some, his spokesman says some of his security personnel that were at that site were killed and wounded in that attack.
And then today, just this morning here in Baghdad, a makeshift bomb going off on the road out to the airport, killing at least two. Iraqi police telling us that they saw a convoy of three SUVs on its way out to the airport when the blast went off. SUVs are usually what Western contractors use here in Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
Thank you.
HEMMER: Five minutes past the hour now.
Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person publicly charged in connection with the attacks of 9/11, plans to plead guilty during a public hearing on Friday. Moussaoui expected to admit he had some knowledge of the terrorist plot.
But some close to Moussaoui also say they do not believe he's competent enough to enter that plea.
Randall Hamud is the attorney for Moussaoui's mother.
He's my guest in San Diego.
And good morning to you, sir.
Will he go through with this tomorrow?
RANDALL HAMUD, ATTORNEY FOR MOUSSAOUI'S MOTHER: Nobody really knows for certain because he changes his mind quite often. But this seems to be pretty much his intention. And, tragically, his mother is very much of the opinion that he's not mentally competent to do so because of the onerous conditions of his incarceration have taken their toll thus far on him.
HEMMER: Well, the federal judge says, you know, she's met with him and considers him to be mentally competent. So we have to go, at this point, on the judge's word going forward.
HAMUD: I don't know that the judge should have a last word on something as important as that. I think he should be subjected to proper psychiatric evaluation, and so does his mother.
HEMMER: He's changed his mind before, right?
HAMUD: Yes, he... HEMMER: Three years ago, in 2002?
What happened then?
HAMUD: Well, at the time they were, they abated the proceedings because they weren't sure he was competent to do it at that time. Then he changed his mind. Then he sought to be his own lawyer. He was appointed by the court to be his own lawyer. Then the court felt he was no longer competent to act as his own attorney, took that prerogative away from him, reappointed his defense attorneys. And then the mother has seen a complete decline in his mental since that time. And there are serious questions, I think, about whether this man is competent and perhaps her honor is just not the right person to evaluate this.
HEMMER: Well, stay on the 2002 case.
Was he mentally competent then?
HAMUD: The question at the time was never really properly answered because he was not properly evaluated by psychiatrists because he was refusing to cooperate. So people were trying to draw inferences based upon his writings, etc. Now we've got two more years of his writings and his diatribes against the court, against the world at large. And I really think there's more of a basis here to find him not competent to enter a plea.
But the judge, the judge has seen fit to say he is competent in her discretion.
HEMMER: Why would he be doing this now?
HAMUD: I think you can...
HEMMER: Is he tired of jail or is there more to it?
HAMUD: Yes, I think it's death by court. You know, you've heard about death by cop, where people who want to commit suicide point unloaded weapons at police officers and get themselves shot. I think this is death by court. I think he feels that the onerous conditions of his confinement aren't the way he wants to spend the next 50 years or so. He doesn't see he'll ever get out. And it's unfortunate, because I think there were serious questions about his guilt.
Remember now, the 9/11 Commission stated that the mastermind of the 9/11 tragedy, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, said that Mr. Moussaoui had no role in 9/11 whatsoever.
HEMMER: Yes, well there is...
HAMUD: And he was one of the witnesses that Mr. Moussaoui and his lawyers were trying to call to the court and wasn't allowed to do so.
HEMMER: I apologize for the interruption.
HAMUD: Absolutely.
HEMMER: There's a report that says his defense attorney says he wants to be put to death.
HAMUD: Well...
HEMMER: Is this true? And has his mother reacted to that?
HAMUD: His mother is devastated by it. I think it is true. I think he's looking basically to end what he perceives to be his suffering in these terrible conditions of solitary confinement and hostility. And I call it death by court and hopefully cooler heads will prevail.
If he pleads guilty, then the court will have to convene a jury trial, and hopefully it would be a fair trial as far as the sentenced to be invoked, meaning the death penalty.
HEMMER: And there's also a report today there will be another hearing with the judge and with Zacarias Moussaoui.
We will watch it from here.
Randall Hamud in San Diego.
Thanks for your time out there.
HAMUD: Thank you and have a nice day.
HEMMER: OK. Thank you -- here's Carol.
COSTELLO: Many of us deal with snarled traffic and construction delays on our daily commute. But in Boston, many commuters have to worry about leaking tunnels and falling rocks.
Dan Lothian reports on the big problems with the big dig.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The big dig project -- tunnels and roadways designed to untangle part of Boston's traffic nightmare, has ballooned into America's most expensive troubled public works project -- $12 billion over budget, seven years past due and a mountain of problems, including a big leak in a new total wall opened last September.
CHRISTOPHER TINGUS, CRITIC OF BIG DIG: Do you like my big dig life vest?
LOTHIAN: Critic Christopher Tingus, a businessman and long time activist, is using humor to draw attention to what he believes are serious safety concerns.
TINGUS: I thought this was a way to at least send a message to government here in New England and Boston, and also down in Washington. LOTHIAN: He parades around Boston's waterfront in his so-called big dig life vest, a raincoat and rubber boots, talking about the leak that led to the discovery of other wall defects and the start of his campaign.
TINGUS: Why do we have hundreds of leaks? Whether they're small leaks or not, people even small leaks becoming big leaks.
LOTHIAN: There have been other problems, too. It wasn't water, but rocks, that rained down on about a half dozen vehicles moving through a newly opened tunnel two weeks ago.
Tim Mahoney was behind the wheel of one car.
TIM MAHONEY, MOTORIST: I heard a noise and I saw the rocks and the windshield shattered.
LOTHIAN: The same contractor responsible for defective walls took responsibility for the construction accident and apologized.
This all followed a very public debate between engineering experts over the project's soundness and safety. Officials have vowed to ensure all problems are repaired, permanently, insisting that the public has nothing to fear.
MATT ANORELLO, MASSACHUSETTS TURNPIKE AUTHORITY: If there were ever a hint that public safety was in jeopardy, I promise you we would close the tunnels immediately.
LOTHIAN (on camera): The federal government has concluded that the project is safe, that there is no threat of the tunnel collapsing. But with almost weekly problems, some aren't convinced.
(voice-over): Tingus, who will wear his vest until all safety questions are answered to his satisfaction, worries the nearly $15 billion project is mired in mismanagement.
TINGUS: Did the project managers do their job out there?
LOTHIAN: And that American taxpayers have paid a high price for a big dig.
Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is seeking the legal power to remove big dig boss Matthew Amorello. The governor accuses Amorello of serious mismanagement and acting in disregard of the public interest. But Amorello has repeatedly rebuffed the governor's requests to get out.
HEMMER: A check of the weather right now.
In the Northeast, it is changing quickly.
Here's Chad at the CNN Center.
Give us the word -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And for summer buffs, not changing in the correct direction, Bill.
HEMMER: Yes, correct.
MYERS: No, now down to 50. Yesterday the high in New York City was 87.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Hey, Chad, did you see this hail in Kansas?
MYERS: Yes. You know, the ones that we had, we had the pictures of that. That was golf ball sized, Bill.
HEMMER: That's right.
MYERS: About, maybe about two inches. There was golf ball to baseball sized hail out just to the east of Denver, as well. It was just coming in an unpopulated area there so we didn't get pictures of it.
HEMMER: It kind of looks like a driving range, doesn't it?
MYERS: Yes, you're on the wrong side of the driving range, though.
HEMMER: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: All right.
HEMMER: Talk to you later.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: Still to come, Michael Jackson's lawyers pull out the big guns. Macauley Culkin now expected to testify. What he might say that could keep Jackson out of prison.
HEMMER: Also, two cousins trapped in a thrill ride 900 feet above the Vegas strip. Why did it take an hour to get down and how are they doing today? The first time on the ride for them. It might be the last.
COSTELLO: I think one girl already said that. No more roller coasters for me.
And the star that raised eyebrows across Hollywood and the country. The real reason somebody like Ryan Seacrest ends up on the Walk of Fame.
That's just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: More testimony today in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial. Prosecutors plan to wrap up their case next week and then the pop star's defense will have its turn.
CNN has learned that actor Macauley Culkin plans to testify on Jackson's behalf.
Attorney Anne Bremner joins us live from Santa Maria, California.
Good morning, Anne.
ANNE BREMNER, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: I always thought Macauley Culkin said he wouldn't testify.
Why did he change his mind?
BREMNER: I think through his publicist he had said that. What we're hearing is that Michael Jackson called him personally. And I think, you know, given the way -- what we've heard about the trial, what's been disseminated, he's always denied that there was any molestation and he's done it publicly, appeared on "LARRY KING LIVE" and said this never happened.
And I think he felt like he had to come in and help Michael Jackson. But I'm sure he's going to be the first witness, because this is a real bombshell.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes. You know, I'm a cynic. I'm thinking about Culkin's own career and reputation. If people were saying I was abused as a child, even if I was, I wouldn't want people to know.
BREMNER: That's true. And the down side for the defense is we've already heard from a child abuse expert that testified for the prosecution that said that child abuse victims don't want people to know, exactly what you said, and they have a lot of shame. And so this can be turned around in closing argument and they can simply state, you know, they didn't -- he didn't want to say anything.
You know, his picture was next to Michael Jackson's bed with a signature that said, "Don't leave me home alone."
COSTELLO: Oh.
You know, the other thought I had, you know, these Jackson employees said they saw Jackson act inappropriately a Culkin.
Isn't it also possible that Culkin didn't realize at the time that there was anything improper going on? He was only nine or 10.
BREMNER: That's an excellent point. And these were, you know, what was described was while Culkin was playing a video game with Jackson, the touching occurred, you know, almost furtive. And maybe he didn't realize it. COSTELLO: Yes. You know, the prosecution is about to wrap up its case with some very graphic testimony involving Vaseline. I don't even like to talk about this, but...
BREMNER: I know.
COSTELLO: I mean...
BREMNER: Especially this early in the morning.
COSTELLO: Exactly. But it involves Vaseline and it involves Michael Jackson like all sweaty in his pajama bottoms. And it's just too disgusting to go into.
But if you tell this before a jury, might that not turn them off?
BREMNER: Well, exactly, because some of this has been awfully graphic. And, you know, the pornography went on for days, of image after image after image on the big screen. And that seemed to turn the jury off after a while.
But, you know, the question is, you know, whether, you know, who is the real Michael Jackson? And this jury needs to decide, is he a child molester or the patron saint of children.
COSTELLO: So through all that you've heard so far, which do you believe is the real Michael Jackson?
BREMNER: You know, it's so hard because watching this case is, you know, from day to day is like watching a trapeze artist. You know, one day it looks like it's the prosecution's case. The next day it looks like the defense owns it.
But right now, with that pattern evidence that was so compelling, you know, six people saying the same kind of thing, it seems that the prosecution is steady as she goes. But that could all change with the defense case.
You know, even with the mother, even with all of the -- everyone out there saying that she was so difficult as a witness, what she had to say was corroborated by surveillance tapes of her, her children and her family; audiotapes, too. And I understand there's going to be additional journals of Michael Jackson's employees and tape recorded calls that are going to corroborate what she had to say.
So right now, you know, the prosecution, I think, is favored.
COSTELLO: Attorney Anne Bremner in Santa Maria, California this morning.
Thank you.
BREMNER: Thank you.
HEMMER: Almost 20 minutes past the hour now, Carol. A teenager and her 11-year-old cousin trapped in a thrill ride, dangling 900 feet above the Vegas strip. They will share their story ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: On our Web site right now -- cnn.com, by the way, if you did not know that -- the most popular story, believe it or not, is out of Phoenix, and a call to send in the SWAT monkey. The police department is trying to figure out a way to use a trained monkey for high risk police operations. So far, they've applied for a $100,000 grant to buy and train a tiny monkey.
COSTELLO: Oh, come on!
HEMMER: Police say the monkey, he or she, could be trained to unlock doors and search places no officer could dare go.
COSTELLO: I bet that little monkey would look great in a SWAT outfit, too.
HEMMER: Oh, gosh.
COSTELLO: With a bulletproof vest and carrying a gun.
HEMMER: Can't make that up. Kevlar. And the first one who gets the interview with the monkey, boy, that's a scoop, huh?
COSTELLO: An exclusive with the tiny monkey.
HEMMER: Oooh.
CAFFERTY: You know, by the current definition, this stuff I've got here probably doesn't qualify as news inflation, interest rates are rising, stock prices falling, gas prices are soaring, deficits are out of control. The "Washington Post" has a story on the front page this morning that while all this is going on, Congress is preoccupied with the death of Terry Schiavo, the ethics of Tom DeLay and the fate of the Senate filibuster. The only economic bill signed this year so far, restrictions on class action lawsuits and a rewrite of the bankruptcy laws.
According to the latest "Washington Post"/ABC News poll, 48 percent of Americans think that this economy is getting worse.
The question this morning is what should Congress be doing about the economy?
B.J. in Manhattan, Kansas writes: "Cut taxes for the rich, help the oil companies make more money, double the budget deficit and invade and conquer three or four countries. That'll help the economy. And if you don't believe that, you have been duped by the liberal media."
Jack in Wisconsin writes: "The best thing politicians could do for the economy is to get the money out of the political system so they can pass laws that are in the best interests of the public rather than their corporate contributors. For $5 per taxpayer per year, we could have public funding of campaigns."
Susan writes: "I would like to see Congress pass tax breaks for Americans to save more money, use and develop alternative energy sources and buy fuel efficient cars instead of giving tax breaks for big SUVs."
And Timmy in Florida writes: "Congress should be gathering boxes and rewriting their resumes. We should not reelect any incumbents."
HEMMER: Hmmm. Something to think about for November, huh, if something doesn't change?
COSTELLO: It won't happen.
HEMMER: Yes?
COSTELLO: I don't think so.
HEMMER: Well, we'll see.
COSTELLO: By then the economy could be great, who knows?
CAFFERTY: Want to bet?
HEMMER: Oh, my.
COSTELLO: Let's bet. A hundred bucks? Fifty? A dollar?
CAFFERTY: You make that much money?
COSTELLO: No, but you do.
HEMMER: You've got nothing, do you?
CAFFERTY: No. I haven't...
HEMMER: And you're having a (INAUDIBLE) day.
CAFFERTY: And once I finish reading these, I am...
HEMMER: I know. I can see it.
CAFFERTY: ... that's it. I'm done.
HEMMER: I feel badly for you today.
CAFFERTY: Why is that?
HEMMER: I don't know. It's just, you know, there's...
COSTELLO: We want you to be happy, Jack.
CAFFERTY: I am happy.
HEMMER: We're trying to cheer you up.
CAFFERTY: What is this, a psychoanalytic parlor of some kind?
HEMMER: I don't know. Hey, hey, hey, you are on the couch.
CAFFERTY: Yes. Well, such as it is.
COSTELLO: Did you have problems with your mother?
CAFFERTY: Part of what's wrong with me is that I have to sit on this crappy furniture every day. A $40 billion corporation and they buy this junk at Ikea for us to sit on.
HEMMER: I knew we were going to get something out of him, right?
All right, that's enough.
If you listen to the critics, this Walk of Fame in Hollywood is turning into a walk of shame, some say. Ryan Seacrest says hold on. He's the host of "American Idol" and he tells one of our hosts here at CNN why he deserves that star. That's a bit later this hour on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Get the latest news every morning in your e-mail. Sign up for AMERICAN MORNING Quick News at cnn.com/am.
And still to come, a true thrill ride, maybe too much so. What was it like for two girls who got stuck 900 feet above the Vegas strip?
Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: 8:30 in New York.
Good morning, everybody.
Good to have you along with us today.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
COSTELLO: I'm Carol Costello in for Soledad today.
What's it like to be stuck 900 feet above the Las Vegas Boulevard at 2:00 a.m.? Oh, that sounds scary. We're going to hear the story of two girls who say they are through with thrill rides. Also, what the people who own the so-called Insanity Ride have to say about the girls being stuck up there for like an hour.
HEMMER: Ever seen the Walk of Fame in Hollywood?
COSTELLO: Yes. We talked about it a lot yesterday on AMERICAN MORNING. HEMMER: You've got Humphrey Bogart, you've got John Wayne, you've got Ryan Seacrest.
COSTELLO: And Lassie.
HEMMER: And Lassie. Touche.
Why is Seacrest there? Who decides to get immortalized? And, you know, Toure went off on this whole thing yesterday, and apparently Seacrest went off on Toure on his radio show.
COSTELLO: That's because Toure called Seacrest a dweeb. Seacrest got mad and invited him on the radio show and, ooh, fireworks.
HEMMER: Did Toure defend himself on that show or did he kind of wimp out and back down?
COSTELLO: No, I thought he was a dweeb himself.
HEMMER: Oooh. You'll hear part of that conversation in a few moments here.
COSTELLO: Let's get another check on the headlines now, though, with Valerie Morris.
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Aired April 21, 2005 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: A chopper possibly shot down, a car bombing, an assassination attempt, a multiple execution. Violence is way up in Iraq and now 50 bodies may lead to a wider national split.
Macauley Culkin may take the stand today in the Michael Jackson trial. His story could turn the tide in this case.
And the thrill rides are supposed to be scary when they're moving. This one got that way when it stopped 900 feet in the air. Two girls describe their rescue on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
HEMMER: Good morning, everybody.
Almost 8:00 here in New York.
Soledad is off today.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Carol Costello.
Good morning to you.
HEMMER: In a moment here, the judge says Zacarias Moussaoui is mentally competent to plead guilty to involvement in the attacks of 9/11. His mother says he's only doing it because he's not in the right mind. We'll talk to the mother's attorney in a moment here.
COSTELLO: Also, Boston's big dig. Do you know about this? It's a traffic tunnel. It's also a $15 billion nightmare. The government says, though, don't worry about the leaks and the cracks and those big chunks falling off. We'll find out what's going on under the streets of Boston.
HEMMER: Standard maintenance, right?
COSTELLO: Yes, right.
HEMMER: That's a beautiful construction project. It really transformed that town, downtown.
COSTELLO: If it worked, it would be great.
HEMMER: Well, I think it works for the most part. It's all right, yes.
Hey -- Jack, what's happening?
Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
Coming up in "The Cafferty File," you'll soon have to send your kid to an Ivy League school in a Brinks truck.
Robots ride to the rescue aboard camels in the Middle East.
And a Vietnam vet waits in line for an hour-and-a-half to let Jane Fonda know he remembers.
HEMMER: Ooh.
Thank you, Jack.
Valerie Morris with us today and the headlines, top of the hour now -- Valerie, good morning.
VALERIE MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to all of you again.
And good morning to you.
Now in the news, Russia and NATO today signing an agreement for greater military cooperation. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is among the NATO representatives meeting in Lithuania. The new deal with Russia paves the way for joint military exercises and eventually even greater military cooperation.
Meantime back in Washington, Social Security reform is topping President Bush's agenda again this morning. He's scheduled to make a speech on the subject two hours from now at a convention for insurance agents. It's being held in Washington.
Investigators near Little Rock, Arkansas are sifting through debris. They are trying to figure out what started a fire at a mobile home. At least six people were killed in Wednesday's blaze, including five young children. The identities of the victims are not being released.
Florida's state legislature is moving quickly on a bill to require either life in prison or lifetime monitoring of dangerous sex offenders. The bill is named after this little girl, Jessica Lunsford. She was murdered last month in Homosassa, Florida. Wednesday, prosecutors revealed more details about her death. They claim the suspect, John Couey, sexually abused the 9-year-old and then buried her alive. They say she was found in a kneeling position clutching a stuffed dolphin.
NASA is pushing back the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The space agency says it needs more time to complete some testing and engineering work. The new launch date is May 22. That's one week later than originally planned. The Discovery is scheduled for a 12- day mission to make repairs to the International Space Station.
And you are up to date -- back to Carol and Bill.
HEMMER: All right, thanks, Valerie.
COSTELLO: Thanks, Valerie.
New developments in Iraq this morning. U.S. military sources tell CNN that nine people died today when a commercial helicopter went down between Baghdad and Tikrit. Also, Iraqi officials say 50 bodies found in the Tigris River may be Shiite hostages.
Let's head live now to Baghdad, where CNN's Ryan Chilcote is standing by with the very latest -- Ryan, what do we know about this helicopter crash?
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, well, what we know at this point -- and all of this information is coming from U.S. officials -- is that a commercial helicopter has gone down somewhere between Baghdad and Tikrit. Now, these U.S. officials believe that this helicopter was shot down, killing all nine individuals on board. They believe that three of the nine individuals were crew members and that six were passengers. They believe that all three crew members were Belgians. They just don't know the nationalities of the passengers at this point -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ryan, there's been a considerable amount of other violence in the country over the past 24 hours.
What's happening there?
CHILCOTE: Well, it's been a, really, a series of violence and also the location, in two different locations in Iraq, of bodies. And we start just south of Baghdad. The Iraqi president just yesterday saying that they found the bodies of more than 50 Iraqis in the Tigris. And since then, we've spoken with Iraqi police officials, who tell us that they have recovered the bodies of 57 Iraqis from the Tigris over the course of a two week period, something in the ball park of two to three individuals a day over that period.
They say that they were effectively floating down the Tigris and that they were caught up on a makeshift portable dam. That's where those bodies were recovered from. They say that the bodies include the bodies of women and children. And they have been photographing them, trying to identify them and burying them. But so far they've only managed to identify one of those bodies.
That is just one location in Iraq where they've located these bodies. There is a separate set of -- a separate find in the northwest of the country, in the city of Hadifa. That's where Iraqi police tell CNN 20 Iraqi soldiers were abducted by insurgents while they were on leave. They were in civilian dress. They were abducted from the cars they were in on the highway, brought to a soccer stadium. And a short while later their bodies were found lined up against a bloodstained wall there. And in the capital, violence again, both overnight and today. Overnight, an attempted assassination attempt against the interim, the Iraqi interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi. He escaped that assassination attempt. It was an enormous car bomb -- we actually felt it here -- that went off at a checkpoint just outside of his party headquarters. Some, his spokesman says some of his security personnel that were at that site were killed and wounded in that attack.
And then today, just this morning here in Baghdad, a makeshift bomb going off on the road out to the airport, killing at least two. Iraqi police telling us that they saw a convoy of three SUVs on its way out to the airport when the blast went off. SUVs are usually what Western contractors use here in Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
Thank you.
HEMMER: Five minutes past the hour now.
Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person publicly charged in connection with the attacks of 9/11, plans to plead guilty during a public hearing on Friday. Moussaoui expected to admit he had some knowledge of the terrorist plot.
But some close to Moussaoui also say they do not believe he's competent enough to enter that plea.
Randall Hamud is the attorney for Moussaoui's mother.
He's my guest in San Diego.
And good morning to you, sir.
Will he go through with this tomorrow?
RANDALL HAMUD, ATTORNEY FOR MOUSSAOUI'S MOTHER: Nobody really knows for certain because he changes his mind quite often. But this seems to be pretty much his intention. And, tragically, his mother is very much of the opinion that he's not mentally competent to do so because of the onerous conditions of his incarceration have taken their toll thus far on him.
HEMMER: Well, the federal judge says, you know, she's met with him and considers him to be mentally competent. So we have to go, at this point, on the judge's word going forward.
HAMUD: I don't know that the judge should have a last word on something as important as that. I think he should be subjected to proper psychiatric evaluation, and so does his mother.
HEMMER: He's changed his mind before, right?
HAMUD: Yes, he... HEMMER: Three years ago, in 2002?
What happened then?
HAMUD: Well, at the time they were, they abated the proceedings because they weren't sure he was competent to do it at that time. Then he changed his mind. Then he sought to be his own lawyer. He was appointed by the court to be his own lawyer. Then the court felt he was no longer competent to act as his own attorney, took that prerogative away from him, reappointed his defense attorneys. And then the mother has seen a complete decline in his mental since that time. And there are serious questions, I think, about whether this man is competent and perhaps her honor is just not the right person to evaluate this.
HEMMER: Well, stay on the 2002 case.
Was he mentally competent then?
HAMUD: The question at the time was never really properly answered because he was not properly evaluated by psychiatrists because he was refusing to cooperate. So people were trying to draw inferences based upon his writings, etc. Now we've got two more years of his writings and his diatribes against the court, against the world at large. And I really think there's more of a basis here to find him not competent to enter a plea.
But the judge, the judge has seen fit to say he is competent in her discretion.
HEMMER: Why would he be doing this now?
HAMUD: I think you can...
HEMMER: Is he tired of jail or is there more to it?
HAMUD: Yes, I think it's death by court. You know, you've heard about death by cop, where people who want to commit suicide point unloaded weapons at police officers and get themselves shot. I think this is death by court. I think he feels that the onerous conditions of his confinement aren't the way he wants to spend the next 50 years or so. He doesn't see he'll ever get out. And it's unfortunate, because I think there were serious questions about his guilt.
Remember now, the 9/11 Commission stated that the mastermind of the 9/11 tragedy, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, said that Mr. Moussaoui had no role in 9/11 whatsoever.
HEMMER: Yes, well there is...
HAMUD: And he was one of the witnesses that Mr. Moussaoui and his lawyers were trying to call to the court and wasn't allowed to do so.
HEMMER: I apologize for the interruption.
HAMUD: Absolutely.
HEMMER: There's a report that says his defense attorney says he wants to be put to death.
HAMUD: Well...
HEMMER: Is this true? And has his mother reacted to that?
HAMUD: His mother is devastated by it. I think it is true. I think he's looking basically to end what he perceives to be his suffering in these terrible conditions of solitary confinement and hostility. And I call it death by court and hopefully cooler heads will prevail.
If he pleads guilty, then the court will have to convene a jury trial, and hopefully it would be a fair trial as far as the sentenced to be invoked, meaning the death penalty.
HEMMER: And there's also a report today there will be another hearing with the judge and with Zacarias Moussaoui.
We will watch it from here.
Randall Hamud in San Diego.
Thanks for your time out there.
HAMUD: Thank you and have a nice day.
HEMMER: OK. Thank you -- here's Carol.
COSTELLO: Many of us deal with snarled traffic and construction delays on our daily commute. But in Boston, many commuters have to worry about leaking tunnels and falling rocks.
Dan Lothian reports on the big problems with the big dig.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The big dig project -- tunnels and roadways designed to untangle part of Boston's traffic nightmare, has ballooned into America's most expensive troubled public works project -- $12 billion over budget, seven years past due and a mountain of problems, including a big leak in a new total wall opened last September.
CHRISTOPHER TINGUS, CRITIC OF BIG DIG: Do you like my big dig life vest?
LOTHIAN: Critic Christopher Tingus, a businessman and long time activist, is using humor to draw attention to what he believes are serious safety concerns.
TINGUS: I thought this was a way to at least send a message to government here in New England and Boston, and also down in Washington. LOTHIAN: He parades around Boston's waterfront in his so-called big dig life vest, a raincoat and rubber boots, talking about the leak that led to the discovery of other wall defects and the start of his campaign.
TINGUS: Why do we have hundreds of leaks? Whether they're small leaks or not, people even small leaks becoming big leaks.
LOTHIAN: There have been other problems, too. It wasn't water, but rocks, that rained down on about a half dozen vehicles moving through a newly opened tunnel two weeks ago.
Tim Mahoney was behind the wheel of one car.
TIM MAHONEY, MOTORIST: I heard a noise and I saw the rocks and the windshield shattered.
LOTHIAN: The same contractor responsible for defective walls took responsibility for the construction accident and apologized.
This all followed a very public debate between engineering experts over the project's soundness and safety. Officials have vowed to ensure all problems are repaired, permanently, insisting that the public has nothing to fear.
MATT ANORELLO, MASSACHUSETTS TURNPIKE AUTHORITY: If there were ever a hint that public safety was in jeopardy, I promise you we would close the tunnels immediately.
LOTHIAN (on camera): The federal government has concluded that the project is safe, that there is no threat of the tunnel collapsing. But with almost weekly problems, some aren't convinced.
(voice-over): Tingus, who will wear his vest until all safety questions are answered to his satisfaction, worries the nearly $15 billion project is mired in mismanagement.
TINGUS: Did the project managers do their job out there?
LOTHIAN: And that American taxpayers have paid a high price for a big dig.
Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is seeking the legal power to remove big dig boss Matthew Amorello. The governor accuses Amorello of serious mismanagement and acting in disregard of the public interest. But Amorello has repeatedly rebuffed the governor's requests to get out.
HEMMER: A check of the weather right now.
In the Northeast, it is changing quickly.
Here's Chad at the CNN Center.
Give us the word -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: And for summer buffs, not changing in the correct direction, Bill.
HEMMER: Yes, correct.
MYERS: No, now down to 50. Yesterday the high in New York City was 87.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Hey, Chad, did you see this hail in Kansas?
MYERS: Yes. You know, the ones that we had, we had the pictures of that. That was golf ball sized, Bill.
HEMMER: That's right.
MYERS: About, maybe about two inches. There was golf ball to baseball sized hail out just to the east of Denver, as well. It was just coming in an unpopulated area there so we didn't get pictures of it.
HEMMER: It kind of looks like a driving range, doesn't it?
MYERS: Yes, you're on the wrong side of the driving range, though.
HEMMER: Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: All right.
HEMMER: Talk to you later.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: Still to come, Michael Jackson's lawyers pull out the big guns. Macauley Culkin now expected to testify. What he might say that could keep Jackson out of prison.
HEMMER: Also, two cousins trapped in a thrill ride 900 feet above the Vegas strip. Why did it take an hour to get down and how are they doing today? The first time on the ride for them. It might be the last.
COSTELLO: I think one girl already said that. No more roller coasters for me.
And the star that raised eyebrows across Hollywood and the country. The real reason somebody like Ryan Seacrest ends up on the Walk of Fame.
That's just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: More testimony today in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial. Prosecutors plan to wrap up their case next week and then the pop star's defense will have its turn.
CNN has learned that actor Macauley Culkin plans to testify on Jackson's behalf.
Attorney Anne Bremner joins us live from Santa Maria, California.
Good morning, Anne.
ANNE BREMNER, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: I always thought Macauley Culkin said he wouldn't testify.
Why did he change his mind?
BREMNER: I think through his publicist he had said that. What we're hearing is that Michael Jackson called him personally. And I think, you know, given the way -- what we've heard about the trial, what's been disseminated, he's always denied that there was any molestation and he's done it publicly, appeared on "LARRY KING LIVE" and said this never happened.
And I think he felt like he had to come in and help Michael Jackson. But I'm sure he's going to be the first witness, because this is a real bombshell.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes. You know, I'm a cynic. I'm thinking about Culkin's own career and reputation. If people were saying I was abused as a child, even if I was, I wouldn't want people to know.
BREMNER: That's true. And the down side for the defense is we've already heard from a child abuse expert that testified for the prosecution that said that child abuse victims don't want people to know, exactly what you said, and they have a lot of shame. And so this can be turned around in closing argument and they can simply state, you know, they didn't -- he didn't want to say anything.
You know, his picture was next to Michael Jackson's bed with a signature that said, "Don't leave me home alone."
COSTELLO: Oh.
You know, the other thought I had, you know, these Jackson employees said they saw Jackson act inappropriately a Culkin.
Isn't it also possible that Culkin didn't realize at the time that there was anything improper going on? He was only nine or 10.
BREMNER: That's an excellent point. And these were, you know, what was described was while Culkin was playing a video game with Jackson, the touching occurred, you know, almost furtive. And maybe he didn't realize it. COSTELLO: Yes. You know, the prosecution is about to wrap up its case with some very graphic testimony involving Vaseline. I don't even like to talk about this, but...
BREMNER: I know.
COSTELLO: I mean...
BREMNER: Especially this early in the morning.
COSTELLO: Exactly. But it involves Vaseline and it involves Michael Jackson like all sweaty in his pajama bottoms. And it's just too disgusting to go into.
But if you tell this before a jury, might that not turn them off?
BREMNER: Well, exactly, because some of this has been awfully graphic. And, you know, the pornography went on for days, of image after image after image on the big screen. And that seemed to turn the jury off after a while.
But, you know, the question is, you know, whether, you know, who is the real Michael Jackson? And this jury needs to decide, is he a child molester or the patron saint of children.
COSTELLO: So through all that you've heard so far, which do you believe is the real Michael Jackson?
BREMNER: You know, it's so hard because watching this case is, you know, from day to day is like watching a trapeze artist. You know, one day it looks like it's the prosecution's case. The next day it looks like the defense owns it.
But right now, with that pattern evidence that was so compelling, you know, six people saying the same kind of thing, it seems that the prosecution is steady as she goes. But that could all change with the defense case.
You know, even with the mother, even with all of the -- everyone out there saying that she was so difficult as a witness, what she had to say was corroborated by surveillance tapes of her, her children and her family; audiotapes, too. And I understand there's going to be additional journals of Michael Jackson's employees and tape recorded calls that are going to corroborate what she had to say.
So right now, you know, the prosecution, I think, is favored.
COSTELLO: Attorney Anne Bremner in Santa Maria, California this morning.
Thank you.
BREMNER: Thank you.
HEMMER: Almost 20 minutes past the hour now, Carol. A teenager and her 11-year-old cousin trapped in a thrill ride, dangling 900 feet above the Vegas strip. They will share their story ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: On our Web site right now -- cnn.com, by the way, if you did not know that -- the most popular story, believe it or not, is out of Phoenix, and a call to send in the SWAT monkey. The police department is trying to figure out a way to use a trained monkey for high risk police operations. So far, they've applied for a $100,000 grant to buy and train a tiny monkey.
COSTELLO: Oh, come on!
HEMMER: Police say the monkey, he or she, could be trained to unlock doors and search places no officer could dare go.
COSTELLO: I bet that little monkey would look great in a SWAT outfit, too.
HEMMER: Oh, gosh.
COSTELLO: With a bulletproof vest and carrying a gun.
HEMMER: Can't make that up. Kevlar. And the first one who gets the interview with the monkey, boy, that's a scoop, huh?
COSTELLO: An exclusive with the tiny monkey.
HEMMER: Oooh.
CAFFERTY: You know, by the current definition, this stuff I've got here probably doesn't qualify as news inflation, interest rates are rising, stock prices falling, gas prices are soaring, deficits are out of control. The "Washington Post" has a story on the front page this morning that while all this is going on, Congress is preoccupied with the death of Terry Schiavo, the ethics of Tom DeLay and the fate of the Senate filibuster. The only economic bill signed this year so far, restrictions on class action lawsuits and a rewrite of the bankruptcy laws.
According to the latest "Washington Post"/ABC News poll, 48 percent of Americans think that this economy is getting worse.
The question this morning is what should Congress be doing about the economy?
B.J. in Manhattan, Kansas writes: "Cut taxes for the rich, help the oil companies make more money, double the budget deficit and invade and conquer three or four countries. That'll help the economy. And if you don't believe that, you have been duped by the liberal media."
Jack in Wisconsin writes: "The best thing politicians could do for the economy is to get the money out of the political system so they can pass laws that are in the best interests of the public rather than their corporate contributors. For $5 per taxpayer per year, we could have public funding of campaigns."
Susan writes: "I would like to see Congress pass tax breaks for Americans to save more money, use and develop alternative energy sources and buy fuel efficient cars instead of giving tax breaks for big SUVs."
And Timmy in Florida writes: "Congress should be gathering boxes and rewriting their resumes. We should not reelect any incumbents."
HEMMER: Hmmm. Something to think about for November, huh, if something doesn't change?
COSTELLO: It won't happen.
HEMMER: Yes?
COSTELLO: I don't think so.
HEMMER: Well, we'll see.
COSTELLO: By then the economy could be great, who knows?
CAFFERTY: Want to bet?
HEMMER: Oh, my.
COSTELLO: Let's bet. A hundred bucks? Fifty? A dollar?
CAFFERTY: You make that much money?
COSTELLO: No, but you do.
HEMMER: You've got nothing, do you?
CAFFERTY: No. I haven't...
HEMMER: And you're having a (INAUDIBLE) day.
CAFFERTY: And once I finish reading these, I am...
HEMMER: I know. I can see it.
CAFFERTY: ... that's it. I'm done.
HEMMER: I feel badly for you today.
CAFFERTY: Why is that?
HEMMER: I don't know. It's just, you know, there's...
COSTELLO: We want you to be happy, Jack.
CAFFERTY: I am happy.
HEMMER: We're trying to cheer you up.
CAFFERTY: What is this, a psychoanalytic parlor of some kind?
HEMMER: I don't know. Hey, hey, hey, you are on the couch.
CAFFERTY: Yes. Well, such as it is.
COSTELLO: Did you have problems with your mother?
CAFFERTY: Part of what's wrong with me is that I have to sit on this crappy furniture every day. A $40 billion corporation and they buy this junk at Ikea for us to sit on.
HEMMER: I knew we were going to get something out of him, right?
All right, that's enough.
If you listen to the critics, this Walk of Fame in Hollywood is turning into a walk of shame, some say. Ryan Seacrest says hold on. He's the host of "American Idol" and he tells one of our hosts here at CNN why he deserves that star. That's a bit later this hour on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Get the latest news every morning in your e-mail. Sign up for AMERICAN MORNING Quick News at cnn.com/am.
And still to come, a true thrill ride, maybe too much so. What was it like for two girls who got stuck 900 feet above the Vegas strip?
Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: 8:30 in New York.
Good morning, everybody.
Good to have you along with us today.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
COSTELLO: I'm Carol Costello in for Soledad today.
What's it like to be stuck 900 feet above the Las Vegas Boulevard at 2:00 a.m.? Oh, that sounds scary. We're going to hear the story of two girls who say they are through with thrill rides. Also, what the people who own the so-called Insanity Ride have to say about the girls being stuck up there for like an hour.
HEMMER: Ever seen the Walk of Fame in Hollywood?
COSTELLO: Yes. We talked about it a lot yesterday on AMERICAN MORNING. HEMMER: You've got Humphrey Bogart, you've got John Wayne, you've got Ryan Seacrest.
COSTELLO: And Lassie.
HEMMER: And Lassie. Touche.
Why is Seacrest there? Who decides to get immortalized? And, you know, Toure went off on this whole thing yesterday, and apparently Seacrest went off on Toure on his radio show.
COSTELLO: That's because Toure called Seacrest a dweeb. Seacrest got mad and invited him on the radio show and, ooh, fireworks.
HEMMER: Did Toure defend himself on that show or did he kind of wimp out and back down?
COSTELLO: No, I thought he was a dweeb himself.
HEMMER: Oooh. You'll hear part of that conversation in a few moments here.
COSTELLO: Let's get another check on the headlines now, though, with Valerie Morris.
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