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CNN Live At Daybreak

Saving the SEAL; L.A. Police Shooting; Return to Space for Shuttle

Aired July 12, 2005 - 06:29   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: From the Time Warner center in New York, this is DAYBREAK, with Carol Costello and Chad Myers.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Thanks for waking up with us. I'm Kelly Wallace, in today for Carol Costello.

Coming up this half-hour, the amazing survival story of one Navy SEAL. We'll hear how he made it out of a hostile zone in Afghanistan with a little help from an unlikely source.

Also, is Karl Rove in trouble? We'll talk with "Newsweek" correspondent Michael Isikoff about Rove's role in a CIA scandal.

But first, these stories "Now in the News."

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is expected to talk about last week's London's bombings at a matting of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament. That's expected any minute now. We'll take you there when it happens.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says the success of nuclear reduction talks depend on Kim Jong Il's willingness to give up his weapons. The secretary made the comments earlier in Tokyo before her stop in Seoul, South Korea, this morning.

Court hearings in Aruba today in the Natalee Holloway case. Suspect Joran Van Der Sloot is appealing a court order that extended his detention. Also, prosecutors are appealing a judge's order releasing two other youths in the case. Meantime, there has been a lack of leads in the search for the missing American teen. And that has a search group from Texas weighing whether to give up. They're expected to decide today.

And Amtrak's Acela Express resumes some service today for the first time since April. The trains had been pulled from the fleet due to problems with their brake systems. Service has only been restored between New York and Washington.

To Atlanta and the forecast center now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Well, an incredible story to tell you about. First, the military has found the body of the fourth and final Navy SEAL missing while conducting counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan. He is identified as Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew Axelson of Cupertino, California. The Pentagon says he died in a shootout with terrorists.

Meanwhile, the lone Navy SEAL survivor got help from Afghans who found him.

CNN's Jamie McIntyre has this amazing story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The outnumbered, outgunned SEAL team was in big trouble even before the rescue helicopter sent on a risky daylight mission was shot down. Only one of the four U.S. Navy commandos stranded on the ground would make it out alive.

REAR ADM. JOSEPH MAGUIRE, NAVAL SPECIAL WARFARE COMMAND: He was able to, after suffering his combat wounds, travel at least four kilometers through extremely mountainous terrain, engaging the enemy along the way, and avoiding capture.

MCINTYRE: In an exclusive story entitled "How the Shepherd Saved the SEAL," "TIME" magazine says an Afghan herdsman named Gulab discovered the wounded U.S. commando and convinced him not to shoot.

"I remembered hearing that if an American sticks up his thumb, it is a friendly gesture, so that's what I did."

According to the "TIME" account, Gulab lifted his tunic to show the American he wasn't hiding a weapon. He then propped up the wounded commando, and together the pair hobbled down the steep mountain trail.

For days, the U.S. military mounted a frantic search for any survivors, but so did the Taliban, who sent a terse demand to the Pashtun villagers who sheltered him. "We want this infidel." A firm reply from the village chief Shina (ph) shot back, "The American is our guest, and we won't give him up."

(on camera): CNN has learned that the SEAL wrote a note, which was delivered by a villager to the U.S. military, who then came to his rescue. He's now been reunited with his family in Texas. But because of the nature of his job, his name and the details of his mission will likely never be publicly acknowledged.

MAGUIRE: Secrecy is a way of life with us. And that's how we do things.

MCINTYRE (voice-over): At a memorial service last week, the sacrifice of the SEALs was marked by their fins, face masks and combat knives, weapons of frogmen who died 7,000 feet up the side of a mountain, more than 300 miles from the sea.

MAGUIRE: We are Naval commandos, we are warriors from the sea. But we were in the Kunar Province, up in the Himalayas, because that's where the enemy was, and that's where we go.

MCINTYRE: Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon. (END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And we thank Jamie for bringing that story to us.

Two American sisters, both victims of the London bombings, are recovering from surgery.

CNN's Soledad O'Brien is joining us now for a look at what is coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING."

Good morning -- Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Kelly, good morning to you.

This morning, we talk to the doctor for those two sisters wounded in the London terror attacks. Katie and Emily Benton suffered some pretty significant injuries when that subway bomb exploded just 10 feet away from them. On Monday, they both underwent reconstructive surgery. We're going to talk to their doctors and find out just how they're doing today.

Also, a story you're going to see only on CNN. We'll talk to the plaintiff in the first Vioxx case that's going to trial. Her name is Carol Ernst (ph), and she blames the drug for the sudden death of her 59-year-old husband, Robert. He was a marathon runner. She says he seemed healthier than most guys his age. She's going to share her story with us ahead on "AMERICAN MORNING" -- Kelly.

WALLACE: And you and Miles have been doing a few marathons of your own.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes. It kind of feels that way, yes. But we are back in New York and well-rested and ready to go.

WALLACE: And only three hours today.

S. O'BRIEN: I know. It looks like a half-day kind of.

WALLACE: Almost a half-day. OK, Soledad, we'll see you and Miles in about 25 minutes from now.

S. O'BRIEN: We'll see you then.

WALLACE: Thanks so much.

Well, Los Angeles police are defending officers who opened fire on an armed man who was using his daughter as a shield.

Both father and daughter were killed. Police say the suspect fired about 40 rounds at officers over a nearly three-hour period.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF WILLIAM BRATTON, L.A. POLICE DEPARTMENT: Unfortunately, in this incident, the suspect's actions left the officers no choice. Over a period of two-and-a-half hours, Mr. Pena was given repeated opportunities by officers and hostage negotiators to surrender or release the child. He refused to do so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: The man's mother told a television station -- quoting here -- "He had problems with depression. His business was not going well. I told them that he needed help. He needs a psychologist, but please don't shoot. They didn't understand, and the police fired like 300 shots."

Joining us on the phone to talk about this is Chuck Canterbury, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, joining us from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Mr. Canterbury, thanks for joining us today.

CHUCK CANTERBURY, PRES., FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE: You're welcome. Glad to be here.

WALLACE: So tell us a little bit. What are the rules for officers when you're dealing with a suspect who has a hostage, really, of any age?

CANTERBURY: Well, first and foremost, the savings of lives, whether it's the hostage or the hostage-taker, is paramount to law enforcement. But in this particular case, the safety of the citizens and the police officers became paramount to the hostage because of his actions.

WALLACE: Some people might ask, do the rules change when you're talking about a toddler? We know that this suspect had a toddler in his hands. Do the rules change in any way when you're dealing with that?

CANTERBURY: Well, the rules don't change. The tactics may change based on the scenario. This particular case -- obviously, I don't have enough information to talk about. But in the long run, the safety of citizens and the police obviously become paramount. This suspect obviously charged at police, firing a handgun, and they eliminated a threat, which is what they're trained to do.

WALLACE: And, you know, some people hear this story, and they think, wow! Couldn't the officers have tried to shoot at the man's leg to try and just sort of disable him in some way? But when you are confronted with deadly force, the response is deadly force as well. Is that right?

CANTERBURY: Well, in this particular scenario, police officers are trained to eliminate the threat. The second thing is a moving target that's firing at you is the not the same thing as the type of shot that would be required to shoot somebody in the leg. Police aren't trained that way. We don't have the ability to do that on a normal basis. And a moving target that's firing at you, obviously, is not the same thing as what we see on television with those types of sniper shots and that type of thing. It's just not a feasible scenario. WALLACE: And, Mr. Canterbury, I know you don't know the specifics of this case, but talk to us a little bit about if officers had taser guns. If they are met with a suspect who is holding a toddler and shooting at them, would they have used a taser in that case?

CANTERBURY: No, a taser would...

WALLACE: Could they have?

CANTERBURY: A taser would not have been effective. The range for a taser for effectiveness would have put too many officers' lives in danger to approach close enough to have utilized the taser. And in the use of force continuum that law enforcement uses, you have to meet force with more force in order to subdue the hostage-taker. In this particular case, this father murdered that child.

WALLACE: Chuck Canterbury, we really appreciate you sharing your thoughts with us today. President of the Fraternal Order of Police. We know that officers have talked about this even while there is an investigation under way to determine which bullet actually killed that child. They call it a -- quote -- "true tragedy."

We're moving ahead. A mother has been charged with child abuse after driving from Alabama to Virginia with her children in the trunk. She drove the five children to their father's home in Virginia, but not all of them could fit in the rental car at one time. So, she put them in the trunk on a rotating basis. She admitted that she would have rented a larger car to make the trip.

Florida officials are once again dealing with possible problems with their child welfare system. The investigation centers on more than 1,100 cases of possible abuse. A technical glitch is being blamed for the problem. That glitch was a failed fax line that limited incoming reports. That problem apparently went unnoticed for nearly two months. And officials are looking into that now.

Still to come here on DAYBREAK, the wait is nearly over as NASA counts down for the launch of a new mission to space. A live report from Kennedy Space Center after the break.

And who said what, and were any laws broken? We'll talk more about the investigation into a leak of confidential CIA information.

First, though, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning, July 12.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And this just in to CNN, a story we've been following this morning. We were telling you earlier about how all 12,000 members of the U.S. Air Force stationed in Britain have been banned from visiting London -- this by the American military -- because of last week's terror bombings. Well, apparently, the U.S. Air Force has just put out a statement lifting that ban, saying that they now consider the situation -- quote -- "stabilized." This is coming from our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr. We'll get more information to you as we get it here on DAYBREAK.

And let us now pause a moment to toot our own horn on this day. CNN is the only broadcast network that has shown every single shuttle launch live. Tomorrow's flight will be no different.

For a look ahead to the launch of the shuttle Discovery, we head to the Kennedy Space Center, where CNN's Sean Callebs is standing by.

Sean, what is the outlook for the shuttle launch?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Things are looking good. And how about this view we have here? Just a wonderful morning. And, Kelly, I have to say, I have one of the best views in the house.

Buttoned up and ready to go, that's how NASA is describing operations here, just a day before the scheduled launch. But they also say, make no mistake about it; that the return to space remains dangerous, and the shuttle remains vulnerable.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS (voice over): It may look like the same spacecraft, but in many ways Discovery is a whole new machine, more than a billion dollars in improvements to prepare for NASA's return to flight.

After the fiery deaths of Columbia's crew in 2003, is everybody ready?

EILEEN COLLINS, <
> COMMANDER: We at NASA, I believe, are fully capable of saying, we are ready to launch, because we're ready for situation A, B, C or any contingency that could possibly happen.

CALLEBS: A new focus on safety is the prime mission of this crew.

STEPHEN ROBERTS, <
> MISSION SPECIALIST: Every single space flight is the most important space flight there ever was. If there's a major accident on it, it has the potential of stopping us in our tracks. And we are all well aware of that.

CALLEBS: Over the last two-and-a-half years, NASA has worked on protecting the shuttle from debris during liftoff. The leading edge of the wings and the nose cone have been toughened. And a 50-foot- long robotic arm equipped with two lasers will be able to take 3-D images of the shuttle. It will detail any damage to the spacecraft.

Mission Specialist Charles Camarda will be checking the black edges of the wings for any breach of the reinforced carbon-carbon, or RCC.

CHARLES CAMARDA, DISCOVERY MISSION SPECIALIST: We have learned more in the last two years on the damaged RCC and damaged tile -- what causes the damage and how that affects the ability of the orbiter to land safely.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS: And one more significant safety improvement: More than 100 cameras are going to be trained on Discovery as it hurtles into space and once in orbit. You can bet that engineers and scientists are going to be pouring over those pictures and photographs, trying to determine if Discovery was in any way damaged during liftoff.

And, once again, Kelly, 3:51 Eastern Time tomorrow, so be watching.

WALLACE: Sean, we will be watching, and it's very exciting. Sean Callebs, we'll be checking in with you throughout the day today and tomorrow, of course.

And also, we want you to know CNN will be providing live coverage of Discovery's return to flight. CNN space correspondent and "AMERICAN MORNING" host Miles O'Brien anchors our one-hour special tomorrow beginning at 3:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

Still to come on this edition of DAYBREAK, an investigation into the leak of confidential CIA information has some fingers -- or some people pointing fingers at a top presidential advisor. We'll talk with "Newsweek's" Michael Isikoff just after the break.

But first, a look at who is celebrating birthdays on this Tuesday, July 12.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Welcome back. It's 49 minutes after the hour, and here is what will be making news today.

A financial company specializing in asset acquisition is suing Michael Jackson. The company says it is owed $48 million in fees for rescuing the singer's stake in the publishing rights to songs by the Beatles.

Monaco's Prince Albert II will formally be installed as ruler of the Mediterranean state. He succeeds his father, Prince Rainier, who died earlier this year at the age of 81.

It probably didn't take a study to tell us this, but here goes. An insurance study says drivers using cell phones are four times more likely to get into a crash that can cause serious injuries. And the research suggests it doesn't make much difference whether you use a hands-free phone or a handheld phone. I think we all knew that, but there's a study for us.

Well, a secret source for a story that eventually outed a covert CIA agent was none other than President Bush's top political advisor, Karl Rove. As you might know, it is a federal crime to knowingly blow a CIA agent's cover. But did Karl Rove know? His lawyer says he didn't. President Bush has vowed to fire the leaker. But now, the White House isn't talking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DAVID GREGORY NBC REPORTER: You stood at that podium and said that Karl Rove was not involved. And now, we find out that he spoke about Joseph Wilson's wife. So, don't you owe the American public a fuller explanation? Was he involved, or was he not? Because contrary to what you've told the American people, he did indeed talk about his wife, didn't he?

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: David, there will be time to talk about this, but now is not the time to talk about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And joining us live now from Washington is "Newsweek" investigative correspondent Michael Isikoff, who broke this story this weekend.

Michael, thanks for joining us this morning.

MICHAEL ISIKOFF, "NEWSWEEK": It's good to be with you.

WALLACE: Tell us first, our viewers, the significance here of what you uncovered that Karl Rove did, in fact, talk to Matthew Cooper of "TIME" Magazine about this whole story involving covert CIA agent Valerie Plame.

ISIKOFF: Well, we nailed exactly that, which is the one thing that had been in question.

Basically, there was -- as Scott McClellan's comments in past reflected the White House had seemed to be denying that Karl Rove had played any role at all in this matter, and what we got was an internal "TIME" magazine e-mail that Matt Cooper, the reporter, wrote to his bureau chief immediately after getting off the phone with Rove saying that he had just had a conversation on double super-secret background, and that Rove gave him a big warning -- that's in quotes -- on the Wilson story. That it was Wilson's wife who apparently works at the agency on WMD issues, who authorized the trip. And that's an exact quote from the e-mail that Cooper wrote to his bureau chief right after talking to Karl Rove.

Now, none of that on its face establishes that Rove committed any crime. He doesn't name Valerie Plame by name, although Joe Wilson does only have one wife, so it might not have been that difficult for anybody to figure out who he was talking about. But, as you also point out, there's nothing in there that indicates he knew, or Cooper knew fro that matter, that Plame was an undercover CIA officer.

But the principal issue here at the moment is political, given all of the previous White House comments. Does this, now that we do know that it was Rove who was speaking to at least one reporter, Matt Cooper, about this, what does that say about what the White House has been saying in the past?

WALLACE: Yes. I wanted to talk to you about the political dimension here, because it was a contentious White House briefing yesterday with White House press secretary Scott McClellan getting fired, really, with question after question about this. Talk to us, because it was the fact that Scott McClellan did say even after the investigation was under way by the federal special prosecutor that Karl Rove was not involved. Now the White House is saying it can't comment. A little bit of a political problem or an embarrassment for the White House here?

ISIKOFF: Well, on its face it is, just based on, you know, what happened with the -- at the White House briefing yesterday, and you do have Democrats speaking out more on this. I noticed just in the paper today that John Kerry is suggesting that Karl Rove should resign.

Look, the Democrats at the moment don't control anything. They don't have the power to make this happen. But it has clearly put the White House in an awkward situation.

And one thing that often happens in these situations is somebody takes a deep breath and says, how much more of this stuff can come out? I think the White House has been expecting that with the entire investigation covered by grand jury secrecy, you know, just hoping that there wouldn't be a crime charged that gets put on the public record.

And as a result, the entire thing gets shut down with no public accounting, with no public explanation of what really did happen here, because clearly somebody did out Valerie Plame. Somebody provided her name and the information to Robert Novak, and we still haven't gotten the answer to that one.

And I think that the new disclosures are only going to increase the pressure for there to be a complete public accounting on this case.

WALLACE: All right, Michael Isikoff of "Newsweek" magazine. We have to leave it there. Thanks so much for joining us on DAYBREAK.

Much more ahead right after this. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Welcome back.

Rob has an update now.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: Here now are some stories in the news.

British anti-terror police raided five homes this morning in connection with last week's terror attacks. The homes are in West Yorkshire, about 200 miles north of London. There have been no arrests. The confirmed death toll in Thursday's bombings stands at 53.

Two people were killed and 12 others injured in a car bombing in a Beirut, Lebanon, suburb today. Among the wounded, pro-Syrian Defense Minister Elias Muur. It was the latest in a series of bombings since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February.

The military has found the body of the fourth and final Navy SEAL missing while conducting a counterterrorism operation in Afghanistan. The Pentagon says he died in a shootout with enemy terrorists.

Four Arab detainees have escaped from the Bagram military lockup in Afghanistan. It is the first such known jail break out of the high-security prison that was formerly a Soviet air base.

From the Time Warner center in New York, I'm Kelly Wallace, in today for Carol Costello. "AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

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