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American Morning
President Bush Taking a Beating in Job-Approval Numbers; Rebuilding New Orleans' Tourism Industry
Aired October 18, 2005 - 08:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush taking a bit of a beating in those job-approval numbers. We have more numbers for you. I'm sorry, brace yourself, folks. Brace yourself for what you're about to see! OK, Bill Schneider is our senior political analyst and chief Astros fan this morning.
How did you become an Astros fan? I didn't know you were from Houston.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POL. ANALYST: Well, this is in your honor, Miles. I figure you're the spaceman.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, Houston, we have a problem, kind of. I get it, NASA and all that stuff. Well, I to say, though, it ain't over till it's over for the Cardinals. Boy, they looked pretty good last night pulling that out of the fire.
But we digress. Let's talk about the numbers. Approval rating numbers.
You're taking the hat off?
SCHNEIDER: Well, I mean.
M. O'BRIEN: I guess we got to get serious. All right, let's look at the numbers. What do you got?
SCHNEIDER: Well, we have second-term blues right now, with President Bush's numbers dipping below 40 percent. The latest CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll shows 39 percent approval for the president. This is the third poll in past week to show the president below 40. What could be happening here is what we call second-term blues. Scandals are breaking out, and also bad news over Iraq, Katrina, the controversy over Harriet Miers. Not a lot of good news out there.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, but 39 percent approval rating. That's a little more bluer than blue, isn't it?
SCHNEIDER: Well, it's a little worse than a president usually is at this point. With three years to go, when a president is below 40 percent, it's a real danger sign.
M. O'BRIEN: OK, now, let's go to our next poll. CNN/"USA Today"/ Gallup poll, Bush approval rating, and this parses it by urban, versus suburban, versus rural. This is interesting, isn't it? SCHNEIDER: Yes, it is, because what it shows, if you look closely, is Bush didn't lose support in urban areas; they were always against him. Rural areas, his support didn't really change very much.
The entire decline in Bush's rating over the past three weeks has been in the suburbs. Why? Gas prices! Cost an awful lot to ferry your kids around to soccer practice in those vehicles that look like armored personnel carriers. They take a lot of gas, and the gas prices have skyrocketed, and those suburban moms are not really happy.
M. O'BRIEN: No, it costs a lot of money to keep that thing going, doesn't it?
SCHNEIDER: Yes, it does.
M. O'BRIEN: Which brings us back to Houston, where the oil is refined, and therefore bring us back to symmetry here in this segment. Let's talk now about Supreme Court nominations. Harriet Miers, the numbers there, what's interesting to me is the people who are unfamiliar with her, unsure of her. That's a big number still.
SCHNEIDER: Well, we haven't heard from her very much. When she was introduced by President Bush, she said a few words. She's meeting with senators. There's been a lot of smiling and waving, and we read some MASH (ph) notes she wrote to President Bush, but they haven't really heard much from her. Right now, Americans are slightly inclined to favor her confirmation, but not nearly as strongly as they were in support of John Roberts a few weeks after he was nominated in July, where they heard nothing but good things about him and about his legal record.
In Harriet Miers case, everything, and I mean everything, is really going to hang on her confirmation hearings, which for most Americans is going to be the first time they've really heard her speak for herself.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, so this whole how she weighed in on this issue relating to Roe v. Wade, the largest issue of abortion rights and whether the Constitution provides a measure of privacy, it seems as if, you get the sense anyhow, you get conflicting information, whether perhaps she's trying to have it both ways, talking one way to one people, another way to another group. How will the administration work its way out of this one?
SCHNEIDER: Well, they are going to relaunch her nomination, they say, this week, by trying to stress her legal qualifications. That is the big issue hanging over her. Is she as nearly as well qualified as John Roberts to serve on the court? The best possible legal qualifications for this very high position. There's been a lot of stress on her views, on her personal qualities, on her religion. None of that worked. In fact, it created controversy. So what they're going to do is try to argue this is a woman of great legal skill, high qualifications, she broke through barriers here in Texas, became the head of the state bar association, and they're going to try to center the debate now on her qualifications, and not her views.
M. O'BRIEN: Bill Schneider, our political analyst, and Astros fan, joining us from Houston. Thanks very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's talk about New Orleans this morning. Before they can truly rebuild New Orleans, they're going to have to get a lot of money. Remember, the tourism industry there was something like $9 billion.
Well, Stephen Perry is our guest today. He's the chief tourism official for New Orleans, and he's going to be testifying before Congress. He joins us to talk about that.
Good morning.
STEVEN PERRY, NEW ORLEANS TOURISM OFFICIAL: Good morning, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: You're going to ask Congress for $200 million, I've heard in reports. Break down the money for me. Where are you getting that figure from?
PERRY: Well, that is just the beginning part for New Orleans itself. I'm here with the lieutenant governor, who has a plan for the entire state. What we're going to be doing is presenting to Congress an opportunity for our industry to be a catalyst for putting people back to work, filling hotel rooms again, creating tax revenues.
The way it's broken down money-wise, is money for the marketing, marketing and -- you know, your network has covered a lot of the images that has come out of New Orleans the last six weeks. And we've got some work to do on the marketing and image of New Orleans, both as a convention and leisure destination. That is critical. Repairs to the convention center are very, very important, because that's a multibillion dollar component of the New Orleans industry.
Also, the French Quarter. All of your reporters on the street down there have seen some of the problems with the sidewalks and the streets in the corridor that have come from the military and support vehicles. So we have a lot of challenges. But they're challenges that, for actually a small amount of money from the federal level, can produce billions of dollars of return in economic impact.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's take just one of those on that kind of long list there. Advertising. It's going to be a tough sell. I mean, as you mentioned yourself, the convention center requires some repairs. And frankly, when people hear convention center, they don't think, ooh, I really would like to book my next event there. They think visions of people who are milling outside, waiting for any food and water. How do you overcome that?
PERRY: Well, it's a very good point. And that was an image from four weeks ago. But every week that goes by, the images change from New Orleans. The French Quarter is back online. The riverfront is back online, uptown and the Garden District. And the convention center's repair and renovations are actually well underway and ahead of schedule.
And we expect the center to be open by late spring. When it reopens, it's actually going to look better than the day it originally opened. All new surfaces, carpet, furniture. And I think that kind of upgrade is what all of our very loyal customers expect. So that's critical to the future economic success of this city.
S. O'BRIEN: I mentioned the figure $9 billion when it comes to what tourism is worth in New Orleans. Is that about right? How critical is it, to bring that back first?
PERRY: Nine billion dollars is a statewide figure. In New Orleans, we're looking at $5 to $7 billion. Soledad, we always say that we're sort of unofficially the third Fortune 500 company in the Louisiana. We employ the largest number of people in the state, 85,000 people. The working men and women of New Orleans work in the tourism and hospitality industry. It's the small business owners, the shopkeepers, the antique shop owners, the small restaurants.
That's the life blood of New Orleans, its texture and its fabric. And for those 85,000 people to get back to work and for $5 to $7 billion of economic impact, we've got to have a little bit of help as a catalyst from the federal government to get going, because Louisiana's government is under extreme financial duress right now.
S. O'BRIEN: I read that the city's going to lose something like $3.5 billion in revenue just between September of '05 and March of '06 in business that have had to withdraw from the city, and they're obviously not going to do their events there. So then, $200 million really is going to be just a drop in the bucket. How do you make up that shortfall?
PERRY: Well, the $200 million allows us at the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau to reach out to our clients, to market and begin to bring back those 10 million visitors who are used to coming to New Orleans year in and year out. You know, we're arguably the most famous mid-sized city in the world. And in every state in this country, there's a huge affection for New Orleans. And that affection deals with their tourism experiences, their times here, their shopping, their play, their time in restaurants or major sporting events.
So Soledad, this is one of those rare opportunities where the federal government can partner with us, and have us in the private sector be the catalyst to rebuilding the state financial position, the city financial position, and to reduce federal obligations down the line. This is the rebuilding of New Orleans tourism first and doing it in the next year is what's going to drive this recovery.
S. O'BRIEN: Stephen Perry of the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau. Thanks for talking with us.
PERRY: Thanks, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles?
M. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, post-Katrina, FEMA has been the butt of a few jokes? Have you noticed that?
S. O'BRIEN: About 700,000 or so.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, let's -- 700,001 now, because as you well know -- because I know you were up late watching Jay Leno...
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, I was.
M. O'BRIEN: No, you weren't.
S. O'BRIEN: Not.
M. O'BRIEN: You know, we have the magic of videotape...
S. O'BRIEN: TiVoed it.
M. O'BRIEN: ... so let's share it with you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAY LENO, "TONIGHT SHOW" HOST: And in New Orleans, they welcome the first baby born in a hospital since Hurricane Katrina. How about that? They named the baby FEMA because it finally showed up after nine months. Nine months, but the baby got there!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Oh, you knew that was coming.
M. O'BRIEN: Ba-doom-ba. They actually did the ba-doom-ba for that one, because it sort of needed it. But, anyway, hey, it's a living. It's a living for Jay.
All right, still to come in the morning, AMERICAN MORNING, what do you think is the best magazine cover of all time? There are a lot of them to choose from.
S. O'BRIEN: Of any magazine? Best magazine cover?
M. O'BRIEN: Ever. Best cover ever.
S. O'BRIEN: Really?
M. O'BRIEN: Memorable photos that jumped off the rack at the newsstands. Andy has details for us, coming up. And think about it. Just think about it. What would it be?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: New man on top of the uniform pyramid at the Pentagon. His name is Peter Pace. Marine general. He took over as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff two weeks ago now. And, of course, his first TV interview is with CNN's Barbara Starr.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GEN. PETER PACE, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: And this a picture of one young Second Lieutenant Peter Pace. BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Vietnam, 1968. Peter Pace thought he knew himself back then, but one day, everything changed. He lost his first man. He still keeps Guido Ferranero's (ph) picture on his desk.
PACE: When Guido Gerranero was killed by a sniper, I was so enraged that I called in an artillery strike on the village from which the sniper had fired. I knew I was doing the wrong thing. I called off the artillery strike, and I what we should have done, which was sweep through the village on foot. And when we went to the village, we found nothing but women and children.
STARR: Last month, Pace was sworn in as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He becomes President Bush's senior military adviser. He knows firsthand how tough combat can be.
PACE: I was scared in combat. Very scared. I think I used a phrase that if I could have crawled up inside my helmet and waited my mom to call me home, I would have.
STARR: Corporal Mike Ervin was with Pace's unit.
MARK ERVIN, VIETNAM WAR VETERAN: He may feel guilty under the circumstances that he knows how he survived. Someone stands up in front of him and gets hit with a round that could have just easily hit him.
STARR: Tell me about the Staff Sergeant Williams.
PACE: Staff Sergeant Williams, oh...
STARR: It was August 18th, 1968.
PACE: As I stood up, Staff Sergeant Williams stepped across in front of me. And as he did, he took a round right in the side that would have -- that was right in the middle of my -- right in the middle of my chest.
STARR: When he talks of his men, you hear roll call across the decades.
PACE: I remember Lance Corporal Charlie Hale (ph), Lance Corporal Whitey Travers (ph), Corporal Mike Whit (ph), Staff Sergeant Freddie Williams (ph), Lance Corporal Little Joe Arnold (ph), Lance Corporal John Miller. I can I tell you where they died. I knew where they were from. If I was sitting here, not remembering the individuals who lost their lives under my command, not remembering Vietnam, I should not be chairman.
STARR: Pace knows Americans are doubting this war, but this time, they support the troops.
PACE: That is vastly different than it was 40 years ago. The polls that show that some Americans are concerned, as I understand they should and could be about what's going on in Iraq.
STARR: A photograph in his office sums up Pace's past and his present.
PACE: This is a picture of marines actually going into Baghdad, early on in May of 2003. It looked just I remembered going across the bridge into Jauy (ph) City.
STARR: Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: General Pace, believe it or not, is the first Marine to become the chairman of the Joint Chiefs. I want you to guess his age.
S. O'BRIEN: I can't guess. because I know his age.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, you know? You know it? Out there, do you guys know how old he is? Take a guess. Pete, wild guess.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fifty five.
M. O'BRIEN: About to turn 60.
S. O'BRIEN: Turn 60.
M. O'BRIEN: I think he looks pretty good.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, he looks great.
M. O'BRIEN: That Marine regimen is good for him, semper fi and all.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, a look at the best magazine covers of all time. Andy is "Minding Your Business," just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: The best magazine cover.
M. O'BRIEN: Is it really the best, or is the ones that sold the most? What is the criteria?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: The best. The best.
S. O'BRIEN: Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business."
M. O'BRIEN: Best by what measure?
SERWER: The American Society of magazine Editors picked them for aesthetic value, for sales on the newsstands, past 40 years. These are the ones that really grabbed us, the ones that jumped out. You know, I work in the magazine business. I really think this is a terrific list. You can go to magazine.org to check it out, 40 covers.
And we have them here for you, at least some of them. The number-one cover picked is this "Rolling Stone" cover of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and this was taken by Andy Liebowitz (ph), and it was taken the day that John Lennon was killed, which is just striking.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow.
S. O'BRIEN: Last photo ever.
SERWER: Right, exactly.
M. O'BRIEN: And you got to give him credit for just letting it be, just the mast head, no print, no words.
SERWER: It was really a tribute to him.
S. O'BRIEN: It was released like a month after he died.
SERWER: That's right, yes, so everyone knew what it was all about. Next we have Demi Moore. This one -- Miles has some problems with this.
S. O'BRIEN: I didn't love this cover.
SERWER: No, it probably sold pretty well.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, it sold. By measure of sales, this is a big seller.
SERWER: Yes, I think so.
Next, and this is a real sign of the times. This is Muhammad Ali with the arrows in him, 1968 esquire. I picked some of the others, just that struck me.
M. O'BRIEN: You're a person on the...
SERWER: Yes, this one, remember her, this woman?
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, yes, and they did a follow-up on her.
SERWER: That's right, and they tracked her down, and they found her years later.
M. O'BRIEN: Which was a really gripping story in its own right.
SERWER: Exactly.
The premier issue of "George" magazine. Remember Cindy Crawford dressed as George Washington.
M. O'BRIEN: With the navel showing. The real George Washington did not have a navel.
SERWER: No, and he certainly was a little flabbier.
M. O'BRIEN: He was pretty cut and buff.
SERWER: Here's an example, it is a great cover, but it couldn't save the magazine, because ultimately it went defunct. M. O'BRIEN: He was ahead of his time, though, wasn't he?
SERWER: Yes, he was.
O'BRIEN: Now this is a bit self serving.
SERWER: Yes, it is, because we've got one, too, but this a 9/11 cover as well. This is a 9/11 cover, as well, and there were several 9/11 covers of the Twin Towers. This one we found an executive walking out, and it's "Out of the Ashes," was the headline, literally. And we also found him later and did a story about his recovery. So interesting stuff.
M. O'BRIEN: I remember that one.
SERWER: Another publishing story I want to tell you about...
M. O'BRIEN: Wait, wait, wait, a big omission, though...
SERWER: What?
M. O'BRIEN: Buzz Aldrin on the moon, come on, "Life" magazine, you know.
SERWER: Everyone is going to have their favorites. Next year maybe...
S. O'BRIEN: Excuse my eye rolling, I'm sorry.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, I'm so predictable.
S. O'BRIEN: You are so predictable.
SERWER: Old space boy is at it again.
M. O'BRIEN: You go to the moon.
S. O'BRIEN: Throw a bone to him and put a space one in.
SERWER: All right, we'll put a space one in next time for you, Miles.
I want to get to another publishing story quickly, though. This is from the department of ironic irony. A book store chapter 11, called Chapter 11.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, I go there all the time, a good place.
SERWER: A bookstore in Atlanta, excuse, called Chapter 11. Yes, you do? They sell discount books. Guess what? They're filing for chapter 11. Seriously, they are going bankrupt.
S. O'BRIEN: That's too bad.
SERWER: Yes, maybe you shouldn't of picked that name, people. Because it's, you know, what is suggesting what might happen. But anyway, that's what's going on.
S. O'BRIEN: Maybe they will recover.
SERWER: Maybe they will. You can always come out of chapter 11.
M. O'BRIEN: After that, chapter 13? No, that's personal.
SERWER: No, you just get back into business.
S. O'BRIEN: Stick to the space stuff!
M. O'BRIEN: Did you tell you about Buzz Aldrin?
SERWER: Yes, you did, as a matter of fact.
M. O'BRIEN: That was Apollo 11.
SERWER: Thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: OK. In a moment, the latest on today's top story, a dam in danger of letting go. Thousands of residents in a Massachusetts town are fleeing this morning. If they're listening to the news, they probably should. These are new pictures you're looking at right now. There you see the dam there and the water flowing over it. It is a timber dam, a hundred years old, and it may just give way any moment.
Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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