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American Morning

At Least One American Among Dead in Wednesday's Bombings in Jordan

Aired November 10, 2005 - 09:30   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We have this just in as a matter of fact. At least one American is among the dead, another has been seriously injured in Wednesday's bombings in Jordan, so let's get right to Andrea Koppel. She's at the State Department.
Andrea, what are you hearing?

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you said, Carol, State Department officials are telling CNN now that they can confirm that one American citizen is among the dead in Jordan, another seriously injured. American consular affair officials are on the scene in Jordan in Amman, trying to give whatever assistance they can.

We also know, Carol, that there have been various, shall we say, rumors floating out there that perhaps there was some new information, new threat information that the U.S. government didn't report or the Jordanians didn't report. State Department officials absolutely, categorically denied that. They say they're expecting to issue a new travel alert, that they absolutely did not have any more information -- Carol.

COSTELLO: I also know Secretary of State Rice is on her way to the Middle East. Surely she's going to talk about the attack.

KOPPEL: She is. She's headed there. She left earlier this morning for Bahrain, which is -- Jordan is off the west coast of Saudi Arabia. Bahrain is an island nation which is on the East Coast, and she's going there for a very different reason. She's traveling there for the broader Middle East and North African initiative, which is the Bush administration's push to try to bring political, social and economic change to the Middle East and North Africa. Obviously, what happened in Amman will be on the agenda, but she's also going to be traveling to Saudi Arabia to talk about similar issues, trying to bring change on the political scene to that country before moving on to Israel and the Palestinian territories -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Andrea Koppel live at the State Department this morning.

(NEWSBREAK)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: As we've been updating you all morning on these bombings in Jordan, people today protesting those bombings as they gather in the streets in a show of solidarity and action. Truthfully, though, Jordan's government is in a difficult spot. That is because of its relationship not only with Israel, but with the United States as well.

Octavia Nasr is CNN's Arab affairs editor, and she joins with us much more on this.

The relationship with the West, do you think at the end of day Octavia, this is the reason for these bombings?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN ARAB AFFAIRS EDITOR: You are so right, Soledad. The Arab media are focusing just on that, basically saying that this is the price that Jordan has paid for its friendship, its support, its partnership some call it, with the West. But also there is agreement that the attackers, the terrorists have crossed the red line, because now they're going after soft targets, innocent victims, people who have been partying, for example, at a wedding party. This is where they think that now the red line has been crossed in Jordan, just as it has been in Iraq.

S. O'BRIEN: Yet at the same time you have many victims who are Jordanian, even though the hotels themselves had a lot of people staying there who were Westerners, the actual people victims or Jordanians. That could be a huge backlash, really, for those who perpetrated these crimes.

NASR: Well, that's what's exactly what is going on now. This is where the red line description comes from. People are saying this is unacceptable, this is not Islamic, this has no reasoning. And basically those who observed the Middle East closely are saying that this is really a sign of more trouble to come. What's going on in Iraq is starting to take root in Jordan, and perhaps there's a chance of it spilling over the entire region. And of course Jordan's been always able to maintain its place, that precarious as balance, I suppose. Al Qaeda's posted a claim, as you know, and CNN's not been able to verify the claim of responsibility. In your mind, though, does it have, Octavia, the fingerprints of Al Qaeda?

It does have the fingerprints of Al Qaeda, the almost simultaneous attacks. The attacks themselves carry the signs of Al Qaeda, the statement itself could be authentic. Of course, we can not verify that, but what interests me and other observers in that statement, the claim of responsibility, is not so much the claim of responsibility, as what it promises. It promises more news. It promises more details of the attacks. There's a chance that Al Qaeda in Iraq if indeed they carried out this attack, they might have video detailing all three attacks, or at least one of them, perhaps statements by the suicide bombers before they carried out their attack. It's going to be interesting to see what comes out after the claim of responsibility.

S. O'BRIEN: Do you think all of that, Octavia, is enough to bring real instability to not only Jordan, but to the region as well?

NASR: Many observers fear that. There's a genuine fear in the voices of observers, experts, editorials and papers. They feel that the region is unstable right now and, you know, if all parties, all countries don't get together and figure out a way to fight terrorism, that there is a chance of more trouble for the entire region -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: The attacks took price November 9th. Here in the U.S. we would write that 11/9, but of course in Jordan that would be 9/11. Do you hold much significance to those numbers, that date?

NASR: There might be. There might be. We were waiting for the claim of responsibility so see if there was a mention of that, but you are absolutely right, it is 9/11 that these attacks happened in Jordan. This is the way, it is the 9th day of November. This is how the calendar goes in Jordan. The claim itself didn't mention that, but everyone I spoke with say that there must be a significance. Al Qaeda is known to choose key dates, and also to target symbolic targets. So it's going to be interesting to see when more comes out, if indeed, again, we cannot authenticate that claim of responsibility, but if indeed there will be video in the future or statements from the attackers, they might mention that, and at that point it will be very significant if indeed they chose the date and planned it. That would be a very dangerous precedent for Jordan.

S. O'BRIEN: Obviously, everybody watching for more information on all of this. Octavia Nasr is CNN's senior Arab affairs editor.

Octavia, thank you -- Miles.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: Here's a question for you: Are powerful women a turnoff for men?

M. O'BRIEN: No, I disagree. I think it's nice.

S. O'BRIEN: I'm enjoying watching Miles tread water here.

M. O'BRIEN: Maureen Dowd tackles that very question.

S. O'BRIEN: Honey, I -- the book is called "Are Men Necessary," and we're going to talk to her live in just a few moments about the book. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Well, we knew this was going to happen, the no-fee ATM, guess what? Use it now, because it's on the way out. And we'll check on Wall Street, too, from Andy. He's "Minding Your Business" this morning.

Good morning.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning, Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Do Wall Street first.

SERWER: Yes, let's talk about the markets, go down to the Big Board and see what the action looks like. Up 13, up 14, which just keeps on going here, which is great stuff to see. The Dow Jones Industrials going to the upside a little bit, this even though Cisco Systems and GM's stock has been a little weak, disappointing Wall Street with some numbers they just posted. Let's talk about these ATM fees, Soledad, because who likes them? Nobody.

S. O'BRIEN: Totally awful.

SERWER: They are. And you know, there's this bank out West, WAMU, which is actually a national company, Washington Mutual, which has free ATMs, but WAMU is getting rid of them, sad to say. They say they're getting rid of their free ATMs because the lines were too long, because it would bother their own customers.

S. O'BRIEN: That's so thoughtful.

SERWER: Yes, because they want to help their own customers. The customers say, hogwash. The lines weren't too long. The reason they're getting rid of the free ATMs, or in other words, adding fees.

S. O'BRIEN: To people who are coming to use the ATMs who don't belong to the bank already.

SERWER: Exactly, is because they need the money.

And in fact, you know, the ATM business is not a growing business, because so many people are using debit cards now that the ATM use is actually dropping. So you know, they need to pay for these things, so they're going to start charging.

We've got another one to tell you about. This is really pernicious. It's called the "denial fee." Have you ever heard of this one, Soledad?

S. O'BRIEN: No.

SERWER: Here's how this works. This is bank of America's little special here. If you're a B of A customer, and you use a non B of A ATM, and you want to take out, say, $500 but only have $300 in your account.

S. O'BRIEN: So it doesn't go through.

SERWER: It doesn't go through. And you're hit with $1.50 denial fee.

S. O'BRIEN: You can't do that.

SERWER: They've had this for a while.

S. O'BRIEN: A denial fee?

SERWER: But customers just found out about. And we asked Citibank and a lot of other banks.

S. O'BRIEN: Does my bank do that? SERWER: No.

S. O'BRIEN: Because I am so gone the minute my bank does that.

SERWER: Chase, all the other banks they don't do this, so it's a B of A special, the denial fee.

S. O'BRIEN: The banking is just out of control.

SERWER: You've been denied.

S. O'BRIEN: And I don't mind that part. It's going cost me $1.50 that kills me.

M. O'BRIEN: What if you don't have the $1.50 in the account? What do you do then? Are they going to come get you? They're going to come get you, right?

SERWER: They're going to get you.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, they charge you for it.

SERWER: Miles, you've been denied.

M. O'BRIEN: Hunt you down like a dog.

S. O'BRIEN: That's just so sad.

All right, Andy, thanks.

M. O'BRIEN: The whole logic, though, that it's too long a line is just like the oil companies, saying the high prices...

SERWER: We're helping you.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, to help people.

SERWER: We're helping you, you just can't tell.

S. O'BRIEN: It just doesn't feel like it.

M. O'BRIEN: We're from the government. We're here to help you.

All right, thank you, guys. This has been the question of the day this morning, are men necessary? Yes, who else would take out the garbage for one thing? Maureen Dowd asks that question in her provocative new book. What about the TV, programming the computers. This is important stuff we do. All that is next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: Well, she's smart, she's creative, she's successful.

S. O'BRIEN: Oh, you're so nice. Miles, more, go on.

M. O'BRIEN: She's intelligent. S. O'BRIEN: Yes!

M. O'BRIEN: All those things. But can she get a date?

S. O'BRIEN: I love the man!

M. O'BRIEN: Can she get a date, is the question? Maureen Dowd...

S. O'BRIEN: Oh, we're not talking about me?

M. O'BRIEN: Maureen Dowd, who...

S. O'BRIEN: She's written a new book. It's called "Are Men Necessary?"

M. O'BRIEN: And we should tell our viewers, Maureen Dowd writes for "The New York Times" column twice weekly, Wednesdays and Saturdays, which is a column I never miss. And now she's off trying to figure out whether I'm irrelevant. I'm not going to hold that against her, we're just going to let her, you know...

S. O'BRIEN: Why the premise of the book in the first -- I mean, what were you really trying to find out?

MAUREEN DOWD, AUTHOR, "ARE MEN NECESSARY?": Well, I've covered two generations of Bush White Houses, and when you cover the Bushes, you never get to write about sex. So I just thought it would be a fun change of pace.

It isn't -- the why men are -- are men necessary. My mom, before she died, tried to get me to change the title to "Why Men Are Necessary."

S. O'BRIEN: Didn't work.

M. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much, mom, wherever you may be.

DOWD: But it's really a genetic question. You know, geneticists -- there's a body of evidence now that the Y chromosome is rotting at such a fast rate that it will go out of business in about 100,000 years. So now that women don't need men to reproduce and refinance, the question is, will we keep you around? And the answer s you know we need you in the way we need ice cream, you'll be more ornamental.

M. O'BRIEN: Oh, man!

(CROSSTALK)

M. O'BRIEN: This is like bad science fiction!

DOWD: Norman Mailer has a science fiction. He calls it the terror scenario, where women will keep 100 men around as sperm slaves and milk them every day...

M. O'BRIEN: Oh, man. S. O'BRIEN: Oh, God, that's a...

DOWD: And he is not going to be one of them.

S. O'BRIEN: You know, you cover a lot of...

M. O'BRIEN: Who gets to be on that list?

S. O'BRIEN: Right, right, really.

DOWD: You can apply, later today.

S. O'BRIEN: You cover a lot of ground. You talk about Botox and sex and politics and, I mean, Condi and Hillary, and the list kind of goes on and on. But you have an underlying theory, which I think is, female power scares men. And, you know, I look around and see examples, where I think are anecdotal examples of -- that's just not the case.

DOWD: Well, you -- I mean, look at you. You're beautiful and successful. And you have a happy...

S. O'BRIEN: More, more, more, why stop there? Go on.

DOWD: I don't mean to be -- it isn't at all pessimistic about the chances of strong, successful women. The only point I make is that when feminism -- at the dawn of feminism, we assumed that having a high-power cad rear and having, you know, snappy banter would be things that would fascinate men. And a lot of times I think it's turned out that men find those things draining and oftentimes would rather be with a woman who is in awe of them.

Sarah Silverman, the comedian, has a piece -- profile of her in "Radar" magazine this week. And she's talking about how when she was a stand-up in the clubs, she wanted to date the other comedians because they had a shared passion. But the comedians wanted to date the waitresses, because they would be in awe.

M. O'BRIEN: So a man needs a maid, is what you're saying.

DOWD: Not always, not always.

M. O'BRIEN: But here - I think men are very confused about what women want these days.

DOWD: Right.

M. O'BRIEN: You know, are we supposed to hold the door for them and be gentlemanly or we supposed to treat you more like a peer?

DOWD: Well, this is one of the funniest things. The editor of "Maxim," Ed Needham, told me that he's really confused. Because he gets all these letters from women, asking how can they be "Maxim" babes. Which is confusing, because the "Maxim" babe is supposed to be man's guilty fantasy, not his real life-affirming fantasy. And women are turning themselves into these extreme, kind of puffed-up, plastic breasts, everything a man would desire. Much more than when we started out. You know, when Gloria Steinem said all women are bunnies, that wasn't supposed to be a recommendation.

S. O'BRIEN: So is that an indication that feminism has failed these women? Or is it an indication that the way that it's -- like, there's some of kind of success that women have embraced, you know, being powerful and being themselves and doing -- whether you can see that a plus or a minus, just doing whatever they want.

I mean, you're right about women wanting -- fewer wanting to be take -- be Mrs. and wanting to be Misses, or not taking -- keeping their own last name, taking their -- couldn't those all be positive steps?

DOWD: Absolutely. I think the reason, you know, Jurassic feminism failed because it was about aping men. We were supposed to dress like men, which I did in these little blue suits and power ties. And we were supposed to work exactly like men and have orgasms like men. And so we had to stop and decide to reshape the world in our own desires and images, more -- in a more womanly way.

But I think part of this is a new realism that maybe relationships work better when one revolves a bit more about the other, whichever one that is. As a guy called -- a famous actor called me after my piece was in who had been married to a famous actress, and they had gotten a divorce. And he said, you know, when you have a Y and a Y, who makes the hearth?

M. O'BRIEN: There's no Y in hearth.

S. O'BRIEN: We said AMERICAN MORNING would have no sex. We're just going to gloss right by that male orgasm part of it. You've got a lot of criticism about the book -- we did. Earlier we promised.

M. O'BRIEN: I didn't say a thing. I'm blushing. I'm blushing under my makeup right now.

S. O'BRIEN: You've got a lot of criticism about the book, I think from a lot of different fronts. From feminists who sort of feel like you sold them out, that maybe you're a product of all the work that these feminists did and now you kind of turn on them.

DOWD: I know, I thought that men would be scared of the book, but it's women. It's so weird.

S. O'BRIEN: Why does that surprise you?

DOWD: I've created this international kind of sensation. I'm getting calls at midnight from British reporters. I think a lot of these people haven't actually read it. It's a breezy, fun book that has a lot of morsels that men and women can talk about and debate.

M. O'BRIEN: Well, maybe it's they're taking it very seriously and that's a sign of how far women have come. DOWD: No, that is...

M. O'BRIEN: I mean, it's not treated...

DOWD: As a columnist that's my job. Pat Alafant (ph), the political cartoonist, calls it the stirring up the beast. So if we have a national conversation...

S. O'BRIEN: You've done it.

DOWD: So if we can have a national conversation, that's good.

S. O'BRIEN: You sure have done it.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, she has.

S. O'BRIEN: Maureen Dowd. The book's called "Are Men Necessary?: When Sexes Collide." Thanks for coming in to talk with us about it.

DOWD: And you are, Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Oh, thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: Miles is.

M. O'BRIEN: You say that to all the anchors. But that's OK, I'll take that.

DOWD: I do.

S. O'BRIEN: She really does. She said it to Anderson the other day.

M. O'BRIEN: I know, I saw it.

S. O'BRIEN: A short break. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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