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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Ayman al-Zawahiri May Be Dead; First Lady's Viewpoint; Sago Mine Survivor Update; Mine Tragedy Memorial Held; A Matter of Timing; Healthy Aging; Dolphins in Paradise.
Aired January 13, 2006 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A lot to cover in this hour. We begin with breaking news.
Half way around the world a secret air strike launched earlier today by the CIA. The target, as we've been reporting, al Qaeda's number two man, Ayman al-Zawahiri. This is new video.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER (voice-over): Take a look at the destruction. The CIA apparently had reason to believe al-Zawahiri was hiding in a remote village in Pakistan near the Afghan border. Nothing is certain tonight. Not the quality of the intelligence, nor the outcome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Reporting for us tonight, working the phones and their sources, CNN's David Ensor and Nic Robertson. CNN Terrorism Analyst Peter Bergen and CNN National Security Advisor and Former CIA Deputy Director John McClaughlin. We begin with David Ensor.
David, what do you have? What's the latest?
DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anderson, knowledgeable sources are telling CNN that the air strike was ordered and conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency. And that new video shows you the village in Pakistan where it went on.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ENSOR (voice-over): This was based on what was called good reporting. That Ayman al-Zawahiri, al Qaeda's number two might be in one of the buildings hit. Sources say the U.S. doesn't know whether Zawahiri was killed in the attack or not. Obviously, that's the pressing question now.
Pakistanis are quoted as saying about 18 died in the attack on the village. The attack came just days after a videotaped message from Zawahiri was broadcast on an Arabic language network, in which he called on U.S. plans to reduce troop levels in Iraq a victory of Islam.
Now, he, if he is gone, this is obviously the end of the line for one of the greatest enemies that the United States has currently. That nobody's talking in terms of a spokesman for various different departments around town, but knowledgeable officials say that there is a guarded hope that this great enemy of the United States is finally out of the picture.
COOPER (voice-over): Nic Robertson, what do you make of this?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It certainly seems that this is the area Zawahiri would be in if he's hiding along the Pakistan border, which is where he is believed to be, in a remote village, somewhere hard for the Pakistani army, Pakistani intelligence sources to keep track of him, so there are a lot of indicators that this could be the right type of place.
COOPER: We have more from Nic Robertson in a report he filed just a short time ago. Let's listen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want to speak to the whole world. Who are we?
ROBERTSON (voice-over): By the time Ayman al-Zawahiri burst onto the world scene after the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, he was already a committed Jihadi. The young doctor came from one of Egypt's leading families. There is an al-Zawahiri Street in Cairo named for his grandfather.
al-Zawahiri spent three years in prison after Sadat's assassination. After he got out, he made his way to Pakistan, where he treated those who fought against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. That's where he met Osama bin Laden. And by the mid- 1980s, they had found a common cause. He talked about it a decade later.
AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI: We are working with brother bin Laden. We know him since more than 10 years. We have fought with him here in Afghanistan. We are working with him in Sudan and many other places.
ROBERTSON: al-Zawahiri was at bin Laden's side when he declared war on America in May 1998. Weeks later, they launched an attack on U.S. embassies in Africa.
And after the 9/11 attacks, al-Zawahiri began to come out of the shadows, taunting the U.S., making it clear that he was al Qaeda's number two.
ZAWAHIRI: Oh, American people, you must ask yourselves, why all this hate against America?
ROBERTSON: Along with bin Laden, al-Zawahiri became a man on the run after the U.S. invaded Afghanistan. His wife and daughters were killed in a U.S. air strike aimed at him.
al-Zawahiri's frequent messages in recent years on subjects ranging from the war in Iraq to the London subway attacks showed he was up to date on the news.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Nic Robertson continues to join us, as does David Ensor and CNN Terrorism Analyst Peter Bergen, who is standing by in Washington. His latest book is an oral history titled, "The Osama bin Laden I know." An extraordinary amount of research he put into that. We also want to bring in CNN National Security Advisor and Former CIA Deputy Director John McClaughlin.
Gentlemen, thanks for being with us. We've heard from David, we've heard from Nic. Mr. McLaughlin, what do you make of this?
JOHN MCCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: Well, if this is true, it will be very important. Zawahiri was the CEO, if you will, of this movement. He was bin Laden's mentor. He was an experienced terrorist when all of that was just a gleam in bin Laden's eye. He was also the chief scientist of the movement. He comes from a long line of doctors and pharmacologists.
He's the guy who would have been in charge, for example, of trying to develop the unconventional weapons, biological weapons and so forth, that bin Laden said it was their duty to develop and deploy against Americans. So it would be very important.
COOPER: Sources have said it is a CIA air strike. What would that mean? Predator? Cruise missile? A bomb-drop from a plane?
MCCLAUGHLIN: Well, we don't know the instrument that was used, Anderson. What I would tell you is that the CIA has developed extraordinarily precise intelligence on targets like this and uses it with great care. There's a checklist of things that you go through to make sure that you have a high confidence in the intelligence.
Now that said, as you indicated in the earlier hour, things can go wrong. We don't know yet whether this was Zawahiri. But the agency has been very effective in these kinds of operations in the past.
COOPER: Peter Bergen, what kind of cooperation do Pakistani authorities give to U.S. personnel who may be operating in these regions?
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Well, I think there's been a great deal of cooperation because we've seen something like a half a dozen senior members of al Qaeda arrested in Pakistan over the past three years. And often those are operations in which the Pakistani police may arrest somebody, but coming with a base on intelligence that the United States government is providing. So, I think there is pretty close cooperation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BERGEN (voice-over): In this particular region, however, it's an area in which the Pakistani army doesn't have much of a presence. And so the kind of cooperation that might exist -- this region, there's going to be less cooperation, I think, simply because of the nature of the region, the fact that it's in the tribal area where the Pakistani government authority doesn't really extend it in quite the same way it would in the normal parts of Pakistan.
COOPER (voice-over): And Nic Robertson, our viewers are watching. Well, right now, we're seeing this map of the region. Obviously, as Peter Bergen just saying, a very isolated region. But in that video we were just watching before, you see a dead cow. You see villagers holding up a piece of shrapnel or some metal object. You see -- it looks like a fair amount of destruction. What does that tell you?
ROBERTSON (voice-over): It does look like quite a large amount of destruction. It's difficult to see. You don't really see a crater. You can't tell how big the crater is to get an idea of kind of how much explosives must have been involved, but there's several buildings that seem to have collapsed, several walls down. There's some wooden structures still there, little bits and pieces of roofs. It looks like a sizeable blast.
It looks like the sort of blast I've seen when I've come upon places where cruise missiles or large bombs have landed. Perhaps not smaller bombs, but quite large bombs. But it is very, very difficult to say unless you're actually there and you're looking in the crater and get a good analysis.
COOPER: And David Ensor, how would U.S. intelligence, Pakistani intelligence be able to confirm whether or not Ayman al-Zawahiri is dead or was even there? I guess it would be only through DNA testing. And did they even have his DNA?
ENSOR (on camera): Well, they do have DNA -- or that's easily obtained. After all, two members of his -- three members of his family died earlier. That's a possibility. There's also a possibility in Egypt from his family.
(voice-over): Also, they may have in their hands the dental records that would allow them to work that way.
Clearly, this is going to be difficult. There were reports in Pakistan that immediately after the explosion people in the village were already starting to bury the bodies, as is traditional under Islam. So, there'll be some digging up to do, as well as some forensics and some analysis. This is going to be difficult, especially way up there.
COOPER: John McClaughlin, what do you know or what can you say about that process?
MCCLAUGHLIN (on camera): Well, it'll be, as David said, it depends on what's left after a strike like this. Frequently after a strike like this, there frankly isn't much left. And they'll have to rely on indirect techniques, I believe, unless they've been very lucky in terms of what's left.
(voice-over): But probably dental records, DNA, things like that. And it could take a short time. It could take a long time.
COOPER (on camera): John McClaughlin, also, Barbara Starr had reported from the Pentagon in our last hour that there had been intelligence indicators that these two men, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri may have moved back and forth across the border, relatively recently for short trips.
MCCLAUGHLIN (on camera): It's entirely possible. As you know, Anderson, there really isn't a border there. It's just a line drawn through these rugged mountains in 1895 by the British. And it isn't seen as a border on either side by the tribes that live there. So for all practical purposes, it's a tribal extremist area that's very tough for Americans to move through, but which bin Laden and Zawahiri know extremely well from their time in the Afghan Jihad in the 1980's.
COOPER: Peter Bergen, in that video of the bomb strike or the explosion strike, whatever the air strike was, we see a lot of people in there. There were those people holding up the objects. You see a lot of people kind of milling around. I mean, wouldn't all those people have known that this most-wanted man was living in their midst if in fact he was there?
BERGEN (on camera): I believe so. This is such a remote area and any outsider coming into such an area would immediately stand out.
COOPER: So, if he's got a $25 million bounty on his head, why wouldn't one of these guys who, you know, can't be making much money, come forward?
BERGEN: I mean, it's quite possible that they wouldn't even understand that this amount of money was on -- and obviously there's been an attempt to advertise the fact, people are putting up bin Laden's faces on matchbooks or advertising Ayman al-Zawahiri as a wanted man. But again, it's a very remote area.
By the way, one way we might find out that this guy is really dead is that it's possible that al Qaeda might announce it. I mean, you know, they would be rather happy about this in a sense because they would say this is the wonderful news that Ayman al-Zawahiri has been martyred. Because in their view, you know, if indeed he is dead, he instantaneously attains martyr status. So it's possible, but we don't -- one source of confirmation might be the Jihadis' Web sites themselves over the next week or so.
COOPER: It's a multi-headed hydra though, al Qaeda is. You chop off one head, there are many more.
ROBERTSON (on camera): And Peter's absolutely right. Martyrdom may be a great way for Ayman al-Zawahiri to go, and it's quite possible as well that he may have recorded some message to be played posthumously, knowing that he's a target, knowing that he could die at any time.
And the ideology is out there and that's what drives most of the Jihadis today. This might be a psychological blow if Zawahiri is really dead. But to stop their operations, it's unlikely to stop anything immediate. It's the ideology that's keeping them going.
COOPER (voice-over): John McClaughlin, I don't know again what you can say. I don't want to put you on the spot, obviously, given your CIA background, but how does it work, the CIA with the Pentagon or with Special Forces? I mean, how would an operation -- an air strike work?
MCCLAUGHLIN: Well, it would have to be very closely coordinated. All of these operations are. Typically, when something like this happens, there's a lot of high level coordination among the major cabinet officers in Washington.
(voice-over): And no one in Washington is surprised when something like this happens. I can't go into the technology or the precise way in which it's done, but there's a lot of coordination between the Pentagon and the CIA on an operation like this.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well said and hated to put you on the spot. Don't want you to say anything that would get you in trouble or anyone else. Appreciate you joining us, John McClaughlin, and also Peter Bergen, Nic Robertson and David Ensor. Gentlemen, thank you all.
We'll continue to follow this story throughout the hour and of course there's now daylight in Pakistan. We'll continue to see if there have been any developments there.
Here are some of the other stories, though, that we are following at this hour.
In Iraq, two pilots were killed today when their helicopter went down in the city of Mosul, just outside of forward operating base Courage. A U.S. commander said there are indicators that the chopper was brought down by enemy fire.
Outside Orlando, Florida, a middle school student was shot and seriously wounded by a SWAT team member, after aiming what turned out to be a pellet gun that looked very, very real at the police officer. 15-year old Christopher David Penley, who may have been suicidal, is now in the hospital on life support.
Michael Skakel's appeal has been denied. Skakel is the Kennedy family nephew, you will remember, who was convicted back in 2002 of killing his neighbor, Martha Moxley, almost 30 years earlier. Well, today Skakel heard that conviction was unanimously upheld by the Connecticut Supreme Court. The appeal argued, among other things, that the statute of limitations had expired by the time charges were brought against him. Skakel is serving a sentence of 20 years to life.
In Atlanta, Baby Nor, the 3-month-old Iraqi girl brought to the U.S. for life-saving medical treatment after being discovered by U.S. soldiers in Baghdad, was released from the hospital today. Doctors say her prognosis is excellent, though Nor, who had surgery for a spinal birth defect, will probably have to use a wheelchair. So, who do you think should be the first female president? First Lady Laura Bush has her own favorite. She revealed the name to CNN during a special one-on-one interview. That is just ahead.
Plus, a community mourns the death of its miners. We haven't forgotten he people who are still grieving over the Sago Mine tragedy. Find out how they lone survivor is doing and how the community is doing when 360 continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: The confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Nominee Samuel Alito are finally over. His last round of questioning was yesterday. The official end came today, however, with friends, legal experts and issue advocates taking the hot seat. Alito now just has to wait for the Senate's confirmation, which by most accounts will likely happen.
Democrats, though, are still upset about some of Alito's answers to their questions, especially the ones containing the three magic words, I don't recall. As CNN Chief National Correspondent John King reports, it's a phrase that has gotten a lot of mileage in politics and law.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three days of questions, under oath, and a witness who proved unflappable and consistent, especially on two character questions repeatedly raised by Democrats.
SAMUEL ALITO, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: Well, Senator, I don't recall joining ...
J. KING: At issue, why Samuel Alito joined a Princeton alumni group that wanted to limit admissions of women and minorities. And why he proudly noted his membership on a 1985 Reagan administration job application.
ALITO: I do not recall knowing any of these things about the organization.
J. KING: Another contentious area of questioning, the Vanguard Mutual Fund Company. Judge Alito has investments with the firm and had promised to recuse himself from any Vanguard cases. So why did he decide to abandon that promise?
ALITO: I can't specifically recall what was in my mind at that time.
J. KING: Some Democrats found it far too convenient from a man who had no problem remembering names and nuance from memos and rulings, dating back 20 years. But the I don't recall defense is hardly unique to Judge Alito.
ALBERTO GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL NOMINEE: Sir, I don't recall J. KING: Consider Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez. His faulty memory at his confirmation hearings was over a memo, narrowing the definition of torture for war detainees.
GONZALES: I don't recall specifically whether or not I requested this memo.
J. KING: To forget is to be human.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't recall that.
J. KING: But it gets more attention and much more skepticism when it happens in high stakes testimony involving cameras and big name legal and political teams.
RON KLAIN, FORMER SENATE COUNSEL: Well, your fist advice as a lawyer or as an advisor to someone in the prep process is if you don't know for sure, don't say. If you any doubt about your memory, don't guess.
J. KING: Presidents aren't immune from bouts of faulty memory either. Ronald Reagan, under oath, for an Iran Contra trial.
RONALD REAGAN, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have to say I don't recall that at all.
J. KING: Bill Clinton.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I do.
J. KING: When asked about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky.
CLINTON: I'm not denying that I did, I just don't recall that.
J. KING: Lee Blalack has worked both as a Senate counsel and as an attorney for subjects of congressional investigations, who often have to worry what they say in a committee room could be used as evidence later in a courtroom.
LEE BLALACK, FORMER SENATE COUNSEL: The bar is much higher in the context of an investigative hearing.
J. KING: Former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling is one example.
JEFFREY SKILLING, FORMER ENRON CEO: I don't recall, but I -- I don't recall.
J. KING: His faulty memory provoked bipartisan scorn.
REP. ED MARKEY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: What you've done today is invoke the Hogan's Heroes Sgt. Schiltz defense of, I see nothing, I hear nothing.
J. KING: The Senate Whitewater Committee repeatedly called Clinton friend Susan Thomas as a witness.
SUSAN THOMAS, CLINTON FRIEND: I don't recall.
J. KING: Not once, not twice. Thomas has said she could not recall more than 180 times.
BLALACK: That's a speck that is a record and it may be like, you know, Cal Ripken's record. It will stand the test of time, I suspect.
J. KING: Near the end of his questioning, Judge Alito took issue with suggestions he was being evasive.
ALITO: I've tried to be as forthcoming in explaining what happened here as I possibly could be.
J. KING: That statement aimed more at shaping public opinion than in swaying the Democrats who suggest the judge's memory is more selective than faulty.
John King, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, it was a rough week for Samuel Alito's wife, Martha Ann, who walked out in tears after some of the hearing's more combative moments.
First Lady Laura Bush says she can relate. She spoke about that during a special one-on-one with CNN's Zain Verjee. Here's part of that interview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: There was a very dramatic moment a couple of days ago in the Supreme Court confirmation hearings, where Mrs. Alito just sort of broke down, cried and left the room on hearing her husband being criticized.
LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: Do I ever feel like doing that?
VERJEE: Yes. I mean ...
BUSH: Every once in a while.
VERJEE: Do you ever feel like crying when you hear the president being criticized, called a liar or being abused?
BUSH: Well, no, not really. But I will say I called Martha Alito yesterday to tell her to hang in there and I do think it's really important in the United States for people like Judge Alito to be treated with respect. I think it's very important for the Senate to have a very civil and respectful hearing for anyone that has been nominated for the Supreme Court or for the other jobs that require Senate confirmation.
But on the other hand, my family's been in politics for a long time and I think you do develop thick skin. Does it ever not hurt? You know, not really.
VERJEE: So you don't take it personally?
BUSH: Well, you try not to take it personally. But that's what I want to say is that I think personal attacks are what people don't like and what are really unwarranted.
VERJEE: As an American woman, seeing that Africa has its first elected president who is a woman, what does that make you think? Do you think it's time that America ...
BUSH: I think it'll happen for sure. I think it'll happen probably in the next few terms of presidency in the United States.
VERJEE: Who would you like to see?
BUSH: Well, of course, a Republican. Like maybe Dr. Rice.
VERJEE: Yes, yes.
BUSH: She says she definitely is not running.
VERJEE: But you would like to see her run?
BUSH: Sure, I'd love to see her run. She's terrific.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, there you have it.
Erica Hill, from "HEADLINE NEWS" joins us with some of the other stories we're following. Hi Erica.
ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Anderson. As you mentioned, Supreme Court Nominee Samuel Alito, just waiting now for the Senate's confirmation vote. But it turns out he may have to wait a little bit longer. Democrats are indicating they may want to delay the Senate Judiciary Committee's vote by one week, which rules do allow. The committee's Republican chair, Senator Arlen Specter, was hoping for a vote next Tuesday.
Baghdad, Iraq. He is out of here. The chief judge in the trial of former Iraqi Leader Saddam Hussein is planning to step down. That comes from a source who tells Reuters' news agency the Kurdish judge will announce his reasons for withdrawing after overseeing the next hearing that happens later this month.
Seattle, Washington. If you think it's raining a lot, even for Seattle, well, you're right. Today was the city's 26th straight day of rain and now it's just one week short of breaking the 1953 record of 33 consecutive rainy days. That's a lot of rain. And forecasters say there's a good chance that record will fall.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILL (voice-over): And if that got you gloomy, well, how about a little sunshine? Look at that. A dog and a cat at the piano. I mean, what's better than cute pet video? Soon, you're going to see a chicken playing the xylophone. There it is.
They're all members of a German animal academy, the school that uses positive reinforcement -- not force -- to teach pets how to do things. They say a lot of (inaudible) by the way. The instruments are just for fun. The school's founder says the animals can't really play music.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Whatever. I'm sure my dog and cat would be able to do that if I had a piano to teach them.
COOPER: Yes. If you smear enough things with peanut butter, the animals can play anything.
HILL: You know, speaking of peanut butter, I heard you talking about peanut butter earlier today on your little stint on "Live with -- forget Regis -- Live with Anderson and Kelly," which I really enjoyed. I didn't know you were going to be on.
I got to the gym and who's on the TV to motivate me on the treadmill, but my good buddy, A.C. And, you know, as I was running there, I learned a few things about you. We'll get to the peanut butter part in a moment, but, see I made a list of some of the things that I learned about Anderson Cooper today. Are you ready?
COOPER: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILL (voice-over): First of all, I learned that your hair was brown. I honestly pictured for a blond guy. Maybe it's the baby blues.
Also, you're not a fan of the hot liquid; however, you do indulge in the espresso because you like the tiny little cups. I'm a little confused by that one, but that's cool.
COOPER: I'm a man of mystery, what can I say?
HILL: You are. And you seem to be a huge fan of "24."
COOPER: I like the "24." I do. Sure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: It's a good show. I'll totally back you up on that one.
Now, back to the peanut butter -- that came up, of course, when you talked about the mice you once had in your apartment. I had them too.
COOPER: Oh, there was a peanut butter reference. I thought you had totally made that up. You're right. HILL: No, no, yes, but what was interesting to me is the mice that I had in my apartment in college in Boston, didn't come through the front door, but apparently yours did.
COOPER: They came under the front door, yes they did. There you go.
HILL: Good stuff. Good stuff. You did a fine job. I enjoyed it.
COOPER: Thank you, Erica. Thanks very much. You threw me. I don't know where we're going with this. Oh yes, we're talking about New Orleans now. Thank you, Erica.
There's -- this is the last time she's on this program -- there's nothing wrong with having your office elegantly refurbished, right? Well, tell that to the people in Louisiana who are a little put out, to say the least, by the redecorating their governor is doing. A lot of money being spent on that.
And 12 of his mates died in the Sago Mine disaster earlier this month. Randall McCloy, alone, came out of the place alive. Which tonight, is we ask, along with the rest of the country, how is Randy doing and how is the community doing? An update on that ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: We turn now to the Sago Mine disaster and its one survivor. The lone bright spot in that terrible story, not that Randall McCloy and his family are having an easy time of it, no, not at all. Miners, though, are a very tough breed. CNN's Christopher King reports on his condition.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Each day since the Sago Mine disaster, Anna McCloy has been by her husband Randall's side as he lies in a coma. Anna and the couple's two children, 4- year-old Randall the third, and Isabelle, a year old, are there too, listening to music by his favorite band, Metallica.
Anna McCloy says even though her husband, her childhood sweetheart, remains in a coma, she's trying to keep his daily routine as close to normal as possible.
ANNA MCCLOY, WIFE OF MINE SURVIVOR: Well, I just got him a little bear that says, hug me, today and you put a picture of the kids in the middle of it. So I got him that today. And I got him some of his own deodorant and his own soap, so that way, maybe if he smells like himself, he may ...
C. KING: She hopes, emerge from his unconscious state. Randall McCloy is the lone survivor of the tragedy that took the lives of 12 other miners. McCloy was trapped inside Sago Mine in Tallmansville for more than 42 hours, breathing in enormous amounts of carbon monoxide and other toxic gases. McCloy is in a moderate coma, in critical but stable condition at Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia.
These days, his family is keeping a low profile, out of respect to the families of the other victims. They're expected to attend a memorial on Sunday for those 12 miners. And, as the McCloy family prays for Randall's recovery, they and the community around Sago Mine pray they'll never have to deal with this type of tragedy again.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
C. KING: Now that memorial will take place at West Virginia, Wesleyan University in Buckhannon. Governor Joe Manchin will attend, along with the families of those victims -- Anderson.
COOPER: Christopher, thanks.
Those of you who were watching that awful night, the night the country was led to believe the 12 trapped miners had been found alive in West Virginia, know that I first learned the truth and so therefore did our viewers from Lynette Roby, a relative of -- a neighbor who lived near the Sago Baptist Church. She learned of the terrible news that the miners were in fact dead because she was inside the church and heard the briefing herself.
We've checked in with Lynette several times since then and wanted to do that again tonight in advance of the memorials that are going to be happening this week.
And Lynette, thanks for being with us. You know, it's been 10 days now. I can't believe it's already been 10 days since the miners were discovered. How is everyone doing in Buckhannon?
LYNETTE ROBY, UPSHUR COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA RESIDENT: Just trying to come to grips with what has actually happened. Looking forward to some closure at the memorial service and just a time to pay last respects, for the community that wasn't able to attend the funerals, and just to appreciate what these miners meant to the community and the nation as a whole.
COOPER: I know, I talked to a couple people, Jodi who is with the Rotary Club, and she had been telling me that there had been a lot of black ribbons in town, but then some people started putting out white ribbons, which was a symbol of hope. That they -- it's not just a mourning, but they want something positive, they want people to know that this community is strong and that it is going to survive this.
ROBY: yes, the miraculous character of this community is yet to be seen. The people have just pulled together in an unbelievable amount of support. This community has endured different things before, but nothing of this magnitude. And it's yet to be seen what prevailed from this tragedy.
The white ribbon's not only for Randall, but for the seven survivors that got out of the mine. You know, miracles also. So, it's yet to be seen how the community's going to pull together and just be true West Virginians in a sense. COOPER: How's your family doing? I mean, when that terrible night, you were there with Kiki (ph) and Travis. You guys had heard the church bells ringing. You came down. You wanted to be part of it. You wanted to show your kids history. They were in the church when the terrible news was delivered. And I mean, it was really scary for them. And I know last time we talked, I had gotten an e-mail from Kiki, saying she was scared to kind of go by the church. Has that changed?
ROBY: Well, it's something that's going to stay in our minds for a long time, as well as the families, as well as everyone in the whole state. It's something that's going to press dear to our hearts for an unbelievable amount of time. Nobody could ever imagine what it's like to go by that church on a daily basis. And it's just overwhelming.
The kids are getting support through the counselors at their school. They have a wonderful support system set up for this tragedy. And it's an unfortunate situation that anyone could ever go through, but we're all pulling together here and it'll be remarkable who this state unites.
COOPER: Well, give our best to Travis and to Kiki and appreciate you being on and staying up late for us, Lynette. Thanks very much. Take care, Lynette Roby.
Well, there's nothing like redecorating your office to perk you up and to make your constituents hot under the collar if you're the governor of the tempest-tossed state of Louisiana, that is. Coming up. We're "Keeping them Honest."
And in our continuing "Mind and Body" series, a talk with a man who may know more than anyone else about how those two work and fail together. Guru of holistic medicine, Dr. Andrew Weil.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, just ahead. Is it a case of fiddling while Rome burns? With large parts of New Orleans still in ruins, the governor of Louisiana rebuilds her own office.
First, though, here's a quick look at some of the other stories we're following at this moment.
Breaking news. American sources say that Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden's right-hand man was the target of a CIA air strike today in a remote part of Pakistan, not far from the Afghan border. What's more, they say they've got intelligence suggesting he was in one of the buildings, entering the operation. Witnesses say the strike killed about 18 people. We do not know if he was one of them.
Doctors in Jerusalem growing concern -- their patient, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, has yet to awaken from a drug-induced coma, designed to help his brain heal from a massive stroke. Despite being weaned off the sedation, Mr. Sharon still hasn't opened his eyes or shown any other sign of improvement. Alaska's Augustine Volcano, still erupting. Three times today, in fact. Two explosions on Wednesday were the volcano's first in 20 years. Experts say, look for more fireworks to come over the next couple of weeks.
And firefighters in New Orleans are letting a scrap yard blaze burn itself out. It got started late last night. It has burned through heaps of rubble left from Hurricane Katrina.
Well, in tonight's "Keeping them Honest," there is, as the saying goes, a time and a place for everything. Take sprucing up your office, for instance. No question that some fresh paint, a new rug and furniture can leave you and all those who pass through feeling better. Unless, that is, you're the governor of a state in desperate need of rebuilding, and you're getting your office spruced up while others are still living in tents.
CNN's Gary Tuchman is "Keeping them Honest."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Six days before Hurricane Katrina struck, contractors had submitted bids to renovate and upgrade some of the Louisiana governor's office space in the state capitol building.
In the days after Katrina roared through the Gulf coast, the quarter million dollar plus bid was approved.
JERRY JONES, CAPITOL FACILITY PLANNING DIRECTOR: We had good prices. We knew that hurricane inflation would appear.
TUCHMAN: Reeling from the magnitude of Katrina's destruction, Governor Kathleen Blanco ordered a spending and hiring freeze. She announced the state's budget would fall hundreds of millions of dollars short. And yet work on the governor's offices on the capitol's sixth floor began on schedule. The new office space, two floors above the governor's personal office, includes walnut paneling, frosted laminated glass, granite countertops. Many of Louisiana's hurricane-weary residents said at the very least, not a good PR move by the governor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her priorities is selfish, I would imagine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know what to say. That's embarrassing.
TUCHMAN: Jerry Jones is the man in charge of renovation projects in the state capitol building. He says the work had to be done in this old building because of safety code issues.
But you're aware of the perceptions, pretty crummy, right?
JONES: No question.
TUCHMAN: Governor Blanco, according to her aides, was not aware of the extensive renovation plans. She had been spending almost all of her time away from the state capitol, Baton Rouge, during the first few weeks after the hurricane. And would have postponed the work, had she known.
Jones says it was his decision. And that there were legal issues with the contractor too.
JONES: If we terminate for convenience, he's due all of his anticipated profits.
TUCHMAN: So you were concerned about that?
JONES: Yes. No question.
TUCHMAN: That was an issue, you were thinking?
JONES: No question.
TUCHMAN (on camera): The contractor did not want to appear on camera, but he did tell us if the state would have canceled the work, he would not have taken legal action and would not have required any of the profits.
JONES: Probably if we had to do it all over again, we would probably figured out a way to delay the sixth floor, but we had to do it to alleviate the -- I don't know how much longer we could have delayed renovating the sixth floor with the safety issues.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): So maybe delay it a little bit.
JONES: Maybe delay it a little bit.
TUCHMAN: Two other floors were also renovated, including the floor the governor works on. But that work began before Katrina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TUCHMAN: There's no reason to doubt Jerry Jones about the code violations, but the irony is after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit Louisiana, this state now has an infinite number of bigger code violations. Now, you may be wondering why the contractors decided to be so generous or why he would have been so generous, well he had lots of incentive to. His company does a lot of business with the state of Louisiana and he wants to continue doing business with the state of Louisiana -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right, Gary Tuchman, thanks very much for that. "Keeping them Honest," tonight.
So do you like dark chocolate and red wine? Well, you can discover why one expert thinks it might be part of the key to longevity. That sounds good. Health and Wellness Specialist Dr. Andrew Weil, offers his advice on how to extend and enjoy your life, as we wrap up our "Mind and Body" series.
And the power of Katrina washed these aquarium dolphins out into open waters. They were saved. And wait until you hear where they are now.
Across America and around the world, this is 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, advice, some of it very easy to follow, that could help you get a longer and happier life -- or live a longer and happier life, I should say. Maybe learn how to talk correctly. That is coming up.
But first, Erica Hill, from "HEADLINE NEWS" is back with some of the business stories we're following tonight after mocking me publicly. Erica, go ahead.
HILL: It's only because I love you. You only hurt the ones you love, Anderson.
The Justice Department is suing American Airlines because the carrier reportedly denied benefits to pilots while they were serving in the National Guard and in Reserve units. The class action suit claims American violated a law designed to protect employees who leave their jobs temporarily to serve in military units.
Satellite imagery -- our next story now -- you know, we've seen it used in the War on Terror, now it's being used by the Agriculture Department to help prosecute farmers in cases of crop insurance fraud. The images have already helped convict a North Carolina couple. They faked weather damage by throwing ice cubes onto a tomato field. Now they're doing time.
And Pamela Anderson wants a likeness of KFC Founder Colonel Sanders removed from Kentucky's state capitol. She's campaigning against conditions in poultry processing plants that supply chickens to the fast food chain and claims slaughterhouse workers have been filmed tearing the heads off live birds. A KFC spokesperson says Anderson's move is quote, "just another misguided publicity stunt by PETA." There you go.
COOPER: There you have it, Erica. Thanks very much. Have a great weekend.
HILL: You too. Thank you.
COOPER: All this week we have been collaborating with our colleagues at "Time Magazine" for a special series, "Mind and Body." A series to help you live longer and really with less stress. We all need that. Best-selling Author Dr. Andrew Weil shares his own tips on healthy aging. That's the title of his newest book.
CNN's Heidi Collins spoke with him at his home in Arizona.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So what is the key to longevity? DR. ANDREW WEIL, FOUNDER, INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE PROGRAM: I think the key to longevity is delaying the onset and reducing the risk of age-related disease. The big ones are cardiovascular disease, cancer, Alzheimer's disease. We're all dealt a certain hand of genetic cards -- some good, some bad. But it's up to us how we play them.
COLLINS (voice-over): Dr. Andrew Weil says the ace in the hole is the food we eat.
WEIL: Eat fewer foods of animal origin, more fruits and vegetables. Make sure you've got omega 3 fatty acids in your diet, either from oily fish or fish oil supplements. Try to reduce consumption of quick digesting carbohydrate foods, which are the ones made from any kind of flour, sugar, high fructose corn syrup. Take a good multivitamin, multi-mineral supplement. Add things to the diet like green tea and dark chocolate and red wine in moderation.
COLLINS: It seems Weil's mass appeal capitalizes on just the right balance of herbal intrigue and common sense. He calls it integrative medicine.
WEIL: Aside from eating right, you want to maintain physical activity throughout life. Walking is a perfectly good physical activity. You want to learn some method of stress management. I think you want to keep your mind active, whether that's by learning another language or changing your computer operating system frequently. And for the record, I don't tell people to do anything I don't do myself. So, the lifestyle that I promote in my books is -- that's my lifestyle.
COLLINS: At this Arizona ranch, there are greenhouses to grow his own organic fruits and vegetables. A Swiss Family Robinson style tree house, built to connect with nature. An handcrafted personal labyrinth, with only one way in, one way out, to exercise his mind and spirit. Dr. Weil walks the walk.
WEIL: The more one is walked, the more it builds up a concentration of energy.
COLLINS: For all of Dr. Weil's focus on healthy aging, this 63- year-old is bluntly realistic about the inevitable.
WEIL: I think the whole concept of anti-aging is flawed. Aging is a natural, universal process. If you set your goal as anti-aging, you've put yourself in a very wrong relationship with nature.
COLLINS: So instead, he emphasizes aging gracefully.
WEIL: My favorite techniques are breathing methods because they're so cost-efficient and time-efficient.
COLLINS: So that's what we did. We breathed.
WEIL: Five, six, seven, out. Two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight ...
COLLINS: Are you revolutionary?
WEIL: You know, I've been called revolutionary. To me, the irony is that I think what I'm working for and what I and my colleagues are working for is really a very conservative movement. The least expensive, least invasive, least risky is going to save money. It's going to lower healthcare costs. The success of it will be that one day we can drop the word integrative and this will just be good medicine.
COLLINS: In the time it took you to watch this story, you just got a little bit older. It happens to everyone. But, we continue to fight it every step of the way. If Dr. Weil has his way, we'll stop fighting it and learn to accept it gracefully. He just might be onto something. Heidi Collins, CNN, Tucson, Arizona.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Wow. That was a cool thing he had there.
They had been homeless and washed out to sea. Just ahead, a look at where the dolphins of Katrina ended up. One hint: Cabana party. Be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: It's a little early to be talking about any kind of good to come from a disaster like Hurricane Katrina, if the time ever comes at all. Frankly, I don't think it will. For people, at least, that is. For dolphins, though, it's a very different story. One that is happening tonight at a swanky resort in the Bahamas.
Again, here's CNN's Gary Tuchman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN (voice-over): What you're witnessing here is a happy reunion. Sixteen dolphins swept from their home by Hurricane Katrina, at last have a new home. And this one's in paradise -- on Paradise Island, to be precise.
TERI CORBETT, MARINE MAMMAL TRAINING, ATLANTIS: A day in the life of a dolphin, hopefully will be fun. Our theory of working and working with the animals is nothing but having fun.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got it.
TUCHMAN: But the future didn't always appear so bright for these bottle-nose dolphins. With Katrina bearing down on the Gulf Coast, some of them were moved from the marine life oceanarium in Gulfport, Mississippi, to a nearby hotel swimming pool. Eight of them, though, were left behind and swept to sea on August 29, when the storm moved in and the oceanarium was destroyed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Looks like him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, look at him. Yes, yes, he's upside down. He's a bigger fighter.
TUCHMAN: Their trainers were afraid the mammals, trained to do tricks for tourists, but not to fend for themselves in the wild, would starve.
Are these like your children?
CORBETT: Oh yes, yes. Yes, there are babies.
TUCHMAN: Finally, on September 10, they were spotted in the gulf. And we were there when the dramatic rescue work began. Trainers blue whistles and banged on buckets to attract the dolphins' attention. And it worked. The dolphins did flips, so their trainers could see them. And within days they were rounded up and on the road to recovery.
For a while, they were placed in the same hotel pool as their mates, and already up for a game of catch.
(on camera): It's late at night and these dolphins are still quite active. We asked the trainer -- nice toss -- I'm all soaking wet. We asked the trainer if these dolphins, Jacki (ph) and Toni, nice throw.
(voice-over): Soon, though, the dolphins were again separated, sent to temporary shelters in Mississippi, Florida, Maryland and New Jersey. But not anymore. Sixteen of the 17 dolphins saved from the storm have a new home. One of them, Tessie (ph), has an infection that's keeping her in Florida. But she's set to join her friends when she's feeling better.
DR. PAM GORVETT, MARINE MAMMAL VETERINARIAN, ATLANTIS: Since arriving to Atlantis, the dolphins are in stable condition and appear to be doing well. They began to eat immediately. They've also been very interactive and playful and we're encouraged by this behavior.
TUCHMAN: For 17 orphans of Katrina's wrath, a new life and a happy ending. Gary Tuchman, CNN, New Orleans.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: There you go. More of 360 in a moment. Stay with us.
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(MUSIC)
COOPER: Seaman Ship. It's our favorite commercial. It's for the Japanese naval defense forces.
Friday the 13th is finally over. We've all made it through. At least here on the East Coast. The West Coast still has a couple hours. The crew is celebrating here at 360. Do we have that video?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) COOPER (voice-over): There we go. That's all right. They're all paganists and they take Friday the 13th very seriously. "LARRY KING" -- not really -- "LARRY KING" is next. Guest-hosting tonight, Bill Maher, talking about politics with the pros and some scandals with Attorney Mark Geragos.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: Have a great weekend, everyone.
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