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American Morning

President Bush Begins Four Day Tour With Surprise Stop in Afghanistan

Aired March 01, 2006 - 08:00   ET

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

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush begins his four day tour with a surprise stop in Afghanistan, as growing violence in the country is causing concern. We'll take a look at how the military is trying to gain the upper hand. It's a story you'll only see on CNN.
Protesters in India are ready for the president's stop there today.

A second day of deadly car bomb attacks to tell you about out of Baghdad. We've got two people -- two dozen people dead.

And Saddam Hussein keeping quiet in court. Instead, it's his accusers who are doing all the talking.

These stories are all ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.

Good morning.

Welcome everybody.

I'm Soledad O'Brien.

You're watching a split edition of AMERICAN MORNING.

I'm here in New York, Miles still on the Gulf Coast, to take a closer look at the area six months after Hurricane Katrina ripped through -- Miles, good morning, again.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad.

I'm at a place they call the village, established 2005, just a couple of months after Katrina. This is the center of Pass Christian.

Take a look across the street here. That's just a typical lot here, completely mowed over. The structure is completely gone, erased. In many cases, foundations swept clean here. I'm -- this place, the village, is on the old Little League field. No longer any time or really, for that matter, Little Leaguers to contend with and so it has become a tent city. About 80 military-style tents put up by the Navy Seabees, and just about the same number of people here who are evacuees. The are also several volunteers who have been a part of this effort to help people out.

Most of these people here would like to get into one of those FEMA travel trailers, but they still aren't here yet. About half of the trailers required in Mississippi have arrived and they're -- slowly but surely, this camp is dwindling down.

But by March 15, we're told by the camp people here, the infrastructure here, the water and the showers and the electricity and the cook tent, will cease and desist. And that will probably mean the end for this tent city, putting people in a position that they have to find someplace else to go.

We'll -- we're going to be checking in with the person, the volunteer who is running this operation here. And, also, a little bit later, we're going to talk to the head of the National Hurricane Center and see what lies ahead for the next hurricane season -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, lots to get to ahead this morning.

And, you know, I've got to say, you look inside some of those tents, Miles, and it's just -- it's a shame. It's a national embarrassment because, of course, you're not just talking there, your talking many places people are living inside of tents six months later.

I know you've got much more on that ahead.

First, let's get a look at the headlines.

Carol Costello has those -- hey, Carol, good morning again.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Good morning to all of you.

Attacks across Baghdad this morning. Nearly 30 people killed in violence. There's been an up tick in attacks since that Shiite mosque was bombed last week.

And a softer side of Saddam Hussein. Well, not really, but he's been much more subdued during court proceedings. Prosecutors have been showing more evidence today. They say that documents link him to the executions of more than 140 Shiites.

Debate over that controversial ports deal again today. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is expected to face some questions on Capitol Hill about that agreement. The deal is under another 45- day review.

Will they or won't they? We're waiting to see whether Northwest Airlines pilots go on strike. The airline wants to cut pay and make work rule changes after filing for bankruptcy. A judge's ruling is expected on that later this morning. Flight attendants also have threatened to walk out.

And even the smallest of dogs can take a bite out of crime. This is Midge, the new canine deputy police dog, and she's two pounds of raw recruit police power. Actually, she's very sweet and friendly. She's already patrolling the hallways at the county jail, but the sheriff plans to train her to be a drug sniffer. This is in Geauga County, Ohio, you know, home of Geauga Lake, my fellow Midwesterners. And now Midge, home of Midge.

S. O'BRIEN: OK, so little Midge is not going to scare a soul. What does Midge weigh, like...

COSTELLO: She can sniff out drugs, though.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, but then you just pick her up and put it in your pocket.

COSTELLO: You know you can be small but mighty. You are yourself.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Midge is cute.

Thank you, Carol.

Let's talk about President Bush. He's in Afghanistan for the first time. He's there right now. It's his first visit to the war zone since spending Thanksgiving in Iraq in 2003. He is meeting with American troops who are battling Taliban insurgents.

The president took questions earlier, including a question about the hunt for Osama bin Laden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am confident he will be brought to justice. What's happening is, is that we've got U.S. forces on the hunt for not only bin Laden, but anybody who plots and plans with bin Laden.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: The president is expected to leave for India in the next half hour. The pictures you're seeing right there, well, that's the scene in India, where tens of thousands of protesters have already been shouting things like "Death to Bush!" That's taking place in New Delhi this morning.

He is there to work out a nuclear pact with India. It's unclear how much progress they're going to make on that pact.

It's been tough going for U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he expects that NATO will eventually take over much of the responsibility there.

Now, in a story that you'll see only on CNN, senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre from Brussels, Belgium, which, of course, is NATO headquarters. Just back from a three day inspection tour in Afghanistan with NATO's top commander, Jamie joins us by video phone -- Jamie, good morning.

Give us a sense of the reality on the ground for the troops there.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was interesting, clearly, there are major challenges in Afghanistan. We saw that as we went out on patrol with NATO troops in Kabul, a relatively calm area. But still the troops heavily armored, in armored vehicles, saying that most of the population is friendly, but there has been an up tick in violence and they're not taking any chances these days.

The DIA says the number of attacks in Afghanistan were actually up 20 percent between 2004 and 2005 and the tactics are increasingly like those in Iraq, something I discussed with NATO's top general, as we accompanied him around the country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCINTYRE: We are seeing more roadside bombs and suicide attacks here.

GEN. JAMES JONES, SUPREME NATO COMMANDER: Yes.

MCINTYRE: Those are the tactics that the insurgents in Iraq have used.

So, why won't they have the same affect here that they're having in Iraq?

JONES: Well, I think time will tell. I don't think that the Taliban and al Qaeda, which are generally the ones who use those kinds of tactics, are going to be successful in turning the people against the government here. I just think that they already moved beyond that in their -- in their view of the future and what they want in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCINTYRE: Jones says the big difference here in Afghanistan is that there isn't a big ethnic divide like the Sunnis and Shia in Iraq, even though there are tribal rivalries, although he is bracing for an up tick in violence in the spring, as NATO troops begin to take over in the south. He expects the Taliban will test their resolve. And, also, the Afghan government will begin to try to eradicate some of the poppy crop, and that's expected to produce a backlash from the drug runners here in Afghanistan, a major problem here -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, the president, as you know, has said it's not a matter of if bin Laden is caught, it's a matter of when bin Laden is caught.

Is that the sense on the ground in Afghanistan?

MCINTYRE: Well, bold words spoken by the president. But in my private discussions with U.S. and NATO commanders here, they candidly admit they really have no idea, no good intelligence right now about the location of Osama bin Laden.

One U.S. commander here famously made a prediction that bin Laden would be captured during the time he was here. His tenure came and went without any capture. Nobody is making those kind of predictions from the military. S. O'BRIEN: Yes, very bold.

All right, Jamie McIntyre for us this morning.

Jamie, thank you very much for that update.

Let's get right back to Miles.

As we've been talking about, he is in Pass Christian in Mississippi this morning -- Miles, good morning again.

M. O'BRIEN: Good morning again, Soledad.

What would we do in this country without volunteers like this lovely lady I'm walking with right now?

Margaret Jean Kalif, who's -- you're running this show here. And we're glad you're doing it.

You have helped a lot of people.

Have you had a chance even to stop and count up how many people have come through this tent city?

MARGARET JEAN KALIF, DIRECTOR OF HOUSING AT "THE VILLAGE": We've had approximately 300 people that we've housed at one time or another. We have 74 tents. And now we have about 80 people. Forty of those are in line for trailers, but 40 of them will be totally homeless when FEMA closes this village March the 15th. They're withdrawing the funding for the village and for the food tent.

M. O'BRIEN: Now, tell us about that.

Why are they withdrawing the funding?

We heard from a FEMA spokesman that, actually, that the town didn't want this facility to continue.

What's going on here on the ground?

KALIF: Oh, the town absolutely needs this facility, not only for people who will not have a trailer, but we have volunteers that are coming from all over the United States and Canada and we'd like to be able to continue using this facility to house those volunteers.

The volunteers are critical to our survival because the insurance companies have us by the throats and our federal government has not been effective in helping us with our infrastructure and with permanent housing here in Pass Christian.

M. O'BRIEN: It's just not a very good situation.

Have you appealed to FEMA, the federal government, and said, look, we'd like to keep it open a little longer?

What have they said to you? KALIF: They've said sorry.

M. O'BRIEN: Really?

KALIF: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: And what's the -- is there any reason given?

KALIF: Well, they don't want to spend the money. It does cost a lot to house this -- to house, you know, these people. It costs about $25,000 a day.

M. O'BRIEN: Really?

KALIF: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Wow!

KALIF: But this is not pork barrel spending.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

KALIF: This is critical to the survival of the residents in this city.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

KALIF: And businesses are hesitant to relocate because the residents are slow to return. But the debris removal in this city has been overwhelming. We have lost 80 to 90 percent of our homes and residents. And if their lots are not clear, they can't rebuild. If the insurance company monies are not coming forward, people are crippled here. And it's only been through the help of the volunteers from the United States and Canada that we have survived this far.

M. O'BRIEN: What would we do without volunteers?

And you volunteered your time. You're a former alderman, teacher, and here you are spending very long hours here.

Why do you do it?

KALIF: I love this city. I love this city. I love the people. And if it were not for volunteers, again, we would not survive.

M. O'BRIEN: A final appeal, if somebody is listening in Washington.

What would you say to them directly?

KALIF: Our greatest fear, I think, is abandonment. We are afraid we're going to become invisible. It's only through CNN, "Oprah," Robin Roberts, our hometown girl, that we are made visible in this country. And that's what we -- we desperately need the volunteers to continue coming. We still need money to help rebuild. We need a sense of permanence. We have trailers scattered throughout, but as you've stated earlier, hurricane season is upon us. And the first big blow is going to take the greatest number of these trailers right off the site.

M. O'BRIEN: Right.

That's a scary thought, isn't it?

It's going to be a very long season, I'm afraid.

Margaret Jean Kalif, keep up the good work here.

KALIF: Thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: And we wish you well.

We hope we can keep this place going.

KALIF: Thank you, Miles.

And thank you for coming to Pass Christian.

M. O'BRIEN: All right.

It's good to be here.

It's good to be here.

KALIF: Thank you.

M. O'BRIEN: Good people here in Pass Christian.

We are going to be talking to the head of the National Hurricane Center in just a little while, Max Mayfield.

We're going to ask him about the hurricane season that's coming up.

Chad Myers knows a little something about it -- and, Chad, everything I've read, it's not a very rosy picture. And when you think about all these people in these trailers and in the travel trailers, all the issues that are going to come along with that, just a small storm is going to cause a real disruption, isn't it?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I would like to ask Max -- or you can if I don't get the chance. Find out if they're going to change their forecasts any bit at all about this. People, I mean, the fact that so many people are living in tents. I mean are they going to give them an extra couple of days? Are they going to move their forecasts a little one way or the other? Is it going to affect our psyche a little bit?

That's going to be quite the interesting thing.

And we were just looking at the sea surface temperatures, Miles, for the Atlantic Ocean. And they're about one degree above normal in a lot of spots. And that's not a good start. We'd like the season to start out way below normal and then have to warm the water up. Well, if the water is already warm, that probably means a quick and early start, doesn't it?

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, we're going to talk to the mayors of Houston and Atlanta.

You've seen some of the problems they have, obviously, in Pass Christian in Mississippi. Well, these cities have problems, too. These are the cities that opened their arms to thousands of evacuees after Hurricane Katrina. Now they're coping with all the extra people and a lot of extra problems six months later. We'll explain just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: Mark your calendars. It's a grim date ahead. June 1 is the beginning of the North Atlantic hurricane season. And for folks here in the Gulf Region, and, for that matter, there are parts of Florida, as well, that is a scary prospect because you can consider how vulnerable they are. They're in tents, they're in travel trailers. They're not in any secure facilities. And it means that even the smallest storm, a category one storm, is something to cause great concern.

And add to that the forecast, which is not very good, for this hurricane season.

Joining us now to talk a little bit about this is Max Mayfield, who is the director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Dr. Mayfield, good to have you back with us this morning.

Give us your best guess -- well, it's not a guess -- your excellent forecast, at this point, as to what you foresee for this hurricane season.

MAX MAYFIELD, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER: Well, good morning, Miles.

We really haven't even made our official forecast yet. We'll do that on Monday, May the 22nd, that Monday of Hurricane Preparedness Week.

But I think what Chad was talking about is the fact that we are saying that we're in this active period that we expect to last several more years. And, you know, that's probably not good news.

The message is still the same, though, we need to be prepared.

M. O'BRIEN: All right.

So, being prepared is -- it's going to be a little bit different this go around, because people are very, very vulnerable. How does that change the way you do business, if at all?

MAYFIELD: Well, not at all from our perspective here at the Hurricane Center. We'll continue to make the best forecast we can. And I can assure you that we're not going to change that forecast based on, you know, what people are doing or these temporary housing places that are in.

I've been to that tent city there in Pass Christian and, in fact, all along the Mississippi coast there several weeks ago. And my heart really does go out to these people. But the message is -- it's really important that they hear the message. It's even more important for these people to -- that are in temporary housing to have that hurricane plan know what to do if another hurricane should come in their direction.

Tents and trailers don't do well in hurricanes.

M. O'BRIEN: Boy, that, to say the least on that.

So I suspect we're going to see a lot of evacuations that we wouldn't see based on the size storm that are headed this way. It's going to be a very interesting thing to see unfold. A kind of scary prospect.

Let me ask you about notification. The other day Mayor Ray Nagin of New Orleans said he wished he had gotten notification about mandatory evacuations from you personally sooner.

I'm curious about that.

You were on TV, I think, sometimes more than once an hour on CNN, and doing the rounds and notifying on the Web and so forth.

Should the National Hurricane Center, though, be taking a more proactive approach and contacting local, state, county officials directly? Or is that even a practical notion?

MAYFIELD: Well, I need to make clear that it's certainly not the standard protocol for the director of the Hurricane Center to call individual mayors. I've never done that before, or initiated a call to a mayor that I know of. I don't think anyone should expect the director of the Hurricane Center to call each local official and every local community up and down the coastline.

But there is a tremendous team effort. And the way it's supposed to work is that the National Hurricane Center coordinates very, very closely with our local NOAA and National Weather Service office, in this case in Slidell. And I know those people in that Slidell office and I know they did their job. They were talking to the local officials in all the parishes in southeast Louisiana and southern Mississippi.

So I think that we need to understand the process there and people should not wait or expect a phone call from me. That was above and beyond what we normally do. M. O'BRIEN: Let me ask you this, though, Dr. Mayfield. If you were to model a system along the lines of the amber alert text messaging system, where people put in a zip code. If there's an amber alert in your area, you get a text message indicating that's going to happen.

Has the Hurricane Center looked at perhaps issuing warnings that way so that people who, for whatever reason, aren't connected, aren't watching television, aren't listening to the radio, would just have one more means of knowing that something serious is on their way?

MAYFIELD: And we actually do send out messages, you know, on cell phones, for example. But it's not quite that simple, Miles, because everybody has different vulnerability. And some people -- and people need to develop those individual hurricane plans based on their vulnerability to all the different hazards. And some people are vulnerable to storm surge, some to wind, some from the inland rainfall, the flooding, some from the tornadoes.

So it's not quite as simple as pushing a button, you know, for an individual block or a zip code even.

But the main message is that people -- the studies that I'm aware of say that people really respond to what the local officials tell them to do.

M. O'BRIEN: Dr. Max Mayfield with the National Hurricane Center.

We appreciate it.

You've got a busy season ahead.

We look forward to hearing your forecast whenever it comes out.

MAYFIELD: Thank you, Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Back to you -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Miles.

Thanks.

Well, the Supreme Court rules on accusations of price fixing at the gas pump. Andy has got that as he minds your business, just ahead.

And Miss. Smith goes to Washington. The former playmate, Anna Nicole Smith, gets her day before the Supreme Court. We're going to take a look at how this pretty bizarre case could impact the nation's legal system.

That story is ahead.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) S. O'BRIEN: Now to a story that everybody is following -- the former stripper and the Supreme Court.

Anna Nicole Smith is fighting for a share of the fortune, the giant fortune that was left by her late oil rich husband.

The playboy plaintiff went to Washington on Tuesday and it appears she may have found some sympathetic ears on the high court.

Joining us from Washington, D.C. this morning is Jonathan Turley.

He is a professor at George Washington University Law School.

Nice to see you, Jonathan, as always.

JONATHAN TURLEY, PROFESSOR, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: Let's begin with the basics.

How did this case end up in the Supreme Court anyway?

TURLEY: Well, you know, Soledad, if you've ever had problems in your family, you should take a look at the Marshall family. It may be the most dysfunctional family on Earth.

You have, really, a family that has been suing each other for years. The father, of course, had a penchant for strippers. This was his second stripper relationship. And he was showering gifts upon Anna Nicole Smith even before they were married.

The eldest son was disinherited by his father. And then the younger son got $1.6 billion. That younger son is accused -- and some courts found that he did things that bordered on the criminal. Two federal judges believe that he stopped his father from giving a trust to Anna Nicole Smith.

So all of this came to two separate courts -- a probate court in Texas, which normally deals with wills, and a federal court, where Anna Nicole Smith went to and declared bankruptcy.

S. O'BRIEN: And, at the end of the day, this is the tale of two courts, isn't it?

I mean the reason the Bush administration has even weighed in on the side of Anna Nicole Smith is really, it's the federal court's power versus the state probate court?

TURLEY: That's right. What Pierce Marshall said is the state courts should control wills. Anna Nicole Smith said no, the federal courts can have a role, as well.

It's a very important issue. Putting aside all the sensationalism and sordid details, Anna Nicole Smith is going to rewrite a significant part of this area of law.

S. O'BRIEN: How much money is at stake?

I know the federal court first awarded her something like $40 -- $450 million.

TURLEY: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: And then that was kind of cut back to something like $89 million.

TURLEY: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: Before I even ask you whether you think she's going to win or lose, how much money is she potentially going to win?

TURLEY: Well, originally in Texas, she asked for $800 million. And she would never get that, because much of this $1.6 billion was put into trust before they were married. And even a community property state like Texas, she wouldn't have access to that money.

It's very likely we're talking no more than $89 million, even if she was going to win. But that's not bad for someone who started as a short order cook in Mexia, Texas.

S. O'BRIEN: Hey, yes. Not a lot of strippers make $89 million, I've got to tell you that.

TURLEY: That's right.

S. O'BRIEN: In all seriousness -- and this is, I mean the article that you have written in "USA Today," everyone should search it and look it up, because it's hilarious, as strange as the legal issues are.

How does it look for her? Do you think she's going to win or is she going to lose?

TURLEY: You know, I've got to tell you, I think that she has the stronger case here. What her lawyers are arguing -- they did a very clever thing by going to federal court, because they were losing in Texas. And what they did was quite clever. They declared her bankrupt in federal court. And when you do that, you have to declare what your expected assets are. And she cited this estate. And that's why you have these war of the courts.

But you know what? Federal courts do have jurisdiction in the area. So if I was to put a bet on anyone, I would have to bet on Anna Nicole Smith.

S. O'BRIEN: A lesson for people who may not be strippers/multi- billionaires-dysfunctional family, is get it all in writing, right?

TURLEY: Oh, yes.

That's the key here is that all of this really developed because it wasn't in writing. Now, these federal courts believe that Pierce Marshall prevented a trust from being created and there's a great dispute that -- about that.

Much of this money, half this money, by the way, are sanctions against Pierce Marshall.

S. O'BRIEN: That's a son who they think actually may have stood in the way of a trust that maybe the father actually asked him to set up.

The story goes -- it's bizarre.

TURLEY: Sure.

S. O'BRIEN: Again, your article in "USA Today" is just a funny and bizarre and fascinating read.

Jonathan Turley, always nice to see you.

Thanks for talking with us.

TURLEY: Thanks, Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: He's a professor at George Washington University School of Law.

Anna Nicole Smith not the only case on the Supreme Court's docket, of course. The justices have also ruled on accusations of price fixing at the gas pump. Andy has got a look at that coming up as he minds your business.

Plus, baseball star Barry Bonds -- oh, he is so cute as a girl. Not. Look at him, he's out of uniform, into a little drag at spring training. We'll tell you why.

That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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