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American Morning
Andy Card Resigns as White House Chief of Staff; Controversial Immigration Debate Moves to Senate
Aired March 28, 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: Good morning.
Welcome back, everybody.
I'm Soledad O'Brien.
JOHN ROBERTS, SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And I'm John Roberts in for Miles O'Brien, who is on assignment today.
O'BRIEN: The emotional debate over who gets to live in America moves from the streets to the Senate. Today, the battle over the borders heats up on Capitol Hill. Live reports straight ahead.
ROBERTS: Bombshell testimony from al Qaeda conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui, as he says what he knew about the 9/11 plot and when he knew it. Can his defense undo the damage he's done to himself? We're live outside the courthouse this morning.
O'BRIEN: And a funeral today for the Tennessee preacher shot to death. His wife, charged in the shooting, makes her first appearance in court. More on this story ahead.
ROBERTS: The next wave of cuts coming today at General Motors. Can more layoffs save the nation's largest automaker?
O'BRIEN: And a bookstore battle is brewing over "The Da Vinci Code" and a book that claims they told the story first.
That's ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.
We begin with this news just in to us and out of the nation's capital.
Administration officials say the White House chief of staff, Andy Card, has resigned. He's going to be replaced, apparently, by budget director Josh Bolton.
Let's get right to Ed Henry.
He's at the White House for us this morning -- Ed, good morning.
ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
That's right, CNN has confirmed with a senior administration official, as well as a senior Republican source outside the White House that, in fact, Andy Card is stepping down, to be replaced by the White House budget's chief of staff, as you mentioned, Josh Bolton.
There has been a lot of talk in recent weeks that the White House was in need of a staff shake-up. A lot of calls privately, some public, as well, from top Republicans, saying that the administration, with the president's poll numbers, dropping with questions about the situation in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath -- some blistering reports from Republicans on Capitol Hill about administration failures there -- that there has been a real push to bring in some new blood.
Andy Card has been here from day one for this president -- long, long hours. We've heard so much about the fact that Andy Card, the first one here in the morning, oftentimes, very long into the evening here in his White House office, working over the weekends, on and on.
So, finally, we have seen some new blood coming in. We'll have to see whether or not this will be enough for some of the Republican critics, who have been urging this kind of a shake up. Obviously, Josh Bolton is somebody who's not from the outside. He's already within the administration. There have been calls for the White House to go further, actually bring in maybe an ambassador to Capitol Hill, someone like former Senator Fred Thompson and other candidates have been floated out there.
But for now, the first step -- and it's a big one -- White House Chief of Staff Andy Card stepping down. Josh Bolton, the White House budget chief, will replace him -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: One of the parts of his legacy certainly will be that he ran an incredibly tight-lipped, buttoned-down, leak-proof White House, right?
HENRY: That's right. And one thing that's been noticed by a lot of Washington insiders in both parties in recent weeks is the fact that this staff has started to open up just a little bit, maybe with some of that pressure from the outside. They have been a little less tight-lipped. They've been trying to push back a little bit against some of the criticism. And part of that is getting their side of the story out.
And Andy Card, as you mentioned, someone very loyal to the president. The president rewards loyalty. That's why Andy Card has stuck around so long. But finally stepping down -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: You mentioned some of the pressure on the president to maybe clean house from inside and outside. But also, isn't he a potential candidate for governor in Massachusetts?
HENRY: He is. There had been also some talk that maybe Andy Card would have a soft landing elsewhere in the administration, that maybe he had designs on the Treasury secretary job. We're getting no immediate word on what his immediate plans are or long-term plans are. He certainly has been talked up as a potential gubernatorial candidate in Massachusetts, where he's from. But so far, he's only focusing on today and the short-term. Andy Card is stepping down as the White House chief of staff -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: And Ed Henry for us at the White House.
Ed, thanks very much.
HENRY: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: John.
ROBERTS: Immigration reform front and center on the Senate floor today. And we're expecting some contentious debate over the "A" word, amnesty.
CNN's Kathleen Koch is live at the White House for us today -- good morning, Kathleen.
What's ahead in this debate?
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, here on Capitol Hill, lawmakers engaged in passing this bill out of committee yesterday saw this as a true milestone moment. And they hope fervently that the entire Senate will eventually be able to vote on this measure, which takes a step toward finally resolving the status of the roughly 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: First of all, it's increased border security. Second of all, it has a viable guest program. And, third, it allows people to earn citizenship.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOCH: Now, energy that citizenship would not be easy. Applicants would have to wait six years, pay $2,000 in fines, pay any back taxes that they owed, undergo a background check and then finally learn English.
Critics, though, many in the Republican Party, say this is simply a deal breaker. It's tantamount to amnesty, rewarding people who have broken the law. And even Senator McCain told me that passing this measure into law in an election year will not be easy -- John.
ROBERTS: All right, thanks very much.
Kathleen Koch today for us on Capitol Hill.
CNN's Lou Dobbs has been focusing on the nation's broken borders for a long time now. One more day until Lou lands in Mexico for the immigration summit there. Three leaders plus Lou live from Mexico starting tomorrow. That's at 6:00 Eastern, right here on CNN -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: It took all of a half hour on the stand for Zacarias Moussaoui to undo any good that his attorneys may have done over the past couple of years and possibly doom himself. The only man charged -- the U.S. has charged, I should say -- in the 9/11 attacks admitted for the first time that hew knew about the terrorist plans.
AMERICAN MORNING's Bob Franken live outside the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia -- Bob, good morning.
What can the defense possibly do today?
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the defense is going to have to engage in what could be termed the never mind defense -- never mind Zacarias Moussaoui's attorneys will say, that he said that he lied about his knowledge of the September 11 attacks, that there were going to be attacks, which would seem to reinforce the prosecution's contention had he told the truth, perhaps government action could have been taken to prevent the attacks.
And ignore, the defense attorneys will go on, his claim that he was supposed to fly a fifth jetliner into the White House with a fellow member of the crew, Richard Reid, the now infamous shoe bomber. So just ignore that.
The defense attorneys will try and work on the credibility of Zacarias Moussaoui. They've already introduced statements and will introduce others from high level detainees, terrorist detainees that are being held by the United States government, which described Moussaoui not as a key player, as he presented himself, but as somebody on the fringes, somebody who was unreliable and not to be taken seriously.
Well, of course, all of this is very serious. At issue is the death penalty. We're expecting that the jury is going to get to phase one of this case, whether he's eligible for the death penalty, later this week.
The defense attorneys now have their work cut out for them after they had the worst job done for them by their own client, the defendant, Zacarias Moussaoui -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Yes, he pretty much did what the prosecutors have been trying to do, and he did it in less than 30 minutes.
Bob Franken for us this morning.
Bob, thank you.
And you want to stay with CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Other stories making headlines this morning.
Carol's got those.
She's in the newsroom for us -- hey, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad.
Good morning to all of you. One of the most wanted criminals in the world has simply disappeared. Charles Taylor is the former Liberian president. He's wanted for war crimes by the war tribunal in Sierra Leone. Taylor has been living in exile in southeastern Nigeria. No word yet on whether Taylor escaped or was abducted. Jeff Koinange is in South Africa for us. We'll talk to him later in the hour.
Pink slips -- we are watching for a major announcement from General Motors. The auto manufacturer could start laying off hundreds of white collar workers today.
And are you ready to pay more? The Federal Reserve is expected to increase interest rates by a quarter point today. It's new Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's first Fed meeting.
A potential breakthrough in HIV-AIDS treatment. Scientists say they may soon have a pill that could prevent infection. It's actually a combination of two drugs already on pharmacy shelves. It's shown great promise in monkeys. Early tests now being expanded to people.
And one of our own being honored today. Ted Turner is being award the 2006 Delta Prize for global understanding. Turner getting the honors for founding CNN and for his efforts to foster peace throughout the world. So, congratulations, Mr. Turner.
Back to you -- John.
ROBERTS: All right, thanks very much, Carol.
Let's come back on the weather now.
Chad Myers is back with us at the CNN Center -- and guess what?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: What's that?
ROBERTS: The news is bad again.
MYERS: Well...
ROBERTS: Surprise, surprise.
MYERS: I guess that it depends on where you're going or where you live, I guess. People in Florida are happy. But, yes, for the rest of the country, John, it's kind of a tough day here.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: Pretty frightening...
O'BRIEN: Didn't he just say get a NOAA radio?
ROBERTS: Get a NOAA radio.
O'BRIEN: Do you have one?
ROBERTS: Yes. It's one of those ones that's 300 cubits long by 50 cubits wide by 30 cubits high...
O'BRIEN: And you have one?
ROBERTS: ... a NOAA radio for when it rains.
No, never mind.
O'BRIEN: You completely lost me on that, but OK.
ROBERTS: I do have one, but it's for hurricane coverage.
A pretty frightening security breach to tell you about. Investigators smuggle enough material into the United States to make two dirty bombs. And it didn't take much effort. We'll look at how they did it.
O'BRIEN: Also, remember those protests over a plan to close a historic church in New Orleans? Well, things got heated up over the weekend, forcing church officials to make a pretty tough decision. We'll explain.
ROBERTS: And later on, which colleges give students and parents the best bang for their buck? The "Princeton Review's" list of best college values, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: In our CNN Security Watch this morning, a stunning breach of security at U.S. borders. A government report says undercover investigators were able to smuggle enough radioactive material into the United States to make two dirty bombs.
Joins us now from Washington is Clark Kent Ervin.
He's our CNN security analyst and former inspector general with the Department of Homeland Security -- Clark, how seriously should we be treating this? How concerned should we be that this happened?
CLARK KENT ERVIN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I think we should be very concerned, indeed, John. You know, this report comes against a backdrop of a series of reports over the last five years showing how easy it is to smuggle guns and knives and conventional bombs at our airports. Also, another network a few years ago showed how easy it was to smuggle depleted, not weapons grade, but depleted uranium, into our seaports.
But this is the first report that I'm aware of where by government investigators were able to smuggle in material for a dirty bomb into the United States at our land borders. And I can assure you that if government investigators can do this, al Qaeda can, too.
ROBERTS: Well, you know, they were trying to smuggle, or they did smuggle, they were successful in smuggling cesium-137 into the country, which is something that's quite widely used in medical devices and other radiological devices that a lot of people think would be a pretty good source for material if somebody wanted to make a dirty bomb.
When they were coming across the border, apparently radiation detectors went off, so the material was identified. But what's really frightening, it seems to me, at least, is that these investigators were able to get the goods across the border by producing fake documents that showed that they were supposed to be in possession of this and were legitimately importing it.
ERVIN: That's exactly right. These investigators had what appeared to be a license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to import this material. But apparently they got a fake -- they got a license from the Internet that looked real. And there is absolutely no way now for border inspectors to be able to confirm in real time with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that what appears to be a real license is, in fact, one.
So this is really partially a good news story because, of course, at many ports, land ports and seaports, there isn't any radiation detection equipment. Much of the equipment that exists doesn't work very well.
But in this instance, even though there was equipment and even though it did work well, nevertheless the investigators were able to get through because they had a fake license.
ROBERTS: I mean it just seems stunning to me that these inspectors can't tell the difference between legitimate and fake documents.
ERVIN: That's exactly right. And, of course, this happens not just in the context of these kinds of documents, but, of course, it's very easy, or relatively easy, to forge citizenship documents, as well.
So there are a number of problems. We need more radiation detection equipment at our seaports and our land ports and our airports. The equipment that we have needs to work. And not all of the equipment does. And as I say, there needs to be a way to confirm the authenticity of documents.
It's very troubling, indeed. It shows, frankly, just how little progress has been made in all these years since 9/11, despite the expenditure of billions of dollars and despite our knowledge that we remain under threat of attack.
ROBERTS: We should point out, Clark, that this investigation was requested by Oklahoma Senator Norm Coleman, who's a Republican, who said yesterday after the release of this report that it's easier to purchase radioactive material like this cesium-137, than it is to buy cold medicine. That's overstating the case at least a bit, isn't it?
ERVIN: It is overstating it a bit. Of course, you know, it is -- you don't have to do anything to get cold medicine. You just go into a store. It's a little harder, needless to say, to get radioactive material than that. But it's easier than it should be. And furthermore, of course, you don't even need a license to import a small quantity of radioactive material and perhaps in light of this report, an import license should be required under all circumstances.
So I'm very hopeful that this report will require a complete rethinking of border security. And, of course, this comes in the context of this immigration debate that we're having about just how porous our borders are.
ROBERTS: Really quickly, Clark, speaking of porous borders, you know, one of the incidents in smuggling the cesium-137 across the border was from Mexico into the United States. But the other one was from Canada into the U.S. So...
ERVIN: That...
ROBERTS: ... it seems that the border is not only porous along the south, but to the north, as well.
ERVIN: That's exactly right. If anything, really, I think less attention has been focused on our northern border than our southern border. The bulk of the illegal immigration that people are concerned about comes from Mexico as opposed to Canada. So the bulk of attention has been focused there.
Precisely because that's the case, it seems to me there's a greater danger from the border in Canada.
We all remember that in 1999, Ahmed Ressam attempted to, in fact, come across the Canadian border. And his plan was to blow up the Los Angeles airport.
So attention needs to be paid about both borders and we really need to get a handle on this problem.
ROBERTS: Well, I'll tell you, this is a serious wake up call and the alarm is ringing very loudly.
CNN security analyst Clark Kent Ervin, thanks.
And be sure to stay with CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: We're getting word now from the White House that at 8:30 this morning, the president will be making an announcement about his staff. That's going to happen at the Rose Garden approximately 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. We're going to bring that to you live.
We're expecting, of course, that we'll hear the official announcement that we brought you a little bit earlier this morning that White House Chief of Staff Andy Card is resigning and that he's going to be replaced by the budget director, Josh Bolton.
The move, of course, comes amid a pretty sharp decline in the president's approval ratings and also calls from some Republicans, as well, about bringing in some new people with new ideas.
We're going to hear from the president again in just about 10 minutes or so.
Ahead this morning, one of the most wanted criminals in the world vanishes into thin air. What has happened to the Liberian former president, Charles Taylor? We're going to bring you a live update on the situation there.
Also, a new chapter in the courtroom battle over "The Da Vinci Code." That battle now headed to a bookstore near you. We'll explain just ahead.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: After butting heads in a London courtroom, "Da Vinci Code" author Dan Brown and Michael Baigent, the coauthor of "Holy Blood, Holy Grail," are going to go head to head in bookstores. Five million copies of "The Da Vinci Code" paperback are going to be in stores today. Baigent's new book, "The Jesus Papers," also out.
Steven Zeitchik from "Variety" joins us from the Borders bookstore very close to where we are in the studio this morning.
Steven, nice to talk to you.
Thank you very much.
STEVEN ZEITCHIK, "VARIETY": The same here.
Thank you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Let's start by talking about "The Da Vinci Code."
Forty-three million copies sold since the first publication in 2003. It makes it, what is it, the best-selling adult hardcover fiction in all history.
ZEITCHIK: Yes.
O'BRIEN: What do you think it is that has connected this book to people?
ZEITCHIK: Well, it's really been a remarkable phenomenon. And when you think about that this book came out three years ago to barely a whisper. I mean no one even knew it existed. No one had ever heard of Dan Brown. It took a couple of months. It started to get some traction. He went on the "Today Show." And three years later it's just been, I mean it's basically the adult "Harry Potter."
It's as big for adults as that book is for kids. And I think the fact that it's so enjoyable to read, but it's also such a kind of educational and historical thriller, which, you know, we all want our reading experience to be enjoyable, but we want to -- we want to be efficient about it. We want to learn something, you know, along the way, too.
And I think that has a lot to do with why so many people are buying it and reading it.
O'BRIEN: Yes, huge is a word that doesn't even come close to describing how big it really is.
Let's talk about Michael Baigent's book, which is called "The Jesus Papers," his new book. His printing to "The Da Vinci Code's" five million is 150,000. He's gained a lot of publicity. I actually would predict that those are going to sell.
ZEITCHIK: Yes, I think those books will sell. You know, his book "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" actually started to sell, you know, even after "The Da Vinci Code" started to hit, because people were wondering, well, what is this book that Dan Brown is referencing?
And I think that now that the trial has -- you know, there's been so many happy coincidences with all this -- now that the trial has really exploded, and kind of controversially, but it also exploded his popularity. And I think that, you know, this book will have gotten so much more attention than I think it ever would have gotten before the trial happened.
O'BRIEN: It cannot be a happy coincidence that they both -- that both their books are coming out on the same day. And, oh, by the way, they're in the middle of this really controversial trial.
How strange is that?
ZEITCHIK: Yes. Well, there are no happy coincidences. The may be some undiscovered conspiracies, as Dan Brown readers would certainly attest. But, yes, I mean there's no question that the marketing of all of this has been very well timed on the part of Baigent's publisher, but also on the part of "The Da Vinci Code."
I mean the movie is coming out in two months and the trial is hitting now and the paperback, I mean, there's no better time to release the paperback.
So I think everyone is trying to position themselves a little bit and see, you know, when the best time to bring a book out will be.
O'BRIEN: How does that positioning change if Dan Brown is actually found guilty of plagiarism?
ZEITCHIK: Yes, well...
O'BRIEN: I mean, you know, we've certainly seen it in the book "A Million Little Pieces," how the public can so quickly turn against it.
ZEITCHIK: Sure. Yes.
O'BRIEN: Your numbers of your book sales can be still great and the public can turn against it. ZEITCHIK: Sure. I know, and I think that is a concern, both on Brown's part and his publisher's part, who is the one being sued. But, you have to remember, I mean this is a novel. I don't think anyone is expecting Dan Brown to be the kind of memoirist that James Frey was. And, you know, he's -- if he is found guilty, I think, you know, people will probably be a little more curious. Maybe some will be a little bit more skeptical. But I don't really see it affecting the popularity the way it did for James Frey.
O'BRIEN: Do you think it's selling so well because it's so controversial or do you think it's selling so well because it's just an incredibly well told story?
ZEITCHIK: Well, I think an incredibly well told story helps, but controversy never hurts. And there's no question that the fact that -- a friend of mine has said that anyone who went to Catholic school or knows anybody who went to Catholic school probably is going to be picking up this book. And that includes a pretty -- a pretty huge chunk of the American population, I think.
O'BRIEN: Yes, if you're going to go for a crowd, that's a good one to have.
ZEITCHIK: Exactly.
O'BRIEN: And, as you say, controversy never hurts.
No truer words may have been spoken, Steven.
Steven Zeitchik from "Variety" joining us this morning.
Thanks.
ZEITCHIK: Great.
Thank you very much, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: John.
ROBERTS: A big announcement from President Bush coming up in just a few minutes about his chief of staff, Andy Card, stepping down.
We've also got a follow-up on that New Orleans church protest that we told you about last week. Folks there are trying to stop one of America's oldest churches from closing its doors. Now it looks like the fight could make it all the way to the Vatican.
And later on, the "Princeton Review's" list of best value colleges. It might be a little late for this year, but for next year we'll tell you which schools were at the top of the list.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: You're watching AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien.
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody.
You're taking a look at some live pictures. That's the White House, of course. We're going to be going there in just a few moments as we wait for word from the president the official announcement. We're expecting that he's going to say that Andy Card, his chief of staff, is resigning.
Welcome back, everybody.
I'm Soledad O'Brien.
ROBERTS: And I'm John Roberts in for Miles O'Brien today.
He's on assignment.
O'BRIEN: He's doing a little work this morning.
Let's get right to Ed Henry.
He's at the White House for us this morning with more on this announcement.
We sort of know the big broad strokes. We don't know many of the details -- do we, Ed?
HENRY: We're just learning some of those details right now, Soledad. We know that in about two minutes, the president will be actually making the official announcement. We've gotten from senior officials a little bit of detail about how it went down.
We're told that Andy Card, the outgoing White House chief of staff, came to the president earlier this month and said he'd like to step down. They had a series of conversations, culminating this past weekend at Camp David, where the president finally accepted the resignation.
He will replaced, as we've noted, by Josh Bolten, the current White House budget chief. We are told this will take effect on April 14th, so that gives Josh Bolten over two weeks to get his sea legs, if you will.
Some Republican strategists have been privately grumbling that they want to see more of a staff shake-up, given the president's low poll ratings, some concerns about the White House staff, whether they've been on the job too long, the need for some fresh blood. There's been talk that maybe they would go beyond this, add sort of an unofficial ambassador to Capitol Hill, like a former Senator Fred Thompson, former Senator Dan Coats. I asked a senior administration official about that. They left the door open to the possibility, basically saying any other staff changes will be up to the president and his new chief of staff.
Soledad. O'BRIEN: And it actually sounds a lot, like Card said in many interviews, any decisions are really up to the president. As you say, he has made the offer to some degree that he would be willing to go at the president's pleasure, right?
HENRY: Absolutely. And it's not unexpected, obviously, that Andy Card would be stepping down. It just was a matter of when, as senior officials here note. The average tenure of a White House chief of staff -- just a back-breaking job -- is just about two years. Andy Card has been on the job day one, extremely loyal to the president, on the job for just over five and a half years. And I understand the president is coming in to make the announcement right now.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ... Andy Card came to me and raised the possibility of stepping down as chief of staff. After five and a half years, he thought it might be time to return to private life. And this past weekend, I accepted Andy's resignation.
Andy Card has served me and our country in historic times: on a terrible day when America was attacked, during economic recession and recovery, through storms of unprecedented destructive power, in peace and in war.
Andy has overseen legislative achievements on issues from education to Medicare. He helped confirm two justices to the Supreme Court, including a new chief justice.
In all these challenges and accomplishments, I have relied on Andy's wise counsel, his calm in crisis, his absolute integrity, and his tireless commitment to public service.
Andy is respected by his colleagues for his humility, his decency and his thoughtfulness. They have looked to him as a leader and a role model, and they, like me, will miss him.
On most days, Andy is the first one to arrive in the West Wing and among the last to leave. And during those long days over many years I've come to know Andy as more than my chief of staff.
He is leaving the White House, but he'll always be my friend. Laura and I have known Andy and his wife, Kathi, for more than 20 years, and our close friendship will continue.
With me today is Joshua Bolten, who will be the new White House chief of staff. Josh is a man with broad experience, having worked on Capitol Hill and Wall Street and the White House staff, and for nearly three years as the director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Josh is a creative policy thinker. He's an expert on the budget and our economy. He's respected by members of Congress from both parties. He's a strong advocate for effective, accountable management in the federal government.
He's a man of candor and humor and directness who's comfortable with the responsibility and knows how to lead. No person is better prepared for this important position and I'm honored that Josh has agreed to serve.
The next three years will demand much of those who serve our country. We have a global war to fight and win. We have great opportunities to expand the prosperity and compassion of America. We've come far as a nation, yet there's a lot on the road ahead.
I'm honored to have served with Andrew Card. I've got great confidence in my next chief of staff.
Congratulations, Josh.
JOSHUA BOLTEN, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET: Mr. President, thank you for those kind words and for your confidence.
It's been the privilege of a lifetime to serve in your Cabinet as head of a great organization, the Office of Management and Budget. I'm deeply honored now by the opportunity to succeed Andy Card as White House chief of staff.
I say "succeed" Andy Card, and not "replace" him, because Andy cannot be replaced. His hallmarks of honesty and decency, dedication and courage have made him not only a great leader of your White House staff, Mr. President, but they've also placed him among the finest public servants of this generation.
Mr. President, the agenda ahead is exciting. You've set a clear course to protect our people at home, to promote freedom abroad and to expand our prosperity.
I'm grateful for Andy's willingness to stay on for a couple of weeks to help break me in, and then I'm anxious to get to work.
Thank you again, Mr. President, for the privilege of serving you and our nation.
ANDREW CARD, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: Mr. President, Ecclesiastes reminds us that there are different seasons, and there is a new season.
Working in the White House is a tremendous privilege, and it's almost beyond description the great privilege it is to work at the White House. But it is even a greater honor to serve as the president's chief of staff, especially to you, Mr. President.
I have watched as you have kept your oath to preserve, protect and defend that Constitution. And I know that there are a lot of people who help you do that and it starts with the White House staff, it goes through everybody who serves in the executive branch of government and most especially those young men and women who wear uniforms and help defend us.
I've watched your leadership guide them during troubled times. I've watched you comfort Americans, rally the world to meet real needs. I've watched as you've guided us from a recession to economic recovery. But, most of all, I've watched you as a person. And you're a good man, Mr. President, and you do great things. I am grateful for the friendship that you've shown me. I'm grateful for the love that Laura has shared with Kathi and with me. I'm grateful for the White House staff that has served you so well and helped me do a better job.
But it is a different season, and Josh Bolten is the right person for that season. I'm excited about the leadership that he will bring to the White House staff and to all of your government. And I'm grateful to the Cabinet that has helped to serve you as well.
But, Mr. President, as a chief of staff, I know I was a staffer, and now I look forward to being your friend.
Thank you, Mr. President.
BUSH: Good job.
O'BRIEN: Stop as they end this press conference right there. The president saying that after five and a half years, Andy Card is going to return to private life. And then you heard just moments ago, the now former chief of staff, or potentially former, soon to be former chief of star, Andy Card, saying that there are seasons and that his season is now over, but it's time for Joshua Bolten to pick up the ball and become the new White House chief of staff.
He seemed a little bit, Ed Henry, sad. A little bit emotional, I thought that is what we were getting from Andy Card there for a moment.
HENRY: That's right. A very emotional Andy Card. Let's not forget the ties to the Bush family overall, not just this president. Serving this president since day one of this administration, some five and a half years, but he also served as transportation secretary in this president's father administration. So he's been close to this family for a long time.
This is a president who obviously rewards loyalty but, at some point, there is a need for new blood, fresh energy. We've heard those calls from Republicans on Capitol Hill, all around town saying with the president's poll ratings down, with a lot of questions about frayed relations between the president and some of his stalwart Republican allies on the Hill who had helped him so much over the last five and a half years, especially in the wake of that Dubai ports fiasco, a lot of talk about not just new blood but really repairing those frayed relations on the Hill.
So it may not just end here. There still may be calls for the president to go further than just replacing Andy Card, bring in some sort of an unofficial ambassador to Capitol Hill and really find a way to not just repair the relations with Republicans on the Hill, but get this president's agenda restarted because it's stuck right now.
Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Ed Henry at the White House for us this morning, as we hear the words officially now, Andy Card resigning as chief of staff. John.
ROBERTS: Well by the time that Andy Card steps down on April 14, he will have served for chief of staff for five years, almost three months, which is second longest in history, second only to Sherman Adams, who was chief of staff for the Eisenhower White House.
The fact that he is going is surprising but yet not surprising. A lot of people had thought the White House may add a new member as opposed to getting rid of one. In fact, that's what a lot of calls were coming from Republicans.
A person who broke that story a couple of weeks ago is Dana Bash, our Capitol Hill correspondent. She's on the phone now.
And Dana, is it a little bit of a surprise, at least, that Card actually is stepping down, is actually leaving as opposed to them adding maybe what some people termed a gray beard to the White House staff to liaise with Congress?
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It is a little bit of a surprise, but we're hearing that perhaps that this isn't the end of it, that perhaps there will be somebody else added eventually, as you said a gray beard, somebody from the outside.
Because as Ed noted, Josh Bolten has been there for some time. In fact, this is not new blood. This is somebody who has been in the president's inner circle since really almost for seven years, since his first campaign. Josh Bolten was the president's and governor's policy director in his 2000 campaign. So he's been there for some time.
And this is -- this kind of shifting things around. Also, going to be interesting to see how he is received on Capitol Hill. Ed noted that that is one of the president's big problems right now, is his relations, frayed relations on Capitol Hill. There have been some talk that perhaps Josh Bolton wasn't necessarily the person who has the kind of relations on Capitol Hill that the president needs at this moment to fix that. So it might not be the end of this story, John.
ROBERTS: Yes, well, certainly Josh is known as a good manager and I know him a little bit and he doesn't seem -- even though he's been serving the president for seven years -- to be worn out. It looks like he's still got some life left in him. So even though he's not going for new blood, certainly maybe just a shake-up will help pull the president out of doldrums that he's in right now.
Dana, thanks very much. We'll be talking with you later on in the day. Soledad?
O'BRIEN: Turning and changing gears now. How far will parishioners at a Catholic church in New Orleans go to save their house of worship? All the way to the Vatican, they're saying.
CNN's Susan Roesgen, live for us in New Orleans with the very latest on this story. Susan, good morning.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
This is St. Augustine Church, a church with a long history in New Orleans. People have worshipped here for more than 160 years, but the mass on Sunday here may have been the last.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice-over): This was supposed to be the first mass for a new priest at St. Augustine, but it wasn't a welcoming one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Don't do this to us!
ROESGEN: Parishioners are angry that the archdiocese has merged this church with a bigger one nearby, and brought in a new priest.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're not wanted here!
ROESGEN: He didn't make it through his first homily before protesters shouted him out.
The New Orleans archdiocese says over the last few years St. Augustine has been losing parishioners and struggling financially. That's why the archdiocese ordered the merger. But after the raucous protest on Sunday, the archbishop decided to close the church entirely.
ARCHBISHOP ALFRED HUGHES, NEW ORLEANS ARCHDIOCESE: Despite all my efforts to resolve the issues and to keep St. Augustine Church open for Sunday worship, I am now reluctantly announcing, with a heavy heart, that St. Augustine Church is closed for the foreseeable future.
ROESGEN: For more than a week, some out of state activists have barricaded themselves in the church offices to support the efforts to keep St. Augustine functioning. Now they say they'll leave without a fight if the archdiocese comes to kick them out.
SUNCERE SHAKUR, PROTESTER: If it's ending it's ending, you know. But we made our stand. Until they come get us, it ain't over 'till they come get us. So, you know, it's cool.
ROESGEN: But the parishioners say they aren't giving up. They hope the archbishop will change his mind.
SANDRA GORDON, PARISHIONER: We could be the jewel in the archdiocese's crown. You know, we want to show them that we can stand tall. We can do what we need to do to keep our church and our parish.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: Now, the parishioners have done a lot of research on this and they believe, Soledad, that the church actually broke canon law by closing Saint Augustine, and so they do plan, as you mention, to take their appeal all the way to the Vatican. O'BRIEN: All right, we'll see where it ends then. Susan, thank you very much. Susan Roesgen with our report this morning.
Andy's "Minding Your Business" just ahead this morning.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" COLUMNIST: Good morning, Soledad.
Can you guess how many millionaires there are in the United States?
Plus, Steve Jobs faces a massive, massive tax bill. We'll tell you about that, coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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O'BRIEN: Millions and millions of millionaires, and America has got most of them.
SERWER: Yes, where are they?
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTS: It used to be that being a millionaire meant something.
SERWER: Yes.
O'BRIEN: Sad to say no more.
SERWER: You know, it's gotten cheapened. Inflation has done that, John, don't you think? New study out, a story in "The New York Times" about the number of millionaires. Climbing briskly, I would say, this decade. Up to 8.9 million American households are millionaires, excluding primary residence. That does not count the value of one's home, that is.
And interesting, you can see right here, you can see it climbing. It peaked at 7.1 million in 1999, dropped after the Internet bubble burst and has climbed since '02, you can see. And that's out of 108 roughly million American households. So, you know, a little bit less than 10 percent. Average millionaire family has two -- this is sad -- average millionaire family has 2.2 million dollars in the bank.
And one out of seven millionaire families is in only 13 out of 3,100 U.S. counties. So they're clustered. For instance, Nassau County, nearby here in Long Island, 17.5 percent of the families living in Nassau County, are millionaires.
O'BRIEN: Really? I grew up in Suffolk. What's the word on Suffolk?
SERWER: That's one county over. Sorry, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: A world over, they might say.
SERWER: Yes. Now, speaking of millionaires, or I should say billionaires. Steve Jobs, of course the CEO of Apple Computer -- this is a problem when you get stock grants of hundreds of millions of dollars. You have to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. The company saying now they gave him 10 million shares of restricted stock in 2003, worth over $600 million. You know, look at that billion. That's his net worth, I guess, up there.
And, of course, the stock has been soaring over the past couple of years with the company's great success. It turns out now of those 10 million shares, the company is withholding $4.5 million to pay his tax bill. About half will go to pay taxes.
O'BRIEN: That's what taxes are all about.
ROBERTS: There's a problem I'd love to have!
SERWER: Yes. You get $600 million, you have to pay $300 million tax. I'll still take it, right?
O'BRIEN: So you're still up on that one.
ROBERTS: Any day of the week. All right, Andy, thanks.
O'BRIEN: All right, Andy, thank you.
ROBERTS: The Princeton Review is out with its list of colleges that give you the best bang for your buck, just in case you don't have that $300 mill. And up next, we'll tell you which schools, both public and private, topped the list.
And later on, not all drinks are created equal when it comes to children's nutrition. We'll look at what your kids should be drinking to grow up healthy. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROBERTS: It happens every spring. High school seniors across the country deciding where to go to college, and where they can get the best bang for their tuition buck. The Princeton Review is out with its annual list of best value colleges, and publisher Robert Franek joins us now.
Good morning to you.
ROBERT FRANEK, THE PRINCETON REVIEW: Good morning. Thanks for having me.
ROBERTS: This is always a very anticipated book, ever since you started coming out with it a few years ago.
FRANEK: Yes.
ROBERTS: What are the criteria that you use to judge which are the best value colleges? And we should mention, too, that you break it down into private and public.
FRANEK: Yes, that's true. And this is the third year we've been putting out "America's Best Value Colleges." We reach directly out to both school administrators to find statistical information about the school, how they're aggressively offsetting tuition, but then reaching out to students, who we consider college experts, and asking them about the value for their education and what sort of financial value they're getting for that.
ROBERTS: So some of this is objective and some of it is subjective, as well...
FRANEK: Yes.
ROBERTS: ... interviews with students?
FRANEK: Exactly. It's both qualitative as well as quanatative information. We reached out to a little over 160,000 students this year through our Web site, princetonreview.com, and we asked them questions basically in three different buckets. Overall academics, costs and then financial aid. So we paired those things with that qualitative and quantitative information.
So overall, the statistics on what it takes to get into some of those 150 schools in the book, but then exactly what they thought the academic experience was in the classroom. Were their professors good teachers? Were they accessible inside and outside of the classroom? So not only are the sticker prices for lots of these schools low, but students are saying it's a great academic value as well.
ROBERTS: What's this criteria that you have? You call it tuition GPA?
FRANEK: Yes, tuition GPA is just that. We're looking for overall financial aid. So what does the school do, again, to bring down that sticker price to a manageable number? How much aid are they giving out? What is the average indebtedness for each of those students once they graduate. But then asking that student, do they think that it's a great financial aid value of what they're actually getting when the sticker price comes down.
ROBERTS: Yes, you suggest that sticker shock is one of the biggest misconceptions when people are searching for a college?
FRANEK: It's, without question, one of the biggest misconceptions, and really the downfall for lots of kids and parents. What we have found is most people will cross a school off of their list because it has high sticker price, which is totally the wrong thing to do when we start thinking about it. Schools that charge a lot of money can be very aggressive about giving out large financial aid packages to their students. And, again, its financial aid packages are not forcing students to take out loans. So, again, the university giving out grant money, free money, scholarship money.
ROBERTS: So always look a little bit deeper into the hole?
FRANEK: Without question. That's what you owe it to yourself as a student and certainly as a parent to do.
ROBERTS: All right, let's get to the list. Top five of the best private colleges across the country, best value colleges. How did they come down?
FRANEK: Well, there's a lot of them and some great stories here. Brigham Young University, wonderful school, it's a Mormon university. Over 30,000 students. But when you start thinking about average sticker price for a kid for the Mormon faith, because it's subsidized by the Mormon religion, $10,000 for a non-Mormon student, about $12,000. So a great value. About $13,000 overall that a student would graduate with overall indebtedness.
ROBERTS: The other in the top five. Berea College in Kentucky; Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, New York; Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri; and Rice University in Houston, Texas. What about public colleges?
FRANEK: Yes, number one on our public college list is New College in Florida, which is a wonderful school, 692 students. Certainly a small school, but it's part of the Florida system, so, again, it caters to students in that state, but invites other students to apply overall.
ROBERTS: And in the other ones in the top five: North Carolina State University, California State University in Long Beach; Truman State University in Missouri; and the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. Any carryovers from last year?
FRANEK: Yes, we have two. Actually, Brigham Young University and New College of Florida are both carryovers. Not in the number one spot.
ROBERTS: But they weren't number one, though, right?
FRANEK: That's right. And certainly these schools, as well as the other 148 schools that we have in the book, wonderful schools academically and great financial aid values.
ROBERTS: We're going to have to let you go. But first, just give us a quick little response to this. The whole SAT debacle, with these kids whose tests weren't marked right, what do you make of it?
FRANEK: Well, again, I think we're pretty consistent at the Princeton Review. Totally inexcusable. And thinking of all the students that were hurt by this SAT snafu, and again, I think that the College Board has been arrogant about the way that they have handled it.
ROBERTS: Yes, because we had them here last year -- last year, last week -- and they didn't seem too apologetic.
FRANEK: Yes.
ROBERTS: All right, Robert Franek, thanks very much.
FRANEK: It's good to be here.
ROBERTS: By the way, 2007 edition of America's best value colleges, on sale now. A little late for this year, but certainly good research for next year -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Top stories are just ahead this morning.
Andrew Card resigns as White House chief of staff.
Controversial immigration reform moves a step closer to becoming law.
Zacarias Moussaoui testifies that he knew about the 9/11 attacks beforehand.
Undercover investigators say they were able to smuggle enough material for two dirty bombs into the United States.
And it looks like General Motors is set to cut hundreds more jobs.
Those stories and much more ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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