Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Massive Immigration Protests Expected in Dozens of Cities Today; Jeffrey Skilling to Testify; Storm Cleanup

Aired April 10, 2006 - 06:30   ET

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

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Massive immigration protests are expected in dozens of cities today.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Cleaning up again in Tennessee. A second wave of strong storms and tornadoes destroy lives -- destroys lives and homes -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: A couple of good cleanup days in store. A little chance of severe weather tomorrow, but haven't seen a blank map like this in a long time.

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Paula Newton at Buckingham Palace. I'll tell you why Prince William is wearing a gangster getup.

That story coming up.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. Welcome to Monday, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.

M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. We're glad you're with us.

Congress may be stuck in the mud on immigration reform, but immigrants are on the march. Expect to see thousands of them in the streets all across the country today. As many as 200,000 people could rally in the nation's capital.

AMERICAN MORNING'S Bob Franken live on the National Mall in Washington with more.

Good morning, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.

And, of course, the symbolism of the National Mall is that there have been so many significant political movements that have included these large demonstrations at the Mall. But this one is going to be a demonstration that's nationwide, where perhaps a million people are going to hit the streets.

A huge number yesterday in a preliminary march, it was called. This was the day before the nationwide rally was even going to begin -- 300,000 500,000 people were in the streets of Dallas, Texas, one of the cities and the one that had the biggest turnout yesterday. There were also demonstrations in San Diego, in cities like Miami. There are going to be more today in Georgia, Florida, so many others, and California. Don't forget there are 11 million estimated illegal immigrants in the United States. This is a protest against tough laws.

Now, the Senate is talking compromise these days, but when you hear about those who urge compromise, you don't really hear much compromise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JON KYL (R), ARIZONA: It seems to me that when we need foreign workers, we should invite them in with a temporary permit, but we should not turn them into legal permanent residents or citizens because there may well come a time -- indeed, there will be a time when there is no job available for them.

REP. LUIS GUTIERREZ (D), ILLINOIS: They're part of the fabric of our society and they're necessary to the economic well-being of our country. So let's include them. I agree enforcement is key and security is key, but let's do it comprehensively.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: There are very hard feelings over this issue in this country, and obviously, strong feelings on the part of the millions who are affected by this, immigrants legal and illegal, and they'll be showing their strength today -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: We've said a lot about how hard a working group they are. It's a work day. Are they getting time off from work?

FRANKEN: Well, many employers including the Pentagon, are giving their immigrant workers the day off, legal and illegal. Of course, it's hard, really, to document that always. But one of the points of this march is to show employers just how much they're missed when the workers aren't there.

So, that is sort of a subplot here, what it's going to do to the economy when the workers don't show up.

M. O'BRIEN: Bob Franken on the Mall.

Thank you -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, today could be the most important day of testimony in the Enron trial. The defense is hoping that its star witness can convince jurors that the billion-dollar collapse was not a case of executives gone wild.

CNN's Ed Lavendera has more for us from Houston.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's expected to be a bombshell day here in Houston at the federal trial of two of Enron's former top executives. One of those executives, Jeffrey Skilling, is expected to take the witness stand later today in his own defense. Prosecution witnesses have spent the last 10 weeks describing Skilling as the man who masterminded the financial fraud which caused the implosion and downfall of Enron four years ago. However, defense attorneys are arguing that no crimes were ever committed at Enron and that Skilling is the scapegoat of the government's case. In fact, Skilling, when he left the courthouse last week, said he's looking forward to taking the stand, he has nothing to hide, and that he's looking forward to getting his story out.

If convicted of the long list of fraud and conspiracy charges, Jeffrey Skilling could spend up to 30 years in prison.

Ed Lavendera, Houston Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: We're learning more this morning about those deadly tornadoes in Tennessee. Officials say one that touched down in Sumner County in central Tennessee was rated an F-3, meaning winds were close to 170 miles an hour.

Meanwhile, victims are picking up the pieces this morning. Some have lost everything.

Here's CNN's Jonathan Freed in Gallatin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in Gallatin, Tennessee, this house has stood here for 100 years, but it took just 30 seconds for Friday's tornado to reduce it to ruin. And that's according to Len and Ruth Little (ph), who have lived here for the better part of 40 years.

Now, on Friday afternoon at around 2:45, 3:00 p.m., they were coming up their driveway when they looked across the field that stretches out behind the house and they saw the twister coming towards them. They realized at that point that they had maybe at most a couple of minutes to try and save their lives.

They ran inside and they went down to the basement. Now, this home is 100 years old, but it's built on the foundation of one that dates back even farther to the 1800s. And the family says that solid foundation, that basement is what saved them.

Now, they are typical of many of the families here in this Tennessee community who are picking up after the storm. In their case, the house is so badly damaged, they've decided that they just have to pack up and move out, at least for now.

Jonathan Freed, Gallatin, Tennessee.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: Let's head to the weather center now and check in with Chad Myers. Chad, what's the latest? How is the forecast for today?

MYERS: The forecast today is good. Tomorrow a little tough. Not as many tornadoes, though, as probably could have been.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Back to both of you.

S. O'BRIEN: Oh, Miles loves to hear that. Doesn't he?

M. O'BRIEN: I had a great flight yesterday.

MYERS: Hey, where did you go?

M. O'BRIEN: Not a single cloud in the sky. From Atlanta to New York. Not a cloud. It was gorgeous.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, I bet.

M. O'BRIEN: It was gorgeous. It was gorgeous.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, it was a beautiful day yesterday.

Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, he is outlandish, he is outspoken. Today, Italy is going to decide if they've had enough of their prime minister. We're live with the very latest on this story.

M. O'BRIEN: In this country, record rain, and the rivers are still rising. California gets waterlogged. This morning, a chance to repair some of the damage.

S. O'BRIEN: And an outrageous story we've been telling you about this morning. A little boy calls 911 when his mother desperately needs help. We'll tell you what happens.

We return right after this. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: That was a look out our window here in New York City.

Welcome back, everybody. Let's take you around the world now for some of the stories that people are talking about overseas.

France is giving in to protesters. Italian voters are making the call today in a hotly-contested election. And Prince William, well, he's got a whole new look.

Paula Newton is covering all those stories for us this morning. She's outside of Buckingham Palace. Hey, Paula. Good morning to you.

Let's start with France. It's sort of like one for the protesters in this one, isn't it?

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Hey, Paula, can you hear me?

NEWTON: What a climb-down. You know, it wasn't all together expected. France was sticking to this law and saying that, look, they were going to continue to see this law through no matter how controversial it was.

It was really an interesting way to try and bring down French unemployment. They were going to make it easier to fire young people, and that really was hugely controversial.

We saw general strikes. Millions of people in French streets now. A big climb-down. And President Chirac says he will, in fact, scrap the law and change it to try and deal with youth unemployment in a different way. What's clear, though, here, Soledad, is that the problems for the massive unemployment among young people in France is not going to go away.

S. O'BRIEN: Another story we're covering, Italians are electing their prime minister. There are big implications for those of us here in the United States, Paula, right?

NEWTON: There are big implications. You know, right out of the gates when this started, Silvio Berlusconi, the incumbent, said, look, I will pull the troops out of Iraq by the end of the year, the Italian troops. That -- most people would have expected that that would take that issue out of the -- off the table. It did, but Romano Prodi, the more left wing candidate, if you will, says he will take the troops out immediately. Prodi does have a slight edge in this election so far, and he has said that while he'll remain a loyal American ally, that he will not engage in any kind of military intervention unless it's sanctioned by the EU or the U.N. -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: And on a lighter note, I guess, Prince William, what was he wearing? He looked like a little rap gangster with, like, all this bling around his neck. What was that about? It's on the cover of "The Sun," I think.

NEWTON: Well, yes, it's on the cover of "The Sun." But what's really funny -- OK, we'll give the headliners something to talk about today. "Future Bling of England." The king of bling.

What it is and what he's wearing here is a ball cap, some gold chains. He's wearing a smirk.

You know what? It's not that big of a deal for anyone unless you're going to inherit the throne. He was celebrating the end of his first term at his military academy, and this was just done for fun with his chaps. You know what? Prince Charles has tried to raise his boys as normal, average people. The problem is, when they start acting like normal, average people, they get into a little bit of trouble.

You know, especially with the younger generation, Soledad, I don't think anyone is really fussed by all of this. But when you think that one day instead of a baseball cap and gold chains he'll be wearing the crown jewels, I mean, he may be looking back on the picture in a few years and think, what was I thinking?

S. O'BRIEN: You know they're going to do a side by side.

Paula Newton for us this morning.

Paula, thanks, with a look at news from overseas, things that folks are talking about. Thank you, Paula -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: I wore a double knit suit that I regretted. So, you know, we all regret some things.

S. O'BRIEN: Can we get a pictures of that, please?

M. O'BRIEN: We can probably arrange that for a large fee.

S. O'BRIEN: That would be awesome.

M. O'BRIEN: Critics say Wal-Mart is wiping out mom-and-pop stores. We tell you a lot about that. Now some folks say the retail giant is out to kill your local bank as well. Andy will explain, "Minding Your Business."

Plus, regular, premium, or how about a baby boy? That was the choice at one gas station. Talk about service with a smile. We'll fill her up with details ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Does a 3,000- year-old spa in Italy hold the key to the fountain of youth? Dr. Nicholas Fortunadi (ph) thinks so. He's the doctor of one of the many spas in Italy's Tuscany region that claim their warm sulfuric waters have anti-aging and healing properties.

You achieve a special sensation, a special feeling of well-being.

COSTELLO: He says the hydrogen sulfate is good for your heart and that you can drink the waters to purify your liver. But some doctors are skeptical.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think there's really science or medical evidence or fact that the composition of the watered does anything particularly healing for us. But I think the whole idea of a hot spring is not so much dipping your toes in a magical water and getting better, but I think it's the investment in yourself to come to hot springs to be healthy.

COSTELLO: Dr. Drew (ph) recommends his patients use the Colorado Glenwood Hot Springs for swimming and exercise.

Carol Costello, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: Good morning, Daytona Beach. Take a look at that picture -- 73 degrees, beautiful weather there. Spring breakers, good -- good day to go and hit the beach. Wet T-shirt contest later. Who knows?

Thank you WESH for that excellent picture.

S. O'BRIEN: I thought you were going to say wear sunscreen.

M. O'BRIEN: Wear your sunscreen. There you go. Yes, especially for the wet T-shirt contest, right?

Here's a look at stories making headlines in America this morning.

More than a million protesters -- a million -- expected on the streets across the country today. Demonstrations planned in about 60 cities.

Meanwhile, in Arizona on Sunday, the other side of the line. A group called the Border Guardians protesting illegal immigration, they set fire to the Mexican flag, as you see there, outside the Mexican Consulate in Tucson.

Crews in California are working overtime to shore up levees there. Nearly continuous rains have swollen rivers to the breaking point in the central part of the state. They're trying to shore up weak spots and stop any potential flooding disasters.

And meet Aaron Mitchell, Jr. (ph). He's only a few hours old here, already hates rush hour traffic.

His parents were trying to speed through it to the hospital. They got to the exit, tried to get over, the bus driver in the next lane wouldn't let them in, so they had to go on to the next exit. On and on it went.

So finally, they just pulled into a gas station and had their delivery right there. The attendants brought clean towels. Somebody must have boiled some water, because you're supposed to do that, right? And luckily, paramedics showed up just in time to help the Navy MP, who is the dad there, deliver his son.

Congratulations to all. We're glad they're well.

S. O'BRIEN: Cute baby. M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: And look, sleeping. That won't last.

Anyway, here in New York, a tribute to the late Dana Reeve on Broadway today. Family members and friends are gathering to remember the former actress and activist who died last month from lung cancer, just 17 months after her husband Christopher Reeve passed away. Left behind, of course, their young son.

The chairman of the Christopher Reeve Foundation talked about Dana Reeve's legacy and why her tragic death has touched so many people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER KIERNAN, CHRISTOPHER REEVE FOUNDATION CHAIRMAN: I've had people stop me literally on the street over the last couple weeks and say, "I didn't know Dana, but when I heard she died, I cried." If you spent 15 minutes with Chris, you knew you were in the presence of a great man. If you spent 15 minutes with Dana, you felt like you were a great man.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: Today's tribute to Dana Reeve is part of a private memorial service. And, of course, any donations are going to go to the Christopher Reeve Foundation to help fund research for spinal cord injuries.

A lot of people said that, that she's just this remarkable person. And people who didn't even know her, really, I think, were touched when she died.

M. O'BRIEN: A remarkable woman.

S. O'BRIEN: You're minding our business this morning. What do you have coming up?

ANDY SERWER, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "FORTUNE": Soledad, I am.

Should Wal-Mart be allowed to get into banking? The company says yes, but critics say, there they go again. We'll get into the whole debate coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Here's a look at some of the stories we're working on for you this morning.

Millions of people plan to join immigration protests around the country today. We're going to be live at some of the biggest demonstrations and bring that to you live.

President Bush is pressed to come clean on why he released classified information. A "New York Post" gossip reporter says he was setup.

DNA test results are expected in the Duke rape investigation.

And they're cleaning up in Tennessee, the scene of those deadly tornadoes. We're going to have an in-depth look at all the destruction ahead this morning.

Well, who wouldn't like the idea of a Wal-Mart bank? Apparently a lot of people.

Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business."

SERWER: Good morning, Soledad.

This is another battle in the Wal-Mart wars. This one over banking.

The giant retailer wants to get into the banking business, and critics are lining up against it. There will be hearings today in Arlington, Virginia, at the FDIC. The first public hearings ever over a bank application.

This probably because the agency received 1,900 letters objecting to Wal-Mart getting in. No doubt, this is a letter-writing campaign that critics started against this. But if you start to delve into this business a little bit, you'll see it might be slightly different from what you think.

Wal-Mart does not want to get into branch banking or retail banking. In fact, 300 banks, S&Ls and credit unions already operate in its stores. You've probably seen those.

What it wants to do is get into the credit card and debit card and electronic check transferring business. In other words, there are 140 million of these transactions that happen at its stores every year. Why should the company pay an outside bank to do these? That's their thinking.

Of course, critics suggest that this is just a first step, that Wal-Mart will use this to get into banks and destroy local banks. And here we go again with this company as a lightning rod.

And it's probably true the company could use this as a stepping stone. On the other hand, it's also possibly true that this is a legitimate business venture they want to get into.

Other companies have this. These are called ILCs, industrial corporations. And other companies like GE, Harley-Davidson and actually Target have these sort of banking arrangements. So Wal-Mart wouldn't be the first to get into this.

S. O'BRIEN: Any indication that they wouldn't get what they want?

SERWER: It's very possible. I mean, with the lobbying that goes on, anything is possible here.

M. O'BRIEN: But who is writing the letters? Are these small banks or are these some of the credit card companies that are involved in these transactions?

SERWER: All manner of people. There are unions, charities, all sorts of entities are writing them.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes. A lightning rod they be.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes.

SERWER: Indeed.

We have a second here to talk about this consumer credit thing going on. The Federal Reserve saying borrowing by consumers was up in the month of February, $3.26 billion. That's not such a big deal.

But look at this number. We decided to do this just for the bottom number there. Total consumer credit in this nation, $2.16 trillion dollars. That's a record.

S. O'BRIEN: Meaning that's what consumers have borrowed.

SERWER: Have borrowed, and that doesn't include mortgages.

S. O'BRIEN: Oh.

M. O'BRIEN: Wow.

SERWER: That's just borrowing.

S. O'BRIEN: Wow.

SERWER: It's a record. And, you know, you've got to wonder, gee, that's an awful lot of borrowing going on in this country.

M. O'BRIEN: And the interest bill on that would be -- that's a big number.

SERWER: Yes. Wow.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, what percentage of that is the interest that they're paying? Wow. OK.

SERWER: Well, you know, it would be $100 billion, I guess. It's a lot of money.

M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Andy.

S. O'BRIEN: Thanks, Andy.

SERWER: You're welcome.

M. O'BRIEN: See you back here in a bit.

As we approach the top of the hour, let's check the forecast. Chad with that.

Hello, Chad.

MYERS: Is that car loans, too, or not even car loans?

SERWER: Yes, I think it would include car loans. A lot of money, yes.

MYERS: That's staggering.

SERWER: Yes, it is.

MYERS: It's like, how do you pay that? Better get a third job.

Hey. Good morning, everybody.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Back to you guys.

S. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Chad.

Welcome to our next hour of AMERICAN MORNING.

Huge immigration protests are expected across the country today. Dozens of cities could literally be shut down by the walkout.

M. O'BRIEN: New developments in that Duke rape investigation. An attorney now says he was -- has incriminating pictures. But of what?

S. O'BRIEN: And a billionaire allegedly embroiled in a gossip column extortion sting. How much is good press really worth?

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com