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American Morning
Fueling Anger; Death Threats Over Immigration in California; Another Explosion in Egypt
Aired April 26, 2006 - 06:29 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Miles O'Brien.
The gas pump wars have reached the White House. President Bush ordered a probe Tuesday into any sign of price gouging. He also stopped deposits to the government's emergency petroleum reserves. Critics say it's all just a drop in the oil bucket.
CNN news correspondent Brianna Keilar joining us from Washington with more -- Brianna.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
In a recent CNN poll, more than two-thirds of Americans said they felt some hardship from this recent price in gas prices. And with midterm elections looming, politicians are seizing upon this hot- button issue.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm here to stand up for the little guy.
KEILAR (voice over): It's politics at the pump, with Democrats blaming the president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The prices at the pumps don't reflect our addiction to oil. They reflect a failure in leadership by this White House.
KEILAR: And Republicans scrambling to stop the gas issue from endangering the majority in both houses of Congress in this fall's elections.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The people of America are not interested in Democrat charges against Republicans and Republican charges against Democrats. They want more resources so that the price of gasoline at the pump will come down.
KEILAR: The cacophony on Capitol Hill comes as the president proposed a federal investigation into possible price gouging at the pump, temporarily easing clean air regulations that have causes shortages of cleaner burning summer gasoline blends and halting deposits to the nation's emergency stockpile of oil. GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So, by deferring deposits until the fall, we'll leave a little more oil on the market. Every little bit helps.
KEILAR: But industry analysts say it probably won't help the price at the pump. Some drivers say politicians aren't the problem or the answer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't necessarily blame a political party.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think it's a Democrat-Republican problem. I think we use way too much. We've been spoiled.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Republicans and Democrats have echoed the president's call for an investigation into price gouging, but an official with the FTC says the commission is already looking into those complaints.
Miles, back to you.
M. O'BRIEN: Brianna Keilar in Washington.
Thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Death threats over immigration being met now with resolve in California. Hispanic political leaders are the target. But a new threat is made even after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's calls for prosecution.
CNN's Chris Lawrence has more for us from Los Angeles.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Today the FBI is going to keep digging into who is making these death threats against politicians of Mexican heritage here in California. Some of them believe they may be targeted by people who oppose their views on immigration.
California Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante received another letter yesterday, and this came after he got a postcard that said, "The only good Mexican is a dead Mexican."
The mayor of Los Angeles has also received several threats, although he says it's not going to stop him from going in public or getting on with the city's business later today. Antonio Villaraigosa won't say if he's changed security at all but does say he takes the threats very seriously.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is asking D.A.s throughout the state to prosecute whoever is responsible.
Chris Lawrence, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE) S. O'BRIEN: Other stories "In America" this morning.
More than 20 postal workers are recovering after a chemical scare in Alabama. Many complained of burning throats and breathing difficulties after they noticed a foul-smelling yellow liquid leaking from a package. While HAZMAT teams were called in to decontaminate, it turns out it was just a commonly used garlic flavoring, a fishing lure dye commonly used.
OK. In Pennsylvania now, a surrogate mother says she's going to appeal a superior court ruling that awarded the triplets she delivered to their biological father. The father contracted the woman, paid her $20,000 to carry the babies. She says the parents failed to visit the babies in the hospital for several days.
Border Patrol lost an important part of their enforcement arsenal. An unmanned Predator spy drone crashed early on Tuesday morning near the Arizona-Mexico border. The Border Patrol's only UAV has been watching the border since September. It's credited with catching nearly 2,000 people who have been trying to cross the border illegally.
"Lost" actress Michelle Rodriguez finds herself in a Hawaiian jail for a couple of days. The actress refused to do community service as a sentence for an earlier drunk driving arrest. She's spending the first of five days in jail today. She's also going to have to pay a fine. "Lost" is filmed in Hawaii.
And meet this lady right here. She is the national teacher of the year. Her name is Kim Oliver.
She's got only 15 students in her Maryland kindergarten class. They're from nearly, though, every continent. Among them, Vietnamese, Latino, African, African-American, Haitians, as well. Today she's at the White House to be congratulated by the president.
Good for her.
M. O'BRIEN: Congratulations to her.
Chad Myers, do you remember your favorite teacher, the best teacher you ever had?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes?
MYERS: Mr. Balland (ph), fourth grade. My first male teacher. I was dreading it. And he was great.
M. O'BRIEN: And he was good?
MYERS: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, my fourth grade teacher was the one who was good for me, Miss Blackman (ph). She was great. MYERS: There you go. There's two shouts out for two great teachers.
M. O'BRIEN: There you go.
MYERS: And there are so many great teachers out there. I mean, half of them live in my neighborhood, and they really are -- they really are great people.
So, good morning to you.
Maybe it's teacher -- "Teacher of the Week Day". We'll call it that.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: Back to you guys.
M. O'BRIEN: Chad, do you like dogs?
MYERS: I don't have one, but I do like dogs.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Listen up to this one. We are all dog lovers here.
S. O'BRIEN: I like cats, too, for the record.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, except for Ed. Ed doesn't like dogs.
S. O'BRIEN: Ed doesn't like dogs?
M. O'BRIEN: I don't think he's much of a dog guy.
Anyway, most of us are dog lovers here. Let's go to Des Moines now. Drake University, every year they hold a beautiful bulldog contest.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh.
MYERS: Oh.
M. O'BRIEN: Look at this one. This is Law Man (ph), either a state trooper or a firefighter. Always popular, this guy or gal. A dude, I don't know, maybe one of the Village People. I don't know.
MYERS: Oh, not a cheer leader.
M. O'BRIEN: Now, meet the winner, though. This is Hannah. This is too cute.
Hannah, she gets a crown and a cape to boot -- or is it to paw? There's so much we could do with this. Yes.
Apparently, she has a shoe fetish. A shoe fetish, you might ask? How odd is that? Not to wear, of course. To chew the shoe.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh.
M. O'BRIEN: Right? And so, congratulations to Hannah. I wish we would have had...
S. O'BRIEN: I really don't know that I would have name that dog Hannah. That dog does not look like a Hannah to me.
MYERS: No.
M. O'BRIEN: Doesn't look like it? Well, what -- yes, you're right. What does a bulldog look like?
S. O'BRIEN: My brother has a bulldog named Otis. And that's a good name for a bulldog, Otis. That works.
MYERS: Sure, Bubba.
M. O'BRIEN: I always wonder what happened to the other dog that should be inside all that skin. You know?
(LAUGHTER)
S. O'BRIEN: They're so cute. They're so cute.
M. O'BRIEN: Anyway...
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, marking a very horrible anniversary, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, 20 years ago today. There's Matthew Chance. He goes back to that barren town and shares his emotional journey with us.
That's coming up next.
M. O'BRIEN: It's like a time capsule. It's really kind of scary.
Plus, you think $3 is a lot for gas? What about $5 or even $10 a gallon? Some eye-opening numbers from across the pond.
But first, here's a look what else is making news on this Wednesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: We're getting word of an explosion this morning coming to us just outside of the Sinai Peninsula base, a base that houses a multinational peacekeeping force.
Let's get right to CNN's Ben Wedeman. He joins us this morning from Dahab in Egypt.
How far, Ben, first, are we talking about a distance from where you are, the site of the explosions on Monday, and this new explosion that's being reported?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Soledad, I would roughly approximate it about 150 miles to the north of us. The blast took place, according to a spokesman for the national force -- multinational force, about an hour and 40 minutes ago, and it targeted two of their clearly marked vehicles.
Now, this base of theirs, it's one of their main bases near the border with Gaza. Now, the spokesman said that at this point, they have no information regarding any casualties. The Egyptian authorities, we are told, don't have any information on the blast either.
Now, this multinational force has been in place since the late 1970s to monitor the peace agreement signed in 1978 between Egypt and Israel. It has in the past been targeted occasionally in the last year and a half, but certainly the fact that this blast takes place just two days after the one -- the three attacks here in Dahab is cause for concern for the Egyptian authorities -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Ben, I know this news is just breaking, so I'm going to ask you some questions and I'm not sure you're going to be able to answer them at this point in the investigation.
First, do we know how close the explosion was to the base? We're hearing reports that it's near the base. Was the person or persons able to actually get on to that base?
WEDEMAN: No, it sounds like the attack took place outside the base, according to the spokesman. Precisely how far outside the base, at this point we do not know.
S. O'BRIEN: Any indication of what caused the explosion, a bomb that was detonated, a suicide bomber? Do we know at this point?
WEDEMAN: No, I'm afraid it really is too early to tell these things. What the spokesman has said was that two of their vehicles, they believe, were the targets of the blast. But he had no details about the nature of the bomb itself.
S. O'BRIEN: OK. Well, Ben Wedeman is following this story for us. And obviously, we'll keep monitoring it as information comes in.
Ben, thank you for the very preliminary details that we're getting now. Appreciate it -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Twenty years to the day now since the tragedy at Chernobyl in what was then the Soviet Union. The meltdown at the nuclear power plant stands apart, thankfully, unlike anything we've seen before or since.
The health effects of that accident still linger two decades later. And even though the town was summarily, immediately evacuated when a radioactive cloud descended upon it, there are still two nuclear reactors operating in Chernobyl.
Senior International Correspondent Matthew Chance is in Moscow this morning. He's had a chance to visit that town not too long ago.
Matthew, that must have been kind of eerie.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Very eerie, indeed, Miles. It's a nuclear no-man's land, a 30 -- 20-mile exclusion zone has been flung around the Chernobyl reactor. And basically, there's nobody permitted to live in there, and it's been completely abandoned by human life.
Today, as you mentioned, is a very poignant anniversary, because it is 20 years ago to the day that the world's worst nuclear accident took place at Chernobyl. It was in the early hours of April 26, 1986 that a blast tore the roof of the Chernobyl reactor number four clean off, spewing vast quantities of highly-radioactive material over large areas of Europe and, as you say, what was then the Soviet Union.
Throughout the day there have been vigils held throughout present-day Ukraine, where Chernobyl is located. People coming out to pay their respects to the many people who died in those explosions and in fighting the fire. But also, to the many thousands of people that still live, survive with their afflictions linked to the nuclear accident -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Matthew, tell -- there's so many questions about this. First of all, we said that there are actually two reactors there that are operating. The area was evacuated. Who operates those facilities right now?
CHANCE: Well, there are still 9,000 people working at the two nuclear reactors in Chernobyl, as well as working on the sarcophagus made of concrete and steel that's been erected around reactor number four that was so badly damaged during those blasts. And there, the people who are engaged in going every day to that exclusion zone -- but as I say, the people who lived there -- and there were tens of thousands of people that lived very close to the reactor, the families of the thousands of workers that worked in reactor number four and the other reactors there -- they've all been evacuated now.
And as I say, you go there, and it's a completely abandoned ghost town of a place. Very, very disturbing to be there and unsettling, indeed -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: And in the final analysis, do we really know the total -- the toll, the real health effects, how many people really died as a result of it?
CHANCE: No, we don't. And it's emerged as a really big question.
There are -- there are wildly differing estimates as to how many people will ultimately dais a result of contamination from Chernobyl. The United Nations, which conducted a very extensive survey, has said that it believes as many as 9,000 people will eventually die because of Chernobyl. Greenpeace and other environmental agencies say the death toll could be much, much higher.
So, it is a very controversial issue that's still being debated -- Miles. M. O'BRIEN: Matthew Chance in Moscow.
Thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come on AMERICAN MORNING, you think gas prices are high here in this country? Wait until you find out what they're paying in other countries. Mallika Kapur takes a look.
MALLIKA KAPUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A crude awakening for motorists around the world. I'll tell you how much people in Europe are paying for their gas.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Believe it or not, some of the more dire predictions have gas prices going as high as $4 a gallon, and soon. It's no secret, of course, that they're already above $3 a gallon in many places across the country. It could be worse, though.
CNN's Mallika Kapur is gauging gas for us this morning. She's live in London.
Hey, Mallika. Good morning.
KAPUR: Good morning, Soledad.
You're right, prices are soaring around the world. Of course, in some places it's a lot more expensive than in others.
As you just mentioned, in the states, you guys are worried about paying this much, $3 for every gallon of gas. But over here in Europe, we are paying as much as this, $8 per gallon of gas. So it's no surprise, then, that customers are frustrated.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's that?
KAPUR (voice over): That is the cost of gasoline at the most expensive pump in Britain, a pound and 19 pence a liter, around $8 a gallon. This taxi driver can't get away fast enough.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you get out of the way, I'm going to drive away.
KAPUR: But when you're running low on gas, you take what you get.
(on camera): How much did you just pay for your petrol?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've got my receipt here. I wasn't filling it up. It was 40 pounds -- like half a tank.
KAPUR (voice over): That means $140 for a full tank.
KAY JOYCE, PETROLPRICES.COM: I think it is extraordinary. We are heading towards an all-time high.
KAPUR: At the moment, the average price of unleaded gas in the U.K. is around $6 a gallon. Sixty percent of that is taxed to discourage consumption. Amongst the most expensive in the world is Norway. It costs $7 a gallon there. In Germany, it's just above $6
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): What's going on here in Germany is ridiculous. And the government's not doing anything to stop it. Us taxi drivers and other small businesses are forced to pay these prices just to stay alive.
KAPUR: Outside Europe, prices are lower. In China, the government subsidizes gas, so in some areas it costs less than $2 a gallon.
Cheaper still in Iraq. It's just 75 cents a gallon there. Not surprising, it holds the third largest reserves of crude in the world.
Back in Britain, high taxes, combined with shorter commuting distances, means people drive less than Americans, about 9,000 miles a year. Still, commuters are considering their options.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm thinking about getting an electric car.
KAPUR: Some are even opting for a two-wheel option.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAPUR: While customers are slowly beginning to change their habits, Soledad, and, you know, instead of just driving down and filling up at the usual local gas station, they're shopping around for the best deals, perhaps filling up at the station near work, for example.
And it's probably a good idea to shop around. At the gas station we just featured in this piece, you know, gas prices were as much as $8 a gallon. But here at this gas station, it's about $6.50 cents a gallon. So, you know, it probably is wise for those who are shopping around because there still are some bargains to be found.
S. O'BRIEN: It pays to look. All right.
Mallika Kapur for us this morning.
Mallika, thanks.
It's all about perspective.
M. O'BRIEN: I suppose, you know, those people could go to Hammond, Indiana.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Remember yesterday -- $2.89.
S. O'BRIEN: And actually save money. M. O'BRIEN: Think of the savings if -- well...
S. O'BRIEN: Well, that woman in her piece paid $140 a gallon (sic).
ANDY SERWER, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "FORTUNE": Makes you feel good.
M. O'BRIEN: What?
S. O'BRIEN: About $88 that I paid. Yes, it does.
SERWER: You're saving money, Soledad.
M. O'BRIEN: A tank.
S. O'BRIEN: I feel better. I mean a tank.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes. I was thinking, whoa, baby.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that would be expensive. A tank. A tank. I meant a tank.
M. O'BRIEN: Hi, Andy.
S. O'BRIEN: Hey.
SERWER: Good morning, you guys. Some business news coming up.
What's bad for GM has to be good for Japanese automakers, right? Maybe not.
Plus, say you want to store 375 hours of TV on your PC. Well, good news. Now you can. We'll tell you all about it coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Automakers in the news again. Kind of an interesting twist on a story you've been reporting for a while.
SERWER: It is, and this has to do with the Japanese automakers, Soledad, versus the U.S. manufacturers.
The CEO of Nissan, a gentleman named Carlos Ghosn, speaking about how troubles at GM and Ford might not be good news for Japanese automakers as they try to expand into developing nations like China, Russia, South America, and the Middle East. Why would that be the case?
I think what he is suggesting is that when trouble hits a company like Ford and GM, they try to increase market share or keep market share stable. And the way to do that would be to lower prices. Lower prices means when they're competing against a company like Nissan, that's relatively healthy right now, Nissan is forced to lower their prices, which is bad news for a company like Nissan or Toyota. Carlos Ghosn a very interesting guy. He's Lebanese, who was raised in Brazil and lived in France. He's also the CEO of Renault. And he was brought in to Nissan when that company was on the verge of collapse in 1999 and turned it right around. Just announced yesterday, by the way, that they're investing $200 million to build a plant in St. Petersburg, Russia.
M. O'BRIEN: Interesting.
S. O'BRIEN: Interesting.
M. O'BRIEN: He's like a United Nations embodied.
Let me ask you this: the other thing that's a factor, too, is, as these companies get on the ropes, it's sort of like awakening kind of a slumbering giant, too. I mean, I wonder if he's considering that fact as well.
SERWER: Well, I think that's true. And at some point they're going to turn it around.
I mean, he was able to do it with Nissan. He said that "You don't build character by doing what everyone else is doing." And that was a strategy at Nissan. He did some radical surgery there and it worked.
Now, let's switch over and talk about massive hard drives.
There is a new 750-gig hard drive coming out by...
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, we need it.
SERWER: And you'll want to listen to the specs on this thing.
First of all, I like the name, Barracuda 7200.
S. O'BRIEN: Ooh, that's a good name.
SERWER: And here are some -- here are some specs on this thing. Check this thing out -- 375 hours of standard television programming. That would be almost 94 shows of AMERICAN MORNING that you could put on your drive.
M. O'BRIEN: Which everybody should have.
S. O'BRIEN: Absolutely.
SERWER: Yes. Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: Don't you think?
SERWER: And coming up next is the terabyte drive, 1,000 gig.
M. O'BRIEN: When's that coming? Because I want that.
SERWER: Over the... S. O'BRIEN: On the horizon.
M. O'BRIEN: I want a terabyte.
S. O'BRIEN: Not for a while. Buy this one first.
SERWER: Yes, get this one first.
S. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. We're approaching the top of the hour, which means it's time for Chad.
Chad, a terabyte. Get a terabyte.
MYERS: Yes, where do you go after Barracuda?
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: And shark? I don't know.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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