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American Morning

Giuliani Does Iowa; Gas Gauge; Around The World; A Courageous Captain; Anna Reigns Supreme

Aired May 02, 2006 - 07:30   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: That's from a new book by the agency's former inspector general, Clark Kent Irvin. He writes of security gaps at airports and other transportation systems and of borders as well.
Good morning to you. I'm Miles O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.

You know what they say, you've got to crawl before you can walk. And that is true apparently even in politics. Rudolph Giuliani sighting in Iowa and that's got tongues wagging about his first steps in a 2008 presidential bid. CNN's Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley live for us this morning in Davenport, Iowa.

Hey, Candy, good morning.

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

You're right. Lots of tongues wagging and lots of scribes writing. Rudolph Giuliani, now a private citizen, has long said some day he'd like to return to public life. The question has always been when and where? As he traveled through Iowa, home of those first presidential caucuses, the answer seemed to be maybe here but not yet.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUDOLPH GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: Welcome to Iowa.

CROWLEY, (voice over): Can a big city mayor find happiness in the byways and burbs of middle America? That's what he's trying to find out.

GIULIANI: My effort this year will be to help Republicans get elected. And then, you know, quite honestly, also, as part of it, saying to myself, does it look like I have a chance in 2008 and make that decision after the 2006 election.

CROWLEY: It has been almost five years since Rudy Giuliani plowed his way through the dust and chaos of 9/11 to become a national hero. America's mayor.

REP. JIM NUSSLE, (R) IOWA GOV. CANDIDATE: He's a -- as what they say now, a super star within our party.

CROWLEY: He is quite the draw in Iowa, in places like Des Moines and Davenport, turning out the crowds, talking up the candidates, courting the faithful for future reference.

GIULIANI: George W. Bush will be considered historically a great president. And it doesn't -- I mean, and I think a lot of things are going to happen in the next couple of years that help to support that.

CROWLEY: If you could run for president on buzz, his honor would be printing up bumper stickers.

RAY HOFFMANN, IOWA GOP CHAIRMAN: Initially, the first few visits, I'm sure, 9/11 is the reason they come and they see him and meet him. And if then they're going to want to find out, they're going to ask him questions. And there will probably be some hard questions.

CROWLEY: Like, can a pro-abortion rights, pro-gay rights, pro- gun licensing, twice divorced candidate survive the party's conservative primary voters? Perhaps a change of subject.

GIULIANI: The major thing that we organize around as Republicans is a government that puts more reliance on people than government.

CROWLEY: The signal could not be more clear. If Giuliani runs, he will have to fundamentally change the dialogue within the Republican Party. He will be a tough sell in '08, but Giuliani is a tough customer who, as mayor, cut crime and taxes and stared into the face of terrorism. Many a presidential campaign has begun on less.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CROWLEY: For now, as tantalizing as all of this is about '08, Giuliani says he is going to focus on '06. It helps, of course, that while he's helping all these candidates, he is also picking up chits he could use later on.

Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Yes, that's how it works, right, Candy?

CROWLEY: Yep.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Let me ask you a question. We heard Giuliani say that he thinks that historically President Bush is going to be remembered as a great president. As the president's approval ratings sort of start heading downward into the, well, soon potentially high 20s, do you think he, like some other Republicans we've seen, got to back away from that?

CROWLEY: I don't see -- actually, Rudy Giuliani has made his name on not backing away. You know, he was the in your face mayor. He was the pugnacious fighter that sort of stared down terrorists. So I asked him specifically about this and said, well, you may be the last man standing that's supporting George Bush or out there. He called him a, you know, a hero. Said his efforts on terrorism are heroics. And he said, look, the Republican Party should be happy with George Bush. This really plays well, you have to understand, also with the base and that's who Rudy Giuliani is talking to now. The 37, 36, 32 percent of people who still like George Bush are those people that go out in primaries. So this is music to their ears, the kind of stuff they do like to hear. It also seems to be something Giuliani believes.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Interesting. All right, Candy Crowley for us this morning. Candy, thanks, as always.

Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN: Happening in America this morning, a female corrections officer back with her family after a harrowing six-hour hostage ordeal. An inmate seized the woman at the Arizona State Prison complex near Tucson. He demanded a transfer to Montana but then gave himself up. The woman is said to be fine.

An innocent man is free this morning after 18 years in prison. Drew Whitley's life sentence for murder reversed by new DNA evidence. He walked out of court in Pittsburgh yesterday with a message for those who may have been wrongly convicted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DREW WHITLEY, FREED BY DNA EVIDENCE: Keep hope alive. Don't never give up on hope. And always remember tough times don't last, tough people do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN: Convicted D.C. sniper John Muhammad having trouble finding jurors who haven't already made up their minds he's guilty. Muhammad is now defending himself in a second trial. This one is in Maryland. Jury selection underway. So far they have just 21 candidates eligible to sit on a jury for the 2002 sniper killing spree.

A Kennedy cousin wants a new trial. Michael Skakel was sentenced to 20 years in prison for beating to death a teen neighbor back in 1975. But his lawyers say two other men are responsible. The claim reportedly comes from a cousin of the basketball star Kobe Bryant. Prosecutors are skeptical.

And remember this scene? A rare Ferrari Enzo crashed in Malibu. It's a 116 miles an hour crash. Well a Swedish businessman is accused of stealing this car and two others and the judge has now rules there's enough evidence for the case to go to trial. The man is being held on $3 million bond.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Would that pay for the Ferrari at all?

MILES O'BRIEN: Just barely. Just barely.

Let's check the weather now. Jacqui Jeras in for Chad.

Hello, Jacqui.

(WEATHER REPORT)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Some big issues in front of Congress now -- gas prices and immigration. Voter dismay is being heard loud and clear. Senator Bill Frist is the Senate majority leader. He joins us this morning.

Nice to see you, Senator, as always. Thanks for talking with us.

SEN. BILL FRIST, (R) MAJORITY LEADER: Good to be with you. Thank you, Soledad. Good to be with you.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Thank you.

Let's start with this tax proposal that you brought to the House floor. One part is this $100 rebate. We'll talk about that in a moment. The other part, though, is this broad tax on the oil industry and business too. It really, and I think it's fair to say this, it sort of imploded. Did you not anticipate the torrent of criticism that you would get by this?

FRIST: No. The tax proposal itself is going to warrant more debate, more discussion. It is a proposal that has been on the table. It has been recommended by the Senate in the past. I think it took a lot of people by surprise. And, therefore, we're going to pull back on that and we'll look at it in hearings and in committee. That was being used to pay for, so we wouldn't have to add to the deficit, the issue of like the $100 tax holiday that we were going do give people.

Let me just jump right up front and say that the overall proposal is a eight point plan, of which that was one, that comprehensively looks at increasing supply, diminishing demand, alternative sources of fuel and to markets sure that the markets work well and fully transparently.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about this $100 holiday, as you call it. I mean, Rush Limbaugh, who is, to a large degree, pretty much as right as you can get, said this on his radio show. "What kind of insult is this?" And this is very harsh, Senator. "Instead of buying us off and treating us like we're a bunch of whores" -- this is what he said -- "just solve the problems."

What do you make of criticism like that? Why do you think this is a good idea?

FRIST: Well, I think it's a good idea because there are a lot of struggling moms right now who this very minute are filling up their cars and their automobiles and there are a lot of people filling up their tractors right now saying that we need some immediate relief. In my own city of Nashville, in the last month, the gas prices have gone up 40 cents. That is one way to basically say, we're going to remove the federal gas tax for a period of time over the next nine months and that's how that $100 is arrived at.

But I think that the critics are right in the sense that that can't be, nor is it, the only point that we're making in the plank. We have to address the supply and demand, which comes around to increasing, drilling and exploration, which looks at refineries, which looks at the use of hybrid cars and increases the incentives for the use of hybrid cars, who say -- and the legislation says let's look at the fuel economy standards of those cars today. It's a comprehensive plan of which that is one plank. Simply to answer that response of giving some immediate relief in addition to the mid and long term relief that we absolutely must give the American consumer.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: It's one of the few times, I have to tell you, Senator, just walking around on the street where you hear people literally sort of mocking the plan, honestly. Just people walking down the street. Because they felt the $100 didn't even go far enough. I mean, why not the Democratic plan, one that was proposed for $500?

FRIST: Well, again, I think people are going to, you know, the comments can be made, you're trying to buy the consumer off. And I think that misses the point that we have seven other points that comprehensively address the fundamental issue of supply and demand. Things that are very simple like drilling in an environmentally sensitive way in Alaska, the so called ANWR proposal. We passed it in the United States Senate. It was passed by our legislative bodies in 1996. It was vetoed by President Clinton. If it hadn't been vetoed, today we would have a million more barrels of oil coming to this country each and every day. That affects the ultimate price that people pay at the pump. Supply and demand.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Senator Bill Frist joining us this morning. The Senate majority leader.

Senator, nice to see you as always. Talks for talking with us.

FRIST: Great to be with you. Thank you, Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Thank you.

Andy is "Minding Your Business."

What do you got coming up just ahead?

ANDY SERWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke rattles the stock market with a comment to a reporter. We'll explain that to you coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: "Around the World" on this Tuesday morning.

The U.N. Security Council meeting now to work out a response to Iran's nuclear ambitions. We have reports from Paris and Tehran.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Aneesh Raman in Tehran. As the U.N. decides what to do about Iran's nuclear program, officials here are refusing to back down. Saying they will not suspend the country's nuclear program and that the only thing really on the table is allowing snap inspections by the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog. And that only if the matter isn't referred to the U.N. Security Council.

In the meantime, Iran's foreign minister in a newspaper interview has said Russia and China have officially told Iran that they will not support sanctions or any military action against the country. Iran essentially waiting to see what, if anything, the U.N. Security Council does. It has warned that if any action is taken by the Security Council, it will cease all ties with the IAEA.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jim Bittermann in Paris where we'll be covering, as best we can, a secret closed door meeting among senior political directors from the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. The topic, Iran. The question, what action, if any, should be taken to stop Iran's nuclear enrichment program.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN: And now a story of courage. In any country, and in any language, a 28-year-old captain in the Iraqi army shot and paralyzed in Iraq is now here in the U.S. on a long road to recovery. He's here because of the gratitude of some U.S. soldiers who believe he is a special kind of hero. Brianna Keeler (ph) with the story of Captain Furat.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNA KEELER, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): This Iraqi army officer wears a steel bracelet with six named carved into it. One captain and five soldiers, he says. They are his fallen comrades. But this man, known only as Captain Furat, his real name withheld to protect his family, lives with another constant reminder of the war in Iraq. On Christmas Day, insurgents ambushed him, shooting him 12 times. One bullet struck his spine, leaving the man American soldiers nicknamed Rambo paralyzed from the waist down. But Furat says his injury is nothing compared to the big cause, freeing his country from the terrorists.

LT. COL. ROGER CLOUTIER, U.S. ARMY: He was our brother. I mean, we bled with him day in and day out for an entire year.

KEELER: Lieutenant Colonel Roger Cloutier commanded the U.S. Army battalion attached to the Iraqi battalion Furat lead.

CLOUTIER: Wherever the enemy fire was the most intense, wherever it was most dangerous, you would find Captain Furat. The Iraqi army had to lead for operations in our area. So any time a building need to be cleared or there was a very dangerous area that had to -- we had to go into, you would find Captain Furat up front leading his soldiers never wavering.

KEELER: After he was wounded, Furat was treated for two months in Iraq and then, at the urging of Cloutier and other officers, brought to the United States for more comprehensive care at Atlanta's renowned Shepherd Spinal Center at no charge. Now after two months there, Furat is learning to live with his disabilities. Though concerned about the growth of terrorism in Iraq, he refuses to let go of his dream. That peace will come to his country sooner rather than later.

Brianna Keeler, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN: And doctors say Captain Furat is making progress in his recovery but still requires nursing around the clock.

Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: "Minding Your Business" this morning. Ben Bernake learns a little lesson. Lesson number one, everybody's watching what you're saying. Every single word.

SERWER: That's it. He learned the hard way yesterday, Soledad, that when he talks, the markets listen.

Case in point, CNBC Anchor Maria Bartiromo yesterday reported that Bernanke at a White House correspondent association dinner in D.C. on April 29th told her the markets got it wrong when they inferred that Bernanke was done with rate hikes. So that the markets have been inferring that he will stop doing that and that's partially why the stock's have been going up lately.

Look what happened, though, when Bartiromo reported that yesterday. You can see stocks and bonds also tanked. Now, we used to poke fun at Alan Greenspan about how careful he was when discussing . . .

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Yes, Green speak.

SERWER: Green speak. But now you can see why. And, in fact, Alan Greenspan had a similar scenario unfold for him back in 1987 right after he took the reigns at the head of the Fed. In August he was on "This Week with David Brinkley" and he said that inflation could become a problem in this TV interview and stocks tanked. And that was the last time he ever gave a TV interview about the economy.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Well, you imagine, the point is for the journalists to make news. You know, get some insight.

SERWER: Right.

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: And the opposite going for the Fed chief is to make news that way.

SERWER: Yes, and apparently she grabbed him, you know, at the dinner and just asked, you know, a question and he kind of responded in a way that was a little too pointed. You know, you have to be sort of modulating when you make these kind of remarks.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Well, Maria, I could answer that but I won't.

SERWER: Right. Yes. That's probably what he'll say next time.

MILES O'BRIEN: It's another reason I won't be the Fed chairman.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Yes, you're too blunt?

MILES O'BRIEN: There are many reasons.

SERWER: Too frank, right?

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Reason 298.

MILES O'BRIEN: Exactly.

Thank you, Andy Serwer.

SERWER: You're welcome.

MILES O'BRIEN: Coming up on the program, we'll talk to a guy who interviewed more than 200 scam artists on purpose, asked them how they apply their trade. I bet he was holding on to his wallet, too. He's written a book on how to scam proof your life. We'll check in with him.

And Anna Nicole Smith reigned supreme at the high court. But one little catch in the deal. That doesn't necessarily mean her victory there will mean big bucks from her late husband's estate. And that's the goal, right, Andy Serwer? That's the goal.

SERWER: Yes, that's what it's all about.

MILES O'BRIEN: It's about the Benjamins. We'll explain ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Anna Nicole Smith wins big in the Supreme Court. Oh, but who wants just a moral victory when there's some serious cash at stake? Entertainment Correspondent Brooke Anderson has our story this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let us go through.

ANNA NICOLE SMITH, WIDOW OF JAY HOWARD MARSHALL: Respect for the court. Please.

BROOKE ANDERSON: The paparazzi didn't show a lot of respect for Anna Nicole Smith when she appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court in February, but the justices gave her a respectful hearing. And now, they've given new life to an ongoing saga. Smith's legal fight with her stepson for a share of her late husband's estate worth as much as $1.6 billion.

A statement from Smith's attorney, Kent Richland, said his client was pleased with the decision.

"Anna Nicole Smith's claim existed years before her husband died and years before thoughts of probate even began."

The story goes back more than a decade. It was 1993. "Playboy" magazine had named a Marilyn Monroe-esqe blond as playmate of the year. A former topless dancer from Houston named Vickie Lynn had officially made it. The world met Anna Nicole. This was her fairy tale moment.

SMITH: To have all this fame and fortune, it's just -- it is a Cinderella story to me.

ANDERSON: Smith had met Jay Howard Marshall, one of the wealthiest men in Texas. After a few years, they married. She was 26. He was 89. Rarely photographed together, the now budding starlet regularly professed her devotion to her octogenarian spouse.

SMITH: I want to tell my husband, Jay Howard Marshall, that I love him very much. Ad I wish he was here. And I miss you. And all my love.

ANDERSON: Marshall died in 1995, 14 months after the wedding. Court papers indicate the will and trust do not give her a part of the estate. That's when the legal battle began. For 10 years, in both state and federal courts, Smith has fought her late husband's family for part of his estate, saying Marshall verbally promised her a share.

The family feud eventually landed in the federal system because Smith filed for bankruptcy in a California federal court. She would later be awarded $88 million of her husband's fortune. But a court of appeals threw out the entire amount arguing that the case should be settled in Texas. With the Supreme Court saying that a federal court does have jurisdiction over the dulling state courts, E. Pierce Marshall, Howard Marshall's son, vowed that, "I will continue to fight to clear my name in California federal court. That is a promise that Vickie and her lawyers can take to the bank."

And so far, that promise is the only thing Smith can take to a bank.

Brooke Anderson, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN: Smith can now take her case back to federal court of appeals. Brooke Anderson's piece first aired on "Paula Zahn Now." You can watch it at 8 p.m. Eastern every night here on CNN.

Top stories are ahead.

An university committee finds a pattern of misconduct by Duke's lacrosse team.

A two-day hearing into the Sago Mine tragedy begins this morning in West Virginia.

We'll talk to a former Homeland Security insider who says the U.S. is an open target for terrorists.

And some tips on how to scam proof your life.

And illusionist David Blaine takes the plunge for his latest death defying stunt. We'll explain what he's up to ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jason Carroll in Durham, North Carolina.

Will Duke's lacrosse team ever play on the field again? I'll tell you what two committees recommended coming up.

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ed Henry at the White House.

Another day, another Bush official calling the energy problem a crisis. I'll tell you who and what it means for the midterm elections.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Joe Johns in Buchanan, West Virginia.

Hearings into the Sago Mine disaster begin today. I'll tell you what to expect.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: And just how safe are we? A Homeland Security insider says the U.S. is an open target when it comes to an attack.

MILES O'BRIEN: And the inside skidy (ph) on scams. How you can avoid being a victim. We'll have some tips for you ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.

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