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American Morning
Hayden Nomination; Bush Poll Numbers; Police Ambush; Florida Fires; Letter From Iran
Aired May 09, 2006 - 06:00 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, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Miles O'Brien.
Happening this morning, a state of emergency in Florida. About 50 wildfires burning as we speak. The governor has called in the National Guard. Portions of Interstate 95 in Brevard and Volusia Counties to be shut down. More than 8,000 acres have burned so far.
Two Australian miners alive and well and finally back above ground this morning, rescued after being trapped for two weeks in a Tasmanian gold mine.
S. O'BRIEN: In Virginia, no word yet on a motive after a teenaged gunman opened fire at a Fairfax County police station. One officer is dead. Two others are injured. The gunman was killed at the scene.
A new report says that Duke University officials were slow to recognize the severity of rape allegations against the lacrosse team. The report put some of the blame on Durham police who initially told campus officers the accuser's story was not credible.
M. O'BRIEN: Patrick Kennedy gets a show of political support in Rhode Island. Democrats there endorsing the congressman for reelection at their state convention. Kennedy, of course, wasn't there. He's at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota trying to kick what he says is an addiction to painkillers. This, after he crashed his car on Capitol Hill last week.
S. O'BRIEN: The FDA is asking a federal appeals court to overrule a judge in Colorado and restore a ban on dietary supplements containing low doses of Ephedra. Ephedra has been linked to several deaths.
M. O'BRIEN: There we go. And with that, now the space is open for a new mega resort casino on the Strip in Las Vegas. The 38-year- old Boardwalk Casino and Hotel shut down in January. In case you're wondering, the Boardwalk is between the Monte Carlo and the Bellagio. Expensive real estate, indeed.
Chad Myers...
S. O'BRIEN: That's why it's going.
M. O'BRIEN: Chad Myers knows the turf well and knows why those places keep coming down and the bigger, fancier ones keep coming up.
Good morning, -- sir.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know what, I love the old Boardwalk, though. It had such nostalgia. It had that roller coaster on top. It didn't work for a long, long time. You could play the cheapest craps in town. I mean it was like a dollar, plus you get -- never mind, I won't even begin. Everybody who plays there knows that.
Hey, but great news for firefighters. From, look at this, Daytona, from Jacksonville, right through Gainesville now, a big complex of rain moving right through that fire danger zone. Boy, this is really going to help today, significantly. Put down an inch of rain. That's more than the firefighters can do in hours.
(WEATHER REPORT)
Back to you.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Chad, thanks for the update.
MYERS: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: The White House now on the offensive after President Bush named his choice to head the CIA, Air Force General Michael Hayden. At issue is putting a military man in charge of the civilian spy agency.
Let's get right to CNN's Sumi Das. She's live for us in Washington.
Hey, Sumi, good morning.
SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Morning, Soledad.
Well a date for General Michael Hayden's confirmation hearings has yet to be announced, but we're already getting a preview of the sparks that might fly when the CIA director nominee faces questions from senators.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush says his candidate to head the CIA is -- quote -- "supremely qualified." And administration officials have followed suit.
JOHN NEGROPONTE, DIRECTOR OF NATL. INTELLIGENCE: He has committed his life to serving our country and making sure that the nation's leaders have the intelligence that they need to keep America safe.
DAS: Critics aren't questioning Air Force General Michael Hayden's qualifications, so much as they are his independence. Some are voicing concerns about his close ties to the defense department and the White House. SEN. RON WYDEN (D-OR), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: I particularly want somebody who is independent of the Pentagon. I want somebody who is going to tell the truth to the president. We don't need any more of the slam-dunk syndrome, which I think viewers recall George Tenet told the president the war in Iraq was a slam-dunk.
DAS: Hayden's supporters say he has a history of speaking his mind, even to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Others say it's not unprecedented for a man in uniform to hold the office of CIA director.
SEN. TRENT LOTT (R-MA), INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: I think like 13 of the 19 heads of the CIA have had a relatively recent military background. I think you can do that. As a matter of fact, it may take a four-star Air Force general to tell the defense apparatus, no, wait a minute, we have a national intelligence role, not just a defense intelligence role.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DAS: Senate intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, who will oversee the confirmation process, says he hopes to hold hearings this month -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Sumi Das for us this morning.
Sumi, let me ask you a quick question, with all the criticism then, and there's been a lot in just the last 24 hours, do you think that the nomination and the confirmation is in serious jeopardy?
DAS: No. It's not likely that the criticism is going to put the nomination in any real danger. It's not going to derail his confirmation. Certainly, though, we are probably going to see some heated questioning during the hearings. And the confirmation process may also deepen the divide between the White House and members of the president's party in Congress, Republicans -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Sumi Das for us this morning.
Sumi, thanks -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Some new polling numbers out this morning, still not a lot of good news at the White House for this. The president's approval ratings in a holding pattern, in the mid-30s. So what are the issues weighing him down?
CNN's senior political analyst Bill Schneider lays it out for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): The latest Bush approval numbers? Thirty-four percent in the CNN poll, 31 percent in the Gallup/"USA Today" poll. Those ratings are statistically compatible, since each poll has a 3 percent margin of error. Thirty-one percent is the lowest rating ever recorded for this president. What's the biggest beef with Bush? You might guess gas prices, gas prices, gas prices. But most people who disapprove of the president's performance say the reason is Iraq, Iraq, Iraq, 56 percent. Thirteen percent say it's gas prices. Other issues, 26.
REP. RON PAUL (R), TEXAS: The sooner we get out of Iraq and allow the Iraqis to solve their own problems, the better.
SCHNEIDER: Certainly, the better for Republicans, like Representative Paul, who have to face the voters this November.
Americans no longer buy the main argument for going to war in Iraq, that it would make the U.S. safer from terrorism. Just after the war ended, in 2003, 58 percent of Americans felt safer. A year later, the number was at 50 percent. Now just one-third of Americans believe the war in Iraq has made the U.S. safer. Most people now say Iraq has made the U.S. less safe.
Sure, gas prices are causing financial hardship. Nearly two- thirds say so, although that number is down slightly from where it was two weeks ago.
SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: Everyone in Congress is looking for a solution or for someone to blame.
SCHNEIDER: Ask a business executive why gas prices went up, and you will hear supply and demand. The public doesn't buy it. Look how fast prices went up. Supply and demand, hell, the public says. We think somebody's up to no good, by 61 to 26 percent. And 70 percent say President Bush could do something about gas prices. After all, going after evildoers is supposed to be his thing.
Bill Schneider, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Florida's governor has declared a state of emergency and is sending in the National Guard to help fight Florida wildfires. Governor Jeb Bush met with firefighters who helped contain a fire in New Smyrna Beach. That fire destroyed three homes, burned 1,300 acres. At one point, about 800 people were forced to evacuate. Smoke is a big problem. Parts of Interstate 95 are going to be closed this morning in Brevard and Volusia Counties because of that fire threat -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: A wild gunfight in the parking lot of a police station leaves a detective dead, two officers wounded in Fairfax County, Virginia. Also killed in the shootout, the teenager. He used high-powered weapons to take aim at police during a shift change.
Alisa Parenti with our affiliate WJLA live at the scene now.
Alisa, what are police saying this morning?
ALISA PARENTI, WJLA-TV REPORTER: Well they're very troubled, of course, by this shooting. Apparently the gunman lay in wait in nearby woods outside a police station in Fairfax County and then proceeded to gun down the three officers.
One of them who died is a 9-year veteran of the force, a 40-year- old detective, a mother of two young children who are in elementary school and apparently is also married to a police officer on the Fairfax County force. You can imagine how hard that death, in fact the first officer to die in the line of fire here in Fairfax County, how difficult that is for officers.
The second person who was shot is a 53-year-old male officer. He has been with the force for two decades. He is in critical condition after undergoing hours of surgery. Fighting for his life this morning.
The third officer is apparently either grazed by bullets or perhaps by flying glass. He is going to be just fine and is expected to make a full recovery.
Now apparently this 18-year-old gunman, who we have now identified as Michael Kennedy (ph) who is a Virginia resident, found himself in trouble with the law in Maryland and was awaiting a trial on carjacking charges.
And so, for some reason, police believe that precipitated yesterday's attack, that he had somehow targeted police officers here in Fairfax County. He went and lay in wait. He, too, was ultimately gunned down. Police say they believe they shot him. He was crouching between two cars.
Well the entire area was shut down, as you can imagine, because when this unfolded, it was unclear whether or not he was working in conjunction with someone else, if they were looking for additional suspects. But then it became clear that he was in fact acting alone, a sole gunman, an 18-year-old from Centreville the source of all of this, according to police.
Now that is what we have right now. We can tell you a little bit. Let's hear now from what a police officer is saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY ANN JENNINGS, FAIRFAX CO. POLICE SPOKESWOMAN: When something like this happens, there are officers involved at so many different locations. We have to bring all of them together. We have to interview witnesses. So we don't know exactly what happened until we get all those people together and we find out from the investigators exactly what they know to have happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PARENTI: As you can imagine, the investigation is ongoing.
Reporting live at Fairfax County Police Headquarters in Virginia, Alisa Parenti.
Back to you.
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Alisa.
Alisa is with our affiliate WJLA.
Thank you very much.
Still to come on the program, big changes at the top for Toyota after allegations of sexual harassment. Carrie Lee is following that story. She'll have details for you in a moment.
S. O'BRIEN: And saying no to gas-guzzlers. We're going to tell you what some drivers are doing to avoid getting squeezed at the pump.
M. O'BRIEN: And in case you missed it, illusionist David Blaine is out of the manbowl now, but did he break the record? We'll tell you how the latest stunt ended just ahead.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news on this Tuesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: As we mentioned, Florida is under a state of emergency this morning. Governor Jeb Bush met with firefighters late Monday in New Smyrna Beach. A fire there destroyed three homes, burned 1,300 acres. And at one point, about 800 people were forced to evacuate it.
Let's get right to reporter Josh Einiger. He is of CNN affiliate WFTV. He's in Orange County just west of New Smyrna Beach.
Hey, Josh, good morning again.
JOSH EINIGER, WFTV-TV REPORTER: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: How is it looking today?
EINIGER: Good morning, Soledad.
Well, it's looking much the same as it looked yesterday, the day before, the day before that. We're having a lot of problems here in Florida with these brushfires.
I'm standing, actually, right in the middle of the Orlando area tourist district. Right there you can see a little spot fire, a little flare-up in this 30-acre plot of land that burned just yesterday, just about a quarter of mile from SeaWorld.
Let's show you right now, this is a road that's closed. Right over there a hotel where a lot of tourists had a very disturbing afternoon yesterday. We are right now in the middle of the tourism capital of Florida, if you will.
This is not only having an impact here where all the visitors are in Florida, but also people on the roads farther to the east in the New Smyrna Beach area where that fire burned yesterday and the governor was yesterday. There is a 12-mile stretch of I-95, one of the busiest north-south interstates, completely closed. Another stretch about 20 miles farther to the south that is also shut down as well.
We've been having, as I said, really, really difficult problems with this because of an eight-inch rain deficit, on average, around the Orlando area. Yesterday, one of those fires displaced about a thousand people from their homes. Only late yesterday afternoon were they allowed back in, certainly very relieved to get back to their houses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was gone. We didn't have you know a chance to grab anything. I threw the dogs into the truck and grabbed a box of important papers and we were out of here. I didn't think it would be here. You know when we I left the flames were right there and I didn't think it was going to be here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
EINIGER: And back live right now. You can see firefighters are still on the scene trying to keep the smoke down at this particular spot, because on the other side of this particular piece of land is I- 4, another very important interstate to this area which was closed yesterday because of this fire. So a lot of problems here. They are predicting rain showers later today, but with those showers might come lightning.
S. O'BRIEN: Gosh, Josh, you've just got a litany of problems. All right, well, thanks. Hopefully I-4 will stay clear and the smoke won't be a big problem.
That was reporter Josh Einiger of CNN affiliate WFTV. He has been monitoring that story for us for a couple of days now.
Thanks, Josh -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Tensions over the Iranian nuclear issue have helped drive gas prices up once again. Let's check the latest on the CNN gas gauge. The national average is now $2.90 for unleaded regular. One month ago, $2.64. A year ago, $2.19.
There are alternatives to gasoline. Take a look at this car you're about to see here. It runs on compressed natural gas, and apparently a little bit of bondo there as well. It is cheaper, $2.29 at this station in Phoenix. However, there are very few stations in the country selling compressed natural gas. You could fill it up at home, but that would cost you $2,000 to $3,000 for all the equipment. Seems like you could rig it so your barbecue would feed your car, but that's -- don't try that at home, folks.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: That would... S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that's good advice, -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Don't listen to me.
If that is too expensive, there's another way to avoid high gas prices.
S. O'BRIEN: I like this one.
M. O'BRIEN: Check out this mode of transportation.
S. O'BRIEN: Is that Zorro?
M. O'BRIEN: Zorro with the American flag, I don't think so. Zorro is looking for a Holiday Inn to do a gig, I guess.
This is -- this is Arlington, Texas, and this is Eagan Settle (ph). That's how he gets around. Settle pulls his horse trailer to work with his pickup and then he uses his trusty steed to run errands. Don't laugh, Settle says he has saved $565 in four weeks. Is he counting the oats? I guess so.
S. O'BRIEN: That's awesome. I love that.
M. O'BRIEN: If we all did that...
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's the directive (ph) price of hay and gas and feed, which one comes out ahead?
S. O'BRIEN: Hay -- yes, hay is easy.
M. O'BRIEN: Can't do that in New York. We'd have an issue.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. Maybe we could.
LEE: Unless you're a police officer.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: That's right. There are stables right by where you live. You could do that.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, but think about you know millions of people with horses and what happens.
S. O'BRIEN: The horse manure is that what's the issue?
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, that would be my issue. That would be a little problem.
LEE: Keep track (ph) to the old days.
S. O'BRIEN: We'll work on it. We'll work on it.
M. O'BRIEN: You think the subway smells, try the...
S. O'BRIEN: Let's talk business news.
You haven't embraced Manhattan yet, have you?
M. O'BRIEN: No.
S. O'BRIEN: The top guy in -- at Toyota.
LEE: That's right.
S. O'BRIEN: What's going on?
LEE: The top guy at Toyota North America is resigning, President and CEO Hideaki Otaka. He's been sued for sexual harassment.
S. O'BRIEN: Scandal, right?
LEE: Right. He was sued last week. This is a very big case, $190 million. Now he says he's innocent, but he's stepping down for the good of the company.
Who is suing him? Well, his former personal assistant. She said he repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances.
The company has named Jim Press as his replacement. He's an American, obviously, a Toyota Motor Sales head, and he will be the first American to run the North American division for Toyota. So that's the latest there.
Turning to Enron. The testimony in the Enron case is over. Both sides will rest for the rest of this week. And opening statements will begin on Monday. Now each side will have six hours in their closing arguments. The jury is expected to begin deliberations on Wednesday.
Skilling, Jeff Skilling, former President and CEO, faces 28 counts against him. Ken Lay, six counts. So we'll see what happens there next week.
A quick check on stocks, muted reaction yesterday on Wall Street, but the Dow now stands 130 points away from its all-time closing high on January 14, 2000. This morning looking muted as well, probably most people, Miles and Soledad, waiting for the Fed decision tomorrow. Most people expecting one more, at least, quarter-point rate hike.
S. O'BRIEN: So the new record could be set soon?
LEE: Could be, 130 points away, could happen in one day, possibly, so we'll see.
O'BRIEN: All right.
M. O'BRIEN: You're like a cheerleader for that thing.
S. O'BRIEN: I don't know why, it's not like I get anything out of it really.
M. O'BRIEN: Start wearing a T-shirt, 12K or bust.
LEE: We just get tired of saying all-time in 2000. We want to up it a little bit.
S. O'BRIEN: Well many years ago, I had a friend who wrote a book called "Dow 12,000."
LEE: OK. All right.
S. O'BRIEN: And then the market, literally, like two weeks later, the market tanked.
LEE: So they can put out a second issue now.
M. O'BRIEN: And so did his book.
LEE: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: And so did his book. And so I've always thought of him as it starts climbing again, maybe that would be, you know...
M. O'BRIEN: You're helping your friend. That's good.
S. O'BRIEN: No, I'm not, you know.
M. O'BRIEN: David Blaine is out of the manbowl. Did you see this?
S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: No record, though.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: You know what was the deal, though, he said he was going to hold his breath, break the record or die?
S. O'BRIEN: Well we...
M. O'BRIEN: There was a little bit of wiggle room on that. He didn't die, so I'm a little disappointed, you know, I mean.
S. O'BRIEN: Well he passed out.
M. O'BRIEN: He had to pull his fish...
S. O'BRIEN: Will you stop? What are you...
M. O'BRIEN: ... out of the aquarium last night. It's just -- it's what -- the way it was billed. He was trying to free himself from chains in a bid to break the world record for holding his breath under water. This, after a week in the manbowl. He came up well short of the goal. He did 7:08; 8:58 the record, right?
S. O'BRIEN: That's a long time to hold your breath, still, I think. M. O'BRIEN: I should say. I couldn't do it. Couldn't come close.
S. O'BRIEN: I wonder if he had just not done the whole manbowl thing and just had gone ahead...
M. O'BRIEN: I know.
S. O'BRIEN: ... and tried to hit the record if he could have done it easily.
M. O'BRIEN: But...
LEE: He would have done better.
M. O'BRIEN: ... he would have had a hype deficit though.
S. O'BRIEN: I mean think of that.
M. O'BRIEN: And you know he needed the...
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. No, from a PR standpoint, not a good move.
M. O'BRIEN: So...
S. O'BRIEN: But from an actually accomplishing the record.
M. O'BRIEN: For a stunt accomplishment perspective, bad idea to be in the manbowl for a week.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: But look at all the coverage he got.
S. O'BRIEN: I wonder how gnarly all of his skin is now...
LEE: I'm sure his fingers are wrinkled to the core.
S. O'BRIEN: I'm like into the gross stuff today.
M. O'BRIEN: Somebody said do you think he's going to go take a shower? I said, I doubt it. I doubt it.
S. O'BRIEN: Never again.
M. O'BRIEN: Sauna maybe. Sauna, dry himself out.
LEE: Big nap.
M. O'BRIEN: He's in the hospital today and we'll see how he's doing. We're going to check in, as a matter of fact, with his coach.
S. O'BRIEN: He's the guy who jumped in and pulled him out, right, when he passed out?
M. O'BRIEN: Apparently so. S. O'BRIEN: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: He was, you know, rooting on, or whatever you do with a guy in a manbowl, all week.
S. O'BRIEN: Go, David.
M. O'BRIEN: Yell go, David. Stay there. Stay wet. Stay well.
LEE: Hold up signs, you're doing it. Keep going. Keep going.
M. O'BRIEN: All right.
S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, some folks are calling it a miracle down under. We're going to take you this morning inside that dangerous mission to pull those Australian miners to safety. We've got that story just ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Return to sender. That letter from the Iranian president addressed to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is getting a chilly reception, to say the least. It is the first direct communication from an Iranian leader to a U.S. president in 27 years. But apparently it does not specifically address the growing nuclear standoff in any substantive way.
CNN's Aneesh Raman is among the few Western journalists in Tehran. He joins us on the phone with more.
Aneesh, tell us more about what's inside that letter.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Miles, good morning.
There is no specific solution, it seems, to the nuclear dispute that is playing out between Iran and the West. Yesterday, we were told to expect new ways to solve the critical situation in the world. Instead, there's plenty of advice from Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to President Bush.
A few mentions of Iraq. Ahmadinejad wrote -- quote -- "How much longer will the blood of innocent men, women and children be spilled on the streets, and people's houses destroyed over their heads? Are you pleased with the current condition of the world? Do you think present policies can continue?"
Now they also mentioned Iraq, Iran's president, in this letter, saying that there had been the issue of WMD raised in Iraq before the invasion. That turned out to be false, alluding, it seems, to the lack of direct evidence of a weapons program here in Iran.
So instead, general rhetoric we've heard before, but no specific solution -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Aneesh, then what does the letter do in the grand scheme of things? Is it some kind of stunt? Is there something behind it? Is it the beginning of a dialog, perhaps?
RAMAN: Well it's a mix of all. The hope, of course, is that this letter could lead potentially to direct talks between the U.S. and Iran. That does not seem likely in the immediate future. There have been huge hurdles towards that and both sides at various moments have discounted it as a possibility.
But as well, it does show that the Iranian officials are aware of the severity of the situation and are looking, to seem at least, that they are trying to find a resolution. Yesterday the talk was about how Iran is trying to find a way to end this crisis. That was why this letter was sent.
But now, having read the letter, the excerpts that have been put out there, it seems there is no specific solution. So it could, in short, change nothing in the immediate future, but it could potentially change things down the line -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Aneesh Raman in Tehran, thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Twenty-six minutes past the hour, let's check the forecast with Chad.
Hey, Chad, good morning. What are you looking at?
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: Twenty-three days to hurricane season. Keep you up to date with Hurricane 101 here. Here's the forecast from Dr. Gray, Colorado State. Named storms, they're expecting 17. The 55-year average is 12. So an above normal year so far.
What does that mean for the East Coast? Well one of the reasons why Dr. Gray actually has that number so high for this year is there is a La Nina happening. During a La Nina year, not El Nino, the opposite, the Gulf Coast goes from an average percentage of getting a hurricane, from 61 to 79. The East Coast and Florida goes from an average of 62 to 89. So, yes, the potential is higher this year for the East Coast.
And even for, remember this, go back to Gloria. Here are some pictures, 1985, go over to Fire Island in New York. This is actually right along Long Island, September 27, 1985. This is a Category 1 hurricane, 85 miles per hour. But it had a forward speed of 35.
And on the right side of the storm, the right side of the eyewall, you actually have to come close to adding those numbers together. There's a little factor involved there, but close enough. So there were gusts well over 100 miles per hour. And a lot of folks had a lot of damage there on Fire Island, New York, 1985 from Hurricane Gloria -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Gosh, I remember that very well being a Long Islander.
MYERS: Absolutely.
S. O'BRIEN: It really took out a lot of people's homes.
MYERS: It did.
S. O'BRIEN: And it made beachfront property of a lot of people who were kind of in the middle of that piece of the island there.
MYERS: Right.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Chad, thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: A look at the morning's top stories are straight ahead, including that deadly ambush outside of a police station in Virginia. Investigators are in search of a motive this morning.
And a new report takes a look at why Duke University may have been slow to react to the lacrosse team's rape allegations. That story and much more just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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