Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
President Bush Celebrating Big Victory on Tax Cuts; Small Town in New York Fighting High Gas Prices With Controversial Proposal
Aired May 11, 2006 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Tracking every phone call you make: News this morning that the federal government is amassing the biggest database ever created.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ed Henry at the White House, where the president is celebrating a big victory on tax cuts, but will it lift his sagging poll numbers? That story coming up.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Interstate 95 closed down again by brush fires in Florida. It may be days before those smoldering trees and brush stop falling on to the highway there.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A small town in New York is fighting high gas prices with a controversial proposal that some say is only hurting the little guy. I'm Alina Cho. I'll have that story coming up.
S. O'BRIEN: And a woman fired for getting pregnant artificially. Well, now she's fighting back. We'll have her story on this AMERICAN MORNING.
Good morning. Welcome, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: I'm Miles O'Brien. Thanks for being with us.
We start with your money. President Bush looking for a big victory on Capitol Hill today. The Senate is expected to follow the House and approve a $70 billion tax cut the president has been pushing for.
Ed Henry live at the White House more on all of this.
Ed, tell us what's in the bill.
HENRY: Well, good morning, Miles.
As you noted, a big win for the president, who is desperate for victories right now, with his approval rating into the low 30s. What's in this package, a key part would be a two-year extension of the reduced tax rate of 15 percent on capital gains and dividends. That was supposed to expire at the end of 2008. It also extends for this year.
The only change is to the alternative minimum tax. That's targeted for higher middle-income families. Take a look at how much it will actually save our viewers, though, based on some analysis by the tax policy institute. Those earning $20,000 to $30,000, only $9 in savings. If you're making $50,000 to $75,000, $110 of a tax cut. If you're making $100,000 to $200,000, just over $1300. More than a million, your tax cut will be worth over $41,000, almost $42,000.
Now Democrats like Congressman Steny Hoyer charge this shows it's really targeted to the rich, not the middle class.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. STENY HOYER (D), MINORITY WHIP: This blatantly unfair and grossly irresponsible legislation represents the last gasp of the Republican Party's failed economic policies, which have only caused greater disparity in America, and driven our nation into the fiscal ditch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Now Democrats are obviously riled up. But the president is pleased that this could fire up conservatives. They've been disillusioned lately over some of the president's policies, including on immigration -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Ed, how much is the White House counting on all of this to try to help those sagging poll numbers?
HENRY: They have big hopes that this will actually follow up the conservative base. As I noted in fact next week, the White House is planning a big signing ceremony, Senate vote today on the actual tax cuts. They're hoping to get the president sign it next week. They want to have a big celebration here. They want to show the voters that the president now has a win in his pocket. The rest of his agenda, as you know, is stalled on the Hill -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Ed Henry at the White House, thank you very much -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: CNN Security Watch now. It is being described as the largest database ever assembled in the world. And your phone number is probably on it. "USA Today" is reporting some new details on the National Security Agency's program to secretly collect phone call records. The program has been up and running ever since 9/11. The spy agency said they are trying to detect terrorist activity.
Here are some of the details from the report. The report says that the program doesn't involve listening to the calls, just keeping a log of who you're calling. AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth are all part of the program. Qwest apparently refused to participate. The paper says the NSA program is far broader than what the White House has ever acknowledged.
Coming up in the next hour, we're going to talk to the "USA Today" reporter who's broken the story. A new report out this morning finds that British intelligence may have missed a chance to stop the London transit bombings. It says that British intelligence services were monitoring two of the bombers, decided though to focus their resources elsewhere. The July 7th bombings were Britain's largest terror attack.
Paula Hancocks has more now from King's Cross Station in London, the site of one of the bombings.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): British security services were ill-equipped to prevent the July 7th London bombings, which killed 52 and injured 700. That's the finding of first of two reports out this Thursday. This was from the Intelligence and Security Committee. They say that it was understandable that the security services were focusing on other possible operations at the time, in which case they were not able to notice this plan in the making. They say that there was a severe lack of resources. This was also to blame. And so although there was also a clear lack of intelligence and a failure in intelligence, there's no one single agency or individual that is being blamed. This is what we were expecting from this particular report.
In addition, they mentioned the National Terror Alert System in Britain, saying it should be changed. It should be made more transparent, as that particular alert system was changed from severe, general and lowered to substantial just before these attacks took place.
Now, we are expecting another report to come out from the home office. This will be more of a narrative of what exactly happened across the day.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: You want to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: More emotion in a Rhode Island courtroom, not from the victims of that nightclub fire, but from the man held responsible. A judge sentenced former band manager Daniel Biechele to four years in prison yesterday. He set off the pyrotechnics that sparked the fire at the Station nightclub in 2003, killing 100.
CNN's Allan Chernoff is there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Family members of the victims poured out of court right after the sentence was announced, some deeply disappointed, and others believing that, indeed, the sentence was fair. Dan Biechele received a sentence of four years in prison. He was the band manager who lit the pyrotechnics that triggered the fire that burnt down the nightclub and killed 100 people.
There's no question that Biechele was contrite. He had written apology letters to the families, and in court he begged for mercy.
DANIEL BIECHELE, DEFENDANT: I don't know that I'll ever forgive myself for what happened that night, so I can't expect anybody else to. I can only pray that they understand that I would do anything to undo what happened that night, and give them back their loved ones.
CHERNOFF: It was a very tough call for the judge. Under a plea deal, Biechele could have been sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison. He pled guilty to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
Minutes after Biechele's statement, the judge announced the sentence.
JUDGE FRANCES DARIGAN, RHODE ISLAND SUPERIOR COURT: This court will therefore sentence you to 15 years at the ACI, four years of which to be served by you with 11 years suspended. And the court will place you on probation for a period of three years. This court does not believe that you pose a threat to society in the future. The court believes that this is reasonably appropriate for the matter we heard here today.
CHNEROFF: Biechele is the only person in the case who has actually pled guilty. The club owners are expected to face trial later this year.
Allan Chernoff, CNN, Providence, Rhode Island.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(NEWSBREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, the story of a teacher fired for getting pregnant. We will tell you why now she's going to court.
M. O'BRIEN: Plus, and a small town takes on big oil. And we'll tell you why some are saying they're just hurting the little guy.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: A Wisconsin woman is fighting back after being fired from her job from as a catholic school teacher because she got pregnant. The pregnancy itself is not at issue; it's the way it happened. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Kelly and Eric Romenesko are the proud parents of 14-month-old twins, Alexandria and Allison (ph).
KELLY ROMENESKO, FIRED TEACHER: We can't imagine our lives without them anymore.
S. O'BRIEN: The girls were conceived by in-vitro fertilization, a last resort for the couple who tried unsuccessfully for five years to have a family.
In September 2004, Kelly was teaching at two Catholic schools in Appleton, Wisconsin, when, she says, she asked for time off to complete the in-vitro procedure. About a month later, she found out she was pregnant. And five days after that, she found out she was fired.
ROMENESKO: The administration knew I was going through in-vitro fertilization for almost two months, and hemmed and hawed, and gave me the impression that everything was going to be OK.
S. O'BRIEN: Her employer said Kelly, a life-long Catholic, had violated a contract provision that says a teacher must act in accordance with church doctrine.
REV. JOHN DOERFLER, GREEN BAY, WIS. DIOCESE: Any way that brings about human life, that's apart from the intimate acts of marriage, you know, that's apart from the conjugal act, would not fully respect the dignity of the human person.
S. O'BRIEN: The church's position is laid out in a document called "Donum Vitae." In Latin, that means "Gift of Life." In effect, it means in-vitro fertilization is immoral.
BISHOP DAVID ZUBIK, GREEN BAY, WIS. DIOCESE: There isn't anything that can happen more sacred between a husband and wife than having a child through the marriage act.
S. O'BRIEN: The 37-year-old Romenesko, who'd been on the job since 1999, filed a discrimination complaint charging the catholic school system with selectively enforcing the contract.
ROMENESKO: It's my understanding that other teachers have gone through the same or similar procedures, that are against Catholic doctrine, and have not been disciplined.
S. O'BRIEN: Romenesko, who is no longer a Catholic, says she is fighting the termination, not to get her job back, but for the principle.
ROMENESKO: In my opinion, I don't think I did anything wrong. The system let me down.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: A state investigator back in December upheld Kelly's firing. A hearing on her appeal was scheduled for tomorrow, but it's been put off now until September. We're going to talk a little bit more this morning with Kelly Romenesko. She's going to join us live in the 9:00 hour -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: I'll be interested to hear that one. Thank you.
The guy who put the man-bowl is toweled off and talking now about his wacky, weeklong stunt. Coming up, you'll find out what David Blaine says was the most horrific part of his underwater stunt.
CHO: I'm Alina Cho in Hamburg, New York, where local leaders are taking on Big Oil in the most unusual way. Some say it's only hurting the little guy. I'll have that story when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: There's the music you know and love -- invite you to download the disco mix.
Turning to gas prices, the latest on the national average, $2.89. That's for unleaded regular. That's down just slightly over yesterday. One month ago, 2.69. A year ago, $2.18. We should add in like, you know, 60 years ago, just for comparison, just to make you feel really bad.
All right, gas prices might want to make you mimic a scene from the movie "Network." You know that one where people are screaming out the window, "We're mad as hell! We're not going to take it anymore!" Beyond that, what can we do, though. And when we do something, could we be cutting off our noses to spite our face?
AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho reports from Hamburg, New York.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHO (voice-over): Take a drive around Hamburg, New York with councilwoman Kathy Hochul, and she'll tell you she's hopping mad about gas prices. She is not alone.
KATHY HOCHUL, HAMBURG COUNCILWOMAN: From the single moms are practically in tears when they go to fill-up their gas tanks. They're not if they can afford it. The trucking business, the small delivery business -- it's hit everybody.
CHO: So many so Hochul recently introduced a resolution, calling on Hamburg residents to boycott ExxonMobil stations. That's because ExxonMobil announced a record $36 billion in profits. And its chairman got a $400 million retirement deal. All the while, gas prices in Hamburg remain above $3 a gallon.
HOCHUL: As the local government, we're closest to the people. And when they're hurting, we feel that as well. And we thought it was our responsibility to send a message that we can't take it anymore.
CHO: That message was meant for Big Oil, but Joe Enser, the owner of an ExxonMobil station here in Hamburg, is the one who's feeling it.
(on camera): When you first heard about this boycott, what did you think?
JOE ENSER, EXXON-MOBIL STATION OWNER: What I thought it that it would hurt the small guy.
CHO: Enser has owned a gas station since 1971. He's worked for all the major oil companies. When he started, gas was selling for about 30 cents a gallon. Today the price of gas is 10 times that. But he's making a much smaller cut, between five and six cents a gallon.
ENSER: After 30 years of trying to build a name and a reputation, it was kind of like a slap in the face. Thirty years of service and you get boycotted? It made me upset.
CHO: Along Main Street, longtime resident Joe Gambino said the boycott is a good idea.
JOE GAMBINO, HAMBURG RESIDENT: If all the gas stations can arbitrarily set prices, why can't people arbitrarily say, let's not go there.
CHO: Lucky for Enser, most residents stuck by him, his business did not suffer. A few miles away at this ExxonMobil, business was off by 14 percent. A company spokeswoman told CNN, "Generally, boycotts of this nature don't work." It certainly didn't in Hamburg. And on Monday, the town council rescinded the resolution.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The call for the boycott was wrong.
(APPLAUSE)
CHO: Now the council is asking drivers to conserve in other ways -- take public transportation, walk or ride a bus.
Alina Cho, CNN, Hamburg, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: The unintended consequences sometimes. You've got to think about those. Congress this morning opens up its second day of hearings on Capitol Hill into high gas prices and supply. I'm sure Congress will solve it today. Don't you think that'll be it. It'll be fixed. Hearings on Capitol Hill -- we know it's going to be fixed.
S. O'BRIEN: You've to feel for the guy in Alina's piece. He's like, I've been a member of the community for 30 years, and you know, I think it's four cents a gallon. That's his profit.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, he may have "Exxon" on his side, but it is just him.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
S. O'BRIEN: Well, illusionist David Blaine says, ow, still hurting. Blaine spent a week, of course in water before he tried to break that nine-minute record for holding his breath. Didn't happen. He tried to pull it off on Monday. There were the results. He fell about two minutes short of his goal. He told Larry King, though, last night that he's disappointed, and he's still in pain apparently.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID BLAINE, ILLUSIONIST: Certain things I didn't prepare for. For example, the sphere was like a magnifying glass. It intensified the sun and radiated my body. So the whole time I was in there, of course I was not aware of it during the time because I was in water, but now my whole -- all of my skin is blistered, and painful, and it's very difficult to move in any direction.
The toughest part was dealing with being in that water and falling asleep for less than two hours a night, and waking up with the water over my nose and over my mouth like a nightmare. I would have these awful visions that I was drowning, and I'd jump up and I'd still be in water, then I'd remember to clear the mask up by purging it, and then I'd be able to breathe. And it was horrific. And every time I would jump up, because I was weightless, my muscles were atrophied because I wasn't working them out for a week and I wasn't eating, so they were really breaking themselves down. So I would get sharp shooting pains throughout my whole body. So I'm suffering now from that pretty seriously.
My hands and feet, which were the worst before, were the fastest things to heal themselves. You feel like you're about to die. And it starts to get more and more horrific by second. But I did not want anybody to jump in, and I felt that they did the right thing by jumping in when they did to save life, but I was disappointed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Back to our original question, which was why? I mean, with that litany of grossness, which I think is fair to call that, why would you do that?
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: One of these days people are going to have a record, how many thumbtacks can you stick in your arm. I mean, come on.
S. O'BRIEN: Larry King, of course, is on every night.
M. O'BRIEN: I wonder what the record is.
SERWER: Don't start somebody out there to do that, please.
M. O'BRIEN: Somebody is out there looking it up right now.
S. O'BRIEN: That's crazy. And I can't believe, he didn't realize that you're in water, it's going to reflect the sun on a beautiful day, I mean, right? That's why, at the beach, with kids...
SERWER: Yes, it's like the frog, and the kettle on a stove.
M. O'BRIEN: Busy talking to people in the media, focus on other things. (CROSSTALK)
M. O'BRIEN: Science, whatever.
S. O'BRIEN: We've got a look at our top stories coming up next. You are watching AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
