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American Morning

Troop Cuts; Iraq Amnesty; Terrorism Trial Watch; Casino Shooting; East Coast Flooding; Teen Pilot

Aired June 26, 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. It is June 26, Monday. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Miles O'Brien.

Here's a look at what's happening this morning.

In Afghanistan, more violence, children caught in the crossfire this time. Two children hurt by a suicide bomber targeting a U.S. military convoy north of Kabul. There were no U.S. casualties.

A big ruling on Guantanamo expected this morning from the U.S. Supreme Court. The court to decide whether the president can keep detainees locked up at the terrorist jail without formal charges.

S. O'BRIEN: In the Senate today, a face-off over the American flag. Senators are set to debate a constitutional amendment banning flag burning.

And in Houston today, opening statements scheduled to begin in the re-trial of Andrea Yates. Yates was convicted back in 2002 of drowning her children in a bathtub. The verdict was overturned because of flawed testimony.

M. O'BRIEN: The second richest man in the world giving most of his money to a charitable foundation controlled by the only person richer. "Fortune" magazine reporting Warren Buffett will give the lion's share of his $44 billion fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

And it is a soggy morning on the East Coast. Flash flood warnings in effect from Pennsylvania to Washington, D.C. About a foot of rain fell on the eastern shore of Maryland yesterday.

In Delaware, same story, soggy one. Eight inches of rain prompting evacuations in Seaford, just to name one location.

Which brings us to the forecast.

Chad Myers at the CNN Center.

Good morning, -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Miles. Welcome back.

(WEATHER REPORT)

More to come, Soledad. I'll show you what rain we're expecting and where coming up in 10 minutes.

S. O'BRIEN: All right. All right. Thanks, -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

S. O'BRIEN: There's a plan to cut troop levels in Iraq if conditions on the ground improve, and it has some congressional Democrats asking some tough questions this morning. "The New York Times" reporting over the weekend that the Pentagon has proposed a timetable for bringing a quarter of the troops home by the end of next year.

Ed Henry is following the story for us at the White House this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): President Bush meets this morning with organizations that support the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan and Iraq. That meeting comes as military sources tell CNN General George Casey is considering pulling two combat brigades, up to 10,000 U.S. troops, out of Iraq this fall with the potential for even steeper troop cuts in 2007.

Democrats charge the White House, which has repeatedly refused to set a timetable, is finally giving in to the political pressures of the midterm elections and is being hypocritical. Just last week, the Kerry-Feingold plan to get all U.S. troops out of Iraq by July 2007 failed miserably amid Republican allegations it was cut and run.

Now Democrats say the Casey plan looks awfully similar to the plan that Republicans were charging was not good enough just last week. But Republicans insist there's a big difference, the Casey plan does not have a firm deadline, giving the military more flexibility to make sure the Iraqis can take over security before there's a full handover of responsibility.

Ed Henry, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: Iraq's path toward independence takes a controversial turn with talk of amnesty for at least some insurgents. It comes from the Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki who is pushing a reconciliation plan to try to end the bloodshed which is hobbling his fledgling government.

CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson live now from Baghdad with more -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Miles, Nuri al-Maliki outlined a 24-point reconciliation plan designed to unite the country and end the violence. It sounded very much like a mission statement rather than a detailed account of how it would be achieved.

But what he did say on the point of amnesty for insurgents, that people inside detention facilities now should be released if they haven't been involved in criminal acts, acts of terrorism, war crimes, crimes against humanity.

He also took a step to try and draw the Sunni community more into the political process, more into supporting this new Shi'a-dominated government. He said that there would be an analysis of a de- Baathification process. This was the process that has excluded a lot of Saddam Hussein's former government employees, many of them Sunnis, from working in the new government. He said that there might even be a compensation program for civil servants who were members of the Baath Party.

But he spoke very clearly, telling everyone in the country that this reconciliation program is not an act of weakness.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NURI AL-MALIKI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We have extended our hand to all those good people to join us and to work together for a better future. And we say to all those criminals that we will not relent or win in our fight against you. But it is important that people understand the call for consolation does not mean we are weak, we will not relent until we bring the terrorists and the criminals to justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: While the plan received overall broad support within the Parliament, the critics are saying that it doesn't go far enough and it doesn't detail when U.S. troops should be pulled out, saying that these are all issues people here have heard talked about before, but no precise plan how to achieve them -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Nic, meanwhile in all of this, to make it even more interesting I suppose, Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi dictator, from jail saying he can help the U.S.

ROBERTSON: Well speaking through his lawyer, this is what he is saying, that the Americans, he said, will ultimately turn to Saddam Hussein to help resolve their problems in Iraq. Of course this is exactly the type of thing we've been hearing from Saddam Hussein in the past.

He still believes himself to be in a position of power, a position of influence, indeed views himself still as a legitimate president. No one here is taking this offer or these claims in any way seriously. It just really appears to a lot of people here to be a continuing part of Saddam Hussein's essential delusion at the position he now finds himself in -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Quite a sideshow.

Nic Robertson in Baghdad, thank you very much. Also in Iraq, two Pennsylvania National Guard soldiers face charges in connection with the killing of a civilian. The soldiers are in the 1st Battalion 109th Infantry. Specialist Nathan Lynn facing voluntary manslaughter charges. It is alleged he killed an unarmed man near Ramadi in February. Lynn also charged, along with Sergeant Milton Ortiz, of obstructing justice after they allegedly conspired to plant an AK-47 near the body -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: The Supreme Court could rule today on the most significant case of the year. It involves Salim Ahmed Hamdan, Osama bin Laden's former driver. The verdict could impact the trials of some 400 prisoners at Guantanamo and define how much power President Bush should hold.

CNN's Kyung Lah has our report this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The Supreme Court justices may issue a decision as soon as today. That will be the most significant case of the year. At the center of this case, Salim Ahmed Hamdan arrested in Afghanistan two months after the 9/11 attacks.

Now Hamdan has sat in Guantanamo Bay for at least three-and-a- half years, waiting to be tried by a military court. President Bush calls him an enemy combatant, not a prisoner of war, meaning he would not have any right under the Geneva Convention.

This case affects not only Hamdan, but the approximate 400 prisoners at Guantanamo. The court could rule in a number of ways. The High Court may decide it doesn't have any jurisdiction in this area. Now that would be a major victory for the White House.

The justices may also rule narrowly, rejecting parts of the White House's arguments but not throwing open the doors of Guantanamo.

Court watchers say what is really at stake, how much power the commander-in-chief should hold. And this case could certainly help define that power.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee wants to go after reporters. Congressman Peter King says it is treason for newspapers to expose the government's surveillance of bank transactions. The Bush administration says it looks over transactions to find terrorist's money. Well King says he's going to ask the attorney general to investigate "The New York Times."

M. O'BRIEN: Happening in America.

Police in Denver still looking for a motive today in a fatal shooting at a grocery store distribution warehouse. A gunman killed one person Sunday, wounded five others, before police shot and killed him. His identity has not been released, but it is believed he also worked at the warehouse. Two of the shooting victims are in critical condition this morning.

In Columbus, Ohio, police looking for someone who set a fire in a church basement. The church suffered mostly smoke damage and the fire forced cancellation of Sunday services. Police say someone broke into the church and set the fire.

Las Vegas police are releasing a video of a wild shooting. Take a look at that. They want the public's help in finding the man who opened fire at the Silver Nugget Casino early Sunday morning. One person was killed, one injured.

Rob McMillan of our affiliate KVBC explains what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROB MCMILLAN, KVBC-TV REPORTER (voice-over): What started off as a normal night at the Silver Nugget Casino turned deadly in a matter of seconds. Checkout this surveillance video.

At 4:23 in the morning, this group starts to walk out of the bar, but then it appears that for some reason people start arguing. All of a sudden, a man in a white shirt throws a punch and that's what starts this confrontation heading towards its deadly conclusion. A black man in his late teens or early 20s pulls out a gun and begins to fire. A few minutes later, police discover the carnage this suspect left behind.

SEAN WALKER, NORTH LAS VEGAS POLICE: When the officers arrived, they found two victims of gunshot wounds. One was deceased at the scene. The other received a non-life-threatening gunshot wound.

MCMILLAN: Police say it's amazing that people are so quick to commit these kinds of crimes in casinos where the ceilings are often lined with surveillance cameras. But what concerns police the most is how this man seems to be enjoying himself as he's firing.

WALKER: It's troubling, even to us. I mean you can see, and really I guess it would go without saying, if you're going to pull out a gun and start shooting off rounds inside a casino, you don't really have any concern for human beings.

MCMILLAN: However, police hope that by releasing this video someone out there can get a good look at the suspect and call detectives with that information so hopefully this will be the last time this man will do anything like this again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

S. O'BRIEN: That's pretty incredible videotape.

Let's talk more about those flood worries this morning in Pennsylvania and Virginia we've been telling you about. Weekend rains left much of the northern East Coast under water, washed out some roads, knocked out power and left lots of people to evacuate. Virg Jacques of our affiliate WTTG is live for us in Washington this morning.

Good morning.

VIRG JACQUES, WTTG-TV REPORTER: Good morning, Soledad.

A crazy morning in Washington, all rush hours are crazy, but this even more so. Take a look behind me. We're at Pennsylvania Avenue and this is the 12th Street Tunnel. It is flooded. Somehow these people got on the tunnel, even though it was closed, and they have reached a certain point. Flood waters now are forcing them to go backwards the wrong way on the on ramp here at Pennsylvania Avenue and 12th Street. It's been a bizarre morning. This is just part of it.

A lot of flooding around the D.C. area, especially downtown. Several blocks of major streets, like Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenue, have been shut down.

We've also had problems at the National Archives building on Pennsylvania Avenue. It's going to be closed, at least for the morning, because of flooding. Firefighters checked out that building. They found there is electricity inside, but a great deal of water. No reports of damage to any documents inside.

S. O'BRIEN: Virg Jacques for us.

It looks like we've dropped out of his audio there, but you can see clearly what a mess. They're all backing up, trying to get off that tunnel, because the water down at the bottom is way too deep.

All right, Virg, thank you for that.

M. O'BRIEN: Somebody tries to sell you a white Mercedes cheap in that part of the world,...

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, did you see that nice Mercedes?

M. O'BRIEN: ... don't buy it. Don't buy it, it's a flood car.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes.

M. O'BRIEN: Trust me.

S. O'BRIEN: It sure is.

M. O'BRIEN: All right.

S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, a 14-year-old boy wants to show the world he's got the right stuff to break aeronautical records. We'll explain just ahead this morning.

M. O'BRIEN: And Nicole Kidman got married and once again I got snubbed. Well, so did you, right? At least we Z-listers have the pictures, which we will share with you.

S. O'BRIEN: She looks so beautiful.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, she does.

S. O'BRIEN: Carrie Lee has our business headlines this morning.

Carrie, good morning.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to both of you. Thank you.

This Monday morning, the world's second richest man is giving away his fortune and the world's richest man is helping him do it. We'll have that story coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Happening this morning.

In Afghanistan, two children hurt after a suicide bomber blew himself up near a U.S. military convoy. It happened north of Kabul. There were no U.S. casualties.

The Senate today is expected to debate a constitutional amendment banning flag burning. A vote on the Republican measure could come tomorrow.

And in Arizona, firefighters now say they have that huge wildfire just outside of Sedona 50 percent contained. The fire has burned 4,200 acres so far.

M. O'BRIEN: On the East Coast, different story, it's flooding. That is a concern.

As I always say, Chad, it's just a matter of distribution of the water. If we could get that water a little bit west, it would be good for everybody.

MYERS: It just seems -- I mean the whole eastern half of the country was basically in a drought for the past couple of weeks. It was a short-term drought; but still, you can't walk across a lawn in Atlanta, at least you couldn't until Friday, they just wouldn't crunch as you went over it. Literally lawns were catching on fire. Well even Atlanta, even at my house, three-and-a-half inches of rain over the weekend.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: All right, thank you very much -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

Adam Sandler tops the box office. His comedy "Click," about a man whose new remote control takes control of his life, debuted at number one this weekend taking in $40 million. Remember we had David Hasselhoff on last week to talk about that. The animated film "Cars" drops to second place with 22.5 million bucks. Jack Black's comedy, "Nacho Libre," -- that's the one I want to see -- third place, just over $12 million. The crime spree filler -- crime -- let me try that again, crime spree thriller -- that's hard to say -- "Waist Deep,"...

M. O'BRIEN: Yes, it's not easy.

S. O'BRIEN: ... opens up in fourth place with 9.5 million bucks. And "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift" rounds out the top five with $9.2 million.

What is that for "Fast and Furious," what number, three, four? Anybody know? Number three. I saw the first one.

M. O'BRIEN: I didn't know there was a series. I thought it was just out.

S. O'BRIEN: Where have you been?

M. O'BRIEN: I'm very sorry. I've been....

S. O'BRIEN: Vin Diesel was in the first one. It was good.

M. O'BRIEN: I've got to get right to the blockbuster.

S. O'BRIEN: If you are traveling overseas, you might want to pray for a good exchange rate. Just ahead, we're going to give you the list of the world's most expensive cities. Here's a little hint for you, New York City doesn't even make the top five.

M. O'BRIEN: Wow!

S. O'BRIEN: Wow, yes.

M. O'BRIEN: And -- but first we're going to meet a very young man who is out to break some big records in aviation. We'll have his story next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody.

Here's a look at some of the most popular stories on CNN.com right now.

The FBI is considering charging a woman who was involved in a fist fight onboard a JetBlue flight on Sunday. The plane took off from Newark was diverted pretty quickly to Kennedy.

The manager of the Minor League Asheville Tourists ejected from a game last night. Did you see this? He did not go quietly. His name is Joe Mikulik. And he ranted, raved, threw stuff, pulled up second base there, covered home plate with dirt, tossed a few bats on the field. This went on and on, like he could not stop. Look at this, he is still going. M. O'BRIEN: He is ready for the show. He's got...

S. O'BRIEN: And then it goes on. There's a bat.

M. O'BRIEN: Give him a Major League contract.

S. O'BRIEN: He goes on and on and on and on.

And some happy news, wedded bliss for Nicole Kidman who married Keith Urban on Sunday. The actress and the country singer tied the knot in Sydney, Australia. They look so cute.

M. O'BRIEN: Apparently she had some trouble fitting in her dress. Did you read that this morning? They had to have an emergency seamstress come in.

S. O'BRIEN: What? Really?

M. O'BRIEN: It's in the paper right there.

S. O'BRIEN: So not -- I don't even believe that.

M. O'BRIEN: Well.

S. O'BRIEN: That girl?

M. O'BRIEN: All right, you check the paper there.

S. O'BRIEN: Please, I don't believe it.

M. O'BRIEN: We have the story now of a diminutive teenager with some sky-high dreams. Fourteen-year-old Jonathan Strickland is out to break some world records as a pilot, pushing the envelope, knocking down some age barriers.

David Kincaid with our Canadian affiliate CTV with his story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID KINCAID, CTV-TV REPORTER (voice-over): At 14, Jonathan Strickland may be small in stature but his dreams are huge, world record huge. First up, fly a helicopter from Compton, California to Vancouver's Boundary Bay Airport. He instantly became the youngest African-American to fly a helicopter internationally. It was a long but successful trip.

JONATHAN STRICKLAND, PILOT: It was long and fun. You saw different climates and terrains and land.

KINCAID: Jonathan's instructor and co-pilot for the journey is Robin Petgrave, founder of Tomorrow's Aeronautical Museum, a non- profit organization designed to show inner city kids options through aviation.

ROBIN PETGRAVE, FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR: Every day I get between 30 and 120 of these little guys to come to the airport. They work. They wash airplanes, they put together computers, they do all kinds of stuff and I give them flight lessons for it.

KINCAID (on camera): So these aren't rich kids from Beverly Hills?

PETGRAVE: No, these kids -- if their parents had to pay for it, it would never happen.

KINCAID (voice-over): Here Jonathan has a world record in his pocket and his eye on two more.

STRICKLAND: Well I have to study and get my medical and basically take the test so I can solo.

KINCAID: Once the necessary paperwork is completed, Jonathan will attempt to become the youngest African-American to solo in both a helicopter and an airplane on the same day.

Back in California, his mother is both nervous and proud, waiting to hear her son has landed safely.

ANDREA, JONATHAN STRICKLAND'S MOTHER: I told him whenever he touches ground, call.

KINCAID: And that's just what he does. Jonathan's long distance bills will soon start to really pile up if he follows his next dream of becoming an airline pilot when he's old enough.

David Kincaid, CTV News, Boundary Bay Airport.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: Now you may be wondering this Canadian connection, what that is all about. Well Canadian aviation laws allow people as young as 14 to become licensed pilots, allow him to do his solo. In the U.S., the age is now 16. So we'll be tracking this young man's effort.

S. O'BRIEN: Good for him. What a nice young man. That's sweet.

M. O'BRIEN: Yes.

S. O'BRIEN: Warren Buffett, kind of a rich guy.

LEE: Kind of a rich guy.

S. O'BRIEN: He's done all right. He's done all right.

LEE: Give it $40 billion, give or take a few billion. Forty- four billion is what his fortune is estimated to be worth.

S. O'BRIEN: Heading off. Yes.

LEE: Yes. And he is giving away that money, the bulk of it anyway, to a foundation run by Bill Gates, who is of course founder of Microsoft and the world's wealthiest man. Now Buffett says he is going to start giving away the 44 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Most of you probably familiar with that, they spend money on education, technology, help in developing countries, as well as some money here in the U.S.

Buffett is giving away $1.5 billion a year and wants to do this now while he's still alive. He is 75 years old. He has said in the past that he would give away his fortune once he had passed, but that stance has changed. So we'll have a lot more on this coming up throughout the morning.

Also, a look at gas prices. The latest numbers here, according to the Lundberg Survey, a gallon of self-serve regular fell 4.5 cents over the past two weeks, $2.89 a gallon is now the average. That is 6 cents below this year's peak, but still 68 cents higher than the year- ago period.

And finally, a quick check on stocks. It is looking like we could see some green arrows at the 9:30 opening bell this morning. Take a look, last week all of the major market indices down fractionally.

And of course, Soledad and Miles, this is the week everyone is waiting for, Wednesday-Thursday Fed meeting. Thursday we'll get the latest decision on interest rates. Another quarter-point hike widely factored in. What's going to happen after that, always looking for clues.

S. O'BRIEN: Why do you think Warren Buffett made this decision? I mean he's always said when I die, I'll have all this money, I'll give it away?

LEE: Well I think part of it is he's seeing what Bill and Melinda Gates have done with this foundation. It's worth $29 billion. And they've just done so much good in the world. So it just seems like at this point he really maybe wants to be a part of that.

M. O'BRIEN: What a foundation, though, the amount of money they have, it's just tremendous. It may be difficult to spend all that. I'm sure they'll find a way.

LEE: Absolutely. Absolutely. And that's part of the caveat, the money he gives away has to be spent that year. Also, maybe another thing here, Bill Gates has said he's stepping more away from Microsoft...

S. O'BRIEN: Right.

LEE: ... and getting more closely involved with the foundation, so.

S. O'BRIEN: Interesting.

M. O'BRIEN: Apparently those two events are happenstance, so Buffett says anyhow.

LEE: Right.

M. O'BRIEN: We'll hear from them a little later.

S. O'BRIEN: Interesting, interesting.

Carrie, thanks.

LEE: OK.

M. O'BRIEN: The morning's top stories are straight ahead, including firefighters finally trying to get the upper hand, or getting the upper hand at a 4,200-acre wildfire in Arizona. We'll tell you about that.

And then there is talk of a timetable to bring the troops home from Iraq and that has Democrats asking some questions today. We're live from Washington with that story ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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