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American Morning
East Coast Flooding; Troop Cuts; Iraq Amnesty; Flag Burning; Buffett's Benevolence
Aired June 26, 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: Begin with a very soggy look at the East Coast this morning. A flash flood watch is in effect. Thousands of people still without power after the weekend's storms. John Atwater, of our affiliate WTXF, has more this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ATWATER, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Almost looks like a day at the beach.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a goldfish.
ATWATER: But the fish are swimming in the roads in Seaford.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they're pumping out my basement for me now.
ATWATER: And the water has been pouring into homes all day.
ROBERT STICKLES, SUSSEX COUNTY, DELAWARE, ADMINISTRATION: We got hit by I guess what the weather people call a super cell probably about 7:30 this morning. It rained for about two and a half hours.
RON MARBEL, SEAFORD, DELAWARE, FIRE DEPARTMENT: The storm drains just couldn't keep up with it.
ATWATER: And the water had no place to flow. Wal-Mart's storm drains flow into the Nanacope (ph) River. But the rivers are already full. So cars parked here are drenched. Already two dams here have been compromised. And this one, within a stone's throw of a nursing care facility, could go at any point. They got all 120 patients out, though, before the water threatened their lives.
STICKLES: We have several bridges and roads, probably into the dozens, in roads, areas that are just gone.
ATWATER: Seaford seems to have gotten the worst. The damage here is extensive and unheard of.
THELMA GILLESPIE, SEAFORD, DELAWARE: This is the first time I've seen it in my life. I had to come walk out and take a look myself.
ATWATER: The floods have pushed about 500 people out of their homes. Even habitats have been disrupted.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was just running over into the water, into the flood, so I picked him up.
ATWATER: But even in all the chaos, injuries have been minor.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Let's get right to Severe Weather Expert Chad Myers. He's at the CNN Center. He's got the latest for us.
Hey, Chad, good morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The Pentagon reportedly has a timetable for pulling troops out of Iraq starting as soon as this fall. And Democrats today are accusing the White House of playing politics on this front. You'll recall two Democratic plans to bring troops home on dates certain were voted down last week. Ed Henry live now at the White House with more.
Good morning, Ed.
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
That's right, the White House is facing charges of hypocrisy this morning because the administration is considering this plan for major troop cuts in Iraq just days after Republicans charged that such plans would only embolden terrorists.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY, (voice over): 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 even deeper troop cuts on the horizon in 2007, according to a "New York Times" report, of Casey's recent classified briefing at the Pentagon. Democrats charge the White House, which has repeatedly refused to set a timetable, is giving in to the political pressures of the mid-term elections.
SEN. CARL LEVIN, (D) MICHIGAN: I don't think there's the slightest doubt that there will be reductions in American troops before the elections. The Casey plan has a reduction prior to November and I think it's kind of the worst kept secret around here that the administration is going to find a way, one way or the other, to reduce American troop presence in Iraq.
HENRY: Senior Republicans insist General Casey does not have a formal plan to withdraw U.S. troops. And facts on the ground, not politics, will dictate any redeployment.
SEN. JOHN WARNER, (R) ARMED SERVICES CHAIRMAN: We will move to reduce our troops as soon as this new government gets up and gains the full confidence of its military to direct them to put down the insurgency.
HENRY: Democrat Russ Feingold's plan to bring U.S. troops home by next July was soundly defeated in the Senate last week amid Republican charges it was cut-and-run. Feingold, a potential presidential candidate, says it appears the White House has a timetable after all.
SEN RUSS FEINGOLD, (D) WISCONSIN: And I wonder what all this talk was about how a timeline's a bad idea and we can't tell the terrorists what we're going to do. Well, General Casey just told them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: But Republicans insist there's a big difference between a Feingold/Kerry proposal and the so-called Casey plan. The general has no firm deadline for bringing home all U.S. troops. They say that gives the military more flexibility to make sure that the Iraqis really can handle security before full responsibility is handed over.
Miles.
MILES O'BRIEN: Nevertheless, Ed, it talks about troop withdraws and it talks about dates. It's hard not to say that isn't a timetable of some sort.
HENRY: Certainly whether it's fixed or loose, it's some sort of a timetable. It's exactly what Republicans were saying they didn't want in this election year.
MILES O'BRIEN: Ed Henry at the White House. Thank you, sir.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Part of the Iraqi government's new reconciliation plan is creating some controversy here in the U.S. An amnesty clause could allow some prisoners who attacked U.S. troops to be set free. CNN's Andrea Koppel live for us in Washington, D.C. this morning.
Hey, Andrea, good morning.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning to you, Soledad.
The plan that's been laid out by Iraq's new prime minister says it would only offer amnesty for prisoners who were not involved in any terrorist activity, war crimes, or crimes against humanity. And while some U.S. senators asked about this during Sunday's talk shows called the plan a positive step, other lawmakers worried it could leave the door open to freeing someone who might have killed an American soldier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, (R) MAJORITY WHIP: I don't think granting amnesty to people who have killed Americans is acceptable and I don't believe that's what the Iraqi government intends to do.
SEN. RICHARD DURBIN, (D) MINORITY WHIP: I can understand the concept of reconciliation. But there's also a concept of accountability here. Now let me just ask you this. If you thought that there was a plan in place in Iraq which said the killing of an American soldier is excusable, would you want to leave your son in uniform as an American soldier in that country?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOPPEL: But on "Late Edition" yesterday, Iraq's oil minister told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that amnesty would only be offered to those not carrying weapons, who were willing to come into the political process. Those carrying arms and fighting, he said, would be considered criminals and their place would be in Iraqi prisons, not at the negotiating table.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Andrea, let me ask you a question about another debate that we've been talking about, the flag-burning debate. What's your take on the timing, when you consider all the other incredibly important issues that could be debated in front of the Congress right now?
KOPPEL: Right. Well that's certainly a question that Democrats are raising. They're saying, look, we're just a week out from the Fourth of July. We're less than about four months away from mid-term elections. Democrats saying there's scarcely any instances where people are burning the flag and accuse Republicans of deliberately scheduling votes on the flag-burning amendment and the failed attempt to pass that amendment banning same-sex marriage earlier this month as a transparent election year ploy in the attempt to fire up the party's conservative base on issues they care about most in the hopes of inspiring them to turn out on Election Day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. RUSS FEINGOLD, (D) WISCONSIN: Oh, no, it always comes up just before July 4th. It's a political game. It's outrageous. And we have more important things to deal with, such as getting our troops out of Iraq or helping our veterans, making sure that we get healthcare for all Americans. That's more important than trying to mess up the Constitution.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOPPEL: But unlike the debate that took place earlier this month over same-sex marriage, this debate over the flag-burning amendment could pass, Soledad. Its chief sponsor, Utah Republican Orrin Hatch, says he thinks he may have the 67 votes necessary.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: We'll watch and see. All right, Andrea Koppel for us this morning. Andrea, thanks.
Miles. MILES O'BRIEN: Also in Iraq, more troops facing charges of atrocities in that country. Two Pennsylvania National Guardsmen charged with killing an unarmed civilian in Ramadi in February. Specialist Nathan Lynn facing voluntary manslaughter and obstruction of justice charges. Sergeant Milton Ortiz also charged with obstruction. The two allegedly planted an AK-47 automatic rifle near the body of a civilian.
A possible escalation in the standoff with North Korea. Reports today the U.S. will deploy patriot missile batteries to Japan. Now you'll recall the patriot missile is designed to shoot down missiles in flight. It raises the possibility of shooting down a North Korean long-range missile after it is launched. North Korea is threatening to test a missile that could conceivably carry a nuclear warhead to the United States. Leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee are calling for a diplomatic solution.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CHUCK HAGEL, (R) NEBRASKA: We are not anywhere close to talking about attacking North Korea. We should shut up and stop it. We need to talk directly with North Korea. The sooner we do that, the sooner we're going to get this resolved, just like the president turned the corner on Iran. That's the way to figure this out, with our alleys, and especially allies in North Asia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MILES O'BRIEN: That was Senator Hagel on CNN's "Late Edition" yesterday. "Late Edition" can been Sunday's 11:00 a.m. Eastern all around the world.
Coming up on the program, the benevolence of Warren Buffett. That's benevolence with a capital "b," as in billions.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Yes, capital everything, actually.
MILES O'BRIEN: We'll look at why the world's second richest man is giving away the lion's share of his fortune to the charity run by the only guy who's even richer.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: And speaking of money, we've got a list of the world's priciest cities. We'll tell you which one's on top. It's cost of living. So for people who live there.
MILES O'BRIEN: OK. We've got that straight, Chad, if you're listening.
And later, we're going to take you to pit crew u where Nascar pros are teaching lessons that could help build a better airline. We'll explain ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Happening this morning. A suicide bomber kills a top military officer in Sri Lanka. Officials blame the Tamil Tiger rebels for the attack. There's been no official claim, though, of responsibility.
East Timor's embattled prime minister is stepping down after weeks of protests. The unrest started in March when 600 soldiers were fired. The gang warfare that followed killed at least 30 people and forced 150,000 others to flee.
The U.S. Senate debating a constitutional ban on flag-burning. Critics say it would infringe on the First Amendment right to free speech. A vote's expected later this week.
And we're awaiting a major ruling from the Supreme Court this morning. At issue is whether the president can keep detainees locked up without formal charges.
Opening statements are set to begin in Andrea Yates' retrial. Her 2002 conviction for killing her children was overturned due to some flawed testimony. Yates is, again, pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.
MILES O'BRIEN: Well, you can't take it with you. And that goes for even the likes of Warren Buffett. The world's second richest man is shedding some financial bulk, a significant amount, and most of it is going to the world's richest man. Go figure. CNN's Allan Chernoff is at the New York Public Library where Buffet is holding a town hall meeting this morning to talk about all this. It's really not going to the world's richest man, it's going to a foundation he runs. Now, the question people are wondering here is, if you're this rich, you want to give it to your kids, right? There's still quite a few billions left for the Buffet kids, right?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a little money left for them. You could say that. But, you know, how would they feel this morning? Perhaps they feel, gosh, I should have mowed the lawn when dad wanted me to. But at least the money is going to be going to a very good cause.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF, (voice over): Mega billionaire Warren Buffett says he'll give away much of the fortune he spent a lifetime accumulating. In an exclusive interview with "Fortune" magazine, the 75-year-old Buffet says he'll gradually give away 85 percent of his wealth to five charitable foundations. Buffet is worth nearly $44 billion. His gifts in stock would be worth $37 billion at today's value.
The lion's share of that will go to the world's largest philanthropic organization run by Buffet's close friends, Bill and Melinda Gates. The Gates Foundation focuses mainly on world health issues like AIDS and malaria, and improving education in the U.S. In a statement Sunday, Bill and Melinda Gates said, "we are awed by our friend Warren Buffett's decision to use his fortune to address the world's most challenging inequities. We have a tremendous opportunity to make a positive difference in peoples lives." BILL GATES: The change we're announcing today is not a retirement. It's a reordering of my priorities.
CHERNOFF: Buffet's pledge comes on the heels of Gates' announcement two weeks ago that he'll give up running Microsoft day- to-day to concentrate on his charitable efforts.
ANDREW KILPATRICK, BUFFETT'S BIOGRAPHER: And what this is really is a merger of Buffet and Gates. It's not a business deal, but it's two great minds joining together for charity. And he says he's really not giving it to Bill Gates, he's giving it through Bill Gates to give to the causes that that foundation deems the best.
CHERNOFF: Warren Buffett built his fortune as chairman and guiding genius of the Berkshire Hathaway investment company based in Omaha, Nebraska. For years, Buffet said his fortune would go to good causes after his death. But when his wife, Susan, died two years ago, his started to rethink his charitable timetable. Buffet's children control the foundations getting the rest of the stock. Twenty years ago he famously remarked about the dangers of leaving too much to the kids, saying a very rich person should leave his kids enough money to do anything, but not so much they'll do nothing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHERNOFF: Buffet believes it's neither right nor rational to flood his kids with money. Miles, a lot of kids wouldn't be too happy with that.
MILES O'BRIEN: I think they're still going to be set for life pretty well.
The interesting thing is this friendship between Gates and Buffet. I guess when you're in that league, you're all pals in some respects. But they don't have a lot in common, at least from a business perspective. Buffet is famously not a tech guy.
CHERNOFF: It's incredible, Miles, the irony here because Warren Buffett famously, as you mentioned, does not invest in technology stocks. And here he is handing his money over to the greatest technology businessman in the history of the world. But, of course, it's all for a wonderful charitable cause. Buffet, essentially, is saying, if you wanted to play a high stakes game of golf, who would you want playing for you? Tiger Woods. So in this -- in fact, basically Bill Gates is Tiger Woods when it comes to charitable contributions.
MILES O'BRIEN: Now the New York Public Library, didn't Andrew Carnegie give all the money for the New York Public Library? I believe he's one of the big ones.
CHERNOFF: Yes. Oh, absolutely. Carnegie's name is all over this place. Oh, yes.
MILES O'BRIEN: So it would be like Carnegie giving all his money to melon (ph) or something. It's an interesting thing. All right, Mr. Chernoff, thank you very much for your time. We will check in with you later.
We'll have more "Money Talk" coming up as well. We've got the list of the world's most expensive cities. Not that Warren Buffett would really make a dent in his fortune. You might be surprised which one tops the list, however.
And later, a look at how lessons learned from Nascar could help build a better airline. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: We're checking the CNN gas gauge this morning. Take a look at what we're paying at the pump. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded . . .
MILES O'BRIEN: New graphic. I like that.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: We try to mix it up a little bit.
MILES O'BRIEN: Very nice.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: $2.89. The numbers aren't changing, though.
MILES O'BRIEN: Oh.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: It dropped nearly 5 cents over the past two weeks. Well, that changed a little bit. Also down 8 cents since early May. Prices still more than 75 cents higher than it was this time last year. I don't even notice a difference at the pump. I've got to tell you, it still costs a fortune to fill up.
ANDY SERWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I paid $3.30 this weekend. I mean, I found the most expensive gas station in the world, I think.
MILES O'BRIEN: Not just a time anymore, it's a price for gas. $3.30.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Andy Serwer here to "Mind Your Business." Talking about Warren Buffett. I think this is a really interesting move on his part.
SERWER: It really is. And there's so many parts to this story. So many interesting things to talk about here. The relationship between Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, for instance, is fascinating. They became friends in 1991. And Gates said that it was Buffet who inspired him to be philanthropic in the first place. Gates really hadn't considered it on the scale that he is doing it today.
Then Gates inspired Buffet to give away his money while he was alive. And that's the big story now, that Warren Buffett has decided to do his philanthropy while he is still living.
You could talk to Buffet over the past couple of years, when I had conversations with Buffet, you could almost hear that he was beginning to change his mind about doing this after he had passed away. You could see that he was seeing what Bill Gates was doing and how important this was and the idea of allocating money to problem areas and doing it yourself rather than doing it through someone you didn't even know and not having the personal responsibility of actually making the choices of where your philanthropy was going. That was powerful.
MILES O'BRIEN: Yes, and nice to see the impact of what that money can do.
SERWER: Exactly.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: I would think that it would also be very personally rewarding. I mean after you've -- you've made a gagillion (ph) dollars. You know, $40 billion, $39 billion, $26 billion, you know, it's not going to make a difference except to these countries where really a little bit of money can go a very long way when it comes to vaccinations and things like that.
SERWER: I think that's right. And I think that this really could have an impact on the way other rich people go about their business. Looking to do something while they're still alive. Looking to make a difference now rather than setting up some sort of philanthropic endeavor that does its work after this person's deceased.
The other thing is to tap into an existing philanthropy that's doing good, rather than setting up your own charity. That's what Buffet did. He said why should I re-invent the wheel here? My good friend, Bill Gates, is doing great stuff. I don't need to set up a whole competing charity with billions of dollars to do the same kind of stuff that he's doing.
MILES O'BRIEN: All right. A guy who makes that kind of money has got to have a healthy ego. This doesn't seem like an ego play, because it's not, after all, the Buffet Foundation, unless they change the name. Maybe they will announce that. I don't know.
SERWER: I think Warren Buffett is famous for not having an ego. He had ego, not having an ego to change his mind. That's important. A lot of people can't change their mind like this. You know, I made a decision, I'm not going to change it. He's smart enough to say, you know what, I'm changing. My life changed, things change, I'm going to change.
MILES O'BRIEN: All right.
All right, Andy Serwer, a question for you. Most expensive city in the world, cost of living standard, what would it be?
SERWER: I would say it's a city in Europe, in Russia maybe.
MILES O'BRIEN: Oh, you already know the answer. All right. It is, in fact, the cost of living survey is in, and the most expensive city in the world is Moscow. Moscow.
SERWER: You wouldn't think that, right? MILES O'BRIEN: You know, an apartment in Moscow will run you $3,000 on average. Coffee, $5.27 for one coffee. And a paper is $2.40.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Regular coffee?
MILES O'BRIEN: Yes.
SERWER: That's crazy.
MILES O'BRIEN: And burger and fries, $3.87.
SERWER: Drink vodka instead, perhaps.
MILES O'BRIEN: Apparently the vodka is still very inexpensive in (INAUDIBLE).
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Wow.
SERWER: Seoul's surprising too.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: What did you say, $5 something for a cup of coffee?
MILES O'BRIEN: Yes.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: $5.27.
MILES O'BRIEN: Yes.
Seoul, South Korea, is right up there. I wouldn't have guessed that one. And then New York, where we feel the pain every day . . .
SERWER: We're pikers (ph).
MILES O'BRIEN: Tenth. I mean, come on, New York, let's get going here.
SERWER: The place is cheap.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: What's San Francisco, 34th?
MILES O'BRIEN: San Francisco's 34th.
By the way, one of the cheaper cities is Buenos Aires.
SERWER: Yes.
MILES O'BRIEN: Where that same cup of coffee, $1.47, and a Happy Meal for $2.77 there.
SERWER: This is before Americans, no doubt, right?
MILES O'BRIEN: The problem is (INAUDIBLE).
SERWER: The dollar -- based on the dollar, right? I mean . . . MILES O'BRIEN: No, this is just cost of living for people who are there.
SERWER: OK.
MILES O'BRIEN: Two hundred items in a basket and there you have it.
OK, back with more on Buffet and other things later.
SERWER: Good.
MILES O'BRIEN: Top stories are straight ahead.
A pretty frightening trend to tell you about. So-called community guns. Kind of a time share for guns or something. They stash them outside and that way any criminal who needs one can use them, but it makes it very difficult to trace the thing back to the crook. We'll tell you how authorities are trying to crack down.
And check out this tape. What you're seeing right there is a casino shooting. Right there. Deadly shooting. We'll tell you about the hunt for the gunman who is seen there jumping up and down firing his weapon, still ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL)
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