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American Morning
Are We Less Safe?; Pope & Muslims Meet; Clinton and al Qaeda; Back in the Dome
Aired September 25, 2006 - 08:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Washington buzzing over a leaked intelligence report. Is our safety now at greater risk, or is the hubbub just election year maneuvering?
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Mending fences. Pope Benedict meets with Muslim leaders. Will it do any good?
M. O'BRIEN: Flood warnings remain this morning in parts of Arkansas and Kentucky after a weekend of deadly rains.
S. O'BRIEN: And talk about an extreme makeover. The Louisiana Superdome, spruced up, ready for the Saints to come marching in.
All ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.
M. O'BRIEN: Good morning to you. I'm Miles O'Brien.
S. O'BRIEN: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.
The White House on the offensive this morning after a classified report has been leaked. The report from 16 intelligence agencies says the war in Iraq is making us less safe at home.
Is that true?
CNN's Kelli arena is live from Washington this morning.
Hey, Kelli. Good morning.
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
You know, officials say that this report is a very comprehensive look at the global terror threat. Now, the part of the report which, as you said, remains classified, that's being talked about, obviously has to do with Iraq. Now, in essence, it focuses on three things: that the Iraq war is fueling radicalism, that it has become the primary training ground for the next generation of terrorists, and then one of the concerns is what those terrorists do when they leave Iraq and then return to their home countries or go somewhere else.
Now, I've been told that this report doesn't specifically address the likelihood of another attack on U.S. soil, but one of the recurrent themes in the report, according to officials, is that the radical movement is self-generating, that there's no longer a connection to what I call al Qaeda central, or any other terrorist group, that while terrorists are inspired by al Qaeda and others they don't necessarily have to belong to the organization. And that's something that we've spoken about quite frequently.
The report also focuses on the importance of the Internet in that movement, in helping to train and spread ideology -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Kelli Arena for us this morning. She's reporting from Washington.
Thanks, Kelli -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: The White House says what's leaked so far is not reflective of the entire report.
CNN's Kathleen Koch joining us live from the White House with more on that side of the aisle there.
Good morning, Kathleen.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
Certainly the White House is insisting that what leaked out to newspapers over the weekend was only excerpts, and since it is a classified report it's important to point out that at this point it's highly unlikely that members (ph), at least to the public at large, will ever get a look at the report in its entirety. Certainly those excerpts that were leaked do seem to contradict statements that the president has made in speeches in recent weeks, that since 9/11 that Americans are safer, that the United States is winning the war on terror.
The nation's top intelligence official who approved this report does say, though, it's very important not to take it out of context. In a statement released by John Negroponte, the director of National Intelligence, he warned that any news report that includes "... only a small handful of those judgments distorts the broad strategic framework the NIE is assessing this case. In this case, trends in global terrorism."
He goes on to say, "The estimate highlights the importance of the outcome in Iraq on the future of global jihadism, judging that should the Iraqi people prevail in establishing a stable political and security environment, the jihadists will be perceived to have failed and fewer jihadists will leave Iraq determined to carry on the fight elsewhere."
Now, still, Democrats have seized on the report as proof that the Iraq war is a failure and that Americans are less safe than they were before 9/11. Now, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi saying that "President Bush should read the intelligence carefully before giving another misleading speech about progress in the war on terrorism."
Back to you
M. O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch at the White House.
Thank you -- Soledad. S. O'BRIEN: To Iraq now to see how the intelligence report is being viewed in the war zone. CNN's Michael Ware is live for us in Baghdad.
Michael, good morning.
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, the content of this report are not in themselves stunning or surprising. The fact that al Qaeda has become stronger here, the fact that the war in Iraq has fueled and inspired Islamic militants across the world is no great revelation.
In fact, this was clearly seen here on the ground way back in 2004, which, coincidentally, is the time when this report was first written. Essentially, what the top 16 intelligence agencies are telling President Bush here is that the very thing the president says he set out to defeat here in Iraq he has fueled and inflamed.
This is the vision of Osama bin Laden and the late Abu Musab al- Zarqawi fulfilled. They were trying to show jihadis a model that they could build upon, McDonald's terrorism, franchise terrorism. Think globally, act locally.
That was set to inspire. This is what we are seeing. And now we know this is what the president is being told.
The question is, why is it released now? Why has it been leaked? Ths is a sign of the chafing between the military on the ground fighting a war with one arm behind its back and the intelligence agencies, now the friction between them with what is being said in D.C. about a very different picture that's being painted than the realities here on the ground -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Michael Ware for us in Baghdad.
Michael, thanks.
Throughout the day we're going to be taking an in-depth look at how the war in Iraq is affecting the greater war on terror.
You'll want to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most t reliable news about your security.
The CNN "Political Ticker" makes its debut. In fact, it's just been on about 35 minutes. The daily news service is at CNN.com. We're going to give readers an insider's perspective on the day's political stories, especially important as we head into the crucial midterm elections and as we prepare for the presidential contest in 2008.
Be sure to check it out. It's at CNN.com/ticker -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: In Baghdad, more disruptions at the trial of Saddam Hussein. For the second time in a week, the chief judge in Hussein's genocide trial ordered him taken from the courtroom. The judge was talking to two of the other defendants in the case when Hussein began talking. The judge didn't like it, kicked him out.
The pope's still trying to undo the damage he did with those remarks perceived as anti-Muslim. Just a short time ago he held an extraordinary meeting with diplomats from Muslim countries.
Did it help diffuse the anger?
AMERICAN MORNING'S Delia Gallagher live in Rome with more.
Hello, Delia.
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN FAITH AND VALUES CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Miles, from a very rainy Rome, where the pope gave a relatively brief, very diplomatic speech today, saying that he was profoundly convinced that in today's world situation, Christians and Muslims must work together to help overcome violence.
Let's take a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POPE BENEDICT XVI (through translator): We are in great need of an authentic dialogue between religions and between cultures capable of assisting us in a spirit of fruitful cooperation to overcome all the tensions together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALLAGHER: Interestingly, Miles, he did not go back into the question of his apology. He said, "We all know the circumstances under which we were brought here today. I've had occasion to remark on that in the past." And he didn't go in -- any further into that question.
He did bring up the legacy of John Paul II twice, saying that the prior pope was able to build this trust between Christians and Muslims, one which Pope Benedict hopes to continue. And he also spoke about religious freedom around the world, which is something that the Vatican is very concerned about, the ability for Christians and people of all religions to be able to worship freely -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Delia, I'm just curious, through all of this, the pope has just never, in a very simple, clear way apologized, has he?
GALLAGHER: No, his apology was an apology for the reaction, he said, to what he claims was misunderstood. It does leave open the question of what were -- what were the intentions of his remarks, to sort of, you know, elucidate those remarks a little bit more. Interestingly, Italian press reports are citing the Muslim Brotherhood representative from them in Egypt saying that he is not happy with the fact that the pope has not sort of directly apologized, taken back those remarks.
So, I think you will still see here a little bit of tension between some of those representatives in the Muslim community. However, the Iraqi ambassador to the Vatican told us just after the meeting that he was happy with the fact that they were invited to come to see the pope, to listen to what he said, even though they themselves did not have a chance to speak -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Delia Gallagher in Rome.
Thank you -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Happening "In America" this morning, in East St. Louis, Illinois, police say a woman has confessed to drowning three children, then stuffing them in a washer and a dryer. Tiffany Hall is already charged in the death of the children's mother. Her name is Jimella Tunstall.
She's also suspected of cutting a fetus from Tunstall's womb. Hall's going to be in court today to be advised of the charges she faces.
A trial begins today in that terrible bus fire that killed 23 nursing home residents who were trying to escape from Hurricane Rita last year. Remember that story? Well, the owner of the bus company is accused of conspiring to falsify driver time records and failing to inspect his buses.
Residents in Lexington, Kentucky, are trying to get their lives back in order today after major flooding over the weekend. The water is now receding. At least eight people were killed and six others linked -- six other deaths were linked to the flooding. Severe weather is blamed for the deaths of four other people in Arkansas and in Illinois.
And in southern California, firefighters are gaining ground on the so-called Day Fire along the L.A.-Ventura county line. Now, calmer winds are helping. They are allowing planes like -- look at this shot. That's an amazing picture.
This is a DC-10. It's dropping fire retardant over that fire. But the Day Fire has burned more than 127,000 acres and it is only 40 percent contained.
Seattle-based ST Produce is now the third company in the nation to recall salads that might include E. coli-tainted spinach. The salads were distributed to stores in Washington State and Oregon and Idaho and Montana. So far, more than 170 people have been sickened and one person is confirmed dead because of tainted spinach.
Time for the forecast. Chad's got that. He's at the CNN Center.
Hey, Chad. Good morning again.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Soledad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Did you see former president Clinton below a gasket on FOX over the weekend? He was asked if his White House did enough to try to stop Osama bin Laden. Coming up, we are going to fact-check his response with a former 9/11 commissioner.
And are you ready for some football? They sure are in New Orleans, where they love the Saints as much as beignets and good music. The latest milestone in New Orleans' recovery ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Former president Bill Clinton delivered a fiery blast to his critics who portray his administration as weak on terror. The president -- former president spoke to FOX News on Sunday and said he regrets not killing Osama bin Laden, but he insisted that he tried.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I worked hard to try to kill him. I authorized the CIA to kill him. We contracted with people to kill him.
I got closer to killing him than anybody's gotten since. And if I were still president, we'd have more than 20,000 troops there trying to kill him.
Now, I've never criticized President Bush, and I don't think this is useful. But you know we do have a government that thinks Afghanistan is only one-seventh as important as Iraq. And you ask me about terror and al Qaeda with that sort of -- sort of dismissive thing, when all you have to do is read Richard Clarke's book to look at what we did in a comprehensive, systematic way to try to protect the country against terror?
And you've got that little smirk on your face and you think you're so clever. But I had responsibility for trying to protect this country. I tried and I failed to get bin Laden. I regret it. But I did try.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: What did Mr. Clinton tell the 9/11 Commission about his administration's pursuit of bin Laden and al Qaeda?
Richard Ben-Veniste is a former 9/11 commissioner. He's in Washington, D.C.
It's nice to see you again. Thanks for talking with us.
RICHARD BEN-VENISTE, FMR. 9/11 COMMISSIONER: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: In that interview, you heard Chris Wallace quote the 9/11 Commission, saying that essentially -- I'm going to sort of paraphrase it -- but that the 9/11 Commission found that the president took the threat seriously, President Clinton, but not seriously enough to -- what he'd need to confront an enemy of the first or second or third-degree magnitude.
Did the 9/11 Commission then sort of conclude that a Democrat or Republican was primarily responsible for not getting bin Laden?
BEN-VENISTE: What we did was set out the facts, Soledad. We didn't reach those kinds of conclusions because we would not have gotten unanimity on that. But we expected the American people -- millions of them have read our report -- and the press to extrapolate from the facts that we found some judgments about who did what and when and who could have done what.
And so I think the president was pretty exercised about the hypocrisy involved in attacking him and his administration for not doing enough when, in fact, the 9/11 Commission report sets forth in considerable detail the attempts that were made to kill bin Laden prior to Clinton leaving office.
S. O'BRIEN: President Clinton said he was the closest to killing bin Laden of anybody. Is that true or not true?
BEN-VENISTE: Well, that's quite true. He authorized the launching of a cruise missile attack on the Afghanistan training grounds, missing bin Laden by reportedly two hours. And he was attacked roundly by the same right wing people who were claiming that he was obsessed with bin Laden at the time and diverting attention from what they found to be the appropriate focus of American attention, the Monica Lewinsky affair.
S. O'BRIEN: Did the 9/11 Commission, in fact, find that the administration, the Clinton administration's attention was diverted?
BEN-VENISTE: In fact, we found that the opposite. That despite the fact that he knew he would take political heat, he went ahead with the CIA recommendation and authorized the launching of that lethal attack.
S. O'BRIEN: The president -- President Clinton, that is -- called the 9/11 committee findings a political document. What do you think he meant by that? And do you think that's a fair assessment of your work?
BEN-VENISTE: Well, I think he was probably referring to the fact that we put aside our partisan differences in order to reach unanimity and, therefore, did not draw conclusions about who was more responsible or less responsible for the failure to protect the American public. So, we set the facts out without drawing those conclusions, and I guess from a small pea political standpoint that assessment is probably right.
But we expected people to look at the facts, look at what happened after the Cole, why there was no response by the Clinton administration, which wasn't advised by CIA that it was an al Qaeda- sponsored attack until after the election of 2000. And why the Bush administration did not take any action to respond to the Cole following January after the president was briefed by CIA director Tenet on al Qaeda's responsibility for the Cole attack. S. O'BRIEN: When you listen to that entire interview with Chris Wallace, the president is furious, absolutely furious, I mean, raging at some point. And he doesn't quite say, but he certainly implies that there is this right wing conspiracy, this conservative and very concerted strategy to blame him for 9/11.
Do you think that's a fair assessment?
BEN-VENISTE: Well, if we look at what happened after this ABC docudrama which was said to be based on the 9/11 Commission's report, was sort of traded around the Internet, and the right-wingers were gloating over the statements in there that would prove to be incorrect -- indeed, blatantly false -- about the Clinton administration. And I think that is the context in which he approached these questions.
So, yes, I think, unfortunately, there has been an attempt to politicize this issue in the run-up to this midterm election, and I think the president wanted to set the record straight. I don't know if he was furious, but he was certainly animated in discussing this.
S. O'BRIEN: All right. You read it as animated, I read it as furious.
You are one of the Democratic members of the 9/11 Commission, the bipartisan commission. Do you expect that some of the commission members will stand forward and correct some of the mistakes on the record, do you think?
BEN-VENISTE: Well, I think we will respond as we have in the past, and as we did with respect to the ABC made-for-television movie, where the facts are blatantly misstated. I think the 9/11 Commission report, for those who wish to know the facts, it's available for everyone to read. All of these facts are set forth in great detail in our 9/11 Commission report.
S. O'BRIEN: Richard Ben-Veniste joining us this morning. He's a former 9/11 commissioner.
Nice to see you, sir. Thanks for talking with us.
BEN-VENISTE: Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up, a huge milestone in New Orleans' recovery.
SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Roesgen, live in the Superdome. And whoever wins this game tonight, you will see why it's a win for New Orleans when AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: A beautiful day in New Orleans. A big milestone on the road to recovery for the Crescent City.
Tonight, the Saints play their first game in the Superdome since it became a desperate shelter during Hurricane Katrina.
Our CNN Gulf Coast Correspondent Susan Roesgen is there on the field, not in pads, but, you know, if you were called upon you could do it, right?
ROESGEN: Hey, listen, I'm wearing my black and gold, Miles. Come on, the Saints' colors. I am into this game here.
You know, the Superdome is such a symbol of New Orleans that even if the rest of the city is still struggling, getting the Superdome fixed up was a top priority.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice over): The repairs have gone on for more than a year, and almost complete overhaul, from the top of the roof, to the gold lettering in the end zone. The dome is almost like new
DOUG THORNTON, SUPERDOME MANAGER: And it's hard for me to believe. You know, sometimes I come in here late at night by myself and I look around, and I just can't -- you know, I just can't believe what it looked like before.
ROESGEN: Both during and after Hurricane Katrina, the Superdome became a shelter for nearly 30,000 people. They never dreamed the power would go out and they'd be stuck in a place without lights, air- conditioning, or functioning toilets, with rain pouring down through holes in the roof.
THORNTON: It was a 50-foot gash that was created over here at one point in time. It was about a four foot by 50-foot hole. And the metal was just vibrating against the skin of the building. And it just created this enormous echo.
ROESGEN: For Superdome manager Doug Thornton, it was a nightmare, and it could have gotten worse. The numbers on this wall show how close floodwater got to the generator, the only thing that saved the last little bit of emergency power.
Now, a year later, with $185 million in repairs and improvements still ongoing, the Superdome is a stadium again, not a shelter.
THORNTON: It's really a very proud moment, I think, for all of us. And I'm very proud to be a New Orleanian. We certainly didn't want Katrina to be the last chapter in the dome's colorful history.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: Now, about that game tonight, Miles, the Saints are playing their arch rivals, the Atlanta Falcons. Both teams are 2-0 going into this game. I've got to tell you, I don't even know what a first and 10 means, but I'm going to go out on a limb here, Miles. Do you want to make a bet with me?
I'm going to say it's going to be Saints 21, Falcons 13. I don't even know if that's statistically possible, but that's my bet, OK? M. O'BRIEN: Yes, it's possible.
S. O'BRIEN: That's my kind of gal.
M. O'BRIEN: It's possible. I think the only score you can't have is 1, right? So that is possible.
ROESGEN: All right. All right. Go, Saints.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. I'll tell you what, I'll take that bet, because I'm kind of a Falcons guy.
ROESGEN: OK.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. All right.
ROESGEN: Oh, boo. Not today, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: No. No.
S. O'BRIEN: Not today.
M. O'BRIEN: You've got to root for the Saints.
S. O'BRIEN: Absolutely.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Well, we wish you well there. And yes, that's good. The black and gold looks good on you.
For more about the transformation of the Superdome, you can catch Susan's in-depth piece about the dome's comeback running all day on our Web site, cnn.com/pipeline -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, a new intel report says the Iraq war has increased the threat of terrorism. Why is it being leaked now when it was finished five months ago? We'll take a look at that.
And in case you haven't noticed, gas prices are dropping, fast. We'll tell you why some people think there's a conspiracy behind that.
Those stories, much more ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: We're sorry about that, but you know what it sounds like, sort of at this point.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, because you just did the imitation.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Anyway, I'm Miles O'Brien. We are glad you are with us. Carol Costello is here with a look at some headlines. Hello, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, Miles, and good morning to all of you.
Some new ammunition in the debate over the war in Iraq. A leaked government intelligence report says the war in Iraq is making it harder to win the global war on terror, and has made America less safe. Democrats are seizing on the report, just 43 days before the midterm congressional elections.
The Associated Press reporting this morning the government will partially lift that ban restricting liquids on airplanes. You knew this was coming. A Homeland Security official sells the A.P. air passengers will soon be allowed to bring liquids they buy in secure areas of airports on board the plane. Other liquids like lotion and lip gloss will reportedly be allowed on too, but only after screening.
Just outside of Rome right now, Pope Benedict is meeting with ambassadors from Muslim countries. It's the latest effort to patch up relations after the pope's controversial speech earlier this month. In it, he quoted a 14th-century emperor who called Islam evil.
In the United Kingdom, finance minister Gordon Brown is staking a claim to be the next prime minister. During a speech at the Labor Party's annual meeting, Brown said he would keep the party firmly in the political center if chosen to replace Tony Blair. Blair is stepping down within the next year after members of the Labor Party revolted earlier this month.
No survivors from a helicopter crash in eastern Nepal. The chopper was carrying 24 people when it went down over the mountains on Saturday. Many on board were American conservationists.
At Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Red Cross officials will meet with 14 terror detainees transferred out of the secret CIA prisons. Among the 14 detainees, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the 9/11 attacks.
If you have filled up your gas tank recently -- and I bet you have -- you have probably noticed a trend: lower prices. Gas prices down 24 cents over the past two weeks. The Lundberg Survey average now, $2.42 per gallon on regular self-serve. So, Chad, break out the SUV.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much, Chad.
Former President Clinton was in rare form yesterday with an angry outburst in an interview on Fox. Fox News host Chris Wallace asked Clinton if his White House did enough to try to track down Osama bin Laden. The president says he regrets not killing bin Laden, but he insists he tried.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But at least I tried. That's the difference in me and some, including all of the right-wingers who are attacking me now. They ridiculed me for trying. They had eight months to try. They did not try. I tried. So, I tried and failed. When I failed, I left a comprehensive anti- terror strategy and the best guy in the country, Dick Clarke, who got demoted.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: Clinton accused Wallace of a conservative hit job and he asked Wallace if he had asked Bush administration officials similar questions.
And more questions this morning about how the current White House is waging the war on terror. A classified report from 16 U.S. intelligence agencies says the Iraq war is fueling Islamic fundamentalists and creating more of a terrorist threat to Americans. Democrats wasting no time using that ammunition, as you might as you suspect.
CNN senior -- excuse me -- CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley joining us live from Washington.
Probably easier for you to say this morning, Candy. Good to have you with us. We're going to hear a different -- I guess this will ratchet the debate up in a different way, won't it?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It does, because it comes internally from this administration's intelligence communities, so it ratchets it up. It's not exactly new news, and I also wanted to show you something that I thought was really interesting.
I went back and looked at our polling numbers, and I found this in early August. The question was, do you think the war in Iraq makes us safer or less safe? And 37 percent of people said it made us more safe, but 55 percent of Americans said the war in Iraq has not made us any safer.
So this will not come as news, apparently, to a majority of Americans, but it does come as political ammunition for Democrats as they try to take over sort of the national security mantel, which has, historically, belonged to Republicans.
M. O'BRIEN: Talk about what the former president's motivations might have been in this case. Is he looking toward his historical legacy here, or was he trying to just rally the troops or both?
CROWLEY: Well, I'm sure he wanted to get something off his chest. It certainly looked -- it did not look staged. He certainly looked angry. But it does have both those effects that you mentioned.
First of all, this -- all former presidents are worried about their legacy. More than 2,700 people died on 9/11. No president wants anyone accusing him of having not been strong enough and not tried to get rid of bin Laden.
Then, too, there's nobody in the Democratic Party who is more listened to and who is more popular than Bill Clinton. And Democrats have been trying for several months to kind of grab the microphone and say, we can be stronger on national security. We can be smarter on national security.
Democrats have complained that they don't have a microphone as loud as the president's. Always true. But nonetheless, along comes the former president. He's in a forum which Democrats complain is conservative and the president -- former president takes on conservatives.
So this really does -- after all, we've been talking about it all morning. This really does help the Democrats in giving voice and a popular voice to what they've been saying for a couple of months, which is we can do national security better.
M. O'BRIEN: You know, it's interesting, though, because Clinton by -- people on both sides of the aisle would say he's a political maestro. What he says and how he says it doesn't necessarily translate to the Democratic rank and file, does it?
CROWLEY: Well, no. And, you know, as I say, he's a good national voice, but it's -- these are all separate elections. It is up to the Democrats to try to retrieve this mantel from what they say were the muscular days of JFK and, of course, Roosevelt and Truman. So, Democrats have been trying to kind of find terra firma on this and convince voters.
This has always been a Republican strength. It is why you see the president out there, week after week bringing this up. Now, Democrats have made inroads. Whether it's enough to truly swing in large measure this election, I guess we'll wait for, what, 43 days.
M. O'BRIEN: We will, and you will be there every step of the way, of course.
CROWLEY: Absolutely.
M. O'BRIEN: Candy Crowley, who is a member of the best political team in television. Thanks very much.
And CNN Political Ticker makes its debut this morning. The daily news service on CNN.com will give readers insiders' perspective on the day's political stories. If you are a political junkie, you are going to want to check this out. As we head into the crucial midterm election, prepare for the presidential contest in 2008, this is the place to be. You can find it at CNN.com/ticker -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: We are getting word now that the tour of duty is going to be extended for the 1st Armored Division. They are now deployed in the Ramadi area. Let's get right to Barbara Starr. She's at the Pentagon for us with the very latest on this, this news just in.
Barbara, what do we know?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well Soledad, CNN has learned that a brigade of the 1st Armored Division, as you say, operating in the Ramadi area of western Iraq, is now receiving word that its tour of duty will be extended.
Pentagon officials confirming this, saying that family members are now being notified where the unit is based, in Germany. The 1st A.D. will be extended by several weeks. No one saying exactly how long.
What is the reason? Well, the 3rd Infantry Division in Fort Stewart, Georgia, was scheduled to come in right behind them, but the 3rd Infantry Division hasn't had its 12 months back at home. And the Army wants to give those soldiers the full 12 months back at home with their families.
All of this now somewhat being generated by the news last week that the U.S. Central Command and the top military brass has made the decision to keep 145,000 U.S. troops in Iraq through the spring.
So now these adjustments to that troop rotation schedule, the 3rd I.D. in Georgia, in order to spend 12 months with their families before they have to go back to Iraq, well, the 1st A.D., the Armored Division, will stay in place in the Ramadi area so those people can get time with their families. Families of the 1st A.D., Armored Division, are now being notified.
And, Soledad, this is the second time now that the Armored Division has had to extend its tour of duty in Iraq beyond the typical 12 months boots on the ground. They had to do it back in 2004. This is not the news that the Army wanted to give any of its military families, but the announcement, we are told, will officially come later today -- Soledad.
S.O'BRIEN: Certainly not the news any of those family members wanted to hear.
Do we know how long they're going to be extended for at this point, Barbara?
STARR: What military sources are telling us, perhaps just a month, perhaps six weeks. It's going to be a matter of getting that third infantry division that comes in behind them, getting them fully trained up, having them have their 12 months back with their families.
What the Army feels very strongly about is that it is most important to let soldiers have that time back home to rest, recuperate, train, get themselves back ready to go, back into combat. There is a very strong feeling that a soldier in combat needs at least 12 months out of combat to, you know, regenerate themselves. So that's the priority, and that's why the First Armored Division will be staying at least several extra weeks -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us. Barbara, thanks. Ahead this morning, is there a conspiracy behind those drops we are seeing in gas prices? We'll tell you why some bloggers say there's something very fishy going on. That's ahead. Stay with us.
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S. O'BRIEN: Here's a little good news for you. Gas is about 50 cents cheaper today than it was a month ago. It's supposed to go even lower still as we head into the election. The timing of the price drop has got conspiracy theorists on the Internet buzzing.
AMERICAN MORNING's Ali Velshi has our story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cheaper gas, finally. But why? Well, the legendary summer driving season is over. No hurricanes have damaged Gulf Coast rigs and refineries. Things are calmer between Israel and Lebanon, and Iran, well, at least we're not at war with Iran.
But with a little more than six weeks to the midterm elections, the blogs are buzzing with other theories. Are lower gas prices a Republican plot? This blogger wonders if Republicans are trying to soften voters who have spent the last year angry about high gas prices.
"I predict it will work, by the way. The Republicans will retain control of Congress."
"Those Republicans need all the help they can get, and Big Oil is doing the best they can to assist."
"I would conclude that falling gas prices is just another example of manipulation of the public by Bush and company."
DOUG HENWOOD, "THE LEFT BUSINESS OBSERVER": Certainly there is a strong statistical relation between Bush's approval rating and the price of gas.
9/11 approval spike...
VELSHI: Doug Henwood, editor of the liberal newsletter "The Left Business Observer," has charted President Bush's popularity against gas prices. He calls the correlation he found uncanny, but he stopped short of calling it a conspiracy.
HENWOOD: More than three quarters of the movement in bush's approval rating can be explained by movements in the price of gas.
VELSHI: But it's not just the blogs. A recent "USA Today"/Gallup poll asked voter, do you think the bush administration has deliberately manipulated the price of gasoline so that it would decrease before this fall's election? Forty-two percent said yes. Big Oil's P.R. operation calls the whole idea preposterous. RAYOLA DOUGHER, AMERICAN PETROLEUM INST.: I think if politicians had -- were really if charge of oil prices, I think they would be low. They'd probably be free right now. And the very notion that we have some sort of command and control oil economy is silly.
VELSHI: Back in July, both crude oil and gasoline hit their highest recorded prices. Gas was averaging about $3 a gallon. By mid-September, oil had dropped about $15 a barrel. So gas should have dropped about 45 cents a gallon. It actually dropped 50 cents a gallon, and it's dropped more since then.
Could President Bush have had anything to do with plummeting gas prices?
We asked Professor Akshay Rao who studies pricing strategy.
DR. AKSHAY RAO, UNIV. OF MINNESOTA: Surely if you picked up the phone and made, you know, five or 10 strategic phone calls, he might be able to influence prices to some degree. But, you know, I think that's a fairly far-fetched theory.
VELSHI: What's more conceivable, according to Rao, is that the energy industry cut prices without any prompting from Washington. That's because they're worried that if the Democrats win, they'll follow up on threats to tax the energy industry more heavily. We put that idea to big oil's P.R. people.
DOUGHER: It can't be done. They couldn't do it if they wanted to do it.
VELSHI (on camera): The government says one more thing. Remember back to spring when much of the country started to use ethanol as an additive for summer gasoline? Well, that caused gas prices to spike. And now that we've switched to winter-blend gasoline, we won't have that added cost until next spring again.
Ali Velshi, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: "CNN NEWSROOM" just moments away. Tony Harris is at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead.
Hello, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And, Miles, good morning to you. Stay informed all morning in the "CNN NEWSROOM." Pope Benedict extending a hand to Muslim leaders today. The talk designed to diffuse tensions he ignited with his remarks about Islam.
All right, young people, MySpace and space book, sure, they're fun, but don't overexpose yourself; you're future employer may be looking over your soldier.
And the Louisiana Superdome, the Saints return, the excitement and the symbolism after a national tragedy. Join Heidi Collins and me in the "NEWSROOM." We get started at the top of the hour, right here on CNN -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, we'll see you then, Tony. Thank you very much.
Up next, Andy, "Minding Your Business." Hello, Andy.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Miles, No. 1, is the world ready for Spongebob Pink Pants? And, No. 2, is the world ready for Cocaine, the energy drink? for real on both counts. We'll discuss coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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M. O'BRIEN: So, what do cocaine, SpongeBob and cigarettes all have in common? They're a part of Andy Serwer's next business report. Hello, Andy.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
SERWER: A federal judge has granted class action status to tens of millions of light cigarette smokers for a potential $200 billion lawsuit against tobacco companies. Obviously, these are people who have smoked light cigarettes and have gotten sick or say they have, and so they're allowed to form a class action suit.
M. O'BRIEN: And they were marketed as more healthy alternatives.
SERWER: Right healthier, exactly.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
SERWER: A study out from the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse says 93 million -- 93,754,333 to be precise -- million Americans have been the victims of identity theft. You know, all those ...
M. O'BRIEN: That's a third of all Americans.
SERWER: A third of all Americans.
M. O'BRIEN: Wow.
SERWER: Kind of like "Seasons of Love," 525,000, 600 minutes -- anyway, it's a little different from that. It's a staggering, staggering number.
SpongeBob PinkPants, you wanted to know about that?
M. O'BRIEN: I sure do.
SERWER: And I'm going to tell you all about that.
M. O'BRIEN: I sure do want to know all about SpongeBob PinkPants.
SERWER: Well, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and to commemorate that, there is going to be a SpongeBob PinkPants -- pink being the color of -- Beanie Baby coming up. And we have a picture of him. What do you like, pink or yellow?
M. O'BRIEN: I'm kind of a traditionalist.
SERWER: That's what I thought, Miles, a traditionalist.
M. O'BRIEN: And, Andy, what color will Patrick be if -- because he already is pink.
SERWER: I bet you he's going to be yellow.
M. O'BRIEN: Is he going to go yellow?
SERWER: You bet. They're going to switch the thing up.
M. O'BRIEN: No way.
S. O'BRIEN: He'll be pink.
SERWER: They're going to keep him pink.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that's my guess.
M. O'BRIEN: Everybody will be pink.
SERWER: I think you're right, Soledad.
M. O'BRIEN: So what would James Dobson say about this? What would he say?
SERWER: We're taking on the big issues. He's going to -- well, we're not even going to go there.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's not go there.
SERWER: And finally, are you ready for an energy drink called Cocaine?
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, yes.
SERWER: It's out there.
SERWER: Yes, you are. Well, there's a Cocaine energy drink made by Redux Beverages, served mostly right now in clubs in Las Vegas and New York. It has no cocaine in it. It has no cocaine in it, but it does have caffeine to the amount of three-and-a-half cups of coffee, and soon it will be available online. Obviously, anti-drug advocates are up in arms about this ...
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
SERWER: ...as you can imagine.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, kind of -- it's like giving out those candy cigarettes that they used to do.
SERWER: Well, what about giving out candy joints? That's what this would be sort of akin to.
M. O'BRIEN: Candy joints. All right, Andy.
SERWER: Yes, crazy stuff.
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much.
SERWER: Thank you, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, if you have got kids and they're out of control, and you don't know what to do, you don't know where to turn, guess what? There is some professional help. Carol Costello has our report.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: There certainly is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHARON PIETERS, FOUNDER, CHILD MINDED: Lily (ph), please go upstairs and get ready. What are you standing around for? I've already told you twice. That's enough.
COSTELLO (voice-over): It may seem like a typical morning for Sharon Pieters.
PIETERS: Girls, the sooner you're done dressed, the sooner you can watch television.
COSTELLO: But this isn't her family. Sharon is a parent coach ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's a sleeper.
COSTELLO: ...hired by Monica and Al, who preferred we only use their first names. They're hoping she'll help them with their three young children.
AL, HIRED A PARENT COACH: We couldn't even go on vacation. Every time we'd go on vacation to the grandparents' house ...
(CROSSTALK)
AL: ...their grandparents ...
MONICA, HIRED A PARENT COACH: They're rude.
AL: At the end of the vacation, instead of come back next year, don't come back.
MONICA: Right.
PIETERS: That means you're going to have to sleep in your big girl bed.
COSTELLO: More and more are turning to professionals for guidance, whether it's a sleeping issue.
AL: The sleeping arrangements have never been better. We actually sleep -- I haven't slept in my bed for three years. I didn't know what it was like.
COSTELLO: Or bad manners.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you say?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Sharon's Role is reminiscent of TV shows like "Nanny 911" and "Super Nanny."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She just goes ballistic.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stop it!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My word!
COSTELLO: Flying around the country to work with families who can afford her expertise, but not everyone can pay her fee of $1,200 a day. Others turn to online help, which can cost as little as $30 a month. Some critics say that parent coaches lack uniform national standards and training.
DR. ALAN KAZDIN, CHMN. YALE CHILD STUDY CENTER: There's no area of education called parent coaching in which someone can take courses for it that are known to make a difference in parenting.
COSTELLO: Yet Kazdin understands the recent surge in demand for parent coaches.
KAZDIN: The parents' lives are much more stressful and frustrating, so they need as much help as they want just to ease the burden of child rearing.
PIETERS: Perfect. Everyone's ready.
KAZDIN: Think of it as family outsourcing.
COSTELLO: Monica says she need the outside help as her situation was getting out of control.
MONICA: The three girls are so close in age that it's really, really overwhelming for me.
AL: Yes.
PIETERS: Hang on -- how many TVs do we have in this house?
COSTELLO: Sharon, a nanny by trade, spent a week with Monica and Al, training them to discipline their children. PIETERS: Children are born into this world innocent, little human beings. If a child is taught that you can interrupt while mommy's on the phone, that's what they believe is normal behavior, and that's what they're going to constantly do. But when your child is very young, you need to train them.
COSTELLO: With their new parental training, the typical morning is finally smooth sailing.
MONICA: There's the bus. Daddy!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I love you!
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: If the cost of this modern-day Mary Poppins thing is freaking you out, Sharon is on duty 24/7 and no, she doesn't just train the kids but, as you heard, she trains the parents, too.
O'BRIEN: Those parents. Good. I hope they got some training. Less on the kids, more on them. Come on.
COSTELLO: Yes, they did get training. They were having trouble because -- actually, the biggest problem was they allowed the kids to sleep in bed with them and the kids refused to go to their own room.
O'BRIEN: Lock them in. I've got to tell you.
COSTELLO: Lock them in.
O'BRIEN: Put a lock on the door. Absolutely. It works.
COSTELLO: Well, they needed Sharon to come in and do that.
O'BRIEN: Three nights of that, they will never do it again.
COSTELLO: Wow. And she'll do it for free.
O'BRIEN: No, $400 a night. What does she charge? I'll do it for half. Thanks, Carol.
Coming up at the top of the hour, the Southern California wildfires, things are finally looking up for firefighters there. The winds and the temperatures are down. We'll update you on what they're doing there this morning right after this.
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S. O'BRIEN: Guess what? we are out of time.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, out of time. Just flew by.
S. O'BRIEN: Like four hours.
M. O'BRIEN: Just like that. "CNN NEWSROOM" with Tony Harris and Heidi Collins begins right now. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
