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American Morning
Colorado School Shooting; Bush on Capitol Hill; Bickering Allies; Increasing Violence in Iraq
Aired September 28, 2006 - 08:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A small Colorado town mourns a teenager killed after a gunman takes several students hostage.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A story every parent should hear. If your child starts acting differently, you may need to take some drastic action. You'll meet a dad who did just that.
The warning signs of cancer. We'll have some tips for you to help you live a cancer-free life.
S. O'BRIEN: And look at this guy. He says he's a lazy dork and he's proud of it. He built a huge following on YouTube. Can he now turn his Internet fame into a Vegas career?
And this...
(MUSIC)
S. O'BRIEN: That's Natalie Cole returning to her roots. New music and the celebration of rhythm and blues is all on this AMERICAN MORNING.
M. O'BRIEN: She looks unforgettable there.
Good morning to you. I'm Mile O'Brien.
S. O'BRIEN: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.
A Colorado community is just stunned today by a school hostage situation and is mourning the loss of a teenager. Also asking why today.
The gunman, still unidentified this morning, took six students hostage, killed one, and then turned the gun on himself as a police SWAT team moved in to end the standoff. The victim, 16-year-old Emily Keyes. Police say she was shot in the head.
Jim Hooley of our affiliate KMGH is in Bailey, Colorado, with some details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM HOOLEY, REPORTER, KMGH: Still a lot of questions to be answered here in Bailey, Colorado, today. Still no identification of a gunman that entered this school just before noontime yesterday. And still, police here are trying to figure out why he did what he did. They will hold a press conference later on today and we should have a little bit of a better idea. But here's what happened, according to the Park County Sheriff's Department.
They say the gunman went into a English classroom yesterday on the second floor of this high school and took at least six female hostages at about 11:40 in the morning. He told school officials that he had a bomb in his backpack. He also fired several shots inside the classroom at that time.
Deputies began talking to the suspect through a door within minutes of the shots being fired. And through the afternoon, throughout the afternoon, the gunman released several of his hostages. He released four of them, and he was using them to tell negotiators of his demands.
Negotiators knew they had to do something, the gunman put a deadline of about 4:00 on his demands. And at that point in time, deputies and the SWAT team members here from Jefferson County, Colorado, stormed the classroom, classroom 206.
The gunman opened fire. He hit a young girl, 16-year-old Emily Keyes, in the head. She died in the hospital a little bit later on. And then the gunman turned the gun on himself.
Today the school is closed. It is being treated as a crime scene. And still, many questions here in Bailey, Colorado.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Sad, sad story there.
That was Jim Hooley of our affiliate KMGH reporting for us -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: President Bush now on Capitol Hill for a meeting with Senate Republicans. The lawmakers today hope to pass a bill dealing with terror interrogation and trials for terror detainees before they head home to begin campaigning for reelection.
Andrea Koppel with the latest from Capitol Hill.
Good morning, Andrea.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
Well, for the second time in a month, the commander in chief is going to be swapping out his hat to become the cheerleader in chief to try to buck up morale among the 55 Republicans over in the Senate, 15 of whom are up for re-election. He and his party have been taking a lot of hits from Democrats this week on that national intelligence estimate which they say further bolsters their claim that the war in Iraq has made the U.S. less rather than more safe, as Republicans maintain. At the same time, the president comes up here with a big victory under his belt. Over in the House, they passed that detainee bill. Expected to pass here in the Senate today, but in the loss column, one of the other key pieces of anti-terror legislation Republicans had hoped to get through, and that has to do with the surveillance, warrantless wiretapping program.
In addition, Miles, the border security bill -- this is the sort of -- the lesser version, if you will, of the immigration reform they hoped to get past -- in question right now. And as you well know, Republicans hoping to get as much of this national security legislation through so they can use that on the campaign trail -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Andrea Koppel on Capitol Hill.
Thank you very much.
An icy dinner meeting at the White House last night. The presidents of Pakistan and Afghanistan wouldn't even shake hands in a public appearance before they dined with President Bush. The two have been quarrelling over the war on terrorism.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The body language said it all: stiff and distant. President Bush standing between them like a referee.
The presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan shook Mr. Bush's hand, but not each other's. The two leaders have been bickering very publicly while visiting the United States, pulled together at the White House by President Bush for dinner. Mr. Bush was frank about the need for cooperation.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've got a lot of challenges facing us. All of us must protect our countries. But at the same time, we all must work to make the world a more hopeful place.
MALVEAUX: At the very least, Mr. Bush hopes these two leaders will help him find Osama bin Laden, who is believed to be hiding along their border, and that they continue to support his war on terror.
Pakistan's Pervez Musharraf and Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai each visited the White House separately this past week. Each accusing the other in interviews with CNN's Wolf Blitzer of not doing enough to fight the terrorists thriving in their countries.
PRES. HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: Afghanistan is doing all it can, together with international community. We are losing people every day.
MALVEAUX: Afghanistan's Karzai accuses Musharraf of providing a safe haven for the Taliban, allowing them to cross the Pakistan border to conduct daily raids. But Musharraf says Karzai's at fault, refusing to take responsibility.
PRES. PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTAN: But he's purposely denying, turning a blind eye like an ostrich. He's finding it more convenient to throw the blame on Pakistan.
MALVEAUX: Musharraf says the problem is his neighbor is weak.
MUSHARRAF: Pakistan is a very, very stable country. We have a strong government. We have a strong military. We have a strong intelligence system. And everything in Afghanistan has broken down.
MALVEAUX: Karzai responded to Musharraf's comments, saying he was aware of his country's problems.
KARZAI: We are a state that was weakened by years of destruction and war and interference.
MALVEAUX: But he says Musharraf is making conditions worse by supporting breeding grounds in Pakistan for would-be terrorists and by cutting a cease-fire deal with tribal leaders who have close ties to the Taliban.
MUSHARRAF: This is the political strategy which is the right direction.
MALVEAUX (on camera): The White House says it was a very productive meeting but no breakthroughs. The two leaders did address each other directly, clearing the air, and they ended the evening with a handshake.
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Increasing violence in Iraq with each day. Since the beginning of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, dozens of bodies were found, and the U.S. military is saying that murder and execution are now the leading cause of death in Baghdad.
CNN's Arwa Damon live for us in Baghdad this morning.
Good morning, Arwa.
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
And not only sectarian violence the leading cause of death, it is also the number one fear on everyone's mind, especially in the capital of Baghdad. The number of those that are victims of sectarian violence is only increasing day by day by day.
And when you speak with Iraqis, they say that that is what they fear the most. Many of them can picture the horrors, of course, many of these victims have gone through. Meanwhile, in Baghdad, attacks continued throughout the morning. In a span of just six hours there were at least eight explosions. And that left a total of about eight Iraqis dead and at least 50 of them wounded.
The latest attack happened at about 1:30 in the afternoon. It was a central main Baghdad road. A car bomb detonated there.
Then when Iraqi police responded to that attack, a roadside bomb detonated. At least four Iraqis were killed there, at least 38 wounded. And this just shows you one of the strategies that the insurgency is using here. They will set off explosives to try to lure Iraqi security forces and the U.S. military to a site, and then there's that second explosion -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, it seems to be a strategy, frankly, that is working.
You have heard about these new poll numbers. Overall, in general, Iraqis want U.S. troops out. Are you surprised at all by that?
DAMON: Well, that does seem to be the sentiment. And I do have to say that over the course of time that I have been here, for about three and a half years now, ever since this war began, the opinions have gone up and down. And actually, we were just out on the streets earlier today and had a chance to speak with some Iraqis, and most of them also said they, too, wanted the U.S. forces out and that they were blaming them for a lot of the violence, they were blaming them for fueling the sectarian violence.
But again, a few months ago there was a lot more of the sentiment of, well, we need the U.S. forces here to help control the sectarian violence. So, it is an opinion that, you know, sometimes is positive, sometimes is negative. Whether the fact that right now it does seem that the majority of Iraqis do want U.S. forces out, whether that sentiment is actually going to last for a while or perhaps there will be more renewed support for U.S. forces, that does remain to be seen
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. I guess we'll watch it.
Arwa Damon for us in Baghdad.
Arwa, thanks -- Miles.
Oh, I should mention, for more insight on the war on Iraq, this weekend CNN is going to take a look at Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Why is he so feared? Why does he think -- doesn't think the war in Iraq was a mistake?
You want to watch "Rumsfeld: Man of War" on CNN Saturday and Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's check the forecast now. Chad Myers at the CNN Center with that.
Hello, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Miles.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Chad. Thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: And, in fact, for firefighters who are north of Los Angeles it's seeming like an endless day. More than 4,000 of them now are battling that Day Fire in Ventura County. A hundred and sixty thousand acres burned. The fire, which began on Labor Day, some people say might not be over until Christmas.
CNN's Andy Flick has more for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDY FLICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Just as California fire officials seem cautiously optimistic they've slain the massive Day wildfire, it hopped a fire perimeter in the Lockwood Valley section of Ventura County and regained momentum. Using bulldozers, water tankers and prop planes, nearly 4,000 firefighters are tackling the monster blaze.
JEANNE PINCHA-TULLEY, INCIDENT COMMANDER, U.S. FOREST SERVICE: This fire is wily. This one, it will lay dormant for a day or two or it will slow down for a day or two, and then it's off to the races again.
FLICK: Officials issued a precautionary evacuation order for 500 people as flames crept closer.
TODD BAILEY, LOCKWOOD VALLEY RESIDENT: You know, our family -- you know, we bought a house up here several years ago. We have lived up here for 10 years. And I just hope it's here when we get back.
LISA SCHOENBERG, FRAZIER PARK RESIDENT: So, I just -- you know, I was told to start packing stuff. So I'm starting to pack my car and I'm just hanging out, waiting to see what happens.
FLICK: Recommended evacuations are still in place, but luckily the fire shifted northwest away from homes. People are stopping at information posts set up by the forest service to find out where the fire is headed next.
Officials now say the fire could burn into December. It began Labor Bay, when someone was burning debris in a remote area. Thick smoke will hover over in the area for another month, prompting local health advisory.
I'm Andy Flick reporting from Atlanta
(END VIDEOTAPE) M. O'BRIEN: Coming up, should parents test their kids for drugs? We will meet one kid who is alive today, maybe thanks to a persistent father who saw the warning signs and took some drastic action.
And later, some new guidelines for preventing cancer. Plenty of exercise just one of the recommendations. We will have them for you.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: A lethal combination of drugs is what reportedly killed Anna Nicole Smith's son Daniel. That's according the private pathologist that Anna Nicole hired to conduct a second autopsy on her 20-year-old son. Daniel Smith died earlier this month in the Bahamas just three days after his mother gave birth to a baby girl.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. CYRIL WECHT, FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: He died tragically and I believe quite accidentally as a result of the a cumulative effect of three brain depressant drugs, methadone, which is a -- an analgesic, a painkiller, Zoloft, an antidepressant, and Lexapro, an antidepressant.
We knew about Lexapro, Larry, as you will recall, from the first battery of tests performed on a specimen submitted taken during resuscitation at Doctors Hospital. So that came as no surprise. Methadone and Zoloft come as a big surprise.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: That's Dr. Cyril Wecht talking with "LARRY KING LIVE."
Let's take you live to President Bush as he talks in the halls of Congress.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
BUSH: ... that will give us the tools necessary to protect the American people, and that's the Hamdan legislation. That's the legislation that will give us the capacity to be able to interrogate high-valued detainees and, at the same time, give us the capacity to try people who -- in our military tribunals.
In speaking to the Senate, I urged them to get this legislation to my desk as soon possible. Senator Frist and Senator McConnell committed to that end.
The American people need to know we're working together to win this war on terror. Our most important responsibility is to protect the American people from further attack. And we cannot be able to tell the American people we're doing our full job unless we have the tools necessary to do so. And this legislation passed in the House yesterday is a part of making sure that we do have the capacity to protect you. Our most solemn job is the security of this country. People shouldn't forget there is still an enemy out there that wants to do harm to the United States. And therefore, a lot of my discussion with the members of the Senate was to remind them of this solemn responsibility.
And so I look forward to you passing good legislation, Senators.
Thank you for having me. Appreciate your time.
S. O'BRIEN: President Bush not taking any questions, as you can see right there, but making some remarks to the reporters who are assembled in the halls of Congress. He just spent the morning talking to some of the GOP senators as they take a look at this bill about detainee legislation, how detainees would be treated.
That bill in front of the Senate. It's expected, in fact, it's going to pass. You heard the president say they need to hurry up and get that to his desk. As he mentioned, also, the House passed their version yesterday.
That's President Bush in the halls of Congress. Told you that was going to happen. A shot of it live.
There's a new weapon in the war on drugs, and that weapon is parents doing drug tests on their kids. Now, employers, of course, have been doing it for years. So have schools. But parents are now getting involved. And in some cases, it's making all the difference.
AMERICAN MORNING'S Alina Cho with more this morning.
Good morning.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
The difference between life and death, in some cases. And not everyone is for it. In fact, it's actually quite controversial. But we spent some time with one father who says there is no doubt in his mind drug testing saved his son's life.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHO (voice over): At 14, Ben Peterson was playing football and getting good grades. The kind of kid who stands out in a crowd. So when Ben started withdrawing from his family, his father took notice.
MIKE PETERSON, FATHER OF TEENAGER: And gee, he's not near as sweet as he was. And then he's a little less sweet than that, a little less sweet than that. Then he's out and out rude, and then he's telling me where to go.
CHO: It wasn't just a phase. Ben had been smoking marijuana almost every day and had even moved on to cocaine. His father, who had no clue what was happening, turned to his computer, typed in his son's symptoms, and says everything he saw pointed to drug abuse. So he ordered a home drug testing kit online. M. PETERSON: I explained to him, "I love you very much. I love you with all my heart, my mind and my soul. But I'm worried about you. I'm worried greatly about you."
BEN PETERSON, DRUG-TESTED BY PARENTS: He said, "Well, I may be crazy, but, you know, you haven't been right lately. And I just want to find out."
So, he gave me the drug test, and I failed pretty bad.
CHO: His father says at the time of the test there was enough cocaine in Ben's body to kill him. So dad took swift action, putting his son on 30-day lockdown. The first week was the worst. Ben suffered through painful withdrawals.
B. PETERSON: I felt dead to the world. I was constantly biting my fingernails.
CHO: The lockdown worked. In 30 days, Ben, now 16, was clean. And still is.
Some of his classmates are subject to random drug testing at school. A 2002 Supreme Court ruling allowed public schools to drug- test kids involved in extracurricular activities. At Ben's high school, that means about half the student body is tested every year.
MICHAEL MURPHY, SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT: We're providing students with an opportunity to say no and have a reason.
CHO: Reaction among parents over testing has been mixed, and the ACLU is staunchly against it.
DAN VIETS, ACLU: It's a degrading and very humiliating procedure for someone who's done nothing to even suggest they have broken the law.
CHO: For the Petersons, doing their own home drug-testing was a life saver. Ben's grades are back up and it's helped his confidence in unimaginable ways.
B. PETERSON: Now I actually know that I'm better than that. Before, you know, I didn't think of myself as much of anything, you know. Just some junkie that -- headed nowhere in life. But now that I'm off of that, you know, the sky is the limit. I can -- I can do anything.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Ben's father continues to test his son randomly. Ben has agreed to that testing. And he also knows there's some pretty tough consequences.
The first positive test, his car is taken away for 30 days. The second positive test, guess what? The car goes away for good. And Ben's father says he will turn his son into authorities. Miles and Soledad, you know, these are some additional incentives, in addition to feeling better about himself to keep him clean.
S. O'BRIEN: Because he's a teenaged boy.
CHO: That's right. And it's working so far
S. O'BRIEN: How did it -- I mean, how did he -- how did it work when he went on the Internet? What did he search for and what did he look for? Did he write in "marijuana and cocaine," or did he not know?
CHO: No. I mean, he said he had no clue what was going on. Basically, he typed in the symptoms, you know, withdrawing, staying in his room, belligerent, that type of thing. And everything pointed to drug abuse. And so he basically got an education online.
He -- the Internet said, put your son on lockdown. That's what he did. It worked. Detox your kid after he suffers from withdrawals. That's what he did. It worked.
Listen, he says, you know, you may want to seek professional help, and maybe you should seek professional help. But it worked for him. He wanted to keep it private at the time. And so that's what he did.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, I think it would be difficult to do it on your own for a lot of people.
CHO: Right.
M. O'BRIEN: You have to make your own decision about that. It's just, as a parent, all those symptoms you could attribute to just being a teenager.
CHO: Sure.
M. O'BRIEN: So it's very difficult.
CHO: A phase. "I thought it was a phase, and then it got worse and worse and worse, and then I realized, hey, it's not a phase."
S. O'BRIEN: Wow. Good for him. I mean, really...
CHO: But he's on the right track.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, it's good to hear that one's turning out. I'm sure there's a lesson for a lot of parents.
CHO: There certainly is.
M. O'BRIEN: Pay attention to what those kids are doing.
CHO: That's right.
S. O'BRIEN: Thanks, Alina.
M. O'BRIEN: Alina Cho.
Coming up, new guidelines for preventing cancer. We will tell you the most important thing you can do to reduce your risk.
Plus, it's hard to argue with the evidence of global warming, but there's still one senator swimming against the tide, calling it all a hoax. We will tell you about his lonely fight.
And it's Thursday, which means it's time for Miles Cam.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles Cam.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
Alina, Thursday...
CHO: Miles Cam.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Thank you.
Crew?
S. O'BRIEN: Help us out, girl.
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: Miles Cam.
M. O'BRIEN: There we go. Everybody knows it's Miles Cam day.
E-mail me now, milescam@cnn.com. Watch the answers at cnn.com/pipeline, 10:30 Eastern.
AMERICAN MORNING back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: In this morning's "House Call," some new ways to beat cancer.
Here's Judy Fortin.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JUDY FORTIN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): X-ray technician Angie Christian is a five-year breast cancer survivor. After her diagnosis and treatment she was told that losing weight was one of the best ways to keep her cancer from returning.
ANGIE CHRISTIAN, BREAST CANCER SURVIVOR: I consider it somewhat of a risk factor. So I'm trying to knock the weight off. But it's a constant battle for me.
FORTIN: Oncologists stress that weight is key to preventing and fighting some cancers, so important that the American Cancer Society has revised its prevention recommendations and put healthy weight at the top of the list.
COLLEEN DOYLE, AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY: Watch your weight. That's the most important thing you can do if you don't smoke to reduce your risk of cancer.
FORTIN: Recent studies have shown that for most non-smokers, weight control can cut many cancer risks. According to the ACS, one third of the more than 500,000 cancer deaths each year are attributable to poor diet and no physical activity, about the same number of cancer cases caused by smoking
DR. ELMER HUERTA, WASHINGTON HOSP. CANCER CENTER: We know from a long time ago that colorectal cancer, stomach cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer are related to what you eat.
FORTIN: Along with healthy weight, the society recommends that you live an active life-style, consume a healthy diet full of vegetables and fruits that are loaded with antioxidants and limit your consumption of alcohol. The guidelines also say that the standard recommendation, 30 minutes of moderate exercise five days a week, works better if you take it up a notch, with activities like biking, running, or power walking
DOYLE: Unfortunately, there's no guarantee. You can do all those things and still get cancer. But the good news is, is that a lot of people think they don't have any control over their risk of cancer, and we're here to tell people that, absolutely, you do have some control.
FORTIN: A control that Angie Christian says may keep her healthy and cancer-free for many years.
Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: The new cancer guidelines also call for community efforts to make it easier for people to eat better and get the exercise they need -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, the evidence of global warming. Sometimes it seems overwhelming. But there's still one U.S. senator who says it's all a hoax. We'll take a look at his lonely battle this morning.
And you will meet the latest YouTube sensation. He's hot. A former prosecutor lets it all hang out online. Can he parlay his online fame into a career in Vegas?
We'll take a look.
And later in "AM Pop," singer Natalie Cole will join us live to talk about her new album. It's called "Leavin'," but it's really a return to her roots.
We're going to ask her all about that, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: The opening bell, just rang on Wall Street a couple minutes ago. The Dow Jones industrial average begins trading at 11,689, that nearly 20 points at Wednesday's close.
Welcome back everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. Thanks for being with us. In California they are taking some tough action aimed at stopping global warming, the state imposing a cap on greenhouse gases. In the U.S., politicians have been slow to recognize global warming as a problem and while that is changing, an influential skeptic remains.
M. O'BRIEN (voice-over): No question, there is a political climate change inside the Republican Party. Arnold Schwarzenegger in San Francisco announcing with great fanfare, a California law to curb emissions of greenhouse gases at the root of global warming.
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, (R) CALIFORNIA: California leads the way on one of the most important issues that are facing our time, which is the fight against global warming.
M. O'BRIEN: But some Republicans are fighting a different battle. Listen to the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment.
SEN. JAMES INHOFE, (R) CHMN., ENVIRONMENT CMTE.: I am going to speak today about the most media hyped environmental issue of all time and it's the word that gets everybody upset when you say it, and the phrase that many politicians are afraid to say, and that is global warming.
M. O'BRIEN: It's not new ground for Oklahoma's senior senator. Jim Inhofe has repeatedly called global warming a hoax. Despite a steady stream of stark evidence, melting ice caps, rising sea levels, the warmest temperatures in 12,000 years, the senator is not convinced.
INHOFE: During the past year, the American people have been served up an unprecedented parade of environmental alarmism by the media.
M. O'BRIEN: In a 45-minute speech on the Senate floor, he voiced skepticism over this graph called the hockey stick. Despite some flaws, most climate scientists consider it the best depiction of global warming. Inhofe says there's evidence that the Antarctic is actually cooling, even though most scientific findings suggest the contrary and point to the loss of major ice sheets and shelves. And he says the polar bears of the arctic are thriving, even though the world's two most influential wildlife protection agencies say they're veering toward endangered status. Inhofe is all but alone on Capitol Hill these days. Most Republicans believe the scientific jury is in.
REP. CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, (R) CONNECTICUT: We have seen too much documentation to know that the world is getting warmer. We know that the ice shelves are melting. And for him to say otherwise just is like putting a bag over his head and not seeing it.
M. O'BRIEN: Undaunted, Inhofe also took on Al Gore.
INHOFE: In May, our nation was exposed to perhaps one of the thickest science propaganda films of all time, former Vice President Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth."
M. O'BRIEN: Inhofe offers a 12-point indictment of Gore's documentary on climate change. He says the list might have been longer if he had actually seen the movie. Gore was just here with us, making the rounds after convincing British billionaire Richard Branson to invest as much as $3 billion to fight climate change.
AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT: If your child has a fever, you go to the doctor. It may be a sign that something's wrong. We've gone to the scientific community and they've said, yes, the planet has a fever. It's in trouble.
INHOFE: The American people know when their intelligence is being insulted. They know when they're being used and when they are being duped by the hysterical left.
M. O'BRIEN: Hysterical left, don't tell that to Arnold Schwarzenegger. The middle ground on climate change is shifting.
SHAYS: In the last few years, this administration isn't trying to be on both sides of the issue. They are clearly in the camp that said global warming is for real. They are clearly trying to deal with it.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: We should point out that in the recent five-year period, Senator Inhofe received more than $850,000 in campaign donations from the oil and gas industries, the leading contributor to his cause. Inhofe challenged the media to get this story straight in that speech, but when we asked for an interview with him, we were told he is just too busy to speak to us this week.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Chad, can hey, can I ask you a question?
CHAD MYERS: Yes ma'am.
S. O'BRIEN: Have you ever heard about lazy dork?
MYERS: Lazy dork.
S. O'BRIEN: Lazy dork. I'm not making this up.
MYERS: Is that a youtube thing?
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, this is the youtube guy, his name is actually Richard Stern, he's a former Dade County, Florida prosecutor. He has become this youtube.com sensation, millions of people visiting his site and we got a little taste of it here. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD STERN, "LAZYDORK," YOUTUBE.COM: Sure, I may have quit on my life, according to society. I may have stopped going to job interviews. I may have moved back in with my parents at the age of 29. But for what? I'll tell you for what. So I can keep making entertaining videos, so that you can have two minutes of happiness every single day.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Richard Stern joins us. Nice to see you. And I can't tell how much you are serious and how much you're kidding on that one because you did quit your job and you have been posting to wildly popular videos on youtube. When did you start posting on youtube?
STERN: Well the reason I started posting was when I first went on there with -- my girlfriend and I were looking to post one of our movie reviews that we did on lazydork.com and we found youtube. And then when I started browsing, the really popular people, they were all 15 and 14-year-old girls talking about what they had for lunch and their orthodontist. And they were getting half a million views and we immediately said, we cannot only do better we can do 10 million times better. So it was sort of a community service thing, we wanted to give back to the youtube community.
S. O'BRIEN: Community service slash competition is what you're talking about it sounds like to me. So how many viewers have you been getting? Are you beating the 14-year-old girls?
STERN: I'm not quite beating the 14-year-old girls. It's difficult because they get the little picture and who wants to look at this, right? But we're actually getting close. It's kind of like, I explain it like if Aerosmith makes a really big song and Weird Al covers it, if you like the Weird Al song it's not going to be as big as the Aerosmith, but if you're a cult liker, you're going to love it more and I'm Weird Al.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, I think I'm following your analogy there. You have had -- ok let's call it wild success. How do you make money on this venture? Do you make any money?
STERN: No, you don't actually. I'm down about $500 on the whole venture.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, that can't last -- it can't work like that. That's bad business.
M. O'BRIEN: Make it up in volume.
S. O'BRIEN: How do you pay the bills?
STERN: Well, I -- like you know, I was a prosecutor for three years and I loved that job, but I moved on. I quit the law and I'm going to go out to Las Vegas and I'm going to become a professional poker player so that's going to pay the bills from now on.
S. O'BRIEN: Ah, ok. Well let's talk about your days as a Dade County prosecutor.
STERN: Right.
S. O'BRIEN: When you were working as a prosecutor, did everybody know that you were posting to youtube or no?
STERN: Actually, Soledad, nobody knew that I was posting, absolutely nobody at my job because it wouldn't be becoming, I guess, of a prosecutor, somebody who holds such an important position in public life to go ahead and start posting stupid, silly videos on the internet.
S. O'BRIEN: Were you ever worried that the judge or -- a defendant was going to say, don't I know you from somewhere?
STERN: I was constantly afraid that a defense attorney or a judge or worst of all a defendant would stand up and be like, that guy posts videos on the internet because, believe me, there is no better way to lose credibility in front of a jury than to be outed by the defendant there in shackles, believe me.
S. O'BRIEN: Yeah, that would pretty much ruin your credibility wouldn't it?
STERN: No doubt about it.
S. O'BRIEN: After you quit your job then "The Miami Herald" did a piece on you and all about your posting. What was the reaction to that? Were people just shocked, I mean because no one knew in your office?
STERN: Somebody from my office described it as just wildfire, said that work stopped and people just couldn't believe it because they knew me as one person. And you know, although I was jovial at work, they saw these videos and it just blew their minds. So I got a lot of calls. Trust me, my cell phone did not stop ringing minute by minute for about two straight days. It was great.
S. O'BRIEN: Now you're going to have a new gig because obviously if you are losing money on the youtube thing, that's not a good, long- term plan. So, do you think this poker thing is going to work? What's -- where did this come from?
STERN: Well I have been playing poker all of my life. My father took my brother golfing and he took me to the horse track, which is, you know, that's the way we bonded. It was fun. So I have been playing poker since I was eight years old and I'm moving out to Las Vegas to try my hand at some cards. And hopefully it works, I'm going to give it my best shot. And if not, there's always the law to fall back on, right?
S. O'BRIEN: Yeah, so then you keep posting to youtube, right? STERN: It's a hobby. And you know $500 down is not so bad, it's not an expensive hobby. And I'm on CNN so I'm doing something right, right?
S. O'BRIEN: Exactly. Exactly.
STERN: I'm talking to you Soledad, that's the best day of my life.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh. I know we are out of time but let's not end the interview yet. It's just getting good for me. Richard Stern it's nice to see you. Good luck on the whole -- will you check back in with us, let us know how it goes and we'll check back in on you?
STERN: Listen, I will be on any time you guys want me. Are you kidding me? I am all yours.
S. O'BRIEN: It's a deal. Thanks.
STERN: Thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: Funny, he's a bit of a suck up too, isn't he?
S. O'BRIEN: He cracked me up yes, absolutely. I don't mind. You should suck up more like that, Miles. It wouldn't hurt you.
M. O'BRIEN: The best day of my life being here with you, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Thank you and I know you mean it.
Ahead this morning, singer Natalie Cole will join us live in the studio. She has a new album, it's called "Leavin" and takes her really back to her musical roots. She's going to join us, tell us all about that. Up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: In AM Pop this morning after nearly four years, Grammy winning singer Natalie Cole is out with some new material. It's a new album called "Leavin" and it really is a return to her R&B roots. Listen for a second.
Natalie Cole, we could listen to you forever. Nice to have you. Congratulations on the new album, it's terrific.
NATALIE COLE, "LEAVIN": Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: "Daydreaming" is a hit really already, which is great news. Why return to -- it's been quite a while since you have been doing songs like these. You usually do jazz.
COLE: Right, I've been doing the jazz for about -- between 10 and 15 years and I started to get a little antsy.
S. O'BRIEN: Like, can you pick up the pace a little. COLE: Yes, can we just move it along? So, it was fun. You know, to kind of revisit and music has changed so much, the industry has changed so much so it was a little different working with some new management and a new producer, new kind of producer.
S. O'BRIEN: Dallas Austin.
COLE: Dallas Austin, who is basically known for hip-hop.
S. O'BRIEN: Right.
COLE: And he was just absolutely great. Absolutely great. And we're just really excited. We found these great songs.
S. O'BRIEN: How did you pick them, because you cover a lot of songs like (INAUDIBLE) Fiona Apple, Isley Brothers. I was trying to figure out sort of what genre do you put this in and there's really not one?
COLE: No, you don't put it in any genre. I think the thing that makes them all stick together well is the arrangements and the fact that all the songs were done by three musicians and I do all the vocals. So, there's a real solidarity going through the record. It's really strong, but the songs well -- we started off with 500 songs and we had to just whittle it down.
S. O'BRIEN: How do you pick? I mean when you start off with 500 do you say to Dallas, oh, I hate this one, or you say oh, I love this one.
COLE: Kind of. Yeah. It really is. I mean you know -- as a matter of fact, we had a couple of Al Green songs that we were thinking of covering and we were going, I don't know because it's already so perfect. We didn't think we could really make it any better. So it's kind of a combination of what you really like, what excites you and what you think you can actually stretch.
S. O'BRIEN: You have said -- I read a quote where you said I'm always intentionally reinventing myself.
COLE: Absolutely.
S. O'BRIEN: Why is that?
COLE: I just --
S. O'BRIEN: Is that just sort of the way you have to do it in the music business today?
COLE: Yeah, I just get bored. That's my nature, my personality.
S. O'BRIEN: Jazz fans everywhere are rolling over as you say you get bored.
COLE: I know they're dying. But actually I think they might like this record as well because there are some great classic songs on here. But I -- I feel with the jazz world that even after "Unforgettable," there were so many artists that kind of followed that, did records with standards now, and, you know, the full orchestra. And not everybody is able to do that.
S. O'BRIEN: She says, na, na, na, na.
COLE: You know, so I just feel like you know what I need to just move on, and see if they can do this. You know.
S. O'BRIEN: Do you look back now and say -- and you have had a career that's had lots of highs and lots of lows, and a life, frankly --
COLE: Very interesting.
S. O'BRIEN: That's had lots of highs and lots of lows. Did you think, well 20 albums -- you have done 20 albums, does that feel like a lot? Does it feel, like, ooh girl, I have 20 more in me?
COLE: I tell you, it does feel more like I have 20 more in me.
S. O'BRIEN: Really?
COLE: Yeah. This doesn't feel like a 20th record to me at all. It feels like a new beginning. And I think that I feel that way almost about every record that I make.
S. O'BRIEN: Really?
COLE: That it's going to take me to different places, it's a new experience. I get to meet different kinds of people. And it's exciting. I like to be interesting.
S. O'BRIEN: It's what the creative process I guess is all about.
COLE: Absolutely.
S. O'BRIEN: Kind of going in new directions. It's a terrific album, it's gotten great reviews and it's a really, really interesting album. Thanks for coming in to talk to us about it.
COLE: Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: It's nice to see everyone, got to check in with you. Take care, Natalie Cole with us this morning. Miles?
M. O'BRIEN: She is just fabulous. All right. CNN "NEWSROOM" just a few moments away. Heidi Collins has to follow that act, sorry Heidi, you have to follow Natalie Cole.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: I know.
M. O'BRIEN: I can't help you, sorry.
COLLINS: I promise I won't sing a single solitary note.
M. O'BRIEN: Yeah, that's probably a good idea for both of us.
COLLINS: Probably, I think so. Meanwhile, coming up in the CNN "NEWSROOM" today, the sheriff's department trying to learn more about the Colorado school shooting this morning. We are watching for a live news conference coming up next hour.
Also a bill to prosecute terror suspects near approval in Congress. President Bush on Capitol Hill this morning to rally the troops.
And elderly drivers, one man on trial for killing with his car. A call for seniors to face tougher tests for drivers' licenses.
Join Tony Harris and me in the "NEWSROOM." We'll get started at the top of the hour, right here on CNN. Miles?
M. O'BRIEN: We'll be there for you. Thank you very much, Heidi Collins. And Andy Serwer will be here very shortly to tell us about -- well actually he's right here, right now. The stock market at very vaunted levels, tell us.
ANDY SERWER: Miles we're going to be checking in to see if the Dow has hit that new record.
Also, one of the hottest stocks of the year is a name we talk about all the time. It's a company in terrible shape. Can you guess what it is? We'll tell you coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Will the Dow get to a record today? Andy Serwer is "Minding your Business," good morning.
SERWER: Good morning. Sure, why not, Soledad? But we are so close. It really is. Let's go down to the big board and see where we are. The record is 11,722 and we're at 11,694 so about 28 points away. And of course, that could happen very easily, it could happen at any moment. And, you know, it really sort of snuck up on everyone. No one anticipated that the stock market was going to take off this fall. And as we have said a couple times on this program, big reason why that has happened is that energy prices have fallen and that's provided a boost to the economy. One stock that's really boosted the Dow, and a huge surprise here, is General Motors. In fact, there's some news this morning, Kirk Kerkorian, the billionaire investor who has agitated for change in this company is upping his stake, wants to up his stake another 12 million shares, he owns 56 million shares. That stock, Soledad, GM stock is up 71 percent year to date. Why is that? Because, you know, the company is still not doing well. Well, Wall Street is anticipating that the company will recover. I mean that is a huge, huge gain.
Another stock in focus this morning, Auto Zone, that stock is down because billionaire Eddie Lampert, hedge fund honcho, is leaving the board. He has helped that stock move up investors believe, and therefore, when he leaves, they are concerned the stock will go down. Now, one final story to tell you about this morning. Tickers, those are the short names that investors use for stocks, the shorthand names, what's in a name, what's in a ticker? Well apparently there's something to a ticker if it's a name that investors can pronounce. Harley-Davidson first of all, the motorcycle company, changed it's ticker from HDI, Harley Davidson, Inc. HOG. And the stock has done better in the stock market since then. Here are some other fun tickers, Genentech, the biotech company, DNA. Southwest Airlines, what's LUV, love field spelled l-o-v-e in Dallas, some inside stuff there. Boston Beer, SAM, what's their brand? Sam Adams. There's BUD for Anheuser-Busch. TAP for Molsen is another one. Sotheby's is BID, that's very cute.
S. O'BRIEN: Very clever.
SERWER: There's also EYE, E-Y-E for a lens company. PORK for a meat company. YUM for a restaurant company. And so on. So, kind of an interesting little tidbit there, I thought.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Andy, thank you.
SERWER: And I'm not predicting whether we are going to break it or not today.
S. O'BRIEN: Can we pop it up again? How close are we?
SERWER: We're going to look minute by minute here on CNN. Ok where are we? Remember 11,722 is the record. Hey, we're only 22 -- you have to watch CNN all day, I think, it's the only solution.
S. O'BRIEN: Exactly, we'll cover it live for you. Andy, thanks.
SERWER: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead at the top of the hour, Hewlett Packard called to Congress this morning to explain corporate spying.
Plus, older airline pilots may get more time in the cockpit, changing rules on mandatory retirement. Those stories and more on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Got this information just in to CNN, there is a new tape from the al Qaeda leader in Iraq, he is on this tape urging his followers to capture foreign hostages to try to free a Muslim cleric who is in the United States. The speaker is Abu Hamsa al Mujar and he's talking about the Egyptian cleric Omar Abdel Rahman, who was jailed over charges linked to the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. We are going to have more on this tape and its contents straight ahead on CNN this morning.
Moving on now, it is time almost for Miles cam. That's when we send it down to Miles to get an update on all the questions you would like to ask him. We have a couple for you Miles, are you ready?
M. O'BRIEN: I am ready.
S. O'BRIEN: Good. Ok, this is Heather in New York. Being a space enthusiast, she writes, and a pilot, how did you get into broadcasting? And part two of her question, I love the name -- hold on, buddy. I love the name Miles. Is it a family name? Did your parents just like it? Heather has lots of questions.
M. O'BRIEN: Good questions. First one, as far as the space enthusiast, pilot thing, really kind of was a separate track for me. I didn't see that necessarily as a career, but then again I didn't see journalism as a career either. I took sort of on a lark when I was at Georgetown, I took an internship at NBC nearby, WRC TV and kind of became fascinated with the whole thing. I was always on the school paper and stuff and became fascinated with it. And as -- as graduation approached, they offered me a job, midnight to 8:00, in those days you had to rip the wire copy off the machines and circulate it around before we had computers, so I was happy to have a job in 1981 when a lot of my classmates were having a hard time. Now, and finally, Miles, family name, I'm actually like the fifth Miles O'Brien. And I named my son Miles, because we're completely unoriginal.
S. O'BRIEN: The fifth and the best. All right Miles. We have your Pipeline with Miles is just ahead this morning starting at 10:30. Don't forget to send emails to him. That's it for AMERICAN MORNING. Let's get right to CNN "NEWSROOM" with Tony Harris and Heidi Collins. It begins right now.
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