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American Morning
North Korea Nuclear Test; Foley Fallout
Aired October 09, 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: We want to get right to our top story this morning, North Korea's underground nuclear bomb test. Our correspondents have been covering all the bases throughout the morning.
Sohn Jie-ae is live in Seoul, South Korea. Jaime FlorCruz is in Beijing. Richard Roth is watching the United Nations for us this morning. And Barbara Starr is live for us at the Pentagon.
We begin in Seoul, where the military is now on alert. And Sohn Jie-ae is there for us this morning.
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Soledad.
The South Korean president, Roh Moo-hyun, had a summit with the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe. It was supposed to be a fence- mending trip, but the topics turned very fast to North Korea. Both leaders considered the North Korea announcement that it had conducted a nuclear test a very serious issue, although the Japanese prime minister sounding a bit harsher than the South Korean president, Roh Moo-hyun, who called for close international cooperation to deal with the issue.
The South Korean overall reaction to this was varied. The South Korean stock market plummeted on the news. On the streets, we went to the streets to find out what normal South Koreans felt about all of this, and we heard a lot of disappointment and concern.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We have been supporting North Korea ever since the launch of the Sunshine Policy, but we haven't heard them saying thank you. And I think the global community has to stand strong as North Korea keeps threatening the world peace.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I can't say my friends at school are in panic, but they definitely seem nervous from this incident.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOHN: And in a press conference following the summit with the Japanese prime minister, South Korean president Roh Moo-hyun called for calm among the South Korean people and asked the South Korean people to go about their daily business -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Sohn Jie-ae for us this morning in Seoul, Korea. Thank you very much.
Let's get right to China. North Korea's main supplier of oil and food is now calling the nuclear test brazen.
CNN Beijing Bureau Chief Jaime FlorCruz joins us from the Chinese capital this morning.
Jaime, good morning.
JAIME FLORCRUZ, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning, Soledad.
Well, it seems that even the Chinese tolerance towards North Korea is wearing thin. The Chinese reacting quickly and harshly to the news that the North Koreans conducted its first nuclear test.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman basically saying that the North Koreans simply ignored the widespread opposition in the international community and brazenly conducted a nuclear test. The Chinese government, it said, is opposed to this.
The Chinese are North Korea's main ally. They also are the main suppliers of food and energy supplies. And so the Chinese are hoping that they could stop North Korea from proceeding with their nuclear test. Obviously, they failed.
The Chinese were given 20 minutes' notice by the North Koreans before it conducted the test. The Chinese promptly shared that information to the U.S., South Korea, and Japan, but none of them obviously were able to stop the test -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Jaime FlorCruz for us this morning in Beijing.
Thanks, Jaime -- Miles.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: So, how will the rest of the world react to North Korea's provocative test? The U.N. Security Council was already slated to meet this morning. Clearly the agenda has now changed.
United Nations Correspondent Richard Roth live from the U.N. with more reaction from there this morning.
Good morning, Richard.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN SR. U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
Well, actually, the agenda is not changing that much, just another item on the crisis agenda for the Security Council. The first part of the meeting will be about the nomination of South Korea's foreign minister, Ban Ki-Moon, who will be the next secretary-general of the U.N. Perhaps his nomination is the reason North Korea chose this day to detonate its device. Last week, North Korea said it would do this on the day that he passed a key vote inside the closed-door meeting. Then the council will discuss North Korea. The North Korean ambassador to the U.N. was stopped by reporters and camera crews, including those by CNN, just a few moments ago outside his country's mission to the United Nations. He praised his country's scientists and said that the test shows that his country has a nuclear deterrent to U.S. aggression.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAK GIL YON, NORTH KORAN AMB. TO U.N.: This will be a great contribution (ph) in maintaining and guaranteeing the peace and security in the Korean peninsula and the region. And I'm very much proud of our scientists and our researchers who have conducted such a very, very successful nuclear underground test.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROTH: No doubt there will be no similar praise coming from Security Council ambassadors who will meet in less than half an hour here -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Richard Roth at the United Nations.
Thank you very much.
At the Pentagon, they are crunching the numbers, trying to find out precisely what blew up underground in the northern part of northern Korea -- North Korea, that is. How big was the bomb, and what does that say about the size of North Korea's nuclear stockpile?
CNN's Barbara Starr live now from the Pentagon with more on that -- Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Miles, all of those key questions this morning for the United States military and the U.S. intelligence community. Let's started right at the beginning.
At the end of last week, the intelligence community had a mixed view about whether North Korea was actually ready to do this test. By all accounts, the final preparations had not been seen by satellites or overhead imagery, so the timing of this test was very much in dispute.
Now, of course, it apparently has happened. A seismic event that is still another issue for the community being assessed by intelligence analysts.
They do have a seismic reading, the equivalent of a 4.2 earthquake, but what does that really mean? Well, the key issue is very technical but very critical. They have to know everything they can about the geology in northeast North Korea, that rock, that geology that this test was set off in, because once they can really determine the type of rock, how hard it is, that will help them understand the magnitude and the yield underground. How much fissile material did North Korea use in this test and, of course, how much do they have left? Third question for the intelligence community this morning, proliferation. What -- why did North Korea do this? Was it strictly a political statement, or are they now ready to sell nuclear technology around the world to the highest bidder?
Will Iran, will al Qaeda come calling with a suitcase full of cash? Will North Korea itself try and pursue the high-tech effort to put a nuclear warhead now on top of one of its missiles -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, and that's the big question. How far away -- do we know how far away they would be from being able to put a weapon on top of a warhead, on a missile?
STARR: Well, you know, there's a lot of dispute in the military and intelligence scientific community about how tough a task that is. In order to do that, you have to be able to miniaturize the technology to make it small enough to put on the front end of a missile.
So let's take a look at North Korea's missiles. Let's simply recall on July 4th they fired off, tried to fire that Taepodong, the longer-range missile. It didn't work very well; it only flew for about 40 seconds. But, you know, these days with North Korea, nobody is taking any bets about what they might be up to in the next phase -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you very much.
Barbara Starr at the Pentagon -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: All right. Let's take you back now to the Capitol Hill page scandal. "The Washington Post" today is reporting that Arizona Republican Jim Kolbe, the only openly gay Republican in Congress, confronted Mark Foley about his e-mails to a page back in 2000, six years ago.
AMERICAN MORNING'S Bob Franken live for us in Washington, D.C.
Hey, Bob. Good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And that moves the timeline back quite a bit, and it gives more emphasis to the fact that somebody who had already moved it back is going to be participating in the investigations that got under way in earnest this week.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN (voice over): Kirk Fordham, a former congressional staffer, will testify under oath before the House Ethics Committee this week. His lawyer says Fordham will repeat his claim he spoke to House Speaker Dennis Hastert's chief of staff about a Foley problem in or before 2003. That was years before Hastert's office acknowledges it knew.
Speaker Hastert's chief of staff, Scott Palmer, insists what Kirk Fordham says did not happen. But various media reports quote another aide as backing the 2003 timeline.
REP. RAHM EMANUEL (D), ILLINOIS: And what happened since that time? Mark Foley runs for Congress in 2004, even while they know there was problems. 2005, he's appointed to head the Missing and Abused Children Caucus for the Congress.
FRANKEN: Fordham worked for Foley, then later Congressman Thomas Reynolds. Reynolds is chairman of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee and has released a mea culpa campaign ad for his role in all this.
REP. THOMAS REYNOLDS (R), NEW YORK: Looking back, more should have been done, and for that, I am sorry.
FRANKEN: As for Hastert's full schedule of campaign appearances with Republicans, it's not so full anymore. Among those withdrawing invitations is Ron Lewis of Kentucky.
REP. RON LEWIS (R), KENTUCKY: There is a cloud over the speaker, and until I can get some -- some facts and some information about what happened, then I'm going to -- to put everything on hold as far as working with the speaker on this campaign.
FRANKEN: President Bush is willing to be seen with the speaker. Hastert will appear with the president Thursday in Chicago. And White House Press Secretary/GOP campaigner Tony Snow will speak at a Hastert event next Saturday night.
Four weeks before the election, a "Newsweek" poll shows more than half, 52 percent, believe Hastert was trying to cover up. And 53 percent say they want Democrats to take over Congress.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN: And if that holds up and the Democrats do take over Congress, of course, Soledad, that would mean that the question of whether Hastert resigned as speaker would become a moot question.
S. O'BRIEN: And it's still a very big "if" isn't it?
All right. Bob Franken for us.
Thanks, Bob -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up on the program, more on North Korea's apparent nuclear test. Is it time for the White House to change its approach to Pyongyang? At least one top Republican says yes. We'll ask him why.
But first, Andy Serwer, "Minding Your Business".
ANDY SERWER, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "FORTUNE": Hey, Miles.
Virginia Senator George Allen has a new set of problems on his hands. These are of the stock option variety.
We'll get to that coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: All right. If you are headed out the door you may want to find out a what Chad has to say. He's at the weather center.
Hello, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Especially if you've got a three- day trip to the Northeast and you didn't expect it to be cold.
Good morning, Miles.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Congressman Curt Weldon has met with North Korea's lead negotiator over the nuclear issue more than any other American. So what does he think of North Korea's tests? What should the next steps be?
Congressman Weldon joins us this morning from Philadelphia.
Nice to see you, sir. Thank you for talking with us.
REP. CURT WELDON (R-PA), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: Great to be with you, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: We heard from North Korea that they were going to do the test, they went ahead, apparently, and did the test. Are you surprised?
WELDON: Well, no, I'm not surprised, but I'm saddened. We need to understand that the leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il, oftentimes has erratic behavior and does things that could, in fact, lead to war and aggression.
For that reason, while I support the president, we also have to have a second level, a second tier series of discussions with the north to try to find common ground. I'm convinced we can do that. And I support the president's actions today as he's calling for renewable -- or renewed tough sanctions against the north. But we've also got to have those dialogue and discussions taking place, and they should be done in a second or third tier level.
S. O'BRIEN: Well, as you know, the president has been very clear about how he wants to engage North Korea. I'm not telling you anything you don't already know, which is no concession, no talks until there's some kind of concessions, no bilateral talks whatsoever.
Do you think that that position has been a mistake?
WELDON: Well, as I have told the North Koreans on the visits that I've had with them -- and I have met with them seven times, twice inside Pyongyang -- they can have their bilateral discussions within the framework of the six-party talks. And I think that's taken place in the past. What we've got to do now is find a way to reach out to them. I was supposed to go back for a third trip in August. The White House asked me to hold off because they understood that they were going to test a missile in July, which they did. So, I postponed that trip.
S. O'BRIEN: Do you think it was a mistake -- I'm sorry for interrupting you there. I'm just curious. Do you think -- and I should mention, too, sir, that we're showing some of the photographs, the thousands of photographs, frankly, that you have taken in your time in North Korea.
Do you think it was a mistake to postpone that test -- that meeting?
WELDON: Well, you know, I don't think we should ever reward bad behavior, and I support the president 100 percent in that regard. But while we're tough with the North Koreans and we're steadfast in our position and cannot waiver, you have to have dialogue and discussion. If not at the level of our State Department, then you've got to have that second tier level discussion.
You've got to -- they've got to understand, because they don't really understand our system, they don't get out of North Korea and that region on a frequent basis, and they have got to understand, what does America really want? And that oftentimes doesn't come through TV networks or through third-party channels.
So it needs to be that second tier level of discussions that is ongoing, regardless of the actions they take, whether it's a nuclear test, as we've just seen, or whether it's the launch of a Taepodong missile. That doesn't mean we should appease them. And we should never appease them. We should never reward bad behavior, but we have to have discussions ongoing.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, but what's the next step? I mean, you hear lots of condemnation. China says we were resolutely opposed. The White House says they expect the Security Council will take immediate action. We heard from House Speaker Dennis Hastert, it's a desperate act of a criminal regime.
But realistically, what should the next step be?
WELDON: Well, they are all important steps, and I support them. We've got to continue as a world community, with China in the lead and Russia in the lead, to show that we're not going to tolerate this kind of behavior.
But, you know, North Korea has never responded in a positive way to these kinds of threats or these kinds of actions. They have always found a way to make their money. Oftentimes, it's through illegal practices.
We need to have that second level or second tier discussion taking place, and it should be taking place now. The president and the State Department ought to decide who they feel comfortable with, whether it's a nonprofit or an institute, or whether it's some former heads of state, and we ought to have that second tier dialogue also taking place so that we can fully understand what's going to get the North Koreans to help us resolve this crisis without further escalation of these kinds of hostile acts.
S. O'BRIEN: Sir, before I let you go, I'm going to ask you a question about the Mark Foley scandal. You are involved in a very, very tough congressional race. Some people said the toughest in the country right now. As the scandal drags on -- I mean, we have been talking about it and keep talking about it -- how much more difficult has this made your race, specifically your race?
WELDON: Well, it's not, because the investigations are all under way. I just wish the same level of scrutiny by Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats would have taken place when Gerry Studds actually had an ongoing affair with a male page who was 16 years old. They revered him and brought him back as a committee chair, and he was reelected three times. Or when Bill Clinton pardoned former congressman Mel Reynolds, who was involved with a 16-year-old in his campaign.
I mean, I do think there's a double standard here, but that does not justify any of the behavior of these e-mails. The investigations are under way, the proper actions and course will take place by the FBI. And I'm comfortable with that.
S. O'BRIEN: Congressman Curt Weldon from Pennsylvania.
Thanks for talking with us. Sure appreciate it.
WELDON: My pleasure. Thank you.
S. O'BRIEN: President Bush is going to talk about North Korea in just about 30 minutes, and CNN, of course, will carry his remarks live.
Coming up this morning, the Mark Foley scandal puts the spotlight on gays and lesbians on Capitol Hill. So what's it like to be gay and Republican? We'll talk to a former congressional staffer just ahead.
And Senator George Allen made headlines after he was accused of making racist comments. Now his trouble could continue. Andy will explain as he minds your business just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back.
In America this morning, church bells will ring across Lancaster County in Pennsylvania a little more than an hour from now in memory of the victims of last week's Amish schoolhouse shootings. The bells will ring at 10:45 a.m., the exact time that Charles Roberts started the siege and left five Amish schoolgirls dead. Five other girls were wounded.
In Massachusetts, Raymond Bashon (ph) is a lucky guy. He survived for four days on Wheat Thins and dew that he licked off his windshield. Here's what happened. The car goes off the road, it's a rural road. It plows through some trees and then is hidden by the brush. They guy fractures his leg, so he can't move. He doesn't have a cell phone. Finally, four days after his accident, a dog walker hearings his cries for help and he's rescued.
In Oregon, 11-year-old Devon Rivers (ph) -- you can see him right here -- in the hospital still, but playing catch, at least. For the past two years the little boy has been in a coma. Doctors can't explain why he became comatose. They tested him for everything from West Nile Virus to lead poisoning. Just as mysteriously, Devon (ph) snapped out of his coma and the family says it feels like a walk on water type of miracle.
In Texas, a hospital in Waco goes down in a big old cloud of dust. Take a look. There it goes.
Strategically placed -- thank you for the sound effects. Appreciate that.
Strategically placed explosives, and then just a few seconds is all it took to bring down the building. The site is being cleared...
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, but it's back up now. Look.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. That's so we can roll the tape again and show it one more time.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, it's the magic of videotape.
S. O'BRIEN: They should have gone in a little tighter, I think.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's listen.
S. O'BRIEN: ... to make way for apartment buildings.
M. O'BRIEN: There we go.
S. O'BRIEN: And there it goes.
M. O'BRIEN: Still no...
S. O'BRIEN: Kaboom. Much better this time around, Miles. Thank you.
SERWER: Well done.
M. O'BRIEN: The latest person caught in a stock options scandal isn't a CEO, he's a senator. And he's running for re-election. It should be kind of interesting.
Andy Serwer has that.
Hello, Andy.
SERWER: Hello, Miles. Virginia Senator George Allen has had a rocky reelection campaign. There have been allegations of racial slurs and questions about his mother's religious background. And now this -- AP investigation about stock option problems.
He did not, according to the AP, tell Congress about stock options he received at three high-tech companies at -- working in connection with them. This goes back to 1998 and 2001, when he worked as a lawyer and a businessman in the state of Virginia.
And the senator's people say that the reason he didn't report these stock options is because most of them expire worthless, except in the case of one batch of them which ended up benefiting him to the tune of $250,000. So, he did OK right there.
In any event, if you have these options, the congressional laws say you have to report them. And apparently he didn't. Another problem...
M. O'BRIEN: But he said -- he said if they're under water you don't have to? Not necessarily, no?
SERWER: He said that in good faith he didn't have to.
M. O'BRIEN: I see.
SERWER: He never said that he didn't have to.
M. O'BRIEN: I see.
SERWER: He said that, look, they're worthless, I didn't really -- did I really have to do this? Well, the law says you have to do it.
There are also -- these three high-tech companies did get government contracts as well, and there are questions about that. So, not exactly what Senator Allen needed at this point in his campaign because of these other problems, as we suggested here.
Switching gears here a little bit, want to talk about gas prices. The average price of unleaded gasoline in the United States dropped 14 cents over the past two weeks to $2.28 a gallon, national average, and that is way down from August. Des Moines, Iowa, you are looking around $2.03 a gallon.
But the questions now are, have gasoline prices bottomed out? And some seem to suggest that might be the case, because refineries, oil refineries are now going to be switching over to making home heating oil for the winter months, meaning gas supplies will get a little bit tighter.
So, maybe fill it up and fill it up again to really enjoy those gas prices.
M. O'BRIEN: Get a big tank.
SERWER: Get a big tank. Fill all your cars up and sit there for a couple weeks, maybe.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. What's next?
SERWER: Next we're going to be talking about something that's being called Wall Street West, which will be a backup system to Wall Street in the event of a catastrophe out in Pennsylvania, some are talking about.
M. O'BRIEN: Ooh, that's way west for Wall Street.
SERWER: Way out west, across the Hudson River.
S. O'BRIEN: We were thinking San Francisco for a moment -- like L.A. Oops.
SERWER: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up in the program, North Korea says it carried out a nuclear test earlier last night while you were -- actually, evening last night. How will the U.S. and the rest of the world respond? We will go live to the White House for that.
Plus, more on the Mark Foley scandal. We'll ask a former congressional staffer what it's like to be gay and Republican on Capitol Hill.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Opening bell on Wall Street will ring very shortly.
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: Good morning to you, Monday, October 9th. It's Columbus Day.
I'm Miles O'Brien.
S. O'BRIEN: And I'm Soledad O'Brien. Here's a look at some of the stories we're following for you this morning.
Major act of defiance. North Korea says it has conducted a nuclear test, its first ever. We've got a statement from President Bush coming up. We're expecting it in just about 15 minutes.
Another day, more revelations in the Mark Foley page scandal. We're covering both of those stories this morning.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Let's check in with Chad. And folks, we're going to have a big change in weather in a lot of -- certainly, where we are in the country, for sure. CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: It was, what, 80 degrees here in New York just the other day?
MYERS: 80.
M. O'BRIEN: And so divide by two, essentially, right?
MYERS: Exactly. Yes. Or take the partial of X over partial of Y and do something else there, something calculus, because these numbers are really going to shock you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you very much, Chad.
MYERS: Sure, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Just a few minutes away from hearing from President Bush. He's going to be commenting on North Korea's apparent nuclear test. CNN's Kathleen Koch is at the White House for us this morning.
Kathleen, good morning.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
The president will be making those remarks in the diplomatic reception room, and he's expected to echo the very strong condemnation they issued early this morning by press secretary Tony Snow in a 1:30 a.m. conference call to reporters, putting out a statement, saying, quote, "A North Korean nuclear test would constitute a provocative act in defiance of the will of the international community and of our call to refrain from actions that would aggravate tensions in northeast Asia."
He went on to say, "We expect the Security Council to take immediate actions to respond to this unprovoked act." Now that being the United Nations Security Council, which meets at 9:30 this morning.
President Bush has been very busy since this reported launch late last night, calling leaders of several different countries to talk about North Korea's action, phoning, according to an administration source, the leaders of Japan, China, South Korea and Russia.
Of course, these are all members of the six nation talks that had been aimed at getting North Korea to dismantle its nuclear program, the talks that collapsed back in November, when North Korea walked away from the table.
Japan's foreign ministry says that the call between the president and its prime minister this morning lasted about 15 minutes and that the two leaders decided that the U.N. Security Council must take, quote, "decisive action."
The expectation is that those will take the form of sanctions that the U.S. has been pushing for, for quite some time. That could mean cutting off energy supplies, cutting off trade, both of those predominantly supplied right now by China and South Korea, which oppose sanctions.
Back to you, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: All right. Kathleen Koch for us this morning at the White House. We're expecting to hear a statement from President Bush coming up at quarter of -- in just about 12 minutes or so up ahead -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: The North Korea nuclear test is coming at the same time two of its neighbors were trying to make nice, the Japanese and South Korean presidents both reacting strongly during their major summit this morning. Sohn Jie-Ae joining us now, live from Seoul, with more -- Jie-Ae.
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Miles.
The South Korean president, Roh Moo-Hyun, hosted a visit by the visiting Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe today. Although initially the visit was about the mending of strained relations between the two countries, the topic quickly turned to North Korea, as North Korea announced that it had conducted a nuclear test.
Both leaders have strong words for North Korea and said the North Korean nuclear weapons situation was a serious and grave situation for not only the Korean Peninsula but Northeast Asia as a whole.
Now, the Japanese prime minister had harsher words for North Korea than the South Korean prime -- president. After the summit, the South Korean president, Roh Moo-Hyun, had said that close international cooperation was need to deal with the issue.
He also called that -- he also said that South Korea was put in a difficult situation because its position of calling for dialogue, which had been a softer position than Japan and the United State, was now put in a very difficult situation.
On the streets, there was a lot of concern and consternation. There was worry that this could raise tensions on the Korean peninsula.
There's also disappointment. South Koreans had been promised for years that if South Korea engaged North Korea, helped North Korea out, that it would further peace on the Korean peninsula, but years after having helped North Korea, they are faced with a North Korea that has declared itself a nuclear power.
So, it is concerning a lot here, a lot of people here in South Korea.
And now for more reaction from another North Korean neighbor, we go to Atika Shubert in Tokyo -- Atika.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Japan's prime minister, Shinzo Abe, was in South Korea when the news broke. In a press conference this evening, he said that, if the nuclear tests have been confirmed, it will pose a grave threat to security, not only of the region, but to the entire world.
He said it is something that the international community should not and will not accept. For that reason, Japan is lobbying U.N. Security Council members at this moment, hoping for a quick resolution condemning North Korea, possibly demanding economic sanctions.
The question is, how effective a resolution like that would be, considering that North Korea went ahead with this test, despite international warnings.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: Atika Shubert for us this morning. Thank you, Atika.
North Korea in many ways is considered almost a black hole for intelligence agencies. It's a closed society and one of the most secretive on earth.
CNN's Zain Verjee traveled to the DMZ, the demilitarized zone, the area between North and South Korea, earlier this year. She's got more on what Pyongyang is trying to accomplish.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: North Korea's goal is regime survival. It wants direct talks with the U.S. and the normalization of relations with Washington. It sees that as key to its survival.
North Korea may also think that having a nuclear weapon will strengthen its bargaining power. It also needs economic aid. It's desperately poor. It needs more food and more fuel.
Experts also say North Korea is looking for security guarantees. It looks over at Iraq and what happened with Saddam Hussein, and it wants assurances that it will not be invaded.
Pyongyang also wants an end to financial sanctions that have been imposed. Washington basically accusing North Korea of illicit activities like drug running, money laundering, so it's frozen North Korean accounts, and that's really upset and is hurting Kim Jong-Il and his elite. He uses that money from those accounts to keep them happy.
So, what are some of the options that the world has in dealing with North Korea?
Experts say that there are no good military options. North Korea is also heavily sanctioned, so it's not really clear how much more -- how much of a difference more sanctions will make. The key here, too, is China. How angry is China, and what will it do? Will it cut off the food and fuel that it gives to North Korea to survive? Will it twist North Korea's arm and make sure it gets back to the negotiating table? Experts say that China would never impose sanctions so hard that North Korea would collapse, because it would ultimately create a problem for China.
Zain Verjee, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: Now back to Washington politics.
The Mark Foley e-mail scandal is changing the debate in congressional races across the board. That especially true in one race, just a stone's throw away from Foley's own Florida district. Our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, joining us from West Palm Beach with more on that.
Hello, Bill.
BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Hi, Miles.
Well, the House race in Florida's 22nd Congressional District has always been considered a hot one, but it just got hotter.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): Clay Shaw, a senior member of Florida's congressional delegation, has sat in Congress for 26 years, but the district voted for John Kerry in 2004, and it's right next door to the district of disgraced former congressman, Mark Foley.
The word "senior" should be highly valued in this district, where one out of four voters is over 60. Democratic challenger Ron Klein is using Shaw's standing as a congressional insider against him.
RON KLEIN (D), FLORIDA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: He's been there for a long time. The Congress is -- he's part of a Congress that just is not responsive.
SCHNEIDER: Case in point, the Foley scandal. It dominates press coverage in this next-door district.
KLEIN: It just reinforces this loss of trust and confidence in leaders in Washington.
SCHNEIDER: The incumbent defends Speaker Dennis Hastert's handling of the Foley matter.
REP. CLAY SHAW (R), FLORIDA: The more I've heard from the speaker, taking him at his word, he did all he could, in order to put a stop to it and to remove Foley from the Congress of the United States.
SCHNEIDER: Klein calls that an insider's response. KLEIN: Mr. Shaw has taken the position Mr. Hastert has done everything OK, which is very -- very similar to the way Mr. Shaw responds to a lot of other things, just go along to get along.
SCHNEIDER: One of those other things is the new Medicare prescription drug benefit. It's too complicated, many voters here complain.
ROBERT MCFALLS, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF AGENCIES ON AGING: A lot of people also concerned about the fact that the plan itself doesn't allow for cost controls, and that's a big, big issue.
SCHNEIDER: It's seen as another example of an unresponsive Congress, just like the Foley scandal.
KLEIN: People are saying, "Oh, my God." And you run into people. "What's going on up there? What are these people thinking? You know, why aren't they taking care of kids or kids or problems?"
SCHNEIDER: Congressman Shaw urges voters to consider this: seniority and influence of a good thing.
SHAW: The Democrats look at this as somewhat of a trophy that they'd like to take home by unseating me and putting in a young freshman -- not too young actually, but a freshman who would be almost 80 years old at the time he got to be my seniority.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Odd, isn't it, that seniority has become an issue in this heavily senior district -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Seniority can cut both ways, can't it?
SCHNEIDER: Of course, it can. When the image of Congress is negative and Congress seems out of touch, then being an insider in Congress no longer means you're effective; it means you're part of an out of touch institution.
M. O'BRIEN: But given where Mr. Shay (sic) is right now, I guess it's the best course of action.
SCHNEIDER: That's right. He is, in fact -- Clay Shaw, he is, in fact, trying to argue that it will do more for the constituency. He can bring more for the district, and a freshman in Congress wouldn't be able to do that much.
But the image of Congress is so negative now that that could be a difficult argument to make.
M. O'BRIEN: Bill Schneider, West Palm, thank you.
Bill is part of the best political team on television -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Coming up this morning, much more on the Mark Foley scandal. What's it like to be gay and Republican? We'll check in with a former congressional staffer. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: We're just a couple minutes away from hearing from President Bush. He's supposed to make a statement this morning, 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time. CNN, of course, will carry that for you live when it happens.
Got lettuce in your refrigerator, you want to check the brand name. Foxy brand lettuce is being recalled on the West Coast because of possible E. coli contamination. The lettuce was grown in that same area as the tainted spinach that sickened almost 200 people and killed three people.
So if you live in one of the seven states that's been highlighted on this map -- that's Washington, Montana, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, California and Arizona -- you want to take the lettuce back to the store for a refund or just throw it out.
So far, no illnesses have been reported.
And if you're heading out the door this morning, we've got a look at the travelers' forecast for you. Chad Myers is at the CNN Weather Center. He's got that for us.
Hey, Chad, good morning again.
It looks like -- hey, Chad, I'm going to stop you there, because we -- we can't hear you. We're having a little audio difficulty with you. So let's see if we can get that fixed. We'll check back in with Chad in just a few moments.
M. O'BRIEN: I think he needs to turn the wireless to the "O-N" position. As opposed to the "O-F-F" position.
Now I think probably Tony Harris -- Is Tony Harris able to talk to us? No, Tony's not ready either.
S. O'BRIEN: We'll take a short break.
M. O'BRIEN: We'll take a break, regroup. We're going to turn on our microphones and get back to you.
S. O'BRIEN: And we're expecting to hear from the president, as mentioned just a couple minutes from...
M. O'BRIEN: Turn his microphone on, for sure.
S. O'BRIEN: Back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. We're waiting for President Bush to make his remarks. He's going to be talking, we are told, about the situation in North Korea in the wake of their announced nuclear tests that were done. Outrage internationally this morning. We have been following this story for you from the United Nations and across the globe today.
So, waiting to hear from the White House. You can see there in the frame on your left, that is the diplomatic reception room. That's where the president will be speaking. We expect to have that for you in just a few minutes. We're going to bring it to you live when it happens.
First, though, a check of the forecast with Chad Myers.
Good morning again, Chad. How's your audio now?
MYERS: New batteries are great, aren't they? We're buying these Eveready Bronze. We're going to step up to Eveready Gold, I think, next year. Maybe they'll last longer.
(WEATHER REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: No break from the heat there. I guess that is better than it has been in some respects.
MYERS: It certainly is.
M. O'BRIEN: All right.
CNN NEWSROOM just a few moments away. Tony Harris is at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead.
Hello, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Miles. CNN NEWSROOM just minutes away.
You've been talking about it all morning, North Korea rattling capitals around the world. It's making claims today of an underground nuclear test. Diplomats at the U.N. working up a response.
Fallout from the Foley e-mails, a former Capitol staffer under oath this week, testifying, and a report says one congressman knew of the sexually charged messages six years ago.
And now it is lettuce. One company recalls its bagged greens across several western states. New fears of E. Coli this morning.
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: Thank you, Tony. We'll see you then.
Wall Street may be headed west, sort of. We don't really mean the West Coast, really. We mean Pennsylvania.
Andy Serwer is here to explain that and more.
Hello, Andy. ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Hello, Miles.
S. O'BRIEN: Why Pennsylvania?
SERWER: Well, it's close, but it's far away.
M. O'BRIEN: Not too close.
SERWER: I never really thought of Allentown, Pennsylvania, as the west. We'll get to that in one second.
Let's go now to Wall Street and see how stocks are faring at this hour. The big board, they have been trading for about 20 minutes, and a little bit of a slip-slide here, down just about 15, 16 points, you can see there.
Earnings season begins in earnest this week, we should say.
One of the nation's largest and most colorful cable companies is looking to be bought out. I'm talking about CableVision, which is run by the Dolan family. The Dolans have made an offer of $7.9 billion to buy out shareholders. That stock is up about 13 percent this morning to $27.
The Dolans, besides running, I think it's the fifth largest cable company in the United States, tend to get in family feuds. Then there's the fights they get in with Mayor Bloomberg here in New York and George Steinbrenner of the Yankees.
Then there's also the situation where they had a stock option problem and they backdated them for the dead executive. Do you remember that?
M. O'BRIEN: We do remember that. You told us all about that one. You liked that one.
SERWER: Boy, that was an interesting story. I do. They also own...
M. O'BRIEN: They're kind of a pugnacious group.
SERWER: They are.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
SERWER: They also own the Knicks and Rangers, Madison Square Garden and Radio City, so we'll see what happens there.
Now there's talk, particularly in Pennsylvania, of setting up something that's being called Wall Street West. This would be a backup center in case a catastrophe were to hit Wall Street. Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell wants to create this near Allentown, Pennsylvania. And of course, it's all about bringing business to the state.
S. O'BRIEN: But Allentown could use the business. SERWER: It's a depressed area.
S. O'BRIEN: Allentown is a nice little town, but, boy, it is depressed.
SERWER: And it has been for a while. So they're looking to pledge more than $30 million to build, basically, a center that would be used, if something were to happen in New York City and with all kinds of high tech cables and connections and that sort of thing.
M. O'BRIEN: Probably wouldn't employ too many people, though, if it's just sitting there waiting.
SERWER: Sit there and check the equipment.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, yes.
SERWER: And check the equipment.
M. O'BRIEN: The Maytag repairman.
SERWER: Well, yes. I mean, of course, you would hope they wouldn't have to use this place.
M. O'BRIEN: Right. One would hope.
SERWER: And so that's our Wall Street news for you this morning.
S. O'BRIEN: All right.
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: We're still waiting on President Bush. He's supposed to be making some remarks, a statement on the situation in North Korea today. You're looking at the diplomatic reception room, which is where he will be speaking. Obviously, the podium there, the microphone set up. No sign of the president yet. We're expecting it, though, in just a couple of minutes. We'll bring it to you live when it happens, right here on CNN.
Stay with us. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: North Korea's boasting this morning of a successful underground detonation of a nuclear bomb. The U.S. intelligence apparatus, Pentagon, trying to determine just exactly what exploded underground in the northeast section of North Korea.
Meantime, the world is trying to figure out how to react to all of this. The president of the United States, George Bush, will be speaking in just a few moments in the diplomatic reception room at the White House. We should be seeing him at that podium very shortly. In the meantime, CNN's Kathleen Koch also at the White House with a little bit of a preview on what the administration has said thus far. The White House press secretary, Tony Snow, was up overnight, and I presume so was Kathleen, as they had a conference call with initial reaction.
What was said in that conference call, Kathleen?
KOCH: Well, basically a number of things, Miles.
First of all, the White House saying it's looking at lots of data. Certainly, there were monitoring stations, more than 100 around the world, spy satellites, drones, all sorts of things over North Korea, around North Korea, keeping an eye on what might be happening. So they're studying the data to confirm, first of all, that this was actually a nuclear test, a successful nuclear test.
And then Snow hit hard on the diplomatic points. This was obviously the last thing that the United States wanted to see happen and what it was trying to prevent, you know, the -- North Korea has been pushing for some time for one-on-one, direct talks with the U.S.
And the administration's point of view had been that by being tough, by refusing those talks, insisting that North Korea come back to the bargaining table with -- for the six-nation talks with all of its neighbors, that that would gain more cooperation from it, that would prevent it from going nuclear.
Well, certainly, if this was successful test it appears that that strategy has not worked.
But Snow insisted in the conference call last night this was a, quote, "provocative act, in defiance of the will of the international community, in defiance of our call to refrain from actions that would aggravate tensions in Northeast Asia."
And certainly the U.S. concern now is that this could spark a nuclear arms race in the region, where more and more countries are saying, "Now we, if North Korea has a nuclear bomb, now we need one to protect ourselves" -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Including Japan on that list.
Let's talk for a moment about how word was filtered out here. The North Koreans notified the Chinese, and that set off kind of a game of telephone operator between diplomats all the way to the White House. Explain how that went.
KOCH: Certainly. What happened was right around 9 p.m., the North Koreans notified the Chinese that they were about to conduct this nuclear test. The Chinese then immediately notified the U.S. embassy in Beijing.
Then at 9:35 p.m. Eastern Time, the U.S. Geological Survey, as I said, which was keeping close watch on all activity in North Korea, noticed a seismic event of some type in North Korea. Then shortly after that, at 9:45, the U.S. embassy in Beijing reached out to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. She quickly contacted, by phone, Steven Hadley, the national security advisor, who then, at that point, reached out to President Bush. That was shortly before 10 p.m.
So, while the U.S. tangentially, at least through the Beijing embassy, had very slight advance notice that this was going to happen, the president certainly didn't find out until it was over, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: OK. So the U.S. knew in advance, but there was nothing that the U.S. could do at that point anyway. The president didn't know until afterward.
And at this point, are you hearing anything from the administration that there will be anything significant in the way of a change in U.S. policy, that the president might announce this morning?
KOCH: I don't think that we're going to be hearing -- certainly, Miles, we're not getting any indication that we're going to be hearing any kind of change in U.S. policy.
The question is, though, where do you go from here? The U.S. has been pushing, in addition to refusing these one-on-one talks, pushing for sanctions, to get North Korea to understand that the rest of the world is very serious about it not going nuclear. And other nations had been against that, notably South Korea, its neighbor to the south. Also China and Russia.
The expectation is that the equation has changed now, because of what North Korea apparently did last night. So, when this -- the U.N. Security Council meeting begins at 9:30, there is certainly the expectation, and U.S. officials, senior administration officials have told CNN they intend to go in and push very hard for strong sanctions. And they say they have, quote, "substantial" support for these strong sanctions.
Back to you, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: There's -- there's the president. Let's listen.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: Last night, the government of North Korea proclaimed to the world that it had conducted a nuclear test. We're working to confirm North Korea's claim.
Nonetheless, such a claim itself constitutes a threat to international peace and security. The United States condemns this provocative act.
Once again North Korea has defied the will of the international community, and the international community will respond.
This was confirmed this morning in conversations I had with leaders of China and South Korea, Russia and Japan. We reaffirmed our commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. And all of us agreed that the proclaimed actions taken by North Korea are unacceptable and deserve an immediate response by the United Nations Security Council.
The North Korean regime remains one of the world's leading proliferators of missile technology, including transfers to Iran and Syria.
The transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to states or nonstate entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States, and we would hold North Korea fully accountable the consequences of such action.
The United States remains committed to diplomacy. And we will continue to protect ourselves and our interests.
I reaffirmed to our allies in the region, including South Korea and Japan, that the United States will meet the full range of our deterrent and security commitments.
Threats will not lead to a brighter future for the North Korean people, nor weaken the resolve of the United States and our allies to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Today's claim by North Korea serves only to raise tensions, while depriving the North Korean people of the increased prosperity and better relations with the world offered by the implementation of the joint statement of the six-party talks.
The oppressed and impoverished people of North Korea deserve that brighter future.
Thank you.
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