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American Morning
U.S.-Iraq Summit; Civil War In Iraq?; Mideast Mission; Massive Winter Storm; Shamu Attack; Minding Your Business
Aired November 30, 2006 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Face to face. President Bush and Iraq's prime minister meet overnight, promising to keep America in the fight for Iraq.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: New details this morning from the Iraq Study Group about when American troops might be coming home.
S. O'BRIEN: Scare at SeaWorld. A killer whale turns on a trainer right in the middle of a Shamu show and right in front of the fans.
M. O'BRIEN: And November going out like a lion. Snow, ice and frigid temperatures bearing down on more than a dozen states on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: And welcome, everybody. It is Thursday, November 30th. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. We're glad you're with us this morning.
We begin this morning in Iraq and some mixed signals on when U.S. troops might be coming home. President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki meeting in Amman, Jordan, just a few hours ago. The president insisting U.S. troops will stay in Iraq until the job is done. But in Washington, that blue ribbon panel looking for solutions, is poised to recommend a gradual pullback of U.S. troops to begin early next year. For now, though, the Pentagon is trying to put a lid on the relentless violence. Sixteen hundred troops on the move into Baghdad, bolstering the 20,000 U.S. troops already there. We have two reports. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is with the president in Amman. AMERICAN MORNING's Bob Franken in Washington. Let's begin with Suzanne.
Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, President Bush is headed back to Washington now. But this was a summit that really got off to a shaky start. It was late yesterday when Maliki abruptly canceled the first meeting with President Bush. But today in their press conference, Maliki said that there were no hard feelings between them. Both of the leaders trying to present a united front in transferring more power to the Iraqi people. Now despite some of the serious doubts the White House has about Maliki's capabilities to bring peace to his country, today President Bush gave him a vote of confidence. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's the right guy for Iraq and we're going to help him. And it's in our interest to help him for the sake of peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Now Mr. Bush also promised more resources to the Iraqi government, to help train those Iraqi forces as quickly as possible. But President Bush, of course, when dealing with troop levels, addressing that, he made no commitment of withdrawing troops, even gradually, and that is a recommendation that has been made by that bipartisan commission, the Iraq Study Group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: I know there's a lot of speculation that these reports in Washington mean there's going to be some kind of graceful exit out of Iraq. We're going to stay in Iraq to get the job done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So, Miles, as billed, there were no major bold announcements coming out of the summit between two leaders. Rather both of them recommitting to try to move forward.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Suzanne, let's talk about this no-show yesterday. Maliki not there for an intended meeting with the president. A remarkable -- some would call it a snub. The White House is spinning it differently, isn't it?
MALVEAUX: Oh, yes, there were a lot of different explanations about how this all came about. We heard from Maliki directly. He was asked directly about this. And again, he reiterated that he had a meeting aside with King Abdullah and that was important for him to discuss those issues with King Abdullah and then separate issues with President Bush.
But it was very curious, the timing of all of this. As you know, it came as President Bush was on Air Force One coming into Amman, Jordan. Very last minute. The White House saying that this was a decision made by the Jordanians, as well as al-Maliki. A joint decision. But it came on the heals, as you know, of that leaked, classified report from the White House that was rather critical of Maliki, which certainly suggests that perhaps he was turning away from Mr. Bush and perhaps, yes, snubbing him.
M. O'BRIEN: Now let's talk about the -- quickly -- the Iraq Study Group and the word out this morning in "The New York Times" that it will, in fact, recommend some sort of gradual pullback. I assume that's not a surprise to the White House. There's got to be come kind of back channel communication there. But any reaction at this point on that front? MALVEAUX: Well, you know, White House officials who I spoke with, they look at this and they're quite pleased with it. I mean, it's a gradual pullout and they also say no timetables. That's essentially what President Bush has been saying for months now. But he also made it very clear when he was asked about that, he is not committing in any way to withdrawing troops right away. But that is very consistent with what the Bush administration essentially has been asking for and fighting for in the last couple of months.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Suzanne Malveaux in Amman, Jordan. Thank you.
Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: And President Bush this morning says that breaking Iraq up into different ethnic areas would lead to an increase in sectarian violence. His administration has refused, as you heard just a moment ago, to call the ongoing violence civil war. While others, most recently the former secretary of state, Colin Powell, says it could, in fact, be considered civil war. AMERICAN MORNING's Bob Franken's in Washington. He has a little bit more on this war of words, so to speak.
Hey, Bob, good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So to speak, Soledad. Yes, you have the former secretary of state saying so and you have the NBC News saying so, as well as a the "L.A. Times" and other news organizations. So this is truly a burning question. Is this a civil war or not?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN, (voice over): With so many dying every week in the Iraq conflict, the question to many Americans may not be what to call it but what does the name matter?
MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: They don't care that much about what terms we use because, frankly, they know it's a mess.
FRANKEN: But many experts say that designating this a civil war will undermine U.S. support even more, which might explain why so many Democrats are jumping on the bandwagon.
SEN. JACK REED, (R) RHODE ISLAND: I think for months now there's been a low-level civil war going on in Iraq.
FRANKEN: Don't try to ask the president.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's all kinds of speculation about what may be or not happening.
FRANKEN: The definition of a civil war depends on who's defining it. Merriam Webster says it's "a war between opposing groups of citizens of the same country." But another reference specifies that each must "have a functioning government, have identifiable regular armed forces," which is reason enough for the top U.S. general to say it's not.
GEN. PETER PACE, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF CHAIRMAN: The Iraq government does not call it a civil war. Two, the Iraq government is functioning. Three, the Iraq security forces are responsive to the Iraqi government.
FRANKEN: But no less a gray eminence than Henry Kissinger thinks it is a civil war, with bleak hopes for the United States.
HENRY KISSINGER, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: If you mean by clear military victory and Iraqi government that can be established (INAUDIBLE) across the old country, that gets civil war under control and sectarian violence under control in a time period that the political processes of the democracies will support, I don't believe that it's possible.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN: And with all that, the chattering class is debating whether this is a civil war. Remember, Soledad, there used to be an argument about whether this was a quagmire, a swamp, from which the United States would find it difficult to remove itself. We're not having that argument.
S. O'BRIEN: Nope. Everybody's moved on from that.
Bob Franken for us this morning.
Thanks, Bob.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: The Bush administration launching diplomatic campaigns on several fronts. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also in the Middle East this morning. Live pictures now as you see her with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president. That an unexpected meeting, as she continues to try to firm up a shaky cease-fire between the Palestinians and Israelis. CNN's Paula Hancocks joins us from Jerusalem with more.
Paula.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles.
Well, she's currently holding a press conference with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. And for her part, Condoleezza Rice has been trying to bolster, really, the reputation of President. Mahmoud Abbas. She has said that he is very well respected and revered in the United States. Saying that he has her full support and the full support of George Bush.
Now this is what she was expected to say. And she's also in the region meeting the Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, a little later today as well so that she can try and persuade both parties not to miss this opportunity that's arisen quite unexpectedly, Saturday night, Sunday morning when a cease-fire in Gaza between Israelis and Palestinians was called. And for the most part, that cease-fire is continuing. And she's also said that it is very important for all sides, for the U.S., the Israelis, and the Palestinians, to try and find a way out for the daily humiliations and the difficulties of daily life for many Palestinians, particularly in Gaza.
We also heard from the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. He was saying that his people are suffering. He thanked Condoleezza Rice for being there, saying that he really want as new government to be able to deal with the international community.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Paula, tell us how Mahmoud Abbas is doing right now trying to govern with the influence of the Hamas party.
HANCOCKS: Well, for some months now, both sides have been trying to reach an agreement on a national unity government which would have probably less Hamas members in the top, key government minister positions, which hopefully would actually cancel out this economic and political boycott that the international community has been holding on the government ruled by Hamas. But it does appear today, Abbas has just been saying in the past few minutes, that he thinks that these could be almost at a deadlock. He didn't use that exact word, but certainly these talks are on hold at this point. It doesn't appear as though it's going anywhere soon.
Now Abbas does have the opportunity of actually firing that government and then creating his own government. But, of course, that will create so many internal problems in Gaza itself.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Paula Hancocks in Jerusalem. Thank you.
Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Happening this morning.
North Korea says it will not unilaterally end its nuclear weapons program as talks in Beijing between the U.S. and North Korean representatives has ended. They were trying to set a date for a six- nation disarmament talks that have been stalled for more than a year now.
British Airway is trying to contact about 33,000 passengers after traces of radiation was found on two jets. Health officials are investigating the poisoning death of a former Russian spy, Alexander Litvinenko. And the third jet is still being checked in Moscow. British Airways says the public health threat is low.
The space shuttle Discovery is go for launch one week from today. It's the first night-time launch in four years after the loss of the shuttle Columbia in 2003. NASA required daylight launches to ensure cameras could record any damage of the orbiter from falling debris. NASA now believe that they've solved that problem. The 2006 hurricane season is officially over. It ends today. And despite some very dire predications, not a single hurricane and only three tropical storms hit the U.S. mainland. It's the first time that's happened since 2001.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Mud the lap (ph) or at least get ready to. Some wild winter weather is rolling across the country this morning. And just about wherever you are this morning, you'll soon be getting more than a taste of winter. CNN's Jonathan Freed live from Kansas City this morning.
Good morning, Jonathan.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
We're definitely starting to taste it here a little bit, although I'm going to hold off on defining the flavor for you for a little while. Kansas city yesterday, when we were pulling into town, roads were really not great at all. It was very slow going. You saw a lot of ice here. Not really a lot of snow yet, but we had that rain and freezing rain which can really be very problematic, whether you're walking or driving or anything that you're really doing outside.
Take a look at the railing here where we are, at our perch in downtown Kansas City. You can already see this layer of ice that it formed here already. It's not raining right now, but the city is definitely bracing for more to come. We're watching cars here. We're looking at a little bit of a slope here, so that's going to give us a very good indication of what kind of traction people are getting on the roads.
And it has not been a great situation all around the region. People running out and buying shovels and salt. And we were using salt at our own life position here. If you want to go down and we'll show you our feet for a second. You can see that it's kind of snowy here. And if we back up, carefully, Chris, with the camera, you can see that it's basically just solid ice right here. And it was not the case, Miles, last night when we came out and were scoping out this position and trying to figure out where we would position ourselves.
Now people are getting stuck in various situations. And overnight one woman was stuck in her car in New Mexico and just determined to get to her family. Let's listen to her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTA PETERSON, STRANDED MOTORIST: I have kids to go home to and I want to make sure I get home to them. So I'm just -- you know, I'd rather park my car and sit here until they figure out what they're going to do, until we can get our plow trucks out here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FREED: So, Miles, we expect to be hearing a lot more of that today as this weather works its way across the country.
Back to you.
M. O'BRIEN: Jonathan Freed in Kansas City. Thank you.
Chad Myers will be here in just a few moments to give you the icy national forecast. Stay tuned for that.
Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Also ahead this morning, frightening moments at SeaWorld. A Shamu act gets out of control, leaves the trainer injured. We'll tell you just what happened straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Top stories we're following for you this morning.
President Bush already on his way home after an overnight meeting with Iraq's prime minister and a promise to keep American troops in Iraq until the job is complete.
Pope Benedict XVI saying mass in Turkey right now. Later he'll visit a museum in the center of a fight. Christians want it for a church and Muslims would like to restore it as a mosque.
It's about quarter after the hour right now. We saw Jonathan Freed in the ice in Kansas City. Chad Myers has the big picture for us.
Hello, Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Terrible scene to tell you about at SeaWorld. This morning one of the trainers at the Shamu show is recovering from an attack by a killer whale. It happened right in front of the audience. Lee Ann Kim is with our San Diego affiliate, KGTV, and she's got our report this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEE ANN KIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It's a show that's preformed hundreds of times each year. But tonight, Kasaka (ph), a 30-year old killer whale, strayed from her routine and trapped her trainer under water. Audience members were horrified.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, you could tell, this was not part of the snow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't get why he would do that and bite the trainer. It looked like he was biting him.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was just a tragedy because you just weren't sure what was going on until the rest of the trainers started tapping the water and you could see the panic coming over them and then the nets coming out and then you were, you know, instant reality, this is really happening.
KIM: Security evacuated the stadium as performers calmed down the whale and got the trapped trainer free. He was conscious and breathing and appeared to have foot injuries. Witnesses say at least twice he was forced under water for at least a minute or two. SeaWorld officials say Kasaka had strayed from routines before but never to this extent.
MIKE SCARPUZZI, SEAWORLD HEAD TRAINER: There are times like this when they are killer whales and she did choose to demonstrate her feelings in a way that, obviously, was unfortunate. And we are unfortunate that our guests did have to see this and, you know, we, obviously, do not want this.
KIM: And this Dallas woman certainly didn't want her kids to see this, especially as they were celebrating her six-year-old daughter's birthday.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I just didn't want to watch a guy die. And, I mean, I know I wouldn't want Shamu to die, but I think they should have had something in place where, you know, if it's between him or Shamu, Shamu's got to go.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN: That was Lee Ann Kim from our affiliate KGTV reporting. Now this morning the trainer is reported to be in good condition and a director at SeaWorld says the trainer's experience and also the close relationship with Kasaka played a major role in saving his life.
M. O'BRIEN: Top stories ahead.
Plus, an update on that Hewlett-Packard corporate spy probe. We haven't checked in on that one in a while. Wait till you hear this. Shareholders are leveling some new, serious charges against the company. Another wrinkle in the HP scandal ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) ILLINOIS: If you get tested publicly, potentially half a million people will also get tested and that could save tens of thousands of lives. So that was probably the best 15 minutes investment that I've made since I've been a U.S. senator.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: That's Senator Barack Obama talking about his test for HIV. He's speaking out this morning on AIDS as we head into World AIDS Day tomorrow. AMERICAN MORNING's going to kick off a day-long look at the fight and the hope in the fight against AIDS. We've got exclusive interviews from Senator Obama, best selling evangelist author Rick Warren, and also the former president, Bill Clinton. That will start tomorrow morning at 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time. It's a special edition of AMERICAN MORNING as we mark World AIDS Day. President Clinton is in New Deli, India. We spoke to him earlier this morning. We're going to play a little bit, some excerpts, of what he had to say as well, later this morning.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: So, why were stocks high yesterday? It's the economy, stupid. That's the saying anyhow. Ali Velshi is here with more on that.
Good morning, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to both of you.
And, yes, that's kind of what it is. We had an opportunity yesterday and the day before to get a bit of an economic snapshot of what's going on in the United States. We had speeches from Ben Bernanke, the Fed chief, the former Fed chief, Alan Greenspan, and a bunch of reports.
Let me give you a picture of what's going on. First of all, the Dow was up yesterday a healthy 90 points, 12,226. The Nasdaq was up. The S&P was up. Across the board things were up.
The dollar, which has been suffering against major currencies, is up just a smidge against the euro and not so much against other major currencies. Growth is measuring at about 2.2 percent for the year, which is not bad. Inflation is also at about 2.2 percent, which sounds good.
A lot of that -- it's lowered because energy costs have come down, but it's still higher than where the Feds would like inflation to be. They'd like it to be between 1 percent and 2 percent. Which means the Fed can't say categorically that it's done raising interest rates.
Now most of us would say, why aren't you done raising interesting rates because housing prices are coming down? We want interest rates to be lower. The Fed says it might not be done. December 12th is the next Fed meeting and we'll see what happens there.
The Fed also released what's called its beige book. It's not beige, but it's a regional look at what goes on in different parts of the country. A few things that you'll know. Outside of the auto sector and the housing sector, the economy's looking pretty healthy. There are increases in hourly wages across the country, including San Francisco, Boston and New York. And there are job shortages in the areas of engineers, oil field workers, welders and truck drivers across the country.
So interesting stories out there for people. And for those of you following the HP scandal, a group of shareholders who are suing them around that scandal has added charges of insider trading against the CEO, Mark Hurd, and seven other HP executives. $41.3 million in stock they say was sold prior to the breaking of the scandal. I should remind our viewers that insider training is often not illegal at all. That's what HP is saying. These were normal in the course of action. The issue is, did people sell because they thought something was going wrong.
M. O'BRIEN: A difficult thing to prove.
VELSHI: A very difficult thing to prove, as we know from the Martha Stewart case. But right now, when lawsuits, you know, they catch steam, they catch steam. So we'll follow that one closely. That story's not following out to (ph) water.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that story is just . . .
M. O'BRIEN: It's sad. It's a sad story.
S. O'BRIEN: It just keeps going.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, a new chapter.
What else you got?
VELSHI: I'm going to come back and tell you about this U.S. Airways/Delta conversation. U.S. Airways is doing a little more to whoo Delta. We'll tell you about it. They're going to meet with Delta people.
M. O'BRIEN: They've got some whooing to do.
VELSHI: They've got some whooing to do.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you.
VELSHI: OK.
S. O'BRIEN: Ali, thank you very much.
We'll also talk about another conversation. We'll have more on that meeting overnight between President Bush and the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki. What do you think each side needs to offer to bring peace to Iraq.
And a major winter storm is on the move. It's been causing big headaches on the highways, at the airports. Pretty much everywhere. Got the snowy forecast for you straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Side by side, President Bush and Iraq's prime minister meet overnight, agreeing to keep Iraq united and U.S. troops on the ground.
M. O'BRIEN: New information coming out this morning from the Iraq Study Group about when U.S. troops might come home.
S. O'BRIEN: Planes and poison. Jets pulled out of service, passengers contacted. More fallout from that death of the Russian spy.
M. O'BRIEN: And November's icy exit. Frigid temperatures, snow and ice slam into more than a dozen states on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. It is Thursday, November 30th, the last day in November, 2006.
I'm Soledad O'Brien.
Thanks for being with us.
M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien.
We're glad you're here.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's begin about what's happening overnight in the fight for Iraq. Here's the very latest this morning.
President Bush and the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, meeting in Jordan. It happened just a couple of hours ago.
President Bush insisting that U.S. troops will stay in Iraq until the job is done. But in Washington, the Iraq Study Group is poised to recommend a gradual pullback of U.S. troops early next year. For now, though, the Pentagon is moving 1,600 troops into Baghdad, bolstering the 20,000 that are already there trying to get control of the unrelenting violence.
CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is live for us this morning in Amman. Much more on the president's meeting with the Iraqi prime minister.
Good morning to you, Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
Well, President Bush is on his way back to Washington after this very quick summit. It's a summit that got off to a rather shaky start after Maliki, late last night, abruptly canceled their first meeting with President Bush. But today Maliki at his press conference said there were no hard feelings between them. Of course both of these leaders invested in presenting a united front in passing along, transferring power, more power to the Iraqi leadership.
Now, despite some of the serious doubts that the White House has about Maliki's capabilities to actually quell the violence in Iraq, today President Bush gave them a vote of confidence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's the right guy for Iraq. And we're going to help him. And it's in our interest to help him for the sake of peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP) MALVEAUX: The president is trying to push more responsibility on Maliki in terms of security, as well as governance. Also, Mr. Bush promising more resources to help train those Iraqi forces as quickly as possible. But one important point he made today is he did not commit to pulling back or pulling out U.S. troops even gradually. That being one of the recommendations made by the bipartisan commission, the Iraq Study Group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: I know there's a lot of speculation that these reports in Washington mean there's going to be some kind of graceful exit out of Iraq. We're going to stay in Iraq to get the job done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: And Soledad, as you know, President Bush is facing an increasingly unpopular war, a new Congress that is looking for exit strategies. That is why you're seeing this push from the Bush administration to try to push Maliki to take more responsibility -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Suzanne Malveaux in Amman, Jordan, for us this morning.
Thanks, Suzanne -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: The Pentagon moving some troops in Iraq, trying to get a lid on the unceasing violence in Baghdad. About 1,600 troops headed to the capital city. They will not come from the volatile Anbar Province, but rather from other parts of Iraq that are relatively calm.
S. O'BRIEN: It is the third day of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Turkey. Right now he's at the Church of St. George, which is in Istanbul. He's participating in what's called the divine liturgy with the head of the orthodox church, Bartholomew I.
AMERICAN MORNING'S faith and values correspondent, Delia Gallagher, is live in Istanbul this morning.
Good morning to you, Delia.
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN FAITH AND VALUES CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
As you mentioned, the pope is attending this liturgy with the patriarch Bartholomew. This is the Feast of St. Andrew, and this is a day that Catholic and orthodox representatives come together to celebrate this saint who was the older brother of St. Peter. And every year on this day representatives come and try to talk about these ongoing differences between the two churches, differences that date back a millennium. And the pope is there with -- with the patriarch this morning.
Later today he will go to the Hagia Sophia. This was a famous Christian church until it was taken over and converted by the Ottoman Empire and made into a mosque. And then it's now a museum under the secular Turkish government, and the pope will visit this.
And straight across the street from that is the Blue Mosque, which is another famous mosque in Islam. And it was not originally planned that the pope would make this visit, but he has decided -- he's been invite and he's decided to enter this mosque and take a tour with the grand (INAUDIBLE) -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: A busy day for the pope.
Delia Gallagher for us this morning.
Thanks, Delia -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Brace yourself and break out the parkas and the mittens. Some awful winter weather is coming down the Rockies, into the Plains. How bad is the snow? So bad they had to cancel a downhill ski race in Colorado because the skiers couldn't see far enough down the hill.
Let's get back to Jonathan Freed in Kansas City, where they're bracing for it all this morning.
Hello, Jonathan.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
Well, they're canceling ski races, but here -- and we're going to show you where you can actually go skating.
Let's take a dip down here, Chris.
This is the balcony where we are. Yesterday, Miles, it was down to the concrete. Just a few hours ago, actually, as we were scoping this out last night.
Today, though, here you go. Look at this. I mean, it's -- it's basically just a sheet of ice. And as you get closer over here to the edge, a little bit of snow accumulated, but not very much.
Let's take a look down the hill here where we are in Kansas City. You're looking at what they call The Plaza. That's what those -- what those picturesque lights are. And there's an incline here, and we've been keeping an eye on it for the last little while, trying to use that as a gauge for just how slippery the roads have been. We haven't really seen any salt trucks yet, so, so far, though, the cars don't seem to be having too much of a problem.
People here, though, have been bracing for what's coming since yesterday. As we were coming into town, Miles, from the south the roads were very icy, it was slow-going. People that we were speaking to in restaurants, for example, were saying that it took them a good hour to get to work yesterday afternoon, where it normally take them about 15 minutes. But while they were grumbling about that, they were also saying, look, this is just the beginning of the season and they're accustomed to this kind of weather blowing through here -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: So far so good, I guess, then. All right. Everybody's got a good attitude at least.
Jonathan Freed, thank you.
Chad Myers will be here in just a few minutes to give you the icy forecast where you live. Stay tuned for that.
Some good news for folks on the Gulf who lost their homes during the terrible 2005 hurricane season. A federal judge ordering the Federal Emergency Management Agency to restore short-term housing benefits to folks left homeless by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. FEMA pulled the plug on those benefits for thousands of people back in September.
And a possible landmark ruling for New Orleans homeowners. A federal judge says insurance companies should pay for water damage from Hurricane Katrina, that the language in insurance polices denying flood damage coverage is too ambiguous. The ruling will be appealed, but it could ultimately costs insurers billions of dollars.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, more on President Bush's meeting with the prime minister of Iraq. It happened overnight. We'll get reaction from Iraq's neighbors about some of the ideas that have been presented there.
And new developments in that mysterious death of the former Russian spy. Investigators are now zeroing in on passenger planes this morning.
We're live from Heathrow Airport straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: President Bush winging his way home after a high- stakes and highly unusual summit with the prime minister of Iraq. Nuri al-Maliki standing up President Bush as he arrived yesterday for what was to be two days of talks. The two men finally did sit down today, and the president says he assured Maliki the U.S. was not looking for a graceful exit from Iraq.
Palestinian journalist Daoud Kuttab is the founder and director of AmmanNet Radio in Jordan. He joins us now from Amman.
Good to have you with us, Mr. Kuttab.
What is the inside story on this apparent snub by Maliki?
DAOUD KUTTAB, AMMANNET RADIO: Well, Mr. Maliki has a lot of problems in Iraq, as it's obvious. He has a lot of pressure from some of the hard-line groups that don't want him to be meeting with Americans or sitting with the president of what they consider an occupation force. Also, the Americans didn't do much favor by him be releasing that "New York Times" memo which painted him as a weak leader, and he was very upset with that.
M. O'BRIEN: So that is what you think is the basis of this? What are your radio listeners saying about this?
KUTTAB: Well, actually, we have mixed audience response to the presence of George Bush in Jordan. There are many who have been demonstrating and saying that Mr. Bush is a butcher of Iraq and the Palestinian situation, and so on. But there are many who feel that Jordan's King Abdullah has succeeded in bringing Bush to Jordan and put Jordan in a situation where it's balancing its needs with its geographical situation. And Jordan is taking a bigger role than its size in political power.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, let's talk about that for just a moment. We talk an awful lot about Syria and Iran playing a role in coming up with some sort of solution to Iraq. Jordan also shares a border with Iraq.
Do people in Jordan feel that your country should play a greater role one way or another in forging some sort of peace in Iraq?
KUTTAB: Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but the -- most of the people in Jordan are more interested in improving the situation in the west rather than the east. So they're more looking into a solution of the Palestinian issue rather than the Iraqi issue.
But Jordan is a Sunni country, and so it has that role of playing a positive role with some of the hard-line Sunni who are, you know, causing a lot of trouble for the Maliki government. So I think it does have that small role, but the agenda is really crowded for King Abdullah, and he's pushing more for a solution of the Palestinian situation more than the Iraqi one.
M. O'BRIEN: And do most people feel that's the appropriate focus? Should he be focused more squarely on the Palestinian situation?
KUTTAB: They think it's a more doable one. It's certainly the longest-standing problem in the region. And they do feel that the Palestinian occupation by Israel is causing a lot of poisoning of the air. So they would like to see some improvements.
You have to know that Jordan has a lot of Palestinians, and so there is a lot of personal family relations with the West Bank and Gaza. And people are not happy with seeing their people being killed every day there.
M. O'BRIEN: You have huge numbers of Palestinian refugees. You now have many numbers of Iraqi refugees.
How much of a problem is that for Jordan?
KUTTAB: Yes -- yes, there are many. It's -- you know, it's a mixed blessing.
On the one hand, they are bringing a lot of cash into the country, but local tenants and people are upset that the real estate prices have all gone up. And it's very hard now for a couple now to buy an apartment or people to even rent an apartment at reasonable rates because the Iraqis have brought a lot of money in, and they all bought or rented the existing apartments.
So it's -- again, it's a mixed blessing.
M. O'BRIEN: So is there a lot of tension then?
KUTTAB: Not really. There isn't a lot of tension on the -- on the ground, but I think behind closed doors people are badmouthing the Iraqis, and they're not happy with so many Iraqis basically buying up land and renting up property.
But they're really not bringing any business into the country, just housing. And so, yes, there's a little bit of upset feelings about it. But by and large, that's not the major problem.
M. O'BRIEN: Daoud Kuttab, who is the founder of AmmanNet Radio.
Thank you for being with us.
KUTTAB: Thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: It is 45 minutes past the hour. If you're about to head out the door, first Chad's got the traveler's forecast.
Good morning again.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, I had really three good days here in New York.
M. O'BRIEN: And then?
MYERS: All of a sudden, I've got to go to work. And oh, boy, is it work today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: A new twist to tell you about in the poisoning death of that former Russian spy. It involves hundreds of flights, possibly three planes, and tens of thousands of passengers.
An update straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Welcome back. Let's take a look at the grid and check some of the feeds we're going to be watching this morning and all throughout the day here on CNN.
Got a new pointer to help you out with that.
APTN, let's roll that tape there. That's the pope, Pope Benedict XVI. And he is with the ecumenical patriarch of the orthodox church, the eastern church.
That was his primary mission for going there, not to heal rifts with Muslims, but to heal rifts with a schism within Christianity a thousand years ago. He's in the midst of a joint statement there and a visit to Istanbul's famous Blue Mosque. He will take his shoes off, but not do the sign of the cross as he enters.
There's Delia Gallagher getting ready for one of our live shots. That's one of our (INAUDIBLE) transmissions there in Istanbul.
Down here in incoming 20, that wild weather, that's Jonathan Freed's live shot position. It looks like traffic is moving -- obviously not a lot of traffic there, but it's moving OK given the situations there.
Jerusalem, that's our live shot from Paula Hancocks. We've been talking about Condoleezza Rice on another diplomatic front this morning, meeting with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, trying to firm up a shaky cease-fire there.
And coming up right away, there's Paula Newton at Heathrow Airport. And we're going to be talking about this wild story about Polonium traces found on several British Airway planes -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. In fact, there is more fallout from the death, that mysterious death of the former Russian spy. British Airways right now is contacting 33,000 passengers because they may have been is exposed to radiation.
CNN's Paula Newton is live in London at Heathrow Airport this morning.
Paula, good morning.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
You know, you really can't make this stuff up. Late yesterday afternoon, BA quarantined three of its planes. Two are in the airport behind me at Heathrow awaiting more forensic tests.
They did find low levels of radiation on those airplanes. They will test them further to see if they can determine whether or not it is Polonium 210. Stranded at an airport in Moscow is another British Airways plane that is yet to be tested.
What this is all about is at the end of October, these flights were involved in routes that went between Moscow and London, and potentially it was someone who was involved in the killing of Alexander Litvinenko and was caring the Polonium potentially on the airplane. We say potentially because there aren't many people saying much about this right now.
The implications of this, Soledad, those planes went on to further flights in Europe. More than 200 of them. That means that more than 33,000 passengers are now wondering, have I touched Polonium, is there anything wrong with me? They've been urged to call the hotline. British Airways says, look, this radiation is very low, this is only a precaution, and that they really don't feel that there's any risk to the public. But BA, having said that, really refuses at this point to say anything else about the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIE WALSH, CEO, BRITISH AIRWAYS: In total, there are 221 flights involved, involving the three aircraft. And we estimate that there are 33,000 passengers involved. Now, we have identified all of the flights, all 221 flights, and they will be published on our Web site, BA.com.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: You know, Soledad, when you look at Polonium-210 being used as a very rare and deadly assassination weapon, people here are saying, look, this isn't just a murder weapon anymore. It's now become a weapon of terror here in London.
People are panicked. They're trying to take it in their stride, but at the same time, when you start talking about radiation exposure, it's hard not to worry -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. It is -- it's another really disturbing twist in what has been a story with lots and lots of twists.
Paula Newton for us this morning.
Thanks, Paula.
Is there a threat to passengers and the public in general? Ahead this morning we talk to Dr. Sanjay Gupta about that very question.
Also coming up, P.R. stunt or important message? The president of Iran has written an open letter to the American public.
Plus, Iowa governor Tom Vilsack throws his hat into the ring for 2008. We'll share his journey from hard-luck orphan to now presidential candidate to be straight ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: US Airways takes its pitch for Delta to some very important people.
Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business" this morning.
Good morning, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
About 15 days ago, right on this show, we told you about US Airways making a pitch for Delta, which is in bankruptcy protection. Delta rebuffed that pitch initially. They've done so before. But it seems like today in New York US Airways and Delta officials will be meeting.
Now, we asked US Airways and Delta about this point blank, and they gave us a "no comment." But there seems to be some momentum about this meeting.
Remember, Delta's in bankruptcy. So the creditors are interested in this sort of thing, because if the creditors have a deal, typically they get stock of the company taking over. This is -- there's a lot of cash in this deal. This is an $8 billion deal. It could keep Delta going.
Delta's response is that, we're running perfectly well as an independent airline. We're going to emerge from bankruptcy in 2007 and we want to emerge as an independent airline.
As you know, Soledad, there's some benefit to emerging as an independent airline, because bankruptcy protection in the United States allows you to get rid of a lot of debt and obligation. So you do tend to come out stronger than with you went in.
So that's what we're looking for on Delta and US Airways. We'll continue to follow that.
Yesterday I was telling you about how US Airways is giving its employees a $50 bonus because their on-time performance in the holiday crush from last Wednesday to Monday was, I think, 77 percent, something like that. Delta's on-time performance is well into the 80 percent range. Delta congratulated its workers and pointed out that over the course of the year, by beating expectations, Delta employees have had a few hundred dollars in bonuses and they can probably expect one before the end of the year.
So I think it's important both of these airlines are trying to keep their staff happy so when talk of a merger comes out they can both claim to be well-run companies and good for the employees.
S. O'BRIEN: And the money talks, doesn't it?
VELSHI: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: Ali, thanks.
VELSHI: OK.
M. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Ali.
The next hour of AMERICAN MORNING starts right now.
S. O'BRIEN: Face to face. President Bush and Iraq's prime minister meeting overnight, promising to keep America in the fight for Iraq.
M. O'BRIEN: New details coming out this morning from the Iraq Study Group, ready to release its recommendations about when American troops might come home. S. O'BRIEN: A big scare at Sea World. A killer whale at the world famous Shamu show turns on his trainer right in front of the fans.
M. O'BRIEN: And out like a lion. Snow, ice and severe weather bearing down on more than a dozen states, bringing a big chill to your holiday travel plans -- or post-holiday travel plans.
That's ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: And welcome back, everybody. It's Thursday, November 30th.
I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien.
We're glad you're with us.
S. O'BRIEN: We begin this morning in Iraq and some mixed signals on just when U.S. troops might be coming home.
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