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Iraqi Army Foils Insurgent Plot To Attack Najaf During Shia Holiday; 300 Insurgents reportedly killed in fierce battle with Iraqi, U.S. Forces; Iran Playing Increased Role in Iraq; Prince Charles Receives Environmental Award; Mountain Lion Attack Survivor's Condition Worsens
Aired January 29, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Deadly firefight: U.S. and Iraqi forces in an explosive showdown with insurgents. Hundreds killed and another American helicopter shut down.
Senator Hillary Clinton slams President Bush on Iraq, while her run for the White House faces a new threat from former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
M. O'BRIEN: And Prince Charles honored and cheered in America, but jeered at home. That, and more on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back. Monday, January 29th. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: I'm Miles O'Brien. Thanks for being with us.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's begin with what's new in morning. In Iraq at least five people are dead after overnight bombings in Baghdad. Plus, a staggering death toll in the holy city of Najaf. As many as 300 insurgents killed there. They apparently planned to storm Najaf and kill Shiite pilgrims and clerics who are celebrating a major religious holiday there.
Two U.S. soldiers were also killed in a firefight when their helicopter was shot down. Let's go right to CNN's Arwa Damon. She's live in for us in Baghdad this morning.
Good morning, Arwa.
ARWA DAMON, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, Soledad.
According to a senior police official in Najaf, U.S. forces actually took the lead in that firefight that began early Sunday morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAMON (voice over): A snap shot of the battle's intensity captured on a cell phone camera. A fierce firefight between hundreds of gunmen and U.S. and Iraqi forces just a few miles north of the holy Shia city of Najaf. That plume of smoke is believed to be coming from the wreckage of a U.S. helicopter. The U.S. military confirmed that the two servicemen on board were killed. It all began just before dawn.
Police in Najaf received tips, some 150 gunmen were amassing north of the city, preparing for an attack on Tuesday. The day that Shia from across the country would be observing the Ashura (ph), holiest ritual in Shia Islam. The tipsters told police the men were plotting to kill pilgrims and Shia clerics, including Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the most revered Shia religious cleric in the country.
The reaction was swift, and the enemy they found surprised them. Estimates of up to 600 insurgents described by police as a mix of extremists, thugs, and criminals dug in fighting positions with sophisticated military techniques and modern weaponry. All signs of a well-planned operation, and a well-funded enemy. The Iraqi military and police forces sustained of casualties and were forced to withdraw in the face of the enemy, calling the Americans for help.
U.S. forces responded with both ground and air support. Based on the intensity of the battle and the ongoing bombardment of the area, Iraq officials are estimating some 250 to 300 gunmen were killed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DAMON: U.S. and Iraqi officials have been bracing themselves for some sort of major attack against the Shia community for quite some time now, and they do remain on the lookout for other plots specifically targeting Shia pilgrims and clerics, but the sheer magnitude of this one has been shocking -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: The sheer magnitude of this one, Arwa, raises a question. Can the Iraqi troops really handle it on their own if the U.S. troops weren't there to take the lead?
DAMON: Soledad, that pretty much sums it up right there, and this is the concern amongst those that believe that the handing over of security to the Iraqis is happening too fast. They will point to an example like that firefight that we saw, and say that this is a clear indication that the Iraqi security forces still need the Americans by their side. Not just for the aerial and ground support, but, also, in terms of command and control.
We did hear from a senior police officer in Najaf that U.S. forces did take the lead on this operation. But others will point to the fact that the Iraqi security forces reacted on their own to the initial intelligence that they received and only then called in the Americans for support, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Arwa Damon for us this morning in Baghdad. Thanks, Arwa.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Presidential politics now. The first voting may be a year away, but the candidates are campaigning hard already jockeying for attention and for money, or at least most of them. The Hillary Clinton campaign descended on Iowa. And the former first lady drew huge crowds and at least one big laugh. CNN's Candy Crowley with that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, AMERICAN MORNING (voice over): Giuliani courts New Hampshire. Richardson worked Reno. Kucinich takes his heart to San Francisco, and former Governor Mike Hukabee joins the Republican roster. The '08s were out in force this weekend, but the greatest of forces was a Hillary-fest in Iowa.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON, (D-NY) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Whoa! Thank you!
CROWLEY: Election-eve size coverage and standing room only crowds. Mostly adoring crowds with the occasional tough question. How, she was asked, having voting for the war does she propose to end it?
CLINTON: The president has said this is going to be left in his successor, and I think it's the height of irresponsibility, and I really resent it. This was his decision to go to war. He went with an ill-conceived plan and an incompetently executed strategy, and we should expect him to extricate our country from this before he leaves office.
(APPLAUSE)
CROWLEY: From the theaters to the banners to the lighting, this is a campaign in full swing where celebrity status brings in the crowds and little is left to chance. All of which makes one odd moment all the odder. The question was about her ability to stand up to dictators.
CLINTON: And in the gentleman's words, we face a lot of evil men. You know, people like Osama bin Laden comes to mind. What in my background equips me to deal with evil and bad men?
(APPLAUSE)
CROWLEY: Why were they laughing and what did she have in mind? She bristles at the suggestion it was her husband.
CLINTON: You guys keep telling me, lighten up, be funny. You know, I get a little funny, and now I'm being psychoanalyzed.
I feel very strongly --
CROWLEY: Whatever. Mostly this was a flawless maiden voyage for the Senator from New York.
CLINTON: Thank you all very much.
CROWLEY (on camera): This coming weekend the Senator from New York sets sail again. This time for New Hampshire for her first visit there since announcing her presidential intentions. Candy Crowley, CNN, Davenport, Iowa.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: Remember, CNN is the first place to see the first debates of the season April 4th and 5th, from New Hampshire. Mark it on your calendar.
Stick around today. We will talk about Democratic Candidate John Edwards next hour -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Happening this morning, Britain's Prince Charles and his wife Camilla are back home after a whirlwind trip to America. They visited a school in Harlem on Sunday. Then the prince picked up an award for his work on the environment, from former Vice President Al Gore. British environmentalist have been critical of the prince, they say he should have stayed home than fly to the U.S. and burn more fossil fuels.
Passing note: Father Robert Drinan, the first Roman Catholic priest ever elected to Congress is dead. He represented Massachusetts's Third District for five terms starting in 1971. He filed the impeachment resolution against President Nixon. Father Drinan resigned form Congress after Pope John Paul II banned priests from holding public office. He was 86 years old.
A 67-year-old woman from Spain is now the world's oldest new mother -- 67 years old. Oh, my goodness. Her name is Carmella Rusada (ph) and she says she lied about her age at the fertility clinic in California. She said she was 55. That was the cutoff age. She gave birth to twin sons late last month.
Oh, my god. That is so hard, believe me, I know. She's 67 years old. OK.
New study -- moving on here -- about insomniacs getting a good night's sleep -- maybe, finally. Researchers developed a drug that blocks a blood peptide, it's called irexon (ph). In tests it promoted sleep in rats and dogs and in people, too. It's important in maintaining wakefulness and is absent in brains of people who suffer from narcolepsy. It appears in the online issue of the journal, "Nature's Medicine". An interesting study.
M. O'BRIEN: There's a new champ at the top of the box office. "Epic Movie" was number one over the weekend. It is a spoof of Hollywood blockbusters. It brought in $19.2 million. And the shoot'em all up, "Smokin' Aces", was second with $14.3 million. "Night At The Museum", "Catch And Release," "Stomp The Yard," rounding out the top five.
Another movie award show, another batch of honors for a woman who plays a queen and a man who plays a tyrant, CNN's Sibila Vargas has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN HOLLYWOOD CORRESPONDENT, AMERICAN MORNING (voice over): The world of film and television collided in a star- studded extravaganza at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles for the Screen Actors' Guild Awards.
(On camera): While the critics have spoken about the work of such performers as Helen Mirren and Forest Whittaker, at an awards show where the winners are chosen by their fellow actors, how would their peers decide?
(Voice over): Already crowned Hollywood royalty both Whittaker and Mirren continue to reign. Whittaker was honored for his outstanding performance in the lead role for "The Last King of Scotland," while Helen Mirren was chosen for "The Queen". The four- time winner was also honored for her performance as Elizabeth 1st in the television movie category.
HELEN MIRREN, ACTRESS, "THE QUEEN" AND "ELIZABETH I": It's incredibly exciting, but it's fleeting. And one has to recognize that fact as well. You know, you can't sort of hang on to it. You have to enjoy the moment, and then let it go.
VARGAS: Oscar nominees Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson both took home actor statues for their supporting work in "Dreamgirls."
EDDIE MURPHY, "DREAMGIRLS": I've done all different types of movies and do something and step outside of what you do, and try to do something a little different, and for it to be well-received is -- that's a really great feeling.
JENNIFER HUDSON, "DREAMGIRLS": One we I'm -- I'm what -- winning the Golden Globe, the next week, I'm nominated for the Oscar, and winning the SAG Award in the middle of it! And then one day I'm interviewing with Oprah, the next day I'm interviewing with Barbara Walters. It's like -- ah!
ANNETTE BENNING, ACTRESS: The actor goes to the cast of "Little Miss Sunshine."
VARGAS: Perhaps the evening's biggest surprise came when the independent comedy, "Little Miss Sunshine", was honored for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello. Um, I don't know. Who do you want to thank?
VARGAS: In the television categories the cast of fan favorite "The Office" was recognized as outstanding ensemble in a comedy series. The cast of "Grey's Anatomy" was recognized for their outstanding work, both as an ensemble, as well as individually. Miss Chandra Wilson taking home a statue for her work.
CHANDRA WILSON, "GREY'S ANATOMY": It's about those 10 cast members, sitting over there -- and the other one in rehab. You all just hold me together.
VARGAS: Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: So, she didn't really mention the controversy, but she did, kinda.
S. O'BRIEN: Oh, she so did. The other one in rehab. That was it. Funny way to put it, too.
Citrus farmers in Florida, a busy day ahead trying to protect crops before a big freeze. Chad Myers has the "Travelers' Forecast" for you in just a moment.
Plus, Hillary Clinton in Iowa. Rudy Giuliani in New Hampshire. We'll take a look at the ever-growing list of big names headed to the race in 2008.
An update on the condition of that man who was mauled by a mountain lion. You see him right there, saved by his wife, see her, too. We'll tell you how he is doing today. You are watching AMERICAN MORNING, the most news in the morning is right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: Most news in the morning, right here on CNN.
Stories on our radar this morning. A congressional committee is holding public hearings in New Orleans today. They'll be getting an earful from some Katrina victims, still on the ropes 17 months after Katrina.
An interstate north of Detroit is opened back up this morning. Take a look at the scene there yesterday. Huge chain reaction crash. Two dozen cars and trucks, numerous injuries. They drove into a whiteout, that caused it.
Quarter past the hour. Chad Myers at the CNN Weather Center with more on -- it's rather chilly in our part of the world, isn't it?
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: Hillary Clinton topped all the political headlines this weekend with a big trip to Iowa. She's still not the number one, though, in the poll of likely caucus goers. So, what does she have to do next? What about all those other candidates jumping in over the weekend? Take a closer look with Perry Bacon Jr.; he's with "Time" magazine, he's in Washington.
Nice to see you, Perry. Thanks for talking with us.
PERRY BACON, JR., "TIME" MAGAZINE: Good to see you.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's talk, first and foremost, about Hillary Clinton's busy, busy weekend. She covered lots of ground, had town halls in Cedar Rapids and Davenport. Overall, how would you assess how she did and how it went?
BACON: I thought she had a very strong weekend. You could see there were very big crowds. At her first event they thought they had a place for about 1,000, and they ended up having 3,000, and an overflow crowd. She had a lot of big crowds for the events.
And a lot of the people in the crowds were not only asking her questions and were praising her and saying they were excited about possibly having a woman president. And saying -- one woman told her Clinton was her idol. She had a very strong crowd at some of the events.
S. O'BRIEN: There was one point when she's asked about her vote on Iraq. I think she's at a town hall in Davenport. Here's what she said about her vote. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: This was his decision to go to war. He went with an ill-conceived plan, and an incompetently executed strategy, and we should expect him to extricate our country from this before he leaves office.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Answer to the question about her vote is all about President Bush. Do you think voters are going to need more than that, or do you think that's going to suffice?
BACON: She was asked a lot of questions about the war during the weekend, and a lot of people were still concerned about her position more. So I don't think that will be enough. She'll have to discuss her vote. And she has been doing this over the last two months. Discuss her vote, explaining exactly where she was standing, exactly what her plan is, too.
I know she has a plan right now to sort of cap the number of troops in Iraq and sort of oppose the surge. I think she will be asked more about that. But I think all the Candidates, all the Democrats, will sort of turn the Iraq question from themselves to the president.
S. O'BRIEN: Yeah. Excuse me.
We'll see if it's enough for the voters. There's an interesting twist here, of course. Hillary is the frontrunner, but she has a high, high negative. What's -- did we learn anything over the weekend about her strategy to try to combat that?
BACON: I think we had a poll last week from "Time" magazine that showed about 40 percent of Americans sort of have a negative view of her right now. I think that what I saw -- in watching her try to change that -- she sort of reinforced -- she talked a lot about being a mom and -- and being a mother -- and being a woman, and that's part of who she is. I think she'll emphasize that a lot as one way to sort of soften herself.
And she also, you know, you can tell she spent a lot of time trying to really hear people's questions. And she talked about how it was a conversation, and not just, you know, her talking. She really emphasized it the way she did when she ran for the first time in New York. She wants to be very open and be very comfortable with voters. I think you saw an effort to do that this weekend, and you'll see more of that as she goes to Iowa.
S. O'BRIEN: It will be interesting to see if that strategy works. Over the weekend we had Huckabee and Biden in the race. Essentially, maybe not officially, but mostly sort of officially.
So, by my last count we now have 18 people in the race, eight Democrats and 10 Republicans who will be in. Last week we were calling that unusual. This week it has to be very, very unusual because there's now more people in.
At what point do we see this really huge field kind of winnowed down to a handful of serious contenders, do you think?
BACON: I suspect by either June or July we'll have some of these candidates will decide. You know, will have given a lot of speeches in Iowa and New Hampshire, not raise a lot of money, and decide maybe it's not going to happen. I still think you'll have at least five candidates on both sides in December and in January by caucus time. Because I think there's an opportunity here.
There's not a sitting vice president, there's not a sitting president. There's an opportunity here to sort of break out and maybe make a name for yourself, and maybe upset John McCain or Hillary Clinton or Obama, what have you. There's an opportunity here and I think a lot of these guys are going to try to do it for as long as they can.
S. O'BRIEN: Perry Bacon Jr. with "Time" magazine. Nice to see you, Perry. Thanks for talking with us.
BACON: Thanks for having me.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up, Microsoft ready to open a new window. See what it means for you and your PC.
And oh, brother. A reality show that devolved into racial taunts is over. The target of those taunts gets the last laugh. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: The most news in the morning is right here on CNN. Two stories we're watching for you this morning. Testimony resumes today in the Scooter Libby/CIA leak trial. We could hear from former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleisher today. And in Iraq as many as 300 insurgents have been killed with a clash with U.S. and Iraqi troops, foiling a plot against Shiite religious leaders in Najaf.
M. O'BRIEN: In London this morning there's a winner in Britain's controversial reality show "Celebrity Big Brother."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The lines are closed. The votes have been counted and verified, and I can now reveal that the winner of "Celebrity Big Brother" 2007 is Shilpa!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my god!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: Dogs all around the nation having trouble with that one. Ah! I can't even get close to that one.
Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty crowned the winner last night, beating out Germaine Jackson. Shetty got the votes after she was picked on and harassed with racial taunts by other contestants. Shetty is being gracious in victory, however, high road for her. She now says she never thought the other contestants meant to be racist. Good for her.
Microsoft is rolling out its first new operating system in years. Don't expect people to line up like it's a PS3, or something. About 25 minutes past the hour. Stephanie Elam, "Minding Your Business".
Good morning, Stephanie.
STEPHNIE ELAM, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, Miles.
If you did want to line up, you can feel free because a few stores are actually going to stay open late tonight; maybe from 10:00 p.m. To 2:00 a.m. So, you could get in there and get Vista, which a lot of people have been waiting quite a long time for.
To mark the event they'll have NFL players at a few stores. A few companies will. So, that you can get autographs and feel extra excited about your new operating system. Some are offering door-buster sales, as well, for accessories and peripherals related to Vista.
CEO Steve Balmer, he's CEO of Microsoft, will also be on hand at a Manhattan store tomorrow. And Bill Gates is actually going to be on "The Daily Show" with John Stewart tonight. So, now, remember, this goes on sale at 12:01 a.m., so really Tuesday, but you can get it late tonight.
Amazon.com is also getting in on it. They'll launch a site that will help people pick out the right version, if they need help, and pick out other accessories. They can do that. And as well, over at Best Buy, the Geek Squad, have trained 11,000 of their staffers in Vista so they can help people out. There should be a little bit of hoopla.
After that we're going to take a look, in our next hit, at Verizon and also the iPhone and see what's going on there.
Soledad, back to you.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Stephanie. Thank you.
Top stories of the morning are coming up next, too. Classified evidence is just coming to light. We'll hear what it says about Iran and its possible influence in the war in Iraq.
And Charles and Camilla come to America, but take the heat at home. We'll tell you what happened. You are watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is right here on CNN.
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M. O'BRIEN: Joining the fight, Iran looking to increase its influence in Iraq. Stirring up new security concerns for the U.S.
S. O'BRIEN: Survivor setback, the health of the hiker who was attacked by a mountain lion takes a turn for the worse. We'll have the latest on his condition, and how his wife really is the hero, and kept him alive.
M. O'BRIEN: And fit for a king. A sweeping honor for Prince Charles in America. So why is he being called a hypocrite at home? We'll explain on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: Welcome back. Monday, January 29th. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: I'm Miles O'Brien. Thanks for being with us.
S. O'BRIEN: Happening this morning the first suicide bombing in Israel in nine months, to report. Three people were killed in a seaside resort town Eilat, it's a magnet for tourists around the world. It has never been attacked in six years of the Palestinian uprising. Three Palestinian groups are now claiming responsibility.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a congressional delegation now on their way back home from the war zone. Speaker Pelosi met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday. She says more attention should be paid to the war in Afghanistan and supports the White House plan to send more money. Pelosi and the delegation also visited Iraq and Pakistan over the weekend.
U.S. troops and Iraqi forces are battling an insurgent plot in the holy city of Najaf, to kill the Grand Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani; up to 300 insurgent forces are dead. Two American soldiers died when their helicopter was shot down.
M. O'BRIEN: More reason to worry about Iran this morning. The "New York Times" reporting Tehran wants to expand its reach inside Iraq. The word comes as the U.S. is poised to declassify what it claims is evidence the Iranians are meddling in Iraq.
Barbara Starr joining us from the Pentagon with more.
Good morning, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. Well, U.S. officials say that attacks in Iraq are growing more sophisticated, and one reason may be Iran.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: If you're in Iraq and trying to kill our troops, then you should consider yourself a target.
STARR (voice-over): That blunt warning from the new defense secretary, singling out Iran's growing involvement in the fighting inside Iraq. The State Department says it wants to unveil classified evidence that proves just that.
SEAN MCCORMACK, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: Where we are in the process is taking a look at the mountain of evidence that we do have.
STARR: Much of that information is already out there if you know where to look. Earlier this month CIA director General Michael Hayden said Iran is shifting weapons into Iraq that are killing U.S. troops.
MICHAEL HAYDEN, CIA DIRECTOR: The EFSs are coming from Iran. They are being used against our forces. They are capable of defeating some of our heaviest armor. And in incident for incident, cause significantly more casualties than any other improvised explosive devices do, and they are provided to Shia militia.
STARR: Hayden is talking about explosively formed projectiles, sophisticated manufactured explosives capable of penetrating even a battle tank. Back in November Hayden bluntly warned that Tehran was stepping up its supply chain to Shia militias inside Iraq.
HAYDEN: The provision of them -- to them to capabilities that have been used against the coalition...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.
HAYDEN: ... has been quite striking.
STARR: There is more. U.S. officials say in recent raids in Iraq they detained suspected Iranian operatives and found IEDs, rifles, mortar launchers, weapons with Iranian markings, maps, and shipping documents. They also say two suspects were senior members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
And there's further evidence still.
GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: It's clear that money is coming in through their intelligence services. Training is probably being conducted inside Iran through various surrogates and proxies.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: And, Miles, Iranian government officials have said recently that they continue to deny all of these allegations that their government is involved in attacks inside Iraq, but U.S. troops remain on the lookout for further evidence. And the evidence that they do have in hand is what the government -- the U.S. administration says it wants to now make public -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Of course, Barbara, the Bush administration has a little credibility problem with this, given the faulty intelligence in the run-up to the war in Iraq. How are they going to get around that?
STARR: Well, it's very clear that that is one stumbling block at this point, especially at the State Department, where they are very aware that their, you know, claims of WMD in Iraq didn't prove to be true.
What officials say is this time it is different. They already do have the evidence in hand. The only reason they would not make it public, they say, is if it compromised their intelligence-gathering capability, but they are convinced this time that they do have the evidence in hand -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you very much.
Race to the White House now. A year away before any primary voting, but they're campaigning like there's no tomorrow. Senator Hillary Clinton campaigning in Iowa, bashing President Bush on Iraq. Former New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani, still testing the presidential waters, speaking to the New Hampshire Republican party convention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUDY GIULIANI (R), FORMER MAYOR OF NEW YORK: We look toward the future. We have to reassert our -- the basic core principles of the Republican Party. We've got to be -- you know, we've got to be about being Republican strong, not Democrat light.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When people tell me, you know, I don't think America can really face up to its problems, deal with this new global environment, make the hard decisions, I say don't you count us out. We may not have had good leadership the last six years, but we are still the best, most able, can-do country in the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: Former Senator John Edwards, also in the race, of course, and he will join us at 8:15 Eastern. Stay tuned for that -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: There was a prince in the city, and they rolled out the red carpet in Philadelphia and New York this weekend for Britain's Prince Charles and his wife Camilla. Charles was here to accept an environmental award, but the trip, though, is raising some questions across the pond, as they say.
AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho has that story.
Good morning.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: They think he's a hypocrite there, right?
CHO: Yes. Sort of getting mixed reviews, you might say. You know, Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, charmed Americans this weekend, but some in Britain say by coming to the U.S. the so-called green prince is a hypocrite.
Either way, there was plenty of pomp and circumstance this weekend. In fact, you might say fit for a royal.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: To ask you to come forward and to accept this award as the tenth anniversary global environmental citizen. Congratulations.
CHO: Former Vice President Al Gore presented Prince Charles with a special honor for his efforts to protect the environment.
PRINCE CHARLES, UNITED KINGDOM: I can't tell you how touched and grateful I am for all these extraordinary flattering words that are being said about me. I find it rather strange after all these years of being the end of a certain amount of abuse. And all I can say is fame at last, so it's encouraging.
CHO: It capped a whirlwind weekend for Charles and his wife, Camilla. Earlier Sunday they visited a charter school in Harlem, where they watched a group of middle school students pick stocks and perform a scene from Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream".
The prince decided to join the kids for basketball practice. He threw up a royal brick before banking one in.
Their trip has focused on education, urban renewal, and the environment.
While Charles has won praise from environmentalists, he's been criticized at home. There was a royal row over the so-called green prince riding to the U.S. in a private jet.
In response, the couple flew commercial to Philadelphia.
It was their first-ever trip to the city where Americans declared their independence from British rule. And their presence excited even some of the littlest royal watchers.
MICHAEL CORWIN, FOURTH GRADER: I know he's the son of Queen Elizabeth II, and he's the oldest of them all. I think he might be king one day.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Yes, he might.
Now, the royals were last in the United States last year, and at that time the trip was more about Camilla winning over hearts and minds, so to speak. You'll recall, they were still newlyweds at the time, and she was trying to overcome the image of being the other woman. That was a charm offensive, some called it.
This trip, Soledad, was billed as one that focused more on strengthening ties between the U.S. and Britain.
Great at water colors, but who knew he could shoot hoops, too, you know? There was that.
S. O'BRIEN: About 50-50, right?
CHO: Well, you know.
S. O'BRIEN: Overall, the trip was a success?
CHO: Yes, it was, and over in a flash.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, it was.
CHO: You know, just a couple of days. Last time they were here for a week.
S. O'BRIEN: Alina, thanks.
CHO: Sure.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: That first shot he missed, that's a hair ball. Hair ball.
Anyway, up next, Chad has got the full forecast.
Also, so what would you do if a mountain lion decided you looked like lunch? We'll tell you the tale of a 70-year-old man who survived an attack, thanks to his quick-thinking wife.
Speaking of survivors, the fight to save a Kentucky Derby winner takes another turn. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning right here.
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M. O'BRIEN: Most news in the morning right here. Stories on the radar today, in Israel, a suicide bomber kills three people. It happened in a resort town, southern part of the country. A Palestinian suicide bomber blowing himself up in a bakery as people were sleeping.
And Interstate 679 north of Detroit, about 50 miles north in the Flint -- sort of in the Flint area, it's open this morning. Whiteout conditions yesterday caused a pile-up with two dozen cars and trucks. Numerous injuries. No fatalities, though -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Miles, thanks.
Hiker Jim Hamm, who survived a mountain lion attack on Wednesday, but his condition is worsening. He's now been moved to a San Francisco hospital and has been undergoing emergency surgery.
He would not be alive at all, though, if it weren't for his wife, Nell. AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence has their story.
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CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bandages can't begin to cover the puncture wounds and torn scalp, but Jim Hamm is only alive because of his wife, Nell.
NELL HAMM, WIFE: His life was in jeopardy. And we were fighting for his life.
LAWRENCE: Nell is 65 years old. Jim is 70. They go hiking two, three times a week but have never seen a mountain lion before last week, when a lion like this one pounced on Jim.
JIM HAMM, SURVIVED MOUNTAIN LION ATTACK: So he just wants to pin me down and start eating. He doesn't care.
LAWRENCE: It knocked Jim flat on his face.
J. HAMM: Then he got me in the mouth, and I got my thumb in his eye. And I jammed my thumb into his eye up to my knuckle.
LAWRENCE: Nell grabbed the biggest log she could lift and hit the animal's head as hard as she could.
J. HAMM: She was beating him the whole time. She was worn out from beating him. She said she didn't think she could beat him anymore. She was exhausted.
LAWRENCE: Finally, the jaws loosened and let Jim go.
So did she do the right thing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She did exactly the right thing. That was to fight back. Not give up.
LAWRENCE (voice-over): Park ranger Maury Morningstar says you can't outrun a mountain lion.
Sightings like this one in residential areas are increasing. Attacks are still extremely rare. But three years ago a lion killed a biker who may have been kneeling down to fix a flat tire.
(on camera) We're more of a target...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
LAWRENCE: Because we're smaller.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right. We're smaller. We look about the type of size of their type of prey. So that's the idea of we want you to stand up. Put your hands above your head and start yelling and screaming at it. LAWRENCE (voice-over): The cat that attacked Jim was shot and killed. On examination, it looks like it hadn't eaten in weeks.
N. HAMM: I feel very blessed that Jim is alive, and I'm so very thankful for that.
LAWRENCE: Nell says they fought side-by-side, the same way they've done everything for the 50 years they've been together.
Chris Lawrence, CNN, Eureka, California.
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S. O'BRIEN: Jim Hamm is in intensive care. His wife is at his side, and the Hamms are going to celebrate their 50th anniversary next month -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: About quarter of the hour. You're heading out the door, Chad Myers has some words for you.
Hello, Chad.
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M. O'BRIEN: All right. No more gardening for them, I guess.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No. You need to cover that up tonight, I'm afraid.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Chad.
MYERS: All right.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up, would you hang up on Apple if it came calling? One telecom giant did. We'll explain that.
And a setback for the Kentucky Derby champ, Barbaro. We'll tell you how vets are desperately trying to save him right now.
And one city bans cell phones in all its schools. They say it's a safety issue. Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
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M. O'BRIEN: Most news in the morning right here. Here's some of the feeds we use to give you that news.
Take a look at -- why don't we start on incoming 17? Why not? Let's think ahead to the Super Bowl. That's Miami. That's where the Super Bowl will be played. By the way, 55 degrees in Miami. Sunny. High of 66. You want to be there? I do. For sure.
Incoming 301. There's the United States Capitol. Incoming 18 is the White House, just to tell you we got Washington covered here. We show you the Capitol, but we're focused today on some field hearings. Some members of Congress headed down to New Orleans. I suspect they'll get an earful from Katrina victims. Seventeen months later, that city in many respects still on the ropes.
And that's about all we got on the feeds. Kind of a quiet -- we got that tanker that kind of somewhat capsized there. We're watching that one, as well. But that's all we got right now -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Thank you, Miles.
Imagine being a young mother, just 36 years old, with a little toddler and a brand new baby, and then being told you've been diagnosed with cancer. Kelley Tuthill has no family history of breast cancer. She never even had a mammogram before.
Kelley is an investigative reporter with CNN affiliate WCBB in Boston, and she decided to go public with her battle. She's been keeping an online journal. We wanted to share some of that journal with you this morning.
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KELLEY TUTHILL, WCBB REPORTER: Feel the tension start to build in the room, and everything gets very serious. I have no family history of breast cancer. I never even had a mammogram before, so when I tell you I was not expecting this diagnosis, believe me, I was not expecting this diagnosis.
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S. O'BRIEN: Kelley takes us through what this has been like for her. It involves a lot of tears. In fact, when she found that lump in her breast, she assumed it was because she'd been breast feeding her new baby and didn't think it was anything serious.
We're going to talk to Kelley live about her diagnosis. She's just had the surgery. We'll talk about the treatment and what the road looks like ahead for her. That's coming up in our next hour -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. We're glad you're with us here. The most news in the morning.
Happening in America today in Pennsylvania. A setback for Kentucky Derby champ Barbaro. Doctors inserting two steel pins into that broken hind leg. Barbaro's other hind hoof still recovering from that disease called laminitis that's caused by the uneven weight balance on his legs.
Doctors say if Barbara gets laminitis in any other of his hoofs, they may stop treatment and possibly have to put him down. We'll keep you posted. Obviously, those are file pictures there.
In Florida Shaquille O'Neal with the assist. No, not that kind of assist. Shaq is not only an NBA all-star; he's a reserve officer with the Miami Beach Police Department. I bet he has to have a custom uniform. You know?
Anyway, he helped catch an alleged hit-and-run driver early yesterday. He says the driver hit his Cadillac Escalade. Don't mess with his Escalade. Shaq caught up with him at a gas station and called over a nearby police officer, and they got the collar.
In Wisconsin starting today no more cell phones in Milwaukee schools. School officials say the ban is part of an effort to curb school violence. Apparently, last month some girls got into a fight at a school. They used their cell phones to call from help. Not to the police. But from their friends and family, and the resulting reinforcements led to a huge donnybrook outside the school.
In California the Screen Actors Guild awards last night. Among the winners, Forest Whittaker. He won best actor in a film called "The Last King of Scotland". It's about Idi Amin of Uganda.
And Helen Mirren won for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in "The Queen". She's also won best actress for the TV movie where she plays Elizabeth I. She's the all Elizabeth actress, I guess.
And get a load of this one. This lucky, plucky duck out of Tallahassee, Florida. She's recovering this morning just fine after a hunter shot her, refrigerated her for two days, but as Mark Twain might say, news of her demise greatly exaggerated.
Veterinarians then operated on her after she apparently was alive in the refrigerator and pried open the door. But then she flat-lined again. But then she came back to life again. And now they're letting her heal on her own from a broken right wing and leg. Her name? Perky.
S. O'BRIEN: Totally appropriately named.
M. O'BRIEN: Perky the duck.
S. O'BRIEN: Perky will not give up.
Coming up this morning, Hillary Clinton got all the hype in Iowa, but it's presidential hopeful John Edwards that's actually leading the Democrats there. He's going to tell us how he plans to make up ground across the rest of the country. That's straight ahead this morning.
Plus, a fierce firefight for hundreds in Iraq. Did U.S. and Iraqi forces foil a deadly plot? We'll take you live to Iraq ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is right here on CNN.
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S. O'BRIEN: Verizon's loss is Cingular's gain. Verizon passed on the iPhone. It's about five minutes before the hour. Stephanie Elam is "Minding Your Business" for us.
Good morning.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
So this actually happened two years ago, according to "USA Today". Verizon said there's just too many rules and things that Apple wanted, that it was just not worth it.
Overall, they're saying that over at Apple they wanted a percentage of monthly cell phone fees. They also wanted a say on how and where iPhones were actually sold. And the other big issue here is that they wanted to control the relationship with iPhone customers, which obviously would go against the way Verizon normally does things.
So now Cingular, which is now the new AT&T because of mergers, will be the exclusive retailer in the U.S. of the iPhone.
Customer care was another one of the issues, too, because Apple wanted to be the one that had the sole discretion of whether or not to replace or repair phones. And so when Verizon looked at this and the fact that it could only be in Verizon stores, they say that would actually hurt their relationship with their other distributors like Best Buy and Wal-Mart. So they decided this just wasn't the deal for them to get into.
The phone is expected to ship in June at $500.
Moving on, let's say you get a cell phone bill for, like, $31,000. That actually happened to a 77-year-old retiree from Florida, and he said that these calls from Nicaragua he just didn't make. He said that they had nothing to do with him. He'd never been to Nicaragua. He says his phone bill is normally $150. He's a retired bank exec; kept fighting with Cingular over the bill.
They said that there's something fishy. They canceled his account until the local paper, the "Sarasota Herald-Tribune" got wind of the story and started looking around. And then they refunded the money for him and also gave him an extra $120 to which he said, "I'm not coming back to Cingular after all this."
You can't blame him for that. I can't. That's not too much of a surprise.
S. O'BRIEN: Thanks, but no thanks.
ELAM: Yes, exactly.
S. O'BRIEN: I don't want to work with you anymore is what he said.
ELAM: Exactly.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, Stephanie. Thanks.
ELAM: Sure.
S. O'BRIEN: Top stories of the morning. Most popular, in fact, on CNN.com, there is a winner in Britain's controversial reality show, "Celebrity Big Brother". Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty was crowned the winner last night. She beat out Jermaine Jackson.
M. O'BRIEN: Silent scream there. Did you see that? Silent scream. S. O'BRIEN: I know. She got all the votes after she was picked on and harassed with racial taunts by the other contestants, and then some of the other people just sat there and wouldn't even come to her defense.
Anyway, she's being incredibly gracious in her victory. She says she never thought the other contenders meant to be racist and that everybody makes mistakes, and we learn from them.
M. O'BRIEN: Good for her.
S. O'BRIEN: "USA Today" reporting this: 146 levees may fail in a flood. The Army Corps of Engineers say that 146 levees across the nation pose an unacceptable risk in a flood.
The Corps has done extensive surveys since Hurricane Katrina overwhelmed New Orleans levees. They say communities from Connecticut to California need to invest millions of dollars to shore up their levees. The problems have been blamed mostly on poor maintenance.
M. O'BRIEN: "Miami Herald", check out this report. This will come as no surprise to you, that folks in Little Havana there, big Cuban-American community, will probably be pretty excited when Fidel Castro finally meets his maker.
"When Castro Dies, Party's On" is the headline. There was a meeting agenda that's very hush-hush, and the agenda for the meeting to discuss this party that they're planning to have in the Orange Bowl was a committee meeting for an event at the Orange Bowl. That's it. An event.
The Orange Bowl is very significant, of course, for Cuban- Americans. That was where in 1961 John F. Kennedy came, gave a speech, after the Bay of Pigs invasion, that failed invasion, said Cuba will be free. And, many refugees later -- in later years were camped out there for quite some time.
But I guess it would come as no surprise if they partied a little bit. Not to dance on a grave, but the end of an era, end of communism, they hope.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. Not exactly shocking that a celebration might ensue.
M. O'BRIEN: Right.
Chad Myers, as we come to the top of the hour, has a quick word for us.
Hello, Chad.
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