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Former Gonzales Aide Testifies on Capitol Hill; Violent Storm in Colorado; British Standoff With Iran

Aired March 29, 2007 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're with CNN. You're informed.
I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.

Developments keep coming in to the NEWSROOM on this Thursday morning, March 29th.

Here's what's on the rundown.

The fired federal prosecutor. The man who helped orchestrate the dismissal is giving his view to Congress this hour. Questions and answers to come. Former Justice official Kyle Sampson in the spotlight.

HARRIS: The Senate follows through giving an Iraq war funding bill final approval moments ago. The measure's tying table (ph) for bringing home troops drawing a veto threat.

COLLINS: And plains pounded. Tornadoes slashed communities from Colorado to Oklahoma, killing four people. We are watching for more twisters today in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: The controversial firings of federal prosecutors, now a witness for the defense this morning on Capitol Hill. Testimony from Kyle Sampson. He was a top aide to Alberto Gonzales, the embattled attorney general who is now fighting for his job.

Following this morning's developments, Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash.

Dana, let me ask you a question. What do you want to start with this morning, the action by the Senate on the huge supplemental, or what we heard and what we are going to hear from Kyle Sampson?

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're kind of related...

HARRIS: Yes.

BASH: ... in the fact that -- in the fact that this hearing that you see going on behind me, it's been rather disjointed this morning because the Senate has been voting on Iraq and did, as you mentioned, just pass the war funding bill, $120-plus billion to fund the war. That includes a deadline for troops to come home by about this time next year. So that's what the Senate just completed on the floor.

What you see behind me is a hearing going on, on a very different subject, of course, and that is, as you mentioned, the Senate Judiciary Committee having -- hearing testimony from the attorney general's former chief of staff, Kyle Sampson. And this, Democrats and Republicans say, is crucial testimony in order to try to get to the bottom of a couple of things.

Number one, why eight federal prosecutors were fired. And number two, why Congress has gotten misleading or, in some cases, just flat- out wrong information about the process behind those hirings from top Justice Department officials.

Now, just a short while ago, we did hear opening statement from Kyle Sampson, who, interestingly, was a former employee of this -- of this committee, and essentially what he said was he was, of course, at the center of the plan to fire these prosecutors. He maintained that that was -- that there was no wrongdoing in that, that it was entirely proper for these prosecutors to be fired. But what he did say is that the way they gave the information to Congress was definitely mishandled.

Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KYLE SAMPSON, FMR. GONZALES CHIEF OF STAFF: When members of Congress began to raise questions about these removals, I believe the department's response was badly mishandled. It was mishandled through an unfortunate combination of poor judgments, poor word choices, and poor communication in preparation for the department's testimony before Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, in his opening statement, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy, said that they have heard testimony from some of these fired prosecutors who say that they do think that there were political implications and reasons for their firings, and that were perhaps improper. Patrick Leahy said that he is worried that it corrodes the public trust in the Justice system.

And on the issue of what Congress was told and not told, whether or not Congress was misled, the other Democrat who is really leading the charge in this investigation, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, said he really is troubled and doesn't necessarily buy the reasons why Congress was given wrong information.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: The list of contradictions, contortions and retractions grows longer every day. Maybe no one has anything to hide and everyone acted honorably, but it is sure hard to come to that conclusion based on the events of the past seven weeks.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BASH: Now you are seeing now still the opening statement from the ranking Republican on this committee, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.

What you're going to start to hear when the questioning begins -- and it hasn't begun quite yet -- are specific questions about who knew what at the highest levels of the Justice Department. Specifically, Tony, what senators want to know, especially the Democrats, is what his former boss, Kyle Sampson's former boss, Alberto Gonzales, how involved in this he was, whether or not his apparent inconsistent statements hold up.

So, they are going to be -- Kyle Sampson made it clear that it wasn't just him who was devising this plan to fire prosecutors, that there were people at the Justice Department at the senior levels and at the White House who were involved. So they are going to try to get beyond generalities and into the details of exactly who was behind this and what kinds of questions they were asking in order to get to those eight prosecutors who were fired.

HARRIS: Yes. To that point, Kyle Sampson said this was a consensus-based decision. Boy, is your beat a busy one.

Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash for us this morning.

Dana, thanks.

BASH: Thank you.

COLLINS: President Bush shoring up GOP support, heading for a showdown with Democrats over Iraq and that bill that just passed. The president met with Republican allies at the White House this morning. Afterwards, he repeated his threat to veto any war spending that calls for a withdrawal from Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Yesterday I gave a speech making it clear that I will veto a bill that restricts our commanders on the ground in Iraq, b bill that doesn't fund our troops, a bill that's got too much spending on it. I made that clear to the members.

We stand united, and saying loud and clear that when we have got a troop in harm's way, we expect that troop to be fully funded. And we've got commanders making tough decisions on the ground. We expect there to be no strings on our commanders. And that we expect the Congress to be wise about how they spend the people's money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Democrats admit they do not have enough support to override a veto, but they say they will keep up the pressure until the president changes course.

From Nebraska to Texas, people are getting a look at a disaster scene this morning. Dozens of tornadoes tore through the plains overnight. Two people were killed in the small town of Holly, Colorado. And that's where a tornado about the size of two football fields touched down.

One of the victims, a mother who had been blown into a tree with her little girl. Her 3-year-old daughter is hospitalized this morning. Just about every building in Holly had some kind of damage to it.

A tornado killed a couple in Beaver County, Oklahoma. They were seeking shelter in their home when it blew apart.

Power lines, tree limbs and mounds of debris lining the streets of Holly, Colorado, this morning.

Reporter Rhonda Scholting is live this morning.

Rhonda, are they still looking for more possible victims of this storm?

RHONDA SCHOLTING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, Heidi. They have found everyone. Everyone has been accounted for.

But you can see just how powerful this storm was by taking a look at this very old elm tree that was pushed over. And it pushed up some very heavy pieces of concrete sidewalk as it came up. And then it fell over here on top of this House, ripping off the roof.

Now, inside at the time there were two people watching television after they just had a very nice Mexican dinner at a local restaurant, they tell me. They heard the crash on the roof, but they got out OK.

But eight people were injured. And as you said, two people have now been confirmed dead out of those eight injuries. One, again, a young mother who was with her 3-year-old daughter. They were in a mobile home when the tornado picked up that home and wrapped it around a tree. Those two people, the daughter and the mother, were rescued from that tree by rescue workers, but as you said, the mother indeed has passed away.

Now, when this storm came through town, it was a time of day where most people had already had dinner. They were maybe watching TV, maybe getting ready to put the kids to bed.

They were totally unprepared for this. No one saw this coming, and so no one set off the tornado sirens here in Holly. No one had absolutely any warning of what was to come.

In all, approximately 30 homes are either very heavily damaged or totally destroyed. Most on the north side of town.

We are kind of in central Holly right here, but most on the north side of the town. And as you can see, all over town really just dozens of trees have been uprooted. Very old trees that have been, you know, here for dozens of decades, probably. But as you can see, Heidi, not there anymore. COLLINS: Boy. And a big question, as you say, about that warning system there. Nobody had any way to really protect themselves. Hopefully that will be something that is discussed after they have a chance to clean things up.

Rhonda Scholting, thanks so much. A live report out of Holly, Colorado, this morning.

HARRIS: And let's check in with Chad Myers in the severe weather center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: New accusations in the standoff over those 15 British sailors and marines held by Iran. Iran said today their British troops entered Iranian waters six times last week before they were arrested. Also today, an Iranian official said the release of the only woman among the group would be delayed.

CNN's Paula Newton reports from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hope seems to be fading that leading seaman Faye Turney will be released or that British consular officials will be allowed to visit those 15 sailors and marines later today. The reason is that, although British prime minister Tony Blair has said he doesn't want a confrontation with the Iranians, the Iranians say a confrontation is what he'll get, especially if he continues to try and pressure the U.N. or his other allies to sign up to statements of protest against Iran. A key top Iranian negotiator has now said that the release of Ms. Turney will be delayed and that British consular officials will not be allowed to visit those sailors if Britain continues with these kinds of protests.

In the meantime, the whole point of controversy about whether or not the British sailors and marines were in Iranian waters continues. Iran says that the bottom line is they want to see the British government apologize for having strayed into Iranian waters before they are willing to discuss the release of those 15 British sailors and marines.

Paula Newton, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: On the standoff over British troops, concerns about nuclear weapons. Is it time for regime change in Iran? Former U.N. ambassador John Bolton weighs in, in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: The Green Zone in Baghdad. A highly secure area becoming less and less secure?

Stay in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: And a shocking way to protect a loved one. Parents say they use a cattle prod to keep their autistic son from hurting himself.

You're in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: And good morning again, everyone. You're in the NEWSROOM.

I'm Tony Harris.

The president and press toasting one another over dinner. An evening to remember. That is until the entertainment took the stage.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): He's a man, he's a treasure trove. Tell me, what is your name?

KARL ROVE, WHITE HOUSE ADVISER (SINGING): I'm MC Rove.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Oh, look at this. It gets better.

Go, Karl. It's your birthday. Let your hair down. It's your birthday. Put your hands up.

OK. That's enough of that.

See more of this, if you dare, coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Investigating a deadly fire in Texas this morning. Three people were killed, several were hurt after a blaze spread through a Houston office building. Authorities believe the fire started in the fifth floor medical supply firm.

Flames flaring from the building's top floors. Fire crews used ladders to rescue people trapped on the higher floors of the six-story building. Three fire fighters were among the injured.

A fire in an oceanfront high-rise, and nowhere to run. It happened in Long Beach, California, south of Los Angeles. Authorities say a man jumped to his death from his 18th floor balcony yesterday. A witness says the man had been calling for help.

Fire officials say the blaze was contained mostly within the victim's apartment. No one else was injured.

Bombs and bullets leave 11 dead and dozens wounded in Iraq. The scattered attacks in Mahmoudiya and across Baghdad include this roadside bomb. It blasted a busy street lined with markets.

Also today, U.S. troops report killing four insurgents and capture 15 during raids. This comes on the day the new U.S. ambassador to Iraq is sworn in. Ryan Crocker says security is, without question, the central issue in Iraq.

They call it the Green Zone, the heart of Baghdad. Heavily protected, but is it now being heavily targeted?

CNN's Jamie McIntyre has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In the now familiar video from a week ago, new U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon flinches as an insurgent rocket lands nearby during a press briefing. Rocket attacks like this one that left a cloud of smoke over central Baghdad this week are frequent enough to show that the secure Green Zone is not so secure after all, especially lately. A deadly attack Tuesday killed two Americans, a contractor and a soldier, and wounded five others, underscoring the danger.

The Green Zone, officially called the International Zone, is a heavily-guarded, walled-in section of Baghdad that is the site of the Iraqi government and parliament, as well as the sprawling U.S. Embassy. The plan is to shrink the secure area over the coming months as some streets are reopened and turned over to Iraqi control under the new Baghdad security plan.

But that plan has U.S. contractors and other private workers, including some members of the western news media, worried that a bad situation is about to get worse. Safety, after all, is often a matter of perception.

BRIG. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS, U.S. ARMY (RET.): Is there routine intervention into the Green Zone by bad guys? Of course. Of course there is, both on the ground and through mortar fire, and through indirect fire. I mean, that stuff kind of happens.

MCINTYRE: Still, the U.S. military denies there are any plans to start moving nonessential workers out of the Green Zone because of any increased threat.

The last known American death in the Green Zone was in February, when a contractor was killed in a checkpoint shooting.

(on camera): The U.S. military doesn't have a good explanation for the recent uptick in so-called indirect fire attacks. One senior military official told CNN it could be related to the detention of several leaders of a radical cell of Muqtada al-Sadr's Mehdi army. Another officer said Tuesday's deadly attack was simply a lucky shot.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Taking a stand in China. Lofty and lonely, the owner of a small hotel battling big developers ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And an annual ritual. The president and the press roasting each other over dinner. For dessert, one-liners. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: The press is a lot tougher the second term. It's reached the point I sometimes call on Helen Thomas just to hear a friendly voice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: No pass for the press in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: President Bush packing a punch -- line, that is. Taking jabs at himself at the White House Correspondents Dinner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: Well, where should I start? A year ago, my approval rating was in the 30s, my nominee for the Supreme Court had just withdrawn, and my vice president had shot someone.

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Ah, those were the good old days.

The press is a lot tougher the second term. It's reached the point I sometimes call on Helen Thomas just to hear a friendly voice.

(LAUGHTER)

BUSH: You in the press certainly have had a lot to report lately. Take the current controversy. I have to admit, we really blew the way we let those attorneys go. You know you botched it when people sympathize with lawyers.

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Speaking of subpoenas, it's good to see Speaker Pelosi tonight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: That's good stuff, right?

COLLINS: Oh, yes.

HARRIS: Well, the timing is great. Good stuff.

You ready for what's next?

COLLINS: Yes. I saw it

HARRIS: Oh, boy. All right. Check this out.

The president's top advisor breaking us off a little something, as the kids say. Karl Rove rockin' the correspondents dinner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): Get out his gun because he's shooting quail. That man will never stop. Look at him, jumping up and down and ready to hop. He's got something to prove. And tell me you never saw this man move.

Doing the dance, the Karl Rove dance, doing the dance.

Treasure trove, tell me what is your name?

ROVE: MC Rove.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): And see him later hanging in the cove.

Tell me, what is your name?

ROVE (SINGING): MC Rove.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dong it right, and he really strove.

One more time, what's your name?

ROVE: MC Rove.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Give it up for MC Rove!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: I swear, when I first saw this...

HARRIS: Yes, yes?

COLLINS: ... I thought it was an impersonator first, because last year -- and I think it was at this very same event -- they had the guy from "Saturday Night Live" come in and do the president, who was hysterical. So when I saw it, I thought, that is not really him, the other guy.

HARRIS: Wow. OK.

Do you still have?

Just a little taste of it. Come on, just a little bit more. Come on. Come on. Just a little bit.

COLLINS: That will haunt him forever.

HARRIS: You know, I'm OK with Rove in the moment. I have a real problem with David Gregory back there, the White House correspondent for NBC. What is -- what is David doing? What is that move?

What is that?

COLLINS: I don't know.

HARRIS: OK.

(CROSSTALK)

COLLINS: He's screaming at the end. OK.

Well, she's small. He's tall. A little later, the long and short of this most unusual pairing.

HARRIS: Oh man.

COLLINS: I guess.

HARRIS: And lighting up, phone again, staying out -- sick leave and smoking filtering the findings in a new Swedish study in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. Once again, about 11:30 Eastern time. I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. We're getting into some breaking news just in to CNN out of Iraq. CNN is following this story and can confirm of a suicide bombing in the town of Khalis, that is north of Baghdad. It is mostly a Shiite neighborhood. The death toll stands at 21 at this point. Another 20 people reported injured.

The Reuters News Agency is reporting that at least 40 people were killed in the same attack. Multiple car bombs again in that mostly Shiite town of Khalis. Witnesses are reporting seeing at least eight people killed in one of the blasts. Police say there were four explosions, at least one of them carried out by a suicide bomber within minutes of each other, obviously pointing to coordination. We will continue to follow developments on this story and get you first pictures as soon as we get them into CNN.

COLLINS: Highly improper, that's how Senate Democrats are condemning the firing of eight federal prosecutors. The issue flaring this hour with testimony from a former top aide to Alberto Gonzales. Lawmakers rejected the reasons offered by Kyle Sampson and his defense of the embattled attorney general.

Sampson stuck more criticism from the Senate Judiciary Committee when he offered the reasons for the dismissals, he says the U.S. attorneys did not sufficiently support the president's priorities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KYLE SAMPSON, FMR. GONZALES CHIEF OF STAFF: The distinction between political and performance related reasons for removing a U.S. attorney is in my view largely artificial. A U.S. attorney who is unsuccessful from a political perspective, either because he or she has alienated the leadership of the department in Washington or cannot work constructively with law enforcement or other governmental constituencies in the district, is unsuccessful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The hearing is continuing right now. We of course will bring you any more big developments should they happen.

HARRIS: New accusations from Iran in the standoff over those 15 detained British sailors and marines. Iran said today those troops entered Iranian waters six times last week before they were arrested.

Also today, an Iranian official said the release of a lone woman among the troops will be delayed or suspended. Another official said yesterday that Faye Turney would be released soon. The secretary of Iran's Supreme National Council says Britain's tough stance is causing the delay. Britain maintains its sailors and marines were in Iraqi waters.

Earlier this morning we spoke with former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton. I asked him if he assured that Iran is to blame.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN BOLTON, FMR. U.S. AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: You can never be entirely sure, but this looks to me to be a deliberate provocation by Iran designed to test how strong the Brits and the Europeans more generally will react to it. I must say so far the results are not encouraging.

I don't think the United Kingdom has shown the decisiveness that they need to show here. And I'm sure they are worried about the impact of this incident on their efforts to get Iran to give up its pursuit of nuclear weapons, but I think they are miscalculating. I think what Iran sees so far is passivity and acquiescence and if that perception turns to a perception of weakness, ironically, the Brits will hurt whatever slim chances they have of getting a negotiated deal on the nuclear weapons.

HARRIS: OK, let's listen to Tony Blair. He is going to issue a warning in the sound byte we are going to play for you. And then let's talk about what the new stronger language might be, but let's listen first.

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We had hoped to see their immediate release. This has not happened. It is now time to ratchet up the diplomatic and international pressure in order to make sure that the Iranian government understands their total isolation on this issue.

HARRIS: So ambassador, what would you recommend as a tougher stance from the U.K. toward Iran? BOLTON: Well, I think the United Kingdom should be talking with us, talking with the rest of the European Union about making it clear that they want those sailors and marines released right now without any further conversation or Iran will suffer real pain, real economic sanctions.

Instead, what I understand the Brits are doing is talking about something like a three-sentence press statement by the Security Council. I'm sure that will get Iran's attention in a big way. Reacting just the same way Iran has rejected sanctions that the council has passed on its nuclear program.

I think Britain has got to be tougher here. As I say, ironically an effort to go softly, softly as the British foreign office likes to say in connection with this incident will simply embolden Iran on the nuclear program.

HARRIS: Mr. Ambassador, Iran doesn't care about sanctions, come on.

BOLTON: Well, I think that's the point. They certainly don't care about the sanctions that the Security Council has adopted. That's why even if a so-called press statement is issued by the Security Council, Iran will ignore that too. You've got to get beyond the idea that what happens in the council is really going to affect Iran.

If Britain wants these people back safe and unharmed in anything like a hasty manner, they need to act with will and resolve and do it very clearly now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Bolton went on to say that he does not believe the military options should be on the table just yet.

COLLINS: March, going out like a lion in the plains. More bad weather could be on the way after a night of violent storms and tornadoes like that one.

One person in Texas, two in Oklahoma were killed. One person died in Holly, Colorado. A mother who was slammed into a tree with her daughter.

Reporter Greg Nieto of affiliate KWGN is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GREG NIETO, KWGN REPORTER: Well, they are saying that it's simply unbelievable what happened to this town in southeastern Colorado where about four hours drive away from Denver, Colorado.

We talked about one of those homes that was completely destroyed, case in point right in front here. This is the home where the family of four was actually staying at about 8:00 local time last night. You mentioned that mother. They were here inside their home when that home was literally blown off its cinder blocks and up into the tree, at least a portion of it directly behind me here.

You talked about at least one individual who passed away, that mother, she was actually stuck inside or atop this tree when the tornado left this area. And eventually folks were able to rescue her, but eventually, unfortunately, early this morning she passed away in surgery.

Now, I mentioned the tree behind me here in the distance back there you can probably make out more debris that is actually the remainder of that double wide trailer that used to sit over here in front of me. Again, we're talking about close to some 60 homes that were damaged. Again, five total that were completely removed from their foundation.

Everybody we talked to this morning says to a person, to a resident, that last night, 8:00 local time they simply thought a train was coming through as it ordinarily does around that time. They say it happened so quickly, there was simply no warning.

As for the cleanup this morning, it is going to be quite a long process, especially when you consider that some portions of these homes are no longer even in the area. Folks have been sent over to both the town hall and also to the local high school here to try to regroup this morning.

But obviously as you can tell by the devastation, that's going to be quite a task.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Greg Nieto there from KWGN. What a nasty, nasty situation.

Chad Myers standing by now. Do you have something else there for us, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I, you know, I went back because every warning for every tornado across the country prints out here in our studio. And I went back to the 8:00 hour mountain time last night. And this one did not have a Doppler indicated tornado on it. This one got a warning because the public reported the tornado on the ground one mile south of that town, one mile south of Holly.

Well, by the time the weather service gets that information, types up, you know, a half a page here, it was too late. The storm was already through the town. It was through the town probably two minutes after this warning was already issued. So there was just -- there really was -- we say most of the time hit by surprise, but it really didn't because there was a warning. This storm for that town that really wasn't a warning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: Shock treatment. It's a practice many consider torturous, but the parents of an autistic man say it protects him from himself. CNN's Randi Kaye reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bradley Bernstein is 48 years old, but his parents still call him their baby.

FRAN BERNSTEIN, BRADLEY'S MOTHER: We wanted him so badly. He was the best thing that ever happened to us. We feel we were chosen to have Bradley. And to give him what he needed in his life.

KAYE: Does what he needed include electric shock? Because for nearly 40 years, the Bernsteins have been using a cattle prod to shock their son.

(on camera) A lot of people, though, watching this story might wonder how, as a mother, you could shock your own son. What would you say to them?

F. BERNSTEIN: If this stops my son from having black eyes and bleeding in his mouth and having his face all swollen up, believe me, it's worth it.

KAYE (voice-over): You see, Bradley is severely autistic and mentally retarded, diagnosed at age 3. He lives in a group home, only speaks a few words and spends much of his day rocking in a chair with the lights out.

(on camera) Can I get a high-five? Nice to meet you.

(voice-over) His parents tried psychotropic drugs, restraints. Then someone suggested the cattle prod. They insist the only thing that stops Bradley from beating himself bloody, like many with autism do, is a sudden zap. It makes him forget he was hurting himself.

(on camera) Can you show me what it feels like? Do it again.

BOB BERNSTEIN, BRADLEY'S FATHER: It's not something that's going to kill anybody.

KAYE (voice-over): This portable prod shoots 4,500 volts of electricity into Bradley as often as several times a week. But now the state of Illinois says no more. It passed a law last year making electric shock illegal in community facilities, so Trinity Services, which operates Bradley's group home, has stopped using it.

ART DYKSTRA, TRINITY SERVICES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Our mission is to help people live full and abundant lives. I don't think you do that with cattle prods.

KAYE: Yet, decades ago, Trinity's Art Dykstra and other experts agreed a jolt of electricity was the only answer for Bradley. Dykstra wasn't aware the treatment continued this long until just a few years ago when Trinity took over the home where Bradley lives.

DYKSTRA: It was supposed to be temporary. My goodness, it wasn't meant to be carried on for 30 years.

KAYE (on camera): Since Trinity and this group home stopped using electric shock last September, Dykstra says Bradley has tried to strike himself seven to 10 times. While that may be double the number of incidents that were occurring when the cattle prod was in use, Dykstra believes Bradley is happier and communicating better.

(voice-over) But the Bernsteins don't buy it. They sued Trinity. The case was dismissed, since shock treatment is outlawed.

F. BERNSTEIN: The law should say, yes, Bradley can use the shocker. It needs to be used on him. Screw the law.

KAYE: Fran and Bob Bernstein argue their son can still be shocked based on this agreement from 1987 with the Illinois Department of Mental Health. The department won't comment, but the agreement allows Bradley to be treated with electric shock.

(on camera) The executive director of ARC, the largest advocacy group for people with mental retardation, calls this shock treatment torture/

B. BERNSTEIN: In most cases, it probably is. But there are some cases where it isn't. It's the only thing available.

KAYE (voice-over): The Bernsteins still use the prod when Bradley is visiting them at home. The new law doesn't prevent that. Bob says he shocked his son just two weeks ago.

But at his group home, attendants now restrain Bradley or give him a drug to calm him. Fran still calls the cattle prod the most humane treatment and convinced me to try it.

(on camera) I'll try it just for a second. Oh! That's not horrible. It's not pleasant.

F. BERNSTEIN: No. But is it horrible?

KAYE: No.

(voice-over) If Bradley could speak, what would he say? Barbaric or beneficial?

F. BERNSTEIN: He's a sick boy, man, and we need to be there for him. And some day we won't be around. So I have to make sure while we're here that he gets taken care of.

KAYE: Taken care of the way they see fit.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Des Plaines, Illinois.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Taking a stand in China, lofty and lonely -- the owner of a small hotel battling developers. That story coming up in the NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Smoking and feeling sick in Sweden, a new national study there says Swedish smokers take an average of almost eight more sick days a year than those who never smoke. The study looked at the records of more than 12,000 workers, ages 16 to 65. Smokers took an average of 34 sick days a year. Swedish sick leave rates are among Europe's highest.

To get your daily dose of health news online, log onto our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a health library and information on diet and fitness. The address CNN.com/health.

HARRIS: David versus Goliath playing out in a growing southwest Chinese city, but this David has been left standing high and dry.

CNN's John Vause explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Defiantly standing alone, this two-story brick hotel with only Yang Woo (ph) inside. One man against gargantuan developers, and ultimately the Chinese government. His wife, Woo Ping (ph), has become a national celebrity, mobbed by crowds who gather to show support.

"All of these friends have given me a lot of comfort," she says.

This construction site has become a rallying point for anyone trying to battle big developers, like this man who traveled across country. "I hope the media will be our voice," he told me. "There's so much corruption in local government."

Mr. Yang (ph) and his wife, Woo Ping (ph), have been fighting a legal battle with builders of a shopping mall in downtown Changxing for more than two years. They were offered almost $500,000 in U.S. dollars in compensation, a staggering amount by Chinese standards, but Woo Ping (ph) wants more. "They want to use money to solve this problem," she says, "but that offer is not good enough."

They're holding out for a new property of equal size in the new development. The builders aren't talking publicly, but the mayor's office says they'll never give in to the owner's demands.

Mr. Yang (ph) has been in there for almost two weeks now. Supporters bring him food and water, hoisted up by ropes.

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COLLINS: And in about 10 minutes or so, we will be launching into "YOUR WORLD TODAY" and that man there, Jim Clancy.

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Heidi and Tony. Well, some questions today -- are those royal marines and sailors that were become hostages to regional and global differences that have isolated Tehran. Suddenly a promised release of one of those captives is suspended.

Plus, the Philippines this week rocked by a hostage drama of its own. But why did the founder of a school take its own students and teachers as captives. We're going to get a report from Manilla.

And after the party -- some whether the Media splash given to this cuddly polar bear cub cost the life of another resident at Berlin Zoo, this panda bear. Well, there's the cub, got them in a little bit of a mixup there. But there's some soul searching, no doubt about that, going on in Berlin, Germany today. All of the news with an international perspective. "YOUR WORLD TODAY" coming up at noon Eastern.

Back to you, Heidi and Tony.

COLLINS: And some cuddly polar bears. Love that. All right, Jim, thank you.

HARRIS: Well, she's small. He's tall, to the extreme. Man! A little later, the long and short of this most unusual pairing.

You are in the NEWSROOM.

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HARRIS: Well, it is a tall order, marrying the world's tallest man.

CNN's Jeanne Moos has a look at the neck-straining nuptials here.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a marriage milestone. OK, maybe not a mile, but 7 feet, 9 inches must seem like a mile to his new bride.

She is a 5 foot, 6' saleswoman, about two-thirds his height. The groom is a herdsman from Inner Mongolia who holds "Guinness Book of Records" title for tallest person in the world.

You might remember Bao Xishun. These dolphins probably remember him. After all, he put his three-and-a-half-foot arm down their throats, all the way to their stomachs, to retrieve deadly plastics that the two dolphins had nibbled from the side of their pool.

The Chinese newspaper that reported Bao's marriage says the bride is half his age. These two now join other famous mismatched couples, ranging from Mutt and Jeff to Arnold and Danny.

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DANNY DEVITO, ACTOR: I hope nobody is looking in the window.

(END VIDEO CLIP) MOOS: No word on whether Bao's new wife feels a little like Mini Me.

Already, there is a Web site for taller women and shorter men, the sort of pairings that get you on "The Maury Povich Show."

Maybe Tom Cruise, with his taller wife, Katie, has some inkling of what Bao's bride is experiencing. Looking up to your husband physically...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Down! Down!

MOOS: ... doesn't mean you won't end up looking down on him metaphorically. After all, Dennis Rodman and Carmen Electra split up.

Like Arnold and Danny...

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DANNY DEVITO, ACTOR: OK. One, two, three.

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MOOS: ... just imagine these two slow-dancing, for richer or poorer, for taller or shorter.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

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COLLINS: 7'9" -- that's huge.

HARRIS: That's huge.

COLLINS: Well, that's why he had the record, I guess.

HARRIS: That's right.

CNN NEWSROOM continues just one hour from now.

HARRIS: "YOUR WORLD TODAY" is next with news happening across the globe and here at home. I'm Tony Harris.

COLLINS: And I'm Heidi Collins. Have a good day, everybody.

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