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American Morning
Armed and Dangerous; Pet Food Recall Expands
Aired April 06, 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, ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Armed and dangerous. A manhunt right now for a suspected bank robber. An FBI agent is dead - possibly shot by a fellow agent.
KIRAN CHETRY, ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Rescue at sea. Hundreds of passengers scramble off of a sinking cruise ship, including teenagers from North Carolina. But two people are missing this morning. We're going to have the latest on the search.
O'BRIEN: The pet food recall expands -- again. Now, biscuits and chews on the list. We asked the FDA: Was profit put ahead of safety?
Live from Washington, Jerusalem, England and New York City on this AMERICAN MORNING.
Good morning to you. It is Friday, April 6th. I'm Miles O'Brien.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry, in for Soledad. Thanks so much for joining us.
We begin in New Jersey this morning. A manhunt going on right now for a suspected bank robber.
FBI Agent Barry Lee Bush was shot and killed trying to arrest the suspect. The FBI says it appears that Bush was shot by a fellow agent.
Tony Caputo is with our affiliate, News 12 New Jersey. He's reporting from the PNC Bank where it all happened, in Readington, New Jersey.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
TONY CAPUTO, REPORTER, NEWS 12 NEW JERSEY: This is all part of an intense, two-week investigation by the FBI. They were looking into a series of bank robberies here in this central New Jersey area.
Now, two of the three suspects were caught. But in the process, a 20-year veteran of the FBI lost his life, 52-year-old special agent, Barry Lee Bush.
Now, we'll show you some video from yesterday when the search began, looking for 22-year-old Francisco Herrera-Genao. He's about six feet tall, weighs about 200 pounds. The FBI does consider him to be armed and dangerous. They were searching this area, parts of Route 22 were actually shut done. Many choppers were in the air. And officers from all over the area trying to apprehend this young man who was involved in this attempted armed robbery.
Now, it's important to note that the FBI does admit that none of the suspects fired any shots from their weapons. They apparently had two assault rifles and a hand gun, but the fire - the shots fired, rather - came from another FBI agent, which makes it even more of a tragedy out here in central New Jersey.
Now, two others were apprehended, 28-year-old Wilfredo Berrios and 21-year-old Michael Cruz. Again, they are from the New Brunswick are of New Jersey, which is why authorities believe the gentlemen they're looking for, Herrera-Genao, is also from that area. And last night, they were searching New Brunswick, as well as this part of Hunterdon County. It's about two counties apart, folks.
So, again, Genao making his way somewhere here in New Jersey at this point it's believed. This is a wooded area. It's kind of rural, so he would have had an opportunity to get away from officers. The search was intense, but still, no luck.
We'll certainly keep you up to date as this search and investigation continues.
I'm Tony Caputo reporting for CNN.
(END VIDEO)
CHETRY: That's right. As Tony said, the search for Francisco Herrera-Genao continues as we speak. The FBI says he was part of the bank robbing team that used automatic weapons in their crimes. He is believed to be heavily armed.
O'BRIEN: Home, sweet home this morning. Those 15 British sailors and marines are back with their families after their two-week ordeal in Iran.
And this morning, we'll be hearing from some of them as they speak with reporters in just a matter of hours. You'll see it here, of course.
Paula Hancocks is joining us live now from England.
Paula, what do we know so far about their ordeal?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT, LONDON: Good morning, Miles.
Well, at this point, we know that they are having extensive debriefing by the British military. They want to find out exactly where they were when they were captured, what kind of condition they were in, how they were treated.
And also, those televised confessions and apologies - were they coerced? Now, we have been hearing from British media that one family member of a crew member has said that they were held in solitary confinement.
Now, the Ministry of Defense is not confirming this, saying they will say later what happened exactly, but also saying that there is a possibility that at some point the captors would have left them on their own.
Now, at this point, they are still in the RAF base behind me. Last night, they finally met their families. They had a four-course meal with their families, finally starting to relax and get some kind of sense of normality back.
So, we know what has happened in the televised messages. Now we want to know what is behind those messages.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
HANCOCKS (voice-over): Back on British soil and finally reunited with their loved ones. Fifteen British sailors and marines describe it as a dream come true.
Now for the tough questions. Several said they were well treated while being held in Iran. Since they've been back, there have been suggestions of solitary confinement.
One defense official described the moods of the 14 men and one woman as ranging from jubilant to emotionally struggling.
Today, the former detainees are still being extensively debriefed, along with a complete physical check. Also, the first chance for the public to hear what really happened.
The Royal Navy has started an investigation of how the 15 could have been captured and, crucially, whose waters they were in.
Britain says they were in Iraqi waters. Iran claims British crews have previously violated their waters.
In a British television interview before the capture, one captain of the crew said part of their job was to gather intelligence of Iranian activities in the area.
The Ministry of Defense insists this is not unusual in modern operations.
(END VIDEO)
HANCOCKS (on camera): So, in three hours' time, we will hear from those military personnel themselves and hopefully, finally find out what did happen - Miles.
O'BRIEN: Paula Hancocks, thank you very much.
For thousands of military families in the U.S., it is the news they have dreaded. The Pentagon is poised to call thousands more National Guard troops back to Iraq for a second tour of duty.
The military says about 10,000 Guardsmen and women will be sent back to relieve troops in Iraq by the first of the year. If Defense Secretary Gates makes it official, it would be the first time full Guard combat brigades were sent back to Iraq for a second tour - Kiran.
CHETRY: Former first lady Betty Ford is said to be doing well this morning after undergoing surgery.
Mrs. Ford's office didn't reveal what kind of surgery she had. They say it happened earlier this week and that she's recovering at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California.
Mrs. Ford turns 89 on Sunday.
Also this morning, we know exactly now how peanut butter got contaminated with salmonella last year.
ConAgra Foods says that moisture got into its plant in Georgia from a leaky roof and sprinkler system. The moisture helped the salmonella bacteria grow. And then, they say, it got into the peanut butter.
More than 400 people got sick. ConAgra is redesigning its plant and says it's improving safety procedures.
And more salmonella in food for pets this morning, too. The FDA recalling American Bullie puppy and dog chews. And there's a recall of potentially contaminated dog biscuits made by Sunshine Mills of Alabama.
Wheat gluten is again the chief suspect there. It's a thickening agent, the FDA saying that it may contain melamine. It's a chemical that can be toxic in large doses to dogs and cats. They're still trying to figure out how melamine got into the wheat gluten in the first place.
CNN's Joe Johns looks into one theory.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
JOE JOHNS (voice-over), CNN CORRESPONDENT: The investigation took a new turn when the FDA told CNN it is looking into whether there could have been a profit motive for deliberately introducing melamine into the wheat gluten.
In other words, it might not have been an accident, and may have been about money.
JOHNS (on camera): That's right. Until now, the assumption has been that this was an accidental contamination, because melamine is used in plastics and pesticides and has no business in pet food.
However, the chemical could potentially be used to raise protein levels in the gluten, which could increase the price or make it easier to sell.
DR. STEPHEN SUNDLOF, U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION: That's one of the theories that we have. In fact, that's one of the ones that we are pursuing, because, as you indicated, adding something that would increase the protein content of the wheat gluten would make it more valuable.
So, that's a distinct possibility.
(END VIDEO)
CHETRY: Well, all of the companies involved have denied adding melamine to the wheat gluten. The Senate plans to hold hearings next week on pet food recall and the FDA's handling of it.
Speaking of the FDA, we're going to be talking with the FDA's chief vet in our 8 o'clock hour. He is heading the FDA's investigation into the contaminated pet food.
O'BRIEN: This morning in the Aegean Sea, searchers are looking for two people missing after a cruise ship ran aground trying to dock at the Greek Island of Santorini.
Sixteen hundred people raced off the ship as it was listing, taking on water, lifeboats taking them to shore. Most of the passengers on board were American, including dozens from high schools in North Carolina.
The ship sank within hours.
A 45-year-old man from France and his 16-year-old daughter are still missing.
This morning in Brussels, another landmark report is out on global warming. The United Nations report comes from 2,500 of the world's top scientists.
Among its findings, melting glaciers will force a billion people to grapple with water shortages in coming years. And if temperatures rise as expected, one-third of all species - one-third - face extinction.
The report says we already are feeling the impact of climate change.
CHETRY: Well, the calendar says it's spring, but the weather is definitely saying, it's still winter, because snow is blanketing parts of the midwest and the northeast.
Take a look at this. This is Michigan, where some areas have more than a foot of snow, and that's shattering early April snowfall records.
Also, in New Hampshire, the storm tied up traffic, knocked out power to about 180,000 homes. I mean, these pictures look like winter. The weather is expected to continue throughout the holiday weekend.
Coming up next, what went wrong? The arrest of a suspected bank robber in New Jersey and what happened after that. An FBI agent killed. The FBI says fire from another agent killed him.
The top former official of the FBI tells us what he thinks might have happened.
Also, he preaches to the president - even though they don't always see eye to eye. We're going to pay a visit to a church right in the shadow of the White House.
And a new theory this morning about what triggered the famous feud between the Hatfields and McCoys.
That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: There are some questions this morning for the FBI, a shootout following a stakeout of suspected bank robbers. FBI Special Agent Barry Lee Bush was shot and killed. The FBI now saying that the fire came from another agent's weapon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEDRO RUIZ, ACTING SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, FBI, NEWARK, NEW JERSEY: The shot that killed Special Agent Bush may be the result of an accidental discharge from a weapon of an FBI arrest team member.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: One of the suspects escaped. Hundreds of police and FBI agents conducting a manhunt right now for 22-year-old Francisco Herrera-Genao. You see his picture there on the screen.
Bill Gavin is the former assistant director in charge of the FBI in New York, and the current president of the Gavin Group.
Thanks so much for being with us this morning.
BILL GAVIN, FORMER ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN CHARGE, FBI, NEW YORK: My pleasure, Kiran.
CHETRY: What do you think went wrong here?
GAVIN: It's very difficult to say at this point. The FBI will have a team from the inspection division in Washington, D.C., review all the procedures, process and what the planning was for this takedown situation.
It was a dynamic arrest with weapons drawn. These people had in the past displayed automatic weapons, the group of bank robbers.
It's just very, very difficult to say what might have happened during this scenario.
My sentiments and prayers go out for the family of Agent Bush and for all the law enforcement people who were on-scene during the course of this event.
CHETRY: Yes, it certainly is tragic. He had two grown children. He's only the 51st agent killed in the line of duty in an almost 100- year history of the FBI, so we know this is rare.
But give us, if you can, an anatomy of what goes into - what type of planning goes into - the execution of a stakeout like this at a bank.
GAVIN: Surely. This is a bank robbery task force that's put together, combined forces of the federal, local and state law enforcement people.
Based on the shortage of manpower in all areas, the bureau used to send lots of agents out to bank robberies, and now we do it by task force, which is very efficient and effective.
Usually, all the participants in a raid such as this sit down and they talk about it. They kind of rehearse it in their mind. They look at the scenario. They look at the best positions to be in.
They make sure that the informants that they have on the case are briefing them to the best of their knowledge. They can do everything.
They look at - they train like this. They train together as a unit. They go to firearms together. So, they're pretty well cohesive as a group.
And what went wrong here, Kiran, I just can't say. It's so difficult and so tragic.
CHETRY: It really is.
Are you surprised that Herrera-Genao is still on the loose, given he ran on foot, and they were able to at least pinpoint that he had gone into this heavily wooded area and quickly surrounded it?
GAVIN: It's very difficult. When something like this happens, if you look at that area, there's a lot of farmland and a lot of trees and brush.
He can disappear fairly rapidly, particularly if he has any propensity to go hunting and understand the woods and be a survivalist. I don't know if that's his game. But when you go into the woods like that, you can hide.
The difficult part of this is trying to locate him. But at least they have him identified. No doubt from the other two individuals. And this is where it stands right now.
CHETRY: And quickly, don't all of the people, law enforcement at the scene, wear bulletproof vests and really try to protect themselves, because they know they're heading into a dangerous situation?
GAVIN: Absolutely. And as you saw, Kiran, a lot of those people on-scene were SWAT-type individuals. They all will have vests on. They have all been through the training for safety, firearms safety.
I just don't know what happened here. And it'll all unfold as the investigation of the incident takes place.
CHETRY: All right. Bill Gavin, former assistant director in charge of the FBI here in New York. Thanks so much.
GAVIN: My pleasure, Kiran. Thank you.
CHETRY: We want to remind people also, if you have any information, if you think you've seen this guy, Francisco Herrera- Genao, we're asking - and they're asking - to please call the number that you see there on the screen - Miles.
O'BRIEN: One of the most fabled feuds of all time, the Hatfields versus the McCoys, may have been spurred on by genetics.
Listen to this. This is a picture, by the way, of the Hatfield clan in 1897 - rough bunch there.
They, of course, feuded with the McCoys in West Virginia and Kentucky for years.
Now researchers think a rare disease found in many McCoy descendants may be why. It causes high blood pressure, racing hearts and too much adrenaline and those fight-or-flight hormones.
Now, apparently the McCoys often chose to fight. Descendents of the Hatfields and the McCoys did, in fact, sign an official truce in 2003, genetics notwithstanding.
Up next, we'll tell you about the president's preacher at the church near the White House where presidents have prayed for two centuries. The pastor does not mince words and doesn't always agree with the president. We'll tell you about.
And check your stove. There's a good chance it could do that. We'll show you how to avoid that, keep your kids and you safe.
Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.
As many Christians attend Easter services around the country this weekend, we thought we'd pay a special visit to a very special church. It's actually in walking distance from the White House.
AMERICAN MORNING's faith and values correspondent, Delia Gallagher, visited the preacher who often speaks to presidents, including our current president. Hi, Delia.
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN FAITH AND VALUES CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
You know, I think a lot of people don't even realize that there is this church right across the street from the White House, that presidents have gone there for some 200 years, and the current president attends regularly.
But if you think you know what sort of sermon he's hearing, think again.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
REV. LUIS LEON, RECTOR, ST. JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH, WASHINGTON, D.C.: The small, beautiful thing - that's what I am called to do.
GALLAGHER (voice-over): Much is made of the president's connections to evangelical conservatives. But the man of cloth who often has his ear is a Cuban immigrant who doesn't always agree with Mr. Bush on big issues.
LEON: I wish they would lift the American embargo, because it would remove an excuse for why the system doesn't work. And I think it would be beneficial to the people in Cuba, also.
GALLAGHER (on camera): Does the president know you think that?
LEON: Yes.
GALLAGHER: You've told him?
LEON: Yes, I've told him.
GALLAGHER: What does he say?
LEON: He disagrees with me.
GALLAGHER (voice-over): For about 13 years, Reverend Luis Leon has been the rector at St. John's Episcopal Church, the unofficial church of the presidents that sits across Lafayette Park from the White House.
GALLAGHER (on camera): But you wouldn't hesitate to raise a question about our involvement in Iraq, even if the president was in the audience.
LEON: Correct.
And I'm in support of same-sex unions. He's heard my position on it.
GALLAGHER (voice-over): Mr. Bush attends regularly. And every president since 1816 has come here, at least on occasion.
They sit in the president's pew.
LEON: The story is that James Madison wanted to be treated as a regular member of the parish. And so, he didn't want the front pew.
GALLAGHER: And they use cushioned kneelers, embroidered with the presidents' names.
GALLAGHER (on camera): So, when he comes to services here, he might be kneeling on Jimmy Carter's kneeler.
LEON: Jimmy Carter's kneeler, or his own father's kneeler.
GALLAGHER (voice-over): Reverend Leon says he usually knows the Friday before if the president will be attending on a Sunday, but he never changes his prepared sermons.
LEON: I figure he would like to hear what everybody else in the congregation is going to hear.
GALLAGHER: But some things he does change.
LEON: Good morning. How are you today?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good.
LEON: I have two shirts here when I know the president is going to come, because I get so nervous I've got to change shirts after the 7:45 service.
GALLAGHER (on camera): Really.
LEON: So, I get that nervous about it.
GALLAGHER: Still.
LEON: Yes, yes.
(END VIDEO)
GALLAGHER: And the reverend says that Mr. Bush will always tell him if he disagrees with something he said in a sermon. He has also asked the reverend to give the invocation at his January 2005 inaugural.
CHETRY: He's funny. He just said it so matter-of-factly - yes, I change shirts, because he makes me so nervous.
GALLAGHER: Yes. Well, you can imagine, I mean, having to give a sermon, which sometimes borders on political questions, and you know you have the president in the audience.
So, it seemed to me kind of natural that he might want to change his sermon, if he knew the president was coming. But he claims he doesn't. He says, no, he needs to hear what everybody is going to hear, whatever I've already prepared.
CHETRY: Pretty neat. He's a very interesting fellow.
GALLAGHER: Yes.
CHETRY: Thanks for introducing us to him, Delia.
GALLAGHER: You're welcome.
CHETRY: And Delia, by the way, is going to be reporting for a CNN special tonight, "What Would Jesus Really Do?"
America's top pastors, like Rick Warren, Jerry Falwell, T.D. Jakes, they all tell us what they think Jesus would do about some of the current issues facing us today - the war in Iraq, world hunger, as well as global warming.
That's tonight, 8 p.m. Eastern.
Also, this Easter weekend, CNN presents "After Jesus," the challenges, struggles and the revolution that became Christianity.
"After Jesus" airs Saturday and Sunday nights, also at 8 p.m. - Miles.
O'BRIEN: There's a big jobs report coming out this morning, and it appears like it's good news, Ali Velshi with a look at that.
Hello, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. This is the jobs report.
The monthly jobs report is always a confusing thing, because for most people - most of you watching, I would imagine - jobs are a good thing. Work is a good thing, unemployment is a bad thing.
But for markets, it's a little topsy-turvy sometimes.
For the longest time, 5 percent was considered - a 5 percent unemployment rate - was considered full employment, because there was some thinking that there's always some part of the population that's not looking for work at a given time.
Our unemployment rate right now is 4.6 percent. Now, the thinking is, when it goes too low it puts pressure on jobs.
Now, here's what we're expecting - and this is the confusing part - this is what we're expecting in an hour.
We're expecting a jobless rate that'll be between 4.5 - where it is now - and 4.7 percent. So, it might go up.
We're expecting between 70,000 and 240,000 new jobs to be created. I mean, I could take wild guesses like this myself. And we're expecting the hourly earnings to go up by .3 percent.
So, in other words, we have a big range out there. And it's not necessarily good news for everybody if the unemployment rate stays where it is, because a lot of people are thinking, if the unemployment rate stays were it is, there might be inflation, because people might make more money and they spend more. And as a result, the Fed won't cut rates.
O'BRIEN: So, there is a dark cloud for every silver lining, isn't there.
VELSHI: There is. My general view is that people want jobs. And if people have jobs, that's generally a good thing. You can manage the rest of the economy.
So, we shouldn't wish for fewer jobs, but markets do react.
The one good thing, of course, as you know, the markets won't react today, because they're closed.
O'BRIEN: All right. Ali Velshi, thank you very much.
Top stories of the morning are up next.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi enters the world stage and stumbles. Should she have stayed closer to home?
And some bundles of joy for the Coast Guard. We'll tell you about their high seas drug bust that took a lot of cocaine off the streets.
And Greg Hunter is cooking up an important warning for you.
Greg, good morning.
GREG HUNTER, CNN CONSUMER AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
How can you keep your stove from doing this? Well, it all comes down to brackets like this. Why are they left off? And does your stove at home have them?
We'll talk about it, as AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, Friday, April 6th. I'm Miles O'Brien.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: I'm Kiran Chetry in today for Soledad. Thanks so much for joining us.
O'BRIEN: Some stories we're working on this half hour, consumer alert. New warnings about the stove in your kitchen. Imagine taking a heavy casserole out of the oven and the whole thing crashes over. We'll see how that would go. A simple bracket can secure it, but chances are you don't have it.
CHETRY: Also on this Good Friday, we're live in Jerusalem. We're traveling the stations of the cross. Believers from all over the world come here to walk the path of Jesus Christ before he was crucified. It's the dramatic conclusion to our search for the truth about Jesus.
O'BRIEN: And some startling new details this morning about some of the treasures of planet earth and why they're being threatened more than ever.
CHETRY: First, though, we have a look at what's topping the news this morning. In New Jersey, police are still looking for a suspect that was involved in a deadly bank robbery. An FBI agent killed trying to arrest him. The agency this morning saying that agent Barry Bush may have been shot by another agent.
And the pet food recall expands this morning. Sunshine Mills saying that 20 types of large dog biscuits could be toxic and they should be thrown out. We're going to be talking with the FDA in our next hour about the growing recall and where the investigation stands.
Also, two French citizens missing this morning, a father and a daughter after their cruise ship ran aground off the coast of Greece. 1,600 people, including quite a few Americans, had to be rescued.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, is back home this morning after what some are calling a disastrous trip to the Middle East, specifically Damascus, Syria.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D) HOUSE SPEAKER: We came in friendship. We came with hope. We came determined that the road to Damascus would be a path to peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: But the meeting with the Syrian president has sent the speaker down a rocky path of condemnation. Joining me live from our Washington bureau is our CNN special correspondent Frank Sesno. Frank, good to have you with us.
FRANK SESNO, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
O'BRIEN: The "Washington Post" yesterday, normally a friend of Speaker Pelosi said this. Ms Pelosi's attempt to establish a shadow presidency is not only counterproductive, it's foolish. And then listen to this. This is the vice president dialing into the Rush Limbaugh show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think it is, in fact, bad behavior on her part. I wish she hadn't done it, but she is the speaker of the House and, unfortunately, I think the various parties involved recognize she doesn't speak for the United States in those circumstances. She doesn't represent the administration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: So, bad behavior, foolish. Was it a bad idea to take the trip in the first place or was it the way she conducted herself during the trip?
SESNO: It may have been both. For one thing, I think it's definitely thumb in the eye politics. She knew full well that she was doing this against what the administration wanted and though, congressional members all the time goes overseas and they do these fact-finding missions and they should, because they should know what is going on around the world, since they vote on how to spend money and how to conduct policy. She's not just any old Congress person any more. She's the speaker of the House. She's third in line to the presidency. When she steps in front of a camera with an American ally or adversary, it has special meaning. So, that's why this is such thin ice and it's why, to some, it may have made her look like the prime minister when she's really a congresswomen, Speaker of the House.
O'BRIEN: So if she was not the Speaker of the House, just a member of Congress, it would be different?
SESNO: I think so. And in fact, Assad has been meeting with all kind of American congressmen over this past week, some of them Republicans. He met with five Republicans, Frank Wolf, Republican from Virginia new full well that the administration didn't want him going there and he said, I don't care what the administration says and he went on and held his meetings. But he's one of 435, it's just different. It's perceptual politics and it's perceptual diplomacy and if Pelosi didn't realize that before, she does now.
O'BRIEN: Let's put this in the context of the lingering battle that exists on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue now on the war in Iraq. And there's a lot of talk right now about cutting off funding for the war effort. Do you get the sense that the Democrats, relatively newly emboldened, are overreaching a little bit?
SESNO: You know, whether they're overreaching, many, many say that or whether they're connecting with what the election was all about and trying to push the president into a corner, either way they're playing their hand. And I think, Miles and this is very important, has a lot to do with the dynamic of what's happening here in Washington. Take Pelosi's visit to Syria and the Middle East, take the debates here and over funding and how the war is going to be fought and it boils down to one thing and that is that the president of the United States, at his end of Pennsylvania Avenue, is more isolated than he's been, more on the defensive than he's been and more appearing to be out of control, having lost control of events than I think we've seen in his term. That's the political danger, certainly for him right now.
O'BRIEN: Frank, thanks very much.
SESNO: You bet.
O'BRIEN: Kiran? CHETRY: Happening in America, in Florida this morning, nine suspected drug smugglers are in jail after a pair of huge high sea cocaine busts. Coast Guard seizing about 15 tons of coke, street value $400 million.
In East Hartford, Connecticut, a drug bust of another kind. The man on the left is, well, he's the one on the left there as opposed to the bunny rabbit. He is 25 year old Ian Lawrence. He's the object on the right there. That's the bunny rabbit filled with pot, about 2/3 of an ounce worth. And police say they found the pot bunny in the back seat of Lawrence' car. They stopped him after he drove through a red light.
In Las Vegas, speed the ride did not live up to its billings for 16 thrill seekers. The coaster at the Sahara Hotel blew a circuit and it left riders hanging for about an hour. A ladder truck finally came and brought them down and ended up saving the day there.
In Oklahoma City an outpouring of help after a tornado hit last week from church groups to Cub Scout troops. Volunteers showing up in droves to help people clean up the damage and get their lives back on track. As one tornado survivor put it, it's extreme makeover tornado edition.
O'BRIEN: This morning we're focusing on a danger in your home that you really should put on the front burner. Your range may need some rearranging to make it less likely to topple, causing serious injuries. The solution is cheap and easy. Our Greg Hunter is live in a New York City appliance store with more on this. Good morning, Greg.
GREG HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles. I'm at Granger (ph) appliance and they make several brackets like this. They tell me this is the best one. This is kind of cheap one (INAUDIBLE) cheap stoves. This is good because it has holes to bolt to the floor and holes to bolt to the wall. Slide your appliance in, it keeps it from tipping over. So, why is this bracket or brackets like these according to some consumer advocates left off in 15 to 20 million stoves and is your stove missing one? Here's what you need to know to keep your family safe.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HUNTER (voice-over): That's how fast your stove could become a hazard. Because of the absence of this simple little bracket that's supposed to be installed on the back of all electric and gas ranges. It's an easy to install device that bolts down to your floor or wall. You then slide your stove legs into it to prevent it from tipping over. Robin Wilson, a home renovation expert explains anti-tip brackets are also cheap. How much do you think this is worth, a dollar?
ROBIN WILSON, ROBIN WILSON HOME: This is worth less than a dollar, I'd say 50 cents and it's a safety measure that's priceless for your family. HUNTER: Manufacturers and the government recommend all stoves be bolted down, but it's not mandatory. The consumer advocates at Public Citizen say that's why so many brackets are left off, leaving stoves prone to tip over.
JOAN CLAYBROOK, DIRECTOR, PUBLIC CITIZEN: I'm here today to talk about killer stoves.
HUNTER: Joan Claybrook held a news conference to appeal to manufacturers, retailers and the government to fix the problem that she says has been going on for over 25 years.
CLAYBROOK: We don't know the full extent of it because a lot of people don't report it, but we know that there have been at least 26 deaths and almost 100 injuries.
HUNTER: Like this bad burn in 1995 with a 1 1/2-year-old little boy. His mother says her son's skin was literally burned off his legs from a boiling pot of chicken soup. So imagine a couple of hot pots on your stove at home and no anti-tip device installed in back to keep this from tipping over. Watch how little pressure it takes to bring it all down. The mother of the burned child called into the news conference to describe her son's horrific ordeal.
It was the most horrific thing you can imagine watching your child going through, watching your child going through, seeing the painful procedures that they have to go through in the hospital.
HUNTER: Her boy is almost 15 now and still faces more skin graphs.
CLAYBROOK: Most homeowners who purchase the ranges don't know that the units are not secure and are unaware that the brackets are necessary.
HUNER: We asked the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturer for comment. They told us, manufacturers provide with every new range an effective and reliable anti-tip device that could be easily installed. It is up to the installer and the consumer to act.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HUNTER: Now, some appliance stores install this free of charge or include this in the installation. Other appliance stores charge $125 or up to $125. Experts tell us sometimes consumers say no to the installation because they don't realize how important these safety brackets are and they are really important. Now, you are probably sitting there at home if you don't have a stove or you do have a stove, you're not buying a new one, you think how do I tell if my stove has these brackets or not? Put the door down, get on the end, grab it in the back, gently pull it. If it lifts up just that much, just an inch or two, OK, you don't have one of these brackets. Because if you see this bracket here, it actually will (INAUDIBLE) and hold your stove down and it won't lift up at all, maybe a fraction of an inch. OK. Back to you guys.
O'BRIEN: All right, Greg Hunter, thanks very much.
Still to come, we're live in Jerusalem on the road that Jesus walked to his death or is it?
And another dire prediction on global warming. How climate change could lead to mass extinctions. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning right here.
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O'BRIEN: Most news in the morning right here on CNN. Four killed this morning by a suicide bomber driving a cab in the center of Kabul, Afghanistan. The bomb exploding as police were trying to stop the cab.
An intense manhunt under way in New Jersey this morning. FBI agents leading the search for an armed fugitive after one of their own died in a tragic shooting. The FBI believes the suspects never fired a round. The agent was accidentally killed by a fellow agent.
Now a quarter of the hour, Rob Marciano is in for Chad Myers today. Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning Miles. We're looking at snow that is falling across much of the great lakes. In some cases, it's been piling up quite a bit for a couple days now. Snow totals out of Michigan, Painesdale, Michigan, yeah, I'd say so, 38 inches of snow, Rockland, Michigan, 34 inches, Marquette, Michigan, at the National Weather Service, almost 34 inches, Ironwood two feet, Perrysburg, New York, 7.5 inches and it is still snowing in parts of upstate New York and lake effect snow warnings are up for (INAUDIBLE) plateau. The same areas that saw the record-breaking lake-effect snow from January and February.
Forty five degrees today in New York City. It'll be 36 degrees in Chicago, 56 degrees in Atlanta and these numbers will even be a little chillier tomorrow with temperatures that will be in the 20s across the deep south and some of the growing seasons have been under way, Kiran. So, hard freeze warnings are out and some grass and flowers may be suffering come this time tomorrow morning. Back to you.
CHETRY: Yeah, that's right, boy, all those plants that you bother to plant for nothing right now. All right, thanks, Rob.
All this week, holy week, we've been looking for the truth about Jesus' life in the holy land. We went to the garden of Gethsemane where it's believed that Jesus was betrayed by Judas, also the church of the Holy Sepulcher which sits on the land where Jesus was said to be crucified and buried. They're part of Jesus' past, marked today on Good Friday at the stations of the cross. Those are 14 points along the way of sorrows. It's a route in Jerusalem where it is believed that Jesus carried his cross, was crucified, died and was buried. Christians from around the world are in Jerusalem today. They want to walk that very same path. CNN's Atika Shubert is along the via de la Rosa (ph) or way of sorrows now. And there were some huge crowds earlier today and I can see a lot of people behind you. Atika, what has it been like there today?
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: People keep coming. In fact every hour we see new groups coming through, reenacting what they believe were some of the last events in Jesus' life. It's supposed to be an especially crowded year this time because both orthodox and Catholics are both celebrating Easter at the same time. So every hour we see groups coming in, making this pilgrimage, what is a very special, spiritual journey.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHUBERT (voice-over): Every year the faithful come dressed in robes and thorn crowns dragging wooden crosses. They walk the via de la Rosa, the way of sorrow, the route Jesus is said to have walked to his crucifixion. Pilgrims follow what are known as the 14 stations of the cross, scenes that mark Jesus final hours.
REV. JEROME MURPHY O'CONNOR, BIBLICAL SCHOLAR: Today there's a traditional route that starts on the east side of the city and goes towards the west. And that is completely wrong.
SHUBERT: According to the bible, Roman Governor Pontius Pilate sentenced Jesus to crucifixion. Some think it would have happened here, then the governor's residence, now a museum. Others think it started from another Roman barracks, now the site of a school. The official stations of the cross begin at this site, but even these scholars say, are a myth.
O'CONNOR: They're not mentioned in the gospels at all. It was simply a way of preachers trying to get people to really understand that this was torture.
SHUBERT: Historians think the stations were designed to spread the gospels, a liturgical invention originally placed on the walls of a church, re-created much later in the streets of Jerusalem.
STEPHAN PFANN, PRES., HOLY LAND UNIVERSITY: So, it was a matter of finding good places to have these 14 different stations in the midst of the city itself.
SHUBERT: But for pilgrims, none of this detracts from the holiness of the via de la Rosa today.
O'CONNOR: Places that have been visited in good faith by courageous, simple people that they do require a pattern to which every decent human being should be sensitive.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SHUBERT: Now, Kiran, for many people, Christians that come here, this is a once in a lifetime journey. We see groups coming from Nigeria, the Philippines, this group from Korea that's just behind me here and clearly, whether or not this has any historical fact, this is still a very special spiritual pilgrimage for those that come here.
CHETRY: It truly is and we want to thank you for your series this week. You got a chance to give many, many people a look at something maybe they may not have seen. Atika Shubert, thanks so much.
Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING, college deans accused of taking kickbacks from student loans. A lot of people wondering if they can trust the colleges that hand out financial aid.
I'm going to lose it. I got a little boy, too, you know this homecoming. What more can you say? We're going to talk to all the important people that made this scene possible. Dad, son in our next hour of AMERICAN MORNING. You won't want to miss it. Stay with us. The most news in the morning right here.
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O'BRIEN: A major new warning out this morning on the state of our planet. It comes from a group of United Nations scientists. It says 20 to 30 percent of the world's animal species risk extinction if the world's temperatures rise by more than 2.5 degrees. Many natural treasurers like the great barrier reef, the Amazon rain forest and the Mexican desert face destruction. With rising sea levels, many American cities sitting on coastlines would be under water. Here is CNN's Mary Snow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The threat of global warming melting polar ice caps is well known by now. In the United States, scientists point to milder winters with things like slowing maple syrup production in the northeast as evidence of climate change. But some say that example could pale in comparison to future risks that are on the scale of destruction that New Orleans experienced with hurricane Katrina. Phil Clapp is the president of the National Environmental Trust, a nonpartisan science and policy group. The group has come up with worst-case scenarios of the effects of climate change on cities at risk of rising sea levels and strong storms. High on the list, New York.
VOICE OF PHILIP CLAPP, PRES., NATL ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST: You have most of the areas of the financial district in the southern Manhattan flooded.
SNOW: Clapp says both New York City airports could be under water in the event of a category two hurricane with a sea level rise of about two feet. In Washington, DC, if there was a strong storm along the Potomac, the area stretching from the mall to the White House lawn could be at risk.
CLAPP: This is a rather large flooding event for Washington. There would be a lot of destruction to national monuments and memorials.
SNOW: Miami, especially South Beach, could see severe flooding and so could Boston's financial and historic areas. On the west coast, the worst case scenario calls for the San Francisco bay to expand and make Sacramento a bay city. These models are projected for the later half of this century. Mary Snow, CNN, New York.
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O'BRIEN: Coming up in the next hour, we'll take you around the world to the great barrier reef and see the people who protect the world's largest living organism.
CHETRY: Also coming up, there's another company recalling pet food this morning. We're going to try to get to the bottom of what is causing the toxic outbreak and whether or not your pets are safe. We're going to be talking to the person in charge of investigating it at the Food and Drug Administration.
Plus, hundreds of police right now looking for a suspected bank robber, an FBI agent killed in a chaotic arrest by another agent. They believe this suspect is armed and dangerous. We have a live report ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. It's the most news in the morning and it's on CNN.
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O'BRIEN: What a difference a few years can make. Boeing is flying high this morning. We have some numbers to prove that out. Ali Velshi is here, a couple minutes before the top of the hour.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We've been talking about that A- 380 from Airbus that's getting all the attention these days. But Boeing is really revving up the orders. It just released their numbers for the first quarter of this year. They are - they have delivered 106 airplanes in the first three months. That's up from 98 last year; 83 of them are 737s, 17 of them are the more profitable 777s, three of them are 767s and three of them are the jumbo jets, the 747s.
Now the 737 is the most successful commercial jet in history. A quarter of all planes flying today are those - commercial planes flying today. The low fare airlines like it. It's good for short domestic routes and I got to tell you, I got this information from Boeing and I find it hard to believe. You know how long it takes to make one of these? Eleven days. Now is suspect there's some other work involved (INAUDIBLE) 11 days we're going to have one of these things.
O'BRIEN: Lightening fast.
CHETRY: It didn't have all the parts...
VELSHI: I suspect it's 11 days plus (INAUDIBLE)
O'BRIEN: The assembly, 11 days.
VELSHI: (INAUDIBLE) They're moving. The 777s, of course a bigger plane, two aisles. They make way more money on those. They're selling fewer of those and by the way, if you want to buy one of these, it's about $180 to $270 million, but you get a discount if you buy more than one.
O'BRIEN: I'm not in the market right now. VELSHI: The 787...
O'BRIEN: The Dreamliner.
VELSHI: The Dreamliner, which is coming up, most successful new plane launch in history. They have 514 of those planes. You think about that and I'll be back in a little while. But the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING begins right now.
O'BRIEN: Recall grows again, new pet food and pet treat warnings and new accusations. Was profit put ahead of safety? We'll ask the Food and Drug Administration's chief vet.
CHETRY: And they are on a manhunt this morning. Hundreds of police and agents looking for this suspected bank robber right now in a wooded area in New Jersey. An FBI agent dead.
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