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American Morning
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Meets With Highest-Ranking Syrian Officials On Iraq, Israel, And Curbing Terrorism, Imus apologizes
Aired April 09, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Target USA, a powerful call to drive America out of Iraq, with protests today, the fourth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Arson and murder, a nurse now charged with starting a deadly fire. The alleged motive, well, it will surprise you.
S. O'BRIEN: What happened to spring? A record cold fr-Easter, not Easter, but fr-Easter. In South Carolina to tell you about. Two feet of snow burying the boys of summer in Ohio.
M. O'BRIEN: And we all want to live longer, of course. Some of us think we know how. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is in the house to tell us what foods and supplements might lead to a longer, healthier -- maybe a little bit more boring, but longer life.
We're live from Baghdad, Washington, New York City and Los Angeles on this AMERICAN MORNING.
S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. Welcome back everybody. It's Monday, April 9. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
M. O'BRIEN: I'm Miles O'Brien. We're glad you're with us.
S. O'BRIEN: Let's begin this morning in Iraq. Four years after U.S. troops took control of Baghdad, in Najaf today, tens of thousands of Iraqis are rallying. The anti-American Cleric Muqtada al Sadr ordered his militia to oust the American military. Security is now tight across Iraq with no vehicles being allowed in Najaf or Baghdad for the next 24 hours.
Ten U.S. forces were killed in Iraq over the weekend. CNN's Kyra Philips has been reporting for us from Baghdad, for weeks now.
Kyra, good morning.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN BAGHDAD CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And, Soledad, it's interesting because you look at these protests and see that thousands and thousands of people on the street there in Sadr City and just from sitting back, if you were to look at these pictures, you would think, wow, it's a peaceful protest and they're carrying the Iraqi flag. They look unified.
This is exactly what Operation Iraqi Freedom was all about. It's about freedom and democracy and being peaceful, but actually the underlying message is Muqtada al Sadr, the anti-American, and extremely powerful Shiite cleric in Iraq called for this rally. He wants everyone to come together and talk about battling against the occupiers, referring to U.S. forces, asking Iraqi army and Iraqi policemen to join him in this fight against Americans.
Here's the other interesting message, too, not only is he able to bring together people like this in a rally like this, but he's sending a message to U.S. troops. He's sending a message to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, here in Iraq, that no matter where he is he still has power and he can create something like this. Of course, we know that allegedly he's hiding out in Iran.
S. O'BRIEN: Kyra Phillips for us this morning, from Baghdad. Thank you, Kyra, for the update.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Senator John McCain this morning sticking to his guns insisting the U.S. is making progress in Iraq. McCain facing a lot of criticism for remarks he made after a carefully choreographed high security photo opportunity in a Baghdad market on April 1st. On "60 Minutes" last night he insists he is not glossing over reality but he did admit he misspoke when he said the top general in Iraq is able to ride around in an unarmored Humvee.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I understand why they would provide me with that security, but I can tell you if it had been two months ago and I had asked to do it, they would have said under no circumstances whatsoever. I view that as a sign of progress.
There is no unarmored Humvees, obviously, that's the case. I'm trying to make the point, over and over, and over again, that we're making progress and there are signs of progress that it's long and it's hard and it's tough.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: McCain has made five trips to Iraq. He's slated to give a big foreign policy speech later this week -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: The 15 British sailors and marines who were held captive in Iran are under fire today for selling their stories. The only woman held is already speaking out this morning. The usually strict Royal Navy said the ex-captives can negotiate book deals and TV appearances. Seaman Faye Turney, who wrote a letter during her time as a captive, that was critical of the British government, reportedly earned six figures in her deal with "The Sun" newspaper. Here is part of her interview that will air tonight on ITV.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FAYE TURNEY, BRITISH ROYAL NAVY: When they wanted me to write what was written by the British-American troops -- I felt like a traitor to my own country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But you did write it?
TURNEY: I had no choice. If I didn't comply, I was looking at being charged with being a spy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Meantime Iran released its own videotape that shows the troops smiling and watching TV and playing some games. The Iranians say this videotape proves that the troops were treated well. Two other sailors say they will not profit from selling their story. That all the money will go to charity -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Get ready for another chapter in the bruising debate over immigration reform. President Bush today will try to spur Congress to do something about illegal immigrants and, once again, the rub is over the volatile issue of amnesty. CNN's Kathleen Koch live at the White House for us.
Hello, Kathleen.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.
This morning, the president -- I should say, today will be using the border area of Yuma, Arizona, to make another pitch, a renewed pitch for his immigration reform proposal. And as you mentioned, critics continue to insist that it is tantamount to amnesty. The White House denies that.
And in a PowerPoint that CNN has gotten a hold of, the White House lays out its new strategy, a bit more restrictive. The key principles, securing U.S. borders, requiring employers to verify worker status. Incoming workers could apply for temporary, short- term, so-called Y-visas. Illegal immigrants already in the United States would have to pay fines and then they could apply for longer term continuous Z-visas.
English and civics training would be required. And, above all, all policies must be, quote, "simple, efficient and workable." And, Miles, that may be the toughest requirement of all.
M. O'BRIEN: Kathleen, the interesting thing about this, the president might have a better chance of getting his proposal passed a democratically controlled Congress.
KOCH: Well, I will tell you, there are conservatives who have a lot of deep problems with this continuing issue. They say it doesn't focus enough on border security. Democrats, though, have issues, as well. They're worried about the proposal for these incoming guest workers. They could be in the U.S. for two years, they would have to go home for six months before they could renew for another two years. Workers already in the U.S. would have it spend $3,500 every time they renew these Z-visas. They feel like that's prohibitive for a lot of undocumented workers in the U.S. So, this is not going to be smooth sailing by any stretch of the imagination, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch at the White House, thank you.
KOCH: You bet.
M. O'BRIEN: Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Don Imus is taking what has kind of become a familiar mea culpa tour, he is appearing on Al Sharpton's radio show already apologizing on his own show for the comments he made about the Rutger's University women's basketball team.
Imus apologized on Friday for what he said on Wednesday. He called the players "nappy-headed hos" . Many, including Reverend Sharpton, are calling for Imus to be fired from his nationally syndicated radio show, which is also broadcast on MSNBC.
He'll be on there this afternoon, at 1 p.m.
A nurse is in a Houston jail this morning this morning accused of setting a fire in an office building that killed three people, all because she was behind on a project. Thirty-four-year-old Misty Ann Weaver charged with murder and arson in the fire on March 28th. Gene Appadaka (ph) of our affiliate KTRK, has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): An alleged confession so shocking few could have imagined. Certainly not something those who live closest to Misty Ann Weaver could ever fathom.
CHARLIE ROOTH, WEAVER'S NEIGHBOR: When we did hear it was somebody across the street. It was, you know my wife, oh, my god I can't believe that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Authorities say Weaver wasn't immediately forthcoming. She gave two false stories. The first, that on the day of the fire she left the office of her employer, plastic surgeon Robert Cappriatti (ph), with another co-worker, then went home immediately.
Questioned later, she would change her story saying she had returned to the building in search of her cell phone, but never went upstairs. What really happened, investigators say, Weaver did return to the fifth floor office to set the fire. The surveillance camera captured her coming back. Faced with that evidence, investigators say Weaver broke down and told the truth.
ROY PAUL, CHIEF ARSON INVESTIGATOR: I think she got tangled up in her own testimony. And I think she's, she's -- she was overwhelmed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Investigators say Weaver started the blaze hoping to cover up an audit she had not yet finished for her boss. As a result of that fire, three people died, eight others, including three firefighters, had to be rescued. PAUL: She never even imagined this was going to happen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: That was from our Gene Appadaka (ph), from our affiliate KTRK. Weaver is schedule today make her first court appearance tomorrow.
S. O'BRIEN: Instead of admiring the spring flowers this morning some people in Ohio are digging out from two feet of snow. CNN Reggie Aqui is in Chardon, Ohio, about 40 miles outside of Cleveland where he is kind of knee deep in it this morning.
Hey, Reggie, good morning.
REGGIE AQUI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Soledad.
I know that you wanted to see a shovel out here. I haven't been able to get one of those. So, I'm just going to have to use my hands. This is two and a half feet of snow they got here in this area. That really isn't that big of a deal here, usually, here. But it's so late in the year and it all happened so quickly, just in a matter of three days.
That is what's really so shocking to people in this area, especially given the fact that they had to -- out here in the town square -- had their Easter egg hunt in the snow. Just dropped the eggs into the snow and that's all you had to do to hide them.
The temperature up there, on the town's square clock, says it's about 30 degrees. Certainly not what folks were hoping for this time of year.
We should also let you know the snow caused a major problem with Major League Baseball. The Indians wanted to have their season opener happen on Friday, that didn't happen. In fact, it kept getting postponed all weekend. Finally they'll play those games tonight and in fact the commissioner of baseball, Bud Selig, is considering taking the games they're supposed to play the rest of this week out to Los Angeles to play the Angels, because they're not so sure weather will hold up.
Right now we are getting some of this lake-effect snow, continuing to fall, as I talk to you now. This should end later this afternoon. So, we shouldn't see too much more accumulation.
Right now, Soledad, these folks want to see spring come. I should let you know, finally before I let you go, that there is supposed to be a Maple festival they have every year here, on the square, that has been postponed, Soledad. If you wanted to get in on that action, you'll have to come another weekend.
S. O'BRIEN: OK, well, then, good. Because it's hard to do that in all that snow. You know how that is. Reggie Aqui for us this morning. Thanks, Reggie.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: How do you hold off a charging Tiger? With a few birdies. Virtual unknown Zach Johnson beat Tiger Woods to win the green jacket at the Masters. Johnson pulled away from Woods and the rest of the pack with three birdies, a crucial stretch along the back nine of Augusta National. It was only the second major victories of Johnson's career. Tiger was hoping to win his fifth Masters, but he had to settle for a three-way tie for second.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, international charges are awaiting the captain and the crew of a cruise ship that sank. We'll hear why and talk to an undersea detective about just what happened to that ship.
Then, are there supplements, are there vitamins, herbs, potions, all to help you live longer? Dr. Sanjay Gupta will tell us what works and what doesn't work in the quest for the fountain of youth.
Plus, you'll know it if you were trying to buy or sell. It is one of the rockiest housing markets in recent memory. We'll take a look whether you're a buyer or a seller.
You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning, right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: The captain of that cruise ship that sunk off the Greek island of Santorini, is blaming unusually strong currents for sending his ship into a reef, but authorities are blaming him and five of his crew members for the ship wreck; 1,600 people had to be evacuated off the ship, which sank within hours.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM GATCH, RESUCED FROM SINKING SHIP: I stepped outside my cabin and looked, and the water was coming down the hallway.
KATIE SUMNER, RESUCED FROM SINKING SHIP: We heard a big shudder, and then the whole boat started to tilt.
BARBARA NEIL, RESUCED FROM SINKING SHIP: All the dishes started to fall out in the kitchen. That didn't sound good. When we saw the crew with life vests on, we knew something was really not good.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: A Frenchman and his daughter are still missing. Coming up we'll talk to a professional diver about the search, the investigation, and what happens to that wreck.
It's about a quarter past the hour, Chad Myers in the Weather Center for us.
(WEATHER REPORT) S. O'BRIEN: All week our Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is reporting about the decisions we make every day that could add or, in some cases, subtract healthy years from our lives. It is the focus of his new book, which is called "Chasing Life." He's got a special, also, this weekend on CNN.
Sanjay, nice to see you in person as always.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: "Chasing Life", what does that title mean? Why did you want to write a book about this?
GUPTA: It has been so interesting, such a -- I think dissatisfaction with conventional medicine for so long. People, you know, they have sort of sought out these alternative and innovative approaches, I think, mainly on faith. On belief that maybe they would work, maybe they wouldn't hurt. Let's try something other than conventional medicine.
What I've found is that we have a lot of evidence now on what works and what doesn't. These supplements, these alternative things, have been tested and tried for some time and using some of the best of Western, if you will, conventional medicine, combined with some of these other things, can really help us chase life.
I've always been fascinated by this concept of immortality. I think we're getting at this point with our scientific knowledge of a practical immortality. We will get to the point soon, where we can dictate how long we will live, we're not there yet, but we're getting much closer.
S. O'BRIEN: If you eat healthy do you need to take supplements?
GUPTA: I don't think so at all. In fact, I think, it is even one step further that and this is based on lots of research, that something gets lost, Soledad, in actually trying it convert, if you will, the good stuff out of food into supplements. The process --
S. O'BRIEN: It's not a one for one, it's not the same thing?
GUPTA: It's not a one for one, and the supplement industry isn't regulated, so literally one pill versus another pill in the same bottle. They have different concentrations of things. I don't think it works as well as people thought.
S. O'BRIEN: Do you take any supplements? Would you advise any of your patients to take supplements?
GUPTA: I take a couple and I do advise a couple. I take a multi-vitamin, for example. I think there are certain gaps in my diet. I like to make up for some of that with a multi-vitamin. It is not, again, a one for one translation, but I take it in addition to eating a good diet. Also, I personally, I take fish oil, omega 3 fatty-acids. I have a family history of heart disease and the omega 3 fatty acids, again, sometimes different concentrations, they do seem to help with heart health, in terms of keeping cholesterol levels down.
S. O'BRIEN: My husband started reading green tea and antioxidants. The next thing you know, he gave up coffee, only drinks green tea. And sometimes I think that stuff is so nasty tasting. I mean, is it real? How do you know it's really working? Has green tea been shown that, in fact, that he's capturing all the free radicals in his body?
GUPTA: Yes, green tea is actually a good one, and there are a few of them that are out there. But green tea is a good one. It is pretty chalked full of antioxidants. The anti-oxidants, as you mention, sort of sweep up these free radicals, which can cause havoc in your body.
The way you know it's working; it can be hard to tell sometimes. Maybe you get fewer colds, maybe your energy level is a little bit higher. It also is probably is doing stuff for your cardio-vascular health. You won't notice that as much now, but later in life you'll have some benefit from it. To really get the benefit is drinking about three cups of the nasty stuff.
S. O'BRIEN: He does. He does. Good to know. It's actually working for him.
I know you have a really good list of a bunch of supplements, and sort of background on each and every one of them.
GUPTA: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: What will you talk about tomorrow, for us?
GUPTA: There's one diet out there that really has been proven to extend life, to prolong life, and I'm not going to tell you what it is now. I'll tell you tomorrow. But it does seem to work. About 35 percent, in some animals, and now in primates, as well. They're testing it in humans. It's pretty exciting stuff.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, we'll look forward to that tomorrow.
GUPTA: All right.
S. O'BRIEN: The book is called "Chasing Life." Dr. Sanjay Gupta making a house call. Thank you, Sanjay.
GUPTA: Thanks, Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: You can also catch Sanjay's hour-long special this Saturday, and on Sunday, 8 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN. If you want to win a free autograph copy of "Chasing Life" go to cnn.com/chasinglife, and see if you can get in that to win.
Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up in the program, John McCain's optimism about Iraq saying we have no choice but to stay as long as it takes to win, but is this a winning strategy for his presidential campaign? And our series for buyers and sellers, as we move into prime real estate season. How much money and effort does it take to find the right home for you? Stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: Taking a closer look at "Your American Home" this morning, on the heels of the sub-prime mortgage crises. We're looking at the overall housing market this week; it's a special series "Your American Home". Two reports for you, CNN Personal Financial Editor Gerri Willis joins us in New York, AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence is on the Left Coast, he's in L.A.
Gerri, let's begin with you. Not the usual spring selling season, is it?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: No, not by a long shot. The question on the mind of buyers and sellers across the country is this: How is the housing market doing? In part one of our series, we take the pulse of the market.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANGELA FOX, DENVER REALTOR: This is our master suite.
WILLIS (voice over): A beautiful five bedroom, six bath home in a Denver suburb listed at $765,000. The problem? It's still on the market.
FOX: We've had about 12 showings over the last couple months, so not a ton of people.
WILLIS: Nationwide there is an eight-month backlog of unsold homes; levels not seen in 16 years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Denver doesn't really do hot, that much. We do solid.
WILLIS: Nationally, the market is suffering, but there are signs of recovery. Sales of previously owned homes are now bouncing back, at a 10-month high.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're finding a lot of what we call "scrapes". An investor will come in and scrape a smaller house, and build one of these larger homes.
WILLIS: But new homes, which there are plenty of, are selling that slowest clip in seven years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the burbs. This is pretty typical.
WILLIS: So, this is a buyer's market. Miami, San Diego, Las Vegas have all seen prices drop. So have chronically weak markets.
ANDREW NAGEL, DENVER REALTOR: I would say, on average, we're anywhere from 1 percent to 4 percent negotiation off the asking price. WILLIS: For markets trending higher, go West with cities like San Antonio, Salt Lake City and Seattle. The big problem hitting all corners of the map, the sub-prime mortgage fallout. There's now one foreclosure for every 884 U.S. households.
LARRY MCGEE, DENVER REALTOR: It's probably more of a suburban problem. The newer homes on the outskirts, basically, your first-time buyers more affected by it.
WILLIS: Colorado has the second-highest foreclosure rate in the country.
NAGEL: In the neighborhood I'm going to take you, right now, there are 51 active listings. I would say 20 to 30 of those are foreclosures or bank-owned right now.
We have a HUD, short sale, bank, bank-owned, in foreclosure.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
One agent we spoke to said people who buy a house and thinking, hey, the market will take care of me, are in for a rude awakening. Those days, Soledad, are long gone.
S. O'BRIEN: Yeah, I guess they are. What do you do now?
WILLIS: Well, OK, so if you're a buyer, the world's your oyster, right? You can negotiate on price for the first time in years. You can ask for all kinds of concessions including maybe you can get the seller to pay the points on your loan, you can really inspect that house thoroughly and ask for any upgrades that might be needed.
If you are the seller, on the other hand.
S. O'BRIEN: Beg, grovel.
WILLIS: Yes, exactly. You have to be very careful about how you price your house. You're probably going to take less of a profit than you originally anticipated. And the place will have to be pristine to compete with the other houses out there -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: It's an ugly thing if you're a seller. Gerri Willis for us this morning. Thank you, Gerri.
WILLIS: You're welcome.
S. O'BRIEN: Later this hour Chris Lawrence will tell us just what $300,000 can get you these days. Here's a hint, it's all about -- duh -- location, location, location -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: The latest on Vonage versus Verizon, a reprieve for Vonage, but, still, the outlook is pretty grim. It's 25 minutes past the hour and Andrew Sorkin for "The New York Times", in for Ali Velshi this morning,
What happened to Vonage, they were so hot? ANDREW SORKIN, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Were you thinking of becoming a Vonage customer?
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, as a matter of fact, I was.
SORKIN: Well, now you can't. Because a judge has ruled, in this patent dispute with Verizon, that they can't take on new customers. The only thing they can actually do is continue with the customers they have. This is what a lawyer for Vonage calls a bullet to the head. And it is true.
This is a company that has never actually turned a profit. And the only way to create a profit is to get more customers, if you can't get more customers this a company that is going down, and going down quick. The stock has moved from $17, when it first came out, to a little over $3 now, and it is tough going.
But there's a bigger issue here, which I think we should watch out for, which is voiceover internet protocol, which is the issue for telephone over the Internet. This case may presage a host of other cases, for other players in this world.
So, I think two issues. One is you're not going to see funding for a new VOIP products in the future. And, also, all the cable guys who are moving in this direction could get hit with this, if they don't watch out. Sprint and Nextel owns some of these patents. Verizon does, so it is a much broader issue than simply Vonage.
M. O'BRIEN: Could this be the end of VOIP in some ways?
SORKIN: Oh, no.
M. O'BRIEN: You can't stop it, right?
SORKIN: And you know what, these guys could, if they can turn a profit, they may be able to actually make this happen and pay royalties and things like that. But that's the issue on the table. But VOIP, it's an issue.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Andrew Ross Sorkin, thanks. See you in just a bit.
Top stories of the morning coming up next. Big trouble for Don Imus. Can an appearance on Al Sharpton's radio show make up for racist remarks?
Also, the world's newest ship wreck. What happens now to the cruise ship that sank off the coast of Greece?
Check out this incredible sight. A volcano blowing its top; the eruption of the century, they're calling it. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING, the most news in the morning right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, welcome back, everybody. It's Monday, April 9th. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: And I'm Miles O'Brien. We're glad you're with us this morning.
S. O'BRIEN: Stories we're watching for you, some pretty incredible pictures to show you, too. One of the world's most active volcanoes has blown its top. This one (INAUDIBLE) Indian Ocean. A few hundred people have been evacuated. And we have a new look this morning at a disaster at sea.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, imagine screaming for a moment. New reaction and new pictures this morning from the cruise ship that sank off the coast of Greece. They'll be looking for clues this morning about just what may have brought that ship down and who is responsible. We're talking to a deep sea detective who knows how to discover secrets in a sunken ship.
S. O'BRIEN: Plus, the apology tour begins for radio host Don Imus. He is trying to make amends for his racist remarks that he made on his show. He's going to be appearing on the Reverend Al Sharpton's show today apologizing again and I think even again this morning. We'll talk about whether that apology is flying with anybody today. Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Some of the other headlines topping the news this morning. Four years since the fall of Baghdad today and the occasion is marked by anti-American rallies in the Iraqi city of Najaf. The demonstrations spurred by the Shiite political and religious leader Muqtada al Sadr. President Bush about to leave Crawford, Texas for Yuma, Arizona where he will rekindle the immigration debate today. He'll tour a border control headquarters that he visited last year. The speech is slated for 1:25 Eastern. CNN will carry it live.
Parts of Ohio waking up to more than two feet of snow this morning. The cold not limited to the great lakes states. 150 record lows were set yesterday as far south as Florida.
And it will cost you more to fill up today. The latest Lundberg survey says gas is up 18 cents over the past two weeks. The average now $2.78 a gallon.
Don Imus will appear on Reverend Al Sharpton's program today. Sharpton is among those who are demanding that Imus is fired after he made those racist and sexist comments on his radio and television show. CNN's Jim Accosta joins us this morning with more on what is happening. Good morning to you Jim.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning Soledad. The "Imus in the Morning" show is more than just shock radio. The broadcast reaching millions on the radio and on cable is a coveted stop on the talk show circuit for political heavy hitters, even presidential candidates, making the I-man's comments even more of an I-mess.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): It was a restrained form of protest on Easter Sunday as Rutgers women's basketball coach Vivian Stringer (ph) sat in church and let her pastor make the case for talk radio host Don Imus to step down.
DEFOREST B. SOARIES, JR., FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF LINCOLN GARDENS: We intend to at the very least demand the resignation or termination of Mr. Imus.
ACOSTA: That followed louder criticism from the Reverend Al Sharpton who warned of continuing protests outside the broadcaster's studios.
REV. AL SHARPTON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: If he stands down, (INAUDIBLE) we will leave this rally and we will head down to that station and we will picket that station and we will picket that station as long as Don Imus is on that station.
ACOSTA: Imus ignited the fire storm that now threatens his 40- year career last week when he and his executive producer ripped into the Rutgers women's basketball team. DON IMUS, FROM MSNBC: That's some nappy-headed hos there, I'm going to tell you that.
ACOSTA: It took two days for Imus to apologize.
IMUS, FROM MSNBC APRIL 6: Our characterization was thoughtless and stupid. We're sorry.
ACOSTA: Then again this morning, Imus tried once more, telling his listeners he would appear on Sharpton's radio show later in the day.
IMUS: I'm not a bad person, I'm a good person, but I said a bad thing. But these young women deserve to know that it was not said with malice.
CLARENCE PAGE, CHICAGO TRIBUNE: I'm just disappointed.
ACOSTA: Columnist Clarence Page was understandably disappointed. Six years ago he had asked Imus to stop making racist humor a part of his program.
PAGE: I had him hold up his hand and take a pledge like in AA or 12 step program and he went along with it. Unfortunately, as we can see now he has fallen off the wagon, which I think is unfortunate.
ACOSTA: If Imus survives, the big question is whether his show can still draw political heavyweights such as presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Barack Obama and John McCain, who is a frequent guest.
PAGE: I think that any candidate who goes on his show now has to answer for it, just like if they belong to a country club that discriminates.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: And we tried to contact several of the major presidential candidates over the weekend, so far, only one no comment from Mitt Romney's camp. Miles and Soledad?
S. O'BRIEN: He says nappy headed hos was not said with any malice. What part of the nappy headed ho line wasn't said with any malice? In seriousness though, for candidates, do you think this become a question for them, Jim? Do you think that the first candidate who goes on, you have to imagine, is going to be hammered with questions on why they went on the show, right?
ACOSTA: That's right. I think so. And on the campaign trail, the question is now going to be asked of every one of these candidates, such as John McCain, will you appear on the Imus show and it is just as simple as that. Clarence Page, he says he and other black writers plan on asking that very question starting today.
S. O'BRIEN: That question will certainly be very interesting, won't it? Jim Acosta this morning, thank you Jim. Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: John McCain just back from Iraq and looking to jump start his floundering campaign. He is now second to Rudy Giuliani in the latest poll. Take a look at the numbers. And of course the all- important money race, he raised about $12.5 million in the first quarter compared to Mitt Romney's $20 million plus. There you see the numbers. Joining me to discuss this, AB Stoddard, associate editor of "The Hill." She is live in our Washington bureau, AB, good to have you back with us.
AB STODDARD, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, THE HILL: Thanks, Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Is it time for McCain to press on, stick to his guns? Or is it time for some sort of tactical retreat, politically?
STODDARD: I think that he knows that he can't really hide from this elephant in the room any longer. In recent months he hasn't really been that visible. He has been campaigning in primary states, but he hasn't really been visible on a national scale and now that he sees his money drawing up and his poll numbers falling, he has no choice but to sort of address this head on and I think what John McCain is going to do with this public relations offensive on his support for the Iraq war is not ask voters to agree with him so much as ask them to trust his position and to trust his leadership.
M. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, it's interesting, though, John McCain's position although perhaps he has been more vocal about it, is no different than the other major candidates. Giuliani and Romney, we just talked about them. There's no daylight between them on their support for the president, the war. You've got to wonder if somebody like Chuck Hagel, a Republican who has a much different opinion of the war might be tempted to step in right now, see an opportunity here.
STODDARD: That's true. But for John McCain, until Chuck Hagel really does step in or Fred Thompson really does step in, he should just be dealing with the other contenders that he is having to face. And it's true. The Iraq war has not dogged Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani the way it has John McCain. McCain is stumbling for actually a bunch of reasons, but I think that he actually has an opportunity on this issue. I think that with some luck and some skill, luck meaning some continued changes on the ground. If the search continues to yield some promising signs combined with John McCain, if he has the ability to articulate better than President Bush what the threat to the Middle East and to the U.S. is, should we withdraw from Iraq, I think that it could actually help them.
M. O'BRIEN: AB Stoddard, associate editor of "The Hill," thank you. Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, aftermath from that huge quake that caused a tsunami to strike the Solomon Islands. One of the most precious resources on earth is now in jeopardy. We'll fill you in.
Plus, what kind of home will $300,000 get you these days? You can find out as we take a tour of the housing markets around the country. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is right here on CNN.
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S. O'BRIEN: Picking up our week-long series "Your American Home," we're taking a closer look at the real estate market this week at the start of the peak season for home buying and selling. According to the National Association of Realtors, the median U.S. home price last year was $221,900. So what exactly does that buy you? AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence is live for us at a new housing development in downtown Los Angeles. Hey Chris, good morning.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Soledad, I hate to reiterate location, location, location, but it is true in what we found. We took that national median and admittedly, we round ed up to an even $300,000 and figured that would be a number that would be relevant just about anywhere you live in the country. With our check in hand, we went shopping.
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LAWRENCE (voice-over): We start our search in sunny south Florida with a single mom and first-time buyer.
DORIS CHIRINOS, FIRST-TIME HOME BUYER: After working so hard, I think I deserve it.
LAWRENCE: Doris Chirinos sees a three bedroom townhouse 20 miles from the ocean. For about the same price she can afford a two bedroom condo two blocks from the beach.
CHIRINOS: This is the range that I can pay for, $300,000.
LAWRENCE: But look what that same money gets you in suburban Detroit, four bedrooms on half an acre.
DAWN MUELLER, REALTOR: That is quite a lot for this area.
LAWRENCE: You don't get this kind of room in Florida.
MUELLER: Oh, no and certainly not in LA. LAWRENCE: Realtor Dawn Mueller showed us a seven-year-old home with a classic front porch and a corner house with 2,600 square feet.
MUELLER: I believe this area was selling right around the $320, $325 range a couple of years ago and this house is priced at $280,000 now.
LAWRENCE: Even with everything upgraded she would only offer $240,000.
MUELLER: And if they don't take it, we'll walk away and we'll do it to the next house, 26 houses in that subdivision, someone is ready to move.
LAWRENCE: And so are we, on to LA.
AMBER KRISTIN, REALTOR: We're going to see a condo, which is a one bedroom, one bath, about 650 square feet.
LAWRENCE: Open spacing. Wood floors in the heart of West Hollywood, then an even smaller studio at the base of the Hollywood hills. Kitchen's pretty small.
KRISTIN: It is a small kitchen. Functional, but small and you could reach it from the bedroom.
LAWRENCE: Realtor Amber Kristin says Korea town gets a little less expensive. Still a one bedroom but with upgrades and a walk-in closet.
KRISTIN: For the price, $279,000. If you want to live in LA, that's pretty darn good. You're not going to get much better than that.
LAWRENCE: So you can live the glamorous life, walk to a Florida beach or spread out in suburban Detroit. Look what 300 grand will get you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: We knew that Wayne County, Michigan, leads the nation in foreclosures. But that corner house in Canton, Michigan that Dawn Mueller showed us, still cannot believe that was well under $300,000. And who knows, if people e-mail in, we've still got our check, maybe we'll take another run at it in DC, Georgia and Texas and see what our money buys us there while you can stop laughing there in Manhattan at our $300,000.
S. O'BRIEN: I know, I know. I could rent out a small tiny part of my apartment to you for that kind of money. I like the way your realtor says, look how great it is, you can reach the kitchen from your bed, that's amazing because it's so small.
LAWRENCE: You have to think positively when you're shopping for studio condos for $300,000. It's all in the mind. S. O'BRIEN: Thanks, Chris Lawrence for us this morning. Tomorrow on AMERICAN MORNING, going to take a look at what's hot in new home construction from a special snoring rooms to just completely over the top family rooms. It's all coming up on our show tomorrow. Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Here's an image that caught our eye this morning. It comes from the Solomon Islands which endured that big earthquake a week ago today. One remote island chain was pushed up 10 feet higher by the shifting tectonic plates, see that. And take a look at this, curtains for some of the most vibrant habitats on earth. A coral reef now high and dry.
Moving west, more proof they don't call it the ring of fire for nothing. These images come from the Indian Ocean island of (INAUDIBLE). I don't know if I'm pronouncing that right. I'm doing my best, but Reunion in English. Lava shooting 600 feet into the air. This is the mountain of the furnace they call it. Scientists say they have never seen it erupt quite like this. A few hundred evacuated, some had breathing problems. For the most part, the lava, however, is flowing harmlessly into the sea.
S. O'BRIEN: What secrets are now lurking deep under the sea? We'll take a close look this morning at the cruise ship that sank right off the coast of Greece, talk to a deep sea detective about just went wrong and what happens next.
Plus selling the story of their captivity, we'll hear from British sailors in their own words, hear about some of the outrage, too, over in the UK. Those stories and much more ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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M. O'BRIEN: The captain of that cruise ship that sank in the Aegean Sea is blaming strong currents for the accident, but authorities are blaming him. Check out this video shot by some of the passengers in a life boat. They're screaming as the life boat was let down on the water. Two French tourists are still missing this morning, a Frenchman and his daughter. Divers will resume their search for them tomorrow and they'll begin their investigation. More on this from professional diver John Chatterton. He joins us from Portland, Maine. John, good to have you with us on the program.
JOHN CHATTERTON, PROFESSIONAL DIVER: Good to be with you Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: In this day in age, with all the technology out there, the global positioning system, well-charted waters, it was daylight, the weather was good. How could this possibly have happened?
CHATTERTON: Well, it's either human error or it's some sort of electronic navigation problem. Either way the responsibility really is going to fall on the shoulders of the captain.
M. O'BRIEN: So, when you say some sort of technical error, a ship like this would have all kind of redundant systems. That seems unlikely to me.
CHATTERTON: Sure. You know, I mean, today navigation systems are very, very sophisticated. But they still require human interaction. You know, I mean, the human element is the thing that's most likely going to cause a failure or something like this to happen.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's talk today and tomorrow about what divers will be doing as they dive on this brand-new wreck. Number one, they'll be searching for the two that are missing. Tell us about how that might go and also what will they be looking for kind of, you know, forensically, if anything, to see them what might tell them about what happened.
CHATTERTON: Their diving objectives are going to be three-fold. First thing they want to do is locate those two missing passengers. That's got to be of the utmost importance right now. Then they're going to want to survey the wreck. They're going to want obtain as much information relating to the damage either from the initial collision with the reef or even additional damage from the sinking itself. And the third thing they're going to want to do is take a look at all of the contaminants, the fuel oil, the lubricating oil, the waste oil on board. Last thing they need right now is an environmental disaster coupled with the sinking of the ship.
M. O'BRIEN: How problematic is it to try to recover all the fuel oil and all the things in there that you wouldn't want to have in the ocean?
CHATTERTON: Sure, well the technology exists. It's not easy, but it can be done. The most important thing is that as you're getting all of these fluids off the vessel, they don't leak out to the environment. There are numerous different techniques they can hot tap into the tanks. They can literally go down and pump it out, but the diving operations are going to be going on there for a while.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, so, what is the long-term outlook for this wreck? I know the insurance companies get right in the middle of these things pretty quickly. Is it possible, is it technically feasible to consider perhaps salvaging this ship, raising it to the surface and trying to refit it or is this just going to be beneath the sea for good?
CHATTERTON: Well, bringing this vessel to the surface is going to, the decision on that is going to be made purely on the financial considerations, what makes the most sense from a dollars and cents standpoint. And to make that determination, they're going to have to do an extensive survey. But salvage operations are always risky. It's not like things are going to go exactly the way you plan them. So, even if they decide that they want to try and salvage this vessel, it doesn't necessarily mean that it is going to happen.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, John Chatterton, professional diver, knows an awful lot about these things, thanks for being with us on this chilly morning there on the coast of Maine. I wouldn't go in that water for sure. I'm sure you would though with a dry suit.
CHATTERTON: I was hoping we were going to be in Santorini.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, thank you very much sir.
Top stories coming up including mass rallies in Iraq today pushing the Americans to go home, but when will Iraqis be ready to take charge of their own security?
A woman suspected of setting a deadly fire. Wait until you hear the reason police say she did it. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning right here.
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S. O'BRIEN: Well, you know, many CEOs get paid top dollar and we mean top, top, top dollar. There is one guy today who today I think it's fair to say, well he may really takes the cake. Just about the top of the hour, Andrew Ross Sorkin is joining us this morning filling in as he minds your business. Good morning.
ANDREW ROSS SORKIN, NEW YORK TIMES: Good morning.
S. O'BRIEN: Give us the figure.
SORKIN: Are you feeling underpaid at all?
S. O'BRIEN: Desperately after I heard what this guy makes.
SORKIN: $400 million in 2006, should we say it again, $400 million. This is Ray Irani who runs Occidental Petroleum, taking home what has to be one of the largest numbers in history. To put it in perspective Michael Eisner made $570 million in 1998, Larry Ellison made $706 million. He's at Oracle in 2001. But that's pretty much the top of the list. It's a lot, a lot of money. Just to be fair though, this is money that has accumulated over the past several years. Had he not taken all these options, he would have made just a paltry $55 million.
M. O'BRIEN: Hard to get by on that. So has the company done well then?
SORKIN: The company actually has done well, to be fair. But, obviously, CEO exec competition is so under pressure today and the AFL/CIO, which is one of the big union groups, has come out against Verizon in the recent days. (INAUDIBLE) who runs Verizon, he has made $109 million over the past several years.
S. O'BRIEN: pennies compared to this guy.
SORKIN: Just pennies but they are really looking to shape that up and they have been quite successful recently over at Home Depot, Robert Nardelli who was fired made $210 million. And over at Pfizer, Hank McKinnel (ph) resigned with some -- I don't know, not in disregard, but in cloud.
M. O'BRIEN: A cloud of controversy.
SORKIN: So, yes, this is an issue and we'll have to see if the AFL-CIO goes after Occidental Petroleum.
S. O'BRIEN: You think with number like that they will.
SORKINS: We'll have to see.
S. O'BRIEN: Andrew, thank you.
M. O'BRIEN: Coming up at the top of the hour, Chad Myers at the CNN weather center. Hello Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning Miles, a very busy travel day today, one of the busiest, one of the top 10 of the year today. Everybody trying to get back home. 3,200 planes in the sky and let me tell you, almost all of them were pretty full. If you're on a plane today, the best advice I can give you is to make the plane you're booked on because standing by on planes today will be very difficult. You'll be in a big line in standby and that's never a good thing unless you're first in line. The new hour of AMERICAN MORNING starts right now.
S. O'BRIEN: Thank you very much Chad. After the fall, rallies this morning in Iraq on the anniversary of the capture of Baghdad. We'll talk to Iraq's ambassador about when U.S. troops might be able to leave.
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