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Don Imus Suspended; Iraq: Getting Out
Aired April 10, 2007 - 08:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning. I'm Heidi Collins.
Watch evens come in to the NEWSROOM live.
It is Tuesday, April 10th. Here's what's on the rundown.
Radio host Don Imus drawing outrage with racial remarks. His target, the women's basketball team at Rutgers. He talks about it this morning.
See it live right here in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: The father of Anna Nicole Smith's baby, a man who could potentially control an oil baron's fortune. We may find out the daddy today when DNA results are released.
COLLINS: Triple X church. Men addicted to raunchy images turn to God to kick skin and sin.
Porn and pancakes in the NEWSROOM.
Radio shock-jock Don Imus, his words lead to action and even more anger. His two-week suspension one of the headlines in a rapid fire morning of developments. Later we will hear from the college women he offended with racially-charged comments. But first, we heard from Imus himself in an interview on NBC.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON IMUS, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: I have a record of a relationship with the African-American community, whether Reverend Sharpton likes it or not. I'm a good and decent person, and I've been conducting a comedy show for 30 years.
I can come back -- will hopefully serve the suspension with dignity, and come back and create a dialogue. One of the things that we're going -- that we're going to do that we've been talking about for years.
MATT LAUER, "TODAY": Quickly if you can, Don. I'm running out of time.
IMUS: There ought to be a black person on this show every single day to add some perspective.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Imus appeared yesterday on a radio show hosted by civil rights activist Al Sharpton. Imus apologized for his remarks, Sharpton repeated his demands that the radio host be fired.
HARRIS: Members of the Rutgers basketball team and their coach are due to hold a news conference about two hours from right now.
CNN's Jim Acosta is on the New Jersey campus.
Jim, good morning to you.
Any idea why the basketball team hasn't not come forward until now?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, basically because this basketball team has been under a gag order placed on them by the university, an informal gag order, you could call it. They have been barred from talking to the media, but that is about to end.
As you mentioned, about two hours from now in a press conference, the Rutgers women's basketball team will break their silence, finally have their say about Don Imus, whose racial slur earned him a two-week suspension.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice over): Don Imus went looking for redemption on of all places Al Sharpton's radio show. But the civil rights leader would have none of it.
IMUS: Would you be willing to come on my program to discuss your point of view?
REV. AL SHARPTON, RADIO HOST: Well, are you going to announce it as your last show?
IMUS: No, I'm not.
SHARPTON: Well, then no. Then I'm not coming you on. We're going to deal with the accountability of distinction.
IMUS: Some rough girls from Rutgers. Man, they've got tattoos and some hard-core hos. That's some nappy-headed hos.
ACOSTA: But what Imus and his executive producer said about the Rutgers squad was not the duo's first verbal assault on African- Americans.
REV. JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: This was not a slip of the lip. This was a point of view.
ACOSTA: Which is why the nation's Black Journalists Association said it was time take Imus off the air. BRYAN MOORE, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BLACK JOURNALISTS: I think it's important that at some point America draws the line and says this far, no farther. That America knows what the standards of decency are, that you can't impugn young ladies like this and get away with it.
ACOSTA: In response to the uproar, MSNBC and CBS Radio announced they are suspending Imus for two weeks starting Monday.
BRIAN WILLIAMS, NBC NEWS: ... taken off the air.
ACOSTA: Al Sharpton wasn't buying it.
SHARPTON: I have faith that people will mobilize and he will be fired.
ACOSTA (on camera): On the Rutgers campus, Imus is accused of ruining a golden moment for the women's basketball team, which made it all the way to the NCAA championship. Their sense of pride here has turned to pain.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They represented Rutgers in an exemplary fashion of which we are extraordinarily proud, and then he says that. Why, why, why, why?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Jim Acosta again.
Jim, why is Imus's suspension taking effect on Monday? Why not immediately?
ACOSTA: Well, a lot of people are asking that, but CBS Radio and MSNBC both said that because Imus has already pretaped a telethon benefiting needy children, that that should air this week, as scheduled as opposed to just taking it off the air and hurting those kids because of what he said last week about the Rutgers women's basketball team. So the suspension starts Monday.
HARRIS: OK.
Jim Acosta following developments for us.
Jim, thank you.
And CNN will have live coverage of the news conference with the Rutgers players and their coach. That is now scheduled this morning at 11:00 a.m. Eastern. That is 8:00 Pacific.
COLLINS: Well, if anything, this story has certainly generated a lot of conversation. So we'd like to hear from you.
Don Imus, should he stay or should he go? You can e-mail us your thoughts to cnnnewsroom@cnn.com. Again, that's cnnnewsroom@cnn.com.
HARRIS: A look now at what's happening in Iraq today. A car bomb killed six people near Baghdad University, and a woman blew herself up in a crowd of police recruits in the Diyala Province. At least 10 were killed. The military announced four more U.S. troops have died in Iraq.
And U.S. and Iraqi forces continue Operation Black Eagle. It targets Shiite militia in the south.
COLLINS: "We're working as fast as we can," Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's words to reporters during a visit to Japan today. They come as some American troops could be asked to stay in Iraq longer.
CNN's Kyra Phillips is in the heart of Baghdad now this morning.
Kyra, tell us, what did the prime minister have to say exactly?
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, how many times have we asked that question, when are U.S. troops going to come home? I mean, we ask that in the NEWSROOM, Americans ask it, Iraqis ask it, all of the key leaders on Capitol Hill are asking that question. And now, finally -- I mean, I even put the question to the head of CENTCOM, Admiral William Fallon, and also David Petraeus. General Petraeus the head of all U.S. forces here in Iraq.
Nobody will tell me anything about a timetable and when U.S. troops could possibly come home. So this is very powerful.
What happened today, Nuri al-Maliki, the prime minister, coming forward and saying exactly, "We see no need for a withdrawal timetable." That's exactly what he said. "What governs the departure at the end of the day is how confident we are in the hand-over process." And that, of course, come downs to security and achievements on the ground.
Now, I had a chance to sit down with the interior minister. He's the head of all Iraqi police forces. And I asked him, "If U.S. troops were to leave here tomorrow, would you be able to secure your country?" And this is what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS (voice over): "The U.S. military can't leave immediately," Minister al-Bulani tells me. "However, we need to speed up our process to hand over the security control from U.S. troops to Iraqi forces. We still need more training and more arms. Then the Iraqi security forces will be capable enough to take over."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: And at the same time, Heidi, the interior minister telling me about a success story, specifically in Anbar Province, a place that has just been plagued by al Qaeda. He said there was a time there was only 200 police officers in that area. He now has 10,000.
And there are tribal leaders in that area that are being given control, and they are working well with the police. That's bringing about intelligence for the Iraqi police and those working to bring down the violence. And these are tribal leaders that went after U.S. forces, that wanted to kill Americans, and now they are working with Iraqis.
So, even though he doesn't want to commit to a timetable, and he even admits that he needs the U.S. forces here because of training and because of weapons, at the same time he says, "We are making a little progress here and there."
COLLINS: So, Kyra, what about the 15,000 troops then whose deployments will be extended? Any idea on how they will be used?
PHILLIPS: Well, that's the talk among commanders here. They basically have said to the secretary of defense, Bob Gates, we need about 15,000 troops to stay. And they are talking about combat brigades and also aviation assets.
And that just goes to show how they cannot set a timetable, just one more point. Even with violence today, a female suicide bomber, another car bomb going off, 15 people killed today already. And also four U.S. troops.
So, it just goes to show you cannot put a date on when U.S. troops need to come home when this country is still dealing with intense security issues.
COLLINS: CNN's Kyra Phillips live from Baghdad this morning.
Kyra, thank you.
HARRIS: Paying for the Iraq war with no strings attached. President Bush talks to members of the American Legion in Virginia next hour. He will repeat his call for a spending bill that does not set a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops.
CNN, of course, will carry the president's remarks live at 10:25 a.m. Eastern Time.
COLLINS: Chad Myers standing by in the weather center today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: And still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, he is cranky, his comments bite, but a racial remark by radio and television personality Don Imus gets him suspended.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
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.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Will it be apology accepted? We hear from the women's basketball team at Rutgers University live this morning, in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Also, a new battle brewing over stem cell research. Debate on a new bill begins on Capitol Hill. President Bush already threatening a veto.
HARRIS: Nine churches burn. Now punishment for three men. And they may face further consequences -- ahead.
COLLINS: And addicted to pornography. Some finding help in new ways. It's a matter of faith.
That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Don Imus confronting the ugliness of his words and facing one of his most vocal critics. Imus appeared yesterday on a radio show hosted by civil rights activist Al Sharpton. Imus apologized for his remarks and Sharpton repeated demands the host be fired.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... Mr. Imus is a good or bad person.
SHARPTON: Not at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And so I'm willing to concede...
SHARPTON: Racist language to be used in mainstream, federally regulated...
IMUS: We got -- it was a situation where we're sitting there rapping, see.
SHARPTON: You said...
IMUS: Don't tell me. I didn't say I didn't understand what we were saying. I said I wasn't thinking that.
Now, if somebody says "jigaboos" and "wannabes," then my frame of reference is a Spike Lee film.
SHARPTON: Correct, which was about light-skinned blacks and whites.
IMUS: I understand that. But I'm not thinking that it is a racial insult that's being -- that's being uttered at somebody. At the time, I think it's in the process of this -- of this -- what we're trying to rap and be funny.
I mean, I understand it's not funny. I understand there is no excuse for it. I'm not pretending that there is.
I wish I hadn't said it. I'm sorry I said it. But...
SHARPTON: Now, let me ask you this, and then we can talk about the things that you want to talk about. If you realize that something must be done, why would you then feel that we are out of order to ask that you step aside?
IMUS: I didn't say that.
SHARPTON: Oh, you don't think we're out of order?
IMUS: No, sir.
SHARPTON: So you come to sign your resignation today?
IMUS: No, I'm not signing anything.
SHARPTON: So what are you saying?
IMUS: I'm saying you have the right...
SHARPTON: You wanted -- you want to determine what ought to happen even though you were the one that did the wrong?
IMUS: I didn't say that either.
I said you have the right to say and do whatever you want to do. What I want you to do and everybody else, everybody who's calling me a racist, everybody who is calling me a bigot, everybody who says, "I don't know anything about him" -- I've heard people say, "I don't know what's in his heart, and I've never listened to his show, but I want him fired." That's an ill-informed decision.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Imus also says his suspension is appropriate and that he'll "try to serve it with some dignity."
HARRIS: The outrage over those comments by Don Imus, African- Americans are furious. Women's groups are, too. The president of the National Organization for Women says Imus's words reflect a deeper issue still playing out years after the feminist revolution.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIM GANDY, NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN: The more progress women make in society, the more women move up, the more we are in law school and medical school, the more -- the higher jobs we have, the more the misogyny increases. A few years ago, it was the B-word. Now it's calling women hos.
It absolutely is tied, in my opinion, to the advances that women are making. And we cannot allow our women, our daughters to be called names like this when they go out and do a great job.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Gandy also says Imus didn't offer much of an apology. He says, "He didn't actually say he was wrong."
CNN will have live coverage of the news conference with the Rutgers players and their coach. That is now scheduled this morning at 11:00 Eastern. That is 8:00 Pacific.
COLLINS: If you have thoughts on this issue, we certainly want to hear from you.
Here's the question: Don Imus, should he stay or should he go?
You can e-mail us your thoughts to cnnnewsroom@cnn.com.
HARRIS: And still to come, Baghdad, fun city? It's an amusement park, not a contradiction. Attendants may tell the story about the new security plan.
That story coming up in the NEWSROOM.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ali Velshi, "Minding Your Business".
A month ago, the head of the biggest home building company in America said that "2007 is going to suck." Those were his words. And now he's got some numbers to back him up.
I'll tell you more when we come back in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
Another stem-cell battle looms between President Bush and Congress. The Senate this morning beginning debate on a bill to clear the way for federal financing of new embryonic stem-cell research. A vote expected this week.
The measure would reverse the president's ban on taxpayer-funded research using stem cells developed after August 2001. President Bush vetoed a similar bill last year, and now he is promising to do it again. Another measure in the Senate calls for the government to set stem-cell research guidelines.
COLLINS: The nation's largest home builder says spring is not in bloom when it comes to new home construction.
Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business" this morning.
That's right. Boy, we're looking at new flowers, eventually, and beautiful things.
VELSHI: Spring is -- this is supposed to be it.
COLLINS: And new homes. Maybe not so much.
VELSHI: New homes, exactly. Well, about a month ago, Donald Horton, the CEO of DR Horton, which is the country's biggest home builder, was at a conference here in New York and he said -- these are the words he used -- he said, "2007 is going to suck, all of it."
COLLINS: Yes. I remember that very well.
VELSHI: Right? And we thought that was unusual. And now the numbers have come out for the first three months of the year, which are supposed to -- I mean, not a lot of people buy homes in January and February, but March is really supposed to be where it kicks up.
And when you look at those numbers, what it shows is that the drop has been fairly dramatic -- 37 percent drop in new home orders. If you take the value, the dollar value of those orders, the drop is actually substantially more. It's 41 percent. So, you know, he's talking about the fact this is a problem, because they really were banking on this pickup in spring, a pickup that's not there.
Now, take a look at this whole -- you know, we've been discussing this foreclosure thing for a long time, Heidi.
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: So let's just take a look at the list of the top cities in America for foreclosures.
COLLINS: Yes, this is weird.
VELSHI: It's interesting, isn't it? Some of them you would guess and some of them you wouldn't.
Now, Detroit, for instance, is one of those where you would expect that because there's been lots of job losses. As a result, people are leaving, the home prices are going down. And now people are stuck with mortgages that are worth more than the home.
But what about Denver and places like that? Why?
COLLINS: And Atlanta, too...
VELSHI: And Atlanta.
COLLINS: ... where I just heard the other day that Atlanta is actually the fastest-growing city in the nation right now.
VELSHI: And home prices in Atlanta are up. In Denver they are up as well.
Now, in some places they're not up as much as they used to be. But when you've got home prices that are up and you've got foreclosures, it means something very clear.
There is the rank. Out of 282 metropolitan areas in the country, only Detroit on that map is actually down in terms of home price values. The other ones are up. What that means is that people were taking adjustable rate mortgages, the mortgage payments have gone up to the point that they can't afford them, and they can't go back to their house to refinance in order to get more money out of it in order to -- you know, to pay, to get the money that they need.
COLLINS: That's devastating.
VELSHI: So the mortgages are too high, those adjustable-rate mortgages are punishing people. And that's why you're seeing foreclosures in places you wouldn't expect to see foreclosures.
COLLINS: Boy, that's for sure.
Any sign it could get better? Just trying to be optimistic here.
VELSHI: Well, if people take the opportunity to refinance into a fixed-rate mortgage, the spread isn't that big these days.
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: The spread was big a few years ago when you took an adjustable-rate mortgage that was locked in at a low rate for a few years, and then it jumped. But today, you know, for the ability to budget and know what's going on in the future, if you can switch over to a fixed-rate mortgage, if that's your personality type, you might hold on to your home longer.
COLLINS: Yes. Boy, we hope so.
VELSHI: Yes.
COLLINS: All right. Ali Velshi, minding our business today.
Better news tomorrow, OK?
VELSHI: Hopefully. And, you know, this is the way it goes. Every second day there is good news.
COLLINS: Thanks, Ali.
VELSHI: All right.
HARRIS: And still to come, he is cranky, his comments bite, but a racial remark by radio and television personality Don Imus gets him suspended.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
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.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Will it be apology accepted? We hear from the women's basketball team at Rutgers University live this morning right here in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: And there is a spill, aisle 14. The liquid, an octane booster. The spiller, a suspected fire starter.
Investigating arson at the Wal-Mart. We'll tell you the whole story coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Good morning once again on this fine Tuesday, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris.
Among our top stories this hour, Don Imus, he is paid a lot of money to stir things up on the radio and on television. Today his voice muffled by static.
Imus facing outrage of protests for racially-charged comments he made last week. His target, the Rutgers University women's basketball team.
We will hear from those women and their coach later this morning. And right now, we are hearing more calls for his firing. His punishment so far, a two-week suspension that he is not contesting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IMUS: I think it's appropriate, and I am going to try to serve it with some dignity, and a lot of dignity if I can. I've had a long relationship going back to 1971 with the people at NBC and a long relationship with CBS.
And when I talked with Phil Griffin last evening, and he told me that he was -- that they were suspending me, I expressed to him that -- how I felt about that, and accepted it in the spirit in which it was -- in which it was rendered.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Among those calling for Imus's firing, civil rights activist Al Sharpton. Imus appeared on Sharpton's radio show yesterday and apologized for his remarks. Imus called himself a good person who made a bad mistake.
COLLINS: It is pretty obvious by now Don Imus likes to talk. And sometimes his mouth get himself into trouble. Here is how his career on the radio got started.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS (voice over): Don Imus started talking on the air in 1968 at a small radio station in Palmdale (ph), California. That's where he established his on-air persona, brash, opinionated and sometimes controversial. In 1971 Imus moved to the big leagues, WNBC in New York City. His "Imus in the Morning" show featuring his trademark tirades and insults humor became wildly popular. But a long running battle with alcohol and drug addiction got him fired in 1977. After a stint in Cleveland, he then returned to New York. By 1988 his show was airing on WFAN and he made it a go to forum for politicians and entertainers. His show was nationally syndicated and is now also carried by MSNBC.
But Imus is known for something else, his charitable work. In the '90s he and his wife founded the Imus ranch in New Mexico. It's a working cattle ranch where kids with cancer or those who have lost siblings to sudden infant death syndrome can get away and have the cowboy experience. Imus and his wife are also involved in autism awareness and research, something he's talked about often on his radio show.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: And just to give you a little more information on that, as we said, Imus has also spent hundreds of millions to build a wing at a Hackensack, New Jersey hospital. The ranch for children with autism and cancer we mentioned, and the Center for the Intrepid in San Antonio, Texas for critically injured military service men and women. CNN will have live coverage of the news conference with the Rutgers players and their coach. That is now scheduled for this morning, 11:00 Eastern, 8:00 Pacific.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: And we also want to hear from you this morning. Don Imus, let's keep it simple here. Should he stay or should he go? E-mail us your thoughts at CNN NEWSROOM at cnn.com.
COLLINS: A look now at what's happening in Iraq today, A car bomb killed six people near Baghdad University. A woman blew herself up in a crowd of police recruits in Diala (ph) province. At least 10 people were killed. The military announced four more U.S. troops have died in Iraq. U.S. and Iraqi forces continue operation black eagle that targets Shiite militia in the south.
HARRIS: It is dangerous but a number of Baghdad residents are looking for, well, fun. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Some of the rides are almost 40 years old at Fun City amusement park in eastern Baghdad. But to these children, they are special. For over two years Hidar Hassan was afraid to bring his kids out to the fair. Now finally they can play here again.
HAIDAR HASSAN, BAGHDAD RESIDENT (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It's entertainment for the children, Hassan says. They were deprived more than two years. They felt oppressed. We have to cheer them up with games.
PLEITGEN: An afternoon picnic in Baghdad, unthinkable only a few weeks ago but with security improving at least in some parts of Iraq's capital, more and more people are venturing out for a stroll or to work out and play.
(on-camera): Baghdad still is one of the most dangerous cities in the world and dozens die in attacks here every day. But Iraqi officials say the growing number of people coming to Baghdad's parks could be an early sign that a new security plan for the city is working.
(voice-over): Staff members say several thousand come to the park each day. Still security is tight. Getting into Fun City is almost like going through airport security. For years, violence in Baghdad made it dangerous for people to even leave their homes. The last thing most Iraqis had on their minds was leisure activities. Even now staff members at Fun City say another attack in this area would probably scare people away from the park again.
ABU ABBAS, FUN CITY EMPLOYEE (THROUGH TRANSLATOR: As long as the security situation is good this employee says, I expect more will come because in this area, the amusement park is the only place they can go for entertainment.
PLEITGEN: Haidar Hassan and other parents at Fun City say entertainment is so important for their children to help them forget the violence in their country, at least for a little while. Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Paying for the Iraq war with no strings attached. President Bush talks to members of the American Legion in Virginia next hour. He'll repeat his call for a spending bill that does not set a time table for withdrawing U.S. troops. CNN will carry the president's remarks live, 10:25 Eastern.
HARRIS: All right. Let's get another check of weather this morning. There he is, Chad Myers in the CNN weather center. Chad good morning to you.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Business travelers advisory, good morning Heidi. Good morning Tony. Some snow in Bismarck and Fargo, also in Minneapolis, a couple of slick roads up here. I guess it's springtime on the calendar but still a little bit winter weather here. A lot of rain across the southeast. Slowdowns in Charlotte, in Newark and also Houston now, Houston the largest, 30 minutes at the airport there. No reports out of hobby (ph) of any delays. We are expecting big time rainfall amounts across Florida in the next 48 hours, also across the Mississippi River valley too, that green about an inch. Anywhere that see yellow, that's a forecast rainfall total of two inches or more. That's all of south Florida where that fire has been burning now for the past couple of days.
Getting a handle on that with a little bit of help from Mother nature. Today the rain is all the way from almost Minneapolis through Chicago and then back down to the Gulf coast, the heaviest rainfall right along the front across Florida. That front doesn't move much for tomorrow. It kind of hangs around Florida. So will the showers but a cold air mass starts to rotate through. And if you are flying through or to the west coast, you need to prepare for colder weather than in the east. We're kind of switching things up again. It's been cold here for a couple days, almost maybe a week now. But now it's getting warmer and then the west is actually getting a little colder.
HARRIS: That's a busy map.
MYERS: Too many arrows there, but we'll get them worked out. It's springtime. That's when the wind blows. Get the kites going.
HARRIS: There you go.
COLLINS: That's a lovely thought. Thank you for that Chad.
Also want to let you know what's happening on the New York Stock Exchange. There was the bell just moments ago and not a whole lot going on at least as of yet. It's pretty early obviously in the day. But Dow Jones up, yes .73, now .65. Let's just sit on this for a while and watch it change around. Nasdaq up 2.3 or so, Dow resting at 12,500. Yesterday it ended up going up a big whopping 8.9 points, so we're going to watch it. Obviously the big headline that we'll be talking with Susan Lisovicz about lots and lots of jobs being either eliminated or reassigned at Citigroup once again, like 26,000. We'll look at that a little later.
HARRIS: And still to come this morning, a stretch of interstate highway reopens but the fire that closed it burns on. An update from Florida. That's coming up in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Nine churches burned, now punishment for three men. They may face further consequences ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Addicted to pornography. Some finding help in new ways. It's a matter of faith, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK. You already know to catch us, don't you, weekday mornings from 9:00 a.m. until noon. Of course you do. But now you can take us with you anywhere right there on your iPod. You have one of those gizmos? About a billion of them have been sold so far. The CNN NEWSROOM pod cast available 24/7 right on your iPod.
In Florida, 55 miles of interstate 75 open to traffic this morning, the fire that shut the road still burns along alligator alley in south Florida. It's blackened 12,000 acres since Saturday and it's just 10 percent contained. The fire is not threatening homes or other structures. Officials blame it on droughts, one of south Florida's worst, we're told, in years.
Federal prison sentences handed down for three men convicted of burning churches in Alabama. Eight years each for Matthew Cloyd and Benjamin Moseley, Russell Lee DeBush gets seven years. They will also have to pay millions of restitution and do community service after their release. The men admitted setting the first fire after a night of drinking. They burned four more churches that night, later Cloyd and Moseley went west, set fire to another four churches near the Mississippi line. They say they were trying to throw police off their trail. The men still face state charges. A hearing on those scheduled for later this week.
COLLINS: Facing addiction, not drugs or alcohol, but pornography. Admitted addicts are finding drastic ways to get their lives back. CNN's David Mattingly has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pornography is a multi-billion-dollar industry. And it might be hard to miss but somewhere among all of the adult products and triple X pictures, there is an all-out battle for souls. And Christians fear they are losing.
CRAIG GROSS, FOUNDER, XXXCHURCH.COM: Pornography is fantasy. It's not real. It doesn't bring you closer with your loved on. It tears you apart.
MATTINGLY: Craig Gross founded xxxchurch.com to help Christians struggling with the temptations of pornography. He believes the numbers are growing for both church goers and ministers.
GROSS: We watch Ted Haggert (ph). That's not the start of porn boulevard. That's the end of porn boulevard.
MATTINGLY: Gross organizes church groups called porn and pancakes to get the issue out in the open. When prayer and bible study aren't enough, he also offers free tattle tale software.
GROSS: You know you're caught. You know you're stuck.
MATTINGLY: Gross says there has been 300,000 downloads so far. Any time the user visits a porn site, the program automatically alerts a friend, a spouse or a pastor.
GROSS: If it slows you down just a bit, and you start to think about you know, the consequences, you might change your ways.
MATTINGLY: But when porn becomes an addiction, the only hope for some is to get away. At the Pure Life ministries in rural central Kentucky, porn addicts spend six months on a desperate path to salvation.
(on-camera): All of the men in this room have left behind jobs, homes and in some cases a wife and children. Some come here thinking this is their last chance to break their porn addiction because after six months, that's it. They are not allowed to come back.
(voice-over): The program demands intense bible study and discipline. Many here used to spend hours a day viewing porn and looking for ways to satisfy their fantasies, often resorting to prostitutes. This resident named Jerry believes getting closer to God will help him get away from the porn and the chat rooms that almost ruined his marriage.
"JERRY," ADDICTED TO PORNOGRAPHY: I cheated on my wife. MATTINGLY: Was that driven by the pornography?
"JERRY": Absolutely. Absolutely. You know, one thing leads to another. In time, it's just not enough.
MATTINGLY: Privacy here is nonexistent. New arrivals sleep 16 to a room. There is limited free time but plenty of time for prayer. I don't see a television, I don't see computers. Is that by design?
JEFF COLON, COUNSELOR, PURE LIFE MINISTRIES: Yes, it is. We try to avoid any outside temptation these men might have to deal with through TV or magazines.
MATTINGLY: There are no books here either except for the bible and study materials, with scriptural lessons on guilt, anger, depression, and selfishness. Head counsel Jeff Colon says the real test is leaving the structured environment and going home.
COLON: We do live in a sexualized culture and it is difficult for these men when they leave. It doesn't help.
MATTINGLY: The Kentucky ministry believes most of the residents will eventually gain control of their addictions. When temptation is so readily available, every day can become a new test of faith. David Mattingly, CNN, Williamstown, Kentucky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Right now let's get you to TJ Holmes in the NEWSROOM. TJ is following a developing story out of the Miami area, a suspicious package, TJ, at a building that is likely to get everyone's attention. Good morning.
TJ HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you. The Federal Reserve, certainly get everybody's attention there in Miami and a suspicious package part trying to get that actually worked out and figured out right now because we got one report from the AP that says indeed, a suspicious package is what has caused problems there at the Federal building. That's what was hit on and caused some issues and some concern. But local affiliates are reporting that this initially started because of a suspicious delivery truck that was parked at a security check point there at the building which aroused some suspicion. So the police were all called in to check out. Now, Tone, happened this quick. Just got in my ear and just heard from my producer that in fact the all clear has been given there in Miami.
So nothing unusual found as far as the truck we were talking about. But the all clear, we were checking this out but are glad we can report right here as soon as we found out about it, getting the info, it all changed and everything is OK. So, I'll get back to you with something else later.
HARRIS: We like when it ends that way.
HOLMES: It ends well. HARRIS: Appreciate it. Thanks. The Rutgers basketball team live this morning in the NEWSROOM. The women respond to Don Imus and his racial remark.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON IMUS: I understand it's not funny. I understand there's no excuse for it. I'm not pretending that there is. I wish I hadn't have said it. I'm sorry I said it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: A radio and television personality tries to atone. Is anyone listening? That story coming up in the NEWSROOM.
And -- hot beer? Police say these shoppers set the popcorn aisle on fire to get away with a few six packs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Put everybody at risk, innocent people at risk, and it had a great potential for loss of life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Needless to say the story is still brewing. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Well, by now we're quite sure you've heard the story about Don Imus in there on his radio/TV show over at MSNBC and something that was said as he pulled up some video of the women's basketball game between Rutgers and Tennessee, the lady vols (ph).
HARRIS: He called them nappy-headed hos, is what he called the women, the Scarlet Knights of the Rutgers women's basketball team. He called them nappy-headed hos.
COLLINS: Yep. And so now the action that was taken yesterday was a two-week suspension. So we were asking you this question. Don Imus, should he stay or should he go? Some people thinking two weeks is good enough. Others people saying absolutely not. So we'd love to hear from you. You can e-mail your thoughts to CNN NEWSROOM at cnn.com. In fact, we have already gotten some of your e-mails. I want to go ahead and begin with this one. It's coming from Brian. I believe he should go, as a nation we must face the fact that certain comments in certain forms are intolerable. It seems as some of our personalities age, they lose the ability to exercise sound and rational judgment.
HARRIS: And Heidi, this from Jason who writes, I definitely think Imus should go. He is a racist in sheep's clothing. America and the world doesn't need any more hate.
COLLINS: And Jan in Kentucky, Imus has always badmouthed everyone. Imus should not be fired. It is his brand of news. Lighten up, people, the world is way too serious.
HARRIS: And this from Joe who writes, I absolutely dislike what Mr. Imus said about the girls, but I don't understand why no one is mentioning that in America we have a right to free speech. To me that means I must defend Mr. Imus' right to say stupid things. There you have it. Continue to send your e-mails along. Love to hear from you. Let's see the question again. What do you think: Should he stay or should he go? We're keeping it real simple there. There it is. E- mail us at CNN NEWSROOM at cnn.com and we'll get more of your e-mails on this morning.
And just another reminder for you, CNN will have live coverage of the news conference with the Rutgers team and its coach, coach and players. That is scheduled for this morning at 11:00 a.m. Eastern. That is 8:00 Pacific here in the NEWSROOM.
Investigators say it was a diversion, part of a plan to rip off a Wal-Mart, risking lives for beer and snacks. Vanessa Walsh of affiliate WFTV reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VANESSA WALSH, WFTV CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While the first suspect filled his cart up with beer at the Wal-Mart, his friend was on the lookout, casing the store. When the cart was loaded down with snacks and beer, suspect number one lifted his shirt and poured a bottle of STP octane booster on the popcorn aisle. It's hard to see the flames but watch as he sets the boxes on fire with the lighter.
JUAN BAILEY, FLORIDA FIRE MARSHAL'S OFFICE: They were pretty bold. They didn't care about anybody else.
WALSH: Juan Bailey is the lead detective on the case. He says a mother and her daughter noticed the fire. You can see them here in the surveillance video. They ran to Wal-Mart employees who put the flames out before they spread.
BAILEY: Put everybody at risk, innocent people at risk. And it had a great potential for loss of life.
WALSH: The fire was supposed to be a diversion so the crooks could score free beer and snacks. The Wal-Mart employees were guarding the exits as soon as the fire alarm went off. After lighting snacks on fire, putting lives at risk and causing $20,000 worth of damage, the guys walked out empty-handed. Bailey hopes they are caught and get what's coming to them, 30 years in jail, before they try something this dangerous again.
BAILEY: I don't want them to think that they can start fires in this state, anywhere indiscriminately and not think that anything is going to happen to them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Well, it takes money to fight a war. President Bush presses Democrats to write a check with no strings attached. We'll hear from the president the next hour. Cash crunch ahead in the NEWSROOM.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN.COM: We've been taking the time to salute our service men and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan through our I-report initiative. Here are a couple of photos that we received this week. This is a photo of Lt. Mike Erso (ph), Lt. Scott Parsons and Lt. Gill Chapman Tyree (ph), all celebrating a promotion. Scott Parsons was recently promoted from second lieutenant to first. They are currently deployed to Balad air force base.
This is a photo of Matt McDowell meeting his son Nathan Matthew. Matt was killed in action by an IED on April 1 after returning back to Iraq on March 25. Matthew was one of six U.S. troops killed in that explosion on Palm Sunday.
This photo was sent to us by Michelle Bocalo (ph). This is her husband Specialist Michael Bocalo along with Sgt. Anthony Morino (ph) and Specialist Steven Jeff Burke (ph). They are currently serving as part of the 82nd airborne division stationed at Kandahar air base in Afghanistan. The message with this photo, from all of us back home, their loving wives and children we salute them for all that they have done for us. And you can help us salute the troops as well by sending us an I-report. Just log on to cnn.com/exchange. I'm Veronica de la Cruz for the dot com desk.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Good morning everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: And good morning. I'm Tony Harris. Stay informed in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here's what's on the rundown. The women's basketball team at Rutgers responding this morning to racially insensitive remarks from radio and television host Don Imus. You'll see it live here in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: It takes cash to fight a war. President Bush live this hour pressing Democrats in Congress to fund the war without withdrawal deadlines.
HARRIS: College credit and there's nothing academic about it. Are banks preying on students and are colleges playing the role of accomplice? Find out on Tuesday, April 10th. You are in the NEWSROOM.
And our top story this hour, radio shock jock Don Imus, his words lead to action and even more anger. His two-week suspension, one of the headlines in a rapid fire morning of developments. Later we will hear from the college women he offended with racially charged comments. But First, we heard from Imus himself on an interview on NBC.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON IMUS: I have a record of a relationship with the African- American community, whether Reverend Sharpton likes it or not. I am a good and decent person. And I've been conducting a comedy show for 30 years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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