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Imus off the Air; Iraqi Parliament Building Bombing; New Orleans Homelessness Has Doubled Since Katrina; Increase in Tour of Duty Stresses Soldiers.
Aired April 13, 2007 - 08:58 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm T.J. Holmes.
So glad you all could be with us this morning.
COLLINS: Here's what we're talking about today. You can watch these events come in to the NEWSROOM live for Friday, the 13th of April.
Here's what's on the rundown.
Off the air. Don Imus fired over a racial remark. This morning, Imus's wife reveals the targets of the slur, women athletes at Rutgers, are getting hate mail.
HOLMES: Also, Iraq parliament bombing. Just watch. A television crew conducting an interview catches the suicide attack on tape.
COLLINS: The robber with a conscience. He apologizes to the store clerk when it appears he's having heart problems.
The sorry stickup man coming up in NEWSROOM.
Off-the-cuff comments, off the air as a result. Don Imus fired for a racially-charged remark, yet he still kept his scheduled meeting with the targets of his comments.
Last night, he and his wife met with the women of Rutgers basketball team.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
C. VIVIAN STRINGER, RUTGERS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM COACH: Hopefully we can put all of this behind us ad look forward to a much more productive society. So, we'll look forward to things. And that's really what we'd like to do, is to go forward and to let the healing process begin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP) DEIRDRE IMUS, DON IMUS'S WIFE: They gave us the opportunity to listen to what they had to say, and what -- why they're hurting, and how awful this is. And I have to say that these women are unbelievably courageous and beautiful women. And one thing I want to say is that the hate mail that's being sent to them must stop. It's -- this is -- this is -- if you want to send hate mail, send it to my husband.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: And Imus's wife there you just heard from, sitting in for him, hosting his long-scheduled fund-raiser for children's charities.
Looking ahead, though, Imus's firing raises questions. What about his future and what about job security for other shock-jocks?
CNN Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HOWARD STERN, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: This broadcast is history in the making.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Shock-jock Howard Stern left the public airwaves for satellite radio. So did controversial radio hosts Opie and Anthony.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our first day on XM Satellite Radio.
CHERNOFF: But a source in the industry says there's no opportunity now for Imus on satellite radio, especially since Sirius and XM are hoping to gain government approval for a planned merger.
PAUL LA MONICA, CNNMONEY.COM: Satellite radio can't afford the risk right now. Simply put, they just need to steer clear of any more controversy that could possibly derail their merger plans.
DON IMUS, FMR. RADIO HOST: And sometimes we go too far.
CHERNOFF: Indeed, the collapse of Imus, an original shock-jock, could mark a threshold, a change in attitudes about public vulgarity. In cutting ties to Don Imus, both CBS and NBC say they hope to clean up the airwaves.
STEVE CAPUS, NBC NEWS PRESIDENT: This had touched a nerve. And the comment that came through to us time and time again was, when is enough going to be enough?
CHERNOFF: CBS CEO Les Moonves told his staff in a memo, "Firing Imus is an effort to curb offensive speech in American pop culture. In taking him off the air, I believe we take an important and necessary step in changing that culture, which extends far beyond the walls of our company."
JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: ... more inclusive. CHERNOFF: Minority leaders who called for Imus's firing say their campaign on all kinds of media companies is just getting started.
REV. AL SHARPTON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: We're going to be looking around the television industry and the music industry. And clearly, I think that all of them ought to know that there is no one that does not, in our judgment, get a pass here. I think from musicians on.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. Allan Chernoff joins us now live.
Well, this is all about money. So many people were talking about this whole issue. So, who's taking a hit? How much money is being lost by CBS and whoever else because of Imus's firing?
CHERNOFF: Well, T.J., this is actually a hit that CBS can pretty easily handle, actually. This company behind me, CBS Corporation, they had profit last year of $1.6 billion. Towards that, Imus actually contributed about $2 million. That's according to a source with good information, good knowledge of the financials right over here.
His revenues were close to $20 million, but after you subtract expenses, salary, et cetera, it actually all came down to about $2 million for CBS Corporation. So CBS certainly can handle this hit.
HOLMES: All right. They can handle it, and a lot of the talk in this whole debate has been about cleaning up the airwaves, cleaning up what shock-jocks say. A lot of conversations now about cleaning up the music industry.
Whose responsibility is that? Is there any regulatory body out there that can force these people to clean up, or is it up to the consumer?
CHERNOFF: You know, of course, the FCC can slap fines here and there. What effect has that really had on society? Virtually none.
Number one, you can look at the consumer and say, hey, you know, people themselves can have some responsibility, but also, the greater responsibility perhaps is what Les Moonves is really talking about. He's saying in his statement, in his letter to CBS employees, he wants to change the culture.
He has the power. Other top executives at major media companies, record companies, they have the power to decide, what are they going to put out there for the public to hear, for the public to buy, and are they really going to follow through? Is there going to be more of a crackdown than just merely on Don Imus?
HOLMES: All right. We shall see if there's actually a follow- through, as you say there, Allan.
Allan Chernoff for us in New York.
Thanks so much, Allan.
Well, meanwhile, Don Imus, of course, what he said and what his firing says about the times in which we live. A closer look through the eyes of our guests. That's coming up in the CNN NEWSROOM.
And a meeting between Imus and the Rutger players held in the governor's mansion in New Jersey. And Governor Jon Corzine was on his way to moderate when this happened. He was involved in a violent car crash.
Today now he's said to be in critical condition, but expected to recover. The crash broke his leg, several ribs, his sternum, and fractured a vertebrae. The trooper who was driving Corzine suffered minor injuries. Police are searching for the driver of a pickup truck who is blamed for causing that crash.
COLLINS: Defying terror. Iraq's parliament holds a special session one day after a powerful suicide bombing. The blast killed a lawmaker. Now reducing the death toll.
We want to go straight now to CNN's Arwa Damon in the parliament building in Baghdad.
Arwa, this is sort of a bizarre turn of events. One day later, though, how does the scene look to you?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Heidi, definitely a day later you can really feel the magnitude of the attack. It took place just on the other side of that wall.
The area has now been sealed off, as it is a crime scene. But this is the heart of Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, the convention center where parliament meets on a regular basis. And now you still see a day later the devastation everywhere.
There are shards of glass littering just about everything. And in some parts you see thick layers of dust. There are still pieces of flesh and dried blood in the carpet.
But despite all this, parliament did convene in an emergency session today to commemorate the death of parliament member Mohammed Hassan Awa (ph). They placed a wreath of flowers on the chair that he will no longer be occupying.
And we heard from a number of individuals within the Iraqi government saying that this attack was not going to serve to divide them, but rather unify them. In fact, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh, a Kurd, saying that they were now more determined than ever to stand up to terror.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARHAM SALEH, IRAQI DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: We cannot afford to lose this battle. We are fighting a ruthless enemy that is intent on destroying everything that is good about this country. And we cannot let up in the fight against these terrorists, and we have to eradicate it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DAMON: Now, the Iraqi government has vowed that it will bring the perpetrators to justice. National Security Adviser Mowaffak al- Rubaie told us that they currently have three suspects in custody and that they are utterly convinced that this was some sort of inside job -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Which is really frightening when you look at the overall picture to all this. In fact, Arwa, will the security services be taking any additional day-to-day measures in reaction to this attack?
DAMON: Well, Heidi, we're also already seeing heightened security, at least in and around this area. Just for us to come into this location, already it was incredibly difficult to get through. You cross multiple checkpoints manned by the U.S. military, the Iraqi army, where there are bomb-sniffing dogs and X-ray machines.
Today there was already a heightened level of security around this location, a heightened level of security just to get in and out of the Green Zone. Everyone is taking this incredibly seriously. The Iraqi government, the Iraqi security forces saying that they now have to reassess the security precautions put into place. And we heard the same thing from the U.S. military as well.
COLLINS: Hopefully they will never be infiltrated again.
All right. CNN's Arwa Damon, live from Baghdad.
Arwa, thanks.
(NEWSBREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins.
Nineteen months after Hurricane Katrina hit, many people in New Orleans still can't find a place to live or afford one.
CNN's Gary Tuchman reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You like those colors?
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thousands of New Orleans tourists have met Larry Lawler (ph). He delights the young and young at heart as a balloon man outside the city's famous Cafe Du Monde.
But after the sun sets and night falls in the Crescent City...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm taking a can opener.
TUCHMAN: ... Larry and his wife, Theresa (ph), eat sardines out of a can and sleep in a box under a bridge in downtown New Orleans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every seven days a week.
TUCHMAN: Larry may work every day, but he says he doesn't make enough to afford the low-cost residential hotel they lived in before Katrina.
(on camera): How much more expensive is New Orleans now than it was before Katrina?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my God.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would say triple amount as much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were paying $35 a night in the hotel, and now it's $75.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): New Orleans is full of homeless people who had places to live before the hurricane, but cannot afford post- Katrina prices.
(on camera): How long have you been living out in the street?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About three months, maybe three and a half.
TUCHMAN: What's this like for you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hell.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Thurston James (ph) lived in the lower Ninth Ward. His home was destroyed.
(on camera): Are you depressed?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very. I think I'm losing my damn mind.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): He can't find a steady construction job. And also lives under a bridge.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A $400 house now will cost you anywhere from $800 to a $1,000 a month or more.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Can't afford it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can't.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): A consulting firm has estimated about 58 percent of the city's housing supply suffered major damage from the storm. Inside this abandoned flood-ravaged church, squatters. Two men who came from Texas who quickly realized they could afford nothing.
(on camera): Are you scared to be here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I'm scared to be here because I don't know what's going on.
TUCHMAN: The conditions in the buildings where these squatters sleep are less than abysmal. Not only the building's falling apart, but they're full of nails and garbage and waste and rodents. And if you're not careful here on the second floor, you'll fall 15 feet to the first floor.
(voice-over): And even for the more fortunate who have homes, life Kewanna Starks, life has become much more difficult.
You had a bigger apartment and better neighborhood before?
KEWANNA STARKS, RENTER: Yes.
TUCHMAN: And you paid how much?
STARKS $315.
TUCHMAN: And now in a smaller apartment you pay?
STARKS: $715.
TUCHMAN: Experts say the homeless population has doubled since Katrina, from about 6,000 to 12,000. Even though more than half of the people who lived here have not come back. So what should New Orleanians do who want to come back home, but don't have jobs?
BRENNAN RHODES, HOMELESS ADVOCATE: I would tell them straight out, this is the situation right now, you know. Things are rough. We have a lack of resources and if you do come back, you may not have somewhere to stay.
TUCHMAN: Larry and Theresa (ph) don't want to leave New Orleans. So she prepares the balloons and he entertains as many people as possible. And then they go back under the bridge, hoping the relatively carefree days before Katrina will somehow come back.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Well, saying I'm sorry may not be enough. Trouble for the district attorney who brought rape and sexual assault charges against three Duke University lacrosse charges.
They're now cleared of all charges and considering a lawsuit. This despite D.A. Mike Nifong's carefully-worded apology issued yesterday in which he writes, "To the extent that I made judgments that ultimately proved to be incorrect, I apologize to the three students that were wrongly accused." Nifong is also up on ethics charges with the North Carolina State Bar for the way he handled the case. And that could cost him his law license. That case will be heard in June.
COLLINS: Making their mark this week in the world of news. The women of Rutgers University basketball team, their dignity and grace the highlight in a week of sometimes ugly debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ESSENCE CARSON, CAPTAIN RUTGERS BASKETBALL TEAM: Not only has Mr. Imus stolen a moment of pure grace from us, but he has brought us to the harsh reality that behind the faces of the networks that have worked so hard to convey a message of empowerment to young adults, that somehow, some way, the door has been left open to attack your leaders of tomorrow.
HEATHER ZURICH, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL PLAYER: What hurts the most about this situation is that Mr. Imus knows not one of us personally. He doesn't know that Matee is the funniest person you will ever meet, Kia is the big sister you never had but always wanted, and Piph would make an unbelievable lawyer one day.
These are my teammates, my family. And we were insulted and, yes, we are angry. Worst of all, my team and I did nothing to deserve neither Mr. Imus nor Mr. McGuirk's deplorable comments.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Players have not yet said whether Imus issued an apology in their meeting last night.
HOLMES: Showing compassion while sticking up a store? Details of a remorseful robbery suspect, that's coming up in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Priceless military medal delivered, but the recipient nowhere to be found. Now a desperate search to find a World War II veteran. Two men on a mission, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A box delivered. The contents, priceless. The problem? The intended recipient cannot be found.
HOLMES: Yes, that's kind of a problem.
And now two Arizona businessmen on a mission, searching for the rightful owner, a World War II veteran. Courtney Zubowski of CNN affiliate KTVK explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COURTNEY ZUBOWSKI, REPORTER, KTVK (voice over): At Arrow Wire & Cable in south Phoenix, they receive dozens of boxes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every day. ZUBOWSKI: The contents usually have something to do with low- voltage wire distribution.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wire, jacks, anything to hook up an entertainment system.
ZUBOWSKI: But in late February, a box arrived here that contained nothing to do with their business but someone else's.
BOBBY BRENNER, SEARCHING FOR VETERAN: Scott (ph) calls me in from the front office, says, "Bobby, come back here and take a look at this." And I come out there, and it was like, wow.
ZUBOWSKI: Along with this odd-shaped glass sculpture...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some kind of fish with legs. I don't know.
ZUBOWSKI: ... was a wooden box with a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star, a medal for good conduct, an Asian-Pacific company medal, and a World War II victory service medal. Engraved on the back of some of the medals, the name Jacob Dechter.
BRENNER: Being a former Marine, I know about medals, and I know what he's done for our country.
ZUBOWSKI: So Bobby Brenner and Scott Andrews (ph) want to do something for Jacob Dechter. They want to give him his medals back, or at least get them to his family.
I called up UPS, and they told me, "No, that box was supposed to go to you." And I'm like, "No, it wasn't." So I called up our distributor. They're, like, "Why would we send you medals?"
ZUBOWSKI: They called Jacob Dechters in the phone book. They Googled him. They even wrote a letter to Senator John McCain, who responded by saying he forwarded the information to the Department of the Army. But it's been about six weeks and no luck.
BRENNER: This person has done something great for our country, and obviously if he's going to have them in a case, he's proud of them, and he needs them back.
ZUBOWSKI: S Jacob?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you're still alive, come get your medals, man. I want to know your story.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A brutal message shows up online. Eerie echoes of Iraq, but this is a lot closer to home. South of the border shocker straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: Also, extended duty, extended stress -- the strain of the Army and the toll on the troops. A look ahead at that is coming your way in the CNN NEWSROOM. COLLINS: Old Glory holding its own in a massive dust storm out West. We'll have all the dirt just ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Hey. Good Friday morning to you, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins.
HOLMES: You sure sound happy that it's Friday.
COLLINS: Oh, I'm shocked. Yes.
HOLMES: All right.
And I'm T.J. Holmes.
Up first this half hour, Don Imus, his voice silenced on the radio but talking and listening when it may count most. Just hours after being canned by CBS, the radio host met last night with the women of Rutgers basketball. And they were the target of his racially-charged comments.
This morning we heard from two women at that meeting, the team's coach and Imus's wife.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
VOICE OF DEIRDRE IMUS, WIFE OF FIRED RADIO HOST: And I have to say that these women are unbelievably courageous and beautiful women. And one thing I want to say is, that the hate mail that's being sent to them must stop. It's -- this is wrong. If you want to send hate mail, send it to my husband.
C. VIVIAN STRINGER, RUTGERS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL COACH: Hopefully we can put all of this behind us and look forward to a much more productive society. So we'll look forward to things. That's really what we would like to do, is to go forward and to let the healing process begin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Well, what he said and what his firing says about the times in which we live. We're taking a closer look at that through the eyes of our guests, their take, coming up.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: New Jersey's governor critically injured while on his way to moderate that meeting. Doctors say Jon Corzine will eventually recover, but it will be a long and painful road back. He suffered several broken ribs as well as a broken leg and sternum. He also fractured a vertebra. The trooper who was driving Corzine suffered minor injuries. The police are searching for a driver of a red pickup truck who is blamed for causing the crash. Was Mary Winkler an abused woman pushed to the edge? Or did the preacher's wife kill her husband after becoming entangled in a check kiting scheme? Winkler is back inside a Selmer (ph), Tennessee, courtroom this morning where the state is laying out its case against her. Winkler is charged with first degree murder. She has admitted shooting her husband. The jury is being asked to decide what caused her to pull that trigger. We have a reporter inside the courtroom, live update coming up right here in the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: An insurgent group that includes al Qaeda in Iraq now claiming responsibility for that parliament building bombing. The claim made on an Islamist Web site. That was the scene. Meanwhile, U.S. and Iraqi authorities now say one person was killed in yesterday's blast. Again, one person. Earlier they had reported as many as eight. Investigators suspect the suicide bomber got help from insiders. They've detained three cafeteria workers and several security officers. Iraq's parliament is mourning the lawmaker who died in the blast, parliament holding a special session this morning to quote, defy terrorism. However, only a few lawmakers showed up.
Longer combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, 15 months now instead of 12. The Pentagon's move this week raising questions, how much can we ask of an already stressed army? CNN's Jamie McIntyre reports.
JAMIE McINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): No one in the Pentagon disputes that lengthening combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan will put more stress on already war-weary soldiers and their long-suffering families. Critics, including many Democrats in Congress, fear the breaking point is near.
SEN. JIM WEBB (D) ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: I think there are limits to human endurance and there are limits to what families can put up with.
McINTYRE: The army likes to point to the latest recruiting and retention numbers, which show both the active duty and National Guard are exceeding goals.
UNIDENTIFIED SOLDIER: That's an overall great picture for the health of the force.
McINTYRE: But there are other more ominous trends. Take the number of west point graduates who are voting with their feet after their five-year commitment is up. Forty six percent from the class of 2001 decided to get out and 54 percent from the class of 2000. That's up significantly from the average of 10 to 30 percent. And it amounts to a brain drain of captains, many who have served multiple combat tours and may have burned out.
GEN. GEORGE CASEY, ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF: Clearly, it will be something that we'll have to keep a very close eye on. I've watched units be extended from 90 to 120 days. It has not had an adverse affect on -- a noticeable effect on a unit.
McINTYRE: But even strong supporters of the all volunteer force are worried. Senator John Warner issued a warning about the longer tour saying, quote, we must carefully monitor the possible risks to that system that these extensions may generate.
(on-camera): The army's long-term solution is to get bigger, which it's doing by attracting more volunteers, even though most of them know they'll likely go directly to the war zone. One fix that is not being considered is any return to the draft. Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Believe it or not, that isn't a rain cloud on the right of your screen. Looks like it though, doesn't it? It's actually a huge wall of dust, yummy. It rolled into the Phoenix area reducing visibility to just a few feet. Strong winds triggered the dust storm. Powerful gusts also blew down trees and power lines. Many flights out of the city were delayed.
HOLMES: Are we talking weather now, Chad Myers at the weather center. Chad, you said it's just a matter of time. We're just waiting for those watches and warnings to pop today.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right. Actually, we had a couple overnight, T.J. and now things have calmed down slightly. There's snow on the north side. There's rain in the bulk of the storm. Actually that rain, see that big blob of rain north of Oklahoma City and Tulsa? Here's a live shot from Oklahoma City. Here's what rain does to a nightmarish commute in Oklahoma City, KOCO here. I think that's 35 on I-44. I'm not sure. I remember this camera when I used to work there, but I can't put my finger on where that is. It's on its way downtown, on the eastern side of downtown. Anyway, Tulsa, another live shot here.
You can't see too much on this one but there's a lot of rain in your future. Also out toward Osage County, that's where most of the heaviest, heaviest rainfall is right now from our affiliate there in Tulsa, Oklahoma. So there is KOTV, our affiliate there. The snow in Pueblo, snow out in western Kansas and then the stormy weather develops here in what's called the warm sector. It's warm. It's muggy. It's humid. It's all those things you get when you put a severe weather day together. And you have some shear. You have wind changing directions in the atmosphere and you have some cold, dryer air trying to push that warm up air up. Here's what the cold, drier air, cold wetter air is doing here in Pueblo. That's where that big purple area. That will be a foot of snow or more.
Then this is the real threat. It's the severe weather that's the threat. Yes, there will be some localized blizzard conditions La Junta and Trinidad and maybe Pueblo as the air gets pushed up the hill, up the mountains. The story is the large hail and the tornadoes that are likely. Some of these tornadoes may very well be large tornadoes today, talking about F-3s, F-4s and maybe an F-5, but 3s and 4s seem probably more likely. That's that EF, that enhanced Fujita scale that we'll be talking about today.
Snow on the back side, rain into Seattle and a bunch of wind, too, across parts of the west yesterday. That finally moves away. Had some wind in the northeast this morning, but the airports have all reacted fairly well to it. That wind will continue for today. A cool day in New York, Boston, D.C. It's all relative. It isn't snowing at least where it was yesterday in some spots across northern New York, parts of Maine, New Hampshire, a foot of snow yesterday. And now at least that storm has moved away. T.J., Heidi, back to you.
COLLINS: But the -- wait, now. Yesterday we talked about being able to ski on the east or on the west?
MYERS: Yeah.
COLLINS: And are we saying it wasn't quite exactly what we were hoping it would go, like to the ski resorts?
MYERS: Exactly right. There will be some snow in the southern resorts. I just got an e-mail from Santa Fe, snowing there, so obviously snowing in Taos as well. The storm literally went about 50 miles farther south than the computers thought it would, that I thought it would and so therefore it's not getting into Denver proper today. It's getting south of there.
COLLINS: Storms are crafty little buggers aren't they?
MYERS: Yeah.
COLLINS: All right Chad, thank you.
Going ahead and check out the big board now. There it was just moments ago. And we're looking at numbers like these, positive ones. So that's good. About 30 points or so with the Dow Jones Industrial Average resting at 12,584. When things closed down yesterday, the overall gains looked something like 68 points or so. So we're going to be following our business stories for you. Talk more about them with Susan Lisovicz a little bit later on.
HOLMES: It's a question White House wannabes face sooner or later, should the Confederate flag fly over state houses in the south? Now New Yorker Rudy Giuliani is being put to the test. CNN's Mary Snow reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rudy Giuliani is facing a hot button issue on the campaign trail in the south that can carry a powerful punch for Republican candidates. That question, should state capitols be allowed to fly the Confederate flag? It came up in Alabama Tuesday and Wednesday in Atlanta. He told CNN.
RUDY GIULIANI (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's not a question I'm going to decide. I don't think it's a question that I should decide. I think that it's something the states should decide.
SNOW: A national issue on the front burner? No.
DAN T. CARTER, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA: But it does have to do with the feelings and the emotions of voters. And if it's not a third rail, it's certainly a delicate issue.
SNOW: Republican presidential hopeful John McCain found out just how delicate the issue is when he ran for president in 2000. It still haunts him seven years later. Listen to McCain from CBS "60 Minutes" on Sunday being critical of himself about waffling on the Confederate flag issue back then.
SEN. JOHN McCAIN (R) ARIZONA: Worse than waffle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you mean?
McCAIN: I said that it was strictly a state issue and clearly knowing it wasn't.
SNOW: After initially saying in 2000 that the flag was a symbol of heritage, he changed his position to saying the Confederate flag should be removed from the state capitol.
McCAIN: I feared that if I answered honestly I could not win the South Carolina primary. So I chose to compromise my principles.
SNOW: While the Confederate flag has become a symbol of slavery and oppression, political observers say there is a group of white southern voters that Republicans are attempting to win over.
CARTER: They want a candidate who is going to say that the Confederate flag is a symbol of nobility and courage and bravery and has nothing to do with racism.
SNOW: So the question is, how far will a candidate go to win the support of Republican primary voters in states like South Carolina and risk alienating voters in the general election? Mary Snow, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: A brutal message shows up online, eerie echoes of Iraq. But this is a lot closer to home. South of the border shocker, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: Also, you got to see this one, a hold-up guy feels his soft side. He apologizes when the store clerk gets sick.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel for him. There's a lot of people who are going through tough times and, you know, I do feel for him. I mean, he was actually very compassionate to her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The remorseful robber, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: An earthquake rattles nerves but causes no major injuries or damage in New Mexico today. The magnitude six quake was centered about 40 miles northwest of Acapulco. It was felt in Mexico City as well. Tall buildings sway and frightened residents who ran into the streets, some of those folks in their pajamas. Mexico officials say about 20 percent of homes in Mexico City's downtown district lost power. There was at least one after shock.
COLLINS: Horrifying hostage videos on the Internet. Scenes that echo the violence we've seen in Iraq. But this is something very different and we do warn you. This report contains graphic pictures that could be disturbing. CNN's Harris Whitbeck reports on a drug war that's as close as your computer.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It looks like a video from Iraq. Hostage bound, interrogated, tortured by his captors who remain off camera. But the language is not Arabic. It is Spanish. The country is not Iraq, it is Mexico. And along with the threats scribbled on this hostage's body is a big "Z" which stands for Zeckas (ph) the name of one of Mexico's many drug cartel hit squads, the victim allegedly a member of the Zeckas. His captors, apparently from a rival gang, seven of whose members were recently killed.
Are you responsible for killing our people, the interrogator asks him. Yes, he answers. Soon after, the beheading takes place. As shocking as its content is the way the video was made public. It was put on YouTube, the U.S.-based Web site that allows anonymous users to post home videos. And while YouTube removed the posting after a few hours when it became aware of it, it is only the most recent posting on a variety of sites in what Internet security experts in Mexico say is a trend among the Mexican drug cartels.
GABRIEL CAMPOLI, INTERNET CRIME EXPERT (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): It is a message to society, a way of saying that the government's efforts to combat drug trafficking have failed and that the cartels are alive and well.
WHITBECK: Here's another Mexican video that made the rounds on the Internet. The singer is Valentine (INAUDIBLE) who is said to have quite a following among drug traffickers. Over images of victims of the drug cartel battles, he sings what's known in Mexico as a narco- ballad. I'm singing this song to my enemies, is the lyric. Several months later, (INAUDIBLE) himself wound up dead, shot 20 times. Pictures of his autopsy appeared on another web posting. Federal prosecutors in Mexico have seen many of these videos and the chat room messages that they trigger. They say they are investigating them for clues that might lead to their authors. But experts say Mexican law enforcement is ill-equipped to track criminals in cyberspace.
CAMPOLI: The problem is one of legislation. Mexican law does not allow the police to dig very deeply into the identities of people on the Internet. What we really need is a special prosecutor for Internet crime.
WHITBECK: The web may be a powerful medium for transmitting drug traffickers' messages but if properly investigated, it could also be a treasure trove of clues about their whereabouts and identities.
In fact, at the end of that beheading video, a message scrolls on the screen that serves as both a clue for police and a warning to a rival drug lord. Citing the drug lord by name, the message says, you're next. Harris Whitbeck, CNN, Mexico City.
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COLLINS: Fired twice in one week. What's next for Don Imus? And what happens to the national debate stirred by his racial remark? We look for answers coming up in the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: It hovers like a helicopter, flies like a plane, and it's heading to the war zone. Take a wild ride, in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Students get a surprise from their pen pal in Afghanistan. The soldier shows up in class.
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UNIDENTIFIED SOLDIER: You're sitting in a bunk. You're away from your family and stuff and you're reading some of the stuff that they write in there, you know, it brings a smile to your face.
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COLLINS: Letters from home, in the NEWSROOM.
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COLLINS: Well, we appreciate you watching every day from 9:00 until noon, but hey, you can watch more with the pod cast, 24-7. Just download that puppy and we've been told it's becoming just wildly, wildly popular. Just go to cnn.com/podcast and check it out.
HOLMES: Wildly popular, it is. Need to tell you about a robbery suspect now who has been following the golden rule, following it while going for the cash. Jessica D'Onofrio (ph) from our affiliate WKMG explains.
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JESSICA D'ONOFRIO, WKMG CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You can call him a robber with a conscience. The man in black is holding up a clerk at a Kangaroo Express in Altamont Springs who begins to have chest pains. Instead of being cold hearted, the remorseful thief apologizes and even helps her call 911.
ROBBER: I'm sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm having a heart attack.
ROBBER: Where is the phone? Where is the phone? Where is the phone?
D'ONOFRIO: The robber is also kind enough to get 60-year-old Mary Parker a stool. He grabs a phone and begins to dial for help, then let's Parker use her own cell phone, just as long as she didn't mention that she was being held up. The entire time he keeps saying he's sorry and explains to the clerk that he's been down on his luck.
ROBBER: I do not want to hurt you. Trust me, I do not want to hurt you. (INAUDIBLE)
D'ONOFRIO: But it doesn't end there. At a certain point customer Gary Knight walks in and is confronted by the gun-wielding robber.
GARY KNIGHT: I put my hand up in between him and myself. And I said, look, I can't tell who you are, don't shoot.
D'ONOFRIO: Knight was forced into a cooler. Then the robber got away with an undisclosed amount of cash. Amazingly, the thief isn't the only one in this case with some sympathy.
KNIGHT: I feel for him. There's a lot of people that are going through tough times and, you know, I do feel for him. I mean, he was actually very compassionate to her.
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HOLMES: Well, that suspect still at large, hopefully getting his life together. The clerk was treated at a hospital.
COLLINS: Don Imus yanked off the air and called on the carpet at the governor's mansion. Details of his meeting with the target of his racially charged comments, coming up in the NEWSROOM.
HOLMES: And an explosion in Iraq's parliament building not as deadly as first thought. Live to Baghdad as lawmakers meet to defy terrorism. That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.
THOMAS ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. I'm Thomas Roberts live in Selmer, Tennessee. It's day two of the Mary Winkler first degree murder trial. We'll tell you all about day one and take you inside live to the courtroom when CNN NEWSROOM continues.
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COLLINS: Life after work. A woman faced death. Now she's devoting her life to help others do the same. Here's Mary Snow.
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MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You have cancer. Three words that changed Monica Knoll's life.
MONICA KNOLL, FOUNDER, CANCER 101: I think everybody will attest that when you hear those words, you have cancer, you really feel like you've been kicked in the stomach.
SNOW: It was October 2000 and Knoll was only 36 years old, working as a marketing executive for a health club chain. As she began treatment, Monica realized how difficult it was keeping up with the details of her care.
KNOLL: It was so overwhelming to manage a multitude of doctor's appointments with my business responsibilities.
SNOW: So after finishing her treatments, Knoll launched cancer 101 to help new cancer patients deal with the disease. There's a Web site culling the mountain of information on the web to key resources and support groups, podcasts, outlining what to do in the first 24 hours of your diagnosis and a central part of the program, a custom planner.
KNOLL: This is a cancer planner. It really allows the caregiver and the patient to get organized, a place to keep their notes, a place to keep business cards, addresses, telephone numbers, billing information as the invoices start to come in.
SNOW: But in the midst of launching cancer 101, Knoll faced another challenge.
KNOLL: Just as I was about to launch the program, I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and had the opportunity to actually test pilot breast cancer 101 this past fall. And I know now more than ever that cancer 101 really does help others. It does need to grow to provide the tools for other cancers.
SNOW: Knoll recently finished her chemotherapy and she's focusing on the future.
KNOLL: I have to say in light of Elizabeth Edwards and Tony Snow both recently being diagnosed again with their second cancers, I related with their experiences 110 percent. Cancer does stop you until you let it stop you.
SNOW: Mary Snow, CNN, New York.
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COLLINS: Good morning to you everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes sitting in today for Tony Harris.
Stay informed here in the CNN NEWSROOM. Here is what we have on today's rundown.
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