Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Battle Over the War; 'Hated Dad' Busted; Guns on Campus
Aired April 26, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Heidi Collins.
Watch events come in to the NEWSROOM live this Thursday, April 26th. Here is what's on the rundown.
Congress set to give final approval to a troop withdrawal timeline today. How does that sit with the Iraq war commander David Petraeus? His news conference is live.
HARRIS: The man called the worst dad in the world, the most hated dad, captured. Well, he got out of jail to give his son a kidney. Instead, he took off.
WHITFIELD: And the face of cancer. Movie critic Roger Ebert says you need to see the ravages of the disease. And you will, right here in the NEWSROOM.
The battle over the war in Iraq unfolding on several fronts this morning. The Senate is set to begin debate next hour on a bill to pull U.S. troops out of Iraq. It passes the House -- or rather it did pass the House last night.
We will also hear next hour from the top general in Iraq a day after he gave lawmakers his assessment of the war.
The story from Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The U.S. commander in Iraq walked through the halls of the Capitol hours before the House vote on a Democratic plan to start bringing troops home and delivered a mixed review of admission.
GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, U.S. COMMANDER IN IRAQ: We are actually ahead of where I wanted to be in some areas, and probably behind where we -- where we might have hoped to be in some other areas.
BASH: He highlighted progress in Baghdad -- sectarian murders down by a third since January -- but reported failures, too. PETRAEUS: The ability of al Qaeda to conduct horrific, sensational attacks obviously has represented a setback, and is an area in which we are focusing considerable attention, as you might imagine.
BASH: Republicans were hoping General David Petraeus could help reshape the political battle lines over the war in a way his commander in chief has failed to do. But the general refused to engage in what he called the minefield of legislative proposals.
PETRAEUS: I am a soldier, and I'm going to give a forthright assessment, and that's all that I will provide. And I'm not going to be pressured by political leaders of either party.
BASH: An attempt to change minds would have been mission impossible anyway. Democrats emerged from their briefings arguing the general's behind-closed-doors assessment bolstered their argument, a timetable for withdrawal will pressure the Iraqi government to take more responsibility.
REP. STENY HOYER (D), MAJORITY LEADER: General Petraeus specifically indicated that he is relating to the Iraqis that expectation of the American public.
BASH: Republicans walked out saying the Democrats' withdrawal deadlines would send a dangerous message to the enemy.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY LEADER: What was said by the general and others is that that would not be helpful to his cause. And, quite frankly, went on to say that it would be -- would hurt the very cause that we seek to win there.
BASH (on camera): The general didn't completely avoid politics. He made a point of noting the divisive debate is being watched around the world and asked Congress to remember, among those watching are military families here at home and the enemy in Iraq.
Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Let's get you to Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr right now.
And Barbara, good to see you this morning. A couple of things here we can take up.
Reporters get an opportunity to question General David Petraeus this morning. I'm curious -- let's look backwards first. What did you learn about what came out of the general's briefing with Congress yesterday? And then maybe we can look forward to what you're expecting in terms of tough questions for General Petraeus this morning.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, we have now spoken to a couple of military officials very familiar with what took place behind those closed doors yesterday on Capitol Hill.
General Petraeus is trying to figure out, we are told, how to assess, of course, whether the troop surge is working. What will happen is this -- late summer, perhaps as late as September, actually, Petraeus will have to sit down and begin to make his recommendations to the president about whether the surge is working, about whether there's enough progress in Iraq. But how do you figure that out?
Is it the number of car bomb attacks? Is it the number of fatalities? How do you figure out how much violence is actually acceptable? How -- what is success?
What one official told us is, while they're working very much on these criteria, it may turn out to be that success is something you know when you see it down the road. There may not be an ability to come to those qualitative numerical benchmarks.
That certainly is one of the things that's under discussion with Capitol Hill. What they want to know is, how do you know when there's success?
Tony.
HARRIS: Can't wait for this briefing this morning.
Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr with us this morning.
Barbara, thank you.
Behind closed doors with the top commander in Iraq. Different views from Democrats and Republicans. Congressmen from both parties discuss their meeting with the general coming up in minutes right here in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: Kansas City, Missouri, and for this motorist a road to nowhere. Rains triggered flashfloods across the area, prompting some high-water rescues. No reports of injuries. That's good. And the waters have since receded. Even better.
Well, they've left behind a mess, however. Hardware stores are now selling out of wet vacs, dehumidifiers, and pumps as homeowners deal with the flood damage.
HARRIS: And as we get to Chad Myers in the weather center, Chad, tough pictures there.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Still burning, parts of southeast Georgia. That's the story.
Now 93 square miles scorched. The latest wildfire burning 6,000 acres of the Okefenokee Swamp in just 24 hours. Dozens of residents evacuated their homes for a short time yesterday after the fire crossed a road and threatened two small communities south of Waycross. Wildfires have burned about 60,000 acres and destroyed 18 homes in less than two weeks. Despite the fires, though, Ware County schools opened after being closed for the last six days.
The Dow takes a breathtaking ride into record territory. Can it maintain the altitude? We are live at the opening bell moments from now right here in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: And he's a con who skipped out on a chance to save his own son's life. Well, now the man who has been dubbed the most hated dad in America is back behind bars.
CNN's Susan Candiotti joins us from Miami with the story.
So, Susan, how did they catch up with him?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're still waiting to get all the details on this, but remember, if you're wondering why he ran in the first place, it's possible that because if Byron Perkins had, indeed, donated a kidney to his son, after that he faced sentencing for a minimum 25 years behind bars for an ongoing series of charges, including drug charges and weapon charges, that kind of thing.
So, what we know so far is this: Evidently, Byron Perkins and his fugitive girlfriend had been on the run for more than a year in Mexico, going from place to place, getting odd jobs, the U.S. Marshals say, and then finally with the help of Mexican authorities they got a tip that the couple was seen in Puerto Vallarta for the last couple of days. So they moved in on them. The couple had been backpacking around downtown, and that's where authorities grabbed them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE CHAVARRIA, U.S. MARSHAL: Unfortunately for them, they came back to a place where everyone was looking for them because they had been there last year. They showed up in Puerto Vallarta, where Mexico law enforcement already had the information and they recognized them and they got them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Now, Destin Perkins is 17 years old now, and needless to say, he is relieved that his father is caught. Destin is healthy now. At age 17, he received a kidney from an anonymous donor.
And Anderson Cooper spoke with Destin by phone last night. Here's what Destin said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DESTIN PERKINS, SON OF BYRON PERKINS: There's a lot of things here between me and him right now. I mean, I would like to see him, just tell him what I think, and just ask one question, why he did it.
It's kind of sad that he would run out on me like that. I don't know how he could lay his head down at night just knowing that he ran away and left me up here to die like that. And that's just one my main questions, just why he did it and how he could do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: And will he get an answer? We'll have to wait and see.
Destin says he is just devastated by what happened here, and he doubts that he'll ever be able to forgive his father.
WHITFIELD: Oh my gosh. I mean, everybody's heart has to be breaking for Destin, because what a terrible feeling for your dad to miss out on an opportunity to help save you.
CANDIOTTI: How do you explain that away? You know?
WHITFIELD: You can't.
All right. Susan Candiotti, thanks so much.
HARRIS: Still to come in the NEWSROOM this morning, packing heat in the classroom.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you really think that you need to carry a gun on campus?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I do. I think I have the need to carry a gun wherever I go just for the sheer fact of self-defense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: CNN's Thelma Gutierrez investigates. The story straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: Well, that hurts, too. A sign of the times.
And then, one trooper dead, two troopers wounded, and a mystery smoldering in the ashes of a New York farmhouse. Is the charred body the alleged gunman, or another victim?
A closer look at that story in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: The White House says he is being handcuffed by Congress. General David Petraeus on war funding and withdrawal timelines. His news conference live for you 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Some new information on a story that we have been following here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Three Atlanta narcotic police officers, we just learned, involved in that botched drug raid that killed an elderly woman in northwest Atlanta -- in her northwest Atlanta home in November, have been indicted, we understand -- this according to The Associated Press -- by a Fulton County grand jury.
The indictments were reached, we understand, late Wednesday, and were just announced moments ago. Two of the officers reportedly have already reached tentative plea deals. This is based on information that we're just learning. Now, under the reported deals, they would plead guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to violate a person's civil rights ending in a death, voluntary manslaughter, and other state charges.
So, news just in to the CNN NEWSROOM that three Atlanta police narcotics officers who were involved in that botched drug raid have now entered -- have now been indicted. And we understand that two of the officers have reached a tentative plea deal.
More details on this story to come. What a story that was.
WHITFIELD: Yes. It really was a crazy story, indeed.
And remember yesterday, Tony...
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: ... a very strange story involving police officers. State troopers, actually, in New York State.
Well, now today we may have a few more answers on whether an accused cop killer actually died in this fiery standoff. Police in upstate New York chased the suspect to this farmhouse, and authorities fired teargas into the home, and it was soon engulfed in flames. It's still not clear if the tear gas canisters ignited the blaze, nor is it clear whether the charred body found inside is that of the suspect.
Twenty-three-year-old Travis Trim was being sought after because of shootings that took place involving three state troopers who were actually shot. One actually died. Authorities say the identity of the fire victim may not be known until later on today or maybe even tomorrow.
HARRIS: Concealed weapons in the college classroom. It is a fact of life in Utah.
CNN's Thelma Gutierrez has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Dawn breaks over the University of Utah. Students pack their books for class.
Jared Sano, a computer science major, packs his .45, a Heckler and Kock discreetly hidden under his jacket. Thomas McCrory is studying accounting. He never leaves his dorm without his .40-caliber Sig Sauer strapped to his side.
THOMAS MCCRORY, STUDENT GUN OWNER: I do make an easy target being a wheelchair.
GUTIERREZ: Everywhere that Jared goes, so goes his .45. Here in Utah, if you have a permit, it's legal for anyone over 21 to carry concealed weapons on campus.
(on camera): Do you really think that you need to carry a gun on campus?
JARED SANO, STUDENT GUN OWNER: I think I do. I think I have the need to carry a gun wherever I go just for the sure fact of self- defense.
GUTIERREZ (voice over): Thomas applied for his permit last fall when the state made it legal to carry concealed weapons on campus. The only requirement, a background check and a four-hour class.
PROF. BARBARA NASH, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: I think it's outrageous.
GUTIERREZ: Professor Barbara Nash says the school campus is no place for guns. Last fall, the Utah Supreme Court ruled otherwise, saying state law trumps university policy.
NASH: The idea is, somehow, that if you have more guns in the hands of more people in more places, we're going to have a safer society. And, you know, that's really sort of stupid. It's also a dangerous point of view.
MCCRORY: I'm a responsible gun owner. I lock up my gun when I'm not using it. I'm not some trigger-happy red neck, you know, that is going to whip out his piece if there's a disagreement in class.
GUTIERREZ (on camera): According to the Utah Shooting Sport Council, more than 500 students on this university campus alone carry concealed firearms to class.
NASH: It distresses me to know that there are that many students that have guns on campus, and I think it's a serious problem.
MCCRORY: The school can have the greatest security policy in the world, but they're not going to do you a dang bit of good if some guy walks into your classroom with a shotgun.
NASH: In class, Jared is not required to inform his professors or classmates.
(on camera): Did you have any idea that he actually was carrying a weapon?
PROF. RANDALL BOYLE, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: I had no idea that he was carrying a weapon at all.
GUTIERREZ: It doesn't bother you?
BOYLE: It really -- it really makes me feel a little safer.
MARYAM MORTAZAVI, STUDENT: I just think that we should have a university-wide goal disbanding guns on campus.
GUTIERREZ (voice over): Jared and Thomas say it's their constitutional right to bear arms and wonder if it would have made a difference if students at Virginia Tech had had the same opportunity.
Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Salt Lake City, Utah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The new Baghdad security plan, is it bringing people back to their neighborhood? A look at what's inside the life right on the street there straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: And soldiers' secret mission on the home front. He's picking up his boy. And everyone's spirits, they're soaring. You'll love it -- coming up in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: And have a hanky.
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And the Dow rockets into record territory. Can it maintain the altitude?
We'll follow the numbers for you live from the New York Stock Exchange today in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Well, violence raging again in Iraq. Sixteen people dead in bombings in Baghdad and northern Iraq. The deadliest attack at a checkpoint in the Diyala province.
A suicide bomber killed nine Iraqi soldiers, 10 other Iraqi troops, and five civilians were wounded. And also today, U.S. forces report launching anti-terrorist raids near Taji. And in Baghdad's Sadr City neighborhood, the strikes killed seven insurgents there. And officials say two women and two children also died.
A Sunni family returns to Shiite surroundings. That could be a death sentence in many Iraqi neighborhoods. But as CNN's Arwa Damon reports -- on one family making that bold move.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Moustapha Mohammed (ph) finally has something to smile about. He's back in his neighborhood. Juice shop opened once again for business. He fled with his family, Sunnis, fearing for their lives in the predominantly Shia neighborhood on the outskirts of Baghdad they called home for 17 years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We suffered. It was difficult to make a living. It was hard to leave our district, our friends and neighbors.
DAMON: His neighbor, Abu Hussam (ph), comes to visit, telling Moustapha (ph) he and his family had been missed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We phoned them many times, trying to convince them to come back.
DAMON: But in the end, it wasn't the neighbors' pleas or faith in the Baghdad security plan that brought this family back home. It was a promise from the office of radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose Mehdi militia strikes fear in the hearts of most Sunnis.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Muqtada al-Sadr called for all displaced families to return. When we came back to the area, Sadr's (INAUDIBLE) office promised that nothing can harm us.
DAMON: Taking a Shia cleric at his word is a risk for this Sunni mother and her boys. They had fled for fear her sons would end up (INAUDIBLE) by Shia militias, despite the reputation her family had in the area.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The Shias were all very sad. They were crying and said, "You have never harmed anyone. Why are you leaving?" But I was afraid for my sons that they would be abducted.
DAMON: So the neighbors kept their home safe.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It was so hard to move away. This is our house. When we left, it was like we had moved to another country. Then we came back home, and everyone welcomed us safe and sound.
DAMON: But just in case the wrong people knock on her door, she put a poster of a Shia religious figure in her kitchen. For now, her youngest, 11-year-old Abdullah (ph), is reunited with his friends. But in the back of everyone's mind, the reality that this may be just another fleeting moment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: CNN's Arwa Damon for us in Baghdad
OK. Another big story we're watching today.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
HARRIS: Dow 13,000 -- 13,000 -- it begins today at 13,089.
WHITFIELD: That's very encouraging.
HARRIS: How about that?
This is a big earnings period. We know that Microsoft will be announcing its first quarter earnings at the end of the close of business today. We're going to take you to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Stephanie Elam is in today for Susan Lisovicz.
WHITFIELD: That's fantastic.
HARRIS: So that's coming up in the NEWSROOM.
And still ahead, behind closed doors with the top commander in Iraq. Different views from Democrats and Republicans. Congressmen from both parties discuss their meeting with the general.
That is coming up straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
WHITFIELD: And walking in harm's way and expecting the worst.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The main thing is, we want to separate and get a distance between us, all right, in case something does happen that will kick us all out. Make sure we spread out, all right?
Anybody have any questions? No? All right. Let's do this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: On foot patrol in Baghdad.
All that straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We'll give you another quick update on a story that we have been following extensively here in the CNN NEWSROOM. And we have some new developments on this story.
Three current and former police officers have been indicted in the shooting death of an elderly Atlanta woman -- Kathryn Johnston was her name -- during a botched police drug raid. That was in November.
She was 92 years old. You remember, the officers entered Johnston's home on a no-knock warrant. Boy, that was a bone of contention, a real heated part of the controversy surrounding the shooting at the time in November.
The information was based -- that led to the warrant -- on information from an informant.
CNN, I'm just learning now, can confirm this information and news of the indictments. Two of the officers, reportedly, we understand, have reached tentative plea deals. Under the reported deals, they would plead guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to violate a person's civil rights ending in a death, voluntary manslaughter and other state charges.
CNN's Rusty Dornin has been following this story very closely. We understand that she's on her way to the building after gathering this additional information and we will try to get Rusty's information to you as soon as we can, right here in THE NEWSROOM.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, let's talk a little weather.
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Because Chad has got a little bit of everything. Yesterday we talked about the snow. Some folks welcome the snow. And then, of course you had tornadoes and, you know, drought in other areas with these wildfires.
HARRIS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And now you've got a mix of rain in a lot of places. You had some tornado watches. I like that you don't really have those little red boxes up there.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: ... something yesterday. That's never a good thing with those red boxes.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: That's right.
WHITFIELD: So today it's just rain, just dreary, just wet with some flash floods that are not so good, right?
(WEATHER REPORT)
WHITFIELD: Well, the Senate gets to set the stage again today for a veto showdown over the Iraq War. Debate is expected to begin next hour on a war funding bill that calls for pulling troops out of Iraq.
The House approved the bill last night by a vote of 215-208. It calls for troops to begin pulling out by October 1st. Republicans call it a surrender date. President Bush has promised to veto any war spending bill that includes a timetable.
The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq gives a mixed review of his mission. General David Petraeus is in Washington to brief lawmakers. He reports progress is reducing sectarian violence in Baghdad. And getting religious groups to cooperate in Anbar Province is something else, he says has been an improvement, that the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) are in the fight against al Qaeda. Petraeus says al Qaeda's ability to conduct horrific, sensational attacks is a setback. He says the U.S. is giving that "considerable attention."
We'll hear directly from General Petraeus. His briefing from the Pentagon is expected to take place and we will be carrying that live in THE NEWSROOM at the top of the hour.
HARRIS: Well, they were behind closed doors with General Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, and came away with some different views from Democrats and Republicans. Coming up in just a couple of minutes here in the CNN NEWSROOM, we will talk to two of the congressmen, Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter and Democratic Congressman Adam Smith.
Still ahead in THE NEWSROOM, not a pretty picture -- film critic Roger Ebert determined to beat cancer and to show how he does it.
That story coming up in THE NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
Thumbs down to cancer and the paparazzi. Film critic Roger Ebert's recovering and not ashamed to show it.
CNN's Carol Costello reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is what someone recovering from cancer looks like. It's what film critic Roger Ebert wants us to see. In his "Chicago Sun-Times" column, he writes: "I was told photos of me in this condition would attract the gossip papers.
So what? I have been very sick and getting better and this is how it looks."
ROGER EBERT: Thumbs up or thumbs down?
COSTELLO: Ebert, who's been critiquing films for the "Sun- Times," is a familiar face on television.
Clearly, he's not ready to give up his career or his life. Eight months after doctors removed a cancerous growth in his mouth, which required the removal of part of his jaw and left him unable to speak, Ebert will appear in public at a Chicago movie festival.
In his "Sun-Times" column, he writes: "I have received a lot of advice that I should not attend the festival. I'm told the paparazzi will take unflattering pictures, people will be unkind, etc. Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.
So let's talk turkey.
What will I look like?
To paraphrase a line from "Raging Bull," "I ain't a pretty boy no more."
And his appearance will likely be unexpected for fans who remember him like this. But his determination is inspiring. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The pictures aren't going to be very pretty, but that's the reality of someone who has been battling cancer for five years. And he's not trying to hide that. It's a very honest and frankly courageous thing he's doing.
COSTELLO: Ebert's struggles bring to mind others who refuse to hide while they fight cancer.
ELIZABETH EDWARDS: I expect to do all the things this week that I did last week.
COSTELLO: Like Elizabeth Edwards' battle with breast cancer and Senator Arlen Specter, who stayed on the job while battling Hodgkin's Disease.
As Ebert put it so succinctly in his column: "We spend too much time hiding illness. Being sick is no fun, but you can have fun while you're sick."
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HARRIS: CNN's Carol Costello.
And here's Roger Ebert at the opening of a film festival last night. It's his project, by the way, the 9th Annual Roger Ebert Overlooked Film Festival and the audience in Champagne, Illinois gave him two standing ovations. Doctors plan one more surgery for Ebert aimed at restoring his speech.
Be sure to tune into CNN at 1:00 Eastern this afternoon when Roger Ebert and his wife talk to Don Lemon about his cancer fight.
WHITFIELD: Alec Baldwin stuck between a sturdy rock and a hard place. The actor says he asked NBC to cut him loose from his sitcom after negative news coverage of the scathing voice-mail that he left for his 11-year-old daughter. Baldwin says he wants to devote his time to parental alienation, a topic that clearly hits home.
In the much publicized voice-mail, he ripped his daughter for shunning his phone calls. And Baldwin is embroiled in an ugly custody battle with ex-wife, actress Kim Basinger. Baldwin says he has a book coming out on divorce litigation.
NBC, by the way, refused to let him out of his contract.
HARRIS: Iraq commander General David Petraeus on Capitol Hill yesterday to brief lawmakers on progress in Iraq. We will talk to two lawmakers who were in the room, coming up straight ahead this morning for you in THE NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq gives a mixed review of his mission. General David Petraeus is in Washington to brief lawmakers. He reports progress in reducing sectarian violence in Baghdad and getting religious groups to cooperate in Anbar Province.
But the failures are in the fight against al Qaeda. Petraeus says al Qaeda's ability to conduct horrific, sensational attacks is a setback. He says the U.S. is giving that "considerable attention."
We will hear directly from General Petraeus' briefing from the Pentagon live in THE NEWSROOM at the top of the hour.
Let's talk to two congressmen who were in the room for that briefing yesterday, Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter and Democratic Congressman Adam Smith.
Gentlemen, thank you for your time.
Thanks for being here this morning.
REP. DUNCAN HUNTER (R), CALIFORNIA: Good to be with you.
REP. ADAM SMITH (D), WASHINGTON: Thank you.
HARRIS: Representative Hunter, to you first.
Did you hear anything in the briefing yesterday that gave you real pause, that made you, I don't know, maybe wonder aloud if the surge could be successful?
HUNTER: Well, you know, I think the -- I think General Petraeus is a straightforward, candid guy and he gave us the upside and the problems they've got, but also he pushed back pretty hard when one member suggested there was no light at the end of the tunnel.
General Petraeus said I did not say that. And he talked about the reduction in violence, the reduction in murders.
But this is a guy who lays out the challenges and the challenge right now, I think, is twofold. One is -- is -- is providing this -- working this surge in the 10 sectors in Baghdad. The Marines who are out in Anbar Province are having a great deal of success there. They've turned the Sunni population against al Qaeda.
But at the same time, standing up the Iraqi military, those 129 battalions of Iraqi military.
So I think I would say that the surge -- and, remember, the surge is not halfway done yet.
HARRIS: Sure. Sure.
HUNTER: We're going to 157,000 from 138,000. We're only at 146,000 right now. So we're less than half way through the surge.
HARRIS: OK...
HUNTER: But I think it was proceeding apace, is how I would describe General Petraeus' briefing.
HARRIS: Got you.
Representative Smith, did you hear anything that might suggest to you that given more time, this surge, once fully implemented, might actually -- might actually work?
SMITH: Well, I'm still concerned about what exactly work looks like.
HARRIS: Yes.
SMITH: What does it look like six months from now when we get there?
I think what's happened here, yes, we've had some success in Baghdad, but to some degree for four years we've kind of been squeezing different pieces of the balloon on the moving in different directions. Violence goes down in one place, it comes up in another.
Right now, I think my biggest concern is there's no evidence that the Baghdad government, the Maliki government, is moving toward any sort of understanding with the Sunni population.
None of the key issues that need to be passed by the Iraqi government have come to pass. And the Sunnis still feel like it's not their government and the sectarian violence is still happening. Al Qaeda is still a force. And I really do question, you know, long- term, whether or not the U.S. military can secure the situation, whether our occupying force can do that in such a conflicted, chaotic civil war...
HARRIS: But let me...
SMITH: ... as they have in Iraq right now.
HARRIS: Let me pick up that point with -- with you, Representative Hunter.
Was Ambassador Negroponte in the room yesterday?
Because I'm --
HUNTER: Yes.
HARRIS: He was in the room?
Did he give you a briefing on the progress that the Iraqi government is making in meeting its timetables?
HUNTER: Yes. He -- he gave us a briefing, as he -- he went down the laundry list of issues that they're working on. And -- as did, incidentally, General Petraeus, who as much a diplomat as he is a soldier, and all the things that politicians in the Maliki government have to do to accommodate the Sunni population.
But I think, for the United States, the most important thing right now is the stand up of the 129 battalions of Iraqi Army... HARRIS: Yes.
HUNTER: ... that comprises the Iraqi security force. Because when they stand up and they're battle ready and competent, they can rotate into the battlefield and displace American battalions and brigades. We can rotate out of the battlefield. And that's the -- that's the message I took to the White House yesterday. After the briefing, I went down and talked to Steve Hadley, the president's national security adviser, gave them some ideas for -- for accelerating the standup of the Iraqi Army. I think that's the key.
HARRIS: Congressman Smith?
SMITH: I agree. The problem is the Iraqi Army if any -- I mean this surge is primarily different than the last two in that our forces have taken more of a leading role. And there is still the problem that the Iraqi Army, by and large, doesn't show up in large numbers. They are still very tribal. They see themselves as much as Shia or Sunni or within their tribe as they do part of the Iraqi government.
And that's why the political solution is so important.
And Ambassador Negroponte did give the briefing. The briefing basically is there's been no progress on any of those laws...
HARRIS: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa...
SMITH: In fact, we --
HARRIS: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa...
SMITH: No, I...
HARRIS: Well, but hang on a second. Let me, let me...
SMITH: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: Let me...
SMITH: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: Let me drill down on that point, OK?
SMITH: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: You said that the -- the ambassador gave a briefing that is essentially an indication of no progress.
So how is the Iraqi government doing, for example, on passing legislation for the sharing of oil revenues?
SMITH: Nothing has happened. There was the proposal that came out of the ministers before the surge started. That proposal is still there and the government hasn't acted on it. In fact, yesterday, a large number of Iraqi politicians who had previously supported the Maliki government have said they are getting to the point where they believe that it simply cannot succeed. And they even said that's not so much Prime Minister Maliki's fault as it is the fault of the situation in Iraq.
HARRIS: OK.
The same question to you, Congressman Hunter.
How is the Iraqi government -- you were in the same room...
HUNTER: I sure was.
HARRIS: How is the Iraqi government doing in passing...
HUNTER: Ahead...
HARRIS: Go ahead.
HUNTER: Here's how I see it. I see it a new -- of a new government which is somewhat inept, as most new governments are, having a tough time bringing politicians with different interests together and reconciling those interests.
That's always difficult. And I would go back, again, to push back on the idea that somewhere this -- having the politicians all working together immediately is the answer to American success in Iraq.
Once again, I say it's the standup of the Iraqi Army, because if you don't have an Iraqi Army that can stand up and that can hold this country in a stable position, then all the political deals in the world or laws that are passed by the central government...
SMITH: You have to have both.
HUNTER: ... are not going to have meaning.
but let me push back a little bit on what Adam said. Actually, the Iraqi brigades did show up in those 10 sectors, the three brigades that were promised, along with the 30 or so battalions that are already there.
They outnumber the Americans in Baghdad by three to one and in many cases, they are in the lead.
So Maliki performed on that. And while we're -- we're keeping a watchful eye on that...
HARRIS: Yes.
HUNTER: ... they did show up in Baghdad.
And in Anbar Province, you now have large populations or large portions of the Sunni population joining the Shiite-led Iraqi Army, which has never happened before...
HARRIS: OK. HUNTER: ... because of the hard edge of al Qaeda.
HARRIS: And Congressman Smith, 10 seconds, please, just a final thought.
SMITH: The final thought is I don't see where we're at six months from now that gets us past where we're at now. And I don't want an open-ended...
HARRIS: OK.
SMITH: ... never-ending commitment of U.S. troops.
HARRIS: Let's leave it there.
I appreciate it, gentlemen.
Representative Duncan Hunter, Representative Adam Smith.
HUNTER: Thank you.
HARRIS: Thanks for your time this morning.
SMITH: Thanks, Don.
HARRIS: Appreciate it.
WHITFIELD: Well, there is nothing quote as painful as a pain in the back. But there is a way to keep it strong over the years.
Here's Elizabeth Cohen with today's "30, 40, 50."
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You don't realize how much you use your back until you lose it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just laying on the couch watching TV and I just sneezed. And I felt something pop.
COHEN: Hurt it...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was in a car accident. We were rear- ended.
COHEN: Or throw it out...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And it really doesn't matter whether I'm sitting or standing at night or I'm in bed. Still, it comes and it goes. I still suffer from the pain.
COHEN: Back pain is the number two reason people go to the doctor, second only to colds and flu. As we age, our bodies change and so does our spine.
In your 30s, focus on maintaining the flexibility and strength of your 20s through exercise. But most back problems are muscle strains, and you should recover quickly.
When you're 40 something, working nine to five is taking its toll.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the most common problems is you're sitting at a desk job all day long, you don't stretch, you don't exercise. But then on the weekends you want to keep up with your kids playing softball or soccer, and that's how you get hurt.
COHEN: Doctors also begin to see more serious problems -- degenerative or herniated discs.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This little red thing here is a herniated disc. A herniated disc is when pieces of the disc material squeeze out and start causing pressure on the nerve roots.
COHEN: Your 50s could be the beginning of more chronic issues.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Patients start complaining more of a dull, permanent back, which may be related to some underlying arthritic changes that are developing.
COHEN: Doctors say most back pain is temporary and you will usually be better within a week and the pain will be completely gone in a month. If a back attack strikes, it's OK to stay still for a little while, but then get moving.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have found that over the years being active -- and we recommend you continue the regular activities -- is much more effective in the long run than being completely still and in bed.
COHEN: Doctors also recommend trying different therapies -- yoga, massage, acupuncture, chiropractic care -- whatever works.
But at any age, doctors say maintaining a healthy weight and staying active is the key.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don't use it, you lose it.
COHEN: Elizabeth Cohen, CNN.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And good morning, again, everyone.
10:00 a.m. Eastern time, 7:00 a.m. Pacific time.
You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Good morning, Fred.
Good morning, everyone.
WHITFIELD: Good morning.
HARRIS: I'm Tony Harris.
WHITFIELD: Good morning.
And I'm Fredericka Whitfield.
Welcome to THE NEWSROOM.
All kinds of things straight ahead -- Iraq war spending, U.S. troop withdrawal...
HARRIS: Right.
WHITFIELD: All of those things still on tap and still taking center stage, not just on Capitol Hill, but also out at the Pentagon. We're waiting to hear from General David Petraeus. We know that he was on Capitol Hill yesterday talking with lawmakers, trying to convey to them these are the different notes of progress taking place as a result of the surge, the U.S. troop surge, as a result of continued U.S. operations there.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
