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American Morning
House Passes War Funding Bill; McCains Discuss Presidential Campaign
Aired April 26, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: going to be sitting down to talk with them and we'll want to give you a chance to ask them some questions as well in our ask AM segment. Just send in your questions to am@cnn.com, am@cnn.com and we will field some of them to Kyra and Michael and find out what their responses are to what you're thinking about.
And John McCain, for whom Iraq is a big issue is going to be joining us in the next half hour on AMERICAN MORNING.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: And in a couple minutes, we are going to speak to White House deputy spokeswoman Dan Perino. We're going to ask her about what is going to be going around today and when the president gets that bill delivered to his desk, the war funding.
Also the big news yesterday, Rosie O'Donnell deciding that she's going to call it quits on "The View." We're going to be talking to someone in this hour who was actually the co-host, who was the guest co-host the day that the infamous Trump/Rosie feud began when she made fun of Donald.
ROBERTS: Looking forward to that. The job of being president is pretty high pressure and sometimes you just got to cut loose. And President Bush did that just yesterday. You know, the ratings aren't so good. The war is not going well. So just get a little time to shake it up here. This was a malaria awareness day event at the White House. This is a West African dance troupe. The president just really got into it here.
CHETRY: He did. I always thought he was a runner, but then apparently because of his knees, it forced him to go into biking. He had a little bit of a spill. So now he's decided, you know what? He's going to cut up a rug.
ROBERTS: I tell you what, he used to be a runner, he's a biker, he's not a dancer.
CHETRY: I give him credit, he owned it.
ROBERTS: Yesterday when that first aired, my wife grabbed the Tivo unit and kept going back over it and back over it. And then she said I can't find it on YouTube. They said it was going to be on YouTube. Where is it? Calm down. Calm down. You'll see it a lot. You'll see it a lot. CHETRY: We can't take our eyes of it that's for sure. The House has spoken and the Senate will speak today likely approving a war funding bill that demands a phased troop withdrawal from Iraq. Last night a defiant House passed that measure pretty much along party lines in a 218-208 vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D) HOUSE SPEAKER: Last fall the American people voted for a new direction in Iraq. They made it clear that our troops must be given all they need to do their jobs, but that our troops must be brought home responsibly, safely, and soon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: CNN congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel is following the latest for us now from the Hill. This is something the president of course has threatened to veto. But when will we expect to see this legislation arrive on his desk today?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Probably early next week Kiran, Monday or Tuesday and there may be no coincidence to all of that. Because Tuesday is the fourth anniversary of -- remember when President Bush landed on the deck of the "USS Abraham Lincoln" and declared mission accomplished? That's the fourth anniversary. You can bet the Democrats and the anti-war activists are going to be making a lot of political hay out of that, especially if the president follows through with that veto threat Kiran.
CHETRY: And there really is no suspense here. I mean he has said, I'm vetoing this bill. I'm not going to sign a bill that brings timelines. So then what happens after that? Where do you go from there?
KOPPEL: Again, not surprisingly Democrats have not been very public with what their plan B is and that's probably because there is no consensus yet. But some of the ideas that I've heard floating around up here include one in which they would fund the troops. They would send that to the president's desk and maybe include benchmarks, but with no hard withdrawal date. That might be attached to a bill that's coming down the pike in a couple of months Kiran.
CHETRY: So that looks like the compromise, how that would work with the president being likely to sign off on that benchmarks as opposed to dates.
KOPPEL: Not necessarily, not necessarily.
CHETRY: All right, Andrea Koppel, live at Capitol Hill for us, thank you.
Coming up in just a few minutes, we're going to be joined by White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino and she's going to talk to us about the war funding battle. John.
ROBERTS: Still a year and a half to go before the 2008 election, but debate season kicks off tonight. Eight Democratic presidential candidates will share the stage in Greenville, South Carolina. That's where senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is now with a preview. Good morning to you Candy. Now at South Carolina State University, it's the first historically black college to host a debate. Do you think that the setting is going to help drive the issues that are discussed tonight during this debate? Well, I'm not the only apparently who can't hear Candy. That's why I was flailing my hands there. So, we'll get back to her in just a couple of minutes as soon as we establish the audio problem. Not quite sure what is going on there Kiran, but we'll get it worked out. We'll come right back to her.
CHETRY: I couldn't hear her, but I thought you could. It's hard to believe just a couple of months ago we were talking about this dramatic drop on Wall Street. Now the Dow over 13,000 for the first time ever and Ali Velshi joins us now from the New York Stock Exchange. Any hints about what we're going to see today when the Dow opens just a couple of hours from now?
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Kiran, you're right. It's two months, February 27th was that big drop on the Dow, April 26th. I think the clues are there. This market has been driven by earnings, by all these companies coming out like Apple did yesterday to talk about how well they have done. This morning we're going to hear from ExxonMobil. I'm going to guess with oil prices and gas prices where they are, that ExxonMobil's done well. We're going to hear from Microsoft. As long as investors keep seeing that, they will keep pushing these markets up.
There are about three things that can derail this. One is, John mentioned it earlier, profit taking. People who say you know what, my money has made a lot of good money, I want to reinvest it. I want to sell some stocks. Number two, this fear about oil and gas prices. We are at $2.88 a gallon. We're at over $65 a barrel for oil. That causes inflation. The Fed doesn't like inflation. Inflation can only be fought in many ways by cutting -- by increasing interest rates. The market doesn't want to see that. When you increase interest rates, it makes money more expensive to borrow. It makes people spend less. Businesses don't do well.
And number three, the big one, housing. We did see a housing report yesterday that says the price of a new home has inched upward to $254,000. That's the median. But fundamentally we know there are a lot of foreclosures. We know there are still slowing home sales, so there are problems. Those are three things that can derail this market. But unemployment is low, people have jobs. Wages are going up. People are spending more money and interest rates are still low. As a general sign, folks are liking this economy. Businesses are doing well. We'll see what happens today, but indications are if earnings remain strong, we will see this market going even higher. Kiran?
CHETRY: All right. Ali Velshi for us at the stock exchange, thanks. John?
ROBERTS: I discovered something Kiran, flailing your arms around actually makes equipment work properly because we now have established contact with Candy Crowley. She's in Greenville, South Carolina. So let me ask you the question again. You heard me, but I'll preface it again. This is a historically black college at which this debate is going to take place. Do you think that that setting is going to drive many of the issues that the candidates discuss tonight?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not so much the issues, but the questions around the issues John. It's not just that it's taking place at an historically black college, but South Carolina in general, consider that Iowa, site of the first caucus, New Hampshire, site of the first primary, are predominantly white states. This is the first time in South Carolina where the primary really is if not dominated by the black vote, it's about 50/50. In this state for the first time, candidates will meet a minority vote. What you can expect tonight is not so much different issues because the issues are the same -- the economy, jobs, the war, education. What I suspect the candidates will be asked to address is the gap in all of those subjects between blacks and whites.
ROBERTS: This is going to be the first time that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have been on the stage together in such a setting, such an event. Do you expect that they are going to duke it out with each other here?
CROWLEY: I think there's good reason for neither one of them to go jugular at this point. First of all, Hillary Clinton is the front- runner. She has been the consistent front-runner and the conventional wisdom is that front runners sort of stay above the fray. For Barack Obama, it's a little bit of a different problem though. He might want to nick her. He has promised a different kind of campaign. So it's going to be terribly difficult for him to go very hostile or to attack her in some sense because I can assure you the Clinton campaign is very sensitive about that saying all along, look, he's promised this different campaign but he does go on the attack sometimes. So it's going to be hard I think for either one of them to really mix it up.
ROBERTS: Candy, real quick here. Everybody talks about Obama and Hillary Clinton but John Edwards runs very strong in South Carolina. What does he need to do tonight?
CROWLEY: Absolutely. I mean he needs just to be on the stage with them to get this broader audience because it's not just who will watch the debate, but how the debate is seen afterwards. That's where the biggest audience is. You have to remember that John Edwards is a trial lawyer. He's done these high-profile debates before. He's a very good debater. So everyone suspects that he will do quite well in a state where he's doing quite well.
ROBERTS: Candy, thanks very much. We will see you next hour. We promise we'll have audio at that time.
CROWLEY: Always helps.
ROBERTS: Take that as a lesson Kiran, the next time your computer screws up or something, just start pinwheeling your arms and suddenly, everything will work.
CHETRY: Good, because I was using the mind meld, so I'll use the hands now.
If he's not the worst dad in the world, he is up there. Byron Perkins goes to court today after a year on the lam in Mexico, let out of jail so that he could donate his kidney to his son and he took off instead. Susan Candiotti is in our Miami bureau. We've been following this story from the beginning, so tell us a little bit of how they finally closed in on this guy?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kiran we are still waiting for exact details, but we do know this. One minute Byron Perkins and his girlfriend Lee Ann Howard (ph) were walking around downtown Puerto Viarta (ph) with their backpacks on and the next thing you know, they're busted. To hear Perkins ex-wife tell it, it's about time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you have to say to your son Destin? You promised him a kidney.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): With nothing to say to the son he deserted, Byron Perkins and girlfriend Lee Ann Howard were escorted back to the U.S. Authorities say they've been hopscotching around Mexico doing odd jobs to keep under the radar, but their luck ran out.
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.
CANDIOTTI: Perkins, nicknamed the most hated dad in America, busted in Mexico, back in the U.S. in a heap of trouble. A dad who cried in front of a judge who let him out of jail last year so he could donate a kidney for his son Destin, a son who desperately needed a kidney to live. Perkins fooled them all and took off running with his girlfriend. It was only after CNN ran the story that tourists in Mexico recognized him and called police. The couple had run up a hotel and bar bills and skipped out on those, too. For over a year the U.S. marshals searched for the odd couple and finally caught up with them in Puerto Viarta. Authorities say they spent time before that near Monzaneo (ph). Last fall we visited with Destin after he got a new kidney from an anonymous donor. Back then he said this about his dad and his mom says nothing's changed.
Do you think you could ever forgive him?
DESTIN PERKINS, SON OF ARRESTED FUGITIVE: Forgive him, probably not. It's a pretty bad thing that he did to me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: A 17-year-old who has really been devastated by this whole affair. Authorities do tell us that when they picked up Perkins and his girlfriend, they offered no resistance and authorities say they actually appeared relieved. Kiran back to you.
CHETRY: Thanks so much Susan. He is going to be extradited back to Kentucky at some point. What additional trouble is he in for this run?
CANDIOTTI: Well, we know that first thing this morning in Los Angeles he will make a court appearance. If he waives extradition and is flown back to Kentucky and he will be at some point, then he faces not only violations of fleeing the law, but also he had been wanted on outstanding probation violation charges including weapons charges and drug charges and at the time he was let out last January, he was awaiting sentencing for up to 25 years in jail.
CHETRY: I'm sure he's going to hear it from the judge for the circumstances, leaving his son in the lurch like that as well. Susan, thanks so much.
ROBERTS: Don't expect President Bush on "Dancing with the Stars" when his term is up. Take a look at how he cut a rug yesterday.
Oh, yeah. He's got that voodoo going. Just look at that. He was dancing to Senegalese music played by a Washington-based dance troupe raising awareness for malaria. It was malaria awareness day. The first lady was also there. She did get into it, a little more subdued than her husband though. So we had Karl Rove at the radio television correspondents association dinner doing the emcee Rove and now the president flicking the fingers in the air, cutting the rug, getting in the groove. I love the way he opens the mouth, too, every time he flicks the fingers.
CHETRY: So I'm partial to the president. I think he had a lot more rhythm than Karl Rove. Karl Rove was hysterical, but the president, he really was feeling it. He even banged on the drums.
ROBERTS: Karl Rove was a real example of why white men shouldn't dance. The president, he at least was getting into it.
Straight ahead, the president's spokeswoman is going to join us live. Did she like the boss' dance yesterday? Plus is the White House really ready for its biggest war challenge yet? That could come today.
Back from Iraq, CNN's Kyra Phillips and Michael Ware are just back from Baghdad. We will get their impressions about the war and the situation on the ground.
And a dramatic moment on ice. Take a look at this. A pairs figure skating team, his blade meets her head. Wow. Watch this again. Wow. Ouch. We'll talk about their courageous comeback. You are watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Sixteen minutes now after the hour. It's been a recurring theme all week, Chad, severe weather across parts of the south. Again, where is it headed this time?
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Probably the Ohio valley today, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, back over to West Virginia. That's the area that we are watching for the energy in the upper atmosphere is right over that area right now, 48 in New York City, 49 in Philadelphia. Not going to see severe weather there, but you will see rain. You're going to be north of the warm front, so you're not going to get any of that heat. You're not going to get that energy that it takes to get a big storm rolling. But big-time delays in Chicago already this morning. They've already announced they're going to be two to three hours delayed as soon as they get rolling and it's still very early. Cincinnati, heavy rain showers there as well, moving up into Columbus, Grand Rapids, Flint, Detroit, all very good rainfall for a very dry place in some locations, but too much rainfall in others. We will see severe weather though south from Washington, D.C. right on down through Charlotte and Atlanta today. We will keep an eye on it for you. Kiran back to you.
CHETRY: Chad, thanks so very much. An Iraq funding bill calling for a withdrawal date for U.S. troops is halfway through Congress and expected at the White House by the end of the week. And President Bush has vowed all along to veto it. Joining us from the White House this morning, Deputy White House Press Secretary Dana Perino. Dan, great to see you this morning. Thanks for being with us
DANA PERINO, DEP. WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Hi Kiran.
CHETRY: The latest polling showing the majority of people actually seem to agree with Democrats over the president by a margin of 56 percent to 37 percent, that there should be a time line for withdrawal. How much does public opinion factor into this decision to veto?
PERINO: Well the decision to veto is based on his leadership as commander in chief. The president wants to bring the troops home as well. I can understand why people think that a time line or a date for withdrawal would ease some tension and ease some of the feelings that Americans no doubt have about this war. However as commander in chief, it's incumbent upon the president to explain to people that we would refer to it as a surrender date. Letting the enemy know that this is when, this is the date in which we're going to walk away. We're going to leave the innocent men, women and children of Iraq to your devices and al Qaeda who is desperate to set up a new safe haven would be able to run over Iraq and then foment violence from there. So that's why the president has said he's going to veto the bill.
CHETRY: There's another argument that Dana that perhaps it also sends a message to the Iraqi forces and the Iraqi government that something has to take shape a little bit quicker because it's not an open-ended commitment on our part.
PERINO: President Bush is in constant contact with Prime Minister Malaki and he's told him that we don't have unlimited patience. But let me also submit that the people of Iraq, the prime minister and his government, they understand that the Iraqis themselves, those 12 million people who voted for their government, they do not have unlimited patience. They want a stop to the violence. And the Baghdad security plan that the president talked about on January 10th and General Petraeus updated the Congress on yesterday, is starting to show some signs of success, some small steps forward. Those steps are laced with land mines and it's a very real, dangerous place right now. But the president believes that we need to get the money to the troops so that they can finish their job.
CHETRY: What happens after the veto though? We have troops in the battlefield. Can we afford a political fight that drags on?
PERINO: The president has said and today is the 80th day since the president sent the request for the troop funding bill. The president has said if the Democrats insist on sending him a bill that he has said he will not sign, then he will veto it promptly and then we'll get about the business of getting money to the troops. I think that what you'll see - I can't predict for you exactly what day the president's going to get the bill. As you know, you have a phrase, it's dead on arrival, but this one is dead before arrival and they know it. Soon after that, I think will you see that the president will meet with congressional leadership and try to work it out.
CHETRY: So would benchmarks be OK as opposed to time line dates?
PERINO: I think the president talked about benchmarks long ago. And I think that even the Iraqis have talked about benchmarks. They know that they have a lot of work to do. It's very challenging, it's a new democracy, but they're making steady progress. It's slow and focused work. We have to be persistent.
CHETRY: All right and we have to end on a little tiny bit of fun here. The president dancing yesterday, did you guys know he was going to be taking part as enthusiastically as he was?
PERINO: No, he has these spontaneous bursts of dancing every once in a while. I remember in (INAUDIBLE) Georgia, he really sort of got into the groove there as well. I thought his performance yesterday though was solid gold.
CHETRY: How thrilled were the other dancers that he really got into it like that?
PERINO: I think you have to look at the looks on their faces. I think they were thrilled.
CHETRY: Maybe a little shocked at the same time.
PERINO: Maybe a little shocked as well. The leader of the free world was dancing with them.
CHETRY: There he was and beating the drums. All right, Dana Perino, deputy White House press secretary, thanks for joining us this morning.
PERINO: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Spontaneous outbursts of dancing? I can just see him in the oval office. He's just sitting there going through the problems of the world and suddenly gets up and starts shaking it. I don't know, enthusiastic, nice way of putting it too Kiran.
It's one of the most dangerous places on earth. Up next, staying safe while covering the news in Iraq. We will talk with CNN's Kyra Phillips and Michael Ware just back from the war zone coming up.
And John McCain joins us live. Can his campaign escape the shadow of Iraq? Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty four minutes after the hour. We got breaking news on the weather front. Chad Myers in our severe weather center, what's up Chad?
MYERS: New tornado warning, John. It's in a pretty populated area so want to get this one on. Harrison County, Jackson County in southern Mississippi, just to the north and east of Biloxi, so we're talking about Ocean Springs. We're talking about Saint Martin, the area here, Diverville (ph) and then eventually moving all the way over and this is right here to the Alabama/Mississippi county line. If you kind of continue this on, there's Mobile right there. We'll keep you up to date on this thing. There is a lot of rotation on Doppler. No indication whether a tornado is on the ground. This is a Doppler- indicated tornado, if you are in this area here, Diverville, Saint Martin, take cover now, lowest level of your house under something sturdy please. Kiran?
CHETRY: Chad, thanks so much. Well, as the political rhetoric over the war in Iraq heats up in Washington, who better to break down the security situation there than two CNN journalists who just returned from the country. CNN anchor Kyra Phillips and correspondent Michael Ware join me now. Thanks to both of you for being wit us and we talked a little bit to Kyra in the last hour, so Michael I want to just ask you, because there's been some talk and some debate about whether or not the picture we are getting from some of the officials is really what's going on on the ground. So we're going to hear right from General Petraeus about what he said when he gave his assessment yesterday. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. DAVID PETRAEUS, COMMANDER, MULTINATIONAL FORCES IN IRAQ: As you know, literally over the last two months, Anbar has gone or certainly over the last six months, from being assessed as being lost to a situation that now is quite heartening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: The Anbar province, one of the most deadly Michael.
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Look, I know General David Petraeus personally and he is a straight shooter. In fact, what he is saying there is true, but what we are not hearing is how that was achieved. Anbar province, the violence is coming down, al Qaeda is under a lot of pressure. It's not because of U.S. forces. The Marines last year admitted they didn't have enough troops. The way they've done it is they've cut a deal with the Baathist insurgents and unleashed the insurgents from Iraq on the foreign al Qaeda fighters. They cut a deal.
CHETRY: So you're saying that it's Baathists that are fighting the insurgency?
WARE: Yeah.
CHETRY: So wouldn't that be characterized as sectarian violence?
WARE: No, because it's Sunni on Sunni. One of these is secular Baathists, this is essentially Iraq's version of former West Pointers. These are men who never had a religious agenda. So what they were fighting was the U.S. occupation. They never had an alliance with al Qaeda per se. So the Americans have said to them, OK, we'll empower you locally, we'll give you ammunition, you can launch your own operations. When I asked Ambassador Khalizad (ph) as he was leaving the country, how do you address the perception that this isn't an assassination program backed by multi forces, he sat back and smiled and said we have no love loss for the struggle against al Qaeda or for the killing of al Qaeda.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's actually a pretty brilliant idea if you think about it because they are giving the power back to the locals, as you said, the Baathists, the tribal sheikhs, they were going after U.S. troops and now they are going after al Qaeda. It's a brilliant idea and Michael, you and I have talked about this. This should have been happening a long time ago. This is one province. There are what 18 provinces in Iraq. That's the goal. If they can achieve this in all the provinces, they have hit something.
CHETRY: This is the irony too, the de-Baathification that took place. The Baathists were the ones who were Saddam Hussein's henchmen. They were the ones that were told to go home and were not getting a paycheck in the early days of the war.
WARE: Which is widely accepted by every war planner, every politician, every diplomat right now as the greatest gaff of the war, disbanding the Iraqi military and disbanding the first four tiers of the Baath party. The Baath party is essentially a pan-Arabist nationalist organization. It doesn't share any kind al Qaeda-like agenda. Yet these were the people who ran the country. These were the public servants.
CHETRY: Weren't they the people who kept down the Shia?
WARE: Back under Saddam, the sectarian violence occurred but it was more of a political measure. Why did Saddam attack the Shia? Because they were uprising and resisting his regime. Saddam had a Christian in his cabinet. He had Shia at the senior levels of his intelligence service, Shia in the senior ranks of his military. Saddam wasn't sectarian per se. If you threaten him politically, he would kill you. Sunni, Shia, Kurd.
CHETRY: Kyra, you talk about a fear, a significant fear that people talked about Saddam and his regime.
PHILLIPS: Yeah, I mean just talking to the Iraqi people, talking to U.S. military, but even more so the Iraqis. I asked them, I said look at least your life was calm, there wasn't any chaos. He was a tyrant. He was crazy. He killed innocent people. How do you feel about your life now and all this violence? They agree. They said he had to go. He was a tyrant, but they have said to me time and time again, our life was so much more calm. At least we had a job. We were making money. They are conflicted because they are seeing what they used to have, AKA a peaceful life, and now they're struggling with this violence. But they don't want Saddam back. They knew that he was a tyrant.
WARE: They just want to return to normalcy. They want to be able to walk to the market without having that market blow up and butcher everyone there.
PHILLIPS: Of course. (INAUDIBLE) They don't have the kind of security Mick and I would have or the U.S. military would have.
CHETRY: You call him Mick, not Michael. This confused me at the beginning. Kyra Phillips, Michael Ware, great perspective from both of you. Thank you so much. John.
ROBERTS: The top stories of the morning are coming up next. We're going to talk live with John and Cindy McCain next. There they are. Is this the start of his campaign comeback? Also an accident on the ice that is still difficult to watch. We will show you how two skaters fought to get their lives back after that terrifying experience on the ice.
And Rosie bids adieu to the "The View" while the Donald claims victory. What really went on behind the scenes. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: A shot of the Capitol Building on what looks like it's going to be another fairly nice spring day here in the nation's capital. It's Thursday, April 26th. Good morning. I'm John Roberts in Washington.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry in New York. Great to see you again John this morning.
ROBERTS: Good to see you as well. Top stories on our radar this morning, remember that skater who was slashed, that terrible, terrible video? Coming up this morning, we're going to have an update -- oh -- on how they're doing now and how they're trying to make a comeback both in their lives and on the ice as well.
CHETRY: A difficult video to look at. She is OK so that's the good news and we'll hear from them, a harrowing story.
Also, Rosie O'Donnell, saying I'm done with "The View." She leaves when her contract is up in June. Of course, Donald Trump very quick with his reaction about that. And we're also going to be talking a little bit later with a woman who was co-hosting the show the day that the whole feud began, get her thoughts on Rosie's future and the future of "The View."
ROBERTS: We begin first of all with Senator John McCain officially an official candidate now. He says that his war time and Washington experience is what is needed to meet the challenges of the presidency. He has been campaigning for months now but slipping in the polls as of late. John and Cindy McCain join us now from Greenville, South Carolina. Good morning to both of you. Thanks for being with us, Senator, Mrs. McCain, appreciate it.
SEN. JOHN McCAIN (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good morning.
CINDY McCAIN, JOHN McCAIN'S WIFE: Good morning.
ROBERTS: Senator McCain, in the early going, you really rushed to embrace President Bush and his policies, more so than any other Republican candidate. In hindsight now was that a mistake?
J. McCAIN: Actually, that's not correct. I was one of the greatest critics of the mismanagement of the war from the beginning and I knew that that strategy was doomed to failure and I fought against it as hard as I could. We've had disagreements on a number of issues. Am I a friend and supporter of the president of the United States? Of course. But we've had numerous disagreements.
ROBERTS: But there was no question and this was written about a lot, Senator McCain, that you did get closer to President Bush than many of your Republican opponents. I'm wondering, Mrs. McCain, you were so upset with what the Bush campaign did to your husband in South Carolina back in 2000, were you comfortable with that strategy in the early going?
C. McCAIN: I -- as you know and as the American people know I hope, I have never been involved in strategy or campaign planning or anything like that. We are back. This is a new campaign. My husband is doing a great job and we look forward to winning this race.
ROBERTS: All right. Senator McCain, all of the Republican candidates support the war, though they may disagree with the way it's been fought up until now. Yet you take more heat for it than any of the other candidates. Look at what happened on the Jon Stewart show last night and there's a man who says that he admires you, respects you, likes most of your positions except this one. Why is it that most of the heat on the Republican side regarding the war seems to gravitate towards you?
J. McCAIN: Because life is not fair. Obviously I have had a leadership role on issues of defense and national security for many years. I've been involved in these issues. I've been in war, I have been in peace. I understand the issues, I understand the challenges and I understand the consequences of failure if we have to withdraw from Iraq. I think it's chaos, genocide and it will follow us home. And so it's far more important than any political campaign or political ambitions I might have.
ROBERTS: Yesterday you made your announcement, your official, official announcement in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. I want to play a little excerpt from that speech, then as you about it. Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J. McCAIN: We must also prepare, far better than we have to respond quickly and effectively to another terrorist attack or national calamity. When Americans confront a catastrophe, natural or man made, they have a right to expect basic competence from their government.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So you took a shot at the Bush administration there. You also further said that you referred to the fact that rescuers on 9/11 didn't have the right radios. They weren't on the right frequencies. You also seemed to take a shot at Rudy Giuliani there and your campaign has said that you are not going to go after him. So what's going on there?
J. McCAIN: First of all, in the case -- there's no living American that I know of that believes that Katrina wasn't terribly mishandled and we better learn the lessons from it because there will be other natural disasters as well as possible terrorist attacks. Everybody knows we have to change drastically our approach to these national disasters. That's our first natural disaster or attack, that's our first and foremost priority.
ROBERTS: What about the Giuliani side of things?
J. McCAIN: The fact is what I was talking about is my fight to try to get spectrum for the first responders. The National Association of Broadcasters are the ones who blocked us getting the spectrum to the first responders. We gave them, you know, the high definition spectrum, in return for which they were supposed to give back spectrum, which they got for free. They have successfully, because of their power in Washington as special interests, blocked it. And that's what I was talking about and that's the fight that unfortunately I've been losing for many years to try to get that spectrum to the first responders. If you ask any sheriff or any police chief in America they will tell you that's the big problem. They haven't been given the spectrum.
ROBERTS: Giuliani said yesterday that if Democrats are elected or if a Democrat is elected president, this nation will face another 9/11. Do you agree?
J. McCAIN: I do not know. I know that if I'm elected president, America will be safer, better and stronger and that's why I'm running for president.
ROBERTS: Mrs. McCain, the big question here is can your husband catch lightning in a bottle again the way that he did back in the year 2000. When you look at the national polls, he is running number two, number three depending on which poll. But when you look at the state by state polls, he's doing very well in New Hampshire. He's leading there, leading in South Carolina, if the primaries were to be held today, he and Giuliani would split the first four states. Is he a more viable candidate than people are making him out to be?
C. McCAIN: He's always been a viable candidate.
J. McCAIN: That's my girl.
C. McCAIN: The one thing -- the lesson my husband has taught me through the years is to keep a steady stream. In campaigns you're up, you're down. The most important thing to my husband and I is to keep a steady stream and keep an even keel on things. There will be ups. There will be downs.
J. McCAIN: And quite often John, they say why isn't she the candidate?
ROBERTS: Senator McCain, one more quick question if I could. By the time that the election rolls around, you will be 72 years old. You'll be three years older than Ronald Reagan was at the time of the election. And you said on Larry King that you don't know if you would be more than a one-term candidate. Why would somebody vote for a candidate who does not know if they would serve more than one term?
J. McCAIN: I think anyone, no matter what their age, would determine whether they would seek a second term depending on what happened in their first term. I would certainly anticipate serving for as long as I'm effective and accepted by the American people. But I mean to say, you know what you're going to do after you're seeking the nomination, when you are seeking the nomination of your party, I think it's foolishness. I'm proud to serve and I'm ready to serve. I'm experienced and I have a very high energy level and I'm glad to maintain it and I look forward to you joining us out on the campaign trail at a lot of the town hall meetings John.
ROBERTS: We will be out there. We're going to get the big CNN bus out there and we'll show up on your doorstep probably more often than you would like us to be there. Senator McCain, Cindy McCain, thanks very much.
J. McCAIN: Look forward to it.
ROBERTS: Good to see you officially in the game Senator. We were all wondering.
J. McCAIN: Thanks, John.
ROBERTS: Take care. Still to come this morning, the slash felt around the world. A figure skater's face gashed open by her partner's skate. How the accident might have hurt the most and hurt him the most.
Rosie O'Donnell saying so long to "The View." This morning Donald Trump is letting everyone know that he's not going to miss her. You are watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Forty four minutes after the hour now. Chad Myers in the severe weather down in Atlanta tracking tornado warnings in Mississippi. How are they looking now?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Still spinning John. It was north of Biloxi and now it's up near Vancleve (ph). The storm right there not very impressive on radar, but you look on the Doppler, you'd certainly have winds spinning in this storm and that's their threat. That's the threat. They're thinking that maybe this could have a tornado on the ground. No official word that that is actually happening.
The story though for the rest of the day is, yes, we will have severe weather. It will extend all the way from Chicago right back down even into the Ohio valley, maybe Charlotte, Atlanta as well and if you draw the line, it's all the way back down to Pensacola and Mobile as well. Mobile, Alabama, you guys are under the gun from that storm. Vancleve is to your west by about 40, 50 miles or so. If the storm holds together they're next in line. We'll keep you advised. Kiran.
CHETRY: Chad, thanks so much. They make it look easy but one false move could spell disaster. Figure skaters Jessica Dube and Bryce Davidson are back on the ice again practicing the very move judged for speed and closeness that nearly cost Jessica her life. Here is chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It happened at a skating competition in Colorado Springs just two months ago the word watching as 21-year-old Bryce Davison's skate hit 19-year-old Jessica Dube's face. And she collapsed on the ice, sobbing.
BRYCE DAVISON, FIGURE SKATING PARTNER: I knew we were too close and the reaction time just wasn't quick enough to get my leg down and my skate hit her face.
GUPTA: Davison's skate was calculated to be moving 40 miles an hour when it hit, delivering a gash across her nose and her check.
JESSICA DUBE, SLASHED FIGURE SKATER: I just thought he broke my nose because I had a lot of pain. But then I saw the blood and everything.
GUPTA: Rushed to the ER, Dube had already lost a lot of blood from the cut which was nearly four inches long and deep.
DR. J. CHRISTOPHER PRUITT, FACIAL TRAUMA SURGEON: You could do a very similar injury with a good solid knife blade being slashed across.
GUPTA: Dr. Pruitt spent around three hours closing Dube's wound. It required approximately 80 stitches and he had to close it in layers. The good news is there was no underlying fracture or head injury. Within 10 days, Dube was back on the ice. While physically fine, the pair needed post traumatic stress counseling to cope with the fear and the guilt.
DAVISON: The man is supposed to be the protector and protect his partner. So, it was -- the guilt was the biggest problem.
GUPTA: Having wrapped up therapy, there's still one question they can't or won't answer. Who got too close that day?
DUBE: I don't know. I really want him to know that I didn't think he -- it was his fault at all.
GUPTA: Dube and Davison are back. They recently placed seventh in the world championships. As for Dube's scar, doctors tell her she won't need further reconstructive work, perhaps just laser surgery to smooth out the edges.
DUBE: It's already way better. You can't even see it on TV. It's good. I'm happy with that.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: They are both so adorable. Both of the skaters are aware just how serious the injury could have been. If it happened a few inches higher, she could have lost her eye. If it happened a few inches lower, of course it could have slashed her throat. And Dr. Gupta told us about the blood loss as it was, but she did get very lucky if you could put it that way John by the location and as she said, you really can barely see it now.
ROBERTS: Yeah. The scar is obviously there. It's far less noticeable than it was at the beginning. But you got to wonder Kiran, if every time they go into that particular move if somewhere in the back of both of their minds that accident is going to crop up. Because we know that skating is such a game of timing and millimeters. If they're thinking in those moments that it could happen again, are they ever really going to be able to perform to their utmost ability?
CHETRY: And they are still placing in these competitions and they really are committed to getting back to it. So hats off to them. Aren't they just adorable? They look so young.
ROBERTS: Yeah. Well they are.
CHETRY: Good for them.
ROBERTS: Everything is coming up Rosie. Talk this morning about Rosie O'Donnell and just who might take her seat among the ladies of ABC's "The View." I wonder if the Donald might sit in for a little while too, put a wig on. That's next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHETRY: Rosie O'Donnell always the headline maker is back in the spotlight. Yesterday she told the world it's breaking news, I'm leaving ABC's "The View" in June. That's when her contract is up. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ROSIE O'DONNELL: I have decided that we couldn't come to terms with my deal with ABC, so next year, I'm not going to be on "The View." However I will be coming back and guest hosting. I will be doing one-hour specials on autism and depression and stuff that I'm interested in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, Crystal McCrarey Anthony has also been at that table with the ladies of "The View." She was a guest host and she's currently host of "My Two Cents" on BET. Crystal, good to see you this morning.
CRYSTAL McCRAREY ANTHONY, HOST, BET'S "MY TWO CENTS": Thanks for having me.
CHETRY: You were there during the infamous hair flip when she made fun of Donald Trump.
ANTHONY: I was. I was the guest co-host that day. And you know, what is interesting about that whole incident that kicked off the Donald Rosie feud, was that it was during hot topics. The whole incident was maybe 30 seconds, but do people really even remember that? Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton was on that same show for two segments talking about the future of the country, Iraq, health care and what did we walk away with?
CHETRY: Donald trumped the senator from New York. Do you believe her when she says I'm going to be back? I'm going to be back for hour-long specials. I'm going to be a frequent guests?
ANTHONY: I'm not sure. I mean the fact of the matter is, Rosie is a franchise. Rosie has the world at her feet at this point. She has made "The View" relevant again. She is a publicity magnet. She may go on Broadway. She may have her own late night talk show, which might be more appropriate for her sort of humor. She could do anything she wants to do. She is a child advocate. She has charities, who knows. Will she come back for an hour here and there to do specials? I'm not so sure.
CHETRY: She could write her ticket right now with the other networks, her own show.
ANTHONY: Absolutely and from what I hear from some insiders, there's big interest at some of the major networks for her to have her own show.
CHETRY: So if you were a betting woman, do you think she wanted to leave or do you think they wanted her out?
ANTHONY: I think it probably was a little bit of both. But I think one thing that we learned from the Star Jones situation was that their family business at "The View" is going to remain their family business. They're not going to broadcast it. I think that that was carefully orchestrated yesterday and was handled as diplomatically as possible. But frankly Rosie probably was getting a little tired of that schedule. She has four kids. She has a full plate. She has a career on the small screen, the big screen, the stage. I think that probably it became a bit much, especially after that Matrix (ph) luncheon on Monday where women in communications were honored and she made some more comments about the Donald situation, Rupert Murdoch, even poor little Joan Dideon (ph) did not escape.
CHETRY: They got the Rosie they wanted and I then I guess maybe they're wondering did we really want all this that came with it?
ANTHONY: When you think about an organization like the Matrix luncheons and the women in communication, what they want is visibility and what Rosie brings you is visibility. And you know what you're getting. You're not getting Pollyanna. You're not getting - you get someone who pushes the envelope. And what I think the beauty of a Rosie O'Donnell is Rosie does make some people uncomfortable and that's what makes her provocative. That's what makes her appealing to so many folks because she pushes the envelope.
CHETRY: And their ratings were up.
ANTHONY: Absolutely, cannot complain about ratings.
CHETRY: Crystal McCrary Anthony, host of BET's "My Two Cents," thanks for joining us today.
ANTHONY: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Thanks for her two cents. The Dow breaks a record, busting through the 13,000 mark. Can the rally last or should you cash in? What does it mean for the little fellow out there? Ali Velshi is live in the New York Stock Exchange.
And the end of the line for a fugitive father. He bolted for the border when he should have been helping his sick son. What the son is saying now ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is here on CNN.
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ROBERTS: Coming up now to 58 minutes after the hour. Ali Velshi is minding your business from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange where they went through the 13,000 mark yesterday. But Ali, what does it mean for the little guy and gal?
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, here's the thing. This is one of the things that helps you determine where things are going to go in the future. This is about the confidence that investors have in America's businesses, in American consumers' ability to keep shopping. It's one of those things. Housing is another. Gas prices are another. Inflation is another.
Here's what you need to do. Your portfolio, your retirement portfolio, your 401(k) may not be tracking the Dow or the S&P or the Nasdaq but they are all going up. This isn't some narrow rally. If your stocks, your portfolio is not generally moving higher, it's time to look at rebalancing this or calling your financial adviser and figuring out what to do about it. There are a few things that can derail this. One of them is the Fed increases interest rates because that means people can't spend as much money. The Fed looks at these economic reports that come out every day that I report to you on and sometimes I get groans from producers about, but the fact is, it's the same material that the Fed uses to make its decisions about the future. That's what you should do, too. Bet on whether you think the country is getting more prosperous or less. I'll have more on this over the course of the next hour. The next hour of AMERICAN MORNING begins right now.
CHETRY: Congress and the president set up for a showdown today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA PERINO, DEP. WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: This one is dead before arrival and they know it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: With questions for candidates.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
McCAIN: I was one of the greatest critics of the mismanagement of the war from the beginning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: On this AMERICAN MORNING. And good morning. Thanks so much for being with us once again. It is Thursday, April 26th. I'm Kiran Chetry here in New York.
ROBERTS: I'm John Roberts here in Washington. Top stories on our radar this morning, the House yesterday passed that Iraq supplemental spending bill with timetables. The Senate takes it up next. The president has vowed to veto it.
Kyra Phillips and Michael Ware just back from Iraq. As part of our ask AM segment, they are going to be here to field your questions. If you've got something that you want them to answer, e-mail it to am@cnn.com. That's am@cnn.com.
CHETRY: Some are calling this guy the lowest of the low, the worst dad ever. He was let out of jail to donate a kidney to his dying son.
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