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American Morning
Reports Top al Qaeda Leader in Iraq Dead; Republican Presidential Candidates and Immigration
Aired May 01, 2007 - 06:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR (voice over): Breaking news. Word that al Qaeda's top leader in Iraq has been killed. What it means for U.S. forces.
Plus, America's immigration crisis.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not just at the border. It's coming in to our neighborhood.
CHETRY: Rising crime, divided families.
Thousands rally coast to coast on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: And welcome. It is Tuesday, May 1st.
I'm Kiran Chetry, here in New York.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Roberts in Washington, D.C.
Stories on our AM radar this morning.
Marches and rallies planned in dozens of American cities in support of immigrant rights, though the crowds out this year are expected to be smaller than last, in part because of stepped-up immigration enforcement -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes. And we're seeing this picture painted by correspondents this morning of the slices of life, where you see how these immigration issues have played into the lives of people and cities all across the country.
Alina Cho is going to be in downtown New York today, right in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty.
Gorgeous shot there, Alina.
Chris Lawrence on the Mexican border.
Ed Lavandera bringing us the latest from Houston.
And Keith Oppenheim in Chicago. We also have Candy Crowley for us in Washington, D.C., today.
A lot of people want lawmakers to do something.
ROBERTS: Look at that. You've got a full deck of cards there on the wall. All five of them coming up, aces -- aces and 8s.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is going to join us this hour, as well, to talk about where we are with border security and where the nation is going in terms of an immigration bill, which Congress is going to start taking up about the middle of this month.
CHETRY: And New Jersey governor Jon Corzine, we all followed, of course, the aftermath of that horrific car crash that almost cost him his life. He left the hospital yesterday, very emotional. And then, of course, he talked about how he was sorry he set a bad example to children and to others by not wearing his seatbelt. Then, of course, the New York press caught his motorcade going a little fast, maybe violating some speeding laws.
So we're going to talk more about that coming up.
ROBERTS: We begin with breaking news from Iraq on this AMERICAN MORNING, word that one of America's most wanted terrorists was reportedly killed overnight. But it wasn't American or Iraqi forces that were involved. Abu Ayyub al-Masri, al Qaeda's top man in Iraq, is linked to some of the deadliest attacks there in recent months.
CNN's Arwa Damon is working the story for us this morning, joins us live from Baghdad.
We're learning a little bit more in the last 30 minutes or so, Arwa. What have you got for us?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, John.
We just spoke with Ali Daba (ph), who is a spokesman for the Iraqi government here, and this is what he said to us. According to information that the Iraqis received from tribes that are in Falluja and Abu Ghraib, al-Masri was in this area, the sprawling desert area known as al-Niba'ie, just north of the capital. They banded together and went into this area, and that is what led to these clashes, where the Iraqi government believes that al-Masri may have been killed.
Now, again, Daba (ph) quick to point out that these reports are coming from the tribes. The Iraqi government has yet to move its own forces into the area. And it's saying right now that they're going to wait to make their own identification of the body and perhaps further DNA tests.
But these are very interesting developments here. We are seeing increased efforts on the parts of the tribes in certain areas to come together and try to fight elements of al Qaeda themselves -- John.
ROBERTS: And the lack of hard evidence, taking that into account here, it would be in the interest of both these tribal leaders and the Interior Ministry to claim that this has happened, even if it hasn't, for the P.R. value, correct?
DAMON: Absolutely. I mean, the Iraqi government right now, especially, wants to prove that it is capable of targeting these terrorist cells, and it also wants to push forward this notion, the idea that we're seeing some tribes that used to be banded with Al Qaeda in Iraq, or at least were being silent observers of Al Qaeda in Iraq's activities, really starting to take affirmative action against them, especially coming in the next days.
The conference in Sharm el Sheikh that is going to be coming up, the Iraqi government is going to want to push forward evidence that things in Iraq are beginning to come together. And if they are able to push forward this battle, whether or not it killed al-Masri, as an example of how tribes are beginning to turn against Al Qaeda in Iraq, it really does play out in their own interest. But even if al-Masri was killed, in terms of the impact that it's going to have on Al Qaeda in Iraq, I mean, this is an organization that time and time again has proven its ability to regenerate itself -- John.
ROBERTS: All right. Arwa Damon for us, live in Baghdad.
Arwa, I know that you're going to keep on working your sources, try to come up with more. We'll get back to you as this goes on.
By the way, what she was referring to in terms of Sharm el Sheikh, that's the resort town in Egypt. There's a conference there later this week Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is attending. It's yet another conference to try to come up with some sort of regional peace plan for Iraq -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Right. And interestingly enough, Iran also going to be there.
ROBERTS: And the U.S. may just talk to Iran this time, as well, but only about Iraq, they say.
CHETRY: Well, the war funding bill hits President Bush's desk today, as well. Democrats sending -- planning to send it on this day to send a message.
It's the four-year mark since the president's speech on the USS Abraham Lincoln with the "Mission Accomplished" banner behind it. The bill includes an October 1st deadline to begin pulling troops out of Iraq. The president has promised a quick veto. He says he does want to work out a compromise, though. He's going to be meeting with leaders of both parties tomorrow.
ROBERTS: Former CIA director George Tenet is taking heat for not saying anything sooner. He is out promoting his new book, saying the Bush administration rushed to war in Iraq. Tenet signed his book deal three years ago, and a confidentiality agreement to go with it.
Last night, Larry King asked him if any news that's come out in that time ever made him think that he should speak up about it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": Weren't there times, though, you wanted to come and say something?
GEORGE TENET, FMR. CIA DIRECTOR: Larry, you know, it's a funny thing. I worked -- I worked in the shadows my whole life, and I never had that compelling need. I've never -- never done interviews before I started -- started this week, started today, really. But the truth is, no, I never had -- I never felt compelled to come say something or get on the air.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Well, because of that, a half a dozen former CIA officials are calling on Tenet to give back his presidential Medal of Freedom for not saying anything before a war that he claims America rushed in to without adequate intelligence.
CHETRY: Well, this morning there are some new questions about the driver of a gas tanker truck that overturned and caught fire in the Bay Area, causing a vital section of highway to collapse.
James Mosqueda has a criminal record that includes drug and burglary arrest. He's also served time for heroin possession.
California law does allow convicted felons who have served their sentences to get commercial driver's licenses, as long as they have clean driving records. The Transportation Safety Administration is investigating whether Mosqueda should have been cleared to drive hazardous materials.
New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine is finally home from the hospital. Corzine was wheeled out yesterday by his two adult children, waving. There were many onlookers and well-wishers clapping as he exited the hospital.
It's nearly three weeks after almost being killed when the SUV he was traveling in hit a guardrail. A state trooper was driving 90 miles an hour at the time of the crash, and Corzine was not wearing his seat belt. Something that he addressed yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JON CORZINE (D), NEW JERSEY: I also understand that I set a very poor example for a lot of young people, a lot of people in general. And I certainly hope the state will forgive me. And I'll work very hard to try to set the right kind of example to make a difference in people's lives as we go forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Now, there you see him tearing up. He did get very emotional. He still has weeks, if nut months, of rehabilitation to go through, as well.
By the way, on the way home from the hospital, reporters clocked Corzine's motorcade of up to 70 miles an hour. The posted speed limit is between 55 and 65.
And of course, John, they're going to be watching after what happened, and especially what he said about wanting to set a good example in light of the accident.
ROBERTS: Well, 70 miles an hour a lot better than 91 miles an hour, at least.
CHETRY: That's true.
ROBERTS: Eight minutes after the hour now.
Immigration is a political hot potato, especially in a presidential election season. Our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, is here to tell us what the Republican candidates are saying about this important issue, or more to the point, how they've changed what they've been saying about.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. You know, John, it used to be that a presidential candidate could go through the town halls of Iowa and know they'd get a question on agriculture. Now they are just as likely to get a question on immigration.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY (voice over): John McCain seems a little taken aback.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Immigration, I have found in a few town hall meetings here in this great state of Iowa, is a very important issue and a very emotional issue.
CROWLEY: And a very difficult issue for McCain, who authored a Senate bill which allows undocumented workers to stay in the U.S. and work towards citizenship.
MCCAIN: If you think that you can round up 12 million people and put them in jail, that's fine. I'd be curious where you're going to build all those institutions to hold them.
CROWLEY: It's not the sort of thing they like to hear on conservative talk radio.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want only legal citizens in my country. I want illegal immigrants out of my country.
CROWLEY: After recent trips to Iowa, McCain said he was not against a proposal called Touchback, which requires illegals to return home before applying for citizenship. In truth, even the name of McCain's bill, Kennedy-McCain, is enough to drive conservatives up the wall, which is why Mitt Romney uses it whenever he can.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: McCain-Kennedy isn't the answer. As governor, I took a very different approach. I authorized our state police to enforce federal immigration laws. I vetoed... (APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: I vetoed a tuition break for illegals and said no to driver's licenses.
(APPLAUSE)
ROMNEY: McCain-Kennedy gives benefits to illegals that would cost taxpayers millions.
CROWLEY: It's not exactly what Romney said in 2005, when the "Boston Globe" reports he called McCain's proposals "reasonable".
Did we mention Iowa conservatives are not happy with a pathway to citizenship, AKA amnesty?
GLENN THEULEN, IOWA VOTER: The basic problem is that we are a land of laws. We have an immigration law, but it seems to be ignored by everyone involved.
CROWLEY: Rudy Giuliani also finds himself at odds with his party's conservative wing. The former New York mayor believes there should be a pathway to citizenship for those illegals in the U.S.
Recent polling suggests that immigration is one of those issues that is not front burner for most Americans.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: USA! USA!
CROWLEY: But those who do see it as a priority are passionate about it, and those who are passionate tend to vote in the primary season.
JAN MICKELSON, HOST, "MICKELSON IN THE MORNING": Is there a candidate that represents your view better than anybody else?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't answer that honestly.
MICKELSON: OK. You're still shopping.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm still shopping, yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: Of all the Republicans in the race, the most conservative on immigration issues is Tom Tancredo, a little-known congressman who has led the charge for tighter border patrol to keep undocumented workers out of the country, and no amnesty for those already in. Tancredo's name is the one most likely to surface as a favorite among voters for whom immigration is a premier issue.
ROBERTS: You know, on the Democratic side of the presidential race, they've all remained pretty consistent on the issue of immigration. But the Republican side, we see a lot of shifts.
Giuliani is trying to distance himself a little bit from it. McCain as well. Romney's changed. Even Sam Brownback has changed, as well.
CROWLEY: And it has to do with the conservative base. They're talking about -- these are the folks that come out to vote. These are the folks that think that illegal immigration does not deserve amnesty. It's not, as John McCain said, putting them on a bus and sending them back. They just don't believe that the path to citizenship, as they call it, ought to be in there.
So, they're all sort of moving to the right, because that's where the primary takes place.
ROBERTS: And Congress expected to take up this issue the middle of this month, though not a lot of people holding out hope that they'll get an immigration bill this year, either.
CROWLEY: Right. And those candidates better hope, otherwise they're going to have to defend it.
ROBERTS: All right.
Candy, thanks very much. Always good to see you.
And we want to hear from you this morning. Lou Dobbs, who has been known to have a thing or two to say about immigration, is going to be joining us in our 8:00 a.m. hour. So, for this morning's "Ask AM," we'd like you to send us your questions for Lou.
E-mail us at am@cnn.com. We'll pick some of those questions and we'll get Lou to answer them during our 8:00 a.m. Eastern hour.
CHETRY: All right. And still ahead, build a wall, separate families. We're going to talk with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff about the way the U.S. is trying to stop people from illegally crossing the border.
And to chase or not to chase. The Supreme Court has ruled, and what it says will have a serious impact on highways of America.
You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It's quarter past the hour now. We're going to check in with Chad Myers for a look at today's weather forecast.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: One of the thorniest issues in the battle over illegal immigration has to do with the way that it affects families. To give you an example, Juana Garcia De La Cruz is one of the millions of illegal immigrants of this country. Back in March, she was one of hundreds of people arrested during a raid in a leather factory in New Bedford, Massachusetts. De La Cruz entered the country illegally, but never imagined that federal agents would forcibly separate her from her 2-year-old son Jason (ph). (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUANA GARCIA DE LA CRUZ, MOTHER (through translator): I told them I had a child here and asked if they could give me some time to make arrangements to get my son out of the country. But he said, "No." He tied my hands behind my back and pushed me towards the others.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: De La Cruz is back with her family for now, but her family's fate is uncertain, complicated in part because her son was born in the United States and is, therefore, a U.S. citizen.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff joins us now to talk more about this and other immigration concerns.
So you've got a real dilemma here with these parents. They have entered the country illegally. According to Immigration Customs and Enforcement officials I've talked to, they say that actions have consequences. Yet, at the same time, the more you get negative publicity about the separation of families, the more people will put pressure on you not to enforce these regulations.
So, how do you reconcile those two, you know, polar opposite pressures?
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Well, John, first of all, we're obviously sympathetic to the plight of children who find themselves caught in this situation, but we do have to remember, it is the parents' choice to break the law. And I have to tell you, when I was a prosecutor, it was unfortunately not uncommon to see children suffer because parents broke the law and had to go to jail.
We always do these raids in a way that takes care of children, makes sure that we've taken steps to coordinate with the local authorities. But at the end oof the day, we cannot compromise on enforcing the law simply because somebody has given birth to a child in the United States.
ROBERTS: This is the big issue that immigrant groups are pushing this year, this idea of separation of families during these raids. And what complicates the issue even further is that, like this child Jason (ph) of Juana De La Cruz, they're U.S. citizens under the 14th Amendment because they were born in this country.
U.S. citizens are protected under U.S. law, yet, at the same time, you want to remove their parent.
CHERTOFF: Well, and of course we don't deport the children, although we recognize that in almost all cases the child will accompany the parent back. But again, I have to begin with the rule of law.
We've got to start everything from the premise that if we do have a law that is broken, there does have to be a consequence. We can't allow somebody to have a de facto amnesty simply because there is a personal plight. At the end of the day, the real solution is immigration reform that addresses all elements -- border security, tough enforcement, and some kind of resolution of the problem of the undocumented workers who are here.
ROBERTS: Is the border more secure now than it was May 1st of 2006?
CHERTOFF: There's no question it's more secure. If we measure it in terms of the flow across the border, if we measure it in terms of what we're hearing from people who are on the border in local communities, we see a measurable change and a shift in momentum.
Unfortunately, part of what we're seeing is increased violence, because as we push on the criminal organizations, they start to fight for their turf. And that is, unfortunately, a short-term consequence of what we're going to see.
ROBERTS: You and the commerce secretary having been having discussions on Capitol Hill with Democrats and Republicans alike about proposals for an immigration bill. The Congress is supposed to begin taking it up on the 14th of this month. From your discussions, what do you think the chances are that we're going to have a bill, and what do you think it would look like if we get one?
CHERTOFF: I think there's a reasonably good chance, but I don't want to underestimate the challenges. Obviously, everybody has their wish list. It's the nature of this kind of a measure, which has got to be something that addresses all elements of the problem, that not everybody is going to get everything they want. They're going to have to find a way to set settle on a consensus arrangement that addresses everything.
I think it's going to have to be tough on enforcement. It's going to have to continue to put pressure on the border. But we're going to need to find a way that is reasonable and fair, and not in amnesty, to deal with the undocumented workers who are here.
ROBERTS: Do you think we'll get a bill?
CHERTOFF: I think we have got a reasonably good chance if everybody is willing to work in the spirit of compromise.
ROBERTS: Secretary Chertoff, good to see you. Thanks for being here.
CHERTOFF: Good to be here, John.
ROBERTS: I appreciate it -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks so much, John.
Well, for the person who has everything, how about your own embassy? We go shopping on the U.S. State Department Web site to find your next vacation home.
Also, my fellow Americans, could you pass the test for citizenship?
Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty-four minutes after the hour.
In the market for a little international real estate? Looking for something with charm, class, a touch of a sense of history? Maybe you should head for the State Department's Web site.
CNN's Jacki Schechner is our Internet reporter-turned-real- estate-agent for this morning.
What do you got for sale?
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Huge deals this morning. I have got my clipboard and everything. A hundred and eight million, you, too, can live in London. This is a former Navy...
ROBERTS: Wait, $180 million you said?
SCHECHNER: I was going to skip over that, so you would fall in love with the property and then the price tag wouldn't matter. Isn't that how they do it? Yes, this is a former Navy annex fronting Grosvenor Square, and it's just one of 29 places around the world up for sale.
The State Department, as you know, they're moving their employees to safer locations, or upgrading their facilities, and the results is that these excess properties are now up for grabs. The Office of Overseas Building Operations is part of the State Department, and they have 3,500 U.S. government properties in some 193 countries. They're all listed with private real estate agents.
This one, though, this might be up your alley. Six million dollars. A little better than the $180 million, right?
ROBERTS: Where's this one?
SCHECHNER: The foothills of the Himalayas in Nepal.
ROBERTS: Ah. You know, Kiran could be interested in this one.
SCHECHNER: It's not bad. Isn't that where she was born?
ROBERTS: She was born on the slopes of Mt. Everest, I believe. Carried up there by a sherpa.
CHETRY: Yes. Very funny, John. I was born in Kathmandu -- the slopes of Mt. Everest. I love it.
(LAUGHTER)
SCHECHNER: This one is actually a little -- hey, Kiran, this one is a little cheaper, actually. This one is $1.5 million. It's in Tripoli, but they knocked some off of the price here because it took some damage during the anti-American riots in the '80s and '90s.
ROBERTS: Oh, yes. You can see -- you can see right here.
SCHECHNER: Yes. So it's a fixer-upper...
ROBERTS: Yes, just a little bit.
SCHECHNER: ... for $1.5 million.
ROBERTS: The bullet holes have been plastered over.
SCHECHNER: Closer to home, if you want to live in Ottawa, here's another property for you. This one here is a three-story house, home to a deputy ambassador since 1948.
ROBERTS: This would be a great place.
SCHECHNER: $2.25 million. Not bad.
ROBERTS: Yes.
SCHECHNER : Waterfront property -- or canal front.
ROBERTS: Canal front property.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHECHNER: Or a bad flood. You can't really tell the difference.
You also have your options of properties in Nicaragua, Thailand, Venezuela, Indonesia. And yes, I get a commission on any property.
ROBERTS: Excellent. Jacki, thank you very much. Some things to think about.
Top stories of the morning are coming up next. Breaking news from Baghdad. Reports that the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq was killed overnight. Will it make a difference for U.S. troops?
Plus, the Supreme Court gives police a shield and makes some history with a ruling about high-speed chases.
We'll explain ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Breaking news. The leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq reportedly killed overnight, not by U.S. forces, but apparently by rival militant groups. That according to Iraq's Interior Ministry.
What it means in the fight for Iraq and the war on terror on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And good morning to you. It's Tuesday, May the 1st. I'm John Roberts in Washington.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry here in New York. Great to see you. We have a lot of stories on our radar this morning.
Marches and rallies planned in dozens of American cities in support of immigrant rights. These are some pictures from last year, where hundreds of thousands -- in some cases, millions -- turned out across the country, although organizers say they're not expecting it to be as busy and crowded as it was last year for a number of reasons. One of them, though, could be fears of deportation. So we're going to be talking about that today.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Last year at these marches we saw people wearing t-shirts that said I'm illegal, so what. I wonder if we'll be seeing any of those this year.
CHETRY: That's right and also a lot of controversy over the sea of Mexican flags that we were seeing and some were asking, wait minute, if you want to come to this country and be a part of this country legally, why aren't you waving U.S. flags?
ROBERTS: They were saying, if you want to wave the Mexican flag, go back to Mexico.
On another topic, teens and migraines. It may not just be a headache. Excruciating migraines could be a warning sign of even more trouble and problems. Our medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is going to be here to tell us more about that.
CHETRY: The Supreme Court weighing in on high-speed police chases. Will it make them become more common, even when local departments themselves are deciding to scale back? We're going to talk to legal analyst Jeff Tubin and we're going to tell you why this video was really the central, the key element to making the Supreme Court make the ruling that they did.
But we begin with breaking news. It's the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq and the news that he was reportedly killed overnight. A spokesman for Iraq's interior ministry says there is strong evidence that Abu Ayyub (ph) al Masri died in fighting with rival militants overnight and that evidence coming from tribal groups. Iraqi and American officials still have not seen al Masri's body and they're unable to confirm his death. But he is linked to some of the deadliest attacks in and around Baghdad in recent months. A big question now if al Masri is, indeed dead, what type of impact will it make for U.S. troops in Iraq or the overall war on terror? CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen joins us on the phone this morning. Hi, Peter.
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Good morning, Kiran.
CHETRY: Peter, your opinion what impact does Masri's death, if it is indeed confirmed make?
BERGEN: Well his individual death I don't think makes much difference at all. You may recall the former al Qaeda leader in Iraq, Abu Asab (ph) al-Zarqawi, who was a much more public person, releasing a lot of videos, so having a very high profile, his death in June of 2006 had no impact on the rising violence in Iraq. However, if, indeed, it is the case that this was sort of Sunni militants who killed al Masri or may have given the information that led to his death, that is an encouraging sign because it points to further splits in the various militant groups that are in Iraq right now. So that would be a positive development.
CHETRY: While he might not have had such as high a profile publicly as Zarqawi, he did urge militants to step jihad or holy war. He's somebody that did foment a lot of violence. He actually encouraged and called for the kidnapping of westerners to try to swap for Muslim clerics that were jailed and there was also a $5 million bounty on his head by U.S. forces. So, he was wanted. Clearly, he made some impact there.
BERGEN: Yep. Certainly he very quickly after al Abu Musab al Zarqawi was killed in 2006, al Masri very publicly swore allegiance to Osama bin Laden, identified Musab as the head of al Qaeda in Iraq. But I think, you know, Kiran, as you know, the militant groups have been trying to put a more Iraqi face on it. Al Masri of course was an Egyptian. Another militant (INAUDIBLE) seemed to be taking a more prominent role in the militant efforts, that of course a reference to his Iraqi nationality. So, the Iraqi militants themselves are trying to kind of exclude the foreign militants from a public role and now it looks like, also, fighting them directly could be this news out of Iraq today is true.
CHETRY: Peter, from your vantage point, where is the biggest threat, terror threat coming from within Iraq? Is it in the sectarian strife? Is it in al Qaeda in Iraq that has the most devastating impact on the citizens?
BERGEN: Well, some suicide attacks are the things that are causing the most, you know, the most deaths and most of the suicide attacks have been carried out by foreigners under al Qaeda in Iraq's direction. Many of the suicide attackers in Iraq are not Iraqis, only something like 10 percent. A good number of them are Saudis. A good number of them are North Africans. So in terms of the per person violence, it's the foreign militants who are generating most of the violence. But on the other hand, if you look at the big picture, it is clearly the sectarian strife that is killing the largest number of people.
CHETRY: All right, Peter Bergen, putting some perspective on the news today. The news being reported right now that al Masri, al Qaeda leader in Iraq, killed overnight in fighting. Thanks, Peter.
BERGEN: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Supporters of immigrant rights are going to be out in force today at May Day rallies across the country in the United States. May Day is actually referred to as loyalty day. Last year's rallies brought out nearly 600,000 people and since then deportations of illegal immigrants have jumped markedly, nearly 37,000 more people deported last year for a total of some 221,000. AMERICAN MORNING's" Alina Cho is live from lower Manhattan this morning to tell us about so-called sanctuary cities for illegal immigrants. What are these all about, Alina?
ALINO CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's a movement that is certainly catching on John in cities across the country and towns, too. We're here in the shadow of the statue of liberty which as you well know is a universal symbol of freedom and it's that freedom that so many immigrants seek when they come here to the United States. But 12 million illegal immigrants are finding that they're living in limbo, except in some pockets of the U.S. where they're finding sanctuary.
CHO (voice-over): In Hightstown, New Jersey, population 5,200, Mayor Bob Patton brags about how one-third of the residents are Latino. Many are here illegally, but that's OK with the mayor. His policy, don't ask, don't tell.
MAYOR BOB PATTEN, HIGHTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY: There's 12 million of them in the United States. What are you going to do? Send them all back. You got to be crazy.
CHO: Here Latino businesses are central to the local economy. One in four students is Latino, which is why all of the schools here teach English as a second language. In the center of town, the church holds services in Spanish and 60 percent of the weddings Mayor Patten officiates are Latino marriages. The mayor is becoming bilingual. Hightstown, like San Francisco in the west, is what some have called a sanctuary city, a place where illegal immigrants can walk without fear, even call police if there's a problem. Paula Roncancio lives and works here.
PAULA RONCANCIO, HIGHTSTOWN, NJ RESIDENT: We feel like somebody is not going to come and take us away and put us back where we came from.
CHO: Roncancio won't reveal her immigration status, but admits she and her mother have been trying to become U.S. citizens for more than a decade. Her 17-month-old daughter, Emma, was born here so she's already a citizen. A familiar story, a family with mixed immigration status, the focus of today's rallies.
STUART SACKOWITZ, THE SHOE BUCKLE: At the rate we're going, I don't want to be here any more.
CHO: Stuart Sackowitz owns a shoe store in Hightstown, has been in business here for 37 years. He says the Latino community has overrun the town and that some business owners are leaving because they can't compete.
SACKOWITZ: These people are all hard-working, good people. They just don't support local businesses.
CHO: Mayor Patten insists the changing face of Hightstown is good for business. He calls it one square mile of paradise, where immigrants don't have to look over their shoulder as they pursue the American dream.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: And there, again, is that symbol of the American dream, the statue of liberty. So many new immigrants actually come here to New York to see lady liberty with their own eyes. As we talk about today's protests, it is important to note that organizers do say they will be smaller this year. A couple of reasons for that. But the primary one is that there is stepped up enforcement by immigration authorities this year and that will keep a lot of people away. But the message will be loud and clear. Deportations are tearing families apart. That's what these protesters say. You know John, one in 10 American families have mixed immigration status, meaning at least one member is here illegally and a lot of those families will be speaking with one voice today saying that Congress and the president need to do something about it. They want to stay here in the United States.
ROBERTS: Another interesting statistic, Alina is that there's about 3.1 million American children who have at least one parent that is illegal, that the children were born here in this country. So that really complicates the whole thing. Alina Cho there in the shadow of the statue of liberty, thanks very much. Good to see you.
CHETRY: Everyone who wants to become a U.S. citizen has to pass a basic test. There are questions, one of them being, what are the colors of the American flag? That is sort of a give me. But now the government is trying to upgrade the citizenship test and CNN's Richard Roth has been out asking the tough questions about this. Hi, Richard. Good morning.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ten U.S. cities are conducting a pilot test of the new citizenship test for applicants. No essay questions or multiple choice, but queries to make people think about what kind of country they're trying to become part of.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH (voice-over): By day Rosemarie Lopez is an orthodontists assistant. At night the Guatemalan native is brushing up to become an American citizen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What country sold the Louisiana territory to the United States?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: France.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Correct.
ROTH: Lopez and her class in Boston are prepping for a new test for immigrants applying to become U.S. citizens.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So the answer for the colors of the flag, red, white and blue. So, please make sure to make the changes because I saw some answers with yellow. And that's not right.
CHO: I put some of the same questions to American citizens on the streets of New York. If the U.S. president could no longer serve, who becomes president?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Vice president. That's a tough question.
ROTH: Who is the Senate majority leader now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The girl, the lady.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nancy Pelosi from California.
ROTH: That's the House, not the Senate smarty pants. Number 125, what country is on the northern border of the United States?
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Canada.
ROTH: Number 126, where is the Grand Canyon?
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Arizona.
ROTH: What did Susan B. Anthony do?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Susan B. Anthony is a suffragette.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, she wrote the, she wrote the --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's a suffragette for women's rights.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, she wrote the "Star-Spangled Banner."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, she didn't.
ROTH: In order to join these new American citizens, you need to answer six out of 10 right, plus a basic English test.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll be able to, you know, call this my country now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROTH: The added questions focus on the ideas of democracy and make it more meaningful. Questions like what does freedom of religion mean? The government says it builds civics skills, but critics still say it's like "Jeopardy." Some people find this test a bit harder than the old test, but applicants still have a chance to retake this exam if they don't pass the first time. They still have to go through a background check and a written exam.
CHETRY: Sometimes you find that people who want to be part of the country are the ones that know the facts and those of us who were just born here and take citizenship for granted, maybe don't know all the answers.
ROTH: No, there is -- they have to get six out of 10 right out of a possible 90 questions. But I'd like to take a test where if you get it wrong you can do it again.
CHETRY: The driver's test, I had to take it three or four times. ROTH: I'll keep that in mind.
CHETRY: PCETRYCCThe arallel parking got me. It was just the parallel parking. That's the beauty of Manhattan, you don't have to drive.
ROTH: Good luck out there, America.
CHETRY: You, too.
Meantime, if we're taking a quiz here. How many justices on the Supreme Court or how did they rule on a police and high-speed chase case that recently came before them? Should cops be held responsible if something tragic happens when they're chasing someone who is speeding?
Also, Los Angeles is number one on a dubious list. We're going to explain when AMERICAN MORNING returns. The most news in the morning is here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. The Supreme Court is weighing in on high-speed police chases. In an 8-1 ruling, the court shielded police officers from lawsuits that arise from car chases. The case stems from a dramatic chase that was caught on video, as you're seeing there. To give us an idea of what this all means, CNN's senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin joins us this morning. Thanks for being with us.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning.
CHETRY: And the justices say that they were really swayed by the video. It's a 19-year-old driver. He's driving very erratically, zigzagging, refuse to stop. Here it is and endangering other drivers. It turns out that he was left a quadriplegic after police rammed the car to get him to stop. What did you think of the ruling?
TOOBIN: The justices were really into this case. You could tell at oral arguments several months ago. They had all watched the video very carefully. Justice Scalia's opinion is the first opinion in the history of the court where they linked to a video of the evidence in the case. So, they really went over the --
CHETRY: Welcome to the 21st century.
TOOBIN: Welcome to the 21st century for the justices. I think they were just offended by the idea that this guy, who had engaged in clear misbehavior could bring a lawsuit. But, it is worth remembering that what he did was not all that terrible. He was driving 73 miles an hour in a 55-mile-an-hour zone. The police gave chase and it led to this very long chase, but the justices said, look, you can't make a Federal case out of it. This is your responsibility, even though you had these tragic consequences.
CHETRY: Our thinking is such that it's not so bad. Speeding would not considered as bad as let's say waving a gun in a crowded shopping mall but they're both deadly weapons. If this was a gun case, we wouldn't even be talking about it because police can use force in that instance, but a car kills more people every year than gun violence.
TOOBIN: And that was basically similar to the justices' argument. They were saying, look, they have, the police have to be able to address a situation in a reasonable manner. This, to the justices based on the videotape was reasonable and you know, across the board, a political spectrum, they agree.
CHETRY: But the interesting thing is that some local municipalities are actually scaling back on these chases because of the innocent bystanders that have been killed as a result of chases.
TOOBIN: Most of them, including Los Angeles. Under the new police commissioner Bill Bratton (ph), they are saying no more OJ's, no more chasing people all over the city for relatively minor offenses because of the danger both to the cops who are engaged in the chase, to the community and to the bad guys. The cost of these kind of chases are not worth it. I'm sure they're all relieved that they are yielded from liability in fact, if they have one of these chases. But in point of fact, these kind of chases are down and I think frankly, that's good for everybody.
CHETRY: Very interesting. Jeffrey Toobin.
TOOBIN: Everybody should go, supremecourtus.gov. The first video in Supreme Court history.
CHETRY: The Supreme Court's own youtube in a way. Thanks a lot. John?
ROBERTS: Los Angeles is the most polluted city in the United States. This according to the American Lung Association's bad air list. Good news for LA though, the number of days with pollution at its worse was lower than in previous years. Rounding out the top five, Pittsburgh, Bakersfield, California, north of Los Angeles, Birmingham, Alabama and Detroit.
Forty eight minutes after the hour now. Chad Myers at the CNN weather center in Atlanta with his eye on some extreme weather, again, in Texas. They just can't get a break, Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: They really can't. All it did, John, overnight was move from west Texas over to north central Texas. It was centered over Abilene and just south of there, some radar estimates about six inches of rain. Dallas not quite that much, but they did get at least six inches south of San Antonio, north of Houston and it's still raining. And the storm's not moving at all. It's spinning in place. At least this weather is moving.
We're seeing from Flint all the way back to Grand Rapids a couple showers, also into Milwaukee a shower or thunderstorm just north of your city here. There could be some severe weather all the way from Pittsburgh across Columbus, Ohio and then down south a separate system, a separate weather maker all the way from the Red River right on down into about Del Rio, Texas, today. It's going to be warm in Chicago, warm in Memphis, 84 there, hot in Atlanta at 89. New York City to 63 tomorrow, 68 on Thursday, get you into DC. for the next couple of days, a couple showers for you tomorrow, 75 and then on Saturday, 66. John, we talked about this yesterday, Baghdad very hot coming up, 104 on Friday.
ROBERTS: You can see that in Arwa Damon's shots that she's doing for us from Baghdad this morning, the steamy season setting in there.
MYERS: You bet it is.
ROBERTS: In a number of different ways. Chad, thanks very much, see you soon.
Coming up, a warning for parents of teens who suffer from migraines. Are they a sign of more troubling health problems? We're paging Dr. Gupta, next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: New research out today suggests that teenagers who suffer from frequent migraine headaches may, in fact, have a higher than average risk of psychiatric illness or even suicide. Our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us now from Atlanta with details of this new study. Sanjay, I have not heard of this before.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's brand-new. In fact it just came out today, John, talking specifically about this potential link. Let me just say up front, the numbers are pretty small here, so I don't want people to get too worried about this. What is prompting some of this concern though is a research study out of Taiwan actually looking at teenagers who have what are known as chronic daily headaches or migraines and the risk of some sort of psychiatric disorder. First of all, when it comes to migraine, a lot of people ask, well, what exactly is that? Let me show you this animation here really quickly.
It's a common type of chronic headache, typically lasts between four and 72 hours. The blood vessels sort of change here. The blood vessels going to the brain, within the brain sort of change and that can send out pain signals to other parts of the brain, get this pulsating pain. It's usually on one side of the head. You get sensitivity to light. You get nausea. Sometimes you can get these auras as well where you see black spots. Those are migraine headaches.
Now what the study out of Taiwan specifically found was that nearly half of those people with these chronic daily headaches or migraines had some sort of psychiatric disorder and about 20 percent of them had a higher risk of suicide. This was based on questionnaires, John, so not a perfect study by any means. Also they interviewed 7,900 adolescents but found only 121 of them actually had these chronic daily headaches, so small numbers here, but something to look out for sure, John. ROBERTS: What is the best way, Sanjay, to treat migraines in teenagers?
GUPTA: There's a couple of ways of approaching this. One is to sort of figure out what are the triggers. What is bringing on the migraine in the first place. So there are a whole host of triggers in both teenagers and adolescents. First of all, let me just show you this here. What is a chronic daily headache? Fifteen days a month for three months and the headaches last more than two hours. That is something that you specifically want to watch out for if your teenager is suffering from that, that should raise a little bit of a flag. Back to those triggers though for a second. They can be anything. They can be certain types of foods. They can be lack of sleep. They can be hormonal changes for example. Someone goes through puberty so all those things to watch out for or you can actually use medications to try and treat them. We just reported, John, a few weeks ago about a new medication combining what is known an imitrex (ph) which actually stabilizes those blood vessels with an anti-inflamatory, Aleve-type medication actually combining those, seems to have significant benefit. So either stop the triggers or treat it with a medication, John.
ROBERTS: All right, good advice. Sanjay Gupta, thanks very much.
GUPTA: Thank you, sir.
ROBERTS: And if you have questions about migraines send them Sanjay's way and to our website, cnn.com/americanmorning. Sanjay will be back to answer them on Thursday morning.
CHETRY: Sounds great.
And still to come this morning, we have breaking news out of Baghdad, reports that the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq is dead this morning. How much of an impact will it make for U.S. troops trying to secure the country?
Plus Lou Dobbs is here. He joins us live. He'll ask, is America doing a better job at keeping illegal immigrants from crossing the border? And also, if you have a question for Lou, send it to us am@cnn.com. We're going to pick some of them and he's going to answer them for us coming up in our 8:00 hour. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Face of terror. The leader of al Qaeda in Iraq reportedly killed overnight.
Olus, immigration nation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If we do have a law that is broken, there does have to be a consequence. MAYOR BOB PATTEN, HIGHTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY: There's 12 million of them in the United States. What are you going to do? Send them all back. You got to be crazy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Thousands rally coast to coast, a show of force and a demand for change on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And welcome, thanks so much for being with us on this Tuesday, May 1st. I'm Kiran Chetry here in New York.
ROBERTS: And I'm John Roberts in Washington. Stories on our AM radar this morning, lots of immigration rallies taking place across the country today, though expecting lower turn out than we saw last year. We're going to be talking to Lou Dobbs about all of this. Lou has been known to have a thing or two to say about it.
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