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U.S. Soldiers Ambushed; New Jersey Wildfire; Iraq War & Politics
Aired May 16, 2007 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: New developments within the past hour in the desperate search for three U.S. soldiers missing in Iraq. A reward has been posted.
Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara starr, has also learned more details about the search and the ambush attack on the soldiers. She is joining us now live.
Unfortunately, not details that what we wanted to hear from that scene -- Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly not yet, Heidi. This very desperate hunt goes on. Let's get right to it.
The U.S. military, we are going to show you a leaflet that they are now dropping by air from helicopters in Arabic. We have an English version to help people try to understand what this flyer says. But this is a flyer -- about 170,000 being dropped.
It asks for people to call in if they have any tips, any information, promises confidentiality. And the U.S. military now offering, through the coalition, of course, $200,000 reward for any information leading to those responsible for the attack or the return of the U.S. troops.
Officials are now able to offer some more details about what they found at the scene of that attack over the weekend that left four U.S. troops killed, three missing. The subject, of course, of this desperate hunt.
Officials tell us when the rescue forces got there, they found blood trails, multiple blood trails, indications that some of the soldiers may have been dragged off. They followed one of those blood trails on that day, and they did find one of the soldiers killed in a building about 50 meters away.
There is evidence, they tell us, though, that the U.S. troops tried to fight back against this very coordinated, apparently preplanned, well-thought-out attack. You know, there was concertina wire around the two U.S. Humvees, but that concertina wire was breached, apparently cut by the attackers who came in very close in for that attack, using fragmentation grenades, small arms during this firefight that left four dead, three being searched for.
They also found when they got to the scene tire tracks of at least one vehicle, obviously believed to be the vehicle of an attacker. Those tire tracks leading away from the scene -- Heidi.
COLLINS: And Barbara, you know we always talk so much about how vitally important it is to get good information coming from the civilians to the military in situations certainly like this. We spoke with Arwa Damon a little bit earlier who was embedded with those troops who were looking for the missing soldiers. She found it to be and was hearing from them that the cooperation is still good.
What are you hearing from where you are at the Pentagon?
STARR: Well, U.S. military officials are underscoring that. They are getting a lot of tips, a lot of cooperation from people in this area.
They have several people in custody, they tell us. And they believe at least a few of them may be directly involved in the attack, or are at least claiming to be involved in the attack. That all still has to be verified.
The tips are coming in. They are checking every one of them out. Here is an example we are about to tell you of one that didn't work out.
They got a tip that the remains, the bodies of the missing troops, would be found in a canal near Yusufiyah. They went and drained the entire canal. They did not find anything.
But it just goes to underscore how much they are following up on every one of these tips, how desperately as the hours go by they are searching for these three missing U.S. soldiers -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Wow. Yes, and you say 170,000 leaflets being dropped with this reward on it as well. Hopefully, that will bring in even more information.
CNN's Barbara Starr for us at the Pentagon today.
Barbara, thanks so much.
And grief and uncertainty for the families of the ambushed soldiers. Three of the dead have been identified. The three missing soldiers and one of those killed are still listed as duty status, whereabouts unknown.
They are Specialist Alex R. Jimenez, 25 years old, from Lawrence, Massachusetts; Private First Class Joseph J. Anzack Jr., he's 20 years old, from Torrance, California; and Private Byron W. Fouty; 19 years old, from Waterford, Michigan. Also, Sergeant Anthony Schober. He's 23 years old, from Reno, Nevada.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: A full-scale attack under way this hour, the target another big wildfire. That's what we're talking about here. New Jersey the latest state dealing with an out-of- control blaze.
CNN's senior correspondent, Allan Chernoff, is in Warren Grove, New Jersey.
Allan, good morning to you.
How do things stand at this hour?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: Tony, they are still battling away, and it is a tough fight. What you see behind me is some smoke, and that's actually smoke from a containment fire.
All around the region there are firefighters who are actually setting little fires, and this is how they fight the big one. They try to burn off the brush so that there's no fuel left when the actual large fire comes on over.
That is their strategy right now, the way they are trying to contain this fire. And it certainly is a big battle, because the wind is pretty good right now. Sometimes we are getting gusts up to 20 miles an hour.
It is arid here, has been very dry for the past couple of weeks. So the brush here just lights right up. Very easy to catch fire.
And it certainly has had some damage thus far. Fifty homes damaged either from smoke or from the fire itself. And so far, only 10 percent of this fire is contained.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF WARDEN MARIS GABLIKS, N.J. FOREST FIRE SERVICE: It still has the potential to grow. We are currently working on the fire, looking at putting in containment lines around the fire to contain it. Firefighters worked since 2:30 yesterday on the fire, and we had quite a few crews out overnight working on getting a containment on the fire.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHERNOFF: How did this all happen? Well, this is actually a firing range.
Very often, you have planes flying above dropping bombs. Yesterday, the New Jersey Air National Guard was actually dropping some flares. What happened, according to the New Jersey National Guard, is that one of those flares, instead of burning in the air, dropped to the ground and started the fire.
The investigation, of course, will continue, but that is what they believe happened. And they are pretty sure that's what happened because they are able to observe all of these drops.
They, in fact, have observation posts all over this range. One right over there. So they can see exactly what's going on.
But Tony, as I say, this fighting continues, a very tough fire to fight.
HARRIS: Yes. Hey, Allan, any good news in the forecast?
CHERNOFF: Well, we do have rain forecast for this afternoon, thunderstorms, as a matter of fact. And rain is certainly going to be helpful. But the fire chief is saying that he's worried the wind also will pick up and the fire may spread before the rain actually does its job.
HARRIS: It's a complicated story. All right.
Allan Chernoff for us in Warren Grove, New Jersey.
Allan, thank you.
COLLINS: Little by little, firefighters slowly strangling a Florida wildfire. Hundreds of people are still out of their homes even this hour.
CNN's Rob Marciano is keeping track of the situation in Lake City. He joins us now live.
Good morning to you once again, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.
Some new figures now from the Forestry Service. They put out a recon plane last night, flew it around with infrared technology, and they were able to get a pretty accurate account of the acreage that has burned in this fire.
Now, the count is up to 119,500 acres. So, basically, 120,000 acres.
Still at only 50 percent containment, so there is some worry, although they say that last night was a successful night. And today, with the winds dying down, they hope to continue.
Good visibility. They've got the tankers in now for two days straight dropping retardant and also -- and water. Heavy helicopters have been doing the job on that, as well. Four hundred forestry firefighters on the scene, plus 200 just regular firefighters who are here to protect homes.
As you mentioned, there have been a number of evacuations. That number has increases since yesterday. Now up to 730 homes have been evacuated, and some of them are on the west side of this road, Highway 441, which is closed from I-10, north of the Georgia border.
Weather, as you know, always a huge concern. And that can either help you or hurt you.
So, the weather forecast is always very critical in this situation. And to get a good forecast, you need good data. And sometimes the only way to get that good weather data is to actually go into the fire.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MARCIANO (voice over): As firefighters battle fatigue through the smoke on the ground, a fire truck escort lets some evacuated residents make sure their homes are still there.
WINTON THOMAS, EVACUATED RESIDENT: Just check and make sure the sprinklers are still working, that it's wetting down everything.
MARCIANO: Just five miles from the fire, the Thomases nervously walk their property, making sure things stay wet as the blaze gets closer.
THOMAS: It's a little scary. You know, you worked all your life, and they evacuate you. It's possible you could lose everything.
MARCIANO: From the air you can see the wide scope of the fire. And on the ground, the scorched land is bone dry.
(on camera): It has been so dry in Florida, that this swamp has turned into a tinderbox. And firefighters know that just hoping for rain is not enough. An accurate fire weather forecast is key.
(voice over): Tony Edwards is a field meteorologist trained to forecast wildfires. He needs data on the front lines of the fire.
(on camera): What are you looking out?
TONY EDWARDS, NOAA METEOROLOGIST: Right now I'm looking at a readout of the current weather conditions this station's measuring. We've got air temperature of 81 degrees, relative humidity 42 percent.
MARCIANO (voice over): Temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction. Powered by the sun and connected via satellite, this weather station provides life-saving information as it happens.
EDWARDS: And when we have a thunderstorm out there, we send in a (INAUDIBLE). And we had crews, you know, two miles west of this station. If it picks up that wind gust, I can see it and I can warn the crews that, hey, you're getting some gusty winds coming, and they can pull off the line and get out of harm's way.
MARCIANO: Crucial information for both crews on the ground and evacuees. A weather forecast here can be the difference between life and death.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MARCIANO: Not a whole lot of rain in the forecast. Certainly none today. Low levels of relative humidity, light winds. But that low RH will lead to a red flag warning through this afternoon.
A cold front comes through tonight. Probably not a lot of rain with that, Heidi, but it will bring more wind as we get towards the weekend. So, they've really got to get a handle on this thing before the weekend, because we'll likely have big-time winds again fanning those flames.
Back to you.
COLLINS: Yes. Wow. And as you say, more evacuations.
I know you've been really busy with the weather behind all of this and learning more about how these fires move, Rob. But I wonder, have you had a chance to talk with any of the people? How are the spirits?
MARCIANO: Well, you know, they are worried. They're very anxious, obviously. And when you think about a fire coming to your house with all your life-long belongings in that house, some of these people have lived in that house their entire life.
So, they are certainly worried and they're doing what they can. They're allowed back in about once a day to make sure their sprinklers are on. And there is a good structure protection model. They've got fire engines almost -- well, they try to get them at every house. That's not possible, but hopefully they'll be able to save most of these homes.
This is unlike western wildfires, where they're in remote areas in the mountains. Even though this is a rural area of north Florida, people still live in the area around this forest. So, it is a populated area, and that's the main concern here.
COLLINS: Yes, definitely. I would imagine so.
All right. Rob Marciano, thanks so much, live from Lake City, Florida, today.
HARRIS: So, Heidi, let's get some clarification, some guidance on the weather story.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Look at these images. Maybe you've already seen them today.
COLLINS: (INAUDIBLE)
HARRIS: Isn't it?
COLLINS: Yes.
HARRIS: Just an incredible image. Did you see that? And the image comes with a lesson: Seek immediate shelter during a storm.
This home video shows two children running home and nearly getting hit by lightning. Watch again. There you go.
COLLINS: Can you hear that?
HARRIS: You can hear it. You can see it.
COLLINS: Just a huge crack.
HARRIS: Our Dallas affiliate, KTXA, provided us with that amazing picture.
COLLINS: Meanwhile, stepping out from the crowd. An Asian- American woman breaks with tradition, speaking out about depression and the need to ask for help. That story coming up live in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Actress, activist and daughter of a civil rights legend. Remembering Yolanda King with a longtime friend of the King family, Dr. Joseph Lowery. He'll join us right here in the NEWSROOM.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dana Bash on Capitol Hill, where the Senate is now voting on a Republican Iraq measure that represents a political milestone in the debate over the war.
I'll tell why coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: War and politics. The Senate focusing right now on challenges to President Bush's Iraq policy.
Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash following developments for us on Capitol Hill.
Dana, good morning to you.
What is happening right now?
BASH: Well, what you are seeing right now on the Senate floor could end up being noted in the history books as a political milestone. And here's why.
What the Senate is voting on is a Republican measure that essentially tells the president that the Congress wants him to at least inform Congress about what's going on in Iraq and, at the most, change strategy in Iraq. This is a measure by Republican Senator John Warner that we are told the Republican leader and much of the leadership are likely to vote for, that essentially says to the president -- or says to the Iraqis, here are a set of benchmarks you must meet, and tells the president that if the Iraqis don't meet those benchmarks, then the president is going to have to come to the Congress and say, here is how I am going to revise my strategy.
It also says that if Iraqis don't meet those benchmarks, that Congress will cut off about $3 billion in reconstruction aid. So this is really a significant moment, because we have certainly heard a lot of talk about this, a lot of talk of frustration among Republicans. But this is the first time that we are seeing not a Democratic measure, but a Republican measure to challenge the president's Iraq policy. That's what we're seeing now.
Now, it is not going to pass, Tony, because the Democratic leader, in very colorful terms, went to the Senate floor and said that it is way too weak. He called it a tepid cup of tea that's just been sitting on the counter for several weeks. He said that this is not strong enough, that it is time for the Congress to be more direct in just actually calling for troops to come home.
But in terms of the Republican conference, the fact that we are likely to see significant Republican votes for this, it is perhaps a telling moment in terms of the frustration among Republicans when it comes to the war -- Tony.
HARRIS: Yes. OK. And I know you are following it for us.
Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash for us this morning.
Dana, thank you.
BASH: Thank you.
HARRIS: And still to come this morning, buckle up or else. A seat belt safety campaign in the spotlight today. You still have time to strap in -- in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Click it or Ticket. The nationwide seat belt safety campaign getting a jump-start this morning. Federal officials joining local and state police urging drivers to buckle up or else.
Here are the facts.
Seat belt use is up to 81 percent nationally. Washington State is tops at just over 96 percent. Wyoming and New Hampshire lag behind though at 63.5 percent.
The ticket part of the crackdown runs from May 21st to June 3rd.
HARRIS: Mental illness, an unspeakable condition in many Asian cultures. On Asian and Pacific Heritage Day here at CNN, our "Uncovering America" series looks at one woman's effort to end the silence.
CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us live now to explain.
Good to see you, Elizabeth.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Good to see you, too.
You know, there is this stigma against mental illness in many parts of American society. A stigma against admitting someone has a problem, a stigma against getting help. But that stigma, many experts say, is especially strong in the Asian-American community, where it's embarrassing to ask for help, and not just embarrassing to the person who is doing the asking.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DUNG NGO, PSYCHOLOGIST: It's very embarrassing for the whole family. Whatever you do, it represents the family's name. (END VIDEO CLIP)
COHEN: Tonight I'll introduce to you one Vietnamese-American woman who has been to hell and back. She led a group of 20 people out of Vietnam through a perilous trip to the U.S., came to this country, became successful, then had to leave her home in New Orleans, she says, because of abuse, then suffered cancer and a heart attack.
HARRIS: What?
COHEN: And still, she was expected to be stoic and not ask for help. And now she's speaking out.
HARRIS: Are you kidding me? All right.
COHEN: I am not kidding you.
HARRIS: Well, these mental health issues, are they worst for Asian-American women than for Asian-American men?
COHEN: The statistics certainly seem to point to that. As a matter of fact, there is a very sobering statistic, which is young Asian-American woman have the highest suicide rates of any women across -- in that age range across any ethnic group. And it's not entirely clear why.
Some point to what they call the model minority syndrome, which is that Asian-Americans are expected to be perfect -- study hard, get a good job, and that women are expected to be especially perfect wives and mothers and workers and students. And so those statistics are especially bad for women.
HARRIS: Boy, can't wait to see the entire report.
Elizabeth, thanks for your time this morning. Appreciate it.
COHEN: Great. It's on "PAULA ZAHN NOW" tonight at 8:00.
HARRIS: I was about to tell everybody all about it.
You can catch Elizabeth Cohen's entire report tonight. Part of a special report, CNN's "PAULA ZAHN NOW" looks at the Asian-American identity crisis. That's tonight at 8:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
COLLINS: Door to door. U.S. forces fan out by the thousands trying to find three of their own. Now they've got an incentive for Iraqis -- a big reward.
We'll tell you about it in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Actress, activist and daughter of a civil rights legend. Remembering Yolanda King with a longtime friend of the King family. Dr. Joseph Lowery in the house, in the NEWSROOM next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And good morning again, everyone. Bottom of the hour. Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
COLLINS: And I'm Heidi Collins.
Want to get straight to these new developments this hour and the intense search for three missing U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
A military official tells CNN a $200,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the soldiers or their captors. New details also emerging about the scene of the ambush where the soldiers went missing.
The official says it indicates a well-planned attack, and there is evidence the soldiers fought back. The spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq says the focus is on finding the missing soldiers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAJ. GEN. WILLIAM CALDWELL, SPOKESMAN, MULTINATIONAL FORCE, IRAQ: I cannot promise you the results that we are all praying for, but I can promise you that we and our Iraqi counterparts are doing absolutely everything we can to find our soldiers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: The three missing soldiers and four that were killed in the ambush were all based at Fort Drum in New York.
HARRIS: Mortars, bombs and bloodshed mark another violent day in Iraq. Within the last hour, the U.S.-controlled Green Zone in Baghdad was hit by indirect fire for the second day in a row. A U.S. embassy spokesman says at least six people were wounded by what's believed to be a mortar attack. North of Baghdad officials say a car bomb exploded at an outdoor market last night killing 29 people. The Iraqi security forces are battling Medhi army fighters for a second day in the southern city of Nassariya (ph). Authorities say at least nine people have been killed and dozens wounded in the clashes.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: Crowded fields, Republican front runners hoping to be a standout. Those back in the pack trying to trip them up. CNN John King's has highlights from last night's debate.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was far more feisty and pointed than the first go around, the tone set by lesser known candidates looking to chip away at the front runners.
REP. TOM TANCREDO (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I trust those conversions when they happen on the road to Damascus and not on the road to Des Moines.
KING: Rudy Giuliani was a frequent target. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee mocked the former mayor's statement that he morally opposes abortion, yet supports a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy.
MIKE HUCKABEE, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If something is morally wrong, let's oppose it.
RUDY GIULIANI (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE:I think that we can respond to all that and discuss all that.
KING: But he didn't. Instead, Giuliani suggested Republicans should worry less about infighting and more about who is the strongest opponent for say, Senator Hillary Clinton.
GIULIANI: There is something I think really bigger at stake here.
KING: Another flash point came when former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney criticized John McCain's work with Senate liberals.
MITT ROMNEY (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My fear is McCain-Kennedy would do to immigration what McCain-Feingold has done for campaign finance and money and politics and that's bad.
KING: McCain was quick to return fire, suggesting Romney waffled on issues like abortion depending on whether he was courting a liberal electorate in Massachusetts or the conservatives who settle GOP presidential fights.
McCAIN: I have kept a consistent position on right to life. I haven't changed my position on even-numbered years or changed because of the different offices that I may be running for.
KING: There was little new on Iraq.
McCAIN: We cannot fail and I will be the last man standing, if necessary.
KING: What was new was more humor.
HUCKABEE: We had a Congress that spent money like John Edwards at a beauty shop.
KING: And anger.
RON PAUL (L) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Listen to the people who attacked us in and the reason they did it.
KING: Libertarian Ron Paul suggested 9/11 would not have happened if the United States had not fought the first Persian Gulf war. An indignant Giuliani interrupted.
GIULIANI: That is an extraordinary statement as someone who lived through the attack of September 11, I don't think I've ever heard that before. And I've heard some pretty absurd explanations for September 11.
KING: That moment part of a deliberate Giuliani effort to appear much more sure-footed after a first debate performance that was reviewed as stumbling, especially on the abortion question. Overall, after that first debate, we heard terms like cautious and subdued. After round two, much more energy and excitement. John King, CNN, Columbia, South Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: The family of Martin Luther King Jr. once again dealing with loss. The eldest child of the civil rights legend died last night at the age of 51. Yolanda King championed the family's cause and worked as an author, actress and producer. Our next guest has known her since she was just a mere child, just a baby. The Reverend Joseph Lowery was a close friend of the King family and himself a leading figure in the civil rights movement and that's a bit of an understatement. Doc, great to see you.
REV. JOSEPH LOWERY, KING FAMILY FRIEND: Good to see you.
HARRIS: Thanks for coming in.
LOWERY: Good to be with you.
HARRIS: How did you find out? How did you learn the news this morning?
LOWERY: Somebody about 4:30 or 4:45 had called. The phone has been ringing ever since. If I fall asleep --
HARRIS: I got you.
LOWERY: Very sad. Just a little more than a year since their mother passed and now one of the siblings who were four and now three, very sad. Yolanda was born in the midst of the crisis in Montgomery. She was about 12 years old when her father passed.
HARRIS: Just a baby when the house was --
LOWERY: A baby. She was strong in spirit and she embraced the movement in principle and in activism, although she chose her own channel. She was in the arts. She was an actress, producer and she chose that vehicle for transmitting a message which she adopted as her own about justice and truth and brotherhood and peace. And so she was a crusader for justice in the tradition of her family, but in her own context.
HARRIS: We are going to show everyone a picture of the kids with Dr. King from back in the day. I'm curious since you knew her for so long.
LOWERY: All her life.
HARRIS: All her life. What kind of a child was she?
LOWERY: Well, she was --
HARRIS; There we go with Coretta.
LOWERY: There she is. There's daddy. HARRIS: There's the picture. There she is.
LOWERY: There she is. I can't see (INAUDIBLE) Which picture are we looking at?
HARRIS: That one right there.
LOWERY: Martin's at the microphone. Where is Yolanda?
HARRIS: We are going to show that picture once again. You can tell me as we do, what do you remember of her as a child?
LOWERY: She was a loving child. She was the oldest, of course. As siblings have, somebody takes charge. Yolanda being older, she didn't hesitate to take charge. Martin resented it probably more than any of the others. She was a charming person. I called her princess because the daughter of kings is called a princess. She wore that medal with dignity, with charm and was an activist in her own way.
HARRIS: Talking about that, I wonder sometimes for the King children how difficult it has been for them to lead their own individual lives and to make their own individual statements about their lives and their work. And how much of a shadow was cast by the legacy of their father?
LOWERY: Nobody can describe their experience but them because it's just difficult to imagine. No family in our community has ever been under the spotlight, under focus, a universal focus as the King children and they lived in the spotlight. Everything they did in their little sibling differences even today, which I have one sister. We've not always agreed, but it wasn't under the light. As she's grown in grace, she's grown to agree with me more. Nobody understood, too many people didn't understand the fact that their differences of opinion were normal as the average family. It was just that they were under focus. They were in the news in the media.
HARRIS: Did you know she was in, I don't know if we can describe it as poor health?
LOWERY: No. I was shocked by that. Just a few months ago, she invited me along with the American Heart Association to appear at a media event with her in Los Angeles. I had to call her and beg out because I had a conflict in schedule. Even then she did not mention that she had any problems with her health. I just thought she was being a good citizen and helping the American Heart Association and helping all of us form better habits and our diet and exercise.
HARRIS: 51 years old.
LOWERY: There was heart trouble in her family though. She lost a cousin or two because of heart trouble. But she never complained. I never knew about it. But she died young. The whole world needs to pray for these children that they'll find their strength as I'm sure they will.
HARRIS: Thank you. I just wanted to bring you in today and have you share your memories.
LOWERY: Thank you. It's a sad day, but I'm confident that as they have in the past, their faith will see them through.
HARRIS: Great to see you as always.
LOWERY: Good to see you, too.
HARRIS: You owe me lunch, by the way. Thank you, doc.
LOWERY: Send in those contributions.
HARRIS: As always.
LOWERY: Post Office Box 115.
HARRIS: Thank you, Dr. Lowery.
LOWERY: That never gets on the air.
HARRIS: Oh, stop. Heidi.
COLLINS: Want to go ahead and quickly bring you the information coming to us about the Senate votes going on now. We at least have some results from them. We are talking about the Iraq funding bill. The first is the Democratic Feingold-Readman. That has failed. That was the one if you remember that would transition the mission away from combat and then also cut off most of the funds for U.S. forces in Iraq. We are also just learning now the second vote has also failed. This is the John Warner amendment which would require the president to issue two reports between now and September on whether the Iraqi government is actually making progress and meeting those benchmarks that we keep hearing about. It did get the majority 52-44.
However, as you may recall, all of these amendments do require 60 votes in order to pass and then be attached onto the final bill. Again, that second vote, the John Warner amendment also has failed. The third amendment, however, if you can hear a little bit, is being voted on right now. This is Thad Cochran's from Mississippi, is expected to pass. In fact, the only one we expect to pass. Just as a reminder there, it's a sense of the Senate where the Congress is saying that the Congress should quickly pass a funding bill for the troops. There's also a fourth amendment that was offered by Carl Levin, Harry Reid. That was actually with drawn. So that is an update on all of these amendments to the Iraq war funding bill. There you have it. We'll continue to follow those for the third amendment there, should have a result on that pretty soon.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange and it's an essential feature in many kitchens, but a certain dish washer could cause a fire. When NEWSROOM returns, I'll have details about a major recall. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Lots of weather to talk about today. We've got the fires and then we've got this other video that we've been showing you, that crazy lightning strike where those children came so close to actually being hit. Chad Myers is joining us now. Here is the video again, some amateur video that was sent to CNN. Chad, you are telling us now, not a lightning strike.
HARRIS: When is a lightning strike not a lightning strike?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, this what you see is called the positive streamer. A lightning bolt does not start from the sky and hit the ground. In fact, it goes both ways. It starts from the ground and goes up and then another piece which is called the step leader starts from the cloud and goes down. This was one positive streamer that didn't get struck by the lightning bolt. Here is a positive streamer. This is a NOAA picture. There is a positive streamer that didn't get hit. Here's a positive streamer that didn't get hit, but you can't see the one here that did get hit. Now if that streamer would have come in contact with the leader stroke coming down from the cloud, the outcome of that picture would be completely different. I don't even want to go into what that would have looked like because all they saw was probably maybe 100 volts. This could be 40,000 volts as these two things get together. They were near one of these streamers, not right here. But you could still hear the lightning. It wasn't far away. That lightning bolt did hit, but it wasn't right where they were.
COLLINS: So say that one more time Chad. You can't get hurt by this unless --
MYERS: You sure could have gotten hurt by it, sure. The lightning strike did not strike that streamer. It found another thing to hit, probably a taller object, one of the trees or a house or a chimney, something closer to or farther away. You could still see the lightning flash and hit somewhere. Let's pretend that this was the same picture. These kids would have been running by this or run by this one. They did not run where the one that was actually connected to the ground or -- I've been really close to one as well chasing lightning and you would have known. It would have knocked those kids down for sure or it's going to probably something even worse.
COLLINS: Still lucky, all right, Chad Myers, thank you.
MYERS: You're welcome.
HARRIS: I'm grabbing something off the printer right now. We are just getting word from the British media that Prince Harry -- it's been a bit of an open debate as to whether or not he would actually go to Iraq and serve with his unit. According to the BBC I believe it is, yeah the BBC, Prince Harry will not be sent to Iraq. It is certainly a story that the folks at "Your World Today" will be talking about and covering as they have in great detail for weeks now. We'll take up at the top of the hour. Let's get there now for a preview. Jim Clancy is standing by. Jim, good morning.
JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you Tony and to Heidi there. Of course, we're going to be following that with Prince Harry. That is an ongoing discussion whether or not he is going to go, what it means not only for him, but for the men in the unit. Also we're going to take you to Gaza where the so-called Palestinian unity government is literally melting down under the weight of street battles and gun fire. As the death toll and toll of wounded keeps rising, we are going to hear, we'll here live from civilians that are caught in the crossfire this hour.
Also in the U.S., we take a look at a community of immigrants trying to preserve their religion, trying to preserve their customs, getting targeted for hate crimes. Brooke Anderson will explain how ignorance is the guiding force and fodder for a new film. Plus, what does it really take to stop school bullies? South Korea takes an approach few are going to be willing to follow. It's like having a big brother, a really big brother. We'll explain. All of that and more coming up at the top of the hour. Join Hala Gorani and me for "Your World Today", see you then.
COLLINS: All right Jim, we'll do that. Thank you.
A fire hazard in your kitchen? A major appliance maker is issuing a huge dishwasher recall. Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange will tell us which brands are affected.
LISOVICZ: We know our dishwashers are life savers. They are an essential part of the kitchen, but in this case, they could be very hazardous to your health. General Electric recalling about 2 1/2 million dishwashers. The problem, GE says dish washing liquid can leak from its dispenser onto the appliance's wiring and that can cause to it overheat and even catch fire. The company has received nearly 200 complaints of overheating which includes nearly 12 fires caused by the dishwasher. So far, fortunately, no word of any injuries. The recall covers dishwashers sold under the GE, GE profile and GE monogram brands, as well as (INAUDIBLE) Hotpoint and Sears Kenmore from December '97 through December of '01. GE says it will repair the recalled units for free or provide up to $300 in rebates for dishwashers made by GE of course. Heidi.
COLLINS: The question is probably for those that might have to give back their dishwasher, how long until they can get another one?
LISOVICZ: Exactly. Back to hand washing, back to old school.
COLLINS: Susan, Dell also seems to be in a little bit of hot water, as well.
LISOVICZ: Yep. New York Attorney General Heidi, Andrew Cuomo is suing Dell accusing it of deceptive sales practices. The lawsuit, which was filed yesterday, says Dell misleads customers by promising attractive financing only to leave them with expensive credit lines. The suit also accuses Dell of denying customers promised rebates and failing to honor warranties and service contracts. A Dell spokesman tells CNN that customers remain the company's top priority and it will vigorously defend itself in court. Dell said its practices are fair and appropriate. And Dell by the way, Dell shares are doing real nice today. They're up 3 percent and the markets are hanging in there off the highs for the session. In fact, we even saw the Dow dip. News is that prominent investors have taken big stakes in some companies helping sentiment and the sentiment is still OK. Checking the numbers of the Dow right now, up 28 points at 13,411. The Nasdaq Composite is up nearly two points. That's the latest from Wall Street. Heidi and Tony, back to you.
COLLINS: Almost 13,500 there Susan.
LISOVICZ: We're watching it.
COLLINS: Thank you very much. Meanwhile, also looking at this, angry commuters fed up and taking matters into their own hands or should that be fists? Train riot. Don't do this. In the NEWSROOM
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: And once again just into CNN just a short time ago. We learned from British media that Britain's Prince Harry will not be deployed to Iraq. Prince Harry, as you know, is a second lieutenant and is a tank commander trained to lead a 12-man team in four armored reconnaissance vehicles. What the decision means for the rest of his unit is unclear at this time. But once again, British media reporting that Britain's Prince Harry will not be sent to Iraq. Much more on this at the top of the hour with "Your World Today."
COLLINS: Well, they're mad and they're not going to take it anymore. Train riders riot because of bad service. CNN's Sara (INAUDIBLE) reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNKNOWN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A scene not typically associated with delays in public transport. In Argentina, furious commuters have had just about enough of their trains running late. We ride here and there's always a problem. We are just workers trying to get to work.
Repeated delays in the capital of Buenos Aires brought blind fury at (INAUDIBLE) at the height of Tuesday evening rush hour. Enraged commuters set fires and looted nearby shops. Pay phones became projectiles (INAUDIBLE) running amok. Police using rubber bullets and tear gas to keep rioters at bay. (INAUDIBLE) One train broke down blocking others from leaving the station. This train handles one of the largest (INAUDIBLE) in one of the poorest areas. It's long been the target of criticism for failing to provide enough trains to Buenos Aires' sprawling poorer suburbs. Some 300,000 commuters make the journey every day. With train service canceled after the riot, they face a long ride or walk to get home. (INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Still to come, the hunt for three missing soldiers in Iraq. The military steps up the massive search. Back home families wait in hope. Details in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: I want to show you this quickly before we hand things off to "Your World Today." We know they'll be following the story, but this is a live shot coming into us here. A group of journalists from various media outlets are apparently trapped inside a building in Gaza. You can clearly hear gunfire outside, see all of them on the phone trying to figure out what to do next. Just wanted to let you know that this is happening, again as we say, "Your World Today" will be coming up next and following it in greater detail. You might want to stick around for that.
HARRIS: CNN NEWSROOM continues in one hour's time. I'm Tony Harris.
COLLINS: And I'm Heidi Collins. Have a good day everybody.
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