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American Morning
Deadly Earthquake; Terror Watch; Dow Near 14K; Crash Update; Twin Bombings; War Over The War
Aired July 16, 2007 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news. A deadly earthquake rocks Japan overnight. Hundreds of people hurt, homes collapsed, and a fire at the world's largest nuclear plant. New pictures coming in along with the after shocks on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And good morning to you. Thanks very much for joining us. We begin another week. It's Monday, July the 16th. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kiran Chetry.
And we turn right to our breaking news now. Out of Japan this morning, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake shakes northwestern Japan. Right now we've been able to confirm that at least five people are dead and hundreds of others reported hurt. This quake happened just off Japan's coast, about 10 miles below sea level. The shaking was felt all the way to Tokyo, about 150 miles away. And we have dramatic pictures, as you're seeing here, of buckled roads, collapsed buildings. Reuters reporter Dan Sloan joins us on the phone live from Tokyo this morning.
Dan, thanks for being with us.
DAN SLOAN, REUTERS: Yes, good morning, Kiran.
CHETRY: Are they in the phase right now where they're able to actually start kicking through the rubble to see if there are any other survivors?
SLOAN: Well, they did. The quake hit at about 10:13 this morning. There have been a number of after shocks subsequently.
Some of the fatalities that you have mentioned were people who were in homes that have collapsed. There is a potential, obviously, as they start to looking through some of the damage, that more are found. As it stands right now, about 500 are injured or hospitalized and that number is expected to rise.
A number of people have been evacuated and put in shelters. The area is expecting rain and, consequently, they're trying to get people out of endangered areas as quickly as possible.
The government has set up an emergency response team. The prime minister has already been to the site. This is a period where, you know, essentially, they're trying to get as many people out of harm's way as possible if indeed the weather turns for the worse.
CHETRY: What are the estimates right now about the number of dead? How much higher they expect the number to climb?
SLOAN: Well, again, it is only the first day. But, you know, for the most part, they have had good weather in which to start to search for dead or injured. The number is five. It has grown as the day has gone on. Some of those hospitalized, obviously, could be also added to the toll.
But relatively speaking, Japan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world. The area where the quake struck, Niigata (INAUDIBLE), on the Sea of Japan side, is actually no stranger to deadly earthquakes. About three years ago, there was a quake in which 65 people were killed and more than 3,000 injured.
So, relatively speaking, the numbers so far are not that awful relative to some of the history that we have seen in this country. Part of that is based on the country itself trying to mobilize, get out as quickly as they can in response. And certainly, in the early stages after this earthquake, there was a tsunami warning to try to get people away. There was slightly higher waves recorded, but nothing on the scale of what we've seen in the past.
CHETRY: Right. Dan Sloan, thank you, on the phone for us from Tokyo. And we will note right now, they did have a tsunami warning. They lifted it, the tsunami warning, about an hour later.
ROBERTS: Developments overnight in the war on terror. The Taliban is, once again, taking over the government of Pakistan and terror analysts are looking over the first tape of Osama bin Laden in a year. We're watching the worldwide terror threat with Nic Robertson. He's in London. And Kelli Arena in Washington. We begin with Nic.
Troubling news from Pakistan and its border with Afghanistan believed to be a hideout for al Qaeda.
Nic, what's going on there in terms of this deal that the Pakistani government had struck with the Taliban and just how much of a threat could this pose to the Musharraf government?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Taliban spokesman in that border area says the deal with the Pakistani government is off. That was a deal that the Pakistani army would go to barracks, the Taliban wouldn't attack them. It was a deal struck last September. It actually led to increase in attacks on U.S. troops across the border.
Over the weekend, in that border region, several attacks on the Pakistani military and on the Pakistani police. Suicide bomb attacks in three different places. Almost 70 people dead. And the implication for President Musharraf at this time is that it could expand to Pakistani cities and that would be a huge problem for him.
John.
ROBERTS: Nic, would this give the Pakistani president license to, again, go back into those tribal areas with Pakistani troops. Part of that reason why he cut that deal back last September was because he was taking some pretty heavy losses.
ROBERTSON: And it looks like he's going to continue to take those losses at the moment. That's what the Taliban are saying. The troops are in those border areas. They are at posts on the borders.
The deal last time was to keep the troops in their barracks or at their specific border posts so that they wouldn't get into the communities. Now, those re-supplied convoys, re-supplied those border points and the military bases and now open for attack by the Taliban I seems. One of the attacks on Sunday, a suicide bomber going into a police recruitment center, killing 26 people there. So, yes, it does seem that they can now be attacked again in that border area because those troops are still there.
John.
ROBERTS: Important new developments along the border area with Pakistan.
Nic Robertson for us in London.
Thanks, Nic. We'll get back to you a little bit later on.
The breakdown of peace in Pakistan is being watched very closely in Washington. Intelligence officials believe that the haven on the Pakistan/Afghanistan border could be a staging ground for terror attacks. CNN's Kelli Arena is live in Washington.
And, Kelli, do U.S. officials see this as a troubling development or a potential opportunity? They were never happy with the truce to begin with.
KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, they're very concerned. Intelligence officials say, obviously, that al Qaeda has been able, first of all, to reconstitute itself in that safe haven. And many predict that if the U.S. is hit again by that terror organization, that an attack will probably be traced back to Pakistan. Either operatives will have trained in camps there, or the attack will have been plotted there, John.
But, of course, what Nic said, though, is very important as well. There is a concern that if this spreads beyond those tribal areas, that that would put all of Pakistan in a state of chaos. And, as you know, Pakistan has been considered an ally in the war on terror.
And this is a country that has nuclear weapons, John. And so, you know, it's sort of, OK, well, what do we want more? Do we want, you know, do we want them to be aggressive in those tribal areas or do we want to maintain peace overall? Tricky questions.
ROBERTS: Kelli, what can we expect to come out in this NIE, at least the declassified part of it that we're expecting perhaps as early as tomorrow?
ARENA: Right. Well, my latest guidance is that it will be released tomorrow, John. It's expected, first of all, to discuss the fact that al Qaeda has reconstituted itself and that it is nearly capable to pull off and attack against the United States. It's expected to discuss the safe haven that al Qaeda has along that Pakistan/Afghan border, the concerns that it's raised. It's expected to say that al Qaeda has increased its efforts to get more operatives inside the United States, to talk about an increased concern about extremist whose may already be here. And it will mention al Qaeda's continuing effort to get its hands on biological, chemical and nuclear weapons.
John.
ROBERTS: All right. Kelli Arena for us in Washington.
Kelli, thanks.
ARENA: You're welcome.
CHETRY: And some other headlines this morning.
New pictures coming in from Kirkuk in northern Iraq. It was the site of a deadly attack. Apparently a truck bomb and car bomb went off simultaneously. There are initial reports say at least 25 people were killed. Others say that number could be much higher. We'll bring you an update with a live report in just a couple of minutes.
Also, U.N. inspectors announced overnight confirmation that North Korea's nuclear reactor is shut down and that a shipment of oil left South Korea today headed for the north. North Korea will eventually get 1 million tons of oil. It's in exchange for agreeing to dismantle its nuclear program.
President Bush turning his attention to the Mid East today. He'll announce plans to send millions of dollars to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The White House is trying to shore up support for Abbas. Right now his moderate government is under fire from Hamas which violently took control of the Gaza Strip last month.
ROBERTS: The catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles and lawyers for hundreds of sex abuse victims go to court today, finalizing a landmark $660 million settlement. Cardinal Roger Mahony would have been one of the first called to testify at the trial. That was to start today. Now he's apologizing to 508 people who say predatory priests abused them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARDINAL ROGER MAHONY, L.A. CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE: Once again, I apologize to anyone who's been offended, who has been abused in the catholic church by priests, by deacons, religious men and women or lay people in the church. It should not have happened and should not ever happen again.
STEVE SANCHEZ, PRIEST ABUSE VICTIM: Just because you have a settlement and give the abuse victims, including myself, some compensation, it doesn't erase the emotional scars and damage what's happened to all of us. Whether you give me a check for $10 or $10,000, where can I take that check and cash it at some place to make me 10 years old again?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The $660 million settlement is four times bigger than the one negotiated for the Boston archdiocese. But is this case really over? We'll talk with an attorney for hundreds of victims coming up in our next hour here.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Some other stories this morning that our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents are working on.
The Dow closing in on 14,000. Ali Velshi has his eye on the market today.
Hi, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran.
I don't know whether I should order the 14,000 cap to wear or I should just go straight to 15,000. The Dow surging again on Friday to a new, all-time record close. The same with the S&P 500. take a look at these numbers. The Nasdaq at a six and a half year high. The Dow 2.17 percent higher last week. That's a 200, and almost a 300 point gain last week alone.
What are we going to look for this week? We've got strong earnings reports coming out. We're going to have some of America's biggest companies announcing earnings. We'll have an inflation report. Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, will testify before Congress about his views on the economy.
And right now we have a new record trading in London right now for the Brent crude oil. Now that's not the oil that we trade here in New York, but it says something about world demand for oil. It's trading above $78.56 for the first time in a year. That's the highest price that Brent crude has ever traded at. So unclear as to what today and this week brings for investors, but we are at record highs and will continue to track all of that for you and our viewers.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Ali, thank you.
A focus of text messages sent right before an SUV filled with cheerleaders crashed head-on into a semi truck in upstate New York. It's a story that we've followed very closely here on AMERICAN MORNING. Alina Cho has the very latest now on these new developments.
Hi, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Kiran.
We all know how dangerous it is to text message while we're driving. Now we are learning that Bailey Goodman, the young woman at the wheel, may have been texting on her cell phone just moments before the crash. Now the accident late last month killed Goodman and her four friends. Four of the girls were cheerleaders.
And the crash, you'll recall, happened just five days after graduation. The SUV they were in swerved and hit a tractor-trailer head-on. Now police say as Bailey Goodman was driving, her cell phone sent and received a text message just 38 seconds before the first call came in to 911 reporting the accident.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The records indicate her phone was in use. We will never be able to, you know, clearly state that she was the one that was doing any text messages.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: There is a reason for that, because there were no survivors. Investigators will never know if Bailey was actually doing the text messaging. What they do say is that she was breaking the law by driving at night on a junior permit. Now if Bailey had been text messaging at the time of the crash, it would have been illegal under a broader measure banning cell phone use in New York state.
Now several states are considering measures to ban text messaging, but only one state, Washington, bans it outright. And, Kiran, as you know well, this will only become a bigger problem as more people text message. It is wildly popular. A study just out today says nearly 94 billion text messages were sent in 2006 compared with 48 billion in 2005.
Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Alina Cho, thanks so much.
And now to Chad Myers. He's tracking severe weather in the western plains for us on this Monday morning.
Hi, Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: They are 1-2 in the polls and in fund raising. Your "Quick Hits" now. Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton each have more than $30 million in cash on hand for the presidential primary season. Obama reports a $34 million, Clinton, $33 million.
And both candidates are cashing checks from actor Paul Newman. He has donated to the campaigns of Clinton, Obama and Bill Richardson. As for Republican notables, turns out that Paulie Walnuts like Rudy Giuliani. "The Sopranos" actor, Tony Sirico in real life, recently gave Giuliani $1,000 for his presidential bid.
The Senate goes back to its war debate today while two senators went at it on Sunday. If you missed it, here's a look. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democrat Jim Webb on "Meet the Press." (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, (R) : The soldiers . . .
SEN. JIM WEBB, (D) : Less than half of the military believes that we shouldn't have gone to Iraq in the first place.
GRAHAM: Have you been to Iraq? Have you ever been to (INAUDIBLE)? I've been there seven times.
WEBB: You know, have you ever been to these -- I've covered two wars as a correspondent.
GRAHAM: Have you been to Iraq?
WEBB: I have been to Afghanistan as a journalist.
GRAHAM: Have you been to Iraq and -- have you been to Iraq and talked to the soldiers?
WEBB: You know, you haven't been Iraq, Lindsey . . .
GRAHAM: Have you ever been to Iraq? I've been there seven times
WEBB: You know, you go see the dog and pony shows. That's what congressman do.
GRAHAM: I've been there as a reservist. I have . . .
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Well, there you go. The question now, is compromise anywhere in the cards? A closer look ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Sixteen minutes after the hour.
Overnight, a pair of bombs went off in Kirkuk in northern Iraq. First, a truck bomb exploded and then a car bomb blew. Kirkuk is about 150 miles north of Baghdad. Our Frederik Pleitgen is live in Baghdad now with the very latest.
Fred, this sound like the typical type of attack, a one-two. You use the truck to punch a hole through a hardened area, get the car inside and blow up the people inside. Is that what happened here?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly, it was a very devastating attack, John. We've just talked to our sources up in Kirkuk and they are now confirming that at least 65 people have been killed in that attack and well over 100 have been wounded.
Now it doesn't look like one of those typical 1-2 punch attacks, although both attacks were literally within minutes of each other. First of all, the truck apparently exploded on that very, very busy market. It was about noon in Baghdad when this happened and that, of course, is a time when these markets are just extremely busy. And only a couple of minutes later, the car bomb exploded a couple of streets away in a very, very busy sort of shopping street with a lot of shops and also with a lot of people around. So, clearly, this attack was definitely aimed at causing as much carnage as possible.
And certainly those are also the eye-witness reports that we are getting from that area. They speak of massive carnage. A lot of dead people on the streets there right now. They speak of a bus that was literally destroyed and caught on fire with people inside. So really a devastating bombing that went on in this area.
And certainly this is a step up in bombings of this kind that we are seeing at this time in Iraq. We saw only two weeks ago a massive bombing, also pretty far north of Baghdad, and that's something new that's happening as insurgents are targeting sort of areas way outside of Baghdad, further north. And this is one of those regions. Kirkuk is one of those regions, but we're certainly seeing an increase in violence.
ROBERTS: All right. Frederik Pleitgen for us this morning with an update from Baghdad.
Thanks, Frederik. We'll get back to you a little bit later on.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, we just showed some of the fireworks over the war in Iraq between Senators Jim Webb and Lindsey Graham. Here's the rest of that squabble. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WEBB: That's the one thing I really take objection to is politicians . . .
GRAHAM: The soldiers are speaking, my friend. Let them win.
WEBB: At the politics who -- may I speak?
GRAHAM: Let them win. They want to win. Let them win.
WEBB: Is politicians who try to put their political views into the mouths of soldiers. You can look at poll after poll and the political views of the United States military are no different than the country at large. Take a look at "The New York Times" today.
GRAHAM: The soldiers . . .
WEBB: Less than half of the military believes that we should . . .
GRAHAM: Have you been to Iraq?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, today, the Senate debate begins again. At least four competing plans in the work. Joining me now to sort it all out, CNN political analyst and Slate.com's chief political correspondent John Dickerson.
Wow, some fireworks over the weekend. A lot of heated feelings on both sides of this issue. But are they making any headway and actually getting a plan that could pass the Senate?
JOHN DICKERSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: No. Whatever -- the Senate is going to pass this, the president -- if anything passes, the president will veto it. The problem for Democrats is that the president's not moving, not bulging at all. But there is a little bit of movement on the Republican side, which is what would need to happen to force the president's hand. With this Lugar-Warner bill, there might be a little movement to get a bipartisan consensus.
CHETRY: So these are two of the most respected members of the Senate. Both of them Republicans, high-ranking Republicans. And what that plan would do is at least set a date, I believe it's October, where there would be a plan in place to get troops out of the combat zone. It has far less teeth than what the Democrats want.
DICKERSON: That's right.
CHETRY: But it actually is still a real disagreement with the president.
DICKERSON: That's right. If you're a liberal activist, this is not enough. It's not forcing the president's hand. It's not using money to stop the war.
But you have two respected Republicans basically saying they don't believe the president about the progress. And also it's extraordinary to hear Senator Lugar say that the president's trying to link al Qaeda in Iraq with the people who did the bombing on September 11th was a gross generalization. This goes to the heart of the administration's argument. So they're attacking the underlying case the administration is making, which is why it's damaging.
CHETRY: And what will that translate into in terms of any progress in the Senate when it comes to setting a withdrawal deadline sooner than September?
DICKERSON: There won't be any change in terms of what's happening right now. Nobody's going to -- the president's hand is not going to be forced. But the wave is building. It's more Republican defection. It means by September, the Republicans may be more in line with the Democrats than they are right now.
CHETRY: Well, we have some fund raising numbers out and it looks like many of these candidates that are bringing in millions. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton raising $28 million. We have Senator Barack Obama, $32 million. And on and on. But it seems like they're spending money just as quickly and we're not even into the election year.
DICKERSON: They're burning it fast for a couple of reasons. One, the calendar has moved up. Candidates have to compete in January not just for the caucuses in Iowa and the primary in New Hampshire, but for these other big primaries that are coming up in other, bigger states. Also spend a lot of money on planes to fly themselves around the country and pollsters and on the money it takes to raise money. And so it's -- because it's all started earlier, the burning of the money happens faster.
CHETRY: John Dickerson. We'll check in with you a little bit later throughout the show as well. Thank you.
DICKERSON: Thanks.
ROBERTS: You've heard from the senators, now it's time to hear from you. The first ever CNN/YouTube debate is just a week away and we've been collecting your questions for the candidates. There's still time to submit one online at YouTube.com/debates. Tell us what you think is the most important issue for the upcoming presidential election. We sent our AMERICAN MORNING interns, Kyra Person (ph) and Kelly Coopmans (ph), to get some opinions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As a parent of three children, thinking about higher education for them. I'd like to be able to afford that. So I'd like to see some way where higher education becomes more affordable for middle income family.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, right now I'd have to say it's the war in Iraq. I have family members there. And I'm a little concerned that they're just wasting their time and they're being put there or stationed there and nothing's happening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Join us tonight in primetime, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
CHETRY: Yes, we're going to be looking at the questions submitted on YouTube for the debate so far. We're also going to ask, what makes a good question. And we'll examine how YouTube is changing American politics. The debate countdown tonight, 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll see you then tonight.
But stick around for the rest of the show as well.
CHETRY: Because we will.
Well, a country singer shot dead on stage. Your "Quick Hits" now. Thirty-six-year-old David Munis is being sought, suspected of fatally shooting his estranged wife this weekend. She sang at a restaurant and bar in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Police say the shot that killed Robin Munis came from outside of the bar. They say the couple had recently separated and he may have been harassing here.
And a bridge to history in Washington state. The new Tacoma Narrows Bridge is open to traffic this morning after a big debut this weekend. Measuring 5400 feet, it is the longest suspension bridge in the U.S. built in more than 40 years.
A tiger goes on the attack at a Texas zoo. And one woman, unknowingly, records the panic that followed. We're going to show you her tape and talk about what happened coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Welcome back to the most news of the morning here on CNN. It's 27 after the hour.
And "On Our Radar," new video capturing panic at the San Antonio Zoo after a tiger attacked and nearly killed one of its keepers. Take a look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What happened?
A tiger?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Somebody got attacked by a tiger.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, you're lying.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is it in there? Is he in there? Don't go over there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, that was the terrify scene just minutes after the Sumatran tiger, similar to the one you saw there, pounced on the 28- year-old zookeeper. There you see him being carried away. He was critically hurt. His condition upgraded overnight to stable. But in just a couple of minutes, we're going to talk to the woman who recorded that chilling video. She didn't even realize her camera was still on. We're going to talk to her. She was there at the zoo with her young daughter. In our 7:00 hour.
We're also following breaking news in Japan, Pakistan, Iraq. A lot is going on here on AMERICAN MORNING. We're coming right back.
ROBERTS: All right.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Lady Liberty helping you greet the day this morning. Seventy degrees outside right now in New York City. It's going to be a really nice one here today -- 82 degrees, partly cloudy skies. It will be a nice day to get out and about in the town.
CHETRY: Really? ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: I was just about to say the opposite. It's going to be so sticky today, almost 70 percent humidity. But that's all right. You're looking at the bright side.
ROBERTS: I lived in Miami for a while, so I'm used to it.
CHETRY: Anything feels dry after that, right?
ROBERTS: Exactly, yes.
Welcome back. It's Monday, July the 16gh.
I'm John Roberts.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry. Glad you're with us this morning.
(NEWSBREAK)
ROBERTS: A major story developing this morning on the Pakistan- Afghan border. A cease-fire between Taliban rebels and the Pakistani government is dead. Now there is concern that al Qaeda could tighten its grip in Pakistan, one of America's most critical allies in the war on terror.
CNN's Nic Robertson broke the threat down for us just a short time ago here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Taliban spokesman in that border area says the deal with the Pakistani government is off. That was a deal that the Pakistani army would go to barracks, the Taliban wouldn't attack them. It was a deal struck last September. It actually led to an increase of attacks on U.S. troops across the border.
Over the weekend, in that border region, several attacks on the Pakistani military and on the Pakistani police. Suicide bombing attacks in three different places, almost 70 people dead. And the implication for President Musharraf at this time is that it could expand to Pakistani cities, and that would be a huge problem for him -- John.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: We're going to take a closer look at the growing security concerns in Pakistan coming up in our next half hour here on AMERICAN MORNING.
How concerned is the government about a new attack here on American soil? As Kelli Arena reported a few minutes ago, a new national intelligence estimate comes out tomorrow.
Clark Kent Ervin is a former inspector general at the Department of Homeland Security. He is currently the director of the Homeland Security Program at the Aspen Institute and he joins us now from our Washington bureau.
Clark, the first thing I wanted to ask you about was this bin Laden tape that came out over the weekend.
Is there anything in that to be concerned about?
CLARK KENT ERVIN, FMR. DHS INSPECTOR GENERAL: Well, the very fact that there is a bin Laden tape is itself a matter of concern, John. We haven't heard from bin Laden himself in over a year.
There's been tape after tape from his number two. As recently as last week, there were two of them. But this is the first time we heard from bin Laden himself. Against the backdrop of everything else that's going on, this is a cause for concern.
ROBERTS: Right. I mean, this is an old tape, we don't know how old it is, but could it be seen as some sort of signal, or do you think that he's just -- or his organization, because we don't even know if he's still alive -- is just out there waving the flag?
ERVIN: It certainly could be a signal. Again, if this were a matter in isolation, that would be one thing, but coming against the backdrop of tape after tape from Zawahiri, coming against the backdrop of this national intelligence estimate that says that al Qaeda has reconstituted itself along the Pakistan-Afghan border and is poised to strike the West in general and the United States in particular again, it suggests, as Secretary Chertoff said last week, that we are at increased risk.
ROBERTS: Clark, how vulnerable is the United States? We'd like to think that in the past six years we have made a lot of progress. Have we?
ERVIN: Well, that's the problem, John. On the one hand, we've got and increased risk of attack, and on the other hand, as you say, we've had nearly six years to prepare ourselves. And we really haven't.
We're still vulnerable in the air. We're not inspecting air cargo. We're still vulnerable at sea. We're only inspecting about six percent of incoming sea cargo containers.
Just last week, congressional investigators were able to set up a fake company which would have allowed them to import radioactive materials into the United States. Terrorists could have done that. So we're vulnerable, as vulnerable today as we were six years ago.
ROBERTS: Should we be confident, Clark, that the Department of Homeland Security can protect America?
ERVIN: You know, the answer to that, John, is no. There will be a congressional report I think released today that shows that the Department of Homeland Security is losing top officials at twice the rate of federal agencies generally, that 23 out of the top 26 people reporting to the secretary have left the Department of Homeland Security.
This would be a concern at any time, at any department. But this is the department that's supposed to protect us, and at a time of increased risk.
ROBERTS: Not exactly comforting words this morning.
Clark Kent Ervin, former inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security, now with the Aspen Institute.
Clark, good to see you. Thanks.
ERVIN: Thank you, John.
CHETRY: Well, the L.A. Archdiocese setting a dubious new record, $660 million in a settlement to victims abused by priests. We're going to be talking with a lawyer representing those victims coming up in our next half hour.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Some breaking news to report to you this morning at 40 minutes before the hour.
The F terminal at Miami-Dade International Airport has been shut down and evacuated. According to a spokesperson at the Miami International Airport, a fellow named Greg Chin (ph) -- he's with the aviation department there -- he says there is a possible improvised explosive device at a checkpoint in the F terminal. The checkpoint has been evacuated.
Now, not to say whether this is an actual improvised explosive device or just a suspicious package. They haven't made that delineation. And we're not sure exactly what this particular language means. He may just be talking about a suspicious package.
But they have evacuated that terminal. It houses Air France, United Airlines and AirTran, among some other carriers.
So, again, one of the terminals, the F terminal at Miami-Dade International Airport, evacuated because of either a suspicious package or a suspected improvised explosive device.
We'll keep watching this for you and we'll have the latest just as soon as we get it -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks, John.
Well, 40 minutes past the hour now. We're going to head down to Chad Myers. He is watching weather for us from Atlanta this morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHETRY: Well, since the war in Iraq began, thousands of American families have lost loved ones. Now one father, a Vietnam vet himself, is coming to terms with his own pain and anger over the war. But he's doing it in a very public way.
AMERICAN MORNING'S Alina Cho is here now with his story.
Hi, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Kiran.
He never wanted to make it public. You know, Andrew Bacevich does not mince words. He calls last week's interim report on Iraq a blatant attempt to spin the truth. He calls the war a debacle, reckless, misguided and mismanaged.
But Bacevich is not just an outspoken critic of the war, he has a very personal connection to it. And it wasn't until something terrible happened that he revealed what it was.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHO (voice over): There are many reasons why Andrew Bacevich is a critic of the war in Iraq. For one, this college professor knows the subject well and has written dozens of editorials. But his opinions come from another place. He's actually seen war.
The retired Army colonel was a cadet at West Point at a time when the U.S. still believed it could win in Vietnam. He graduated knowing the war had gone badly.
(on camera): Isn't West Point's motto "Duty, honor, country"?
ANDREW BACEVICH, IRAQ WAR CRITIC: Exactly right. And I was a young officer and I wished to do my duty in an honorable way to serve my country.
CHO (voice over): He argues the U.S. is in a similar struggle now.
BACEVICH: It's 3,600 American lives -- young men, a 19-year-old, 20 years old, and every one of those names is somebody's son.
CHO: It was this article he wrote recently for "The Washington Post" that got our attention. You see, because Bacevich's feelings about the war come from one other place, a place he tried to keep secret until one event changed his life.
Seven months into his tour in Iraq, his only son, 27-year-old Andy, died of a gunshot wound near Balad. Bacevich could no longer stay silent.
He asked, "What exactly is a father's duty when his son is sent into harm's way?" He answered, "As my son was doing his utmost to be a good soldier, I strove to be a good citizen."
BACEVICH: It was just something that I felt compelled to say. And having said it, I made a determination that I would not speak about my son's death in public anymore. That's my -- that's what I had to say. It's very personal.
CHO: Bacevich has good days and bad days. Last Tuesday was bad. All of Andy's belongings arrived from Iraq. He won't stop writing, though. Says he does it out of a sense of duty.
BACEVICH: So that at some future date, when historians try to make sense of this senseless conflict, they will at least be able to see that there were some people at the time who raised their hand and said, this is wrong, this must stop.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: It was such a moving interview.
Now, just to put this in perspective, Bacevich never wanted to talk about his personal connection to the war. He never wrote about his son or talked about him in interviews. So when I asked him why he ultimately chose to write about him, he told me it was not a choice, it was just something he had to get off his chest.
Now, as for why he won't talk further about Andy, he says he doesn't want to become what he calls another Cindy Sheehan, Kiran. He believes her antiwar message has been clouded and her son's memory exploited.
CHETRY: Now, also in the editorial that he wrote for "The Washington Post," he talks about how people actually blamed him for his son's death?
CHO: Yes, his antiwar writings. You know, he said he received hundreds of e-mail messages, including two that said that his son's death came as a direct result of his antiwar writings because he wasn't supporting the troops, the critics were saying.
When I asked him how he responded, he said, "Well, I hit the delete button." And he said that anyone who suggests that people who speaks out against the war contribute to the loss of American lives are, in his words, beneath contempt -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Alina Cho.
Thank you.
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CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROBERTS: Fifty minutes after the hour. Ali Velshi here "Minding Your Business".
And more news about the CEO of Whole Foods. ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, last year -- well, last week, we learned that the CEO of Whole Foods, John Mackey, had been posting on these chat boards for eight years, trashing the opponent, Wild Oats, and talking up his own company, Whole Foods, and his haircut and the way he looks and what kind of guy he is. So there are now reports the SEC is going to look into this.
It's unclear whether Mackey did anything illegal. It does seem a little weird that the CEO of a company is on chat boards. Frankly, chat boards stopped being the influence that they've been for investors some years ago. It used to be that putting something on a chat board would result in all sorts of people buying the stock.
Now, I don't think most people expect the CEO to be on the chat board, and he wasn't posting as himself. He was posting as somebody who was an investor in a company.
So, the implication is, what did he do to move the stock? If the CEO is actually on the chat board himself, you might be actually paying attention and say, well, what is he going to say? Is he going to give something up? But he was just talking as another investor.
It seems strange to me, but John Mackey is one of these guys, if you read up on him, a lot of things that he does seems strange. Not entirely sure why a CEO has got the time to be on a chat board, but...
ROBERTS: What was he saying about his haircut?
VELSHI: Oh, he just he really liked it. He really liked the haircut of the person he wasn't pretending to be.
Just the whole thing is very odd.
CHETRY: Conflict of interest at all?
VELSHI: Well, you know, again, what's the material impact? Did anything happen? Would anybody have bought or sold a share? That's what the SEC is interested in knowing, did he actually break any laws?
There's something to be said for folks if you're out there looking for stock advice, not necessarily getting it from a chat board anyway.
CHETRY: That's true, too.
Ali, thank you.
VELSHI: All right.
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ROBERTS: It's 56 minutes after the hour. We have got a lot ahead for you this morning. Here's part of what's "On Our Radar". The Archdiocese of Los Angeles sets a dubious new record -- $660 million in a settlement to victims -- people who were abused by priests.
CHETRY: Yes. And a lot of questions this morning.
Is this where it ends? They're also talking about as part of the settlement releasing some of the personal files of these different priests to see if things were covered up and if they were moved on knowing that they had done this.
So we're going to talk to the lawyer who is representing the victims coming up in our next half hour.
Also, you know, you go to a thing like The Taste of Chicago or one of these festivals, and you expect that you're going to get a lot of good food, maybe a bit of a belly ache because you overindulged, but nothing compared to what happened to at least, what, 300 people so far.
ROBERTS: Yes. Salmonella poisoning at one particular little place where people were eating. We're going to take a closer look at the culprit and tell you how it could happen and what to watch for when you go to these places. You know, you've always got to be -- you've always got to be a little bit aware with this stuff.
Also, the marriage between politics and the Internet. Your questions for our upcoming presidential debate pouring into YouTube.
CHETRY: Yes. I mean, this is really interesting, some of the lengths people went as they were videotaping their questions. Pretty amusing, but also a lot of interesting questions.
Could the Internet spark a new wave of interest in politics? We're going to be talking to Tom Foreman. He's standing by in an Internet cafe looking for some answers.
ROBERTS: All of that coming up for you in the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING here.
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