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American Morning
The Death Of Pat Tillman; Earnings News; Home Invasion; Obesity Blame Game; China Food Safety; Memorable Falls
Aired July 26, 2007 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: CNN exclusive. This morning, new fallout in the friendly fire death of Pat Tillman. A highly anticipated Army report will slam a former general and what he knew about the NFL star's death and what he refused to tell the family, on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And good morning. Glad you're with us on this Thursday, July 26th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. Im John Roberts.
We begin with breaking news this morning.
CNN has learned exclusive new details in the investigation into the death of Army Sergeant Pat Tillman. The former NFL star was killed by friendly fire while fighting in Afghanistan in April of 2004. The military has been accused of covering up the incident. Our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre, who is nominated for an Emmy Award for his coverage of the death of Pat Tillman, has uncovered new information this morning and he joins us now live.
What have you found out, Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, CNN has learned that Army Secretary Pete Geren is strongly considering a letter of censure against the highest ranking general faulted in the probe of Tillman's death. If he goes ahead with that recommendation, it would come on top of other reprimands that are to be released next week and it would be much more than a slap on the wrist. It would mean a loss of a star and significant retirement pay.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE, (voice over): Lieutenant General Philip Kensinger was the most senior of nine officers faulted by the Pentagon in a March inspector general's report probing the death of former NFL player turned Army Ranger, Pat Tillman, in April of 2004. In fact, the three-star general was the Army's representative of Tillman's nationally televised memorial service the following month. The DODIG report concluded that at the service, "although Lieutenant General Kensinger knew friendly fire was suspected, he decided to withhold notification from family members." It also found that when asked about it later, "Kensinger provided misleading testimony" to investigators.
So he said at that point he didn't know that patricide was a likely cause -- a likely reason for the death and that he didn't find out until afterwards. And you didn't find that credible?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn't find that credible. We found evidence that he knew in the April time frame.
MCINTYRE: Well, that sounds like lying.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, and the Army will look at that and make a determination.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCINTYRE: In March, the DODIG faulted nine officers, including four generals, for their actions. None were found guilty of criminal wrong doings. And CNN has learned that all nine will receive some kind of reprimand. But again, the most severe action could come against General Kensinger, who if he loses that star, would also lose about $1,000 a month in his retirement pay. He retired, John, back on February of 2006.
ROBERTS: Jamie, you know to store better than just about anybody else. You've talked with Tillman's family. They have said that this is a case of criminal negligence. That's their belief. Is there a possibility that any of these military officers involved could be charged criminally?
MCINTYRE: It doesn't appear so at this time. The four star general who's going to meet (ph) out the punishment, which is scheduled for last week, is not, I'm told, going to give out any recommendation for criminal proceedings. And the Tillman family, which has not been satisfied with any of the Army's four separate investigations into this, are unlikely to be satisfied with this result either.
ROBERTS: And, Jamie, do we know if any higher ups at the Pentagon were aware of what was going on here? And not just on the military side of things, but the civilian side?
MCINTYRE: Well, one of the mysteries of this is how almost everybody at the time knew that this was a friendly fire incident, yet a lot of that did not make it up the chain of command right away. There's plenty of evidence that lots of officers in the chain were aware pretty quickly that the initial story was inaccurate, but no evidence that the highest ups, the higher ups, like the secretary of defense knew until it was announced publicly a couple of weeks after Tillman's death.
ROBERTS: All right. Jamie McIntyre for us this morning with the latest developments in the death of Pat Tillman.
Thanks, Jamie. We'll keep on checking back in with you this morning.
CHETRY: Well there is certainly destructive weather taking place around the world today. We start with flooding in the U.K., causing now a serious health crisis. Hundreds of thousands of people still have no running water for drinking or for cleaning. And there are not enough tanks of fresh water to meet the demand. The government is now promising to get more of these water tanks in place. Officials this morning declared this the wettest summer on record for the U.K. and damage of flooding is estimated at $4 billion.
ROBERTS: And in China, a dramatic water rescue caught on tape. Take a look at this. Two young kids somehow got stuck in the middle of this raging river, clinging on to just a couple of rocks there that are just barely poking above the surface. About 100 rescue workers showed up to help. They eventually ran a line across the river. A rescue worker went in there and hooked them up and pulled them out one at a time. It's been a deadly and record breaking rainy season in China. More than 500 people have been killed since the season started. And that was just in May.
CHETRY: Yes, and the bad news is, they have much more rain forecast for many of the areas in China that are already hit really badly with this flooding and even a tornado hitting there, as well. Well, new this morning, a huge explosion in northern Syria. An ammunition dump exploding a short time ago. Fifteen soldiers killed, 50 others wounded in Syria. They say that it was not terror related. Local news reports say it's around 120 degrees there. That extreme heat, they say, is the reason that this high explosives were set off in the dump.
Also new this morning, an overnight tsunami warning in Indonesia after a powerful earthquake. It was a magnitude 7.4. It struck about 130 miles off of Indonesia's eastern coast. People living in coastal villages raced to higher ground. Fortunately, no sizable waves came ashore. Right now the country is still on alert for aftershocks. Earthquakes happen a lot in Indonesia. One hundred and sixty thousand people were killed in a massive quake and tsunami, you remember, back in December of 2004.
Well, despite a passing deadline, the Taliban is saying that the remaining South Korean hostages are alive this morning. The Taliban announcing that they killed one hostage yesterday. He was the 42- year-old pastor and the leader of the church group. That leaves 22 hostages still being held. The group was doing volunteer medical work in Afghanistan when they were kidnapped next week. The Taliban's been threatening to kill more hostages if their own prisoners are not released.
ROBERTS: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales could soon be facing a perjury investigation. He testified this week that a White House meeting in 2004 was not about the controversial warantless wiretapping program. But Senate Democrats say his testimony contradicts a letter that was sent to the Judiciary Committee last year by former National Intelligence Director John Negroponte. The meeting involved congressional leaders, including four Democrats.
Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy says Gonzales has until next week to revise his testimony or face a perjury investigation. The Justice Department says Gonzales stands by his testimony. Later on this morning we'll be talking with Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer about this whole incident.
Three incoming freshman at Villanova University will not be starting school. They have been kicked off the football team and kicked out of school after a woman accused them or raping her two weeks ago. The university says after a through investigation, it has decided to rescind its offer of admission. School officials say the female student has not gone to the police and there are no criminal charges pending, at least at the moment.
The lead rider at the Tour de France has been thrown out and the sport of cycling is reeling this morning from a spreading doping scandal. Michael Rasmussen, of the Rabobank team, was in clear position to win cycling's biggest race. He won the 16th stage yesterday in the Coldavisk (ph), when he was fired by his team for missing drug tests. And yesterday police arrested Italian cyclist Cristian Moreni at the finish line after he failed drug tests. They detained him and raided this team's hotel.
And Walt Disney says it's snuffing out smoking. The company says cigarettes will be nonexistence in future films put out under the Disney brand and it will be discouraged in movies released by the company's two other studios, Touchstone and Miramax. Hollywood has been under pressure to eliminate smoking. In May, a group responsible for rating films said it would consider smoking as a factor, just like violence, profanity, and nudity.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, also new this morning, stories that our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents is following for you. Earnings news is in. Apple sells fewer iPhones than expected, but profits still do go up on the sales of Mac computers. Ali Velshi is here with that.
Wow, the iPhone bubble burst when it comes to whether or not it caught on.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hard to tell because the iPhone went on sale on June 30th, which was right at the end of the quarter. So they had 30 hours of sales before the quarter finished. Now it didn't sell as many in that quarter. It sold about a quarter million iPhones in that 30 hours. Some people thought they'd sell three quarters of a million in that first 30 hours. So, you know, one day is hard to judge, but it's definitely not on that side.
Apple did have very strong sales of its Mac computers, by the way, and that helped the earnings of that company. So the stock is up. Apple is reiterating that by the end of the 2008, worldwide they would like to sell 10 million iPhones. They stay they're still on target for that. So we'll have to see a few more days of sales to understand what the picture is with the iPhone.
We're also expecting earnings reports from the world's biggest publically listed company, Exxon Mobil. That should be coming out probably in the next hour or so. And we'll keep an eye on that for you to see what kind of outrageous number it is that you helped fuel.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Who, me?
VELSHI: Well, all of us. CHETRY: All right, Ali, thanks so much. It is going to make some people mad this morning for sure.
Well, now we go to that horrific home invasion, the arson in Connecticut. It left a mother and her two daughters dead and their father badly beaten. AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho has been working this story.
And I understand that we're hearing from a relative this morning, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, that's absolutely right. The father of the wife and mother who died in that home invasion is speaking out now. His name is Richard Hawke. He spoke to CNN affiliate WTNH about the sudden loss of his daughter and two granddaughters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD HAWKE, FATHER OF JENNIFER HAWKE-PETIT: We were just shocked to hear that there could be such a tragic, evil thing that could be done to human beings. I think God is crying with us today over this disaster.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: One can only imagine what that family is going through. It is a crime that has shocked the entire community of Cheshire, a quite suburban town in Connecticut. Early Monday morning, around 3:00 a.m., authorities say two men broke into the home of prominent Doctor William Petit, his wife and two young daughters. Police say the men tide them up and then reportedly drove Petit's wife, Jennifer, to a nearby bank to withdrawal money.
Now authorities say Jennifer Hawke-Petit was somehow able to get a message to the bank teller that her family was being held captive. But by the time police arrived, the house was on fire and she and her two daughters, 11-year-old Michaela and 17-year-old Hayley, who was on her way to Dartmouth, were dead.
William Petit, although severely injured, miraculously survived. He is said to be in stable condition. The suspects, who had long criminal records, were said to be out on parole, are expected to face murder charges. The two men are each being held on $15 million bond. One of the suspects, Kiran, lived just two miles from the victim's home, which is part of the reason why so many people in Cheshire this morning are on edge.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes, and it's really reverberated, you know, not just in that community, because it's everyone's worst nightmare.
CHO: Certainly.
CHETRY: Alina Cho, thanks so much. Rob Marciano is at the CNN Weather Center right now. He's watching extreme weather for us in the Midwest.
And, wow, not only in our country, but around the world it seems like weather is a huge problem today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: There is some wild, new insight into America's obesity epidemic this morning. It turns out that your overweight friends could be a threat to your waistline and your health. CNN's Mary Snow has got the story that's raising an awful lot of eyebrows.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): A new study says obesity is socially contagious. Researchers say, if your friend becomes obese, it increases your risk of becoming obese by 57 percent.
JAMES FOWLER, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-SAN DIEGO: We know, for example, that your genes have an impact on whether or not you're obese. But this really suggests that your social environment might matter even more.
SNOW: Researchers looked at data from more than 12,000 people and published their findings in "The New England Journal of Medicine." Doctors say behaviors like over eating can spread among friends. But friends can also affect your view of being fat.
DR. NICHOLAS CHRISTAKIS, HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL: So what happens is, is you look around you at the people to whom you're connected and you see that they're gaining weight. And so you start changing your ideas about what is an acceptable body size.
SNOW: But it's not just your friends who may effect your perceived body image. If your sibling is obese, your chances of being obese go up 40 percent. If your husband or wife is, it's 37 percent.
CHRISTAKIS: Men are much more likely to be influenced by the weight behaviors of men to whom they're connected, whether it's their friends or their brothers, than they are to be influenced by the weight behavior of the women to whom they're connected.
SNOW: The findings show that distance does not have an affect on that connection. That an obese friend who lives 1,000 miles away can have the same influence as one who lives nearby. Researchers say they hope by understanding these social networks they can help to reduce the problem of obesity in the United States.
Mary Snow, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: What do you think about that?
CHETRY: Well, it's convenient. You know, you gain a little bit of weight, it's your fault. But I really -- I can see how this could work in different social circles, because when John came on, we started getting breakfast together every day and we both put on a little bit of weight from the corn beef hash and two eggs over easy with a side of potatoes.
ROBERTS: And I'll tell you, it's a challenge to keep up with you, not on the eating front, on the other front. I've got to hit the treadmill every day just to sort of stay, you know, within the same zip code that she is when it comes to that.
CHETRY: All right, no more corn beef hash, though. We've switched to cereal.
ROBERTS: OK. It's a pledge.
CHETRY: Also ahead in our next hour, we're going to be taking a closer look at this study with Elizabeth Cohen. It will be interesting to find out more about how it affects people and whether it works the opposite way too. If your friends suddenly get healthy and start to lose weight, does that affect you and your health as well.
Also, there's a new volley against cigarettes and it tops your "Quick Hits" right now. The Senate warning labels say that they should cover half of the front and back of cigarette packs and that these labels should feature graphic pictures of cancer victims. Well, it's a part of a debate over a new bill that would allow the FDA to regulate tobacco.
Eighteen thousand fake Viagra pills have been seized in China. China launched a national crackdown on counterfeit products. The fake Viagra was headed for 12 countries, including the United States.
China says it's getting very serious about food safety, though, after an undercover investigation showed shredded cardboard being used as filling in their popular dumplings. Well, it's just one of many recent tainted food scandals plaguing the country. So should athletes and visitors headed to Beijing for the 2008 summer Olympics be concerned? Dr. Sanjay Gupta is on the case in Beijing, next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Oh, look at that sunrise! A shot from Manhattan looking out over the East River, just a little bit to the north and east, as well. It's the beginning of Long Island Sound there, up in the LaGuardia Airport area. It's actually coming up over the Bronx this morning. That is just such a pretty shot. It's going to be, oh, about 84 degrees and muggy today in New York. So be prepared. When the city gets hot, the city gets steaming.
Welcome back to the most news in the morning. Your "Quick Hits" now.
Highways in downtown Dallas have reopened after a series of explosions at a gas facility yesterday rained flaming debris onto busy roads. Three people were injured. Black spoke could be seen for miles around. The blasts caused evacuations, shut down parts of two interstates, including Interstate 35. Look at that.
A mansion goes up in flames in Ohio. The three alarm fire happened in an area known as Indian Hill. That's just outside of Cincinnati. Five people were hurt, including two firefighters, in that blaze.
And a nice helping of scrambled eggs -- Kiran, you'll like this -- in Richmond, Virginia, thanks to an overturned truck. Parts of I-95 were shut down for most of the day yesterday while crews cleaned up the mess. No one was seriously injured in that, though.
CHETRY: Well, how about this one. With the Olympic games going to be in Beijing, they're just a year away now. And some of the world's premier athletes are wondering, will they be protected from tainted food while competing in China? In recent months, the safety of Chinese food exports has come under fire. But this morning, the Chinese government is fighting back. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta is in Beijing investigating for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: China promises athletes at next year's Olympic games in Beijing that they will receive food that is safe and also free of anything that could cause a positive test for a banned substance.
The pledge come after a smorgasbord of food safety problems here. From farm raised fish and seafood contaminated with unapproved antibiotics and antifungals, to pigs, force fed wastewater just before slaughter. Chinese authorities say they've shut down 180 food processing plants. To show how serious Chinese are taking these problems, China even executed the former director of its food and drug agency for approving bogus and deadly drugs in exchange for money.
China's officials can see that their food and drug safety procedures need help. In fact their health minister is urging better coordination. They recognize the reputation of this growing country and booming economy is on the line.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Coming up now to 20 minutes after the hour. And a fallen singer is ahead. We're not talking about Britney Spears here. We're talking about the, oh, Beyonce slip-up. It's all over YouTube despite Beyonce's pleas. And you'll see it here next on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Well, this morning, Beyonce is back on her feet after a serious stumble down a flight of stairs during a concert.
CHETRY: Yes, she's OK, aside for the embarrassment of her trip. It got recorded, of course, on one of those camera phones. But look at that. And then it went on to YouTube. But, man, she just jumped right back up and went for it.
ROBERTS: Yes, look at her. She had asked her fans, because she knew that somebody, obviously, had the video, please don't post that on YouTube. Of course, nobody listened to her. But Beyonce is not the first high profile figure to slip up in front of the camera. Jeanne Moos with a look at some of the others now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): When's the last time you fell on your face? Or on your butt? More often, a stage?
KELSEY GRAMMAR: Pretending I was a U.N. interpreter -- oh, good Lord. Oh. Oh, damn.
MOOS: It's bad enough when you're Kelsey Grammar. But imagine when a diva takes a dive in front of thousands of fans. Many armed with cameras. That's what happened to Beyonce. A spokesperson said her hem got caught in her shoe and the moment was caught on YouTube, even though fans shooting the home video of the Orlando, Florida, concert reported that Beyonce asked good-naturedly . . .
BEYONCE: If any one of you got video of that, please don't put it on YouTube.
MOOS: Fat chance. And from YouTube, it spread. The next thing you know, Beyonce is the number one video on cnn.com, knocking giant tumor out of the top spot. And it takes a lot to dislodge a 33 pound tuber. Much was made of the fact that Beyonce bounced back. Her hair bounced even more. Fans posted phrases like, "takes a lickin and keeps on tickin." Lest you think we're reveling in Beyonce's misery, we're kind compared to the news anchor who couldn't stop laughing over a model who fell.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You try walking in those shoes.
MOOS: But, hey, plenty of falling news people get plastered on YouTube. Covering storms or stomping grapes. But don't believe every journalistic misstep you see on the web.
CHUCK STORM: Where last night there was a robbery at about 3:30 in the morning. Now police have -- oh, God.
MOOS: Apparently Chuck Storm is just a character dreamed up by the creator of this website. And Chuck Storm isn't so far from the reality of Al Roker.
AL ROKER: Right about now I -- oh.
MOOS: Al is featured on a website called peoplefallingover.com. And you have to love their logo. And as if falling weren't bad enough, there are all those slow motion replays. Cheer up, Beyonce, at least you didn't end up like Carrie Bradshaw.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, ACTOR, "SEX IN THE CITY": Oh, my God, she's fashion road kill. MOOS: It's not how far you fall, it's how fast you recover. And who says galanty is dead? To the rescue.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: Yes, that was one of those high profile, charity runway shows. They said the runway was so slippery that everyone wiped out. (INAUDIBLE) they just took their heels off.
ROBERTS: Somebody got to wax out.
CHETRY: They just took their heels off in the end.
ROBERTS: Amazing. I love the way Jeannie tells a story.
CHETRY: I forgot about a few of those, especially Castro.
ROBERTS: The Fidel Castro (INAUDIBLE). Boom.
CHETRY: Bam.
ROBERTS: He did the Superman right there. Face plant (ph). Oh.
CHETRY: Exactly.
Well, also "On Our Radar" this morning, take a look at this cat. This is a cat named Oscar. Looks like an ordinary cat, right? Cute little kitty.
ROBERTS: Beautiful little two-year-old tabby that was adopted by a nursing home and hospice.
CHETRY: Well there is a -- this cat has a remarkable, a remarkable ability, that is now baffling scientists everywhere. We're going to tell you what that is, coming up.
ROBERTS: Yes. It's actually a talent that you don't want to be exposed to. So that story coming up when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Our thanks to our friends at WJXT in Jacksonville in morning for a shot of the I-95 bridge there. Just right downtown. The morning commute beginning. People traveling north and southbound there. It looks (ph) like you're to vacation. Wouldn't that be a nice thing to be doing?
CHETRY: That's right, even in lovely Florida you have to go to work on a Thursday.
ROBERTS: Yes. And it's going to be a typical Florida day, high of 90 degrees and thunderstorms.
Thursday, July the 26th. Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. And thanks very much for joining us. I'm John Roberts.
CHETRY: And I'm Kiran Chetry.
We start with breaking news.
CNN has exclusive details now into the investigation of Army sergeant Pat Tillman. The former NFL star was killed by friendly fire while fighting in Afghanistan in April of 2004. The military has been accused of trying to cover up the incident.
Senior Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre has uncovered new information this morning. He joins us live with details.
Good morning, Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Kiran.
You may recall that back in March, the Pentagon inspector general faulted nine officers, including four generals, for their handling of the Tillman case, the investigation. In fact, CNN has learned that the highest ranking general, the one who came under the sharpest criticism, may get the harshest punishment.
CNN has learned that the Army secretary, Pete Geren, is strongly considering a letter of censure against Lieutenant General Philip Kensinger for his misleading statements that he gave to investigators and his withholding of information from the Tillman family at the memorial service for Tillman, which occurred about a month after his death. According to the DoD IG report, Kensinger "knew that friendly fire was suspected," but "... he decided to withhold notification from family members." They also said that he "provided misleading testimony."
Now, there's been no final decision by the Army secretary, but sources say that all the discussion has been over how he might remove, give a reduction of rank to General Kensinger, who retired back in 2006. That wouldn't just be a slap on the wrist, Kiran, because that would be in addition to losing a star, he would lose approximately $1,000 a month off his retirement pension.
CHETRY: You know, and the Tillman family, Jamie, has been very critical of some of the previous findings by the military surrounding Pat's death. They even describe one report as "criminal negligence".
Do we expect a call for criminal charges in this latest report?
MCINTYRE: Well, there have been four separate Army investigations into this, and none of them have satisfied the Tillman family. I don't think it's likely that this result will, either.
Don't forget, this was the result of a investigation that was in March. The Army is going to announce the punishments next week. We're told there will be reprimands of some kind of another. No criminal wrongdoing was found in that DoD IG report.
CHETRY: All right. Jamie McIntyre, some great reporting there.
Thanks so much for joining us this morning.
ROBERTS: And a major battle overnight in Afghanistan. NATO forces say that they killed 50 suspected Taliban fighters in Helmand province. Helmand is a Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan. The military says more than 160 insurgents have been killed there this week.
And a top commander in Iraq in taking aim at Iran this morning. Lieutenant General Ray Odierno says militants trained by Iran are launching more successful attacks in the heavily-fortified Green Zone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. RAY ODIERNO, MULTINATIONAL CORPS.: We have seen in the last three months a significant improvement in the capability of mortar men and rocketeers to provide accurate fires into -- into the Green Zone and other places. We think this is directly related to training that was conducted in Iran.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The general's remarks come just two days after the U.S. and Iran sat down for talks in Baghdad. The two sides agreed to set up a security committee to help ease violence in Iraq.
Britain is giving the U.S. government the green light to build part of its missile defense system on English soil. There won't be any actual missile interceptors in the U.K., just equipment to detect rockets launched from other countries. The U.S. missile system is designed to protect America and Europe from attacks by rogue states who might have nuclear weapons.
CHETRY: Well, flooding in the U.K. is causing a serious health crisis this morning. There are still hundreds of thousands of people who have no running water, no drinking water for anything, or water to be able to clean. There are not enough tanks of fresh water to meet the demand.
The government has been trying to help in this. The military going door to door and handing out bottled water. But it's proving not to be enough. They're promising now to get more tankers in place.
Officials this morning also declared this the wettest summer on record. The damage from the flooding is estimated right now at $4 billion.
Also new this morning, a bomb scare at Seattle's International Airport. It turned out to be a hoax by a frustrated passenger. That's what the FBI is saying this morning.
The passenger was angry about missing a Northwest flight, Northwest Flight 980, so then got even by telling a ticket agent that there was a bomb on the flight. Security, of course, turned the plane around and had to evacuate the nervous passengers. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People really got upset or too frightened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People just wanted off the plane.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And we wanted to know more.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just to get off.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, can you imagine that one? The suspect apparently thought that -- you know, if he said there's a bomb on the plane, they would have to stop it, turn it around, and he would be able to get on it. Well, it ended up getting him arrested, and he could face felony charges.
Of course you can't do that. You can't even joke about that at an airport.
ROBERTS: Some people are too stupid to fly.
Michael Vick makes his first court appearance today. He's expected to plead not guilty to federal dogfighting charges. The Atlanta Falcons quarterback is accused of running a brutal dogfighting ring across state lines. Prosecutors say the dogs used in the fights were sometimes shot, hanged, drowned or electrocuted if they didn't perform. Dozens of animal rights protesters are expected outside the courthouse today.
The lead rider at the Tour de France has been thrown out and the sport of cycling has been reeling this morning from a spreading doping scandal. Michael Rasmussen, a Dane who's on the Rabobank team, was in clear position to win cycling's biggest race -- that's him winning the 16th stage yesterday -- when he was fired by his team for missing drug tests.
Also yesterday, police arrested Italian cyclist Christian Morani (ph) at the finish line after he failed a drug test. They detained him and raided his team's hotel.
In our next hour, we're going to be talking with Phil Liggett, who's been covering the Tour de France almost as long as some of those riders have been alive, and get his perspective on all of this.
CHETRY: What is going on with that sport?
And some questions and controversy in another sport, as well -- baseball. Barry Bonds, just two home runs shy of tying the all-time record set by Hank Aaron. But the chase of the record continues to be overshadowed by charges that his play and stats were fueled by drugs.
Carol Costello takes a closer look at the latest controversy. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The latest to unload on Bonds, chemist Patrick Arnold, who reportedly created the Clear, a previously undetectable steroid. Arnold worked for Victor Conte, who owned BALCO, the San Francisco lab that provided professional athletes with steroids. Arnold told HBO Sports he believes Bonds was using the Clear in 2001 when he hit a record-breaking 73 home runs.
PATRICK ARNOLD, CHEMIST: I never met Barry Bonds, I never talked to him on the phone. All I ever use was Victor telling me how great Barry is doing, how Barry's on the program. And his reaction time is better than ever, he feels great.
BOB COSTAS, JOURNALIST: When Conte told you that Barry is on the program, was there any doubt in your mind that that meant he was taking steroids of some kind?
ARNOLD: I have a very strong feeling about it since he was on the program, and, like everyone else, the program consisted of the Clear.
COSTELLO: Both Conte and Arnold went to prison for conspiring to distribute illegal steroids to athletes. Conte disputes Arnold's story, saying "The program I created for Barry had nothing to do with the Clear or any other anabolic steroids."
And it's been widely reported Bonds told a grand jury, he never knowingly used steroids. As for what he said publicly...
BARRY BONDS, BASEBALL PLAYER: That's just you guys talking, that's all it is, just media conversation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, they're the ones investigating.
BONDS: Well, that's all right, though. Let them investigate.
COSTELLO: And there are no eyewitness accounts that as we know of to dispute Bonds.
MELISSA SEGURA, "SPORTS ILLUSTRATED": And that's sort of been the entire situation with Barry Bonds all along, is it's always been, we hear, but we have never seen.
Carol Costello, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: Yes, and like it or not for some people who are critical of Bonds, he's going to have another shot at Hank Aaron's record tonight. He takes on Aaron's old team, the Atlanta Braves.
ROBERTS: Everyone is still talking about that question posed to senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama during Monday night's debate that has prompted a political dustup, the likes of which we haven't seen for a while. More fallout today over their answers and attacks on one another. We're going to get to the bottom of it when members of both campaign camps come and join us here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.
It was the moment of the CNN/YouTube debate Monday night that everyone in Washington is still talking about. It's the answer to this question that was asked by a YouTube poster.
Let's listen carefully to exactly what the question was.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In 1982, Anwar Sadat traveled to Israel, a trip that resulted in a peace agreement that has lasted ever since. In the spirit of that type of bold leadership, would you be willing to meet separately without precondition during the first year of your administration in Washington or anywhere else with the leaders Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea in order to bridge the gap that divides our countries?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: All right. Well, Senator Barack Obama said yes to that question, and Senator Hillary Clinton basically said no. And the fallout over their attacks on one another continue this morning.
Joining us to discuss this is Clinton's senior campaign adviser, Ann Lewis, as well as Senator Obama's communications director, Robert Gibbs.
Thanks to both of you for being with us.
ANN LEWIS, CLINTON SR. CAMPAIGN ADVISER: Good morning.
ROBERT GIBBS, OBAMA COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Good morning.
CHETRY: Robert, let me start with you about this.
GIBBS: Sure.
CHETRY: Senator Obama is now being called naive by Clinton for his answer. If he was answering the question again today, would he add or change anything about the answer?
GIBBS: Not one thing. I mean, there were two important moments in this debate, Kiran. The first was when Senator Obama asked Senator Chinton, shouldn't we have had an exit strategy to get out of Iraq before members of the Senate voted to get us in? That was the first important moment in the debate.
And the second important moment was whether or not we were going to continue the Bush-Cheney theory of foreign policy, which is to bury our heads in the sand as our enemies continue to get stronger and stronger and stronger. Senator Obama believes that we have to re- engage the world, that we have to have a break from the Bush-Cheney style of foreign policy and diplomacy, and that we have to engage our enemies just like President Kennedy and President Reagan did, and eventually brought the Soviet Union to its knees.
CHETRY: And Ann, I'd like to get your thoughts on that, because Senator Obama used Hillary -- Senator Clinton's own words to criticize her, saying what was irresponsible and naive was the vote to authorize the war in Iraq.
So, does that make vote her criticisms of Obama in this instance on foreign policy less credible?
LEWIS: No. And I think your viewers just heard that question again for themselves. It's a pretty simple one.
As Hillary Clinton said that night, "I will engage in vigorous diplomacy." We will work hard to engage the world. We do understand that we are safer when we have allies. What I will not do is commit to have meetings in the very first year of my presidency with no preconditions, with the leaders of five rogue nations.
That's the difference.
CHETRY: All right. But Ann, let me tell you this, because meeting with foreign leaders, without preconditions, even of rogue nations, is not without precedent. In fact, your candidate's own husband met with then Syrian leader Hafez al-Assad. This was in March of 2000.
So, was that naive or irresponsible for Clinton to do that?
LEWIS: No. I believe that you will find that those happened in the context of diplomatic preparations that had been made.
And remember -- go back to the question -- no preconditions, no earlier work on what is going to happen and whether those meetings will be useful. Is that really what we want our new president to do, to use the power and the prestige of the United States in their very first year to meet with people again, to meet with those leaders -- think about those pictures for a moment, think about what we know about the presidents and the leaders of those countries. Would we really want to president of the United States to say, sure, I'm going to meet with you, no preconditions, no previous diplomatic work?
CHETRY: All right. Let me...
LEWIS: That was the question, and that's a very big difference.
GIBBS: Kiran, with all due respect to Ann and to Senator Clinton's position, there seems to be some sort of fear on Senator Clinton's part that she can't win a public relations battle with the leader of Iran. Barack Obama doesn't fear that. He has the toughness and the strength to walk into that meeting and tell the leadership in Iran that we stand with Israel, that they can't continue to produce nuclear weapons.
CHETRY: And I think -- Robert, let me get this one...
(CROSSTALK)
LEWIS: We can also have the strength and experience to say, you don't just earn -- you have to earn some of those meetings. You have to work up to them, and not give away for propaganda purposes a meeting at the very highest level with no previous work.
GIBBS: Again, Kiran, it sounds like the Clinton campaign is worried they can't win a public relations battle with...
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: All right. But Robert, let me ask you about this, because a big part of your candidate's appeal was his call for more civility.
GIBBS: Sure.
CHETRY: He pledged to stop "flash and burn politics". This week, though, he's been getting down and dirty with Clinton over these debate answers. Is this just politics as usual?
GIBBS: Absolutely not. Democratic voters want to hear this debate. They want a clear and clean break from the foreign policy that has been brought to us by George Bush and Dick Cheney. It's a foreign policy that's made our country less safe, less secure, less engaged in the world.
As we have done that, our enemies have continued to get stronger and stronger. The question is, are we going to have the strength and the toughness to sit down and them and tell them stuff that they don't want to hear? Or are we going continue this continuation of this Bush-Cheney foreign policy?
CHETRY: OK. Listen, I want to ask you guys quickly a yes or no question from each of you.
Governor Richardson is asking all Democratic candidates to sign on to this pledge that they not engage in negative campaigning against each other.
So, Ann, let me ask you first, will your campaign sign that pledge?
LEWIS: Well, I'd have to see the exact words of the pledge. But let me say, what we're discussing here is exactly the question we should have in a presidential campaign.
CHETRY: All right. All right. Hold on. I have to get a yes or no -- I've got to get a yes or no out of Rob.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: Robert, would you guys sign a pledge to not negative campaign against one another?
GIBBS: We'd certainly have to look at the wording.
CHETRY: All right. You'll both have to look at the wording. All right. All right.
GIBBS: Thank you, Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, it was supposed to be yes or no, and we're out of time. But I want to thank both of you for coming to give your side.
LEWIS: Thank you.
GIBBS: Thank you.
CHETRY: Both Ann Lewis and Robert Gibbs.
ROBERTS: You thought you were going to get a yes or no answer? Never.
CHETRY: You can always try.
ROBERTS: It's politics. I know. We always try and we never get them.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Something strange out of the sky tops your "Quick Hits" now.
A guy in Pennsylvania says he found a strange substance all over his backyard after a rain storm. There it is. He says it looks like small ice cubes. A couple of chemists from Kutztown University are checking it out. So far, no idea what that stuff is.
The pizza sauce is still red, but the delivery staff is going green. Out in Seattle Snooze (sic), Junction Pizza is -- let's start that again.
CHETRY: You put...
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTS: Out in Seattle, Snooze Junction Pizza -- Seattle Snooze, we have no idea what's going on -- the Snooze Junction Pizza is dumping the cars and using bicycles to get deliveries to its customers. Owners say it's a small contribution to help keep the earth healthy.
CHETRY: Yes. It's all fun and games, so your pizza arrives cold.
ROBERTS: All the bicyclist falls off and your pizza is all over the road.
And a man in Florida gets to keep his toilet seat sign. Officials in Brevard County say the sign is protected by free speech. It's apparently the result of a little neighborhood feud. The man says he put it up because his neighborhood -- or his neighbor has security cameras pointed at his house.
CHETRY: Wow.
Well, eight minutes until the -- I guess if he has it pointed at his house, he has to look at that.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Isn't there more to that story?
CHETRY: Yes, apparently.
ROBERTS: There probably is. We'll try to dig a little deeper on that one.
CHETRY: Is there more to this story?
VELSHI: There is more to...
CHETRY: Record profits for Exxon Mobil.
VELSHI: Right. We are standing by for Exxon's second quarter earnings result which should -- you know, who knows when it's coming out, maybe in the next hour. But what it causes us to do is break down these massive numbers and look at it.
A year ago, Exxon came in with $10 billion in profits for the quarter. But, you know, let's talk about what happened for those of us who had invested in Exxon, if we had.
Ten years ago today, if you had bought $1,000 worth of Exxon Mobil stock, it would today be worth $2,954, which is a 195 percent increase. If you had just diversified and put your money into, let's say, the S&P 500 10 years ago, and put $1,000 into the S&P 500, it would be worth $1,900, which would have given you a 90 percent increase.
There's nothing wrong with a 90 percent increase over 10 years. But Exxon Mobil has more than doubled its money, and it's almost doubled twice in 10 years.
So, just a note that while the rest of us have been fueling these profits, as it were, for the last many, many years, some folks have actually been doing OK by it.
CHETRY: Was that supposed to make us feel better? So not only are we paying more at the pump, but you would have, should have, could have with the Exxon Mobil stock.
VELSHI: If you dig deep enough into your 401(k), you probably have some kind of oil company stock in there. But, I mean, after years and years of oil prices going up, it might have been a good idea.
ROBERTS: Hey...
VELSHI: But you know what I do? I go to a place, like the sandwiches, I eat the sandwiches. Other people invest in the business.
ROBERTS: ... gas is $3 a gallon. If somebody is making money, you should be happy about that.
VELSHI: Someone's making money. It's OK. In about a half hour I'll come back and tell you how much money they made and all the happiness will be gone.
ROBERTS: Right.
CHETRY: Ali, thank you.
VELSHI: All right.
ROBERTS: Fifty-four minutes after the hour.
Sure, he looks cute, but is this cat the angel of death? Think we're kidding? See for yourself when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: All right. This is the cat we told you about a few minutes ago.
He's cute and he's fluffy, but when Oscar the cat appears at your bedside, it may be time to make sure you final arrangements are in order. All joking aside, it's an incredible story.
It turned up in "The New England Journal of Medicine," of all places, yesterday.
ROBERTS: Oscar lives in a Providence, Rhode Island, nursing home. The staff has noticed that when he curls up to a patient, that patient dies, and typically within four hours.
Now, you're saying, come on, that can't be true. He has managed to predict 25 deaths so far to the point where nurses will now call a patient's family if Oscar chooses to get up there on the bed with their loved one.
CHETRY: Right. They say that somehow Oscar is able to sense when somebody is ready to die, and then comforts them in their final hours by curling up. And it may seem a little bit morbid, but they're saying that it actually gives family time to get there, and that in many of these instances, they had time to say their good-byes and it was quite peaceful.
ROBERTS: Now, this is -- this is a cat that grew up on the hospice floor of this particular nursing home. And there was one doctor who wasn't sure that the cat really knew everything. This was his 13th prediction, because the doctor went in and said, it looks like this patient was dying and the cat walked out of the room.
And she said, Oscar's got it wrong. Well, she was early with her prediction. Oscar came back in a few hours later and curled up in the bed. The patient died.
CHETRY: Wow.
ROBERTS: So he's been right every time.
CHETRY: So, it's quite a -- quite an art, a gift. I mean, who knows what it is, but this cat is certainly raising the interest of scientists, enough that they wrote in an extremely well-respected medical journal about it.
ROBERTS: It doesn't get any better than "The New England Journal of Medicine".
CHETRY: Right.
ROBERTS: And there's an essay about it.
And there's an interesting thing, too, that some families aren't comfortable with the cat being in there. And so they've kicked the cat out. And if the cat's kicked out of the room, it paces up and down the corridor outside of the door meowing all the time.
So Oscar definitely wants to be there.
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: You've got to wonder...
CHETRY: You know what they say about cats.
ROBERTS: ... is Oscar an old soul or is he...
CHETRY: He's not the devil, the poor thing.
All right. Some other stories "On Our Radar" this morning.
How about this one? You've got a friend that loves to eat bad food -- HoHos, Twinkies, cheese steaks, cheeseburgers.
Did you know your friend's going to make you fat?
ROBERTS: At the same time, though, than if you had a fat friend who suddenly lost friend. But you lose weight as well.
CHETRY: Well, it's the interesting take on this new study that's out about how your friend's eating habits can actually determine whether or not you will be overweight. And Elizabeth Cohen has a couple of really interesting things that she's found in this study that she's going to tell us about in a few minutes.
ROBERTS: That is straight ahead, because the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING starts right now.
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