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American Morning
Rudy Giuliani Hospitalized for Flu-Like Symptoms; Missing Family Found After Three Days in the Woods; Julie Myers Appointed to Head ICE; Jamie Lynn Spears' Pregnancy Raises Legal Questions
Aired December 20, 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: Good morning to you, I'm John Roberts.
ALINA CHO, CNN CO-ANCHOR: I'm Alina Cho. Kiran Chetry has the morning off.
ROBERTS: We begin with that breaking news. Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani hospitalized in St. Louis this morning after suffering what was described by his campaign as flu-like symptoms. He had been campaigning Wednesday in the show me state, interviewed by CNN's Wolf Blitzer in "The Situation Room" from Columbia, Missouri. There's a picture of their encounter aboard the CNN election express.
A spokeswoman said that Giuliani's plane had just left for New York when he became sick. The plane actually had to turn around, return to St. Louis. They then took him to the hospital. CNN's Dana Bash is covering the Republican campaign. She's live in Des Moines for us now with the latest on Giuliani's condition. Dana, the Giuliani campaign released a statement just moments ago. What does it say?
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it says that the former mayor is actually going to be released from the hospital later today and will make his way back to New York, and I'll read to you the statement that we just got from Giuliani's spokeswoman, Maria Cameli (ph).
She said, "After precautionary tests, the doctors found nothing of concern at this time and Rudy will be going back to New York later today. He is in high spirits and is grateful to the doctors and nurses who checked him out."
Now what we don't know is what was done when he was checked out. We don't know any of the specifics yet, John, as to what tests were done on the former mayor in the hospital and what gave them the confidence to allow him to leave the hospital. All we know at this point is what you just talked about at the beginning of the program, that he was suffering from what his campaign calls flu-like symptoms.
What they say is that he wasn't feeling well pretty much all day yesterday. He had a very rigorous day. His plane had mechanical problems. He had to get in a car when he wasn't supposed to, et cetera. So when he was on his way just after they had taken off from Missouri to go back to New York, he was feeling bad enough, they say, with headaches and other symptoms that he called his doctor and the doctor suggested as a precautionary reason just to go back to Missouri and to get in the hospital and that is what he did.
Again, we don't know any of the specifics of the tests that were done. All we know is that his campaign is now saying that the doctors there feel good enough about his condition that is going to be released later today and will go back to New York.
ROBERTS: I saw his appearance on "The Situation Room" yesterday, as I'm sure you did. He didn't look any of the worse for where during that appearance. Are they saying what this might mean for the future of his campaign? Will he have to take a couple of days off at what really is a crucial time here leading up to these primaries? Not that he's going to be focusing a lot on the Iowa caucus but certainly he is on contest after that, including Missouri, a super duper Tuesday state which is where he was yesterday.
BASH: Yes, you're right and he certainly did put on a good show yesterday. He did not look sick or appear to be under the weather at all in that very lengthy interview he did with Wolf Blitzer. What his campaign is saying is that he actually did not have any public appearances scheduled today. What he had today were some fund-raisers in New Jersey. Those are not going to happen. The next public day of campaigning that was scheduled was New Hampshire on Friday.
His campaign says they don't know yet whether he will keep that schedule, whether he will be campaigning in New Hampshire. His spokeswoman said that she thinks he will, but they're just trying to figure out what the future will hold for him. They're not 100 percent sure.
ROBERTS: But bottom line, Dana, it appears as though everything is OK. There are no serious problems here?
BASH: According to his campaign, they say that he is going to be released today and they suggest that he was just hospitalized because he wasn't feeling well, with an abundance of caution. But again, we don't know any of the details as to what tests were done and really specifically how he was feeling and why he was hospitalized beyond the flu-like symptoms.
ROBERTS: Well, perhaps we'll get some of those details as the morning wears on. Dana Bash for us this morning in Des Moines.
BASH: Thanks, John.
ROBERTS: Thanks very much -- Alina.
CHO: New this morning. The tapes are gone, but the paper trail remains. The CIA says it will release documents to Congress as early as today, relating to terror interrogation tapes that were destroyed back in 2005. Now, the decision came after the House intelligence committee threatened to subpoena two agency officials. The White House is insisting there was no cover up after the "New York Times" said four administration lawyers went in on the talks over whether to get rid of the tapes.
So were any laws broken, and how high could it go? We'll talk to the reporter who broke that story "The Times" Mike Mazzetti, later on AMERICAN MORNING.
The Senate has confirmed Julie Myers as the head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement despite concerns about her qualifications and judgment. Her appointment run into trouble this fall after she and two other judges gave the most original costume award to a white employee who dressed as an escaped prisoner with dark makeup and dreadlocks at an agency Halloween party.
Myers later apologized saying she doesn't realized the employee's true skin color. Critics say they still think she's not the right pick, but there simply weren't enough votes to oppose her nomination. Myers, by the way, is the niece of General Richard Myers, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
And new polls released just minutes ago. The top Democratic candidates are in a statistical dead heat in Iowa. This is the CNN Opinion Research poll. Just four percentage points separate Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. On the Republican side, the same poll shows that Mike Huckabee is leading the pack with 33 percent. Mitt Romney second with 25 percent, Rudy Giuliani has 11 percent and John McCain and Fred Thompson tied at nine percent. We're going to take a look at the issues driving these polls later on in the hour.
ROBERTS: A remarkable story of survival out of northern California to tell you about. A father and his three children found alive last night after being lost in heavy snow in the mountains for three days without food. And we're just getting new pictures in from the family. In the first few, they're smiling, cutting down a Christmas tree that they found out in the woods, but the next ones are far different. They show the kids with their feet inside each other's jackets trying to stay warm and with another fierce storm in the forecast, rescuers found them just in time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I wanted soup.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And brownies.
CHRISTOPHER DOMINGUEZ, RESCUED FROM FOREST: We just kept dreaming about food.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And this is how a harrowing ordeal ends. Three children home with their mother, safe and sound. What started as a search for the perfect Christmas tree turned into a three-day fight to survive. They spoke with Anderson Cooper last night.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER DOMINGUEZ, RESCUED FROM FOREST: I was practically half way out of the tree, the shelter that my dad had made, just trying to keep Josh warm since I was next to him, and we just did the best that we could. ROBERTS (voice-over): Frederick Dominguez and his three kids, Chris, Alexis and Josh got lost in the snowy mountainous woods of northern California. An anxious mother feared the worst.
LISA SAMS, MOTHER: My heart hurts. I just want to find my kids and bring them home.
ROBERTS: As more than 80 searchers scoured the woods and helicopters searched from above, the Dominguez family huddled together, battling the cold.
ALEXIS DOMINGUEZ, RESCUED FROM FOREST: My dad like cut up the shirt, and Chris cut up his shirt and we made new socks so our feet could stay warm.
ROBERTS: Older brother, Chris, stayed positive, setting the example for his younger siblings.
C. DOMINGUEZ: Especially in front of them, I didn't want them to really lose hope. Whenever they would freak out I would just be like, it's all right.
ROBERTS: Then as bad weather was again rolling in a helicopter pilot making one last pass saw the father waving his arms, and the family's prayers were answered. They were searching for a tree, but instead found the inner strength to survive in the wilderness, and now have a Christmas story to remember.
FREDERICK DOMINGUEZ, FATHER: Well, my youngest boy said, "Dad, are we going to make it? Are you sure we're going to make it? I said son I would tell you what I bought you for Christmas if I thought we weren't going to make it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Well, all four of them are expected to be OK despite a little bit of frostbite and a touch of hypothermia. Coming up at 8:15 Eastern this morning, we're going to speak with the pilot and the paramedic who rescued the Dominguez family.
CHO: And, by the way, incredible story. They're calling it a Christmas miracle. And, by the way, those kids don't know what they're getting for Christmas yet so the secret's still safe with the family. All right.
ROBERTS: Something to look forward to.
CHO: Incredible story.
All right. Other news this morning. In Florida, four people dead after a chemical blast so massive it was felt nearly a mile away. Fourteen others were hurt. This was the scene in Jacksonville where the blast obliterated the T2 laboratories plant. The plant produces solvents and fuel additives. Witnesses describe the chaos.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: What did it sound like?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like a nuclear blast. I mean, I'm deaf right now. I can't hear in one ear.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: It was that loud?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was like a bomb went off, but I'm not saying that's what it was. Fireballs, humongous, as big as the cloud you see there. It was bad, man. It felt like a shotgun went off right next to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Officials with the U.S. Chemical Safety Board are expected to arrive on scene this morning to begin an investigation.
And take a look at these amazing shots sent in by I-Reporter Eric Beatty. He lives about four miles away from the plant and tells us he thought the blast was a plane crash at first. When he looked outside, he says he saw that right there. He described it as a mushroom cloud.
Now if you have any I-Reports of the blast, send them to us. But remember in all cases, don't put yourself in harm's way and, of course, make sure they're your photos, not somebody else's.
The Omaha Department Store that was the scene of a bloody rampage will reopen this morning for the first time since the deadly shooting. Last night, a memorial service was held on the steps of the Von Maur at the Westroads Mall. On December 5th, 19-year-old gunman Robert Hawkins killed eight people before killing himself. At last night's service, hundreds gathered. The victims were remembered, and a local pastor offered a prayer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLAVIN, SISTER KILLED IN SHOOTING: It was very touching here and the community's force has been fantastic. Not only have we had good family support but community support's been fantastic. The e-mails and the cards and the telephone calls and everything else has been just great.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Still a tough time for that community. Von Maur, by the way, is planning to put up a permanent memorial at the store but has not decided yet what it will look like.
The mother of an astronaut aboard the international space station has been killed in an accident, but NASA says the tragedy will not affect the mission. 90-year-old Rose Tani was killed when a train slammed into her car in Lombard, Illinois. Police say she stopped behind the school bus, honked her horn, then went around the bus and passed a down crossing gate. Astronaut Dan Tani has been informed, but he won't be leaving the space station.
NASA says the station's return module can only be used in emergencies, and astronauts do understand situations like this, unfortunately, can happen. Tani had been scheduled to return yesterday, but shuttle problems had delayed "Atlantis's" launch until at least January 10th.
Is cancer a death sentence for uninsured patients? A study published overnight has some truly frightening findings. The American Cancer Society says the uninsured are nearly twice as likely to die within five years. Now this is the first national test of its kind, and it's one that really sheds light on the troubling obstacles standing in the way of those without standard health care. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will have much more on this in our next hour -- John.
ROBERTS: It's now 11 minutes after the hour, Alina, and time to check in with our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents this morning for other stories new this morning.
The House passes the alternative minimum tax bill patch which means that you may be seeing more money in your refund. Our Ali Velshi at the business update desk to explain all of this. Good morning, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. It's a little grinch-like for me to be talking about taxes just before Christmas, but the House has agreed to a bill that the Senate had already passed so it's going to be going to effect. It's a 12-month patch, basically relief from some people who are going to be paying or who would have been paying the alternative minimum tax.
Now the alternative minimum tax or AMT was introduced about 40 years ago to ensure that the rich people were paying enough taxes. They weren't getting too many deductions and avoiding paying taxes, but they didn't set it to adjust for inflation. And as wages went up, more and more people became subject to this tax. As a result of this patch, 21 million Americans will avoid having to pay the AMT which has the typical effect of making you pay more tax. So while you won't see a bigger refund, 21 million people will not see a smaller refund.
With this patch that has been put in, the threshold now is $66,250 for joint filers and $44,350 for single filers. You can see the increase there. Without the AMT patch, people at much lower income levels would have been subject to it. This is only for a year, and hopefully Congress will deal with this in the coming year -- John.
ROBERTS: Ali, Democrats were looking for offsets to pay for this patch.
VELSHI: Yes.
ROBERTS: They didn't get them.
VELSHI: No.
ROBERTS: So where does the money come from? VELSHI: $53 billion. That's one of the big problems this administration's been having. They don't often find things to pay for these things. $53 billion shortfall you'll see as a result of this decision.
ROBERTS: All right. Ali Velshi for us this morning. Ali, thanks very much.
Our Rob Marciano at the weather update desk tracking this morning extreme wintry weather in the northeast expecting some snow. Rob, how much?
ROB MARCIANO, METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Getting some snow right now. They're going to get six to 10 inches before the day is done. We've got a number of weather situations across the country, three in fact. We'll get to the northeast right now, where snow is falling in places like New Hampshire, in Maine and eastern parts of Massachusetts. It's all the storm that's developing a little nor'easter that will be gone before it does too much damage. But folks who live just north of Manchester could get six to 10 inches of snow there. Keep you in the Christmas spirit.
All right. Here is the system that plowed through the pacific northwest the other day, and now it's tapping moisture from the gulf of Mexico. We've got strong, in some cases, severe thunderstorms, southeast Texas into Louisiana. This will march to the east and some cases bring some beneficial rain.
Rain continues to come down in the pacific northwest, not so beneficial. They don't really need anymore. Note that ski resorts will take it, though. Total accumulation with this system both in the cascades and the sierras could be anywhere from two to three feet of winter fresh powder. John, back up to you.
ROBERTS: Two to three feet, Rob?
MARCIANO: That's good stuff. You need a snorkel to ski through that.
ROBERTS: All right. Rob, thanks. We'll check back with you in just a few minutes.
MARCIANO: Yes.
ROBERTS: Alina?
CHO: All right, John, thank you. Coming up, Britney Spears' little sister is not that innocent. And now, the 16-year-old's pregnancy is raising some big legal questions. Our legal contributor Sunny Hostin will weigh in after the break.
And we'll show you a very unusual Christmas lights display on people. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: It's coming up to 17 minutes after the hour. Welcome back to the most news in the morning here on CNN. "Quick Hits" now.
A biker gang of santas. All postmen from South Korea delivering toys to their neighbors. Christmas is one of the biggest holidays in South Korea, where more than half the population is Christian.
Big red gets its closeup, NASA'S hubble space telescope snapping pictures of Mars during its orbital approach. On Tuesday at about 6:45 in the evening, Eastern time, the red planet came as close as 55 million miles away. That's next door in astronomical terms. Scientists say that Mars and Earth have a close encounter about every 26 months due to the differences in the orbits.
And a crateful of cocaine, $8 million worth, according to police. Clayton County, Georgia, police seized it from a shipping container headed for Orlando. They say it came from drug trafficking organization in Laredo, Texas, which had been under surveillance for several months.
And now let's go over to Alina.
CHO: All right. Thanks, John.
The pregnancy of 16-year-old Jamie Lynn Spears in raising a lot of eyebrows and some pretty big legal questions too. "OK!" magazine originally reported the story. The magazine says the father of the baby is 18 years old, not 19, like we originally thought. And that means depending on when and where they had sex, it could be statutory rape.
AMERICAN MORNING legal contributor Sunny Hostin is joining us live. You are a former sex crimes prosecutor.
SUNNY HOSTIN, LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR: Right.
CHO: So this is really your area of expertise. What I found so interesting is it really does depend on where it happened.
HOSTIN: Exactly. It depends on where it happened, when it happened because of the age of the participant.
CHO: And it varies from state to state.
HOSTIN: It varies from state to state as the sex crimes prosecutors. These are really the tough calls. These are sort of the Romeo and Juliet calls because statutory rape is really geared at punishing teachers that are having sex with their students and, you know, 25-year-old adults having sex with a 13-year-old or 14-year-old.
This situation is a little bit different because we have now consensual sex with teens. So we're having -- Jamie Lynn is reportedly 16 years old, turned 16 in April. Her boyfriend, we thought was 19, now it's being reported that he's 18. In California, there has to be a three-year difference where she filmed. In Florida, it has to be someone that's 24 years old. In Mississippi, there also has to be a three-year difference. Mississippi is where he lives and Louisiana where she lives, it has to be only greater than two years. And so, really the law in Louisiana is going to be the strictest, but I think this is really a moral issue and not a legal issue.
CHO: Right. Right, and let's talk about that. I mean, if there was consent there and if the mother approves, can he be charged?
HOSTIN: You know, it's up to the prosecutor. It's about prosecutorial discretion in these kinds of cases, and prosecutors are really loath to bring them because again, this is something that's happening all over. And if you start prosecuting teens for having sex with each other, we're going to have a problem with our juvenile justice system.
CHO: Yes, we are.
HOSTIN: So I think it's a moral issue. It's a social issue, and I think prosecutors may be looking at her mother. What is going on in the Spears family?
CHO: Well, and we have to see, too. I know you were talking about this earlier, about whether the mother might be culpable and whether child abuse may come into play here.
HOSTIN: That's right.
CHO: So that's another question. All right. Our legal contributor Sunny Hostin, thank you so much.
HOSTIN: Thank you, Alina.
CHO: All right -- John.
ROBERTS: The start of the primary season is fast approaching. Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, we'll give you some hints on how to pick the candidate who agrees with you most on the issues, just in case you're a little confused.
And we'll show you how one Florida woman is spreading holiday cheer with her unique Christmas lights display. It's our "Hot Shot" of the morning, and it's coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. Basketball star Tony Parker is planning to sue a Web site that said he cheated on his new wife, actress Eva Longoria. ex17online.com apparently reported that Parker had a two-month affair with a French model. That woman even claims that she attended his wedding back in July. Parker says he never even met her. He's seeking $40 million in damages.
And Terrell Owens wants Jessica Simpson to just stay home. Simpson watched Sunday's Dallas Cowboys game from a luxury box in Texas stadium, and her new boyfriend, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo had one of the worst games of his career. It might have been the white shirt with the pink number on it. Now Owens says that his teammate's new girlfriend may have been too much of a distraction. He has been messed up. ROBERTS: He actually had his worst game since his previous girlfriend, Kerry Underwood, attended a game. But it's true. He folded up like a cheap suitcase. I saw that.
CHO: Oh, boy.
ROBERTS: Time now for our "Hot Shot" of the morning. Anyone can put Christmas lights on a house, but it takes a special person to put them on their body. Candy Strand of Tallahassee, Florida, covers herself from head to toe with lights and then dances around in front of her house every night during the holiday season. She usually spends about four hours a night dancing to the Jackson Five. She looks like Peter Gabriel on that Sledgehammer days. Remember that?
CHO: I'm surprised. I'm surprised it was a woman, frankly.
ROBERTS: If you've got a "Hot Shot," make sure you send to us. The address is amhotshots@CNN.com. Be sure to include your name, where you're from, a little bit about the picture or video. And one more thing, make sure the image is yours and not someone else's.
Well, the primary season is knocking on our door and for many of us, the field is so wide at this point and the issues so diverse it's sometimes hard to determine which candidate most shares our own personal views. Our Veronica De La Cruz is here now with some tips on how you can narrow it all down. Good morning.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you. You're right. The field is so diverse. It's so wide. With nine Republicans contending for the White House, eight Democrats in the race, it is tough to get a hold on where each of them stands on the issues. There are several Web sites out there that will help you out.
One that we do like, select a candidate. You can find that at Minnesota.publicradio.org. The page has a series of questions and below each, you get to determine how important that issue is to you. Some of the things asked.
Do you favor universal health care? Also, do you believe the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts should be made permanent? Once you answer all of them, you're then taken to a results page. The candidates are ranked according to how closely they share your views. It even breaks down which issues you agree on and which you don't. The Web site doesn't try to tell you who to vote for. It just tries to offer some extra insight.
If you want to check it out yourself, here is the Web site we just showed you. It's Minnesotapublicradio.org. There are also a couple of other ones on there. ontheissues.org is one of them as well. You can also head to our own Web site, CNN.com/politics or CNNpolitics.com. You can find in-depth information on all the candidates, including their bios, where they stand on the issues, how they rank in the latest polls, and how much money they raised for their campaign.
And don't forget you can also head to our Web site here at AMERICAN MORNING, CNN.com/American morning because we will have all of those websites posted for you.
ROBERTS: (INAUDIBLE) It was Minnesota.publicradio.com?
DE LA CRUZ: Yes.
ROBERTS: Right. OK.
DE LA CRUZ: Dot-org.
ROBERTS: Dot-org.
DE LA CRUZ: Yes.
ROBERTS: There was a dot missing there.
DE LA CRUZ: Just head to CNN.com/am and we're going to list them all for you.
ROBERTS: Excellent. That will be fun. We'll try this form. Thanks, Veronica.
CHO: All right. Thanks, Veronica.
You're watching the most news in the morning. One star pitcher tells another to put up some evidence that you didn't do steroids or give up your Cy Young awards. We'll have that story coming up.
Also, we're following breaking news this morning. Rudy Giuliani in the hospital, after falling ill on the campaign trail. We have new developments in that story, and today's other big headlines when AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back on this Thursday morning, everyone. A beautiful shot of the sun rising there in Miami, courtesy of our affiliate WSVN, former home of CNN anchor Rick Sanchez, by the way. It is fair and 66 degrees.
ROBERTS: You could say that about a lot of places.
CHO: That's true. Going up to sunny 77. Wow. Wouldn't it be nice to be in Miami today. Good morning, everybody. It's Thursday, December 20th. I'm Alina Cho. Kiran Chetry has the morning off.
ROBERTS: And good morning to you, I'm John Roberts. Breaking news this morning. Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani is expected to check out of a St. Louis hospital today. He was admitted last night after suffering flu-like symptoms. Giuliani spokeswoman says precautionary tests conducted found nothing of concern. He's in high spirits. Plans to return to New York later on today. Giuliani spent hours campaigning in Missouri yesterday. Ahead of that state's primary on February the 5th. He also sat down with our Wolf Blitzer for a lengthy interview in Columbia, Missouri, aboard the CNN election express there. Giuliani had not been feeling well all day. He felt worse after his plane took off last evening for New York. The plane actually had to turn around because he started getting so sick, and they took him to the hospital as precautionary measure. He spent the night at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. Again, he's said to be fine though. Doctors say nothing serious and then he'll be released and be on his way back home later on today.
Alina?
CHO: Also new this morning, the remarkable tale of a family who survived three days in the snowy California Mountains, after getting lost while looking for a Christmas tree. It is just unbelievable. These new pictures taken just this morning by the Dominguez family themselves. The first set showing them smiling looking for the tree. Hopefully, they actually got one. But these pictures from later on in the ordeal show them huddling together, sticking their feet in each other's jackets, actually, to try to stay warm. Last night on "Anderson Cooper 360," Chris Dominguez described what it was like.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS DOMINGUEZ, RESCUED AFTER 3 DAYS IN THE WOODS: We were under a tree and my dad went to go get some more branches so that we can put it over the tree, because by then, the snow was going and going. It was getting thicker and thicker, and so he just went out and I was with Josh and Lexi and trying to keep them warm and he was out cutting branches to cover up the trees and we just all huddled up together and tried to stay as warm and out of the snow as we possibly could.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
So incredible. The father, Frederick Dominguez, actually used twigs to spell out the word "Help" in the snow. That really helped. They ate snow to survive and then when they heard the helicopter, they all did what they could to get noticed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDERICK DOMINGUEZ, RESCUED AFTER 3 DAYS IN THE WOODS: My daughter heard a helicopter. "Dad, a helicopter." So, I jumped up, barefoot and all. I ran across the rocks. And we found the snow, it was deep by that time and then I started waving my hands and when they turned around, man, it was just like, I was just praising God and saying "Thank you, Lord, thank you, Lord" because I knew we had made it at that time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: All four of them, thankfully, are expected to be OK, despite a little frostbite and a touch of hypothermia. And all four of them will be our guests tomorrow on AMERICAN MORNING.
A bid by the states to reel in greenhouse gases has been shut down by the EPA. The fed said no to California's bid to place its own emission limits on cars, trucks, and SUVs. Now, 16 other states were waiting to see if it would go through. The decision is being looked at as a victory for automakers because many cars currently in the show rooms wouldn't meet those state requirements.
John?
ROBERTS: A few minutes ago, we told you that Terrell Owens was telling Jessica Simpson, Tony Romo's girlfriend to stay away from cowboy's games in the future. Now, Red Sox pitcher, Curt Shilling says Roger Clemens should lose his last four Cy Young Awards. Clemens was named in the Mitchell report as having to use steroids and human growth hormone from 1998 to 2001. Schilling wrote on his blog that Clemens should get his lawyers to get a retraction or baseball should take his awards away. Clemens has denied ever taking steroids or human growth hormone.
And that brings us to this morning's "Quick Vote" question. Here's what were asking today. Should Roger Clemens give back his Cy Young Awards? Cast your vote at cnn.com/am. We'll have the first tally of votes coming up in our next hour here this morning.
All right, John, thanks. We have breaking news just coming in to AMERICAN MORNING now. An earthquake has struck near New Zealand. The 6.6 quake hit off the east coast of the island. It was felt as far south as Christ Church, about 400 miles away. There is no tsunami risk but one official says, there are reports of collapsed roofs and power outages. There are no reports of deaths or injuries.
Controversy in Nicaragua over the fate of an American cleared of raping and killing his ex-girlfriend. Eric Volz has been ordered released by a Nicaraguan appeals court. The prosecutors say, they're going to appeal. During the trial, ten witnesses claimed Volz was somewhere else when his ex was killed but a man who was originally charged with the crime was offered immunity and testifies that he saw Volz nearby. Volz's mother is now Nicaragua. She is demanding his immediate release.
John?
ROBERTS: Its 35 minutes after the hour now. New polls just released this hour, show the battle between Republicans Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney heating up in Iowa. The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll has Huckabee on top with 33 percent, Romney second with 25 percent, Rudy Giuliani well back at 11 percent. John McCain and Fred Thompson both tied at 9 percent. On the Democratic side, the three top candidates are in a statistical dead heat. Look at that, 30 percent for Clinton, 28 percent for Obama and 26 percent for Edwards, just four points separate them all.
CNN's Jessica Yellin is following the Democratic campaign. She joins us live from Des Moines this morning. And Jessica, with these numbers are so tight, probably an indication that the Democrats don't differ all that much on the issues. So, what are they trying to close the deal with voters on in the remaining few days?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, you're absolutely right. Their agendas are so similar that what the Democrats are really selling is a difference in leadership styles. The buzz wards you hear on the campaign trail with the Democrats these days are change and experience, and really what they're saying is Senator Clinton is selling herself as the sort of Washington old hand, who knows how to work with powerful interests to get change through. John Edwards is selling a different leadership style. He can fight those special interests to get change through, sort of a more confrontational approach and then Barack Obama is selling this I'm not your usual politics idea of neither fighting special interests or working with them, but finding a new way to sort of rise above all this.
So, what you hear from them are similar ideas on universal health care, the economy, even Iraq, but very different tone in how they would run the country as a leader from the White House.
John?
ROBERTS: Jessica, with them so close on all of these issues, will turnout at the caucuses be crucial for them?
YELLIN: You know it will, absolutely. I mean, there's even this debate about how weather will make a difference, if it storms on caucus night. It's all about those very few fractions of a differences in who comes out. Both Senator Clinton and Senator Obama are relying on first-time caucus-goers. People who have to come out and caucusing is a long, many-hour process. You have to really be committed. If it snows that night and people aren't in the mood, some first-timers might decide to stay home. The thinking is in that case John, Edwards has a real advantage because he's relying on the folks who are familiar caucus-goers, have done it for years and it's all about turnout and who can get out the biggest vote that night.
ROBERTS: All right. Jessica Yellin for us this morning from Des Moines, certainly is coming down to the wire. Thanks, we'll check back with you a little later.
Alina?
CHO: All right, thanks, John. "Quick Hits" now. Aruban prosecutors plan to go public today with evidence they've gathered over the last eight months in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway. That evidence has been deemed insufficient to charge three men who have been arrested several times in the case. Holloway vanished, you'll recall, during a trip to Aruba back in 2005.
Not so fast. A convenience store clerk fights back against a would-be robber. Is that a bat? We'll tell you what happened and interrogating terror suspects on tape. Who gave the order to have that footage destroyed? We'll talk about what crimes may have been committed. Stay with us. That's next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHO: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. 41 minutes after the hour. Time to get a check of the weather with Rob Marciano, our resident at the CNN weather center in Atlanta. Hey, Rob, we're looking at some more snow in the northeast, right?
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ROBERTS: The CIA has announced it will hand over documents to a congressional committee probing the destruction of terror interrogation videotapes. That move could come later today after the House Intelligence Committee threatened to subpoena two agency officials. In the meantime, the White House is insisting there was no cover up after the "New York Times" said four administration attorneys were in on the talks over whether to get rid of those tapes.
Joining us now live from Washington is one of the reporters who broke the story about White House discussions over the tapes. "New York Times" national security correspondent Mark Mazzetti. Mark, I'll ask you about the White House involvement in just a second but what do you make of this change of heart by the CIA and the Department of Justice who had resisted this notion of sharing any information about their investigation with members of Congress?
MARK MAZZETTI, N.Y. TIMES NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Last Friday, the Justice Department sent a letter to the House Intelligence Committee, basically telling them to stand down. Saying we've got our own investigation going on. You guys should delay yours until we finish our criminal inquiry. There has been a change of heart. I think, kind of cooler heads prevail. There was kind of a looming showdown between Congress and the Justice Department on this.
And I think, both sides realize that there was no interest to have a showdown. They could both have parallel investigations. And so, what we saw yesterday was that the CIA said OK, we're going to comply with the House Intelligence Committee and that both investigations can proceed a phase.
ROBERTS: Jose Rodriguez was the director of operations at the CIA and the time of the destruction. He was the one who gave the green light. Do you expect the Congress would call him to testify and would the CIA and Department of Justice make him available? He is no longer an employee there. Could they stop him from testifying?
MAZZETTI: Yes. He will officially retire from the CIA next month. He is top on the witness list and it's presumably, he will be testifying along with John Rizzo, who is the CIA's top lawyer. Those are the two witnesses that the House Intelligence Committee had asked for first. There are going to be a host of witnesses, including former CIA directors, Porter Goss and George Tenet. This is going to go on for some weeks and months. But those two witnesses, the House believes have the most information about the events surrounding the tapes destruction.
ROBERTS: We also have this yesterday. The White House tried to beat the stuffing out of you for the story that you ran on Wednesday. In particular, they took exception with the sub-headline that said that the White House's involvement was more widespread than first acknowledged. Here's what Dana Perino said about that. Take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA PERINO, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: When I first looked at it, I felt that that was saying that I had misled the American public on this, and I have not. There is nothing I have said that has been contradictory.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Now, the "New York Times" I noticed today, Mark, issued a correction on that one particular point. Let's put it up there for our viewers to take a look at here. The "New York Times" saying "While Bush administration officials have acknowledged some discussions leading up to the destruction of the tapes in November of 2005, as the article noted, that the White House itself has not officially said anything on the subject, so its role was not "Wider than it said." But they didn't take issue with the basic premise of the story, did they? That that four people at the White House, four attorneys of the White House including Alberto Gonzalez, Harriet Miers and David Addington who is now the vice president's chief of staff, were involved in discussions.
MAZZETTI: That's right. There was no challenge to the facts of the story and subsequent reports, yesterday and today, those facts have been confirmed. So, there were ongoing discussions over a couple years about the tapes at the White House. Among lawyers, possibly some of the policy makers. What we're still trying to figure out is exactly who was advocating what position. This did go on for several years in this and we believe the White House never gave a red or maybe necessarily, a green light to this, and Jose Rodriguez, agents within the CIA decided to go ahead and destroy the tapes.
ROBERTS: Is it logical to assume, Mark, that if people like Gonzalez, Miers and David Addington knew about this, then the president and the vice president would have known about it, too?
MAZZETTI: We wouldn't want to make that leap. The president has said, publicly that he did not recall anything about these tapes until General Hayden, a couple of weeks ago, informed him about the matter. So, we really don't know the extent that the president or vice president knew about this.
ROBERTS: All right. Perhaps we'll know, perhaps we never will. Mark Mazzetti from the "New York Times." Mark, good to see you, thanks very much.
MAZZETTI: All right. Thanks very much.
ROBERTS: Alina?
CHO: There's a lot ahead so stay with us. A convenience store clerk actually fought back against a knife-wielding robber, using, among other things, a bat. We'll tell you why he did it.
And when fender benders become a lot worst. New crash testers are out raising some big concerns for many families driving minivans. The results ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROBERTS: Ten minutes now to the top of the hour. If you're just joining us, here's a look at what's making headline this morning. Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani is expected to check out of a St. Louis Hospital today after suffering, what his campaign calls flu-like symptoms. The spokeswoman says precautionary tests found nothing of concern. Giuliani is said to be in high spirits. Plans to return to New York later on today. We'll have a live report with the very latest coming up at the top of the hour.
The International Space Station's mission will not be affected despite the tragic death of one of the astronaut's mother. The 90- year-old Rose Tani was killed when a train slammed into her car in Lombard, Illinois. The astronaut, Dan Tani, has been informed but NASA says station's return module is only for emergencies and astronauts understand that situations like this can happen. Tani, by the way, was supposed to come back yesterday but the shuttle's latest mission has been put off for a couple of weeks.
A very Merry Christmas for the Dominguez Family rescued last night, after three days without food in the snowy mountains of California. A father and his three kids went looking for a Christmas tree. They found it but they got lost in the way back and couldn't find their car. Then, after three cold nights, huddled together for warmth, they were spotted by a helicopter and rescued.
CHO: Incredible.
Other stories making headlines this morning. A would-be robber is foiled by a store clerk who just wouldn't back down. Take a look at this video. The man entered the convenience store in Lowell, Massachusetts, with a knife demanding cash but the clerk, Perry Ashford wasn't scared. He even fought back. As you can see there, he grabbed a baseball bat even pepper sprayed the guy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PERRY ASHFORD, STORE CLERK: Somebody comes in and robbed me, I said I'm going to spray him with a spray, beat them with the bat and then call the cops.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: He was prepared. You know, the suspect punched the clerk as you saw there, before running away without any money. Ashford says it's actually the third time he's been robbed while working at that same convenience store and he says if it happens again, he's going to react the very same way.
Putting bumpers to the test. The Insurance Institute For Highway Safety says, all six mini vans tested for 2008 had problems. The Nissan Quest was the worst, while the Honda Odyssey performed best overall. But tests showed that all of their bumpers suffered way too much damage in minor impacts. The institute has warning that even the smallest fender benders can cost you big time. Greg Hunter is looking out for you and your safety with more on those crash tests coming up in the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING.
John?
ROBERTS: A troubling study released overnight that shows just how deadly it can be to not have health insurance. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is up in our next hour to show us what been found about uninsured patients and cancer.
And don't adjust the color on your television, say yes, this man is actually blue and believe it or not, he doesn't mind. In fact, he did it to himself. We'll explain, next hour on AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHO: Just about 4 minutes before the hour. What was the most famous quote of the year? Take a listen.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't tase me, bro. Don't tase me. I didn't do anything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: In case you missed this, which is nearly impossible. "Don't tase me, bro" topped the list of the year's best quote according to the Yale Book of Quotations. Second was the Miss Teen America contestant who is rambling answer to a question about geography got her a lot of attention and in third place, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who told a New York audience quote, "In Iran, we don't have homosexuals like in your country."
Just about three minutes before the hour. Ali Velshi here "Minding Your Business" and you're talking about something a lot of us are concern with those flight delays in New York and the D.O.T. doing something about it.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, as we head into the Christmas traveling season, a lot of you are getting ready to travel. The immediate thing that the government is doing is what they did at Thanksgiving. It's going to be clearing up some Military Air Space in the northeast. The northeast accounts for about three- quarters of the airline delays in the country, not because they're happening here, but because there are so many connections through the northeast. Because of the delays, the rest of the country gets delays.
However, the Department of Transportation has cut a deal with the airlines, where they're going to limit the number of flights at the Northeast Airlines. La Guardia has already got these limits. JFK will be limited to 83 flights an hour. By the way, in the summer, when things were really bad, there were about 110 flights an hour, so it's a significant difference. And by the way, as you were saying to me a few minutes ago, doesn't it mean they're just going to ship those flights over in Newark. They're going to impose limits at Newark as well.
These are not imposed limits. They're voluntary limits. They'll be in place in all the northeast airports by March 15th. So, the idea is that these airlines will find ways to try at least, get some of their peak hours into other hours. There are other options on the table. One is auctioning off new slots for takeoffs and landings, auctioning off existing slots and a congestion charge. The airlines don't like those other ideas.
CHO: Of course. A lot of the airlines had said, well then, only the big airlines are going to be able to land.
VELSHI: Yes. Only the big airlines will affect that. And by the way, airline analysts say that the limiting of flights, while it will make your traveling easier could have the result of making it more expensive.
ROBERTS: What they really need is more controllers.
VELSHI: Yes. They need to be able to move these planes. But you know, some of these airports are at full capacity, in runways and controllers. So, it's a long-term project and that's where the problem lies. We haven't built enough infrastructures to keep up with the demand that we've got. But at least, for the next few days you'll get some relief and into the spring, hopefully.
ROBERTS: Ali, thanks. See you again soon.
We've been telling you this morning about Red Sox Pitcher Curt Schilling say that Roger Clemens should lose his last four Cy Young Awards because he was name in that Mitchell report for alleged use of steroids. That brings us to this morning's "Quick Vote" question. Should Roger Clemens have to get back those awards? Cast your vote for us this morning at cnn.com. Right now, 60 percent of you say yes, he should give them back. 40 percent say no. We'll continue to tally the votes throughout the morning and give you a final check just before 9:00 eastern.
Coming up in our next hour. Meet a man who is not going to have a green Christmas or a white one. It's going to be a blue Christmas. In fact, he is a blue everything. Don't adjust your TV. He really is blue. And no, it's not makeup. What happens to him, why he really doesn't mind what happened to him? We'll tell you about that coming up.
And a day of protest ahead in New Orleans over the proposed demolition of dozens of buildings damaged by Hurricane Katrina. We'll tell you what has people up in arms. The next hour of AMERICAN MORNING starts right now.
Breaking news. Health scare on the campaign trail. Rudy Giuliani rushed to the hospital. His plane turned around. An update on his condition, live this hour.
A search for a Christmas tree becomes a fight for survival.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had the tree, but then we had to abandon it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Lost in the worst winter conditions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My feet were numb.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was just no way we were going to be able to walk in that snow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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