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American Morning
Senator Amy Klobuchar Set to Endorse Barack Obama; President Bush on His Way to Ukraine; Lawmakers Return to Congress Today From Two-Week Recess
Aired March 31, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They have been out with their weapons. Nowhere to be seen. That appears to have been the result of intense pressure from Iran on Muqtada al-Sadr.
Kiran?
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: So, tell us a little bit more about what exactly is going on with this situation and the confirmation that Iran may have had something to do with this ceasefire agreement.
ROBERTSON: Well, all this year, parties here in Iraq have banded together in an alliance. All the representatives of that five-party alliance went to Iran. Muqtada al-Sadr's party, the prime minister's party Nuri al-Maliki. Muqtada al-Sadr is believed to be in Iran. And Iranian government officials got them altogether over the weekend, got them to negotiate a deal.
Muqtada al-Sadr just 24 hours or so ago was saying, no deal, hold on to your weapons. That's what he was telling his militia. Just a few hours ago, he offered the ceasefire, telling his militia to cooperate with the government under certain conditions. And this appears to be the result of their having pressure from Iran and these negotiations. But what's significant here is the prime minister sends his party officials and key other Shiite leaders to Iran to bring about this solution shows just how important and influential Iran is here at the moment, Kiran.
CHETRY: Doesn't it? As we said, we are just speaking to the general who said that perhaps it is time for more talks with Iran on the part of the United States. So, we'll see how this all plays out.
Nic Robertson for us in Baghdad. Thank you.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And issue No. 1, your money and a groundbreaking plan for people that invests in protective.
First though, another record high for the price of gasoline. AAA says the average for a gallon of regular unleaded hit $3.28 overnight.
The markets here in the U.S. open in just about 90 minutes. Right now the DOW futures are down just slightly. This after Asian markets overnight dropped 2 to 3 percent. Bad day in the Asian markets. What's going to be here? We'll find out soon enough.
All of this comes as the head of the Treasury Department will announce a new plan to police your money, your banks and the markets that you invest in. The announcement by Secretary Henry Paulson is being called the broadest overhaul of financial oversights since the Great Depression. Sounds like sweeping reform, but will it have any teeth? And what does it mean to the average American? Let's bring in our Gerri Willis. She's got some more details.
Good morning, Gerri.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Good morning, John. Good to see you.
Well, this plan, we're just getting the details of it over the weekend here. First off, the Federal Reserve would have broad leeway to regulate and oversee investment banks especially when it comes to systemic risks. The kind that blows up and hurts everybody in the system.
Also, a National Mortgage Commission would be established that would require minimum licensing standards for mortgage brokers.
It would also call for the consolidation of federal oversight agencies. As you probably know, John, there are some five agencies that oversee banks across the country. They all have their own rules. It's all very confusing. This plan would actually iron out some of these differences so that we don't have so many rules and so many different regulatory agencies.
ROBERTS: Yes. It was described in one publication I saw as the Fed will allow the markets to do whatever they want until they start to get in trouble, and then the Fed will jump in. But what does that do for the average person out there who's, you know, invested in a 401k plan or has got some mutual funds or something like that.
WILLIS: Well, regulation of mortgage brokers is not a bad thing, obviously. I think that's going to help individuals. But at the end of the day, it's not going to do anything to help those 2.2 million people who have already gone into foreclosure. You know, we have 8.8 million Americans who are under water in their loans. They owe more than their homes are worth. Those folks are also looking for solutions.
Just this morning though we spoke with economist Dean Baker about this situation. Here's what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN BAKER, CTR FOR ECONOMIC AND POLICY RESEARCH: This is not going to address the current situation. It's an opening gambit in a debate. And my best guess is we might see some very small reforms put in place this year, but this is something that's going to be dealt with by the next session of Congress and the next president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIS: So big questions there about just how far this regulation will go. But I also think you have to ask at the end of the day -- will Congress, will the president, will regulatory agencies have the will to make these kinds of changes that they're talking about? Remember these systems have been in place since the Great Depression.
ROBERTS: All right. Gerri Willis for us this morning. Gerri, thanks. Be sure to keep it right here for coverage of Americans' No. 1 issue -- the economy. Gerri and Ali Velshi and the CNN money team will have in-depth coverage on "ISSUE #1" beginning at noon Eastern right here on CNN and continuing all week.
CHETRY: To politics now. Another Democratic senator and superdelegate set to endorse Barack Obama. She's Senator Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota. Also despite pressure from some for Hillary Clinton to drop out, she told the "Washington Post" over the weekend that she intends to finish what she started. Senator Clinton telling voters in Indianapolis they need to be heard. Indiana votes May 6th.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There are some folks saying, well, we ought to stop these elections.
AUDIENCE: No!
CLINTON: I didn't think we believed that in America. I thought we of all people knew how important it was to give everyone a chance to have their voices heard and their votes counted.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Barack Obama also agreed that Clinton should stay in the race.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My attitude is that Senator Clinton can run as long as she wants. Her name is on the ballot. And she is a fierce and formidable competitor and she obviously believes that she would make the best nominee and the best president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Obama is brainstorming -- barnstorming -- perhaps brainstorming as well, that happened at a bowling alley occasionally.
ROBERTS: Should they do that everyday?
CHETRY: How do you, you know, get through that split? You don't know where you are going to throw the ball. Brainstorming takes place all the time at bowling alley. What he did take a stab in Altoona, quipping "my economic plans better than my bowling." That after he hit a -- ooh, gutter ball. There you go.
Well, presumptive Republican nominee Senator John McCain kicks off his "Service to America." That's a tour that he's on today, starting off in Mississippi this morning, talking about his family's long military history. In fact, he and his wife, Cindy, attended an air show on Sunday. The air field that was named for his grandfather, his namesake, Admiral John McCain.
McCain's tour across the country includes places important to his life -- Virginia, where he went to high school, Maryland, where he attended the Naval Academy as well as Florida and Arizona.
Alina Cho is here now with some other stories new this morning.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did we miss Sunny States. Good morning, guys. And good morning again. Happy Monday. Hey, we got them all covered. Good morning, everybody.
New this morning, President Bush is on his way to the Ukraine. It's the first stop in a week-long visit to Eastern Europe. And that trip includes the NATO summit in Romania. About an hour ago, President Bush addressed the White House press corps and delivered a message to Congress urging lawmakers to pass key bills on the housing crisis and the wiretapping program.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Congress needs to pass legislation to modernize the Federal Housing Administration. Struggling homeowners are waiting on Congress to act so that the FHA can help more Americans refinance their mortgages and stay in their homes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Lawmakers return to Congress today from a two-week recess.
Also new this morning. After almost six months and more than 250 witnesses, a ruling from the coroner overseeing an inquest into the death of Princess Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed told the jury there is no evidence of a murder plot. He went on to say there is nothing to support theories by Fayed's father that British royals or the Secret Intelligence Service were behind the couple's death in a car crash in Paris back in 1997.
Well, listen to this, guys. How's this for irony? Portions of a new cheating and plagiarism code at the University of Texas at San Antonio appear to have been lifted word-for-word from another school's honor code. Can you believe this? The student who discovered the problem say even the definition of plagiarism was plagiarized. The student in charge of the new code is calling the whole thing, well, an oversight.
CHETRY: How much creative language goes into a code?
CHO: That's -- well, you know, anyway, it was lifted. That's the problem.
CHETRY: In case of fire, take the stairs. I know they got that from somewhere else. CHO: They might have gotten it from somebody else. But anyway, the University of Texas, you better modify that plagiarism code.
Meanwhile, folks in South Carolina and Maine may no longer use their driver's license as an acceptable ID at airports or federal buildings. That is unless the two states work out a deal with the Department of Homeland Security. See right now, the two states have not asked for an extension for implementing new layers of security to their IDs. Those layers of security are now required onto the new federal Real ID Act.
Aloha to Aloha Airlines. That airline is shutting down after more than 60 years in business. The airline will stop flying this week after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this month. That means 1900 workers will soon be out of work. The airline's partner, United, will shoulder some of the burden flying Aloha passengers who are booked on flights after this month.
Well, the Olympic torches around the world relay is underway this morning amid heavy security. The flame arrived in Beijing overnight. China's President Hu Jintao lit the torch then passed the flame beginning its 20-country, 130-day journey. Wow. The next stop, by the way, is Kazakhstan tomorrow. The flame will also visit Tibet, where Tibetans, as many people know, have been protesting, in some cases violently, Chinese rule.
And here in this country it's time to play ball. President Bush threw out the season's ceremonial first pitch last night. Now, the rest of Major League Baseball gets into the act. There's a full slate of opening games today including the final home opener at Yankee Stadium right here in New York. The Yankees take on the Toronto Blue Jays this afternoon. And the new Yankee Stadium, by the way, is set to open next year.
It's going to cost tons of money. Yes, they are. It's going to open for the 2009 season, right? And I guess tickets are going to be -- some of them are going to be as high as $2500.
ROBERTS: And then there's Citi Field as well, the Mets' new home, that's going to be opening soon. I can't believe how quickly they put that stadium up in Washington.
CHO: Well, you know what it is? As soon as you get the money, they start building.
CHETRY: Exactly. Can you get us tickets for $2500 sit?
CHO: He'll get us bleacher seats.
ROBERTS: I don't know if I can get you the $2500 tickets, but I might be able to get you something.
CHO: All right, good. Let's all go.
CHETRY: Exactly. Take Rob Marciano too. Big Yankees fan. Well, long lines taking off your shoes, getting wanded, someone is going through your bags, enough to make anyone a little bit peeved. The Transportation Security Administration now wants to change all that, testing out a new plan that would ease tension by using mood lighting and soothing music at check points.
The program starts in May at one terminal in Baltimore. The BWI Airport, they are going to test it out there, and if it works other airports could follow. The TSA says that a calmer environment could help screeners work better and make it easier to spot terrorists. They you have it.
Are you buying that one, Alina?
CHO: No. I told you earlier, a couple of hours ago, as long as you still have to take off your shoes and put all your stuff -- all the toiletries in a zip-loc bag, not so good for me.
This is a woman thing. The whole toiletries issue is a big deal. You can't check your luggage...
CHETRY: You don't know what it's like to find 3 ounce containers of spray.
It's not as easy as it can.
CHO: Shampoo, lotion, the whole thing.
ROBERTS: I just don't get it.
CHETRY: We've got some advice for the next president, by the way, at least according to five former secretaries of state. Close Guantanamo Bay, open up dialogue with Iran. We're going to be talking with one of them. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, joins us next.
Also, severe weather in the country's midsection. Golf ball size hail in Oklahoma and a tornado spotted overnight. Jackie Jeras tracking extreme weather for us, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, that is the sound of hail, in some cases golf ball size hail falling in Oklahoma. That state just getting pounded over the weekend in many parts. Thunderstorms, heavy rain, hail across western and central Oklahoma. Officials there say that the storm line also spun off a tornado, funnel clouds could be seen rolling across the northern part of the state. Some of it captured on tape as you see there.
And more strong storms are expected today. Severe flooding also the problem in parts of Texas where heavy rain left many streets submerged. Customers at a gas station in Long View, Texas, scrambled to get out of the way when a huge awning toppled over. There you see it. Jacqui Jeras in for Rob Marciano this morning at the weather update desk for us. And you said, unfortunately, for some parts of Oklahoma and Texas, it's just going to get worse today.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: And speaking of spring, Washington, D.C. is pink and white all over. Cherry blossoms in full bloom in the nation's capital. A sight to be hold. There is a live close-up of a branch of cherry blossom there. You know, all those you see in the cherry trees around the Tidal Basin and it's just such a beautiful site this time of year.
What's not such a great sight is the amount of traffic that is coming into the city. So if you happened to be taking in the Cherry Blossom Festival, and it made its barren right now, because you know it's 8 o'clock on a Monday morning. But over the weekend, the place was just jam packed. Do not drive your car. Find a parking lot somewhere, leave the car, take public transportation or walk there if you can because the traffic was just nuts over the weekend.
CHETRY: Also finding a space, that will take you the better half of the day, too. Right? Pretty shot though. Take your camera.
Well, still ahead, a dramatic hostage standoff in Florida. All of it was caught on tape by one of our affiliate cameras. A hail of police bullets bringing the situation to a close. We're going to tell you what happen. Talking with a reporter and photo journalist behind the lens, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 21 minutes after the hour.
Five former U.S. secretaries of state are urging the next president to close the prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and open up dialogue with Iran. The consensus coming from former secretaries Colin Powell, Henry Kissinger, James Baker, Warren Christopher and Madeleine Albright.
Former Secretary Albright joins me now from our Washington Bureau. She's also the author of the new book called "Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America's Reputation and Leadership."
Madam Secretary, thanks for joining me. There seems to be mutual sharing of this idea at this conference last week in Athens, Georgia, that America's reputation in the world really has been bruised and is in dramatic need of improvement.
MADELEINE ALBRIGHT, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: Absolutely. It's great to be with you, John. And this was a terrific meeting. We had a lot of subjects that we talked about. But we began with the issue of what has happened to America's image. And then proceeded to look at the ways that the image could be improved, and closing Guantanamo was at the top of the list. ROBERTS: In fact, on that point Secretary Powell said, quote, "Our image abroad has dropped significantly. There are some things the new president can do right away. I hope the new president and it seems will be the case, will close Guantanamo immediately."
Former Secretary Baker was particularly harsh about Guantanamo Bay, which was somewhat unusual because he's been so close to this administration. But what effect do you think closing Guantanamo could have on improving America's image in the world? Is it really that pressing an issue at present?
ALBRIGHT: Well, it has become kind of symbolic along with Abu Ghraib for the mistakes of the United States not living up to what we believe in, which is the rule of law, habeas corpus, the idea that people are allowed to have defense lawyers, that we don't torture people.
So, there is this whole concept that the U.S. has lost its way in its moral authority. And the moral authority is very important in terms of making sure that our national security interests are protected when we deal with other countries. And that's why, I think, we all felt so strongly about this.
ROBERTS: Were you surprised at how strong Secretary Baker was on this issue?
ALBRIGHT: Well, I think that he is a very concerned man about the image of the United States. And he is somebody also that led the way on a very important second subject that we agreed on, which was to have a dialogue with the Iranians. And it's something that he came up with, along with former member of Congress, Lee Hamilton, in the Iraqi report that the administration didn't follow up on.
ROBERTS: You were also talking about that particular point at an address at the University of Florida over the weekend where you said, the biggest unintended consequence in Iraq is Iran. I think one might say that actually Iran has won the war in Iraq. But the question is -- how do you engage Iran without seeming to reward them?
ALBRIGHT: Well, because you have to look at diplomacy as a way that countries talk to each other and deliver very tough messages. The thing that I've been arguing is diplomacy is not appeasement. Diplomacy is the way that countries really make clear what their intentions are.
And as everybody said and Secretary Baker was the one who, I think, articulated it first in our meeting was that you make peace with your enemies not with your friends. You need to talk to them. And that's why it is not giving in to them.
ROBERTS: Do you think, Madam Secretary, that the next U.S. president should meet with the leaders of Iran in the first year of their presidency?
ALBRIGHT: I think the next president has to put the diplomacy into place. You don't begin by talking to the president of a country. There are lots of other levels at which to begin. It's something that we did when I went to North Korea, instead of the president going, he sent me. And so I think that there are different levels of engagement and I think we have to begin in a very systematic way.
ROBERTS: But do you think it will be possible to have a leaders' conference in the first year after the next American president takes over the Oval office?
ALBRIGHT: Well, first we have to determine who is the leader. I mean in many ways, President Ahmadinejad is not the sole source of power. And I think one has to see where we are. I think it is a mistake to begin at the top because the president is the trump card. It's somebody that you really bring in when you have to make some very tough decisions and choices and -- or to deliver a package. So I think it's a mistake to begin at the very top.
ROBERTS: We should point out also, Madam Secretary, that you're a supporter of Hillary Clinton. You were heavily involved in the Balkans issue while you were secretary of state. Hillary Clinton misremembering that 1996 visit to Tuzla, particularly when she has made such a point of saying that it was experiences like that as first lady that qualify her for the Oval office. Did she damage herself with misremembering that particular incident?
ALBRIGHT: I think she just misspoke. They were so many different times that she travelled to different countries, met with leaders under a variety of circumstances. I know at various times that I flew into the region that one is told that it's dangerous because it was.
I think she's got the experience to be president of the United States. And one of the things I say in this new book, John, is that this is going to be one of the most difficult presidencies that I've ever seen and that we're going to really need a very experienced person to deal with it. A very difficult presidency.
ROBERTS: Does it hurt her credibility at all, though, you know, when you think that how different it was when she was there on the ground, the pictures of the video show, compared to the way that she was describing it on the campaign trail?
ALBRIGHT: Well, I think she said that she misspoke. And I think her credibility is based on so many different parts of her record. I travelled with her at various times when she met with leaders of countries, delivered some tough messages, then went out and talked to the women in a country.
And by the way, I think it should be pointed out that women's groups in various countries are the ones that can talk about bringing people together, peace, post conflict, and she did that kind of thing. And so I think that her credibility is very good.
ROBERTS: Madam Secretary, it's always great to talk to you. Thanks for stopping by this morning.
ALBRIGHT: Great to be with you, John. Thanks a lot. ROBERTS: Good to see you.
Kiran?
CHETRY: Well, you're watching the "Most News in the Morning." And still ahead, speaking of Hillary Clinton, she once led by with double digits. Now, the tables are turned. The latest poll that shows the biggest lead among the two Democrats this year.
Also, tense moments in Florida as a man taken hostage in front of police and TV news cameras. Moments later, the suspect faces a barrage of police bullets. We're talking with a reporter and photo journalist who captured the dramatic scene, next.
Next, triplets trapped in the world of autism.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was almost as if the first 18 months of their life didn't happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: A family tries to unravel a medical mystery. Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN, ANCHOR: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. 8:30 Eastern time. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN, ANCHOR: And good morning to you, I'm John Roberts.
To politics now, a new polling showing Senator Barack Obama extending his lead over his rival Senator Hillary Clinton. The Gallup tracking poll has Obama now leading Clinton, 52 to 42 percent. That is his largest lead of the year. The poll also marks the first time that either candidate has had a double digit lead over the other since early February when Clinton lead Obama by 11 percentage points.
Former President Bill Clinton was stumping for his wife in California. He told undecided superdelegates at the state convention in San Jose that they should stop worrying and just let the race play up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: We are strengthening the Democratic party. Chill out, we're going to win this election if we just chill out and let everybody have their say.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: "Chill out," says President Clinton. A third of the state's superdelegates are undecided. Clinton met privately with more than a dozen of them before his speech.
And that brings us to this morning's "Quick Vote" question -- what do you think about this ongoing battle for the Democratic nomination? Is it bad for the party or will it work out soon? Look at this. 50/50.
CHETRY: The closest to the Democratic race for the nomination.
ROBERTS: What does that say?
CHETRY: Wow.
ROBERTS: All the way through the entire apparatus, there are deep divisions and they are just about even. Cast your vote at cnn.com/am. We'll continue to tally your votes throughout the morning.
CNN, this morning, is now confirming that Iranian officials helped broker a ceasefire between Iraqi troops and radical Shiite cleric Muqtada Al Sadr. The deal could help end the violence that threatened to unravel recent security progress made in the fledgling democracy but it may also be a sign that Iran's influence is growing.
The remains of the nation's first soldier listed as missing in action in the Iraq war have now been found. The Army says DNA tests confirm that Staff Sergeant Keith Matt Maupin did in fact die in Iraq. Maupin was 20 years old when he was captured after his convoy was attacked nearly four years ago. A week after the ambush, Maupin appeared in a hostage video.
Republican John McCain is in Mississippi today. He is kicking off a week long biography tour. The idea is for Americans to get to know him better. But will it work? CNN's Dana Bash is live in Meridian, Mississippi. One would wonder, Dana, after being in the Senate as long as he has and on the national stage, and running for president back in 2000, how much more is there to know?
DANA BASH, CNN, CORRESPONDENT: Well, if you ask the McCain campaign, John, they say there is a lot more to know, that what we know and what most voters know about John McCain are some of the things that they know about him from his public policy, from his time in the Senate, but what they want the American voters to know at this point is a lot more about his history and his biography. And more specifically about his family because, you know, they are trying to paint him and this is going to start in a big way in about an hour, as somebody who is very unique and very different than either of his two potential Democratic rivals for the fall.
And the way they are going to do that is by touting and having Senator McCain himself tout not only his own military experience, which as you are alluding to is well-known. He was a prisoner of war in Vietnam, but the fact that he comes from a long tradition of servicemen in his own family. His father and grandfather, for example, they were four star admirals in the Navy. In fact, Senator McCain was here yesterday in Meridian. And the reason he is here in the first place is because this, the McCain Airfield was actually named after his grandfather here in Meridian. It actually is a place where he trained pilots before he himself went off to Vietnam.
In fact, let me read you part of the kind of thing that Senator McCain and his campaign are trying to get, trying to get out to the public right now. And this is an excerpt from the speech that he will give. They were about his father and grandfather. "They were my first heroes. And their respect for me has been one of the most lasting ambitions of my life. They gave their lives for their country and taught me lessons about honor, courage, duty, perseverance and leadership that I didn't fully grasp until later in life."
So, that is the kind of thing we're going to hear from Senator McCain, talking a lot about his family. What they are going to try to do, John, is to try to pivot his talk about his family to some of the policies and themes and basically his philosophy about government and family. That the government should go far enough to protect families but not too far. But don't expect a lot of policy proposals. This is very much kind of warm and fuzzy time for the McCain campaign to try to explain a lot more of who he is at a time when Democrats are fighting among themselves. They wanted to find him for themselves before Democrats can. John.
ROBERTS: The "Service to America Tour" kicks off today. Dana Bash in Meridian, Mississippi for us this morning. Dana, thanks. Kiran.
CHETRY: There was some amazing video over the weekend of a hostage standoff that took place near Miami, happening Saturday in Miami shores. A gunman trying to rob a Wal-Greens during an early staff meeting. A cameraman from a local television station caught the dramatic results. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY (voice-over): Police near Miami respond to a 911 call about a robbery in progress.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: By that tree...
CHETRY: The suspect is still inside, holding employees at gun point and filling a trash bag with cash.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was going to shoot everybody. It was really horrifying.
CHETRY: Workers say he continues to fill the bag even after spotting police on security monitors. He grabs the store manager and tries to make a get-away. The manager is now holding the trash bag and if you look closely, you can see a gun. Seconds later they are at the manager's car.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back, I'll shoot him.
CHETRY: The gunman appears to fire sending the cameraman ducking for cover. Moments later he is rolling again. The manager now inside the car fighting for his life. The camera catches the violent struggle but then stops when the photographer is told to move. Off camera, the manager gets away and the gunman takes off in the car. And then we hear this -- [ gunfire ]
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: Almost sounds like fireworks going off but it was police firing at the gunman as he took off again. He managed to get away yet again. Police then use canines and helicopters eventually tracking him down. Turns out he was shot in that barrage of bullets. He had to undergo surgery. The manager meanwhile escaping with just minor injuries.
Joining me now the news crew that captured all of this. WPLG reporter Sasha Andrade as well as photographer Fabrissio Lopez. Thanks to both of you for being with us. Let me start with you Sasha and just ask you what exactly was going on after the -- you heard the hail of gunfire. Were you guys informed about what exactly was happening or was it a lot of confusion at that point?
SASHA ANDRADE, REPORTER, WPLG: All we knew at that point is that it was some sort of hostage situation. That is what it was dispatched as. We pulled on to the scene. Police officers were running around frantically. And we really didn't know what was going on. What we could see a store manager just kind of hunched over, standing up, sitting down, just in a daze at that point. That's all we knew.
CHETRY: And Sasha, the store manager though, he did think on his feet, right? He tried to fight back, figuring that, you know, he was going to take his chances and try to get himself out of that situation?
ANDRADE: Kiran, it was unbelievable. I mean, he was being stuffed into a car. And at the last moment, he had been cooperative until that point, at the last moment he just decides to fight back and the only thing you see on camera is that struggle. There's a struggle -- the gunman is actually hitting him over the head with the gun. And then the camera -- you know we lose the camera because a police officer pulled us away from the scene. And then we heard the round of gunfire. So, apparently he managed to get loose and jumped away from the gunman. The gunman got into the car and then sped away.
CHETRY: And what a close car. Fabrissio, we have these pictures because of your shooting. You were actually taping all of this. Tell us what it was like to be on the scene while this was unfolding, right in front of your lens.
FABRISSIO LOPEZ, PHOTOJOURNALIST, WPLG: Well, this is -- at that moment, I don't see if there's danger or not. But this is amazing, it's like, it's my first video like that one.
ANDRADE: Once in a lifetime for him.
LOPEZ: Once in a lifetime, yes.
CHETRY: And there were times when you actually had to stop filming or the camera cut away. Were you being told to stop or was there just so much confusion it was hard to keep rolling at times?
LOPEZ: Well, the police pulled me out of the scene. She says - it's a policewoman, and then she says it's dangerous for me. And then she pulled me back inside the parking lot. But I keep rolling, rolling, that is when I got and that's when the police shot at the car of the bad guy.
ANDRADE: And Fabrissio was telling me that when the police officer was pulling him away, they actually had a weapon, a gun right next to his face trying to protect him from everything that was going on.
CHETRY: And that was just -- you guys were just responding to one of those typical police calls that you hear over the scanner of a robbery in progress?
ANDRADE: Kiran, this happens all the time in Miami. We've been dealing with this problem lately. It is just robbery after robbery, mostly in the 24-hour convenience stores. So, for us it was another day in Miami. We just happened to pull up as this one was really unfolding.
CHETRY: Wow. And certainly the amazing pictures were captured on tape. Sasha Andrade as well as Fabrissio Lopez, thanks to both for joining us this morning.
ANDRADE: Thank you.
LOPEZ: Thank you.
ROBERTS: I can tell you after working in Miami myself, there's nothing typical about any of these calls even though you get them all the time. Every one is different. Incredible.
40 minutes after the hour. We've got a tornado warning, north of Tulsa, Oklahoma in Ramona, Oklahoma. Our Jacqui Jeras at the extreme weather center in Atlanta figuring this out for us. What are we looking at, Jacqui?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN, METEOROLOGIST: Yes. The public actually saw the tornado on the ground there in the town of Ramona, this includes Rogers County and also in the Washington County. You're actually looking at video right now from Oklahoma City. The storms moved through this area several hours ago. It was a possible tornado, hasn't been confirmed yet but you can see the widespread damage to a residential area here. And there are also thousands of people that are without power this morning.
Now, a severe thunderstorm watch remains in effect across parts of Oklahoma and into Kansas. That is a severe thunderstorm watch. So you need to keep in mind that sometimes tornadoes can and do occur within that watch box. We've also been seeing a tremendous amount of hail up to the size of tennis balls with some of these thunderstorms also. So that is going to be a big threat. This will be ongoing throughout the day today from Texas all the way up through the Midwest into Chicago. The greatest threat right there in the middle where you see the dark red, large hail, the damaging winds and isolated tornadoes.
So, again, a tornado being reported by the public in the town of Ramona, Oklahoma. That's in Rogers and Washington counties. That warning is in effect until the top of the hour. You can see these storms have caused a lot of damage and destruction. So, heed these warnings very seriously and get to the lowest level of your home away from doors and windows. John.
ROBERTS: Jacqui, that is where the immediate threat is. But where is the system, and as you said it's a very intense system, where is it all heading toward now?
JERAS: Well, the low itself, the upper level system is moving very slowly up towards the north and east. And eventually it's going to make its way towards the Great Lakes. So, we could be looking at severe weather across the nation's mid section and then on up towards the Ohio Valley over the next couple of days.
ROBERTS: Right. But just in terms of the cell that has spawned this particular tornado, who might be in the crosshairs next?
JERAS: Yes. That's heading directly off to the east. Let me get my initial map up and we'll show you that isolated cell itself that we're talking about. There you can see the town of Ramona and look at that purple. Oh, boy, that's a big indication that there's some very large hail. The storm is moving east, it's moving at about 30 miles per hour. So, there you can see Telela, the town of Telela, also potentially could be impacted by this storm.
ROBERTS: Springfield, Missouri, it looks like it might be along that track as well. Could the storm maintain its intensity and cause some problems there?
JERAS: Yes, possibly. Right now, it looks like best track could keep it a little bit to the south of there. But also, you know, even if they don't get the tornado there in Springfield, by the way, they could be dealing with some torrential downpours. These storms have been putting down between one to two inches per hours at times. And of course, that part of the country very, very saturated from recent floods and recent rains. We are looking at several inches of rain on top of very saturated ground. So, a lot of runoff. We have seen incredible flooding in Texas and Louisiana yesterday. That could be ongoing again into the afternoon as more rain begins to develop with this storm.
So, we are looking at a lot of severe weather in the nation's midsection. And this same system, John, is impacting people in the east too. Up and down the eastern seaboard, you know, they are not seeing severe weather, but it is very cloudy. It's very raining and overcast. So a big travel impact with us today also.
ROBERTS: All right. Jacqui Jeras monitoring the tornado warnings in Ramona, Oklahoma, this morning. Thanks, Jacqui. Send up a flag if you hear anything else about that.
JERAS: OK. ROBERTS: Well, forget your local traffic reports. Find out how your neighbors, even people that you don't even know could warn you about major traffic problems so that you can get around them. A live report to show you how it works. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: 15 minutes now to the top of the hour.
It's one of the greatest mysteries of modern medicine. Although more than 25,000 children will be diagnosed with autism this year, scientists and doctors know little about it. This week CNN takes a special look at efforts to unravel the mystery of autism. Wednesday has been designated the first world autism awareness day by the United Nations.
Right now, our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at why there are still so many unanswered questions.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN, SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Hunter, Nicholas and Zachary Gaston were born seven years ago, their parents were ecstatic. And for the first 18 months, the boys were typical toddlers. Then something changed.
LYNN GASTON, TRIPLETS' MOTHER: It was almost as if a switch. Somebody came to our house and turned the switch off. The boys -- it was almost as if the first 18 months of their life didn't happen.
GUPTA: Lynn noticed her sons were developing anti-social behavior that scared her. Hunter was licking the wall. Nick wouldn't speak. She went online and typed in their symptoms.
GASTON: No matter how many times I changed the symptoms around or left one or two off, it kept coming back, autism.
GUPTA: But doctors at that time weren't coming to the same conclusion. Finally when the boys were four, doctors confirmed all three had some variation of autism, a condition they weren't familiar with.
GASTON: It's not like you can look up autism in the phone book. I couldn't go to the yellow pages and find a doctor. I didn't even know what kind of doctor to go see.
GUPTA: The Center for Disease Control has only been collecting data on autism since 2001, the year the Gaston triplets were born. And autism is difficult to diagnose, and that's because the conditions and varying symptoms vary so widely
DR. GARY GOLDSTEIN, PRESIDENT, KENNEDY KRIEGER INST.: We don't have an easy handle on it. In autism, we don't have a test. We don't have a biopsy. We don't have an image.
GUPTA: Although research point to genetic abnormalities in the development of autism, doctors still believe a trigger sets off autism in a child. It's the trigger that is the mystery.
GOLSTEIN: It is a combination of being genetically vulnerable and then having some kind of social or toxic exposure that tips you over.
RANDY GASTON, TRIPLETS' FATHER: There's something that is affecting all of these children and it is unfortunate that these families are left in their own device to find out what's going on.
GUPTA: The Gastons are committed to getting their sons the best medical care possible, perhaps more importantly showing their children unconditional love.
RANDY GASTON: It's one thing he has to know for the rest of his live that I did everything for him. That is what it comes down to, that I did everything for you, buddy. Right? Yes? Yes, OK. You are a good boy, I love you.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: In an effort to help other parents, the Gastons are involved in a number of projects that promote autism awareness. Most recently, they taped a public service announcement for a project called IAN, developed by the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. IAN or Interactive Autism Network is a Web site that links families and autism researchers together to help find a cure for autism.
If you are interested, you can go to the Web site, www.ianproject.com. And CNN will report on the global impact of the latest science concerning the developmental syndrome of autism in a global investigation all day Wednesday, April 2nd.
CHETRY: Meanwhile, CNN NEWSROOM is just minutes away. Tony Harris at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead this morning. Hi, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN, ANCHOR: Hi, Kiran. Good Monday to you. Monday morning in the NEWSROOM everyone. Iraqis burying their dead after six days of fighting.
What did the government do for a ceasefire? And did Iran have a hand in the truce?
From mortgages to stocks to banks, the government's plan to overhaul the nation's financial system. Live coverage here in the NEWSROOM.
March leaving like a lion. We watch for possible tornadoes across Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas.
And it's the end of the road for a budget airline. Again, we will keep a close eye on those tornado watches and warnings in Oklahoma. NEWSROOM just minutes away at the top of the hour on CNN. Kiran, back to you.
CHETRY: All right. We'll be watching. Thanks, Tony.
Meanwhile, counting on your friend's GPS system to get you around traffic? Well, it's a new system that doesn't tell you where to turn, it tells you where the traffic is and how to avoid it. Chris Lawrence will explain.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN, CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kiran, we're live in Los Angeles with this new device that potentially can connect you to thousands of other drivers on the road and help you warn each other about traffic jams before you hit them. We'll have that story coming up after the break on your AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. If you are one of the millions of Americans about to head out the door this morning, odds are -- excuse me --
ROBERTS: See, you're thinking so much about, you are tongue tied.
CHETRY: Thanks for trying to save me. It was the Doritos -- will be clogged by congestion. The worst of it, by the way, is in New York, where a study found drivers there or here, I guess you could say, spend little more than 39 minutes trying to get to work. Not far behind would be Chicago, that's where it takes people more than 34 minutes to get from the garage to the office. In Philadelphia, drivers spend about 32 minutes commuting to work.
But what if there was a piece of new technology out there that could get you where you needed to go faster, helping you figure out ahead of time where the snarls are and the best route to avoid them? Well it could be happening. AMERICAN MORNING's Chris Lawrence tested it out. He joins us live in Los Angeles this morning. It sounds like a dream for commuters. What have you got for us?
LAWRENCE: Yes, Kiran. I mean, you know, when you are stuck in that traffic, even if you could shave ten minutes, 15 minutes off the drive, that is extra time you get to spend at home or getting to work early. Think of this thing sort of like a social network, kind of a MySpace for my car. Each unit not only is telling you the traffic that you are seeing, it is also letting everyone behind you and ahead of you know exactly what you are experiencing. It's a network of cars. So you're communicating back and forth without doing anything just the unit is beaming all this information to all the other drivers in the network.
These GPS makers finally figured out that day-to-day a lot of us don't really need directions. We know where we are going. We just want to get there a little bit faster.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LAWRENCE (voice-over): Alone in their cars commuters are trapped in traffic.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A very tough ride along another portion of the 405.
LAWRENCE: But a new GPS device may ban them together to get through gridlock. The dash is sort of a social network of cars, the first two-way GPS to promise real-time traffic information. Each device sends an anonymous signal back to the server. And that information is instantly shared with other dash on the road. What one sees they all see. We sent a producer out with one unit and followed about 15 minutes behind. At first the roads are green. But as she cruises into a traffic crunch, our screen shows yellow and red lines ahead.
So, even though we are driving along at 60 miles an hour right now, what this is telling me is that within about a mile or so, it's going to turn almost red which means I'm going to be sitting in just about gridlock. That gives me time to exit and take another route. And the dash marks surface streets just the same. It warned of this jam ten minutes before we got anywhere before it.
Dash's Internet connections has other uses as well. Anyone online can send new addresses directly to the car. Type in a product like Ipod, the search engine will find stores that sell it. And the device not only tells where you to find gas stations, it sorts them by today's cheapest price. And if someone steals the Dash --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can sandy message to the device that basically turn it into a brick. And not only does it disable the software, but it also gets rid of the addresses and everything that were on the device.
LAWRENCE: But to work perfectly the company needs to sell a lot of units.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is kind of a viral thing. The more people who are in the network the better the traffic gets.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: And there's the rub, the company estimate that is a few hundred units can completely cover a small town. Big cities like Atlanta, D.C., L.A., a few thousand. Right now, the Dash is selling on Amazon for $400 bucks plus another $10 a month for the Internet connection. Kiran.
CHETRY: Pretty cool. I bet you soon it would be like one of those things like Tivo or the cell phone, you can't imagine what you possibly did without it. But for now, still getting off the ground. Thanks for showing us, Chris.
LAWRENCE: Yes.
ROBERTS: Excellent stuff. CHETRY: You're excited.
ROBERTS: I want one of those. Christmas, Christmas next year, not that far away.
So, that could be the way to beast traffic but there's a whole lot of American drivers that never see tail lights. That's because, according to the census bureau, nearly 16 million commuters, 12 percent of the workforce leave the hours between the hours of midnight and 5:59 a.m.. So traffic is not much of a problem for them. 77 percent of all drivers make the trip into work solo compared that with just 11 percent who car pool or 5 percent who take public transportation. And talk about far from home, Virginia leads the nation with 53 percent of workers living in one county but working in another.
Your e-mails and a final check of the "Quick Vote" coming up right after the break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: And before we leave you today, we want to take a final check of our quick vote. That is former president Bill Clinton, he was stumping for his wife, Hillary, in California, telling undecided superdelegates stop worrying about the Democratic battle. Just let the race play out. In fact, he told people they need to chill out.
So, we want to know what you think about the ongoing battle for the Democratic nomination. We asked is it a bad thing for the party, 50 percent of you say yes. Will it work itself out soon, 50 percent of you said yes. A dead heat has certainly been the theme.
ROBERTS: Exactly. Either that or only two people voted this morning. What do you think?
CHETRY: No more than that, I checked.
Well, we've also gotten some of your e-mails on the question, Dom from Pennsylvania says "while the extended campaign fight seems to be needlessly dragging on, it is making our party stronger. Here in Pennsylvania we have registered well over 100,000 new Democrats. This would have not occurred if the race have been over in February or March." Good point.
ROBERTS: Yes, absolutely. Ramona in Nebraska says "we need change in the Democratic party. Super delegates need to be discontinued. Way too much power. I am positive we need a fix."
To all of you who e-mailed us this morning, thanks very much. We'll do it all again tomorrow because it's always great to hear from you.
CHETRY: That's right and in fact, we did ask a question about should the entire system sort of be abolished and let's go with popular vote only. We were in the 90 percentile for yeses on that one. ROBERTS: Yes. Thanks so much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING. We'll see you again tomorrow.
CHETRY: Meanwhile, CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris and Betty Nguyen starts right now.
HARRIS: And good morning, everyone. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN, ANCHOR: Yes. Hi, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Heidi today.
HARRIS: And watch events come into the NEWSROOM live on Monday, March 31st. Here's what's on the rundown.
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