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American Morning
U.N. Blast Myanmar for Refusing Relief Aid; Lebanon in Crisis; Oil Hits $125; Juneau, Alaska Hit With A Power Crisis
Aired May 09, 2008 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ALINA CHO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, we've got some severe weather overnight.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Unfortunately, yes. We need to head down to Atlanta to talk about that. Actually we're beginning with some breaking news out of North Carolina. Emergency officials assessing the damage from a reported tornado in North Carolina overnight.
Authorities there say one person killed. Three others injured in this storm. Cars, tractor-trailers overturned on I-40. This is near Greensboro. It collapsed several commercial buildings and damaged numerous homes, and we do head down to Atlanta this morning.
Our Rob Marciano tracking the extreme weather for us in the weather center. Good morning to you. Sounds like a bad night in North Carolina.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's not the only state there, T.J. We had 21 reports of tornadoes across a half a dozen states. So pretty widespread outbreak and there's more to come this weekend. Let's get to what's happening right now.
We have tornado watches in effect until 9:00 Eastern time for much of the eastern North Carolina, eastern Virginia, in through the Delmarva. We've already had some rough weather there this morning, with tornado warnings breaking out. At least Doppler indicated tornado warnings for places like King, Queen, King William County, Kent Counties. This is all in southeastern parts of Virginia east of Richmond and north of the Hampton Roads area.
This is all heading northeast at about 30 to 33 miles an hour. A lot of lightning in these storms. A lot of gusty winds, certainly some hail and some heavy downpours. The other aspect of these storms as they roll north and east will be the threat for flooding across parts of the I-95 corridor. So we'll be covering that aspect as well and then recharging of the atmosphere for the potential of more rough weather this weekend. T.J. and Alina, back up to you.
HOLMES: All right. More of it, Rob. We'll be checking in with you again soon. Thank you so much.
MARCIANO: Bye now.
CHO: We have the latest now from the disaster zone in Myanmar. The United Nations this morning says 1.5 million people may have been affected by a weekend cyclone, but aid is only getting to about 10 percent of them. Myanmar's reclusive government has so far not granted visas to aid workers. The U.N. says that is unprecedented in the history of humanitarian work.
Now, we've got one of the few western journalists able to report inside Myanmar. CNN's Dan Rivers just made it out. He's now in Bangkok, Thailand. So Dan, what did you see while you were there?
DAN RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alina, it was pretty awful things down in the south of the Irrawaddy Delta. That's the hardest hit area. As you say, huge numbers of people affected, more than a million now. The death toll climbing ever higher. The senior U.S. diplomat saying there that it could reach 100,000 people that have been killed.
Basically what we saw on the ground was just mile after mile of destroyed homes, millions of trees that had been brought down, and that's really hampered getting the aid in because it's blocked the roads. It's brought down the electricity, pylons and the phone lines and so on. So, a real mess.
But, you know, six days after this thing hit, still we found areas where they haven't had any aid at all. There are still, you know, large areas we drove through with no sign of the government, the army, international aid organizations. Many of the aid organizations are stuck here in Thailand. They just can't get the visas to get in.
CHO: Dan, as we mentioned, this is unprecedented in humanitarian work. Are you getting a sense at all from where you are on the ground that that aid is going to be able to get to the people who need it soon?
RIVERS: Well, the U.S. ambassador here, Eric John, said every day that their visa is delayed is basically more lives that are being lost. I mean, it's very slow going. It's an incredibly frustrating government to deal with, the Myanmar military regime. There's been a military junta there since 1962, and they're very stuck in their ways. They're very suspicious of the outside world.
They don't like the press going in there, certainly not during something like this, and they did their best to try and stop us getting into the disaster zone. But also, the aid as well is being hampered by just endless bureaucracy.
The whole society functions in this sort of hierarchy where everyone has to refer things up to the next level in the chain of command, which just creates endless paperwork and a lack of decision- making on a sort of local level which means it's just really hampering getting stuff in quickly and effectively.
CHO: Let's hope they cut that red tape. These early days are so critical. CNN's Dan Rivers live for us in Bangkok, Thailand, this morning. Dan, thank you -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right, Alina. We now return to the "Most Politics in the Morning." With four days to go in the West Virginia primary, both candidates looking beyond that to the primaries in Oregon and Kentucky.
Barack Obama campaigns in Oregon all day today. Voters there go to the polls two weeks from Tuesday. Obama sat down with our Wolf Blitzer and said despite being close to the nomination, his campaign still has a lot left to do, and downplayed a new "Time" magazine" cover that's calling him the winner with an asterisk by that.
Meantime, Hillary Clinton campaigned late into the night in Oregon. She said don't count her out just yet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And people say to me all the time, well, are you going to keep going? Well, yes, of course, I'm going to keep going. And why am I going to keep going? I'm going to keep going because you keep going.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Clinton appears at a round table discussion at Portland today and then she's on to Louisville, Kentucky, for a dinner tonight.
And the fight to seat Florida's delegates at the Democratic National Convention got a boot from Barack Obama last night. He's telling superdelegates in Florida that their delegation will be at the convention with party hats on, but it's Senator Clinton who needs Florida and Michigan votes now more than ever. Here now is CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Colleagues, tourists, pages looking for a picture, and press scrums.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How much longer will the race go on, senator?
CROWLEY: Barack Obama was on Capitol Hill with the aura though not the votes of a presidential nominee.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That's why I'm running for president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you win it, too.
CROWLEY: So, is she putting together an exit strategy? A Clinton insider replies n-o exclamation point.
CLINTON: This is a little bit like deja vu all over again. Some in Washington wanted us to end our campaign and then I won New Hampshire.
CROWLEY: The itinerary speaks to her current state of mind. Having made her case in West Virginia, which has its primary next Tuesday, Hillary Clinton took off for South Dakota, very much in the race. CLINTON: So on June the 3rd, Montana and South Dakota will have the last word.
CROWLEY: She needs a 9.0 on the Richter scale to shake this up in her favor. And guess who's in West Virginia today waiting for an earthquake?
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: She can still win this thing if you vote for her big enough. They're going to have to resolve Michigan and Florida, and when they do, she can win the popular vote.
CROWLEY: It's not a widely held theory. Some Clinton supporters are jumping ship, and Obama is still gathering up superdelegates. But one Clinton adviser says, she's not campaigning in some type of parallel universe. She doesn't think this is over. Clinton believes she is the best candidate to beat John McCain, so the superdelegate courtship continues.
CLINTON: I'm winning Catholic voters and Hispanic voters and blue collar workers and seniors, the kind of people that senator McCain will be fighting for in the general election.
CROWLEY: Another source close to the Clintons adds there is more to this than the math. She has a loyalty to the history she and her supporters are writing.
CLINTON: Too many people have fought too hard to see a woman continue in this race. This is a history-making race, and I want everybody to understand that.
CROWLEY: And it is her supporters, including millions of women, who give caution to many Democrats and the Obama campaign. They need those votes in the fall. They cannot be seen trying to muscle her out.
OBAMA: I don't want to get ahead of myself here. Senator Clinton is a very formidable candidate.
CROWLEY: Privately, some party leaders are anxious to have this over but one top level party honcho says we're talking three more weeks. Let it ride. Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: And Barack Obama sat down with our Wolf Blitzer in "The Situation Room" for his first interview since winning the North Carolina primary. Wolf asked Obama if he was ready for what could be the next phase of the race.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's been intense in the primaries, but you realize it's going to be much more intense in the next chapter, in the next phase, given the differences between you and John McCain. Are you ready for this next phase? SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm actually looking forward to it if we're successful. I don't want to get ahead of myself here. Senator Clinton is a very formidable candidate. She is very heavily favored to win West Virginia. She'll win that by, you know, a big margin. She's favored in Kentucky.
We'll probably split the remaining contests. And so, she's going to be actively campaigning. If I'm fortunate enough to be the nominee, then I'm looking forward to the general election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: So, Obama also took a jab at John McCain responding to McCain's comments in which he suggested Hamas supports Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: For him to toss out comments like that, I think is an example of him losing his bearings.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And the McCain camp firing back accusing Obama of raising the issue of McCain's age. McCain is 71. We'll have more on Wolf's one-on-one with Obama in our next half hour.
CHO: Calls for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to resign this morning after details of an ongoing bribe investigation against him were made public. Olmert says he never took any illegal money from a Long Island businessman back when he served as mayor of Jerusalem or as a government minister. And he said he'll resign if he's indicted. This is the fifth time Olmert has been investigated since becoming prime minister.
Western Beirut is out of government hands and under Hezbollah control this morning. A tense situation there. At least 11 people have been killed in three straight days of battles on the streets of Beirut.
CNN's Cal Perry reported live as gun battles raged around him in Beirut. He joins us live this morning. Cal, good morning to you.
CAL PERRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Alina. I'm not sure if we were in the right place at the wrong time or the wrong time at the right place, but gunfire yesterday ringing out across the city. We were downtown doing a piece for the camera and from 365 degrees around us, deafening gunfire. We took cover with the Lebanese army and I think that proves a good point here.
The Lebanese Army is, of course, charged with protecting people and getting between these two factions but it's absolutely, of course, ludicrous to think they would go out when there's that much fighting going on. Now, today, as you mentioned, the western part of the city has fallen really to Hezbollah. The question of the day really is this a coup? Yesterday, Hasan Nasrallah, from Hezbollah, the leader of Hezbollah, said he wasn't interested in a coup. He even mocked the government saying if we were you would know it. He would wake up tomorrow either in the sea or in jail. So today, really the question is how will this government stand up against such a powerful Shia militia, Alina?
CHO: CNN's Cal Perry live for us in Beirut this morning. Cal, thank you -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. We begin as a 20-foot crack in the ground. Then a Texas sinkhole began devouring everything in its path. Trucks, telephone poles, you name it. We'll tell you if this monster's appetite is still growing.
CHO: And oil prices breaking more records. Closing in on $125 a barrel. Ouch. Find out how much that's going to hit you at the pump ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Stephanie, hi, you give them the bad news. I don't even want to see that. You do it.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: You know what? See what happens when you come to New York.
HOLMES: You do it. Go ahead.
ELAM: I will tell everybody.
HOLMES: Stephanie Elam. Yes.
ELAM: So this is what I do actually. I'm quite used to telling the bad news because Ali Velshi is not here. So, he needed a break from telling you the bad news. So I'm here to tell you that oil prices are up again yet another record.
So now, we are looking at $124.92. That is what happened this morning. This is early morning trading here. Just shy of $125 a barrel. Last night it settled at $123.69. That's what you're seeing there. So we're already up this morning. It's giving us an idea of what's going to happen here.
A couple of reasons, we've got that weak dollar. Also, the European central bank decided to not raise their interest rates. I'm sorry, not to cut their interest rates. And so because of that, that's keeping the dollar a little bit weaker than the euro there. So the strength of the euro hurting us on that one.
Also demand. Summertime demand is coming up, so we've got more gas to make. That affects oil prices as well. There's also some speculation. A lot of people like to go to commodities when the markets are not as rosy, and so that's part of the issue there, too.
Of course, you're probably wondering what does it mean for your gas prices? Well, AAA is saying that we also have a new, yes, record up there. Sorry, yes.
Anyway, $3.67 is the average across the nation there. So it's up two-tenths of a cent from yesterday. But, of course, a lot of people are already paying $4 or more a gallon.
HOLMES: Did you say two-tenths of a cent?
ELAM: Yes.
HOLMES: Even that sounds like a big deal.
ELAM: It does. It does even sound right to say that actually. I hate saying fractions of a fraction.
CHO: Can I just say we have a little United Nations of reporters going on here?
ELAM: Right.
CHO: Anyway, Stephanie Elam "Minding Your Business." Stephanie, thanks. We'll see you later.
ELAM: Sure.
CHO: Coming up, Democrats talk of a dream ticket. Will Barack Obama ask Hillary Clinton to be his number two? Would she take the job? Some people say if he asks nicely. A look at what's going on behind the scenes.
Plus, there's Rob. Good morning, Rob.
MARCIANO: Good morning, Alina. Yes, we're watching the threat for tornadoes again today. We had several reports yesterday. Lots of damage. We're going to run it all down. This weekend is not going to be a picnic either.
Weather is coming up when AMERICAN MORNING comes right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: It appears a giant sinkhole in Texas has finally stopped growing, at least for now; 260-foot deep crater grew to the length of three football fields in just a couple days. Devoured trucks, oil field equipment and telephone poles. Geologist and emergency manager officials still can't figure out what happened.
Good morning, everybody. I'm Rob Marciano. From sinkholes we go to severe weather. We're getting fresh video in now to CNN from parts of North Carolina, Kernersville, North Carolina, where damage was done last night from tornadoes that ripped through the area. Look at that.
Cars piled on top of each other. Trees down and obviously structures torn apart. All of this action is heading off to the east and no doubt that looks to be a pretty decent twister that rolled through there. Survey teams will be out today to see just how strong it was. All right. On to the radar map we go. Here's where the action is this morning. You're definitely going to want to take cover or at least keep an eye on the sky if you live in eastern Virginia and in through the Delmarva and northeast parts of North Carolina.
We have this tornado watch that's in effect until 9:00 this morning Eastern time, and we've already had a couple of tornado warnings out through King, Queen and King William County earlier this morning. These are producing, if not tornadoes, winds in excess of 40 miles an hour and certainly a little bit of heavy rain, lightning, and maybe even some small hail.
The other aspect of this storm will be the amount of rain that will be dumped from D.C. up the I-95 corridor in through Philadelphia and New York. We do have the threat for flooding today. A flash flood watch has been posted for the beltway, Baltimore, Newark, Philadelphia, Trenton and just south of New York City proper. So that will certainly be cause for concern.
Now, on the heels of this is the next batch of energy that will be dropping down to the south and east. In the same areas, Mississippi, Alabama, parts of western Tennessee that got hit last night or yesterday afternoon will be under the gun this afternoon and likely right on through tomorrow as well. Busy days in the weather department. Alina and T.J. back up to you.
CHO: Rob, thank you.
HOLMES: Rob, thank you.
And new this morning on both sides of the presidential race, Barack Obama getting some heat from the McCain camp for something he said right here on CNN. We'll tell you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: I'm loving it. I know you love it.
A lot of you will recognize this group. They are dancing to a different tune right about now. This is the Philippine prisoners famous for dancing to Michael Jackson's "Thriller." We've shown it to you a while back.
Now, Bonnie Tyler's '80s classic, "I Need a Hero." They say it was a tribute to world heroes like Nelson Mandela (INAUDIBLE) and Princess Di as well among those. Not bad.
But check this one out. You know, I'm more upset they put "Soldier Boy" and M.C. Hammer together. That's just startling (ph) to me. That's my problem.
CHO: You know, it takes me back to high school and it takes you back to grade school.
HOLMES: Oh, no. Oh, the "Soldier Boy," as you all heard there, if you don't know it, they were doing the dancing there and they got a little M.C. Hammer in there but they are well coordinated. A lot of people not crazy about this stuff and wondering --
CHO: That's referring to the hero song.
HOLMES: Yes.
CHO: You know, do you even remember that?
HOLMES: '80s? Yes, sorry.
CHO: Shall we move on?
A lot of buzz this morning about a Barack Obama/Hillary Clinton dream ticket. Clinton's camp says it's premature to talk about vice presidents because the senator is still focused on winning the nomination. Barack Obama agrees. We want to hear from you on this.
If Barack Obama becomes the Democratic nominee, should he select Hillary Clinton to be his running mate? Yes or no? Cast your vote at CNN.com/am, and if not Hillary Clinton, then who?
Send us an e-mail. Let us know who would be on your dream ticket. Or tell us why you think Hillary Clinton shouldn't be or should. CNN.com/am once again. We're going to read some of the e- mails later on in the show.
HOLMES: But is that dream ticket really a dream? Could it end up being a nightmare? Coming up, we take a look at the pros and cons of an Obama/Clinton run for Pennsylvania Avenue. That story coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.
Also, a capital city in the dark. Cut off for weeks? We'll take you north to Alaska for this unprecedented power crisis. That is next on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back. Juneau, Alaska, is a city in the dark. A series of avalanches cut the city off from its source of hydroelectric power. So for the last three weeks, the city has been relying on backup generators which are fueled by diesel, more expensive, meaning Juneau is bracing for electric bills that are going to be hundreds of dollars higher than normal.
You can imagine how it's changing everyday life. People taking drastic measures there, living by oil lamps, unplugging TVs and computers, and even putting up clotheslines.
Bob Hale is the publisher of the "Juneau Empire" newspaper in Alaska. He's joining us from Seattle because it's the closest studio with power.
Bob, good morning. You know, electric bills are going to skyrocket in Juneau so how are people going to cope there? And explain to us first how this happened.
BOB HALE, PUBLISHER, "JUNEAU EMPIRE": Well, three weeks ago some avalanches took out the big power transmission lines at the hydroelectric plant about 40 miles south of town. And the first round of higher electric bills are going to be going out next week, and to give you an example, at our office there at the newspaper, our power bills are going to go from about, in round numbers, $4,000 a month to $20,000 a month or better.
CHO: Wow.
HALE: So that will be for a three-month period, and that's some real financial hardship.
CHO: I think it's safe to say you're lucky it happened when it did since in Juneau right now, there is daylight between the hours of 4:30 a.m. and approximately 10:00 p.m. It would have been awful even worse if it happened in the wintertime.
But I'm wondering anecdotally what are people having to do? We touched on it in the beginning, but what are they having to resort to, to deal with this crisis?
HALE: Very few lights burning in Juneau. People are -- rather than running their stovetop, their oven, their microwave, they're grilling whatever they can, and staying outside as much as they can now that we've got the daylight that we do.
CHO: Well, you're lucky that it's warmer. I mean, it's so tough, especially at a time when people all across the country including Juneau are tightening the belt with higher gas prices, food prices, and the like. I'm wondering what's going on in terms of help? Because I know the governor so far has not declared this a disaster area, so to speak, because it doesn't technically fit the legal definition. So, how are people in need getting the help they need?
HALE: Well, the governor is being asked to revisit a decision she made last week in not declaring a disaster, and the city assembly there in Juneau has made $3 million available to two nonprofit entities, one the United Way of Southeast Alaska, the other the Juneau Economic Development Council to provide grant monies to families and smaller businesses that stand to be at the most at risk relative to financial hardship.
And so, we're awaiting the outcome of the governor's decision either today or into next week, and we'll see how that plays itself out.
CHO: Well, that $3 million will certainly come in handy, at least for now. Bob Hale, publisher of the "Juneau Empire" joining us from Seattle. Bob, thank you -- T.J.
HALE: Well, thank you.
HOLMES: All right, Alina. We'll return to politics now.
For Senator Hillary Clinton, the road to Pennsylvania Avenue cuts through Oregon and Kentucky. Clinton drumming up support in both states ahead of primaries later this month. She campaigned late into the night in Oregon and challenged Barack Obama to focus on Oregon's voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I heard that my opponent has changed his schedule. He's going to be in Portland tomorrow. I'm going to be in Portland tomorrow. I'll meet him anywhere for a debate. There should be a debate about Oregon's issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Well, Barack Obama is in Oregon today. He'll be giving a speech about the economy followed by a town hall meeting and rally later tonight. And he adds two more superdelegates to his column. That cuts now into Hillary Clinton's lead. Now she's just up seven in that particular category. Obama still leads in the overall delegate count. 1,848 to 1,685. 2,025 the magic number to secure the nomination.
On the other side, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain heads to New Jersey and South Carolina today. He was in New York City last night for the release of "Time" magazines 100 Most Influential People in the World issue. McCain, Obama, and Clinton were all named in that issue.
Meantime, his wife Cindy says she is not releasing her tax return, not now, not ever, even if her husband wins the White House. She says she and her husband have filed separately for the last 28 years and it's a matter of privacy for her and for her children.
Back to Barack Obama now, giving his first interview since winning the North Carolina primary and sending off a bit of a firestorm. Obama sat down with CNN's Wolf Blitzer in "THE SITUATION ROOM" for an extensive one-on-one and he got all fired up when Wolf asked him about some statements John McCain has made.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": McCain says if you had your way, the U.S. would surrender in Iraq. He wants victory.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If I had my way, we would not have gone into Iraq in the first place.
BLITZER: But what about now?
OBAMA: I think it was a huge strategic blunder and I think the American people are smart enough to understand that a phased withdrawal, where we're careful getting out as we were careless getting in, that puts pressure on Iraqis to stand up and take seriously their obligation to arrive at a political accommodation at the same time as we are doubling down on diplomacy in the surrounding region, not just Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Jordan, but also Syria and Iraq.
Then we are also investing in humanitarian aid for people who have been displaced in Iraq. But that's not surrendering. That's a sensible policy that will allow us then to deal with our biggest strategic problem which is al Qaeda in Afghanistan and the border region of Pakistan reconstituting themselves. And that's something that we have been distracted from and something that I intend to focus on when I'm president of the United States.
BLITZER: This is going to be a huge difference, the war in Iraq, the fallout between you and McCain. He also is going after you now. Today's the 60th anniversary of Israel's independence. He says you're not necessarily endorsing policies that would be good for Israel. He says this for example.
"I think it's very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president of the United States. I think that people should understand that I will be Hamas' worst nightmare. Senator Obama is favored by Hamas. I think people can make judgments accordingly."
OBAMA: This is offensive and I think it's disappointing, because John McCain always says, well, I'm not going to run that kind of politics and then to engages in that kind of, you know, smear I think is unfortunate, particularly since my policy toward Hamas has been no different than his.
I've said that they are a terrorist organization and we should not negotiate with them unless they recognize Israel, renounce violence and unless they're willing to abide by previous accords between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
And so for him to toss out comments like that I think is an example of him losing his bearings as he pursues this nomination. We don't need name calling in this debate. What we're going to need is to have a serious conversation about how do keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of the Iranian regime; how do we broker a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians that allows both sides to benefit.
Israel assuring its security and its status as a Jewish state, the Palestinians able to have a contiguous, functioning state where their people can prosper.
And if we end up continuing to be locked up in these ideological arguments, playing politics of the sort that we've seen John McCain doing recently, then I think frankly we're going to miss an opportunity to really move this country in a better direction and to reset our foreign policy in a way that I think the world is anxious for.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: You may have heard that part in there. Obama referred to McCain as losing his bearings. Well, the McCain camp responded by saying, quote:
"He used the word losing his bearings intentionally, a not particularly clever way of raising John McCain's age as an issue. This is typical of Obama's style of campaign. We have all become familiar with Senator Obama's new brand of politics. First, you demand civility from your opponent, then you attack him, distort his record and send out surrogates to question his integrity. It's called hypocrisy."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The Obama campaign says Obama was not talking about McCain's age.
CHO: Well, McCain is 71 and if elected he'd become the oldest president in history. But there's also lots of buzz this morning about Hillary Clinton becoming Barack Obama's running mate. But Clinton spokesman is shooting down the idea of a dream ticket saying quote:
"Senator Clinton is of single mind and focus. She is thinking about how to win the nomination. That's all she's thinking about. Any conversations about running mates, about tickets in either order is premature. She is focused on the path to the nomination. A path she believes is still very attainable."
CNN's Deborah Feyerick shows us a combined ticket has both its pros and its cons.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With just six primaries left and pressure on Hillary Clinton to step aside, the question is back about what many Democrats have called a dream ticket with her as vice president raised in part by Clinton friend turned ABC commentator George Stephanopoulos.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC COMMENTATOR: Would Senator Clinton take it? I think if it were offered in the right way, yes.
FEYERICK: On CNN, Senator Obama seemed to deflect the possibility.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It would be presumptuous of me at this point when she is still actively running, when she's highly favored to win the next -- two of the next three contests for me to somehow suggest that she should be my running mate.
FEYERICK: Campaigning Thursday in West Virginia, Clinton reminded all those listening the power she brings to a ticket.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Winning Catholic voters and Hispanic voters and blue collar workers and seniors, the kind of people that Senator McCain will be fighting for in the general election.
FEYERICK: Still after all the bitterness of the past few months, does such a ticket really make sense? Well, some political insiders say it could unite the party. Others say the so-called dream could become a nightmare. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If he puts Clinton on the message will be mixed, and, in fact, Clinton will contradict his message of newness, freshness, and change.
FEYERICK: As for some voters -- Do you think he wins more easily with her or without her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With. Oh, yes, absolutely. It will be a landslide.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It would be a terrible ticket.
FEYERICK: Deborah Feyerick, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Well, despite the cons there is a group pushing for a joint ticket. Vote Both is what it's called. It says an Obama-Clinton ticket could unite the Democratic Party after a bitter campaign.
T.J.?
HOLMES: The superdelegates trying to make up their minds right now and some of them -- or one of them found a way to make up his mind. Show me the money. Steven Ibarra, a superdelegate from Sacramento. He says his vote is for sale and how much will that cost the candidates? $20 million.
He says he would use that money to help register Mexican-American voters, something he claims the DNC isn't spending enough money on. He thinks that group is the key to winning the White House in November. I know the superdelegate votes are important. I can't imagine it being worth that.
CHO: Something tells me he's not getting $20 million.
You're watching the Most News in the Morning. Marijuana and your mental health. Find out why it could damage your brain in more ways than one. There's new research. That's coming up.
And Charles Manson's murder mystery. Find out why police are digging up his ranch for clues to more crimes. We'll have that story in today's headlines when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Police in California are searching for body that Charles Manson's Death Valley hideout. They say there is now enough credible evidence for a serious investigation after decades of rumors. CNN's Ted Rowlands is in Death Valley.
TED ROWLANDS, CNN GENERAL ASSIGNMENT CORRESPONDENT: After 40 years of rumors and speculation that there are bodies buried behind the Barker Ranch here in Death Valley, at some point today the local sheriff is going to decide whether or not to go back here and look for these bodies and actually dig up the earth.
This all started because a local policeman and a cadaver dog identified five separate sites. Further testing has convinced a lot of people that there are bodies back here. So, it is assumed that there's a very good chance they could dig.
This is the Barker Ranch. This is where Charles Manson and his crew hid out after the helter-skelter murders back in 1969. There were about 30 of them at the time. This is the largest of the several buildings on this ranch and this is the Barker house.
Charles Manson was the last person, according to local authorities, to be busted. He was in this bathroom. One thing that is no longer here is the closet that he was crammed in. Manson was only about five feet tall. And according to the law enforcement, he was in that closet.
Sheriff's deputy was using the bathroom, standing up, looked over, saw Charles Manson's hair. That is how they found him and arrested him. Now, 40 years -- almost 40 years later, they're thinking about coming back here to the Barker Ranch to dig up to look for bodies, possibly more victims of Charles Manson.
Alina?
CHO: CNN's Ted Rowlands for us in Death Valley.
Ted, thank you.
T.J.?
HOLMES: Alina, it was the nation's deadliest single disaster for firefighters since the 9/11 terror attacks. Well, now a federal report just released says crews responding to a furniture fire store -- furniture store fire, rather, in South Carolina almost a year ago never had enough water or enough hoses to put that fire out. Nine firefighters killed. Recommendations on how to fix the problem now coming in a future report.
The family of a woman who died while in police custody at a Phoenix Airport is suing the city. The lawsuit claims that police officers contributed to the death of Carol Anne Gotbaum by using excessive force and improperly shackling her. A medical examiner found that she strangled herself with the restraints while waiting in an airport holding cell.
Seven more Philadelphia cops taken off the streets as part of the investigation into the taped beating of three suspects. That now brings the total to 13 officers who have been pulled off the street out of the estimated 15 who were there during Monday's incident. The mayor stands behind the police department, saying the video appears to show the officers overstepped their authority.
And New York Congressman Vito Fossella could use some good news right about now. The Republican from Staten Island admitted to fathering a child during an extramarital affair. He's married with three other children. And last week, he was arrested for drunk driving near Washington, D.C. He says he has no plans to resign his seat in Congress but he could decide not to run for re-election in the fall.
Also, a quick-thinking baseball coach may have saved a life. Chris Cover (ph) was hit in the face by a pitch and knocked unconscious when Danny Taylor, a coach on the other team, sprung into action.
Danny said he used what he learned in a CPR class he had taken a few months earlier to get Cover (ph) on his hands and knees to prevent the blood from clogging his nose. Well, Cover's got a broken nose. He's otherwise alright. But there is some good information and luck to be said for taking CPR classes. You don't think you'll ever need that stuff, but it comes in handy.
CHO: A rare (INAUDIBLE) the baseball field.
HOLMES: On the baseball field.
Well, coming up next here, the next president could dramatically alter the makeup of the Supreme Court. We'll look at what Clinton, McCain and Obama are each looking for in a potential Supreme Court nominee.
Also, Rob Marciano with us this morning with some severe weather we've actually been talking about.
Good morning to you again, sir.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, T.J. And rough weather across parts of North Carolina and Virginia. That will be moving offshore, but a tornado watch in effect until 9:00 a.m. And then we recharge the atmosphere for the weekend. Complete weather details coming up when AMERICAN MORNING comes right back.
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MARCIANO: Check this out. Police have been clearing the last remaining people from the shadow of that Chilean Volcano after strong explosions blowing hot rocks. There you see the ash flow coming out of that volcano.
It's been erupting for almost a week now. Scattered ash across a wide swathe of South America forced regional airports to close and drove more than 7,000 people from their homes there. That is something that hasn't happened in 9,000 years with that particular volcano, and, yes, everything's starting to shut down there.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CHO: The next president of the United States may get to reshape the Supreme Court. Hear what each candidate wants in a nominee. And who would be their role models for a perfect Supreme Court justice? That's coming up. Also, it's been called the so-called Democratic dream ticket. Would Barack Obama pick Hillary Clinton as his running mate? Hear him answer that question. Wolf Blitzer sat down with him. Find out what Obama told him. That and a whole lot more. Don't you go anywhere.
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HOLMES: The next president of the United States could appoint as many as three new justices to the Supreme Court. So what are Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John McCain looking for in a nominee?
AMERICAN MORNING legal analyst Sunny Hostin takes a closer look at what the candidates are saying about their perfect justice.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLINTON: Elections have political consequences, and among them are who gets to pick our judges.
SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST (voice-over): Whichever candidate wins the presidential vote in November will likely have a profound impact on shaping the Supreme Court. And that could affect who we're allowed to marry, how our health care system is run, even who the president might be if we see another presidential stalemate.
Earlier this week the presumptive Republican nominee John McCain offered a glimpse into his judicial philosophy by pledging to appoint strict constructionist judges to the federal bench.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have my own standards of judicial ability, experience, philosophy, and temperament. And Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito meet those standards. They would serve as a model for my own nominees if that responsibility falls to me.
HOSTIN: Senator Barack Obama voted against Justice Roberts' appointment. Obama won't say who he would choose if he becomes president but he did offer this.
OBAMA: The oldest members of the Supreme Court are also some of the most liberal and progressive ones. So we're going to have to make sure that we at the very least hold serve.
HOSTIN: Like Obama, fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton is a trained attorney and also voted against Justice Roberts' appointment. Clinton says she'd choose judges based on their interpretation of the constitution.
CLINTON: I'm going to be looking for people who respect that the constitution is an organic, growing, evolving set of principles that have stood the test of time.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. And Sunny Hostin joins us here live. All right. We don't even know who the president is going to be, but we -- and there's so much guessing about who they might take as vice president so we can also guess who they might pick as Supreme Court nominees.
HOSTIN: That's right.
HOLMES: We actually have names already?
HOSTIN: We do. I'm going to go with Jeffrey Toobin, our senior legal analyst because he did write a book on the Supreme Court and he is guessing that if Clinton gets the nomination and wins to be president, she's going to appoint Obama to the Supreme Court.
HOLMES: Are you serious?
HOSTIN: That's his prediction and I'm going to agree with him. I mean, Obama is in his late 40s. He would have a long tenure in the court and it gets him the heck out of the way. He's not going to run against her again.
HOLMES: So there's some politics involved. Not just because he might be a brilliant constitutional mind.
HOSTIN: That's right. And I think if Obama becomes the next president, we're going to look at Elena Kagan, who would be the dean of Harvard Law School, his alma mater. She was council to President Clinton and clerked for Thurgood Marshall. So she would be an excellent choice.
The other choice I think Obama could make would be Harold Koh. Dean of Yale Law School and he also went to Harvard. We know those Harvard people stick together and then finally I think Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano. A lot of people are talking about her as a possible Supreme Court Justice. Arizona governor who has supported Obama for president.
And then I think people are thinking if McCain gets appointed he's going to go with any Bush appointee. A very conservative type of judge and even perhaps someone like Judge Kavanaugh.
HOLMES: It's amazing we have names already.
HOSTIN: We have names, of course, that's what we lawyers do.
HOLMES: And you put it all off on Toobin. So if none of this ever happens then we can just --
HOSTIN: Hey, he wrote the books. I'm going to go with him.
HOLMES: He wrote book. All right, Sunny Hostin, good to see you. Thank you so much this morning.
HOSTIN: Thanks, T.J.
CHO: We have to get through the primary season first. And with Barack Obama pulling ahead in the delegate count, many are wondering if he'd consider picking Hillary Clinton as a running mate. Both the Clinton and Obama camps say it's simply premature to talk about vice presidents because both are still focus on winning the nomination.
We want to hear from you on this. If Barack Obama becomes the Democratic nominee, should he select Hillary Clinton to be his running mate? And take a look there. Right now 26 percent of you say yes, 74 percent say no. Keep voting. Head to cnn.com/am and keep those votes coming.
And if not Hillary Clinton, then who? Send us an e-mail about this. Let us know who would be on your dream ticket. Again, the address, cnn.com/am. We're going to read some of your e-mails later on in the show.
The leader of the free world plays father of the bride this weekend. Wedding details ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
CHO: Late night swing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: There isn't a higher priority for me as your next president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: What keeps Clinton going?
Plus, a new date on the primary calendar. While some say Obama will declare victory. The "Most Politics in the Morning."
Plus, she's been all over the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I've been wanting to go to Pyongyang for a long, long, long time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: But never North Korea. A page from Christiane Amanpour's notebook, inside the secretive regime.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: President Bush now taking on a new role this weekend. Father of the bride. His daughter, Jenna, getting married tomorrow at the White House -- the Western White House, however, in Crawford, Texas. The president practiced walking her down the aisle on his way to the ranch yesterday, as you see there. White House correspondent Elaine Quijano has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He may be the leader of the free world, but in the twilight of his presidency --
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Please excuse me if I'm a little sleepy. 3:00 a.m. this morning the red phone rang.
QUIJANO: George W. Bush is embarking on a new role, father-in- law.
G. BUSH: It's the damn wedding planner.
QUIJANO: For months, President Bush has made light of becoming father of the bride to daughter Jenna. Even joking about how future son-in-law Henry Hager asked his permission for Jenna's hand.
G. BUSH: So the guy comes to see me and he says, I want to marry your daughter. I said, done deal.
QUIJANO: The lightness belies the emotional intensity of his daughter getting married.
G. BUSH: And I got a lot on my mind, by the way. Getting ready to march down the aisle, and --
QUIJANO: 26-year-old Jenna Bush was born in Dallas, Texas, one minute after fraternal twin, Barbara. Jenna is said to be more like her father, gregarious and fun-loving. Qualities that landed her in trouble early on in her father's presidency for underage drinking.
Her mischievous streak still apparent campaigning for her father in 2004. But since then Jenna Bush has carved out a different identity while entering adulthood. As a school teacher, a UNICEF intern and a book author. Now as a bride she's made clear she shares her father's affinity for her home state by having her wedding at her parents' Crawford Ranch.
JENNA BUSH, DAUGHTER OF GEORGE W. BUSH: I think the White House is a historical, beautiful building, of course, and place, but I wanted to have something more private and something that fit my personality a little bit more.
QUIJANO: Jenna Bush did offer a glimpse into her relationship with her father during a phone call while appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres show last December.
J. BUSH: Dad?
G. BUSH: Yes, baby?
J. BUSH: Are you mad?
G. BUSH: No, not at all. I do want to say Merry Christmas to you. I want to tell my little girl I love her.
