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American Morning
Cameras Roll as Earthquake Hits Los Angeles; Senator Ted Stevens Indicted on Felony Charges; Pres. Bush Signs Housing Bill; Jet Pack Test Flight Launch in Wisconsin
Aired July 30, 2008 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: The so-called "Butcher of Bosnia" arrived at the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands early this morning. The ex-Bosnia Serb leader faces 11 counts including genocide and extermination. Karadzic is accused by the War Crimes Tribunal of masterminding the slaughter of 8,000 Muslim men and boys during the Bosnian war, Arab's worst massacre since World War II.
Pakistan's new prime minister is telling the United States to keep its distance in the hunt for hidden terrorists. Yousuf Raza Gilani is ruling out unilateral U.S. action to hit terror leaders found within Pakistan's borders saying, "We can do it ourselves."
His comments came after meetings with President Bush and presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain. Obama has suggested that he would approve unilateral U.S. strikes.
Well, we now know what caused a hole in a jumbo jet at 30,000 feet. Air Safety Investigators say an oxygen tank did explode. It trapped and sheared off (ph) part of a door handle on the back Qantas flight, but it did not unlock.
Video from inside the plane on Friday showed oxygen masks coming down during a 20,000 foot dive. Take it down to where you don't need to have oxygen debris. The plane made an emergency landing in Manila in the Philippines. No one was hurt.
ALINA CHO, CO-HOST: Back to our stop story now. The California earthquake. Almost 90 aftershocks rocking the region, some as strong as 3.8 magnitude. People bracing for more aftershocks this morning in southern California after a 5.4 earthquake shook the area yesterday.
Experts say this quake could be a taste of what's to come, but there's just a tiny chance a larger quake could hit right now.
That's a live look at LAX there at about 4:00 a.m. local time. Most everything was back to normal now. But take a look at what it looked like yesterday.
Water pouring into a gate after a pipe was shaken loose above the ceiling tile. Wow, imagine that.
ROBERTS: Well, it wasn't the most damaging but it may have been the most recorded earthquake that our country has ever seen. CNN's Susan Roesgen has some brand-new pictures now from Hollywood sets that started shaking with no special effects intended there -- Susan. SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alina and John, it could have been much worse. But it was just bad enough to remind people here of the danger they face every day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN (voice-over): It was just about lunchtime Tuesday and this being southern California, cameras were rolling. The 5.4 magnitude earthquake rattled the taping of "Judge Judy" and "Big Brother."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, FROM CBS "BIG BROTHER")
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Earthquake.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROESGEN: It was the biggest earthquake in the L.A. region since 1994. No serious injuries reported and just some minor damage. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was relieved no one in his family or anyone else was hurt.
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I, of course, called home right away after the quake and to just see if the family is OK. And I think she was in the middle of a meeting and felt the house rock. But she's OK and everyone else is OK. Like I said, we were very fortunate that there were no serious injuries or the property damage that we know of at this point.
ROESGEN: The earthquake was centered in Chino Hills, about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Earthquake experts say it was good preparation for what they call the big one.
THOMAS HEATON, CALTECH: It does remind us all that we live in earthquake country. And L.A. has been very quiet for the last 10 years or so. So for all of us, we've kind of grown comfortable with the way things are. But when earthquake sequences get happening, things can get exciting and there's a chance we'll see a big earthquake.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROESGEN: Exciting is right. Actually, they say that the odds of California having a major earthquake within the next 30 years is 99 percent. And this fall they're going to have what they're calling the biggest earthquake drill here in southern California. State and federal officials are going to put this on. And certainly with what happened yesterday, John and Alina, it will make the drill far more realistic.
CHO: Probably a good idea. Now, your I-reports started pouring in minutes after the quake hit southern California. One of the best came in from a man named Travis Corcoran. His pool was enough to make you seasick. He says he felt a rolling motion for about 20 seconds, and it was the strongest quake he's ever felt. Want to bring in Reynolds Wolf now who's taking a look at warning systems for earthquakes. You know, Reynolds, as you know, with tornadoes you hear those sirens. Are there any warning systems for earthquakes?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: There are a few but they only give people about a few seconds notice to take action, which is hardly enough time you need to have really the kind of action needed, let's say, of an earthquake of this magnitude.
There has been a bit of a breakthrough though for scientists. In fact, in Parkfield, California, researchers have found that there is a buildup of underground pressure right, preceding many of these big earthquakes.
As we take a look at our Google maps, let's zoom in our few locations. We're going to show you the epicenter that we have. Parkfield located just to the north of that area. And what researchers have been doing is they've actually been boring holes right into parts of the San Andreas Fault about a half mile deep and they take an instrument that's very similar to a stereo speaker and they put it way underground. And it's that censor that's able to pick up that increase in pressure.
Now, the hope is that they'll be able to device some kind of a warning system that will give people not just a few minutes, but possibly, Alina, a few hours notice before these tremors take place and before you have all the devastating prospects that occur with these big systems.
But you're right. You know, you mentioned moments ago, you know, these things can strike at any hour. It's not like a thunderstorm where you see the skies get dark and you can see the lightning and hear the thunder. There's really no indication that people are going to have just by looking around them other than when it happens and you have the world shaking.
So, it's again, just kind of a terrifying prospect. But hopefully the warnings will increase and improve. Back to you.
CHO: Yes. And we can all benefit from that new technology. Reynolds Wolf, thank you.
WOLF: Anytime.
CHO: And in northern California, a wildfire burning outside Yosemite National Park has burned more than 46 square miles just since last week. Overworked firefighters currently have the fire about 15 percent contained.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE MOHLER, CAL FIRE SPOKESMAN: The firefighters are tired, but the morale is still good. It's a difficult fire season. We haven't even begun and firefighters have gone lengths for over months. So it's difficult, but morale is up. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Firefighters did get some much needed help yesterday from lower temperatures. And again, today, it should stay in the low 80s -- John.
ROBERTS: Alaska Senator Ted Stevens insists that he is innocent. Stevens was indicted on seven felony counts for allegedly hiding a quarter of a million dollars of gifts and home renovations that he got from an oil contractor.
Our Kelli Arena joins us now live from Washington this morning. And this is a pretty stinging indictment against Senator Stevens, Kelli.
KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It sure is, John. As you know, he's the longest serving Republican in the Senate. One of the most powerful men in Washington. But he has been under a cloud of suspicion for more than a year now. And yesterday, prosecutors accused him of participating in a scheme that lasted for seven years.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARENA (voice-over): A new first floor. A garage. A wrap around deck. All for his vacation home in Alaska. More than $250,000 worth of gifts for an influential senator that were allegedly never disclosed. Senator Ted Stevens was indicted by a federal grand jury for not reporting those gifts as is required by law.
MATTHEW FRIEDRICH, ASST. ATTORNEY GENERAL: These items were not disclosed on Senator Stevens' financial disclosure forms which he filed under penalties of perjury.
ARENA: Prosecutors say the undisclosed gifts were given to Stevens over a seven-year period by an oil services company, VECO, and its CEO, Bill Allen, who pleaded guilty last year to bribery.
The indictment says when the senator was receiving those gifts, VECO employees were soliciting him for "multiple official actions" including funding for projects in Pakistan and Russia. But the government stopped short of charging Stevens with taking bribes.
FRIEDRICH: The indictment does not allege a quid pro quo.
ARENA: Stevens has been under investigation for more than a year as part of a larger probe into public corruption in Alaska in which seven people have already been convicted. His home was searched last summer by the FBI and the IRS. In a radio interview at the time, he insisted he paid for his home's elaborate renovation himself.
SEN. TED STEVENS (R), ALASKA: Every bill that was presented to us has been paid personally with our own money.
ARENA: Stevens is still maintaining his innocence. In a written statement, he says he's never knowingly submitted a false disclosure form. His colleagues for now are giving him the benefit of the doubt. SEN. HARRY REID (D), MAJORITY LEADER: It's a sad day for him. Us.
SEN. JOHN WARNER (R), VIRGINIA: I hope that this will turn out fairly and consistent with law and good decision.
ARENA: The fact that Stevens is 84 years old could play a role in any plea agreement or possible sentencing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ARENA: Now, Stevens won't be arrested. Prosecutors say that he'll be able to turn himself in. But there's no timetable yet on exactly when that's going to happen, John.
ROBERTS: So what was the time frame again, Kelli, over which this all occurred allegedly?
ARENA: 1999 to 2006.
ROBERTS: During some of that time he was third in line to the presidency, so this really is significant.
ARENA: That's right. That's right.
ROBERTS: Wow. Kelli arena for us this morning. Kelli, thanks so much.
We've got some news just in to CNN I want to share with you. President Bush just moments ago signed HR3221. It's the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. White House Spokesman Tony Fratto says, "We look forward to put in place new authorities to improve confidence and stability in the markets and to provide better oversight for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Federal housing administration will begin to implement new policies intending to keep more deserving American families in their homes."
A statement from the White House this morning as the president signs the housing bill which began back in April and only now becomes law.
CHO: Yes. The Senate held a rare Saturday session to pass it, give final passage over the weekend.
ROBERTS: Yes. There's a whole lot of back and forth. A veto threat from the White House but President Bush decided to rescind that because he felt like people were hurting so much it wasn't going to be very politically palatable to send it back to Congress.
CHO: And there you have it. It's now official.
ROBERTS: There you go.
Here's what we're working on for you this morning. The airlines at it again. More bags, more money. See which airline just doubled the price of checking a second bag. And wait until you hear how much a third checked bag is going to cost you now.
CHO: Oh, boy. Also ahead, your employer takes money out of your paycheck that's supposed to go to the IRS. How do you know it's really going there? A new breed of tax cheat.
ROBERTS: And no. That is not George Jetson, but it could be you with a personal jet pack. We're getting ready for liftoff. Our Miles O'Brien is going to take flight. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: A major airline cutback has customers fighting back. U.S. Airways announced it won't be giving bonus miles to its best customers anymore. I know.
So Flyertalk.com launched an Internet campaign to get their miles back and don't count them out. When Delta tried a similar move, travelers revolted and the airline actually reversed their decision. The same thing happened to a different U.S. Airways perk cut earlier.
ROBERTS: You know, if this goes any further we're going to start having to pay them to fly us around.
CHO: Exactly.
ROBERTS: They've done it again. Another airline. Another price increase. Checking a second bag on Delta Airlines is now going to cost you an extra 50 bucks each way. And checking a third bag on Delta is now going to cost you $125. Remember when a ticket was $125?
CHO: It's going to cost you more than the price of a ticket to check your bags. You know, I was flying from Atlanta to New York on Sunday. For the first time I did that $15 a bag thing for your first bag on American. And it's just 15 bucks but it hurts. You know, it's psychological, anyway.
GERRI WILLIS, PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: You don't want to pay for things you didn't used to pay for, right?
(CROSSTALK)
CHO: I don't like the trend. Exactly.
ROBERTS: Here's a prediction. Here's a prediction. The airlines are going to price themselves out of the baggage carrying business. People will, if they're going on vacation, they'll take it to their local UPS or their postal service store.
(CROSSTALK)
They will ship it to wherever they're going for a quarter of the price.
CHO: Yes. WILLIS: Right now, if your bags are overweight, economically it makes more sense to do just that because the price comparison, you're better off doing, you know, DHL, UPS. You name it.
ROBERTS: How much is that? 40 bucks to ship a bag somewhere?
WILLIS: That's the way the models travel. Travel like a model, like a rock star.
CHO: Like a rock star.
WILLIS: That's right.
CHO: It's not a bad idea, anyway.
WILLIS: All right. Let's talk about what we're here to talk about.
CHO: Yes.
WILLIS: Markets?
CHO: OK.
WILLIS: All right. So markets were up yesterday solidly more than two percent, 2.4 percent at 11,397 on the Dow. That is really good news. And moving on a lot of good news out there. Mostly the fact that oil was lower and pretty dramatically so. It could move even lower today.
Let's take a look at how oil closed last night. Crude was down $2.54 a barrel at $122.19. This morning though it's trading at $121.65, down even lower. We're looking at three month lows here.
Gas, of course, down 1 1/2 cents a gallon, too, at $3.92 a gallon. I'm loving that. If you're going to drive on vacation this summer, you're going to love that. So good news.
CHO: Fill her up.
WILLIS: Fill her up. Fill her up.
ROBERTS: Makes you wonder why those airlines are charging all that money for those bags. The price is coming down.
WILLIS: Well, their fuel costs have doubled in the last 12 months.
CHO: Yes.
WILLIS: And that's brutal for them. You know, they're not set up to accommodate those kinds of price increases.
ROBERTS: They didn't plan ahead. That's why.
(CROSSTALK) WILLIS: Yes, that's right. They didn't plan ahead. They should have been speculating in the marketplace.
ROBERTS: Gerri, thanks so much.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
CHO: Making the case for legalizing marijuana. Representative Barney Frank front and center on the debate later on this morning. We're going to tell you what his bill would and would not do.
ROBERTS: South Los Angeles goes on a diet. How city leaders are trying to keep fast food out of poor neighborhoods.
But first, our Reynolds Wolf tracking extreme weather this morning and we got some heat today, Reynolds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Oh, what a wonderful world looking at the arch there. The "Gateway to the West" in St. Louis Missouri where it's cloudy and 76 degrees right now. Forecast for thunderstorms and a high of 80 degrees today. Typical day there in Missouri in late July.
WOLF: Reynolds Wolf is tracking all of our weather across the country today. And Reynolds, 80 degrees, going to be cool compared to some parts of the country.
WOLF: Yes. You know, it's going to be fantastic there. But if you go back to St. Louis, go back to Missouri, take a look where you're going to see just to the west of St. Louis, right on parts of I-70, you go from bad to worse from Columbia over to Kansas City where you have heavy rainfall and there is the potential of some flooding. Rainfall rates around an inch an hour. Could see anywhere from three to four inches of rain right through the Show Me State.
Meanwhile, as we go from Kansas City and points farther off to the east, we're going to be viewing is going from the rain to the extreme heat. In Philadelphia, it's going to be a brutal day for you. The high humidity and those high temperatures, it's going to feel like 100 degrees if not a bit warmer. May be up to 105.
Same story for you in Charleston, South Carolina, out by the prairie grand. The sizzle is going to be a steamy day for you. And, meanwhile, over parts of, say, Mississippi into Arkansas, even into Louisiana and Tennessee, again, we have the heat advisories that will remain in effect. The heat should stick around for the next couple of days.
That is the latest in the forecast. Let's send it back to you in New York.
CHO: All right, Reynolds, thank you.
WOLF: You bet.
CHO: Top videos right now in CNN.com. It's all about the earthquake. Most popular shakeup in "Judge Judy's" courtroom.
The earthquake interrupted the TV taping. The judge bailed. So did the live studio audience as the big TV lights wobbled above them.
Also, soggy LAX. Minor damage at L.A.'s airport but water poured through the ceiling, breaking through tiles and soaking one gate.
And earthquakes are unpredictable. Just ask the astrologer who is taping her show the "Cosmos Gal" when it hit.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In your pursuit of that special someone, the stars have you back. You can keep your cool.
There's an earthquake. Oh, my God. Stay on the doorway, Andy. Andy, get in the (bleep) doorway right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Don't you love the bleep part? These are the most popular videos on CNN.com right now. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning." We're back in 90 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Three, two, one, liftoff. Flying. It's not just for super heroes anymore. Soon, you too could own a jet pack for less than some luxury cars.
Our own Miles O'Brien straps in and takes off. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
ROBERTS: Whole new mode of transportation. It's 22 minutes after the hour and time to fast forward now to other stories that will be making news today.
Our Brianna Keilar, boom, is going to be up on Capitol Hill following the latest drama on the energy bill. John Boehner and House Republicans hold a news conference to demand an energy vote. And later on, Republican leader Mitch McConnell and other leading Republicans will head to Upper Senate Park and stand in front of a semi to talk. We're going to have live coverage on air and online.
At 10:30, China's human rights record. What to do about it will be a topic number one at congressional press conference today. Five freedom activists met with President Bush about it yesterday. They're also going to be at today's press conference.
Democratic Congressman Barney Frank holds a press conference later on this morning to talk about his new bill which would legalize recreational use of marijuana. The bill would also get rid of federal criminal penalties for possession of 100 grams or less of the drug.
And what is that smell? At 11:30 this morning, Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin will announce -- hey, what's that smell? The legendary duo's first comedy tour in more than 25 years.
And that's what we're following this morning. Sister Mary Elephant.
CHO: Forgot about that.
You want to beat the traffic to work? Maybe we can interest you in a jet pack. Miles O'Brien there for a live test flight this morning. Hey, Miles. You have outdone yourself today.
MILES O'BRIEN, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, we'll see, won't we, Alina?
This is my first flight. I have not done this before. We're going to try it in about three minutes' time. This is the Martin jet pack with the Oshkosh AirVenture air show. And we're going to see if this science fiction dream can really become a reality. And we'll see if I crash. So stay with us for more AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHO: Well, it's not exactly the same as "stop this crazy thing." But an inventor just got a futuristic jet pack off the ground. And he says soon you can have one, too. It will cost you 100 gs.
Miles O'Brien live in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, for a test flight this morning. Miles, I say this with great love. You are the biggest gadget geek I know and this is the ultimate gadget. How much are you loving this?
O'BRIEN: I don't know yet, Alina, because I have not done this. This is Glenn Martin. He is one of the inventors of the Martin jet pack. He's going to seal it. He's come here to Oshkosh, the Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture, the biggest flight in the world, to show off what is really the ultimate geek (INAUDIBLE), the jet pack.
We all dream about it. But over the years is that it's never been a practical notion. The jet pack (INAUDIBLE) maybe fly 30 seconds, a couple of minutes. This one can go for 30 minutes, 50 miles an hour, up to 8,000 feet.
We're not going to do any of that today. He's going to -- I've got basically training wheels on the side here. His team is going to make sure I don't get too far away. But for the first time I'm going to fly this right now and give it a whirl. Here I go. Here I go, Alina.
Oh, boy. Oh, boy. Whoa! Whoa! I can go higher, don't you? Not bad. Slow down now.
Do you want me to land? How did I do? All right, Alina. I'm going to take this off. We're going to talk to Glenn in just a second because I am strapped here. Stand by one second.
Oh, my gosh. That was unbelievable. Glenn, what was it like the first time you flew it?
GLENN MARTIN, JET PACK INVENTOR: It freaked me. I took off and I went, whoa. I went back down. But, you know, it was the second time I suppose was better than the first.
O'BRIEN: All right. It's one thing to do what we just did, hovering with a group of people around you. To go to 8,000 feet, would you do that?
MARTIN: Probably not just yet. At the moment we're still in the development program and we were strapped up to 10 feet high. You need to go up a few hundred hours of flying at that height.
O'BRIEN: Yes.
MARTIN: And then the first person that's going to go over 10 feet and go to 8,000 that will be me.
O'BRIEN: All right. And then, right now, it is available, though. You can actually purchase it. And it's 100,000 bucks.
MARTIN: That's right.
O'BRIEN: And you don't need a license for this, right?
MARTIN: Well, officially it's an ultralight. So you don't need a license but you do need training. And we have a training system but we won't deliver a product to somebody who isn't trained, of course. You know, that would be foolhardy sort of.
O'BRIEN: Right. Right. So how much training would you give to make somebody ready?
MARTIN: Most people seem to get to the point where they can fly pretty confidently in about 15 hours of training.
O'BRIEN: All right. Let's go -- we've got this other one over here. I want to show you, Alina, real quickly. Here's the key on all this.
Glenn was telling me yesterday it's the big size of these fans. It's kind of like a big jet engine. It's not really a jet, per se, though, is it?
MARTIN: Yes.
O'BRIEN: You know, it's just a leaf blower on steroids kind of thing?
MARTIN: Yes. Yes. We have the world's biggest leaf blower, you know, absolutely. And it makes it very efficient. We turn horsepower into thrust very efficiently. And we do that in such a way that there's no torque left in it.
You know, a helicopter has a tower rotor. The technology was developed inside here. It means that we don't need a tower rotor or any of those sort of things.
O'BRIEN: All right, Glenn, thank you very much.
I've got 30 seconds. You got to sign my logbook later. 30 seconds of jet pack time. We're going to try it one more time. I'll be an experienced flyer next hour. By that time, I'll be old hat. I don't think he'll let me go to 8,000 feet but well we'll see how far we've progressed -- Alina.
CHO: You have out done yourself, my friend. You got to work a little bit on the altitude. But I'm game once you can go a little bit higher. All right. Miles O'Brien, we'll check you out in the next hour.
O'BRIEN: All right.
CHO: Miles, thank you.
O'BRIEN: All right. See you.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN, ANCHOR: He strikes just like "Thunderball."
Coming up to the bottom of the hour here, and here are this morning's top stories. We now know what cause a hole in a jumbo jet at 30,000 feet. Air safety investigators say an oxygen tank did explode. Video from inside the aircraft on Friday showed oxygen masks coming down during a 20,000 foot dive to get down to a lower altitude where you can breathe without oxygen. It made an emergency landing in the Philippines. No one was hurt in that incident.
Breaking this morning, President Bush has signed the housing rescue bill. The legislation throws a lifeline to some 400,000 homeowners who are facing foreclosure. It also establishes a government rescue plan for the nation's two mortgage giants. White House spokesman Tony Fratto says, "we look forward to putting in place new authorities to improve confidence and stability in the markets and to provide better oversight for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Federal Housing administration will begin to implement the new policies intended to keep more deserving American families in their homes.
Iraq allowed back into the Beijing games. The Olympic ban was lifted after Baghdad agreed that it wouldn't politically influence its National Olympic Committee. A committee that saw some of its members kidnapped. Our Morgan Neill brought us the story of a female Iraqi track star who was in tears when she heard that her Olympic dreams were shattered. Right now, he's trying to track her down for a reaction and will join us with that a little bit later on here on AMERICAN MORNING.
Close to 90 aftershocks in Los Angeles after yesterday's 5.4 magnitude quake. It's all being considered a wakeup call for a bigger quake that may be on the way. Our Susan Roesgen is live for us in Los Angeles. Susan, any lessons learned from this that could help prepare for the next big one? SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Especially, John, when it comes to communication. So many people got on their cell phones right away. You can imagine that urge to call someone to let people know you're OK or to try to find out if your friends or family members are OK. So many people picked up the phone and called people here that the people who legitimately might have needed some help couldn't get through to 911. Both AT&T, Verizon, these companies say it was a really big problem. They're not quite sure how to address it except to urge people not to get on the phone next time unless they truly need help.
And of course, John, this was a case where there was so little structural damage and we're not even talking about cell phone towers being brought down. Everything was fine, it was just too many people on the phone. That will be a big one for next time. And in fact, they're going to have a drill here, what they're calling the largest earthquake drill ever. They're going to practice they're response to a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. State and federal officials. That's coming in a couple months. I think John what happened yesterday will be a really realistic kind of wakeup call. A drill for the big drill they're going to have in a couple of months.
ROBERTS: Yes, 7.8 would truly be a big earthquake. What about roads, bridges, airports, railways? Were any of them affected?
ROESGEN: Not really. Remarkably, it was just smooth sailing. The roads are fine. L.A.X. is fine. The regional airports are open. I think folks here are waking up to the realization that it could have been much worse. But this is something that they face, a danger that they face here every day.
ROBERTS: Susan Roesgen for us in Los Angeles this morning. Susan, thanks so much for that.
CHO: Now for some other stories making news across the country this morning. A Ft. Bragg soldier charged with first degree murder in the death of a pregnant colleague. Edgar Patino was arrested in his home a month after the body of Army Specialist Megan Touma was found in a motel bathtub in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
Bennigan's closes its stores. The restaurant chain abruptly closed more than 300 locations, leaving thousands of workers out of work with no warning. Its parent company filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy. And also closed the smaller Steak and Ale chain. The managers were told late Monday not to open the next day. It's one of the country's biggest restaurant bankruptcies ever.
And the city of Los Angeles is trying to keep fast food chains out of south Los Angeles. The city council voted unanimously to impose a one-year ban on new fast food restaurants in that low-income section of the city. The idea is to attract healthier food choices to the area.
ROBERTS: Two pipe bomb scares in two small towns in Ohio. Suspicious devices were found at post offices in Guysville and just down the road in Stewart yesterday. The bomb squad went in. Everyone else got out. Authorities say one device contained a liquid, but it was not a bomb. No word on the other one yet. No one hurt.
Legendary entertainer Jerry Lewis was cited for having a gun in his luggage. Las Vegas police say it was in his carry on bag before a flight to Detroit. The handgun was not loaded. Lewis' manager says it was a hollowed out prop that can't fire and he didn't know it was there.
And Barack Obama behind closed doors with his top vice presidential scouts. Did someone get a golden ticket? Our Suzanne Malveaux is working her sources in Washington. And here's the latest from her.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, Alina, Barack Obama is in Missouri today following a day of meetings with congressional democrats, the Pakistani Prime Minister and the Federal Reserve chair. But it was those two unannounced and very secretive meetings with his vice presidential team that had Washington insiders buzzing about a potential announcement.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Predicting who a presidential candidate will pick as a running mate, though, is a dangerous game. Remember this screaming headline? Kerry's choice, Dick Gephardt. Oops. It turned out to be this guy. With the democratic convention less than a month away, Barack Obama remains mum.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The next time I talk about my vice presidential selection, it will be to introduce that selection.
MALVEAUX: But Washington being Washington, we just can't help ourselves. Odds on favorites for Obama's pick as of now, these four. The most buzz is around Virginia's Governor Tim Kaine, who's been campaigning for Obama for the last year and a half. Asked directly whether he's being courted, he remains coy.
GOV. TIM KAINE (D), VIRGINIA: It's flattering to be mentioned. My mom loves it. She calls when she sees it, you know. But it is just - that's for the campaign to decide.
STUART ROTHENBERG, ROTHENBERG POLITICAL REPORT: Tim Kaine makes a lot of sense for Barack Obama. Virginia is going to be one of the two or three key states for Obama.
MALVEAUX: Joe Biden, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
ROTHENBERG: He's a grown up, foreign policy, national security. Been around a long time.
MALVEAUX: Senator Evan Bayh. Originally a big Hillary Clinton supporter.
ROTHENBERG: Evan Bayh is not the kind of person to make mistakes. He's loyal. He's trustworthy. He's smart. He looks terrific in a photo op.
MALVEAUX: And Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius who could either help or hurt the female vote.
ROTHENBERG: Kathleen Sebelius is the obvious name. Might evoke such a scream of anger from Hillary Clinton supporters that a Sebelius pick wouldn't be worth it if you're just going for a woman.
MALVEAUX: As for Hillary Clinton, the spotlight on her has diminished.
ROTHENBERG: Normally the presidential nominee doesn't want to be overshadowed by the V.P. or the V.P.'s husband. And Senator Clinton would bring some considerable baggage and controversy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Campaign aides are keeping the process and the names under wraps. But it is clear that it's escalating. John, Alina.
CHO: Suzanne Malveaux for us. Gerri Willis, "Minding your business." Hey, Gerri. Good morning.
GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hey, Alina, good to see you. You know, why you might be buying rather than leasing your next car. More AMERICAN MORNING is next.
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ROBERTS: Well, it's not the second coming. But it is Jesus on a cat. Ten weeks to go, a family from Indiana South Bend rescued two kittens after their mother abandoned them. They noticed one of the kittens, Sissy, had markings on her fur that looked like Jesus Christ. Well, at least to them. They believe it's a sign of good things to come. You know, South Bend, that could be your Jesus of suburbia.
CHO: Like the potato chip with the Holy Mother on it that sell for ebay for like $10 bucks.
ROBERTS: Exactly. Your Jesus of suburbia on a suburban cat in South Bend.
CHO: Oh boy. Go figure.
ROBERTS: Gerri Willis here monitoring your business this morning. And the car leasing business certainly looks like it's going to change.
WILLIS: Yes. In a big way. You've got to hear this. This is big news here. An announcement, Chrysler stopping all lease deals by Friday. We're seeing this across the industry now. Leasing deals being reigned in. Ford is raising lease payments on trucks and SUVs. It's going to increase the cost. So it would just make just as much sense to buy the truck or SUV. G.M. is upping credit standards for a potential leasers. This is a big problem. It's all about the credit crunch. Money is hard to come by. It's getting more expensive for these auto dealers as well as banks who make these lease programs available. So what we're seeing is a real scaling back in what's going on here.
You should know that Ford wrote down $2.1 billion last week to cover unprofitable auto leases. And I think what's interesting about this in terms of what consumers how they are going to experience this, it's going to make it very difficult to get a lease, obviously. But we use leases to get into more luxurious cars, bigger cars. You get the big grand name luxury car. That's going to be tougher these days.
ROBERTS: So they're really cutting back on trucks and SUV. But might they increase leasing on smaller and more fuel efficient cars? Increasing Priuses?
WILLIS: You know, I didn't hear any of that. All I heard about were the cutbacks. And I think the cutbacks are key because Americans use that to get into cars these days. It's easier. It's cheaper to pick up a car tomorrow rather than having some kind of down payment.
CHO: Oh, yes. You and I were talking earlier about how, my parents were the last to still buy their cars. So many people are leasing. This is going to affect a lot of people.
WILLIS: I think it's really going to change the look of the car on the road. What you see driving out there. Ultimately but as you know, all these U.S auto makers are really struggling right now. Auto sales down. They don't want to get those big SUVs back, big oversize cars back from cars coming off of leases because they have inventories through the roof.
ROBERTS: Yes and zero residual value these days.
CHO: Gerri Willis, thank you.
WILLIS: My pleasure.
CHO: As President Bush gets ready to approve spending billions to fight HIV and AID in Africa, a surprising new report about the spread of the disease right here in the United States. We're "Paging Dr. Gupta."
And our own Dan Simon on the front lines as the fires rage in California. You're watching the most news in the morning.
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CHO: Good morning, Charlotte, North Carolina. Clear and 74. But later it's going to be stormy and 91 degrees. Talk about a change in the weather. We turn to somebody who's always consistent. Reynolds Wolf in for Rob Marciano today. Hey, Reynolds Good morning. What you looking at?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: The check is in the mail. So many kind words from you. Today we're looking at the stormy day through parts of Missouri. Not the best of days for you in Kansas City, St. Joseph or even in Columbia. You're going to need the umbrellas. You already have some flash flood watches and warnings that are in effect across the state. Another big story that we're dealing with is a little bit farther to the east. And that is the extreme heat we're going to be dealing with in Philadelphia where the heat index is going to make it feel like it's 100 degrees or warmer for a good part of today and of course tomorrow it's just going to be brutal for Philadelphia as far south as Wilmington, even into Middleton, back into Delaware.
The other story we're seeing. A good chance of rain mainly for the eastern third of the country and also into the central plains moving into the Midwest. Heavy rainfall but you also have a chance of strong storms in the northern plains including the Dakotas and also into parts of Nebraska. Well, later in the day a chance of not only strong storms but damaging winds, maybe even some tornadoes. But still very dry out to California. And the wind should die down a little bit which should assist the firefighters out at Yosemite and of course, the aircraft trying to fly in and valve the blaze, dropping that fuel or fire retardant. Weather very important out there. John, that's the latest we've got for you. Let's send it back to you in New York.
ROBERTS: Reynolds, thanks very much. We'll see you again soon.
Here's what we're working on for you this morning. Spying on Olympic visitors. China tracking internet use inside hotel rooms. How should the United States react? We'll ask Senator Sam Brownback, the man who produced the translated document from the Chinese government that blew this wide open.
Australian authorities say an exploding oxygen tank is to blame for the hole that ripped through a Qantas jet last week. How much worse could this have been? And are other airliners at risk? We're going to talk with a former crash investigator. You're watching the most news in the morning.
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CHO: Today President Bush expected to sign a $48 billion plan to help fight HIV and AIDS across the world over the next five years. According to a new U.N. AIDS report, there are 33 million people living with HIV in the world with a huge percentage of them in Africa. Now another report is out published by the Black AIDS Institute. It's trying to raise awareness about the AIDS epidemic right here at home. And it says AIDS in America today is a black disease. According to the report, as many 30,000 new HIV infections occur among blacks each year. And this is startling - HIV/AIDS, the leading cause of death among black women age 25 to 34.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins me now here in the studio. I mean this is incredible. We were saying just a minute earlier, I was live at a Harlem Hospital on World Aids Day a couple of years ago, they were talking about it back then. But now the numbers are there to back it up.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, people sort of suspected what I'm about to tell you for some time now but they had been actually researching it over the past few years. To give you some of these numbers, let me show you the disparity here. Let me point out a couple of things here. When you look at black in America and you look at AIDS overall, look at some of the numbers regarding HIV specifically. First of all, the percentage is 19 percent Hispanic, 34 percent white, and this number - 47 percent black.
The reason it is so staggering is that the African-American population in this country, only 13 percent. So you get an idea of just how disparate this is. You also start to break this down. 47 percent in the United States. Look at some specific cities here. HIV cases in Washington, D.C., 80 percent of them are African-Americans. Go to Jackson, Mississippi, 84 percent. So the numbers are pretty staggering. What's even more remarkable, as staggering as those numbers are, Alina, if you have HIV as a black person in this country, you are 2 1/2 times more likely to die of the disease. You are more likely to get it, you are more likely to die of it. That's the problem, that's what's so shocking here.
CHO: Well, and so that help obviously is so badly needed which is why the Black AIDS Institute is coming out with this report. You know, 39 million Americans are black. Half a million living with HIV right now. So how does that compare to other countries then?
GUPTA: If you were to take African-Americans and sort of make them their own country and compare them to several countries around the world that get relief for emergencies, for AIDS relief, there is a program called PEPFAR, President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief. They look at 15 countries. The United states would actually stack right in the middle of those 15 countries that are getting emergency money. So for example, they have more cases in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Botswana, Namibia, these are countries that qualify for this emergency money. It's $15 billion over five years. A lot of people say look that was great. It was great that so much money was given globally but what about here at home?
CHO: Yes. That's right.
GUPTA: The number of cases are greater than in so many of these other countries.
CHO: Well, it's incredible but when you look at that comparison specifically. Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Sanjay, thanks.
GUPTA: Right. Good morning. Sure. Thank you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS (voice-over): Rocking L.A., an earthquake breaking bricks off buildings and shaking up Judge Judy. Today, whether it was just a warning shot. And wakeup call.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We know that young brains may be more susceptible.
ROBERTS: Cell phones and cancer. And kids. How young is too young to connect?
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ROBERTS: It is a tried and true tactic in politics to bring your opponent down. Attach an anchor to their campaign. Democrats have said John McCain is running for President Bush's third term. Now republicans are taking a page from that playbook. Here's CNN's Dana Bash with that.
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Alina, republicans are searching high and low for new arguments against Barack Obama. And more and more it's beware of the company he keeps.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BASH (voice-over): An optimistic show of democratic unity.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE SPEAKER: We had a wonderful discussion.
BASH: And an embrace that republicans hope will breathe life into their new slogan.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An Obama-Pelosi-Reid trifecta, that is the leadership of the democratic party.
BASH: Republicans are now actively trying to drag Barack Obama down by linking him to less popular democrats, leaders in Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid issuing dire warnings.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You will see a stifling new increase of taxes, both on families and on small businesses. And there will be no one at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue with a veto stamp. That is Obama, Pelosi and Reid and all that that entails.
BASH: Tying a presidential candidate to an unpopular figure. Sound familiar? It should. Go to just about any John McCain campaign stop and you hear this protest chant -
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALES: Bush-McCain more of the same!
BASH: Linking McCain to President Bush is page one of the democrats' campaign playbook. Obama recently warned 15 times in one speech that McCain equals Bush.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You can vote for John McCain and see a continuation - see a continuation of Bush economic policies.
BASH: That strategy is a no-brainer. A recent poll shows 69 percent of Americans disapprove of the job the president is doing. And democrats who run congress aren't doing much better. They have a 57 percent disapproval rating. Ironically, in trying to link Obama to Reid and Pelosi, republicans are following a model President Clinton used against their candidate, Bob Dole, in 1996.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But if Dole wins and Gingrich runs Congress, there will be nobody there to stop them.
BASH: But that worked because Newt Gingrich was a well-known polarizing politician, just like President Bush is today. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, not so much.
AMY WALTER, EDITOR IN CHIEF, "THE HOTLINE": I don't think that attacking those figures is really going to help make the case for republicans. President Bush is a huge weight on the shoulders of all republican candidates up and down the ticket, in a way that a Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid or Barack Obama just isn't.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: But republicans hope that in a very tough year for them, it can only help to keep reminding voters that democrats are holding up legislation they want, and that if Obama wins, Washington would almost surely be completely controlled by democrats. John and Alina.
CHO: CNN's Dana Bash for us.
Crossing the top of the hour now, we're following breaking news this morning. President Bush has signed a housing rescue bill. The legislation throws a lifeline to some 400,000 homeowners who are flirting with foreclosure. It also establishes a government rescue plan for the nation's two mortgage giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. White house spokesman Tony Fratto said "we look forward to put in place new authorities to improve confidence and stability in markets and to provide better oversight for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac." The Federal Housing Administration will begin to implement new policies intended to keep more deserving American families in their homes.
Also breaking this morning, fear in India right now as more unexploded bombs are found in the western part of the country. 25 bombs have been found so far since Saturday. Last weekend, coordinated bombings killed 49 people and wounded 100 others.
Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic is now in the Netherlands and will face a judge tomorrow on genocide and war crimes charges. The plane carrying him landed just a couple of hours ago. And that completes his extradition to the Hague. Hours earlier his supporters held a rally in Belgrade marked by violence. CNN is at the Hague this morning. And our CNN senior international correspondent Nic Robertson joins us live. So, Nic, what can we expect when Karadzic faces the judge tomorrow?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Alina, when he goes into the court he's going to hear those 11 counts from the indictment read out against him, that will include genocide, complicity in genocide, extermination, murder, willful killing as well as other charges. The prosecutor has said that these stem from Radovan Karadzic's control of the Bosnia-Serb borders in the early 1990s when they went to 12 different municipalities in Bosnia killing and detaining non-Serbs as they went. The prosecutor has also said that this is a very, very important case for the victims of these atrocities.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The arrest of Radovan Karadzic is immensely important for the victims who had to wait far too long for this day. It is also very important for international justice, because it clearly demonstrates that there is no alternative to the rest of ward criminals and that there can't be no safe haven for fugitives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Now when he is in court, Radovan Karadzic tomorrow will have the opportunity to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. There will be another option. He can enter a deferred plea. He'll have 30 days to decide what to do. Right now he's in the detention facility over my shoulder getting a medical check, getting legal advice on how he can proceed with his defense -- Alina.
CHO: Such an interesting case. And we just heard from the prosecutor, of course, Nic, saying there is no safe haven. So, now how much pressure does this now put on the Serbian government to hand over Mladic, who is Karadzic's top general?
ROBERTSON: It puts a lot of pressure on him. In fact, we heard the prosecutor a little earlier said that he is looking forward to going to Belgrade to meet with the new Serbian leadership who have shown, this is a newly elected sort of pro-Western leadership who have shown a willingness to work with the tribunal. But the prosecutor said he's going to meet with them. And he looks forward to them handing over Ratco Mladic.
There are indications that the new Western leaning leadership in Serbia is reforming the intelligence institutions. And those intelligence institutions have known all along, it appears, where these fugitives have been. Ratco Mladic, the next one the prosecutors hope will be handed over -- Alina.
CHO: Fascinating case. Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson live for us in The Hague. Nic, thank you -- John.
