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American Morning
Largest Identity Theft Case in U.S. History; Author of a New Book Claims Barack Obama is Not the Reformer He Claims to Be; Gas Prices Down Again at $3.86 a Gallon
Aired August 06, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Now, the former advisor said he did not want to become a distraction in the campaign. And today Barack Obama is talking about how to solve the nation's current energy crisis. But all eyes will be on the main (INAUDIBLE) who's sitting shotgun at the event -- Indiana Senator Evan Bayh, who's thought to be a political potential running mate for Obama.
And CNN's senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is live in Elkhart, Indiana with more on the veepstakes buzz.
Good morning, Candy.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning, Kiran. You're right. And you can imagine the Indiana papers are full of speculation about a possible Obama-Bayh ticket. The Bayh name, very big here in Indiana, not only Evan Bayh, who's been a governor here, now a senator, but his father Birch Bayh, who was a long-time senator.
So, it's a big Democratic name here in what's really a very Republican state. Now I talked to Senator Bayh earlier this morning, pushed him on whether he's being vetted, whether he thinks he'll be on the ticket. He obviously doesn't play and shoves all those questions off on to the campaign. I did ask him, however, whether he thought that an Indianian on the ticket might make this pretty ruby red state go for Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. EVAN BAYH (D), INDIANA: But on his own without any help from a native son or daughter, he is competitive in Indiana and it's because of what he stands for, who he is and the desperate need for change and a better direction in Washington rather than four more years of the same old thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CROWLEY: So, we also should mention, Kiran, that Senator Bayh is not the only name that's being circulated at this point. Certainly the Blogosphere, the cable networks, the broadcast networks, are full of names.
Among them, of course, Senator Bayh, but also Governor Kaine of Virginia who, by the way, is having an event with Michelle Obama in Virginia today. Also Delaware Senator Joe Biden, who has a heavy foreign policy credentials. John Edwards, name from the south, ran for president, ran for vice president with John Kerry. Also Kathleen Sebelius, who is the Governor of Kansas.
Lots of Southern, Midwestern states there of the names. But I have to tell you, Kiran, that the people who know what's going on in this process may be talking but they're not saying anything. So there could be other names on this list that are high at the top.
CHETRY: Lot of people looking at signals, whether Evan Bayh brought his family on the road for this latest round of campaigning and what that signals. When do you think we might hear about when this pick will be announced publicly?
CROWLEY: It's tea leaf reading at this point, but we do know that Obama's getting ready to go on a vacation. If he does that, it's hard to believe he would do it this week. We're already kind of mid- way through the week. He's on vacation next week. So I doubt it will be then. So, coming up a lot closer toward the convention.
CHETRY: I got you. You know, the other thing is that the talk about why picking a V.P. can be so critical and one of the things is whether or not a V.P. pick will help in certain swing states.
Right now, much is being made of the fact that the polls are so close, with so many people unhappy with the administration and looking for change, and yet we're still talking about maybe a 5-percentage point up and down gap between the two candidates.
CROWLEY: Absolutely. And that's why, in fact, a vice presidential pick could help around the edges. If an Evan Bayh could bring in Indiana, that would be huge for a Democrat.
But you're right about those polls. Our CNN poll of polls right now shows just a five-point difference between Obama and McCain. Couple of reasons for that, McCain is not seen as a standard Republican. Also, there are still some doubts out there about Barack Obama because a lot of people still don't know who he is. And also we also have to add that these polls right now in August are far less significant than what we're going to see in September and October, Kiran.
CHETRY: Right. A lot can change certainly. Candy Crowley for us in Elkhart, Indiana today on the campaign trail. Thanks.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning. Thousands of Americans checking in their bank records after what's being called the largest identity theft case in U.S. history. More than 40 million credit and debit card numbers stolen from nine major stores and restaurant chains across the United States. Alina Cho has the details on this worldwide racket.
What's up, Alina?
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's incredible. You know, what's incredible about this is that many people may not even know that they're victims. So, how were these credit card numbers stolen? You may be surprised to hear that the thieves didn't even have to go inside the stores to rip people off. They just drove around.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL MUKASEY, ATTORNEY GENERAL: They caused widespread losses by banks, retailers and customers.
CHO (voice-over): How much? The Feds say it may be too hard to add it all up. Maybe tens of millions of dollars from people who shopped at places like Office Max, DSW, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21, even Boston Market. All they'd do is sit outside with a laptop, wait for customers to make a purchase, then use a so-called Sniffer program to get into a store's wireless network.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This allowed the defendants to remotely capture sensitive information such as the card numbers, passwords and account information.
CHO: The hackers allegedly sold that personal information or used it themselves. Some numbers were stored on magnetic strips of blank cards and used to draw tens of thousands of dollars from ATMs.
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: You know, this is, from the standpoint of what I guess you would describe as a white- collar crime, probably the biggest challenges we face in the 21st century. Huge amounts of money move over the Internet.
CHO: Many people whose numbers were stolen may not realize they're victims yet, but Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says they're working with stores to close the cyber hold.
CHERTOFF: The Internet system is safe but I also have to tell you the bad guys are smart, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: The scheme allegedly stretched over five years in several states, including California, New York, Florida and Massachusetts. Authorities say the key suspect was actually double-dealing, giving the Secret Service tips and ripping off the public at the same time. Just incredible. And another suspected hacker is still on the loose. He is known only by his online name, Handle.
MARCIANO: Handle. That's original. You said in the report that there's a lot of people that don't even know they've been victimized. I mean, what do you to either find out or protect yourself?
CHO: Well, there are a couple of obvious red flags, a couple that aren't so obvious. The obvious ones -- listen, if you have mysterious charges on your credit card, investigate that. If your monthly bill or checks that you ordered don't come in on time, you may want to find out why. And finally, if you have impeccable credit and you're looking to get a loan or something like that and you suddenly get turned down, you want to investigate that as well.
MARCIANO: All right. Thanks, Alina.
CHO: Sure.
CHETRY: Thanks.
Well, this morning the White House pushing back hard after a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist says that the White House planted false evidence linking Saddam Hussein's regime to al Qaeda.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Well, follow up on the Brett Favre saga and, by the way, you're watching the "Most News in the Morning." The dreams of Packers fans hoping to see Brett Favre in uniform again dashed. Coach Mike McCarthy said the three-time MVP just isn't in the right mindset to be part of the team after months of retirement drama. The Packers will try to trade him.
And just an interesting side -- the former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer has been set up to help deal with all the media attention that Favre's drama has created.
CHETRY: This is -- I mean, just 24 hours ago, we were saying a triumphant return to training camp where he's going to battle it out possibly to be the starting quarterback.
MARCIANO: Well, there was long closed-door meeting yesterday to talk about it and, apparently, coach said maybe he's not in the right mindset. So, we'll see.
CHETRY: I thought the "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" was referring to Ali Velshi.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm just wondering, well, who picked that for me?
MARCIANO: Are you back from vacation. You're looking good.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: You've had a few weeks of oil prices going down, gas prices going down, the market doing OK, and now I'm back. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams." Listen, I'm not in the mindset to be back at work either. But, whatever. My coach said I got to show up.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: You're holding a facial protest right now.
VELSHI: I've got a facial protest. I'm actually quite surprised and a number of people have said to me -- now you're back, I hope that's not going to mean anything bad for oil or gas. And this morning, at least I haven't broken the curse
The price of gas down again for the 20th straight day down to $3.86 a gallon, national average. I think only 11 or 12 states now above $4 a gallon. So, that's pretty good. On July 16th, which like I think was the last time I was at work, it was a record $4.11. Oil prices are down as well closing closer to $118 yesterday. We're settling there. We're above $119 now. But can you imagine we're back down to $120. Gas is only $3.86. Let the good times roll. Or at least that's what they were saying at The New York Stock Exchange yesterday.
We saw a gain of 331 points. Take a look at the Dow versus oil over the -- since the beginning of this year. It does seem to be a bit of a mirror image. As oil prices have started to go down, the Dow goes up. So right now we are at a -- you know, we are at about a four-month high for the Dow. We are at a -- where we at for oil? I think the last time oil was this low was beginning of May. So, not too bad. I haven't broken the curse yet. Boulevard of broken dreams not today.
MARCIANO: All right. So you don't shave that thing until oil prices say -- let's say go up over $100...
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: Right. Or our viewers tell us that they can't take it, or the boss says -- OK, you know what, joke is over.
MARCIANO: Yes. And he's the one paying bills.
VELSHI: Right.
CHETRY: And he's carrying portable shaving cream.
VELSHI: Yes. I'm ready. I am ready for any eventuality.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: If you people call in and say we're done, I got the shave cream and the aftershave. Portable packets, ready to go.
MARCIANO: So far so good.
CHETRY: Boy Scout, always prepared. Thank you, Ali.
Well, right now, we're going to check in with Jacqui Jeras in the CNN weather center with a look at what we can expect weather wise today.
Hey, Jacqui, what do you think? Yea or nay on the goatee for Ali?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I like a clean-shaven man.
VELSHI: Oh, oh, no kidding, Jacqui. Tell us what you really think.
JERAS: I said check out the Web site, guys, by the way, that I sent Ali about how to maintain that goatee. Anyway, I said watch out for the food in the beard. Anyways, storm wise, we've got a lot of action going on today across the plain states. And also weather impacting your travel. Find out where, that's coming up in your forecast.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: 14 minutes after the hour, time for a check on weather. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras in the CNN weather center. She prefers a clean-shaven man. Edouard coming in relatively clean but now create some problems with flooding?
(WEATHER REPORT)
MARCIANO: At least they're breaking the heat there. Jacqui Jeras. Thanks, Jacqui.
Kiran?
CHETRY: All right. Well, it seems like nothing is free on the airplane anymore. Rising fuel costs forcing airlines to charge for just about anything. And that has some passengers pretty upset.
John McCain promoting his energy policy. He tours a nuclear power plant, slamming Barack Obama's ideas. We're going to hear what the presumptive Republican nominee is saying in his own words. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID LETTERMAN, THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN: If you want a blanket and a pillow, it used to be -- Who wants a blanket, who wants a pillow? Who wants a blanket? Who wants a pillow? Now, if you want a blanket and a pillow, 7 bucks on JetBlue. Right there. Yes. Great. So now you'll be able to get a solid eight hours sleep on the runway.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: The upside is, though, you get to keep it and its eco- friendly. Well, JetBlue a big target on the late shows last night. If you've flown recently you know that the price of a plane ticket is only the tip of the iceberg. If you want anything else, make sure you've got your wallet.
CNN's Susan Candiotti reports on the growing number of fees for things that used to be free.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, Rob, we've put on our body armor today before we started asking passengers about what they think of all the added fees that seem to just keep on coming.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) CANDIOTTI (voice-over): If you want to get comfy on JetBlue's leather seats with a pillow and blanket, get ready to pony up $7. We couldn't find any takers on a New York to Florida run.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll use my own pillow. Thank you very much.
CANDIOTTI: You have your own pillow with you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have my own pillow, right here.
CANDIOTTI: There it is.
Personal pillows the latest add-on fee to help offset rising fuel costs. JetBlue also charges up to $20 for extra leg room. Estimating it will step up revenue by $40 million this year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think it's fair charging it out to us as consumers.
CANDIOTTI: Whether it's $15 for your first checked bag on five airlines or $2 for soft drinks and water as U.S. Airways charges, passengers aren't happy.
Will you pay extra for all those little things you used to get for free?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not me.
CANDIOTTI: Not ever?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never.
CANDIOTTI: Southwest is the only airline not charging for extras. And poking fun at others who are.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Southwest, fees don't fly with us.
JUSTIN BERGMAN, BUDGET TRAVEL: People are just sick of being nickeled and dimed to death. You know, they want to know what they're going to have to pay.
CANDIOTTI: OK, says Spirit Airline CEO. In exchange for cut rate fares, Spirit charges ala carte fees for most everything else.
BEN BALDANZA, PRES. CEO, SPIRIT AIRLINES: You can decide to pack a little lighter, you can decide to take less baggage, you can decide to eat something before you get on the airplane and avoid the fee as opposed to just raising the base fares $20 or $30 to cover, and you have to pay that no matter what you do. So, it puts control on the consumers' hands and we like that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: With airlines taking in millions, thanks to those new special fees. It looks like those items ala carte items may be here to stay.
Kiran?
Rob?
MARCIANO: Thanks, Susan.
Time for now "The Most Politics in the Morning". As part of CNN's commitment to help you make an informed choice this November, we're going to play some of the candidates' messages to voters in their own words so you get a better picture of where they stand on the issues.
Here's Senator John McCain in Michigan taking on Barack Obama's energy policy while laying out his own plan for solving America's energy crisis.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I saw that Senator Obama's latest attack has got to do with oil and campaign contributions. I think you might be a little bit confused, because when the energy bill came to the floor of the Senate full of goodies and breaks for the oil companies, I voted against it. Senator Obama voted for it. People care not only what you saw, but how you vote.
Now solving our national energy crisis requires, as I've mentioned, in all of the above approach, and that will require aggressive development of alternative energies like wind, solar, and biofuels. It also requires expanding traditional sources of energy such as offshore drilling.
And I noticed that there's confusing now information from Senator Obama as to whether he actually supports offshore drilling or not. The fact is we have to drill here, and we have to drill now, and we have to drill immediately. And it has to be done as quickly as possible. And I believe that it's vital that we move forward with that, regardless of what we do on other energy issues.
Senator Obama has said that expanding our nuclear power plants, quote, "doesn't make sense for America," unquote. He also says no to nuclear storage and no to reprocessing. I could not disagree more. My experience with nuclear power goes back many years to being stationed on board the "USS Enterprise," the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier.
I knew it was safe then and I know it is safe now. And I propose a plan to build 45 new nuclear plants before the year 2030, and that would provide 700,000 jobs for American workers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: And at 8:40 we'll hear from Barack Obama on his plan to deal with the energy crisis and Republican attacks.
CHETRY: Well, he's the candidate of change or is he? The author of a new book claims Barack Obama is not the reformer he claims to be. We're going to talk with him, as well as an Obama supporter.
MARCIANO: And a new book suggests the White House knew well in advance Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. Now, the White House is responding.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the "Most News in the Morning." We've seen the McCain campaign attack Barack Obama's leadership. Our next guest, though, is making a different case against the presumptive Democratic nominee painting him as a, quote, "fake reformer" and "real liberal."
David Freddoso is the author of "The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate." And he joins us now.
David, thanks so much for being with us this morning.
DAVID FREDDOSO, AUTHOR, "THE CASE AGAINST BARACK OBAMA": Good morning, Kiran.
CHETRY: So you make it clear in your book that you are a conservative, and that you write this book from a conservative perspective. Why did you write this book and what case or message do you think you want to deliver to a wider audience?
FREDDOSO: I felt on the one hand that the press, by and large, was giving Senator Obama too much of a pass not only because people were saying really some ridiculous things comparing him to Jesus Christ, treating him like this messiah figure, but also because they'd bought uncritically into the idea that Senator Obama is a reformer.
And that idea I argue in the book is a great lie. And there's a pattern throughout his career that most people haven't seen because they don't know a lot about his career, in which Senator Obama tends to take the easy way, whether it's by making friends and alliances with Chicago's machine politicians, by coming to Washington and supporting all of the same old special interests that have dominated here forever -- or are there forever.
And also, in Springfield, pushing legislation that generally helped friends and contributors earmarking money for Jesse Jackson, Father Pfleger and pushing housing bills that would benefit developers like Tony Rezko.
CHETRY: All right. Let me -- let's break down a few of those things. You make the case that he is not a reformer, that it is politics as usual. One of the things you use an example is his run for the state Senate in Illinois. And in this example you say that what he did was he, quote, "threw all of his opponents off the ballot on a technicality so that the voters had no choice but to elect him." You say that's a politics as usual.
FREDDOSO: Yes, that's correct. And again, it was perfectly legal what he did. But what's funny is that he had just spent a year, an entire summer registering thousands and thousands and thousands of voters. And if you read the "Audacity of Hope, his second book, you see that he talks about that election as if he had gone around Chicago's south side telling people be less cynical about politics, and then they liked his speech and elected him.
In fact, what happened was, as I discuss in "The Case Against Barack Obama," that he sat there, not only did he challenge the incumbent and have her thrown off the ballot, he actually took the time to challenge thousands of signatures to get two other people thrown off the ballot. One of them was just this hopeless perennial candidate who ran all the time and never won.
CHETRY: Yes. But the interesting thing is that these were the people that didn't also meet their legal requirements, right? So, how can it be Barack Obama's fault that they didn't pay enough attention and ended up really breaking some of the rules, and so their signatures got tossed?
FREDDOSO: Well, it wasn't necessarily that they broke the rules, but the people who gathered signatures broke them. In some cases, you also had people who -- a woman who was registered under her maiden name but she signed her married name on the petition. You had a lot of cases where people printed their names instead of signing them.
On the other hand, look, petition challenges are something that's common in politics. It's just that someone who claims to stand for change and hope, for them to win their election by throwing everyone off the ballot, and then basically mislead everyone about it in their own political autobiography, it's kind of an interesting fact.
CHETRY: All right. I want to ask you about his controversial membership at Trinity United Church, and his relationship with -- long-time relationship with his pastor, Reverend Wright. You criticize him for having those ties in the first place, but then you also criticize him for severing them. So, how should he have handled that situation?
FREDDOSO: Well, I wouldn't say that's exactly how I'd handle it. I think there is something commendable about the virtue of loyalty. And if Senator Obama -- the fact that he made a political mistake here almost speaks well to his character, but it speaks very poorly of his judgment.
The idea that he would spend 20 years bringing his children to this church every week, that he would choose this pastor, that he would actually choose this church and this pastor after going, as he writes in "Dreams for My Father," and hearing a speech where Reverend Wright blamed white people for world hunger, it shows appalling judgment, really.
And that after 20 years of being his friend and accepting all of the crazy things he said, what really severed their ties was the fact that Reverend Wright said something critical about his new politics. And that was what ended their 20-year relationship.
CHETRY: So, it wasn't the YouTube -- the Reverend Wright thing on YouTube and the political --
FREDDOSO: Oh, no, no. What ended their relationship was when Reverend Wright went to the National Press Club and criticized him in an interview with the press, saying he was acting like a politician as usual.
CHETRY: Very interesting. The author is David Freddoso, and the book is called "The Case Against Barack Obama." Thanks for joining us to talk a little bit about it today.
FREDDOSO: Thank you, Kiran.
CHETRY: And right now, we also want to hear from an Obama supporter, and what he has to say in response to some of the things that David wrote about in his book.
Jamal Simmons, communications advisor for the Democratic National Committee and a Barack Obama supporter. And he joins me from Washington.
Jamal good to hear from you today.
JAMAL SIMMONS, COMMUNICATIONS ADVISOR, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE: Good morning, Kiran.
CHETRY: I know that the Barack Obama camp is not responding to every single book that comes out, but there are some interesting things I would like to ask you about this. One of them is that notion that the first foray into the state Senate for him was as result of challenging the petition, the signatures, and getting all of his competition thrown off the ballot.
SIMMONS: Yes. It sounds to me like have you a politician who was using the means at his disposal to try to win an election. Shocking. You know, Kiran.
CHETRY: How does that play against the, you know, the new kind of politics, the change, the hope and the fact that people shouldn't be cynical about the political game?
SIMMONS: I don't understand what's cynical about holding a politician to the legal standard of running for the office that they're seeking. What will be cynical are, you know, attacking a celebrity billionaires like Paris Hilton and you end up like John McCain who is in a running debate with Paris Hilton this week when Americans are concerned about more serious issues like gas prices, and the war in Iraq and various other things.
CHETRY: You know, what about the other question that for those that tries to bring up in the book, is that it really is politics as usual, it's a political machine, no matter who's involved in it. One of the things that Barack Obama was criticized for recently was the fact that he had made a pledge about campaign - about taking public financing, and then deciding to opt out of that, changing his mind on that. Will that hurt him in terms of people believing that he is a candidate for change to do things a little differently in Washington? SIMMONS: The American public has had a couple years to get to know Barack Obama. We're still in the middle of the presidential campaign. We've got a vice presidential choice that will speak very clearly about who Barack Obama is and the direction he wants to lead the country. We've got a convention that will be all about Barack Obama and where he wants to lead the country. We'll have debates in the fall that Barack Obama just signed up for three debates with John McCain that will be about who he is and where he wants to lead the country. So Americans will have a lot of data upon which to make this decision. But for us to be sitting here having a somewhat serious conversation about the typical right wing kind of tripe that's put together every four years. You know, here we go again. This is exactly what they tried to do to John Kerry with Regnery Publishing, the same publisher that published this book.
We see your first guest who's a right wing blogger, National Review, although he admits that he's against health care for kids, he's attack Hillary Clinton because of her appearance. All these things, you say in politics, you're known by your friends but you're also known by your enemies. And if David Freddoso is going to be against Barack Obama, Barack Obama should wear that as a badge of honor. Because in this campaign, America's tired of the silly politics. We're tired of the divisiveness. We're tired of John McCain getting into fights with Paris Hilton. They need to be talking about these serious issues that are on the table for this election like health care and education, economic reform, all the things that Barack Obama wants to bring to the country.
CHETRY: We're glad you came on to talk to us as well, Jamal Simmons. Good to talk to you this morning. Thanks.
SIMMONS: Thank you. Good to see you.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning. President Bush is now in Thailand, arriving just about an hour ago from South Korea. He is set to deliver a major speech tomorrow on Asia. As part of those comments, the President will say he has "deep concerns over China's human rights." And will urge the country to guarantee freedom of the press and religion.
Two Americans have been detained by police outside the Beijing Olympic Stadium. They were part of a group of four protesters who climbed a pole displaying a banner that read "Tibet will be free." A government official says the group wasn't arrested but was "persuaded to leave."
And today is the 63rd anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing. The city's mayor urged today - used the day to urge the next U.S. president to support a ban on nuclear weapons. Back in 1945, the atomic blast killed an estimated 140,000 people.
Well, the White House is fighting back after an explosive book takes aim at the Bush administration and the run-up to the Iraq war. Among other things, respected Washington journalist Ron Suskind alleges the Bush administration forged a letter linking Saddam Hussein to Al Qaeda. CNN's Brian Todd has the Bush administration's response. Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran and Rob. There are very powerful accusations in Ron Suskind's new book and we've gotten some strong push back from the White House, the CIA, and from the agency's former director.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (voice-over): Two bombshells on the Iraq war from a controversial author, that the White House issued a fake document and that the administration knew well in advance that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. In his new book "The Way of the World," Pulitzer prize winner Ron Suskind writes that in 2003 the White House concocted a fake letter from former Iraqi intelligence chief Tahir Jalil Habbush to Saddam Hussein backdated to July 1st, 2001.
"It said that 9/11 ring leader Mohamed Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq." In an interview with NBC's "Today" show, Suskind says former CIA director George Tenet got the order to fabricate the letter.
RON SUSKIND, AUTHOR "THE WAY OF THE WORLD": The CIA folks involved in the book and others talk about George coming back, Tenet, coming back from the White House with the assignment on White House stationary and turning to the CIA operatives who are professionals saying, you may not like this, but here's our next mission, and they carried it through step by step.
TODD: Contacted by CNN, White House spokesman Tony Fratto says "the notion that the White House would concoct such a letter is absurd." Tenet issued a statement saying there was no such order from the White House to him. And he said the idea that he'd plant false evidence is ridiculous. CNN contributor Fran Townsend was Condoleezza Rice's deputy for counterterrorism at the time.
FRANCES FRAGOS TOWNSEND, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: It's just patently ridiculous. I mean I will tell you that when you think about it, there were 17 U.N. security council resolutions that Saddam was flagrantly in violation of. There were reasons that we went to war.
TODD: Suskind also writes that months before the Iraq invasion, Habbush had relayed to the Americans through British intelligence that there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. He quotes a former U.S. intelligence official as saying "when that information was passed to President Bush, he said f it, we're going in."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: White House officials didn't respond to that specific quote but did push back hard again on the idea that they knew that there were no weapons of mass destruction. White House spokesman Tony Fratto says U.S. and foreign intelligence estimates at the time said that Saddam Hussein did have such weapons. And George Tenet is pushing back hard on the credibility of the former Iraqi intelligence chief, Tahir Habbush. He says the British themselves have lost confidence in him and had broken off contact with him. Kiran and Rob, back to you.
CHETRY: Brian Todd for us, thank you.
Well, Mexican drug cartels growing marijuana on public land. We're going to look at efforts to destroy the pot plants. You're watching the most news in the morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Fix America's energy crisis has been a major focus for both John McCain and Barack Obama on the campaign trail. And AMERICAN MORNING is committed to helping you make an informed choice this November. And to do that we're showing you more of what the candidates are saying to voters out on the trail so you can get a better picture of where they stand on the issues. Here's Senator Obama pushing his plan and blasting his opponent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The other day I was in a town hall meeting and I'd laid out my plans for investing $15 billion a year in energy-efficient cars and a new electricity grid and all this. Somebody said, well what can I do? What can individuals do? So I told them something simple. I said, you know what? You can inflate your tires to the proper levels, and that if everybody in America inflated their tires to the proper level we would actually probably save more oil than all the oil that we get from John McCain drilling right below his feet there, wherever it is that he was going to -wherever he was going to drill.
So now the republicans are going around - this is the kind of thing they do. I don't understand it. They're going around, they're sending like little tire gauges, making fun of this idea, as if this is Barack Obama's energy plan. Now, two points. One, they know they're lying about what my energy plan is. But the other thing is, they're making fun of a step that every expert says would absolutely reduce our oil consumption by three to four percent. It's like --it's like these guys take pride in being ignorant. You know? I mean, they think it's funny that they're making fun of something that is actually true.
They need to do their homework. Because this is serious business. Instead of running ads about Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, they should go talk to some energy experts and actually make a difference.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Barack Obama in his own words.
MARCIANO: Meanwhile, drug dealers have found the perfect place to grow their marijuana. Secluded places far away from civilization but it's on public land. We'll show you how the government is trying to destroy these crops.
CHETRY: Dr. Sanjay Gupta talks to Teri Garr about being shunned in Hollywood and lying about her condition for 20 years.
TERI GARR: I call it the scum-sucking pig of a disease.
CHETRY: You're watching the most news in the morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MARCIANO: Big vegetation, a few roads and no pesky neighbors. Mexican drug cartels have figured it out, public land in America is the perfect place to grow marijuana. Now, the Feds are making sure the harvest never happens. Our Dan Simon dropped down in the middle of a pot field to check out operation locust. Dan.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran and Rob, we're in the middle of the wilderness, Sequoia National Park. It takes about two or three hours to hike in. Fortunately we were dropped in by helicopter. And here in this small area we are surrounded by at least 10,000 marijuana plants.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIMON (voice-over): The Mexican drug cartels have figured out this is one of the best places in the world to grow marijuana. The forestland in the California Sierra. Illegal immigrants set up shop in makeshift camps hours from civilization. Are they here 24/7 watching over these places?
LT. MIKE BOUDREAUX, TULARE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA SHERIFF'S OFFICE: They're here 24/7. There is a tremendous amount of product, a tremendous amount of money source that's here.
SIMON: Lt. Mike Boudreaux is leading a raid on the crop and the people who grow it. Part of a ramped-up effort to smoke out marijuana gardens on public land.
It infuriates a lot of people.
BOUDREAUX: Absolutely.
SIMON: That people can cross illegally into this country and grow marijuana on public land.
BOUDREAUX: Absolutely. It's something that's troublesome for many of us in law enforcement. You have illegal criminal activity occurring in the mountain regions not only destroying the natural beauty of the landscape but as well as potential for this product to reach the children of our community.
SIMON: Finding and destroying the gardens has become a top priority for the nation's drug czar, John Walters. In one week as part of a covert operation, authorities say they destroyed 340,000 plants and arrested three dozen suspects.
JOHN WALTERS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY: These aren't Cheech and Chong plants and people who farm now are not doing this for laughs despite the fact Hollywood still thinks that. They're doing it to make a lot of money and the single biggest source of the money for the guys with the horrific violence along the border on the Mexican side and our side now are making it from marijuana.
SIMON: The plants are nurtured by irrigation systems, a network of hoses feeding the thirsty plants in the often triple-digit heat, each plant able to produce a pound of high-quality marijuana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SIMON (on-camera): The street value for this marijuana garden alone is about $40 million. All of these plants are going to be destroyed and eradication efforts just like this are going to be taking place all summer long. In fact they'll go through the very end of September. Rob and Kiran, back to you.
CHETRY: Well, CNN NEWSROOM just minutes away. Heidi Collins at the CNN Center with a look at what's ahead. Good morning, Heidi.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Kiran. Energy crunch, "Issue #1." Our special focus in the NEWSROOM today. Barack Obama talks about his energy goals next hour. Live coverage from Indiana.
We are also drilling deeper on the McCain plan.
And 11 people facing charges in what's believed to be the largest I.D. theft ever. 40 million credit and debit card numbers stolen.
And they can earn $10,000. The number of women offering to donate eggs is climbing. Is a bad economy behind the surge?
Wednesday in the NEWSROOM. We get started at the top of the hour right here on CNN. Kiran.
CHETRY: Heidi, thanks so much.
Well, a movie star makes a comeback after proving she's a survivor. We're "Paging Dr. Gupta" who has Teri Garr's incredible story. Hi, Sanjay.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, she's a remarkable woman. Wise-cracking, hilarious, funny. We know that side of Teri Garr but she invited me into her home to tell me something about her that most of us probably didn't know. We'll have that look at her when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
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CHETRY: Well, she shot to fame as an '80s movie star. But what most Americans didn't know about Teri Garr was her decades-long struggle with a debilitating disease. Now Garr is back on the big screen and talking more about her long fight. We're "Paging Dr. Gupta." CNN's chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is in Atlanta. This is something that she didn't want people to know about. She actually hid her long and painful struggle.
GUPTA: So much stigma around her disease. As a Hollywood actress in particular, you know, I'll tell you what, she's still hilarious, she's still very funny but she was very serious when it came to talking about her disease and more importantly how she dealt with it in Hollywood.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Look at this.
TERI GARR, ACTRESS: My god. Who is this?
GUPTA: Actress/comedienne Teri Garr may be best known for her iconic roles in 1980s films like "Mr. Mom." But here's something you may not have known. During all those movie premieres, award shows when she was on top of the world, she began to notice something strange happening to her body. Do you remember the first time you ever felt the first sign?
GARR: It was around the time I did "Tootsie" when I used to jog in Central Park. And when I finished jogging I would limp.
GUPTA: That limp would send her to the hospital from the set of 1982's "Tootsie." Her role would later be nominated for an Academy Award.
GARR: I was trying to work but I noticed that people, if they had any inkling of the idea said I was sick. People shunned me.
GUPTA: A tingling, a buzzing in her foot. It would come and go. She went to dozens of doctors around the country for answers. In Hollywood, rumors started to swirl.
GARR: No! It wasn't like that!
GUPTA: In this 1997 clip from NBC's "Friends," she hold a hanger and is sometimes seated. Fan sites speculated on multiple sclerosis.
GARR: I would just deny it. There's nothing wrong always.
GUPTA: So it was denial more than covering it up or lying. But you did it for a reason, because --
GARR: I want to work. Yes.
GUPTA: Garr officially came out with her multiple sclerosis diagnosis in 2002. That was 20 years after she first started feeling symptoms. At times she's wheelchair-bound nowadays. She's been an MS advocate and has written an autobiography on her experiences.
GARR: So, there you go.
GUPTA: Today she's in better health, walking and exercising, and back to work in two new independent films.
GARR: Your mother was crazy!
GUPTA: "Expired" and "Kabluey" released this summer. When you describe MS to people now, how do you describe what you're experiencing?
GARR: I call it the scum-sucking pig of a disease. Because it's so erratic and it treats everyone in different ways. Some people don't get any symptoms. But I wasn't one of them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Remarkable as well. Something else she told me, it wasn't just MS that she dealt it but she actually had a ruptured brain aneurysm in 2006 that left her in a coma for a week. So she had two very interesting neurological problems but she's back to work, she's exercising, back to work and we saw her there. Kiran.
CHETRY: That's the amazing thing about MS as well, as she said, it's so unpredictable, there's times she's in a wheelchair and there are times she's not. So, how exactly - I mean, as a doctor it must be a very confusing illness to try to treat.
GUPTA: Yes. I think with the aneurysm as well, people were thinking was the aneurysm in some way related to the MS. Doctors are trying to sort that out. It turns out it probably was in no way related. And this is what her brain scan look like. This is actually the aneurysm right over here. When that ruptures, there's sort of a blood blister on the brain, it causes this bleeding within the brain itself and that's what left her in a the coma. It was difficult for doctors to sort this all out. It took 20 years for her to finally get her diagnosis. Kiran.
CHETRY: That's unbelievable. She looks great today. Thanks for bringing us more of her story.
GUPTA: Sure.
CHETRY: Thanks, Sanjay. Good to see you.
GUPTA: Thank you.
MARCIANO: And good to see her back to work, for sure. The McCain campaign is using props to score points with voters. See how they're getting mileage out of Barack Obama's advice for Americans to inflate their tires to save energy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONAN O'BRIEN, HOST "LATE NIGHT WITH CONAN O'BRIEN": The moderators were announced for the upcoming presidential debates. It's good. Apparently Barack Obama insisted on someone who asked even- handed probing questions while John McCain insisted on someone who will talk into his good ear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARCIANO: That's Conan O'Brien making another joke about John McCain's age. He's not that old. He hears perfectly well. CHETRY: That's right. Showing a lot of energy out there on the campaign, both of them actually. I mean, I couldn't keep up that schedule.
MARCIANO: No, no way. They're showing a little wear and tear lately.
When it comes to solving America's energy problems John McCain seems to think Barack Obama is full of some hot air.
CHETRY: That's right. And the McCain campaign they have a brand-new political weapon that drives the point home. Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Could this be the hiss of the air going out of a political stunt? The tire pressure gauge has become the political prop of the week as the McCain campaign uses it to try to deflate Senator Obama.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He suggested we put air in our tires to save on gas. We're not going to achieve energy independence by inflating our tires. The only thing I've heard him say is that we should inflate our tires.
MOOS: This is what Senator Obama did say as he ticked off things individuals could do to save energy.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Making sure your tires are properly inflated.
MOOS: Those seven words became what the McCain campaign dubbed "Obama's energy plan." Emblazoned on tire pressure gauges, they handed them out on the press plane.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Would you like a tire gauge?
MOOS: McCain folks even handed our tire gauges to people lining up for an Obama rally. They're being sold on eBay for $10.
Over and over, Senator McCain use tire inflation to thread on Obama.
MCCAIN: Do you think that's enough to break our dependence on middle eastern oil? My opponent doesn't want to drill. He doesn't want nuclear power. He wants you to inflate your tires.
MOOS (on-camera): Tire pressure. Tire pressure. Always talk about tire pressure is raising my blood pressure. Something's wrong with my blood pressure! Boo hiss is what columnist Joe Klein is saying.
JOE KLEIN, "TIME" MAGAZINE: I think the McCain campaign has this weird idea that you can win a presidential election through mockery.
MOOS: The `Automobile Association of America isn't mocking tire inflation. On a vehicle like this, just one tire -
ROBERT SINCLAIR, JR., AAA SPOKESPERSON: You're about four pounds under inflated.
MOOS: -- could result in this.
SINCLAIR: You're losing about eight percent of your fuel economy.
MOOS: After several days of republican spin on the tire issue, Obama got tired of it.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They're going around, they're sending like little tire gauges, making fun of this idea as if this is Barack Obama's energy plan.
MOOS: His actual energy plan fills page after page on his web site.
OBAMA: It's like these guys take pride in being ignorant. They think it's funny that they're making fun of something that is actually true.
MOOS: But watch your back. Tire pressure gauges can be hazardous. This guy used one to create a pipe to smoke ganja. And our AAA expert found out it is not just a gauge.
SINCLAIR: Oh, sorry.
MOOS: That's stealing the pressure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You OK?
SINCLAIR: Yes. That hurt a little bit.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
MARCIANO: I'm inspired to go out and buy a new tire gauge.
CHETRY: How about that, you know, my little minivan it tells you automatically what the tire pressure is digitally.
MARCIANO: Oh, really. Fancy pants minivan!
CHETRY: So I'm not wasting any extra gas around this place, I'll tell you that.
MARCIANO: That a girl. Well, thanks for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING. We'll see you right back here tomorrow.
