Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Sunday Morning

Emergencies Declared as Gustav Approaches Gulf

Aired August 31, 2008 - 08:25   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Emergency is declared in four states bordering the gulf and in the path of hurricane Gustav. Take a look right now. President Bush is issuing emergency declarations in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.
We're also keeping you updated on a storm. We do expect to hear from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff next hour. And we're getting help from our affiliate stations along the coast as well as meteorologist Reynolds Wolf who is tracking Gustav.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we're talking politics and hurricanes. They are intertwined today.

John McCain and his running mate, Sarah Palin, planning to go to the gulf coast today. They're traveling to Jackson, Mississippi at the invitation of the Republican Governor Haley Barbour. McCain and Palin are expected to go get a briefing at the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.

Of course, the Republican convention is set to open tomorrow in St. Paul, Minnesota. But John McCain and party officials are concerned about whether it should go on as scheduled if Gustav strikes the gulf coast. They're looking at some contingency plans. They don't like the idea of being seen there having a big party while people are suffering through a hurricane. But right now at least the plans have not changed.

The Republican National Convention will be gaveled to order tomorrow. Again, that's the plan right now. CNN and the best political team on television will bring you live coverage beginning at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Again, that's the scheduled start of the convention.

NGUYEN: John McCain's choice for his V.P. running mate took many people by surprise.

HOLMES: To say the least. But, you know, some people weren't surprised at all. Some have been pushing McCain to take Alaska Governor Sarah Palin for months.

Josh Levs, were you one? Did you know about this all along? No surprise to you.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I did not. I was even talking about dark horse candidates last week and I think I mentioned her once and mentioned other people five times. I have no idea. Look at this -- look at this screen behind me. This was "Draft Sarah Palin for V.P." Web site. This blog has been going on forever. It was created by Adam Brickley, a 21-year-old guy who had never met her, never been to Alaska.

Adam, you're joining us now. Are you with us? Do we have Adam with us? No, there you go. Can you hear me?

ADAM BRICKLEY, PALINFORVP.BLOGSPOT.COM: I'm here.

LEVS: OK. Great, good to have you here. Adam, when you launched this thing, this was early 2007, did you ever imagine this could happen?

BRICKLEY: Imagine, yes. Expect, no.

LEVS: Well, what happened? I mean, you apparently just did some research on the Internet and thought she would be a great V.P. What did you see? What made you think of her?

BRICKLEY: Well, I was just doing some research. I said this a couple times on large (ph), you know. I'd been reading some political Facebooks and read something like that. And when, you know, I was a little disappointed with the ticket speculation which was really early at that point, obscenely early.

And, so I just, you know, for my own personal benefit decided to see if we had some up-and-coming people who I could mention in discussion and whatever, and stumbled across Sarah Palin. I saw somebody who was at that point only, I believe, three months into her governorship already, pushing major proposals, overturning the entire state establishment in Alaska. And I said to myself, here's a great leader, a great communicator, somebody that people can really relate to and somebody who does not just talk the talk but walks the walk when it comes to producing change for the people of Alaska and really interesting.

LEVS: Yes. And I'm seeing the argument out there, I mean, all of your blogs. It's really fascinating. Let me ask you something though. Some people out there on the blogosphere are now saying that you are trying to claim credit for John McCain's decision. I'd pull out a screen behind me, AlleyInsider.com: "Shameless blogger claiming credit."

Now, is that a fact? Do you think that your blog actually helped inspire John McCain here?

BRICKLEY: Oh, I think John McCain can make his own decisions. You know, who gets credit for what? You know, I've heard media say certain things. But, you know, I think our blog certainly got Sarah Palin some attention early this year and last year, it might have helped to get her on some people's radar screens and not my blog. I'm a peon, I'm just a blogger. I'm a guy with a laptop.

You know, I got a couple thousand readers and a couple of hundred of people on my mailing list and people sending letters and petitions to the McCain campaign and calling the McCain campaign.

So, do I think that our movement, not my blog, but, you know, the movement across the Internet for Sarah Palin, do I think that put her on McCain's radar screen? Yes. But do I think we made the decision for him? No, I never said.

LEVS: Well, no, of course. (INAUDIBLE) you know, we've got a lot of breaking news today, I've got to run, but I know she actually called you after the announcement. Tell me really quickly in one sentence what she said.

BRICKLEY: Actually both her and her husband Todd called me that evening and just thanked me for my -- I believe the term they used was tenacity and for running that for so long. It was a brief phone call, but I did get one.

LEVS: OK. All right. Well, listen, it's good to talk with you about this. Obviously you turned out to be right with your push a long time ago. And the debate is raging on ireport.com. We encourage iReport visitors to also check out his Web site over here, this is it Draft Sarah Palin, palinforvp.blogspot.com -- Betty and T.J., over to you.

NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Josh.

HOLMES: All right. Well, the governor of Louisiana, the mayor of New Orleans, the head of FEMA, your family, your friends, me, Betty, everybody saying the same thing, get out.

NGUYEN: The situation is getting more urgent as Gustav gets closer. Here's what officials have been telling residents since yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BOBBY JINDAL (R), LOUISIANA: It is so important people take the warnings seriously today, that they evacuate ahead of the mandatory evacuations coming later today.

You've got to take this very seriously. Don't worry about your property, 1,750 National Guardsmen in the city of New Orleans. Don't worry about looting and (INAUDIBLE). And we've got 1,750 National Guardsmen. But even beyond that, your life is more important than your property.

People may be inconvenienced with the evacuation, whether they're stuck in traffic or sitting on a bus. I would rather they be inconvenienced today than stuck in the city after a storm comes. We don't want anybody thinking they're going to shelter in-place or find a shelter of least resort. We want them to leave.

MAYOR RAY NAGIN (D), NEW ORLEANS: Today is about get out. We strongly, strongly encourage you. Tourists, definitely get out. And then the next time you hear us, it's going to be, get the heck out, and mandatorily (ph) get the heck out. I normally am very calm about these press conferences. And I'm normally trying to give assurance to our citizens, take that hat off tonight. You need to be scared. You need to be concerned. And you need to get your butts moving out of New Orleans right now.

This is the storm of the century. If you are stubborn enough, if you are not taking this as seriously as we need you to take it, and if you decide to stay, you are on your own. There will be no services available for you, no emergency services. Anyone who decides to stay, I'll say it like I said before Katrina, make sure you have an axe because you will be carving your way or busting your way out of your attic to get on your roof.

R. DAVID PAULISON, DIRECTOR, FEMA: But this is the big culture change, there's no question about it. It's a big shift in how we respond to disasters. We're not going to be reactive anymore. We are going to be proactive. So what we've done is made sure that there will be no excuses. There are buses on the ground. We have trains on the ground. We have airplanes to move people too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Well, this storm is on the way. And the first who are going to see this storm really are people living on the edge of Louisiana.

NGUYEN: And some are still deciding whether to stay put or go. But that decision is coming for different reasons. We'll explain that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We want to pass along word we're just getting from the Associated Press regarding the Republican National Convention and a big name that we don't expect to be there at least on opening day, President Bush. Word coming to us from the White House, it's unlikely to attend the convention on Monday.

The opening day is tomorrow. President Bush was expected to speak. Now this has been going on for the past couple of days, these conversations wondering about whether or not he would attend because he certainly needed to be tending to things if a major hurricane is about to hit the U.S. Gulf Coast. Certainly don't want a repeat of it appear that the Bush administration is not on top of things. Certainly that was the criticism after Hurricane Katrina. Don't want to repeat that.

So right now the word according to the Associated Press from the White House is that President Bush unlikely to attend. Also some word about the schedule being changed possibly about the Republican National Convention. There was even some talk of it being postponed. That word not coming into us officially yet.

But at least right now we don't believe President Bush will be attending. So stay tuned. And certainly, Betty, as you know, John McCain has even mentioned that, hey, we don't want the appearance of us throwing a party up here in St. Paul, Minnesota.

NGUYEN: Right. Maybe turning into a service event.

HOLMES: Something like that. Yes, maybe even to raise some money for the people who are suffering. But certainly don't want a festive atmosphere when people are being hit by a Category 3, 4, 5 hurricane (INAUDIBLE).

NGUYEN: Well, all of it though just it depends on how strong Gustav is and where it hits. And we want to get now to Reynolds Wolf, because he has been watching closely. And what we got yesterday was that this thing was a Category 4, which really sent fears to a lot of people because they thought, oh, goodness, then it may be a Cat. 5 by the time it hits. But it looks like we're getting just a little sliver of good news.

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, a little bit of weakening. But the thing I want people to remember is that, you know, Cat. 1, Cat. 2, Cat. 3, Cat. 5, you know, all these storms are dangerous, every single one of them. If you hear this thing downgraded to a -- say, a Category 2 and if you happen to be on the Gulf Coast, I don't want you to think, OK, hey, wife, kids, hey, everybody, we can just stay here, we're fine.

No, that's garbage. These storms are just -- they're so powerful. A Category 3, Category 2, of course, 1 is a major hurricane, 1 is a very strong hurricane. They both are. Either one of them can be deadly. And you need to take all of these very seriously.

Right now the storm Cat. 3. As Betty mentioned, fluctuations in power certainly expected with this storm as it runs into some warmer water. National Hurricane Center does anticipate the storm will become a Category 4 as we get into early Monday, winds of 145 miles per hour.

This thing is going to be just a wrecking ball that's going to be hitting part of the coast. New Orleans may get -- catch the brunt of it. The strong winds, the heavy surf, the storm surge could be a tremendous thing, especially when that water is pushing around into Lake Pontchartrain, it could be just a devastating situation for many people there.

And then when you bring the storm up into parts of northern Louisiana, back into Texas -- near Marshall, Texas, and Shreveport, ladies and gentlemen, we're looking at the potential of several feet, maybe, at least a foot, of rainfall in many places. It could be just bad news.

To make it even worse, what we're seeing on the other side of Florida is this system, very quickly, Hanna at this time has winds of 60 miles per hour, gusting to 70, moving west-northwest at 12. But the National Hurricane Center expects this storm to make its approach right though the Bahamas.

And notice right as we get into Monday, and then into Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, back into Friday, Category 1 storm off the east coast of Florida. Speaking of Florida at this time, and not going to Hanna but back again to Gustav, take a look at something else we've got for you.

In Florida at that time -- at this time some of the outer bands already moving across parts of Alligator Alley, Fort Lauderdale this morning, West Palm Beach, even in Cape Coral you've already been hearing a little bit of the thunder, perhaps you've seen a few rain drops, already had these tornado warnings in effect. They often spin off from these bands as they move through, and then back to New Orleans.

Take a look, right offshore, here you go. You're beginning to see the clouds move in, some heavier showers and thunderstorms, just the start of this tremendous storm, the most powerful one on the planet at this time. Let's send it back to you.

NGUYEN: And you mentioned just a little bit earlier, for the folks who are leaving New Orleans, as they look up, they are going to see some of those clouds that may be part of Gustav heading in.

WOLF: Oh, it is. And you know, Betty, now the storm and the outflow beginning to really beginning to spread out. If you take a look at that storm, the storm itself, including the outflow, bigger than the state of Texas. So it gives you an idea. If you happen to be up in space, say, in the space shuttle, the space station, you look down, you'll just be blown away by the sheer size of this storm, the sheer scope of it.

Some of the bands going through parts of the Bahamas, south of Cuba, some of them as far north as central Mississippi, even in portions of the Tennessee Valley. It's a big storm.

NGUYEN: All right. We'll be watching it. So will you. There's a lot more coverage to come. Thank you, Reynolds.

WOLF: You bet, guys.

HOLMES: And as we just mentioned a moment ago, and CNN can confirm to you now that President Bush unlikely to attend the Republican National Convention, which kicks off tomorrow in St. Paul, Minnesota. Don't know about the rest of the schedule for that particular convention. But this storm is changing a lot of things. Don't want the appearance of throwing a party, having a festive atmosphere when people are suffering from this massive, massive storm.

But President Bush right now certainly want to tend to things, and don't want to repeat the criticism he had after -- certainly after Katrina that the Bush administration was not on top of things. So unlikely, CNN has confirmed the word, the White House giving to us that the president is unlikely to attend that.

NGUYEN: Well, you know, the presidential campaigns, they are in high gear. And both candidates do have a lot to say. We're going to be telling you about that as well in their own words. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: I want you to take a look at Gustav on the satellite maps right now, because we are keeping you updated on this storm as it rolls towards the Gulf Coast. Next hour we do expect to hear from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff just before he leaves for Louisiana.

We're also getting reports from our affiliate stations along the Gulf Coast. And meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is tracking the storm here in CNN's hurricane center.

HOLMES: Well, we'll turn back to a little presidential politics for you now. And CNN is bringing you more of what the candidates are saying in their own words. Here now, John McCain in Pennsylvania praising his new running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She beat the establishment, she took on a sitting incumbent in her own party, she won a tough election on a message of reform and public integrity. And I'm proud to say that we celebrate -- as we celebrate the anniversary of women's suffrage, a devoted wife and mother of five beautiful children, five.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

MCCAIN: She's not from these parts and she's not from Washington.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

MCCAIN: And when you get to know her, you're going to be as impressed as I am. She has got a lot of grit and integrity and good sense and fierce devotion to the common good that's exactly what we need in Washington today. She knows where she comes from and she knows who she works for. She stands up for what's right and she doesn't let anyone tell her to sit down.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

MCCAIN: She has fought oil companies and party bosses and do- nothing bureaucrats and anybody who put their interests before the interests of the people that she swore in oath to serve. She's exactly, exactly who you and I need, she's exactly what this country needs to help me fight the same old Washington politics of me first, country second.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Well, Barack Obama, meanwhile, keeps hammering away at John McCain and the Bush administration. At a rally in Ohio, he told supporters President Bush and Senator McCain don't understand the challenges facing many Americans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: John McCain and George Bush share the basic idea, this is the outworn Republican philosophy that says you're on your own. They call it the "ownership society," but it really means you're on your own.

Your job gets shipped overseas, tough luck, you're on your own. You don't have health care? The market will fix it. You're on your own. Born into poverty, you're on your own, pick yourself up by your bootstraps even if you don't have boots.

That philosophy has led us to the situation that we are in today. And it is a philosophy that the Republicans have to own up to. They have to own up to the failures that they put in place over the last eight years. It is time for us to fundamentally change America. And that's why Joe Biden and I intend to win this election, so that we can have a government that is working for you.

Joe Biden and I have a different idea. We believe in individual initiative. We believe in self reliance. We believe people want to make it on their own. But we also believe that we should have a government that cares enough about ordinary people that they can give people a little bit of a hand up when they need a hand, that they can knock down some of the barriers to success.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Again, part of our effort to bring you the presidential candidates in their own words during this election season.

And we'll head back and talk about Gustav now. Because of that threat, are we going to see gas prices shoot up again? You remember that happened after Katrina? We'll find out what could happen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, no doubt fuel, an essential component of an effective evacuation. You can't go too far if you don't have gas. And whatever price Gustav evacuees are paying today, it might be higher on their return trip. Jim Roope of CNN Radio is on the line with more insight as to why hurricanes and gasoline just don't mix.

It doesn't sound like a good combination there. We have seen this before with Katrina, right?

JIM ROOPE, CNN RADIO: Absolutely. The big problem is when gas stations get their loads and everybody is on a turn or a schedule, and if your turn comes up just before a hurricane hits, you're in pretty good shape. But if you're one of the first guys in the week, the hurricane comes last in the week and then the oil companies can't get in here, you're going to miss your next turn, you're going to run out of gas first.

And that's pretty much the issue that has been happening around here. People are just -- you know, their turns are coming up right about now. They need the gas right about now. And they're selling triple the amount of gas per day they normally sell. So a lot of folks are running out of gas. The lucky ones are the ones who are later in the week as far as delivery goes.

HOLMES: Are they seeing -- what are we seeing as far as prices go?

ROOPE: Prices have not gone up that badly. I've seen -- in CNN Radio Hurricane Mobile 1 yesterday, we paid just a little over I think $2.48 a gallon, something like that, wasn't that bad at some independent gas stations. The prices are a lot cheaper than that.

I don't know if they're going to go up any more today. I have not seen any open gas stations at all today in the short time I have been out there checking on traffic flow, which is extremely light, by the way.

But the gas prices aren't that bad. There's no gouging going on, at least as far as I can see.

HOLMES: Wait, did I hear you say as well you haven't seen any gas stations that are open?

ROOPE: I haven't seen any this morning, no. We had one yesterday, all of the major stations seem to be closed, the Shells, the Chevrons. A lot of the independent guys are open, they still have some gasoline left. But then some of them are saving gasoline for the military, for police, for emergency vehicles.

So they are each kind of hoarding, if you will -- I hate to use that word, but they're holding back about a thousand gallons each just for emergency operations.

HOLMES: All right. Well, Jim Roope, again, from CNN Radio, we appreciate the update on the situation. It doesn't sound like -- it sounds like things are going according to plan. People are able to get the gas. Nobody is gouging. People are getting in and getting out of there. So, Jim, with he appreciate your time this morning.

ROOPE: At least that's my perspective, absolutely. Thank you.

HOLMES: And we appreciate that perspective. Thank you so much, buddy.

NGUYEN: But you know, it could pose a problem if some of these gas stations aren't open and people on that contraflow route out of the city, and they need gas. They may have a hard time finding it. And that's something that we also found after Katrina, at least when people were trying to get out that some of these gas stations just did not have the gas available.

HOLMES: Don't have it, and that's a good -- I'm glad we got him, because he explained in such a way. I mean, depending on when you get that gas, that gas station gets the gas, it depends on whether or not you're going to have it and how much you're going to pay for it later.

So this contraflow, as you talk about here, that's certainly a key to this evacuation that we have going on right now. We'll show you what it's like in the center of that effort for people who are trying to get out of New Orleans. Stay here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOLF: I'm Reynolds Wolf from the CNN weather center where all eyes are on Gustav. Still a major hurricane, winds around 120 miles per hour, gusting to 145. And the forecast has this thing strengthening and moving right towards the Louisiana coast.

We'll have more coming up right here on CNN, your hurricane headquarters.