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American Morning
Nine Killed in D.C. Train Crash; Iran's Guardian Council Says Election Results Will Stand; Obama Takes the Heat on Iran Stance; Challenging Issues President Obama Faces; Governor Sanford Takes a Hike; The Terror Gap on Buying Guns; Obama's Stance on Iran; Bon Jovi's Volunteer Initiative; Asian Stocks Tumble; How Your Boss Can Watch You Online
Aired June 23, 2009 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome. Glad you're with us this morning on this AMERICAN MORNING. It's Tuesday, June 23rd. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. I'm John Roberts. We've got a lot to tell you about this morning. And here's what's on the agenda, the big stories that we're breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes.
The death toll so far stands at nine in what is the deadliest train crash that Washington, D.C. has ever seen. This morning, authorities are collecting evidence and searching for answers into what happened during last night's rush hour.
CHETRY: Also, Iran's powerful counsel in charged of overseeing the disputed election is now rejecting calls to nullify those results. This morning, though, more rallies are planned and President Obama is facing growing pressure to take a tougher stance on Tehran. But supporters say that his cautious approach is the right move. We're live at the White House with more.
ROBERTS: And the governor of South Carolina ditched a security detail. More than five days ago, he missed Father's Day. Even his wife said she had no idea where he was. Why Governor Mark Sanford decided to take a hike.
CHETRY: But we begin with the deadliest crash in the history of the D.C. transit system known as the Metro. Reports this morning that at least nine people were killed after a subway train slammed into a stalled train that was on that same track. It happened during yesterday's rush hour.
More than 75 people were injured, some critically. Passengers say it felt like they hit a concrete wall. Cars of both trains ripped open and smashed together. The crash happened on the metro's Red Line which shuttles thousands of commuters every day from the suburbs into D.C.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve is following for us this morning from Washington. Throughout the afternoon, we just kept seeing those numbers climb, the number of dead and others critically injured. Such a tragic accident. What happened, Jeanne? JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, Kiran, if you look behind me here, you can see the trains are still on the track. That wreckage is not going to be moved until the National Transportation Safety Board says it can be. As you mentioned, investigators are looking hard to try and figure out what might have caused this, the most deadly crash in this transit system's history.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE (voice-over): There was such devastation at the crash scene, local hospitals were told to brace for mass casualties. One train was stopped on the tracks when a second train rammed it from behind.
BRAD SANDER, TRAIN CRASH SURVIVOR: Listening to my iPod and we hit. It was literally like that. There was no brace. There was no yell. There was no nothing. We just hit.
MESERVE: The second train was moving so fast, its first car flew up on top of the first train, splitting open and throwing some passengers onto the ground, eyewitnesses said. The car underneath was compressed and crushed.
The driver of the second train was among those killed. Passenger Jody Wickett, a nurse, described peeling back seats and metal debris in an effort to help people.
JODY WICKETT, TRAIN CRASH SURVIVOR: There were a lot of injured limbs, a lot of people pinned between seats. The seats themselves had the front of the car had been split open and the seats themselves and all the people were at the end of the car that I was in helping, and they were layered on top of each other. So there were people I couldn't get to.
MESERVE: Victims said it took rescue crews 15 to 20 minutes to get to the scene. More than 200 firefighters used ladders, saws, and every tool at their disposal to reach, extract, and treat victims. Many passengers were able to walk away. Others were not.
MAYOR ADRIAN FENTY, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Already, though, at six confirmed deaths, the largest fatality number on our Metro Transit System in a four decade history.
MESERVE: The National Transportation Safety Board immediately began looking for a cause.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Investigators are going to be looking at issues associated with the train operations, the track, the signals, human performance, survivability, emergency response.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE: Investigators said last night they'd be looking to see if there were recording devices on these trains, whether they were working and whether they survived. Those would give them a hint about how fast the trains were going. They're also going to look at the issue of survivability. After some earlier crashes, Metro was given some recommendations for strengthening its rail cars. The NTSB were looking to see if they implemented those changes and whether in this instance they would have made any difference. Kiran, back to you.
CHETRY: And again, Jeanne, do they know exactly or they do have a working theory as to why both of those trains were on that same track at the same time?
MESERVE: No, it was rush hour here. They believed that things that normally would have been operated by this computerized system the Metro has that would have kept the distance there, looking at whether that system was working or whether there have been some sort of manual override. All of that really too early for anyone to have a theory on what happened here.
CHETRY: Just such a tragic accident that took place there. Jeanne Meserve for us this morning. Thanks.
ROBERTS: Iran's election results will stand. Iranian state television reporting the Guardian Council will not nullify the results of the disputed presidential election. A council spokesperson says they found no major fraud or breach in the June 12 vote.
And there are reports that a large-scale general strike of private businesses could happen sometime today. Supporters of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi also calling for a peaceful rally later on this week. Protesters demanding a new election. We're back on the streets on Monday. Amateur video show riot police using batons and tear gas to break up the demonstrations.
And this morning, lots of call coming into our show hotline at 877-MY-AMFIX about President Obama's response to Iran. Here's what some of you are saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOHILA (ph), NEW JERSEY (via telephone): I'm Iranian American, and I believe that America should not interfere with Iranian affairs right now.
SORIAH (ph), CANADA (via telephone): I'm a Canadian Iranian and I just want to say that we appreciate people commiserating with us, but any actions from the United States will not be any help for our country.
ANONYMOUS CALLER, CALIFORNIA (via telephone): I'm Iranian American. The U.S. created this mess, and I believe they have to clean it themselves.
EFREN, FLORIDA (via telephone): This is the problem of the Iranian people. We support them in everything they do and the will of the people, but we should not be actively involved.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: All right. Well, it was just over two weeks ago that President Obama delivered that speech from Egypt to the Muslim world and promised a new beginning in relations with the Muslim world and the west. So far, the administration has taken what some are calling a soft stand in responding to Iran. Last night on "ANDERSON COOPER 360," senior political analyst David Gergen said that that may be jeopardizing those basic principles that the president outlined in that famous speech.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Many people around the world were then looking to him for leadership and leading the world to this new day. When this first moment of testing comes, he retreats into what is the old style and staying out of it. And I think that it has emptied his Cairo speech of some of its meaning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is live at the White House this morning. And, Suzanne, as we know the president is going to be holding a news conference this afternoon. A lot of tough questions expected, I'm sure, about Iran and the stance that they're taken on Iran. What are you hearing from the White House?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Kiran. Sorry, getting a little echo in my ear here. But there are going to be a lot of tough questions regarding Iran.
First and foremost is should he use tougher language here. The administration has been hitting back on this, saying this is not a U.S. dilemma, not a U.S. problem, that's certainly a sympathy for the protesters. But the big question is whether or not he can really move forward with what he called his tough diplomacy with Iran if, in fact, Iran's own people don't consider its own leader legitimate.
The other thing that he's going to be getting a question on is North Korea. You've got threats from North Korea now that are potential long-range missiles are going to be launched in the direction of Hawaii over July 4th weekend, obviously paying very close attention to that, the administration. You've got a U.S. Navy ship that's tracking a North Korean vessel, suspected of illegal weapon. Big, big chance and big challenge for this president, whether or not they can enforce those U.N. Security Council sanctions to actually inspect that cargo and see what happens there.
Other big things that he's obviously going to be talking about is health care. Is he going to be able to get a government-run insurance plan as an alternative to some private programs or perhaps even a co- opt program? A big debate on Congress. And then the economy overall.
This administration says that unemployment is going to hit 10 percent, more than 10 percent in the next couple of months, but even if the recession turns around, it's going to take a long time to get those jobs back. The billions of dollars that this administration has poured in to that problem, is it working? Is it going to solve the problem? Those are just some of the many things, Kiran, that we expect this president is going to get some questions on this afternoon.
CHETRY: Yes. Certainly a lot to tackle and a lot of things people are wondering about. And, Suzanne, thanks.
And just a programming note, just coming up in about 20 minutes, we're going to be speaking with White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs about some of the options that the president has regarding Iran. We're also going to talk to him about health care and many other issues. So stick around for that. It's coming up in about 20 minutes.
You can also see President Obama's news conference at the Rose Garden this afternoon. CNN will bring you the whole thing live at 12:30 Eastern Time.
ROBERTS: We might remember this. A few months ago, President Obama had some issues with his teleprompter during a speech. Well, yesterday, the first lady had some prompter problems of her own while delivering a speech in San Francisco.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: I am honored to be here. And I really would be happy to use the teleprompters if they were higher. But they're very low, so I'm going to read from my notes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The hazards of height there, huh? What do you think about that?
CHETRY: There you go. Did they finally raise them for her? It looks like they finally got them up there. But, you know, it's always good to have your paper scripts, too.
ROBERTS: It's always good to have a backup.
Checking other stories new this morning. Hillary Clinton showing her mettle, making (ph) a White House meeting with the president sporting a cast after surgery to repair a broken elbow. On her way to a similar meeting last week, she tripped and fell in the State Department's parking garage. While she's back to work in Washington, the secretary did cancel a planned trip to Italy and Greece this week while she recovers.
First France tried to banish the head scarf, now officials have turned their sights to the burqa (ph). President Nicolas Sarkozy says the traditional Muslim garment that covers women from head to toe is a "sign of subservience and not welcome in France." A group of lawmakers also wants to set up a commission to investigate the spread of the burqa (ph) in France, which happens to have Europe's largest Muslim population.
And forget "Where's Waldo." In South Carolina, they are asking where's Sanford, as in Governor Mark Sanford, who vanished for five days. But the mystery may be solved. CNN's Jason Carroll will tell us where he disappeared to and why just ahead.
It's ten minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, good morning, Houston right now. You're partly cloudy, 80 degrees out there. It's going to be sunny and 97 a little bit later today. So looking good, Houston.
Meanwhile this morning, NASA taking one giant leap forward to putting a man or a woman back on the moon. Right now for the first time in a decade, an unmanned rocket has entered the moon's orbit. The goal of the mission is to find a place for astronauts to land on the moon by the year 2020.
Chris Brown avoiding jail time and a showdown with his ex, Rihanna. The R&B singer pleaded guilty to one count of felony assault yesterday. Rihanna was in the courtroom and was prepared to tell her version of what happened before that Grammy pre-party. In a plea agreement, though, with prosecutors, Brown is expected to get five years' probation and to attend domestic violence counseling classes.
Also new pictures this morning of one of the most iconic images of the unrest in Iran, a young woman named Neda, 26 years old. She was shot and killed on the sidelines of a demonstration this weekend in Tehran. Neda's friend, who was with her when she died, told "The Los Angeles Times" that Neda was adamant about attending that march -- John.
ROBERTS: Well, in just a few hours' time, President Obama meets the press again. It's his fourth press conference since taking office. His first, though, in the Rose Garden. Iran and health care likely to dominate the topics.
Joining us now to look at the key issues facing the president, Ed Rollins, Republican strategist and CNN senior political analyst, and Hilary Rosen, "Huffington Post" editor-at-large and a CNN political analyst.
I'm sure that the president is going to get at least one question today about the approach, the stance that he's taking to Iran. You know, Ed, you have advocated a tougher stand that he should be taking. But when we look at it, historically, the U.S. really cheer led the fall of the Soviet Union but at almost the same time, President George H.W. Bush took a very laidback approach, very restrained approach to what happened to Tiananmen Square to the points where he was accused of bringing dishonor to democracy. So --
ED ROLLINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: What I've argued, I'm almost a supporter. One person speaks foreign policy and I think up till this point, the press has been just fine.
I think at this point in time when people, young people are being murdered in the street and the option and the assumption is that's going to continue, then you've got to condemn it. You've got to condemn violence. And you can say you can't be a democratic entity if you're allowing your people not to protest and you go in with a bunch of thugs and you murder them. I think the president needs to do that for his own strength and for his domestic audience as well as his foreign policy.
ROBERTS: Hilary, does he need to step it up a bit?
HILARY ROSEN, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: I think he will step it up today on that front. I think he will say he'll condemn the violence and express his empathy for the protesters. But I think he is doing the right thing when it comes to getting involved in the actual election results.
You know, this is -- the Guardian Council has said this is going -- you know, they think this is a legitimate election. Most people around the world are skeptical of that. But there is a very strong internal process right now going on with the protesters in Iran. And those folks don't really want the United States to be too aggressive. They think that it hurts them if there is too much interference.
ROBERTS: Although -- although let's take a moment and listen to a young fellow who we talked to yesterday at a program. His name is Mohammed (ph). We withheld his last name for safety reasons.
He's a student. He participated in the demonstrations, claims that he was beaten by the Basij, the paramilitary groups. He really had an impassioned plea for help yesterday. Let's listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMMED (ph): My message to international and other message to international community, especially I'm asking President Barack Obama directly, how government that doesn't recognize its people's rights and repress them brutally and mercilessly can have nuclear activities? This government is a huge threat to global peace. We need your help international community. Don't leave us alone.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: That's a really passioned plea saying don't leave us alone. And so there are some protesters out who are saying help.
ROLLINS: I don't think -- I'm sorry -- I don't think we can -- as always, we can't get in to their politics. It's done. But I do think that we can be a moral compass in which our -- we're saying that democracy is important and you have a right to protest and we will do everything we can to keep that.
ROSEN: And we're doing a lot just by witnessing it and witnessing it for the world. Obviously, they're global news organizations, you know, covering the story. But a lot of what's coming out between the online social networks and the like is coming through an American channel. That is a lot of support.
ROBERTS: Right. OK, let's switch gears because health care is going to be another topic that the president will tackle today. Of course, he'd like to get this done this summer.
We found out that it's going to cost $1 trillion over ten years. You say a trillion fast. It's kind of like it rolls out your tongue but the trillions are adding up. Dianne Feinstein said yesterday she doesn't know if there's the votes to pass it. Is it dead?
ROLLINS: I don't think it's dead. But I do think they have to come up with some kind of better numbers. $1 trillion is the minimum. It could be $2 trillion. And I think the reality is there's no details out there yet and there's a rush to get this thing done. And the president said I'm going to sign this bill by October. I think that's a little quick and it may be basically stop it if he tries to do it that fast.
ROBERTS: Hilary, are you optimistic or pessimistic about this?
ROSEN: They're working on the sale price of $999 billion, thinking that's going to sell it better.
ROBERTS: $999.99 billion --
ROSEN: Look, the need is great. Seventy percent of the American public are unhappy with the current health care system. That pressure alone -- you know, everybody has a story about somebody who can't get coverage, somebody who's been rejected, somebody switched a job and lost their coverage. Those stories are just too great for Congress to do nothing, and I think there will be enormous pressure, particularly on the Republicans and moderate Democrats to support the president ultimately in a plan.
ROBERTS: Well, we're at least looking forward to that press conference later on today. Ed Rollins, as always, it's great to see you.
Hillary, it's great to have you here in New York today. Thanks for dropping by.
ROSEN: Thanks.
ROBERTS: All right. Kiran?
CHETRY: All right. Still ahead, you know, in South Carolina, they were asking where is their governor. He disappeared for days. There was a lot of concern.
Well, he's now been located. He was just on our show last week. We're going to find out where Governor Sanford was still ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: That's a pretty shot this morning.
ROBERTS: Hey, it's Charleston, not Myrtle Beach.
CHETRY: Yes, I know. Look at it, though.
Why? Why are you laughing? What do you mean?
ROBERTS: Oh, you weren't here, Friday, were you?
CHETRY: I wasn't. What did I miss?
ROBERTS: That's right. We had a little incident with Charleston versus Myrtle Beach in the Arthur Ravenel Bridge.
CHETRY: Oh, not the bridge again.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: That makes the bridge -- there's a nickname and there's a name.
ROBERTS: That flipping bridge is what it is.
CHETRY: It is. It is.
(LAUGHTER)
I actually called out because I knew you guys would be talking about it.
ROBERTS: I'd throw the whole thing away.
CHETRY: Well, meanwhile, have you ever wanted to just get away from it all -- like last Friday --
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
CHETRY: Your job, your family, the four million people you govern? Well, it appears that South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford wanted to do that. After five days of not being heard from, including Father's Day, it turns out that the governor needed a break from his family and his day job. so he decided to turn his cell phone and take a hike along the Appalachian Trail.
Jason Carroll joins us now with more on this bizarre story. I mean, it's not bizarre to go away.
CARROLL: No.
CHETRY: But apparently his family didn't even know where he was?
CARROLL: Apparently, his wife didn't know where he was for a period of time. And, you know, everyone wants to get away but we're not the governor, a governor of a state.
You know, basically there are some questions about this that still have not been answered like who contacted who exactly here. But the big question has been answered. The mystery, at least part of it, has been solved.
The governor is said to be clearing his head somewhere along the Appalachian Trail that stretches from Georgia to Maine. His staff would not say where on the trail the governor was hiking, nor would his spokesman reveal whether Governor Sanford was hiking alone.
The governor had not been seen or heard from since last Thursday. Neither Sanford's office nor the state law enforcement division which provides security for governors were able to reach him prompting concerns and speculation over his safety and whereabouts. For a time, his unknown location and lack of communication angered the state's lieutenant governor who says he's concerned about the welfare of the state of South Carolina.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GOVERNOR ANDRE BAUER, SOUTH CAROLINA: What if we have a prison outbreak tomorrow? What if we have a natural disaster happen in our state? What do we do? How do we follow the chain of command?
I think there's real concerns here when we can't find our executive officer of the state and nobody knows where he's at, and there are conflicting stories coming out of his office. It concerns all of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Well, Sanford's own wife didn't even know exactly where he was for a time. She told The Associated Press the governor needed some time away from their children to write something and that they were not worried about him. As for why it took so long to publicly declare where the governor had been, his communications director says he was waiting to find out exactly where on the trail Sanford was and that it was not that big of a deal, saying, "It isn't unusual for the governor to be out of pocket for several days after the legislative session. We knew he would be difficult to reach and that he would be checking in infrequently."
The two-term governor is chairman of the Republican Governors Association and became nationally known after publicly opposing federal stimulus money and taking the fight to the state's Supreme Court, a battle he eventually lost.
Sanford is seen as a potential 2012 Republican presidential candidate and recently appeared right here with Kiran on AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: By the way, are you considering a 2012 run for president?
GOV. MARK SANFORD (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: No, I'm considering, you know, can I make it through this next week. And given today, can I make it through the day in terms of getting all the paperwork signed in what the Supreme Court has now compelled with regard to us accepting this money.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Well, some consider Sanford's disappearance odd for someone likely as a presidential candidate. Critics of the governor say his behavior is erratic and should he decide to transfer power at some point, he should let the lieutenant governor take over in his absence.
But the South Carolina constitution says the lieutenant governor may only act for the governor in an emergency. But you heard what he was saying there a little bit earlier which is basically, you know, sometimes you don't know if there's going to be an emergency. You should be reachable at all times.
CHETRY: Was it something I said?
CARROLL: Maybe it was something you wore.
CHETRY: Yes, I know.
CARROLL: That looks strange (ph) to me.
CHETRY: I have the exact same outfit on. So now I know I wore this on June 8th and I wore it on June 22nd.
ROBERTS: She wore it with the pearls, though, so it's a whole different outfit.
CHETRY: I'm going to have to take the pearls off anyway because apparently they're making a very uncomfortable sound on my microphone. You want them?
ROBERTS: Those will look good on me. I got to tell you.
CHETRY: All right. Well...
CARROLL: Back to the governor.
CHETRY: I know. So it is, I mean unusual especially for Father's Day weekend and his wife not knowing where he was. It's really caused quite a stir in South Carolina. We're going to be speaking to a newspaper reporter who follows all of this and has been following this case. I mean, he's not only the head of the state...
CARROLL: Correct.
CHETRY: ... but really in a critical time, he's the head of the Republican governor.
CARROLL: And again, though, he has been known in the past to give, you know, the guys who are, you know, who's supposed to be guarding him the slip. But four days, not being able to reach, you know, his staff not being able to come up with a clear sort of answer.
ROBERTS: Yes, in case of emergency, who's in charge?
CARROLL: Yes.
ROBERTS: Yes. Also ahead, who says you can't go home? Well, certainly because Jon Bon Jovi's volunteer work. He's been building a lot of houses. He's involved in a national service summit on the West Coast in the next couple of days. We'll be talking exclusively with Jon coming up about his volunteer work.
Stay with us. It's 27 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Well, coming up on the half hour now and checking our top stories. This morning, the death toll so far stands us nine in what is the deadliest train crash that Washington, D.C. has ever seen. Officials say one of the trains had stopped and was waiting for another train ahead to move out of the station when another train crashed from behind.
Your chances of becoming infected with HIV may depend on where you live. A new study finds the highest rates of infection are in the South and more than half of the counties with the highest rates for HIV were in Georgia. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 1.1 million people in the United States now live with HIV.
And the Obama administration about to reverse course on a controversial Bush era program to use U.S. spy satellites for security and law enforcement purposes. The program was originally developed to give authorities an extra tool in the fight against terrorism. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano reportedly told by law enforcement officials that the program was not an urgent issue.
Well, it's a system that's supposed to keep the airlines and you safe. But a gaping legal loophole allows suspected or even known terrorists to buy guns and explosives in stores, stores possibly near you.
Here's CNN's Jeanne Meserve with that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A convicted felon cannot legally buy a gun. Neither can an illegal immigrant, or a drug addict. But under current law, a known or suspected terrorist can purchase firearms and explosives.
SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG (D), NEW JERSEY: First of all, it's a shock when you think about it. Secondly, it's idiotic.
MESERVE: A new report from the Government Accountability Office said that between 2004 and 2009, 963 firearms and explosives background checks turned up matches with terrorist watch list records. And 90 percent of the time those applicants got the green light to get a gun or explosive, because there was no legal way to disqualify them, even though they are considered so dangerous they can be stopped from boarding an airplane or denied a visa. The watch list contains over one million records on about 400,000 individuals. Government reports have documented instances of misidentification and misinformation. And the National Rifle Association says it should not be used to disqualify anyone from buying a gun.
"The integrity of the terror watch list is poor, the NRA said in the statement. To deny law-abiding people due process and their Second Amendment rights based on a secret list is not how we do things in America."
(on camera): Senator Lautenberg is introducing legislation giving the attorney general discretion to stop gun and explosive sales to suspected or known terrorists.
The Department of Justice says it is reviewing that legislation, but it's worth noting that in 2007, it proposed something similar and Congress never passed it.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Jeanne, thanks so much.
Well, the president's response to Iran as well as his fight for health care reforms, the economy, these are all topics that are sure to be front and center at President Obama's first Rose Garden news conference that's coming up just a few hours from now. And joining us from the White House lawn with a preview this morning is Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.
Good to see you this morning, Robert.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Good morning.
CHETRY: Thanks for being here.
GIBBS: How are you?
CHETRY: Well, great, thanks.
Well, there's no doubt that the administration is certainly watching what's been going on in Iran. The Iranian government confirming 21 deaths in Tehran. And there's some unconfirmed reports putting that number as high as 150. The president has been getting some criticism from Republicans on the response post election. Lindsey Graham calling him, quote, "timid and passive." What stance is the White House taking right now on what's happening in Iran?
GIBBS: Well, look, I don't think Republicans are unanimous. I think you've seen criticism that your network has pointed out. But I think the likes of Henry Kissinger and others prove that the president has struck the right response here. He has stood up for the universal principles of being able to demonstrate in peace without fear of violence. He's spoken out and condemned the government for their use of violence, and stood up for justice in this election.
That's what's important in this case. Kiran, it's not for us to get involved in this. This is a debate in Iran by Iranians about their next leadership. Many in Iran and many in the regime would like to remove any of the protesters and the reformers and put the United States government in their place. That's a battle that they've had and won for many years inside of Iran.
CHETRY: Do you think it's the place for the American president to send a message about the need for free and fair democracy when you see so many people in the streets calling for it, as in the case in Iran?
GIBBS: I think so. And I think that's what the president has done each and every day. We started this process the day after the election, saying that we didn't find the results to be without some cause of problem. And that's what the president has said throughout this process.
But again, Kiran, if what we want to do is put the United States four square into this and let the Iranian regime use the United States government as a political football or a political foil, then we would do that. But the president believes and many quite frankly experts on Iran and Republicans and Democrats in Congress think that's an unwise course to chart.
CHETRY: Again, there are others like Senator John McCain and Charles Grassley who say that we need to maybe speak out a little bit more forcefully. But one of the things that really struck us, I mean forget, you know, the Republicans...
GIBBS: You sort of stuck on this, Kiernan.
CHETRY: No. It's Kiran. The Republicans going back and forth. But what really struck us yesterday...
GIBBS: No offense, you seem struck...
CHETRY: Listen, what really struck us on a show yesterday was just hearing from people in Iran. There was a man by the name of Mohammed who's out there in the streets. He was protesting. He said he was risking his life, you know, for freedom. And he actually had a plea for our president. So I just want you to hear it and tell me what you think.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
MOHAMMED, STUDENT (via telephone): My message to international and other message to international community especially President Barack Obama directly how government that doesn't recognize its people's rights and repress them brutally and mercilessly can have nuclear activities? This government is a huge threat to global peace. We need your help international community. Don't leave us alone.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
CHETRY: He's basically saying, "Don't leave us alone." What do you say to him?
GIBBS: Well, what I would say to him, Kiran, and his -- because let's look at his whole message. He's very concerned that the government of Iran would possess a nuclear weapon. I can assure you that's something that keeps this president up at night.
He also wants this president to stand up for the universal values of being able to speak out. And I think the president has been struck by images throughout this, that show people exercising their rights to gather and protest an election result, particularly the images of women in this country who have spoken out and had their voices heard.
CHETRY: Right, right.
Well, let's turn to universal health care. It looks like there are some key senators from both sides of the aisle that are questioning whether or not we're going to see it passed this year. The Congressional Budget Office putting a price tag on one of the current proposals that's in a Senate committee at over $1 trillion over 10 years. And even Diane Feinstein, Democratic senator said, "I don't know if he has the votes right now." Is this simply too expensive to pass at this time?
GIBBS: No, because, look, Kiernan, the president has laid down some very important principles and that is that every penny of health care reform will be paid for. What's important, Kiernan, is that we make some progress. Families and small businesses that have watched their health care costs skyrocket each year have waited far too long for reform. State budgets, local budgets and even the federal budget are beginning to be weighed down by the increasing cost of health care each and every day. We're at a point where reform is possible and we can't afford to wait.
CHETRY: I want to ask about this campaign promise you guys made about transparency. "The New York Times" and PolitiFact and others have been saying that the administration is not sticking with this promise that once the bill is passed through Congress, the White House is going to post it online, sort of a sunshine policy, so people can get a look at it for five days before it's signed.
"The New York Times" wrote it's "a tacit acknowledgment that the campaign pledge was easier to make than to fulfill. The White House is changing those terms." I want to ask you, what the original intent was in making that promise and why it's seem to be hard to deliver on?
GIBBS: Well, let's, first of all, understand that we have conducted already in this administration the most transparent, taken the steps to become the most transparent administration in the history of our country. What we originally pledged was that at the conclusion of the legislative process, the legislation, when it got to the White House, would be posted for five days for comment.
What we found more often than not is when the bill is in its final form, but is not yet been fully passed by the House or the Senate, the legislation that the president will sign is posted on the Internet. And more times than not, we've exceeded the five-day comment period.
So, I think we're meeting very much the spirit of what the president pledged, and that is for the American people to see what the president is going to sign into law. Whether that bill is posted at the end of the House or the Senate passing it or before they consider the final product. But the fact that that product doesn't change, I think, is basically the same thing.
CHETRY: All right. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. Thanks so much for being with us.
We want to remind people that we can see the president give his press conference. That's coming up just a few hours from now and we'll carry it live for you, 12:30 Eastern Time on CNN and CNN.com.
ROBERTS: Another thing the White House wants to do is increase the number of people in this country who volunteer. Right now, it stands about 27 percent of Americans give their time. There's a big summit going on at the West Coast right now. One of the star attractions there is Jon Bon Jovi, who does an awful lot of volunteer work himself. And we'll be talking to him exclusively, coming up right after the break, about the good work that he does to build homes for people in the Philadelphia area.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Jon Bon Jovi helping a whole lot of people go home again through his volunteer work. He's also an ambassador for the Entertainment Industry Foundation, Hollywood's leading charity. And yesterday, he made a special appearance to an audience of than 4500 service leaders who were kicking off a multi-year campaign to help make service and volunteerism a national priority. I had a chance to speak with Jon about his initiative.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON BON JOVI, SINGER: Throughout my life, I've been involved in volunteerism and charity work. But to be involved as I am at the level that I am in philanthropy has come into focus in the last five years and the beginning of our foundation, the Philadelphia Soul Charitable Foundation, which builds affordable housing not only in Philadelphia but many places, you know, as wide as Los Angeles to New Jersey.
ROBERTS: Back in 2005 when you opened up the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, you said that volunteering -- you declared volunteering is hip. Have enough young people gotten that message in the last four years?
JOVI: Well, I think that to some degree they have, John. Volunteerism is up right now. And the national average of volunteerism is on the rise. And I could say that it's because of the economy. People have more time on their hands, or I could also say it's because we all realize we're in this together.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROBERTS: You know, it's really interesting about him, too, is that he volunteers and he doesn't really draw a lot of attention to it. And I asked him about that as well. And he said that he does it just simply because he enjoys what it gives him and he enjoys -- he's kind of giving back his -- you know, for all of his money and all of his rockstar status, he's a real humble guy, got a very humble heart, and, you know, just love his work for people.
CHETRY: Yes. He's good-guy solidarity. He sort of acknowledges how many fans he has out there. He has given free concerts in the past in the middle of Times Square. He's also at the White House Correspondence Dinner. And he's very, you know, in tune with what's going on in the world and cares about it a lot.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: You're lucky that you got the interview. I was shot through the heart.
(LAUGHTER)
ROBERTS: You're to blame. Just kidding.
Forty-four and a half minutes after the hour. More coming up a little bit later on with Bon Jovi.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: All right. Stephanie Elam joins us now at 47 minutes past the hour. She's "Minding Your Business" this morning.
And we're talking about world markets.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: World markets in not a good way, John and Kiran today. Because the World Bank gave its forecast. And they're now saying for 2009, they see a contraction of about three percent for the world economy. And that is a larger contraction than they previously expected, about 1.7 percent. This spooked out the markets yesterday. And it really did affect trading here.
The global trade also, I should mention, is expected to sink by nearly 10 percent. And a lot of investors have been concerned about the recent gains that we've seen in the markets. Since March, we've been on a tear. Really gaining a lot of percentage points here. That has made people feel like perhaps this was too much, too soon and that there needed to be a correction.
So taking a look at the markets for yesterday, you can see that the Dow falling 200 points, two and a third percent. If you take a look at NASDAQ and the S&P there, off more than three percent as well. This really did affect the markets here. And now Asia is selling off, although, we are seeing futures pointing higher today. But, really, what we're going to be looking at this point is for the economic data that will be coming up this week. That will really give us the barometers that we need to see if things are getting better. And we'll hear from the fed. Today, it begins a two-day meeting where we'll find out about interest rates. They're expected to leave it alone. Tomorrow, we'll find out for sure. But at this point, people are a little spooked out. It's just been a little too fast since March.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: And not just talking about interest rates, but will they give any indication of where they think the economy is headed?
ELAM: Definitely. They'll talk about the world economy. They'll talk about the U.S. economy and what's expected to happen. And that's a huge indicator of what's going to happen. So we always look for the words especially when we expect interest rates to say the same. So it's all about what's inside the language there.
CHETRY: All right. Stephanie Elam for us. Thanks.
ELAM: Sure.
ROBERTS: Forty-nine minutes now after the hour. You're watching the Most News in the Morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Good morning, New Orleans. It's clear right now. Eighty-three degrees. But it is going to be hot, sunny and 100 degrees for a high out there in the big easy this morning. Fifty-one minutes past the hour.
Jacqui Jeras keeping track of extreme weather for us. And there's a heat wave. We certainly aren't feeling it here up north. But in many places in the country, it's going to be unseasonably hot today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: All right. Jacqui, thanks so much for that. We'll see you again soon.
Well, some of the top videos right now on cnn.com. Chris Brown accepted a plea deal yesterday in court saying that he wanted to, quote, "accept responsibility for his actions."
Under the agreement, Brown pleaded guilty to one count of assault in connection with the attack on his girlfriend, Rihanna. Rihanna made a brief appearance in court after Brown left so the judge could explain a stay-away order, which requires Brown to stay 100 yards away from her.
Also, Perez gets punched. It all started when Black Eyed Peas singer Will.I.Am confronted celeb gossip blogger Perez Hilton about insulting his bandmate, Fergie. Perez responded by using a gay slur against Will.I.Am. And then Perez said Will.I.Am's manager began punching him several times.
Well, check out this unbelievable shot. An eighth grader at a middle school in Broadview, Ohio sank this once-in-a-lifetime shot in his phys ed class.
Unbelievable.
CHETRY: And they just happened to be rolling. Look at that.
ROBERTS: Remember that shot that Lebron James made when he was talking to Steve Croft on "60 Minutes."
Got that one, Lebron.
It's one of the most popular videos on cnn.com this morning.
Fifty-four minutes now.
One more time -- oh, no -- fifty-four minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
Recently, the city of Bozeman, Montana was asking people who are applying for city jobs to hand over their passwords to social networking sites they were members of like Facebook and Twitter. After the story spread online, though, the city backed down. But the question remains just how much privacy can you really expect online.
Our Alina Cho has an update in a story that she first told us about a few months ago. It involves two workers who actually got fired for what they said on MySpace.
Good morning.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
I mean, I remember when I did this story, a lot of people said to me, did this really happen? And the fact is that, it did.
And, guys, you may remember about two months ago, we told you about two restaurant workers in New Jersey. We interviewed one of them. Her name is Doreen Marino.
Now she and another worker were fired for comments they made, not on a company account, but at home on MySpace. It was a private discussion group, invitation only, password required, a place they thought was private, where they could vent their frustrations about work, and in some cases, say some mean things about their bosses.
But then, one of the managers gained access to the site, didn't like what he read, and fired them. So Marina and her co-worker who both worked at Houston's Restaurant in Hackensack, New Jersey sued in federal court. And guess what? The jury ruled in their favor saying the Hailstone Group, the parent company of Houston's violated federal and state surveillance laws.
Now the jury awarded the two workers a total of $3400 in back pay and $13,600 in punitive damages. The jury even went on to say the management acted maliciously.
Now we caught up with Doreen Marino to get her reaction to the verdict.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOREEN MARINO, FIRED FOR COMMENTS ON MYSPACE: It tells employers that there's limits. There are limitations to how far that they can go in to our private lives. There has to be laws.
This is a major way of communicating with MySpace, Facebook, Twitter. There are no laws governing our privacy or our rights. So it's got to start somewhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Now, the Hailstone Restaurant Group told CNN they have mixed feelings about the verdict, but there are no plans to appeal at this point. Now one thing that is still unclear is whether the manager of that Houston's Restaurant essentially snooping on his workers constitutes an invasion of privacy.
Even the jury seemed to put out a confusing verdict on this. So the central question really wasn't resolved. Is this an invasion of privacy? Can companies do this? Remember, the jury found that the Houston's manager violated surveillance laws, but there was no clear- cut ruling on the privacy issue. And that is the central question. I mean, can companies do this? Is it legal?
You know, Nick Thompson from "Wired" magazine said one of the problems is is that technology is changing faster than the law. And it's not like the law is going to catch up.
And the other thing he says, if you want to keep things private, write it in a diary, lock it up and do not make copies of the key.
CHETRY: The other question is how much of an assumption of privacy do you have when you're posting things on a public Web site granted their certain access, but you're still putting it out there.
CHO: That's right. And you're looking at what happen in, you know, Bozeman, Montana probably a good idea that they reverse that policy of asking job seekers to give their passwords away to social networking sites. But there is that question.
Nick Thompson says, listen -- you know, what are we going to end up with five years, ten years down the line? Maybe MySpace and Facebook and Twitter becomes a little less interesting. A little more boring. And the workspace becomes a little more chaotic. I mean, it maybe sort of a meeting in the middle. But who knows at this point. I mean, it's moving so fast and it's hard to keep up.
ROBERTS: It certainly is. Alina Cho this morning.
Alina, thanks so much.
CHO: You bet you.
ROBERTS: We're just crossing the top of the hour now. It's coming up to 7:00 Eastern on this Tuesday. It is the 23rd of June. I'm John Roberts.
