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American Morning

Public Option Gone from Health Care Reform Deal?; Senator Attains Release of American Prisoner in Myanmar; Plane Air Sometimes Toxic; Michael Vick Discusses Jail, Dogfighting; Hudson River's Hectic Air Traffic; Threat of Cyber War

Aired August 17, 2009 - 06:59   ET

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


JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Brings us now to the top of the hour. It is Monday. It's the 17th of August. Thanks for joining us on the Most News in the Morning. I'm John Roberts.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kiran Chetry. We're following several developing stories that we'll be breaking down for you in the next 15 minutes.

First, is the White House giving ground on health care reform? Administration officials say that a controversial government-run public insurance option is not necessarily a make or break for the president. We're going to take a look at how and why President Obama is keeping his options open on health care.

ROBERTS: And the Florida panhandle takes the first hit. Tropical storm Claudette raining down on Florida's Gulf Coast right now. It is the first named storm to hit the U.S. mainland this year, and forecasters are keeping a close eye on the season's first hurricane, which is just forming out in the Atlantic. Our Rob Marciano here with us in New York today tracking all of it.

CHETRY: Plus, on the heels of his trip to one of the most secretive nations on the planet, Senator Jim Webb will be joining us live, talking about meeting with the head of Myanmar's government, military government, and also securing the freedom of an American who's been there for months.

ROBERTS: We begin the hour, though, with what could be a major shift in the heated health care debate. The White House signaling Pres. Obama may be willing to drop his demand for a government run public insurance option to compete with private insurers.

What could it mean for the president in this make or break month for health care reform? Our Jim Acosta is following developments live from Washington, and a bit surprising to hear of the weekend that maybe this public option is on the table that may go down to defeat in terms of, you know, this debate over health care reform.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John. We've gone from make or break to let's make a deal, I think. The president is only through halfway through August of boisterous town hall meetings, but he may be willing to give some ground on one of the most contentious issues in the fight over health care reform, the public option.

This week the White House seems to be saying there may be other options.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: After weeks of Congressional town halls gone wild, the Obama demonstration is not keeping his options open on healthcare reform, specifically on the crucial question of whether Americans should have the option of joining a government run plan, so-called public option.

KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: I think what's important is choice and competition, but I'm convinced at the end of the day that the plan will have both of those. But that is not the essential element.

ACOSTA: And there were no lines in the sand drawn by the president himself at his own town hall in Colorado.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: This is a legitimate debate to have. All I'm saying is though that, the public option, whether we have it or we don't have it, is not the entirety of healthcare reform. This is just one sliver of it.

ACOSTA: The White House is spending less time pushing the public option and more time talking about injecting competition into the healthcare marketplace to drive down costs and give Americans more choices.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fact of the matter is there are not the boats in the United States Senate for the public option, there never have been. So to continue chase that rabbit I think is just a wasted effort.

ACOSTA: North Dakota Democratic Senator Kent Conrad is offering one compromise that would establish nonprofit health care cooperatives, like the rural healthcare co-ops that existed in the US for decades.

CONRAD: Land O'Lakes is a cooperative, Ace Hardware is a cooperative. So this is a model that works. It's not government run and government controlled. His membership run and membership control.

ACOSTA: The president is stuck, keeping the public option would anger Republicans and some Democrats in Congress who insist a government-run plan will drive private insurers out of business.

SENATOR KENT CONRAD, (D) NORTH DAKOTA: I still think we should have a bipartisan solution, but what I can't tolerate a government plan.

ACOSTA: Dumping it would disappoint liberals, who see his surrender on the public option as defeat.

ACOSTA (on camera): If he backs away from the public option, is that health care reform?

SARAH CHAISSON WARNER, HEALTH CARE FOR AMERICA NOW: It's absolutely not healthcare reform, no. We need the kind of reform that's going to improve the lives of families and communities everywhere.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: But this is not the last of the public option debate. Supporters and opponents of healthcare reform are spending tens of millions of dollars on commercials that are slated to air well into the fall, a campaign style overdose of political advertising not seen since the election -- John?

ROBERTS: All right Jim Acosta for us this morning. Jim, thanks so much.

As always, we want to know what you think, if the White House gives ground on a public option for health insurance, will help get a healthcare reform bill passed? Good or Web site at cnn.com/amfix and send us an e-mail, or you can also reach us on twitter by the way -- either A.M. Fix or John Roberts CNN or Kiran Chetry CNN.

And in our next hour, at 8:10 eastern, we will talk more about the make or break health care debate with our political panel, Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez and Democratic strategist Jennifer Palmieri will be here with us.

CHETRY: Well, the 2009 hurricane season's started pretty slow, but this morning it seems to be making up for lost time. Tropical storm Claudette making landfall overnight, drenching the Florida Panhandle with heavy rain and 50 mph winds.

There are two other storms in the Atlantic as well that we're watching, including the season's first hurricane, Hurricane Bill.

(WEATHER REPORT)

ROBERTS: Also new this morning, the tiny spark could ignite a huge wildfire in California right now. At least 11 wildfires are burning in the state this morning. Dry winds and heat are feeding the flames.

Officials say one storm north of Sacramento started when a bird flew into a power line putting 600 homes in danger. Police say another fire that burned more than 87,000 acres in Santa Barbara County was started by an illegal marijuana operation.

CHETRY: And a brand-new poll out this morning shows a majority of Americans do not think the stimulus is working. "USA Today"/Gallup poll finding 57% of Americans have stated that the stimulus is having no impact. Also, 18% say that the stimulus has done nothing to improve their personal situation.

ROBERTS: Plus, aliens taking over. Well, just is movie theaters this week and the sci-fi saga "District 9" was the number one movie this weekend, taking in $37 million.

Last week's number one, "G.I. Joe" fell by a spot followed by "The Time Traveler's Wife."

CHETRY: Well, Senator Jim Webb has been someone who has been trying to at least help bring a dialogue about with the military junta in Myanmar. He went there, ended up helping free American who was due to serve hard labor there. He's going to be joining us live in just a couple minutes to talk to us about that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: A U.S. citizen jailed in Myanmar is again a free man this morning. American John Yettaw is undergoing medical tests in Bangkok, Thailand.

The senator who secured his freedom, Virginia's Jim Webb, made history with his chip. Webb is now the first US official to ever meet with ahead of me and Mars ruling military junta and the first member of Congress to visit the country in more than a decade.

The Virginia Democrat also met with the countries detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

For more on this extraordinary story, Senator Jim Webb joins us now. He's in Bangkok, Thailand as well.

Senator, thanks for taking the time. You have been advocates of greater engagement with Myanmar. Do you think that your visit there and meeting with the country's ruling military leaders may be an opening to further some sort of diplomatic engagement between the United States and Myanmar?

SEN. JIM WEBB, (D) VIRGINIA: Well, I've been an advocate of stronger engagement in all of Southeast Asia for a long time, and my trip is a five-nation trip where were working on that with other countries.

And the situation in Myanmar right now is such that we do need to find different ways of working to open up me and mar for the benefit of the people. And I think that we have an opportunity now as long as we don't forget our loyalties to the other people who have been affected but that we been loyal to, such as Aung San Suu Kyi.

I think we have a moment here we might be able to do something.

ROBERTS: In terms of your meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi, did you talk to her about the possibility of greater engagement and perhaps dialing back on some of the sanctions that have been leveled against the military leadership there? And what was her reaction to that?

WEBB: Well, we had about a 40-minute conversation on a wide variety of issues. And with respect to her situation, I also want to emphasize that I made a request of the government that they consider releasing her from detention and that there no future election process would have any credibility with the outside world a less she were able to participate in the political debate.

And I am of the understanding that we are possibly going to see from ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian American Nations, a petition of some sort that would ask for amnesty for her as well, which would be a major step forward in resolving the situation.

ROBERTS: But on this point of dialing back on the sanctions against Myanmar, she has been a fierce proponent of maintaining sanctions. Does she seem to show some flexibility on the points now given the fact that you are there, and also that given this idea that perhaps there may be a narrow opening here for greater cooperative engagement with Mayanmar?

WEBB: Well, I don't want to speak -- misspeak for her. I will say that was my impression that she does not oppose the idea of in some way lifting some of the sanctions.

Again, it's a very delicate. She has her own viewpoints. But I do believe personally that lifting sanctions, as long as you address these other issues, as a way to have more contact with people of Burma, and also allowing the people Burma to see the outside world. And that's extremely important.

We've seen this in places such as Vietnam, where I've worked on these types of issues for 18 years now. And I think it would be beneficial.

At another point that really needs to be made is that the sanctions we've had in place, the European Union and the United States, have not shut off economic investment in Myanmar. What they've done is they've allowed the Chinese to increase their level of investment and their level of influence in a country that is vitally important to the future of the United States.

Sanctions don't work if you have countries like China that are pouring billions of dollars into a place like Myanmar. They have shut off the contact with the very people who can raise the level of consciousness among the Burmese citizens and actually assist in the evolution of the political process.

ROBERTS: Senator, there have been some groups here in the United States that have applauded your trip there as a potential opening, a good first step.

There have been other Burmese pro-democracy groups who think it sends the wrong signal, that rewards the junta for bad behavior. What do you say to that criticism?

WEBB: Well, first of all, the administration, the Obama administration itself, Secretary Clinton, with whom I have worked closely for a number of years, have also said that we need to find a different approach.

That's not going to mean that we would leave behind our loyalties to other people who have concerns. This is exactly the same coalition that we face in Vietnam when I started working on this issue there. I was initially opposed to the idea of removing sanctions.

And I worked for 18 years now to bring the Vietnamese community in the United States, which is strongly anti-Communist, along with us to build a bridge for the good of all of the Vietnamese people.

And it's a very delicate issue. It has to be done right. But we are not losing our loyalty to the people who are concerned with democracy. We're trying to find a different way so that we might help bring it about.

ROBERTS: And senator, if I could ask you just very quickly. John Yettaw, the American who was recently sentenced to a fairly lengthy jail term for swimming across a lake in making contact with Aung San Suu Kyi -- you won his release on humanitarian grounds. How is he?

WEBB: I have not seen them since we got off the plane. It was a delicate medical condition. I'd like to emphasize that I didn't go to specifically to attain his release. This was part of a series of issues that we raised with people and the government there.

And I really regret what Mr. Yettaw did. I think he may have been well-intentioned, but he hurt a lot of people, including the very moment he was thinking he was going to help.

So on humanitarian grounds he needs to return to his family. But we need to be really focusing on the welfare of all the Burmese people. They need to reconnect with the outside world, and we need to find a formula.

ROBERTS: Senator Jim Webb live for us this morning from Bangkok, Thailand, after his historic visit to Burma, Myanmar as it's called there. Senator, thanks for much for being with us this morning. We really appreciate your time.

WEBB: Thank you.

CHETRY: It's 17 minutes past the hour now.

Our Allan Chernoff with a special investigation on whether the air you breathe in an airplane could be toxic.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. It's 21 minutes past the hour right now.

We have Christine Romans "Minding Your Business." The popular cash for clunkers program is hitting a few speed bumps in the road.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: A few speed bumps. There are the dealers -- some of the dealers are starting to say they're not getting reimbursed very quickly or not reimbursed at all for the cash for clunkers deals because the paperwork delays and errors on some of the submissions, and that's creating a little bit of a cash crunch for some of the dealers.

What does this mean for you? It means you are still getting your cash for clunkers deal. It means that the dealers are waiting to be reimbursed by the government, many of them are, quite frankly. And how that affects you is if some of the dealers aside to maybe hold off and stop participating in the program because her not getting paid off.

So what we see here? Well, we know that some dealers have been sending paperwork in incorrectly, which has been delaying the payment process. This is according to an official at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Some of it is pretty simple stuff, but if the paperwork isn't perfect, that means you go back to the bottom of the line -- you're back in the bottom of the line, and these dealers are waiting to be reimbursed.

One of the things is that some of them complain and they think they need more people to be doing this job. And frankly, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association, the folks who reviewed this are currently about 225 employees. But the goal is to have 1,000 employees up and doing this paperwork.

So, again, it's one of those -- just more evidence that this is the sleeper hit of the summer in terms of the stimulus package, the cash for clunkers. And indeed...

CHETRY: This wasn't part of the original stimulus.

ROMANS: No, I know. The $2 billion to expand it is part of the original stimulus, but you're right, the money comes from something separately. And you know, looking for some delays there.

Hopefully you are trying to trade in your car, it won't mean anything for you unless your dealer decides to stop participating.

I was checking again. The number one car we're buying with the stimulus money, or with the cash for clunkers, is the Corolla, the Toyota Corolla. The number one the trading and is the Ford Explorer.

ROBERTS: Really?

ROMANS: Yes, trading in the Explorer and buying a little Corolla.

So we'll watch. We'll see if the popular program continues, because there are some reports that it might be flagging a little bit, that there was a lot of interest in the very first days. We'll see if it continues.

ROBERTS: Christine Romans minding your business this morning. Christine, thanks so much.

The air aboard aircraft -- there's a lot of complaints that is full of allergens, full of viruses. Well, now some people are saying it could be full of toxic chemicals as well, because the air that Shuster pressurized cabin comes off the engine. This something malfunctions and the engine they could spew toxic fumes into the cabin. Even the aircraft manufacturer admits that that could happen. But what could the potential health effects be? We'll find out.

CHETRY: Also, we know he served his time, 18 months in prison for a dogfighting conviction. Now he's back, signed with the Eagles. We hear from Michael Vick now. We conducted a one on one interview, James Brown did, with Michael Vick. We're going to hear. James Brown is joining us live in just a couple minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. It's 26 minutes past the hour right now.

Any frequent flyer knows that the air on the plane can get pretty stale after a while, but could actually met you sick? Well, people who make their living on plans are especially worried about that.

ROBERTS: And there is growing evidence that the air comes in to aircraft can be contaminated. Our Allan Chernoff has been doing some digging on this. He's here to tell us more about it in his exclusive investigation as he continues to look into the safety of air travel in this country. Good morning, Allan.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you.

I hate to bring some bad news, but the fact is some of the error on an airplane actually can be very, very contaminated. Most of those who think the biggest health risk would be perhaps dry air wars may be somebody sneezes on us. But in fact in some cases the air circulating through the cabin can actually be toxic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHERNOFF: Former flight attendant Terry Williams says she can barely care for sons because she suffers from a series of mysterious ailments. She complains of debilitating migraine headaches and tremors.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It just feels uncontrollable. I can't stop it from twitching or trembling.

CHERNOFF: And blind spots in her field of vision.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

CHERNOFF (on camera): You can see my hand right now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

CHERNOFF: What do you see?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A black spot.

CHERNOFF (voice-over): The symptoms, Williams says, began near the end of a flight more than two years ago, when she says she saw smoke blowing through a vent.

In a lawsuit against Boeing, owner of McDonnell-Douglas, which made the MV-82 aircraft on which she was working, Williams claims for disability resulted from inhaling poisonous fumes.

Boeing told CNN, "It is our belief that air quality on airplanes is healthy and safe."

CHERNOFF (on camera): Half of what we breathe on board a jetliner is filtered, recirculated air. The other half comes through the jet engines. This pressurized, cool, and then mixed with the recirculated air.

CHERNOFF (voice-over): In some cases, bad air, called "bleed air," which bleeds off jet engines, can be toxic. If an engine oil seal leaks, aviation engineers and scientists say the fuse can enter the cabin.

Boeing says in its response to Williams sued, "The potential for bleed air contamination has been known to be aviation industry for many years," though the company denies any responsibility for Terri Williams illness.

A National Academy of Sciences study in 2002 found contaminant exposures do occur resulting from the intake of chemical contaminants. like engine lubricating oils, and to the environmental control system and then into the cabin.

A neuropsychologist recently studied more than two dozen British pilots who claimed they had inhaled contaminated air.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They did appear to underperform on tasks that required attention, processing space, reaction time.

CHERNOFF: Angie Estes, who suffers tremor attacks, believe she inhaled such toxins as airline passenger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a danger of inhaling compounds coming out of the engine, that the engine seals fail, and there're are very potent toxins that came on board with the engine seals failed.

CHERNOFF (on camera): Does that happen?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It does happen.

CHERNOFF (voice-over): How often? A British study for the House of Lords found few events in one of every 2,000 flights. In the U.S., airlines are required to report events to the Federal Aviation Administration. There were 108 such reports last year.

So why wouldn't more flight attendants, pilots and passengers suffer symptoms? Berlong explains relatively few people will react to the most toxic chemicals. High levels enzymes and antibodies, which for some people can be triggered by prescription drugs, will act on the inhaled chemicals to magnify their toxicity. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you happen to be taking a medication that turns on the protein that converts the pre-toxin into a very potent toxin, then you've got an issue.

CHERNOFF (on camera): So, one person could be sitting in the seat, and the person next to them could be the one who has the terrific symptoms?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And has a huge response to it, tremors and loss of memory and so forth.

CHERNOFF: And the other person could have no effect?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It could have no noticeable effects of all.

CHERNOFF (voice-over): Terry Williams says she wasn't taking prescription drugs during the event. But Professor Furlong says enzyme levels can vary greatly between people, even resulting from the foods they eat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHERNOFF: Furlong has blood samples from 92 people claiming to suffer from similar ailments, mostly pilots and flight attendants. He says he's close to finalizing a test to confirm whether engine oil toxins indeed are in their blood -- Kiran, John.

CHETRY: And how would you know if you were exposed to this toxic air?

CHERNOFF: You actually can have a sense of it. If you are on an airplane and you have a "smelly sock" smell, that indicates that there actually has been a leak of engine oil fumes into the cabin. So in that case what you want to do is ask the cabin personnel to get that plane down as quickly as possible. And also you want to try to put something up to your nose to filter that air.

CHETRY: All right. Allan for us this morning. Thanks so much.

Well, now it's 31 minutes past the hour. Checking our top stories. Tropical storm Claudette is pounding the Florida panhandle right now. Expected to head to Alabama later today. Claudette the first tropical storm to hit the U.S. mainland this year. Forecasters are also watching the season's first hurricane. Hurricane Bill out in the Atlantic.

ROBERTS: Firefighters still dealing with 11 different wildfires across California this morning. Winds, heat and severely dry conditions are just making things worse. Some residents in Santa Cruz County are returning back home but hundreds more are still waiting for the all clear.

CHETRY: Well, it's being called one of the biggest upsets in golf and even in sports history. South Korean Y.E. Yang, the 110th rank player in the world came from behind to beat Tiger Woods at Sunday's PGA Championship. It would have been Tiger's 15th win at a major. It was Yang's first.

ROBERTS: And again living up to his name, Jamaican sprinter, Hussein Bolt set another world record in the 100 meter final at the World Athletics Championship in Berlin. Bolt clocked in at 9.58 seconds. 9-5-8. Shattering his last record setting time by more than a 1/10 of a second.

CHETRY: Amazing how fast he is.

ROBERTS: Unbelievable.

Well some thought that they would never see it again. Others said it's only a matter of time. Now, Michael Vick is back in an NFL jersey. The former pro baller has already hit the practice field with his new team, the Philadelphia Eagles but he is not only working on his game. He is also working on his image.

CHETRY: He sat down with James Brown of CBS Sports for an interview on "60 Minutes" to talk about dog fighting, also talked about his time in prison. This was Vick's first sit down since getting out of prison. James Brown is the author of the upcoming book "Role of a Lifetime" and also the host of the "NFL Today" on CBS. And he joins us from our D.C. bureau this morning.

James, great to have you with us. Thanks for being here.

JAMES BROWN, AUTHOR "ROLE OF A LIFETIME": Kiran, good to see you again although it's of the remote variety. And good morning, John.

ROBERTS: And good morning to you, James. Great interview over the weekend by the way.

CHETRY: Yes, we wish you were here with us in person but I want to ask you about this interview that you were able to conduct with Michael Vick. It was his first chance after what - serving 18 months in prison on those dog fighting charges and then of course the news that he's been signed with the Eagles. Let's listen to just a little bit of what he told you, about what he might have learned behind bars.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Do you understand why people are outraged?

MICHAEL VICK, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES QUARTERBACK: I understand why and I'm going to say it again, it sickens me to my stomach - you know, the same feeling that I'm feeling right now is what people (INAUDIBLE).

BROWN: And the feeling you're feeling right now is...

VICK: Disgust. The feeling of disgust.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: And James, he also went on to say that he cried the first night in his cell. Did you walk out of that interview feeling that this was somebody who is truly remorseful for what he had done?

BROWN: Kiran, the frame of reference that I had in saying yes, that I did visit with him in Leavenworth, Kansas, during his incarceration and also during home confinement in Norfolk, Virginia where I had about a three hour sit down with him, just to do some background work prior to the interview. And Kiran, I can say that he was very consistent in all three visits. And there certainly seems to be a real resolved and understanding of why folks are so outraged and him understanding why.

In fact what he was doing although introduced early to this that it was in fact the wrong thing and cruel indeed.

ROBERTS: James, what are the reasons why he determined that what he did was so bad was because he found god when he was in jail. And you asked him about this. Are you skeptical about this jailhouse conversion. There are so many people get into trouble, find god, seek redemption and they say it's all because of that, that I was able to become a better person.

BROWN: And John, excellent question. No, I do believe them and the reason was he shared with me, he shared with Tony Dungy, the former coach of the Indianapolis Colt in separate discussions that in fact, he was a man of faith early on when he was in college, John, praying to get to the promised land of the NFL. But once he got there, I think folks saw the iconic images of the hubris that he was displaying, thinking he was a teflon (VIDEO GAP). Now he's trying to resurrect (VIDEO GAP).

CHETRY: Good friend of yours as well. Coach sort of took him under his wing. Right. And said, I'm going to vouch for him. I'm going to vouch for the fact that - you know, that he can change his ways. How is that all helping Michael Vick move forward? As we know, he's been signed now with the Eagles. He's going to face quite a bit of hostility out there from some fans but also forgiveness from others.

BROWN: And the hostility has been pretty intense and serious. And certainly reaction from so many fans has been not very good either. Tony Dungy remarked that he was a little surprised, Kiran, at the harshness of the reaction but it should be expected indeed.

Look, Tony Dungy while a good friend - I mean, Tony is unapologetically a man of faith. Certainly, his integrity and character are beyond reproached and Kiran, he mentioned that he went to visit with Michael Vick and spent some three hours with him. He wanted to know without a shadow of doubt that his desire to be on the right track was firm and indeed intense and that he's committed to this. He and Michael Vick had gone very close and he is sought. He, being Michael Vick, has sought the assistance of Tony Dungy, throughout ever since they've connected.

ROBERTS: You know, James, you did a great interview last night. I'm not just blowing smoke here because I was watching the interview and I'm thinking to myself. Wow, is this Michael Vick talking or has he been coached to say all of the right things. It would be great if James ask him that question and bang, you came out and you asked him that question. Let's replay that little Q&A segment from last night and I'll ask you about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Michael, is this you talking? Or the big team of attorneys, image shapers, and the like?

VICK: This is Mike Vick. People will see my work out there. My work in the communities and my work with the Humane Society and how I really do care and how I care about animals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: You pointed out the piece last night that he's got a pretty high powered group of attorneys and image shapers, do you believe him? Was that Michael Vick talking or was he sort of reciting from notes?

BROWN: Hey, John, let me say, first of all - from a newsman such as yourself, I truly appreciate that feedback and I honestly mean that as well. John, you know, given again the frame of reference, that was one of the reasons why I wanted to do my homework although I didn't know until 12 hours before the interview that I would have the opportunity to sit with him. But based on those previous visits, he was very consistent and that I can tell the difference between when he was talking naturally and extemporaneously versus that he was being coached in and that was very serious and sincere from him.

ROBERTS: OK. As I said, it was a great interview. I want to check more about it with you, coming up. Can we just take a quick break, James and we'll get back with you?

BROWN: Sounds good, John.

CHETRY: And one of the things you want to talk about as well, there are so many people that say wait a minute, I don't know if I can ever forgive him for what he did to these dogs. We're going to talk to Michael Vick or at least, you talked to Michael Vick a little bit about where he became involved and when he became involved in dog fighting. We want to take a quick break. We'll be back with James Brown.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

CHETRY: Well, for the first time since he was released from prison, Michael Vick is opening up about his time behind bars as well as his involvement in dog fighting.

ROBERTS: Vick sat down with James Brown of CBS Sports for a piece on "60 Minutes" that aired last night. James is back with us live from our Washington bureau. You know, James, he was the highest paid player in the league when he was playing. He was a pro-baller but he didn't have the greatest rep. He himself admitted that he was the last guy in the building, the first guy out. He didn't study and didn't pay a whole lot of attention,. Tony Dungy said he had all these potential but barely scratched the surface of it.

You say that you believe that he is a changed person as a result of what he went through but is he a changed player?

BROWN: You know what, the only metric there, John, will be time. Certainly, not only determining whether or not he's a changed player but also as a person, I think as a cautionary tale for so many players that if you can see a guy who is at the top of his game, at least in terms of visibility, he was not by any stretch of the imagination, a polished quarterback. All that you saw where he earned the title of the most exciting player in the league was just based on god given talent as opposed to any serious work ethic. He now has an excellent mentor in Donovan McNabb. And Vick says that he's very changed and we'll see what happens.

CHETRY: And one of the things that a lot of people can't get over is the fact that he participated at least according to the prosecutors, in the killings of these dogs. It wasn't just that he funded the dog fighting ring but you know, with his bare hands may have helped kill many of these animals in very cruel ways. And we don't need to go over all of it. But one of the interesting things was when he talked about how he even came to know dog fighting and became involved with it. You talked to him about that - let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: You share with me a story about even the police riding through the neighborhood and seen what was happening. Explain that situation?

VICK: I got up at that time, seen it - you know, two dogs slaying in and I got back in the car. And they rode and they left. So that right there kind of make me feel like this isn't as bad as it may seem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: So he says his first, you know, exposure to this was when he was about eight years old and said it was a cultural thing. Do you buy that or do you think that you know, in some ways, moral compass had to be off for him to even participate?

BROWN: Great question now, Kiran. I asked him and I said that even if in fact, there was tacit approval by the police and as much as they saw it and then got back in the cruiser and took off. On some fundamental level, you had to know that at least it was wrong if not illegal. And as a youngster, he said he did not distinguish between that because the older kids in the neighborhood were engaged in that. But as he got older, he certainly knew that it was wrong but by then, he was caught up in it because he was engaged with childhood friends and didn't want to break away from it.

Wayne Pacelle, the president of the Humane Society of the United States, said that this is not atypical at all. He often characterized the problem as not being a black problem or a white problem, or a Latino problem, it is widespread and introduced to with the young, there can be, if you will, an apathetic feeling about it where you just don't sense the wrongness of what you're doing of the cruelty of it until you get a little older.

ROBERTS: Hey, James, before we let you go. We want to ask you about your new book, "Role of a Lifetime," where you say that your mission in life is to be the best supporting player you could possibly be. So many people come up through life. They want to be the star, they want to have the spotlight shown on them. They want to make it all about them. What is this idea for wanting to be the best supporting player you can be as you right this book about life lessons for young people coming up?

BROWN: I'm sure as you and Kiran know, being a team that you really want to have your partner look as good as they can and given that I've been in roles where I've been in roles where I've been working with other analysts, if you would, in the football world, the old notion about teamwork. I believe in all truth is parallel. That was just true in the natural. It's true in the supernatural. So, I believe in the notion and the truth that to esteem others above yourself and if you help them to look good, then the old nation that a rising tide lifts all ships will certainly come to pass.

CHETRY: I love it. You have to learn that lesson when you got four guys talking football for 12 years on a Sunday, right? Someone's got to get a word (INAUDIBLE).

BROWN: Kiran, you that from the other place where we worked and certainly currently where I am now at CBS, yes.

CHETRY: All right. Great to talk to you this morning, James. Thanks so much for joining us and great interview with Michael Vick.

ROBERTS: Great interview.

BROWN: Kiran and John, both, thank you so very much and continued success to you guys.

ROBERTS: Thanks, James. It's great to see you this morning, really appreciate it.

CHETRY: All right. Well, we talked a lot about the situation over the Hudson River where that six-winged plane hit a helicopter. Nine people were killed well now we have Susan Candiotti going first hand up in the sky to see what it's like and how a pilot operate in one of the nation's busiest air corridors. It's 46 minutes past the hour.

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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Forty- eight minutes past the hour right now. We fast forward to the stories that we'll be tracking later today on CNN and CNN.com. The executors of Michael Jackson's estate are expected back in court at 5:00 p.m. Eastern today. They'll be dealing with different business proposals involving the singer's assets.

Well, you remember the '80s classic "Ferris Bueller's" had Chicago as his playground on his day off when he played hooky from school. Well, now the whole city is following his lead. Offices across Chicago will be closed today from libraries, city clinics, City Hall, even trash collectors and street sweepers have the day off without pay. It's one of three reduced service days, expected to save Chicago more than $8 million this year, in an attempt to fill their budget gaps.

Well, President Obama is in Phoenix today at 2:00 p.m. Eastern. He's giving a speech to the annual meeting of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The White House says the president will talked to the VFW about the commitments and contributions our soldiers are making both in Iraq and Afghanistan -- John.

ROBERTS: So, a couple of weeks ago, we had that crash over the Hudson River when a helicopter and the plane meeting the most tragic of fashions. Well, those sightseeing tours are back up over the Hudson again. I looked down in the area and I was watching them buzzing back and forth. Just how safe is that air corridor and how do pilots manage to negotiate what can sometimes, as we saw a couple of week ago, be an extraordinary dangerous area.

Our Susan Candiotti goes up and takes us for a ride, coming up next. Ten minutes now to the top of the hour.

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ROBERTS: Just over a week after a deadly mid air collision over the Hudson River that killed nine people, the choppers filled with tourists are back in the skies over New York City in one of the nation's busiest pieces of sky. Our Susan Candiotti went up with one crew to see just how hectic things can get.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, Kiran, good morning. As debate ranges on to whether to regulate the air space over the Hudson, we took a ride with a sightseeing pilot to see what he sees.

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CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Flying over the Hudson River, pilots better have razor-sharp vision and focus. It's a busy highway in the air. Another chopper suddenly pulls alongside while a small plane zips by, just out of camera range.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did he announce?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't hear. He might be on with the tower.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Where is my helicopter? CANDIOTTI: One week after a fatal mid air collision between a sightseeing helicopter and a small plane that took nine lives, we flew with Pegasus pilot Eric Ross, whose customers, despite the recent accident, still clamor to see Manhattan's skyline.

For now, visual flight rules still apply for up to 1,000 feet above the water. That means over the Hudson, pilots watch out for each other. It's see and avoid.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do I announce my intentions?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So I just don't say where I am, I tell them what I'm going to do. Now, we says it's just like driving. I stay to the north, northbound. I stay to the right. Southbound -

CANDIOTTI: Pilots can't let their guard down for a moment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is on the backside?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's what he said.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, Is he coming around? Right turn?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm looking.

CANDIOTTI: We saw one helicopter come around and then seem to disappear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got you. Down low.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Down low. Right here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If we didn't talk to each other, I wouldn't have seen him until it had become too late.

CANDIOTTI: Airspace becomes crowded over the Hudson, air traffic control radar warning systems can be going off repeatedly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It constantly alerts and that really becomes part of the background noise to an air traffic controller. It becomes a distraction to his operation so he tunes it out.

CANDIOTTI: Before the mid air crash, the NTSB says an air traffic controller did try to reach the small plane at least two times but got no answer. Moving with uncharacteristic speed, the FAA just formed a group to recommend possible changes and they are not wasting time.

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CANDIOTTI: The FAA expects recommendations on its table in two weeks. There's talk of creating separate lanes of air space - one for helicopters and one for small planes. John, Kiran.

CHETRY: Well, unbelievable to see just how close and how you have to rely on - in some cases, voluntary reporting.

ROBERTS: Absolutely. You just got to, you know, keep your head on the swivel (ph) and watch out; otherwise, you could have tragic consequences as we saw a couple of Saturdays ago.

CHETRY: Well, we also saw during the Russia-Georgia conflict that was taking place last year, a lot of computer systems were able to be tampered with, part of our own cyber security is trying to find (VIDEO GAP)

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CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Right now, it's two minutes before the top of the hour. A reminder of how vulnerable cyberspace is to an attack, a stunning new report says Russian hackers use American identities and software to carry out cyber attacks on Georgian web sites while the two countries were at war last year.

Homeland Security correspondent Jeanne Meserve is live in Washington. She's been investigating the state of our country's cyber security and Jeanne the results that calls for concern.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. You know, Kiran, denial of service attack again on Twitter and government Web sites earlier this summer did get a lot of publicity but some experts estimate hackers are successfully penetrating almost every government agencies, seven or eight times a month. And those experts are perplexed that the Obama administration isn't doing more to stop it.

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MESERVE (voice-over): In May, President Obama declared a new day in cyber security.

OBAMA: From now on, our digital infrastructure, the networks and computers we depend on every day will be treated as they should be as a strategic national asset.

MESERVE: But two and a half months later, some cyber experts are asking where is the action to match those words.

TOM KELLERMANN, V.O. CORE SECURITY: It seems that it's only been lip service thus far. We really need real tangible action.

MESERVE: Two high profile cyber experts have announced plans to leave government in recent weeks and the president has yet to appoint the cyber czar he promised to lead and coordinate government cyber security efforts. Word in the computer community is that well qualified people don't want the job for one big reason.

ALLAN PALLER, SANS INSTITUTE: Right now, there's no indication that that person will have a great deal of power.

MESERVE: The White House vigorously denies that, insisting cyber remains a top priority and a rigorous selection process is well under way.

JANET NAPOLITANO, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Those of you in the private sector, I hope to recruit some of your smartest people to join the government. So watch out.

MESERVE: Homeland Security is looking to double its cyber staff and has already brought in some well regarded experts from industry. Meanwhile, the Pentagon is starting up a new cyber command to secure military networks and develop offensive cyber capabilities. But some experts say with more leadership, there would be more progress in the federal government and beyond.

KELLERMANN: In order to engage international actors (ph), in order to engage the critical infrastructure community globally, we have to have real leadership on the civilian side, leadership from the White House, because there's too many turf battles.

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MESERVE: Meanwhile, the attacks continue largely unabated with cyber crime and cyber espionage sucking valuable information and money out of the U.S. every day -- Kiran.

CHETRY: All right. Jeanne Meserve for us this morning. Thanks so much.