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American Morning
Plane Attack on the IRS; Who Was Joe Stack?; Tiger Wood's Mea Culpa; New Help for Homeowners; Coming Out Conservative
Aired February 19, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. Thanks for joining us on the Most News in the Morning. It's Friday, which is always a good thing. It's the 19th of February. Thanks for being with us. I'm John Roberts.
SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Sara Sidner in for Kiran Chetry. Here are the big stories we'll be telling you about in the next 15 minutes.
We are learning more about the man behind the terror in Austin, Texas. A man whose frustrations with the tax man mushroomed to the point where he set his own house on fire, then took a small plane and crashed it into an office building. We're live in Austin with the latest on the investigation and talking to people who thought they knew the pilot.
ROBERTS: Tiger Woods live. It's going to happen about five hours from now. The whole world will be watching his public apology, but just a chosen few will actually witness it and actually some of the people who were invited are boycotting it because of the strict rules. We're digging deeper on Team Tiger's effort to control the event as the golfer takes his first big step in image rehab.
SIDNER: And it's the who's who of the Republican Party after this year's conservative gathering in Washington. But this year's CPAC convention is a bit different. A group of gay conservatives are co-sponsoring the event. We're in Washington with how that's being received.
ROBERTS: But first this Friday morning, investigators are piecing together new information about a man with a grudge against the government who yesterday climbed into a small plane and flew it into an Austin, Texas, office building that has the local IRS office. So far, two bodies have been recovered. One believed to be the pilot. His name, Joe Stack, a man who apparently battled the government for years, the IRS in particular.
Here's what we found out overnight about Stack. California records show the state suspended his license to do business twice, first for back taxes totaling more than $1,100 and then for not paying them at all. Stack's wife also reportedly complained to her parents about her husband's growing desperation and anger.
Our Ed Lavandera and David Mattingly are both live in Austin, Texas, for us this morning with more on Stack's life and the FBI investigation. Let's start with Ed Lavandera.
What are we learning overnight, Ed?
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, what we have learned, obviously the story ended here in this northwest Austin office complex. But to get a sense of how we got here, we retraced Stack's steps through Austin yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: The events of the day appear to have started in this neighborhood in north Austin. Joseph Stack owned that red brick home, and neighbors tell us that shortly after 9:00 in the morning, they found it completely engulfed in flames.
(voice-over): The flames shot out of the house intensely. Neighbors rushed to call 911 as they saw Stack's wife and stepdaughter run up to the house. But no one could imagine what was about to unfold across the city.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I saw, of course, the flames and the smoke. And a little while later, I saw a little girl crying. She was crying really hard and she ran into my neighbor's house. And it appears to be her mother. It was an older woman. She ran in behind her.
LAVANDERA: From this neighborhood it would be a 20 to 30-minute drive to the airport where Stack's small plane was allegedly waiting for him with a full tank of fuel.
(on camera): This is the Georgetown Municipal airport. Authorities say Joseph Stack took off from here at 9:40 in the morning. He was in a four-feet Piper Cherokee aircraft, and a witness actually told CNN he waved to him as he left the hangar. And the only runway takes off toward Austin right over that tree line.
(voice-over): Sixteen minutes later at 9:56 in the morning, Stack's aircraft emerged on the horizon. The building with nearly 200 employees inside in sight.
(on camera): Witnesses tell CNN that Stack came out of the sky here appearing to aim for a building. He probably would have flown past the home that he owned and seeing it engulfed in flames before the flight ended here, crashing into that building.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw something fall in the sky and then a big fireball kind of shoot out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The building shook and the lights went off and the lights flashed on. And then the roof came in, it felt like stuff fell on top of us.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The crash killed the pilot Joseph Stack and one person in the building. Thirteen others were injured, two of those taken to hospitals. Despite an angry online message railing against the IRS, investigators aren't saying what motivated Joseph Stack. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I personally consider this a criminal act by a lone individual.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do you make that definition? How do you differentiate domestic terror versus --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it is a person that attacked a building. What his motivations are will be released at a later date.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: And, John, first responders here have wrapped up their search of the building. As you mentioned at the beginning there, two bodies were recovered from the crash site. They are not confirming the identity of those bodies just yet, but this is now in the hands of the FBI and a massive federal investigation, John.
ROBERTS: All right. Ed Lavandera for us this morning from Austin with the latest. Ed, thanks.
SIDNER: Joe Stack left what essentially reads like a suicide note on his Web site. He railed against the IRS and blamed the government for his financial failures. The six-page rant also gives you some idea of Stack's emotional state before he climbed behind the controls of his plane, describing his actions as long time coming. He writes, quote, "I am finally ready to stop this insanity. Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let's try something different. Take my pound of flesh and sleep well."
So what kind of person was Joe Stack before he seemingly snapped? In that Internet message he used words like desperate, stuck and with a storm raging in his head. But ask his friends, those who thought they knew him really well, and that's not what you'll hear at all.
Our David Mattingly did just that. He's live in Austin this morning. David, is there any sign from anyone that they saw maybe Stack going in and being violent?
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sara, Stack's online complaints suggest he had problems with the IRS for decades but the people who say they thought they knew him well, thought they knew him well, say they never saw this anger in him at all.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY (voice-over): A tormented rant posted online and his deadly actions speaking volumes. Joe Stack seems the picture of rage and vindictiveness. Nothing at all like the man some remembered as outgoing, friendly and not the least bit violent.
(on camera): At any time he never seem like he had any kind of temper, that he might have been angry at anybody?
RIC FURLEY, JOSEPH STACK'S FORMER BANDMATE: Not to my knowledge. I mean, not at all. I never saw that side of him. He was very laid back, affable, friendly, warm guy. You know, at the end of rehearsal, we always, you know, hug each other goodbye. Just a really friendly guy. This is completely unexpected.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Ric Furley knew Stack for two years, not as an uptight software engineer but as an easygoing musician. The two shared the stage playing rock-a-billy (ph) in a band in Austin. Stack played bass guitar.
What was your reaction when you heard about it?
FURLEY: I kind of freaked out.
MATTINGLY: And you thought you knew him well.
FURLEY: I didn't think -- well, I did think I knew him well. It never occurred to me that something -- he would be capable of something like this.
MATTINGLY: And that seems like the Joe Stack others remembered when he worked on the West Coast. David Page was the mechanic who serviced Stack's private plane. Stack would fly frequently to jobs in Silicon Valley from his home in Linden, California.
DAVID PAGE, JOSEPH STACK'S MECHANIC: He's just a hard working guy, self-employed. I think he pretty much -- his life was work. He enjoyed doing what he did. He liked flying his airplane. He's a very accomplished pilot. It is hard to believe. I can't imagine he would take out his frustrations in that sort of way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MATTINGLY: Friends say they never heard Stack say anything about money problems and he seemed to be living quite a comfortable life, and he seemed to be very happy with the life that he had -- Sara.
SIDNER: Thank you, David. David Mattingly there in Austin. And coming up at 7:30 Eastern, we will get some more insight into Joe Stack's life and whether there were any warning signs of what he was about to do. We're live with Stack's bandmates, band leader Billy Eli and drummer Ric Furley.
ROBERTS: Also new this morning, brand-new video of three of the American missionaries who were free from jail in Haiti returning home to Idaho. Nearly 200 people were there to greet them with cheers, balloons and hugs. Two others are still in jail back in Port-au- Prince, though. The group denies the charges against them insisting that they were on a rescue mission.
SIDNER: President Obama in Las Vegas today for a jobs event. One big question, will the president apologize for recent comments he made that irked some in Nevada. You may remember the president earlier this month said, you don't blow a bunch of cash in Vegas when you're trying to save for college.
ROBERTS: He's written anthems about the working man and the American dream, now some people want him to take it a step further. Online groups are trying to draft John Mellencamp to run for the Indiana Senate seat being vacated by Democratic Senator Evan Bayh. Ain't that America. Mellencamp's spokesman says, no comment.
SIDNER: A warning this morning for the millions of Americans who suffer from asthma and parents with kids who carry around an inhaler. It covers long-lasting asthma drugs, like Advair, Symbicort, Foradil and Serevent. Doctors say a muscle-relaxing ingredient in those drugs could mask a serious asthma attack until a person is literally gasping for air. The FDA says they should be used only by asthmatics who can't control their lung disease with other medications.
ROBERTS: Well, here's a horse of a different color. Police in Atlanta had their hands full during rush hour last night. They caught this, yes, zebra, on an extremely busy section of Interstate 75/85 that runs through downtown Atlanta. Yes, the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus is in town. We're told that the animal got spooked and got away from his trainers. As we understand it, it went all the way through downtown, run past the CNN Center...
SIDNER: Poor guy.
ROBERTS: ... Centennial Park and got out there on the interstate.
SIDNER: And some amazing video now of a dangerous rockslide in San Dimas, California, about 30 miles east of Los Angeles. An entire hillside came down blocking two roads near I-10. The roads could be closed for a whole week.
ROBERTS: Wow.
SIDNER: Officials say the hill was completely saturated. And with more rain in the forecast, they're worried about more of the same this weekend.
ROBERTS: It's nine minutes after the hour now. Let's get a quick check of this morning's weather headlines. Our Rob Marciano is in the extreme weather center talking about the rain out there in California. But first of all, did you see the zebra yesterday?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I did but I heard the National Weather Service did put a severe zebra warning of some sort.
ROBERTS: Eye station (ph) zebra, right?
MARCIANO: The traffic in Atlanta is bad enough, let alone having a zebra march around the interstate especially at the (INAUDIBLE). My goodness. Good stuff.
All right. Let's show you what's going on weather-wise. There's still a threat for seeing couple lake-effect snow showers across upstate New York but not a big deal. In the northwest, winds will continue there but temperatures will moderate somewhat today.
All right. The next system coming into the plains. This dumps some snow in the Rockies and will dump mostly rain and a little bit of freezing rain expected just north of Kansas City and some snow mixing in there as well. As of now not a whole lot of winter weather advisory is posted by the National Weather Service so they may still be spooked by that zebra.
Brownsville to Houston, seeing some rain develop across Texas that will feed into this next weather system that will march off to the east. And dare I say most of the U.S. near normal temperatures for today. Mid-50s in Atlanta and lower 40s in New York. Of course, that's going to change as our next round of arctic air gets lined up for the beginning of next week.
We'll talk more about that in about 30 minutes. John and Sara, back up to you.
ROBERTS: Rob, thanks. We'll see you then.
SIDNER: Thanks, Rob,
ROBERTS: More gold for the USA at the Vancouver Olympics yesterday. Evan Lysacek won the men's figure skating gold in dramatic fashion, beating the defending Olympian champ, Russian Evgeni Plushenko. It ends a 22-year drought for U.S. men's figure skating. The last time an American won the gold at the Olympic event, of course, Brian Boitano at the Calgary Games in 1988. The U.S. has stretched its medal lead to seven over Germany. They've got 18 medals in all, six of them gold.
SIDNER: Pretty cool. Tiger Woods in his own words. The world's most infamous golfer is ready to talk after three months of silence. How far will an apology go towards getting his life back on course?
ROBERTS: Plus, new help for homeowners at a time when more and more people are losing their jobs and communities are dealing with growing foreclosures. Help is on the way. Our Gerri Willis coming up on the Most News in the Morning.
It's 11 minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Just a few hours' time, Tiger Woods will break his silence, delivering a mea culpa that will be heard round the world. It's his first public appearance since the infamous car crash that spiraled into a sex scandal. Woods will be surrounded by supporters and a half dozen handpicked reporters. He's going to be make a statement, will not take any questions, though. This carefully orchestrated event has been heavily criticized and the golf writers are taking a stand against it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIM GRAY, GOLF CHANNEL CORRESPONDENT: I do want to tell you this. We were just given this news that the Golf Writers Association who had three seats tomorrow in the room with Tiger to listen to this, along with the wire service, three people from each wire service and one full camera, well, the golf writers have pulled out. They will be boycotting the session. They do not like the premise, and they do not like the fact that they will not be able to ask any questions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Well, the PGA commissioner says in a letter that Tiger Woods will return to sexual rehab following his public statement. It's not clear if Woods will announce when he's going to return to the tour.
SIDNER: And of course among other things, some are wondering will Tiger Woods estranged wife be by his side this morning. CNN's Susan Candiotti is digging deeper on Team Tiger's effort to make amends and repair Tiger's image.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With Tiger Woods' personal and professional life mired in the rough, can an apology get him back on course?
LAUREN MACKLER, AUTHOR, "SOLEMATE": This new image that he has is in complete contradiction to his wunderkind, golden boy image that he's had since he was really little. So, I'm sure that is very humiliating and devastating and embarrassing experience for him.
CANDIOTTI: His agent says the world's most infamous golfer knows it's time for him to make amends, and today's mea culpa is step one.
LARRY WOODARD, VIGILANTE ADVERTISING: Potential sponsors really are looking for Tiger to accept the baggage that he has, take those bags, walk out of the room with him, change into his golf clothes and win in a spectacular fashion.
CANDIOTTI: Those bags have been following him since the car wreck heard (ph) round the world. On his website, Woods admitted cheating on his wife, Elin. His agent says Tiger's been in therapy for his problem.
Until this photo of him jogging emerged this week, Tiger has gone virtually unseen.
KATE COYNE, EDITOR, PEOPLE MAGAZINE: He has done a masterful job at staying completely under wraps.
CANDIOTTI: "People Magazine" reports the couple has been living apart, Elin and their two children in the couple's sprawling Florida mansion, Tiger in a home in the same private development.
COYNE: Just kept things very normal for the kids. She continues to take them to their classes and lessons and play dates.
CANDIOTTTI: The scandal also has cost him financially. Accenture and AT&T dropped their sponsorships, though Nike and EA Sports are hanging tight.
But will wife Elin stand by her man?
COYNE: I think most people are going to be very surprised if she's at this press conference, that it would just be humiliating for her.
CANDIOTTI: Humiliating for her, annoying for some players on the tour, like Rory McIlroy.
RORY MCILYOR, PGA GOLFER: I'm sick of hearing about him.
CANDIOTTI: The PGA Tour is standing firmly by his side. Without Tiger, ratings and revenues sink. Could a comeback make him more popular than ever?
WOODARD: More people know him than knew him before. More people will be curious than were before.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: Of course, a lot of people are curious about what Tiger's going to say, among them reporters that, as you've heard, he says he's not going to take any questions. As a matter of fact, you see that building over my shoulder? That's a hotel ballroom, and that's where I and a lot of other reporters will be watching this statement from a great distance.
Tiger is going to be a good mile away at PGA Tour's clubhouse headquarters. So I think this will be one of the most interesting events I've ever covered from a great distance -- John and Sara.
ROBERTS: That's a good way to put it.
Susan Candiotti this morning. Susan, thanks.
And at 6:30 Eastern, we're going to talk more about Tiger Woods' image rehab with Ron Torossian, he's a public relations expert, and Steve Helling, he's a writer for "People Magazine" who has written a biography of Tiger Woods and interviewed him several times, so he's really kind of plugged in here on what might come this morning at 11:00.
You can see Tiger Wood's statement live, by the way, on CNN and on cnn.com at 11:00 A.M. Eastern.
SIDNER: All right. Coming up, an interesting one, hot on a cyber trail, Chinese investigators say they know exactly where thieves hacked into Google's system, causing that huge censorship rift.
ROBERTS: And is a nuclear bomb in Iran even closer to becoming a reality? We'll tell you what a United Nations watchdog group is saying. It's fairly troubling.
Eighteen and a half minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty-two minutes after the hour now. That means it's time for "Minding Your Business" this morning. Gerri Willis in for Christine Romans this morning and new help for people who are treading water trying to stay in their homes. GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Yes. This is big news today, if you're having trouble in the housing market and maybe you can't pay your mortgage.
The president today is going to announce in Nevada a new program for people in trouble with their mortgages. Some $1.5 billion will be given to state agencies across the country. Some five states are going to get help. This is going to be targeted at homes where -- or areas, pardon me, where the prices have dropped over 20 percent and areas where there is high unemployment.
ROBERTS: That covers a lot of the country.
WILLIS: It covers a lot -- actually they're going to focus on five states, here -- Arizona, Florida, California, Nevada, Michigan. You know, this is where the worst of the worst has happened, prices have dropped most dramatically here.
And here's who they're really trying to help. You know, we talked yesterday about the new way of getting into foreclosure is being jobless because you can't even pay your mortgage.
They're going to target people who don't have jobs, people who are underwater in their loans, meaning that they owe more than the house is worth. And, finally, people with second lanes (ph). You know, if you go out and you get that HELOC and you try to refi, you can't do that right now.
So, this is really interesting. They're trying it yet again. I've got to tell you, the scope of this program, they're going to be spending $1.5 billion, is nothing like Making Home Affordable, which was a $75 billion program.
ROBERTS: $1.5 billion?
WILLIS: Yes.
ROBERTS: That's...
SIDNER: That's not a lot of money for all of those states. Yes.
ROBERTS: ... pocket change compared to what we've been spending on -- not -- not to say that we should continue to spend, spend, spend, but it's not much compared to so many of (INAUDIBLE).
WILLIS: It's not much money, but what they're finding, the programs that are actually working out there are ones run by state agencies. In Philadelphia, in Connecticut, they've developed programs which are much more effective. When they find it, it comes from the bottom up, they're getting more traction.
And so that's what they're trying to do, is give the power to these housing finance agencies in states across the country.
SIDNER: Let's hope it helps.
ROBERTS: Gerri Willis, "Minding Your Business" this morning.
WILLIS: Sure. My pleasure (ph).
ROBERTS: Gerri, thanks.
SIDNER: A gathering of the nation's most influential conservatives is right now under way, but at this year's CPAC convention, gay conservatives have a voice. So what's their message and how is it going over with some of the more traditional conservatives? We'll look at the responses (ph).
Twenty-three minutes after the hour. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SIDNER: Twenty-six minutes after the hour. Top stories are only five minutes away.
But first, an "A.M. Original", something you'll see only on AMERICAN MORNING.
CPAC -- it's the conservative event of the year, and it's underway right now in Washington. Of course, the economic, foreign policy and social conservatives have turned out in force, but, this year, gay conservatives also have a voice, and as Brianna Keilar tells us, it's getting a mixed response.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John and Sara, here at the exhibition hall at CPAC, some of the usual participants.
This is the oil and natural gas lobby, and then over here you have a group that is for getting rid of all federal taxes. And then, right across the way from them, you have the National Organization for Marriage, which wants marriage federally defined as between a man and a woman.
What's so fascinating is just two booths down, take a look at this. This is a group founded by gay Republicans that obviously see social issues very differently.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: Whether there should be a federal ban on same sex marriage.
JIMMY LASALVIA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, GOPROUD: Well, it's the ultimate Washington power grab to say those who have a federal constitutional amendment that will federalize their version of marriage (ph).
KEILAR: Traditional conservative values these are not, and the views of the gay activist group GOProud are rankling some attendees at CPAC.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's freedom of speech, but as far as promoting it, it's totally wrong. What happens with the -- with the area of this, where we're getting to this -- this sexual relations with the same -- the same sex, it's undermining the very civilization we're part of.
KEILAR (voice-over): GOProud isn't just promoting the issues that set it apart from many Republicans, it hopes to draw attention to the beliefs it shares, limited government and fiscal responsibility. In fact, it's co-sponsoring the entire event, and that does not go over well with religious conservatives.
Liberty University Law School, founded by the late Reverend Jerry Falwell, boycotted the event. But ask the younger set here and they're more accepting.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People in the under 40 age range have become a lot more accepting of homosexuality, but I think there's also more of an attitude among Americans that's sort of more the (INAUDIBLE) that says, you know, people have the right to do what they want to in their own lives and to take the consequences for it as well.
KEILAR: And what about those manning the booth for the National Organization for Marriage?
KEILAR (on camera): So, I -- I mean, you know, you're two -- you're two booths down from GOProud.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I -- I refuse to see that as an issue.
KEILAR (voice-over): As cameras rolled, they actually decided to make an introduction.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just want to say hi.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have more time to talk the next four days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We could have the beer later.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We could have the beer summit later (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I work for Obama, so...
KEILAR: A meeting, yes, but don't expect a meeting of the minds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gays and lesbians have the right to live as they choose, but they don't have the right to redefine marriage for the rest of us.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KEILAR: The organizers of GOProud will have a speaking role at this conference. They'll be participating in a round table on Saturday, maybe the elephant in the room is that they wouldn't be talking about issues that affect gay Americans. Instead, they'll be talking about technology and outreach, though they insist that was their choice, John and Sara.
ROBERTS: Brianna Keilar for us this morning. Brianna, thanks.
We're coming up to the half hour now. That means it's time for this morning's top stories.
The suicide mission by Austin pilot Joe Stack is catching many people who knew him completely off guard. Friends say they never saw signs of anti-government rage before he smashed a plane into a building with nearly 200 IRS employees inside.
This morning, after a second body was pulled from the still smoldering wreckage, Austin police say everyone is finally accounted for.
SIDNER: The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency believes Iran may be developing the bomb behind everyone's back. The first draft of a report of the country's nuclear program has a list of ways that Iran is directly defying U.N. sanctions. Iran says it is not making a bomb and that its nuclear program is designed solely for civilian energy and medical purposes.
ROBERTS: Two renowned schools in China may be behind the hacking that threatens to end Google's presence there. "The New York Times" reports investigators have traced the stolen computer code hackers used to try to break to human rights activists email accounts. Google wants the Chinese government to change censorship rules that keep people from seeing politically and culturally sensitive topics in their search results.
SIDNER: First Lady Michelle Obama wore his dress on inauguration night, Jason Wu rocketed to fashion stardom.
ROBERTS: So, how has life changed for the now 27-year-old? Our Alina Cho caught up again with him.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The carpet was pink but the ticket red hot. The show: Jason Wu.
JASON WU, FASHION DESIGNER: Five years ago, it was a rack of clothes and Jason Wu, the person, you know? And now, it's about Jason Wu the brand.
CHO: The brand got the boost fashion designers dream of when First Lady Michelle Obama wore Wu's one shoulder gown on inauguration night. That made this Taiwanese-born 27-year-old an overnight star. In the 13 months since then...
WU: Well, I mean, it's been really crazy. I've been offered reality shows. I've been offered, you know, all sorts of product endorsements.
CHO: But Wu, always mindful about not growing his company too fast, said no.
WU: This is a feather covered encased (INAUDIBLE) dress.
CHO: What he has done is moving to a 9,000-square foot studio, more than four times the size of his old one.
(on camera): They're going to have to name the building after you.
WU: Well, I was told that if I take over another floor, it would be named after me. So, you know, I'm working on that in the next couple of years.
CHO (voice-over): Expanding the brand beyond clothes, sunglasses and shoes come next. He's even designing cameras for General Electric.
(on camera): Do you ever worry about spreading yourself too thin?
WU: I think there's always worry -- you know, am I being too much or am I being too little or am I being just enough. And, you know, the challenges -- you know, I've always gone with my gut feeling on certain things and, you know, I go for it.
CINDI LEIVE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, "GLAMOUR" MAGAZINE: What he got at the inaugural ball was an incredible moment, a real chance. But it was his to make something of it or to squander. And I think he's really built on it in an intelligent way.
CHO (voice-over): But he has taken his knocks.
(on camera): "The New York Times" said of your collection, the evening dresses were one of the weird runway surprises that make you look down at the floor. Fair?
WU: Well, I think opinions are opinions. And I think when you put your work out there, and you're going to have people who like it and who will dislike it. This is fashion.
CHO (voice-over): The whirlwind, as he calls it, has taught him to stay grounded.
WU: You know, I was in the airport and this group of Chinese kids came up to me and they -- they were like, you know, I'm really proud because you are an Asian designer who is doing something that isn't traditionally acceptable and, you know, stood your ground and did it.
CHO: Inspiring the next generation, even as he continues to live in the moment.
(on camera): But you're still nervous, aren't you?
WU: I'm all nervous. It's like that piano recital and I used to play the piano. And it's like right before and just hope you don't make a mistake.
CHO: Me, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Such a great guy. You know, his biggest project to date, well, Jason Wu's brother is getting married soon so he's offered to design the wedding gown for his brother's fiancee. Talk about a lucky girl, guys. And by the way, the wedding is in October. He said, please, please, please, don't get married in September. That's during fashion week.
SIDNER: Of course.
CHO: I'm going to be showing my collection.
But, you know, as we speak actually he's out the country on vacation for eight days. I told him, you've got to take a vacation. I mean, he's a notorious workaholic and doesn't get any sleep. He says sleep is overrated. But he is on vacation. He says it's a working vacation.
ROBERTS: All right.
SIDNER: He's 27 years old. Did he actually get to meet Michelle Obama?
CHO: He hasn't met Michelle Obama and I asked him if that was in the cards. And he would only say, I believe it's going to happen. I asked him, "What will you say to the first lady when you meet her?" And he says, "Well, thank you will be in there somewhere."
SIDNER: Probably the first thing.
ROBERTS: Glad you took your advice about the vacation, too.
CHO: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
ROBERTS: Alina Cho this morning -- Alina, thanks very much.
Eleven o'clock this morning, Tiger Woods faces the media for first time in two and a half months to talk about the accident, the infidelity and to try to rehabilitate his image. Will it work? We'll talk with two people who know.
Thirty-five minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ROBERTS: Good morning. It's a bit of a departure for us.
Good morning, Aruba. Palm Beach, Aruba to be specific. Right now, it's clear and 78 degrees. Later on today, sunny and 88. You saw the martini glasses in the control room.
SIDNER: I wonder if they've been taking a couple of sips.
(CROSSTALK)
ROBERTS: I don't know, maybe.
SIDNER: They look kind of wild back there.
ROBERTS: Either that or they're planning a beach party. Not sure which.
SIDNER: I'm not invited.
ROBERTS: Thirty-eight minutes after the hour.
Here's what's new this morning. Right now, the first commercial flight since last month's earthquake in Haiti is scheduled to take off in Miami bound for Port-au-Prince. American Airlines is the first carrier to resume service. The company says they plan to start with three flights out of South Florida each day and four a week from JFK here in New York.
SIDNER: A school district in the Philadelphia suburbs accused of using webcams on school issued laptops to spy on students. A federal lawsuit says the Lower Merion School District officials can turn the webcams on remotely and that some students were captured as they undressed in an other private situation. Families got wise when an assistant principal talked to a student about inappropriate behavior that happened outside of school.
ROBERTS: A tea party organizer in Washington state after first denying and is now admitting that she said a senator should be hanged. But she says that her remarks were taken out of context. Dianne Capps says she meant to say the Democrat Patty Murray should be voted out of office coming up in November, saying that she should -- that voters should hang Patty Murray by vote.
SIDNER: Even before the closing ceremony, Whistler, the ski resort outside Vancouver where Olympic events are being held, may end up on the auction block. It's owned by a New York hedge fund that's reportedly behind on $524 million loan payment. Locals say they are worried what a new owner would do with that resort.
ROBERTS: Well, in just a few hours time, Tiger Woods makes his first public appearance since his life melted down in a sex scandal. He's going to issue an apology in a tightly-controlled event, the PGA Tour headquarters in Florida, with no questions asked -- two of the biggest, though: will Woods announce a comeback on the golf tour and will his estranged wife Elin be at his side?
Joining us now from Florida is Steve Helling. He is "People" magazine writer and author of a soon-to-be-published book on Tiger Woods. And with us here in the studio: Ronn Torossian. He's a public relations expert and head of the firm 5WPR.
Steve, let's start with you. Because you're down there in Orlando, there's a chance that you may actually get inside this thing, particularly I guess with three spots being given up by the Golf Writers Association. You've interviewed Tiger several times. What are you expecting him to say today?
STEVE HELLING, STAFF WRITER, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: Well, I don't expect him to say very much, to be quite honest. I expect him to kind of give us a nebulous apology saying he's sorry for his transgressions, but I would be really surprise if he enumerates what those are. And then when he makes his announcement about what he's going to do in the future, it's all going to probably be about his professional life, not his personal life. We'll learn very little about his marriage with Elin and learn a lot more about what his plans with golf are.
ROBERTS: So, Ronn, when you look at this event -- again, very tightly-controlled. There's one camera being allowed in. A handful of handpicked reporters -- again three members of the Golf Writers Association of America are boycotting this event. Does this sound like it's going to go well or could it potentially backfire because of the level of control?
RONN TOROSSIAN, CEO, 5WPR: I think that where the Tiger Woods brand is, it can't get much worse. Headlines in the newspapers in New York, they're talking about locking up your waitress and bimbo alert. All of this from a minor traffic incident.
I think that this is the start of a comeback of the Tiger Woods brand. And I think we saw that begin a few days ago with the release of that picture of him jogging. And I think we'll see interviews start to come in the next few weeks, one-on-one, also, tightly- controlled, as we see a start of the comeback of the Tiger Woods brand.
ROBERTS: Steve, it's been two and a half months since we've seen Tiger Woods in public. There have been carefully released images. There's one that we saw right there of him jogging; another one with the golf club in his hand. Why do you think that he's waited this long to come out in public?
HELLING: Well, that's a very good question and I would like to know the same thing. I think if he had come back -- come out, say, in December, we wouldn't be talking right now. Everything would be -- would have blown over.
I think it was a big mistake on a PR standpoint to keep him private so long. But he was getting things taken care of. We know that, yes, he was in some sort of rehab and that rehab will continue after the statement today. So, maybe he had some personal things he needed to take care of.
ROBERTS: And what do you make of the timing of this as well, Steve? It's right in the milled of the golf tournament that's sponsored by Accenture, which, of course, is the firm that famously was the first one to dump Tiger Woods, saying that he's not the type of spokesman that we would want to have. Ernie Els, who's participating in that tournament, was highly critical of Tiger Woods, saying that it seemed selfish for him to do it.
HELLING: Well, it does. On the surface, it really does seem selfish, and I can understand why Ernie Els was so upset. But also, we have to remember that he is taking a week off from his rehab right now and this is the week.
So, this is really the last day he can do it. He won't be available to make a statement and to do that type of thing on Monday. It's only today that he can do it.
ROBERTS: Ronn, if America loves anything, it's a comeback story. Is this the beginning of Tiger's comeback story?
TOROSSIAN: I don't think we'll ever see Tiger Woods come back to being the poster boy that he was. I think that Tiger Woods will get increasingly more popular from where he is. But he's in a very, very low point. I think that this is a big scandal and not something that he's going to return to where he was.
ROBERTS: So, do you think he's forever tainted?
TOROSSIAN: I think the Tiger Woods brand is forever tainted. This is 12 women at least, perhaps more. And it's been three months since this incident occurred. It's been three months of headlines, three months of stories. This story will not be forgotten any time soon.
ROBERTS: Steve, on ABC News poll this morning, 65 percent of people who are asked say that Tiger Woods should come back to golf this year, about 20 percent said that he should wait a while longer. What do you think he will do in terms of his return to the tour? That there is some speculation out there that he might be back in time for the Masters.
HELLING: I think he will come back. And I think he'll come back sooner than a lot of people think, just because that's what he does, he's a golfer. And, you know, it's hard for him not to golf. He does it every day of his life.
So, I think, there's a deep longing in his mind and in his heart to come back to golf. It all depends on what his negotiations with Elin are right now. If the marriage is over, as indicated by the absence of wedding rings and that type of thing, maybe he'll come back right away. But if he stays in rehab for a little bit longer, we may see him skip the Masters but he will be back in 2010.
ROBERTS: Ronn, I assume that the PGA Tour would like him back. I mean, he's big money in so many different ways.
TOROSSIAN: I think when he returns, we're going to see an increase in ratings in the short term, how many non-golf fans are going to tune in and say, well, what is he wearing and what is he doing? Are people heckling him? I think we're going to see something much different at least for the first few weeks. And in that sense, it might help golf in the very short term.
In the long term, how many golfers can Americans really name? How many golfers can the non-golf fan name?
Tiger Woods is one of few and he's broken a lot of boundaries. He's broken racial boundaries. He's broken a lot of boundaries and that's, you know, why the story is, in fact, so big, because Tiger Woods is not a golfer, he's a celebrity.
ROBERTS: Obviously, this is speculation, Steve, but how do you think his game is going to be? Because 90% of the game of golf is played between here and here, and there have been so many golfers over the years who have gone through personal problems whose games have completely fallen apart.
HELLING: Over the years, one thing I would say about Tiger Woods is that he knows how to focus and get other things out of his mind. You know, when Earl Woods died, Tiger came back with a vengeance. He put that out of his mind, and he did his job. He played golf, so I think he'll actually do quite well. There might be a little bit of jitters at first. I don't expect him necessarily to win his first tournament, but I do think that we will see his legendary focus come into play.
ROBERTS: When will you hear if you actually get to go inside, Steve?
HELLING: At 9:00 this morning.
ROBERTS: All right.
HELLING: Fingers cross.
ROBERTS: Good luck, and maybe we'll check back in with you after that. Thanks so much. Steve Helling for People Magazine and Ronn Torossian. Good to talk to you this morning. Thanks.
HELLING: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Sara?
SIDNER: Thank you, John. Forty-five minutes after the hour. Rob Marciano will have this morning's travel forecast right after the break.
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SIDNER: Wow.
ROBERTS: Yes. There's the sun coming up over New York City. Thirty seconds ago, tha shot was amazing because the sun right between horizon and that layer of clouds. Things change quickly in the morning as the sun is coming up. It's 49 minutes after the hour. Let's get a quick check of this morning's weather headlines. Our Rob Marciano in the Extreme Weather Center. Good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, John. Good morning, Sara.
Still cool across the east but beginning to warm up and in some spots today and if not today tomorrow, temperatures will actually be right around normal. Haven't said that in a long, long time. All right. Dry across much of the east. A couple of lake-effect snow showers may slow down some travel there and little bit of wind still hanging on, but I don't suspect we'll see much in the way of travel delays more than 30 or 60 minutes in D.C., New York, Philly, or San Francisco, so enough to cause a bit of an inconvenience, but probably not enough to cause you to miss a connection if you're doing that.
But maybe through Kansas City, we're seeing some heavy rain moving into Eastern Kansas. A little sliver of mixed precipitation in through Columbia, Missouri, back to Branson as well, and then heavy rains beginning to develop across parts of the south, and this will feed into the system which isn't terribly strong, but it will be enough to probably drop some snow in the order of 4 or 5 maybe 6 inches in spot, but sleet and freezing rain will slick up the roadways in some areas here and that will cause some issues.
Speaking of icy conditions, let's go to Poland and show you shots there. It's been unusually cold across parts of Europe. We've been telling you about that. This is the Oder River where ice breakers have been brought out for the first time in a long time because it's a big thoroughfare for commerce there, for ships, so they got the ice breakers out there trying to break through the ice because it's been unusually cold.
On the other side of the world, another side of this continent, it continues to be unusually warm across Vancouver. Temperatures will again be in the lower 50s, a little bit mushy watching that high hot pipe competition yesterday, and we don't expect any sort of major cold snap until at least the end of the Olympic games. John and Sara back up to you.
ROBERTS: Still good conditions at Whistler, though, for the hot pipe events, right?
MARCIANO: Yes, good enough up there, especially at the upper part of the mountain, so they shouldn't have much of an issue.
SIDNER: All right. Thank you, Rob.
MARCIANO: You got it.
SIDNER: This morning's top stories just minutes away, including a 10 minutes after the hour, a pilot's kamikaze mission in Austin, Texas. Did his band mate see this coming? We'll talk to two of them.
ROBERTS: At 25 minutes after, how do you kill an engine when you don't have a key. Deb Feyerick takes a look at how Toyota's push button start system could cost people valuable seconds when their cars suddenly take off. SIDNER: And at 49 minute after check out the view, they've opened up the suite on the International Space Station, now we're hearing there could be plans for a pub up there. All righty. Maybe if one astronaut gets his way. Those stories and more at the top of the hour.
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ROBERTS: Five-and-a-half minutes down to the top of the hour and that means it's time for the Moost News in the Morning. It's been quite a week for bloopers, hasn't it?
SIDNER: Surely has. Not your run of the mail on-air oops, we're talking about really awkward foot in mouth whoppers. Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sometimes, it's the little things that you can't get out of your head.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: What happened to his head? I'm sure that's what everybody is asking at home.
MOOS: A British sky news anchor was asking the network's Washington correspondent...
UNKNOWN MALE: I guess, I don't know is a simple answer.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: Okay.
(CROSSTALK)
UNKNOWN MALE: Maybe we'll get a chance to find out a little later.
MOOS: And with that, she walked into the Austin Powers trap.
The British journalist mistake was for getting that it was Ash Wednesday and that VP Joe Biden is catholic.
UNKNOWN MALE: He's been up in Vancouver for the winter Olympics, so whether there was some accident (INAUDIBLE) speeding up in Vancouver, we don't know.
VOICE OF KAY BURLEY, HOST: Gee. Having to go on those T-tray down the luge or something. Certainly looks like quite a bruise, doesn't it? Anyway, never mind.
MOOS: But Ash Wednesday crossed someone's mind in time for Kay Burley to make amends.
BURLEY: I know that I'm a very bad catholic. I know now that it is Ash Wednesday, and I know that those are ashes on his forehead. I hang my head in shame. MOOS: Hey, the Vice President probably didn't mind. He had his own problems back when he was trying to praise a state senator in a wheelchair.
JOE BIDEN, VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Stand up, Chuck, let them see you -- Oh, God love you, what am I talking about.
MOOS: Now normally, Oprah knows what she's talking about.
But the other day, she evidently didn't know about the birth mark quarterback Drew Brees has on his cheek.
OPRAH WINFREY, HOST: All right. Who just kissed you? There's a big (INAUDIBLE)
MOOS: Hosted one person. Let's pray she never has Mikhail Gorbachev on the show.
MOOS (on-camera): But come on, who hasn't embarrassed themselves. Maybe an innocent mistake like that. Sometimes, we just don't see things for what they are.
GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Peter, you're going to ask that question with shades on?
MOOS (voice-over): Turns out the reporter has macular degeneration.
BUSH: I'm actually in the shade-look, seriously.
UNKNOWN MALE: All right. I'll keep it down.
BUSH: For the viewers, there's no sun.
UNKNOWN MALE: It depends on your perspective.
MOOS: From Oprah's perspective, it sure looked like a lipstick kiss, if only we could just kiss birthmarks good-bye with a rub.
Jeanne Moos, CNN,
UNKNOWN FEMALE: What happened to his head?
MOOS: New York.
SIDNER: Okay. That's just rough. What do you do?
ROBERTS: So, the next time I say it's Tuesday when it's Wednesday, give me a break, okay. Seriously. Fifty-seven minutes after the hour.
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