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American Morning
Pregnant Women in Peril; Speaker of the House Not Promising Anything on Health Care Reform; Wiring the Wrong America; Lehman's Shady Tricks; The Crushing Cost of Health Care; Israel Seals Off West Bank; Clinton's Push for Women's Rights; Calcium for Life
Aired March 12, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Happy Friday. Thanks for being with us on AMERICAN MORNING. It is Friday, March 12th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I'm Jim Acosta in for John Roberts. Here are the big stories we'll be telling you about in the next 15 minutes.
A new report says hundreds of pregnant women in this country will die this year needlessly, and much of the blame could lie with our health care system. The perils of being pregnant in America, that's up ahead.
CHETRY: Also, the year-long political debate over health care appears to be in its final stages. Democratic leaders putting Republicans on notice saying that they plan to get a reform bill passed by using reconciliation to get around a filibuster. But can they meet the president's latest health care deadline. A live report from the White House just ahead.
ACOSTA: And this is interesting. A battle for broadband access. Some say the government's $7.2 billion stimulus project for high speed Internet has run amuck. The money was supposed to help communities cut off from basic services. So why is a million dollars going to a resort town? That is coming up.
CHETRY: We begin though this morning with the disturbing report on the state of health care in America for pregnant women. Amnesty International headlined it "Study Deadly Delivery" and here's why. Hundreds of women will die from pregnancy-related complications this year and half of those deaths are believed to be preventable.
Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is live in Atlanta this morning. So what's the bottom line here? Who are we talking about, Elizabeth?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: The bottom line here is that we're talking about rising maternal mortality rates. In other words, more women dying during pregnancy and childbirth than before. The fact that this is on the rise is very disturbing.
So take a look at these numbers from the Centers for Disease Control. According to the CDC, in 1987, there was 6.6 maternal deaths per 100,000 births. Now speed up to 2006, and it's 13.3 deaths per 1,000. As you can see that's a big jump.
Now, look at that last line there. The U.S. government has set a goal for four deaths per 100,000. That's what they think it ought to be. That's what experts think. And so you have to wonder, you know, this is obviously not a good situation. And something that's particularly disturbing is when you look at statistics for African- American women. Remember those numbers that you just saw? They are way higher for African-American women. For white women, it's 9.5 deaths per 100,000. For black women, 32.7 -- Kiran.
CHETRY: And what do they say is contributing to this increase that jumped between the decades that you showed us?
COHEN: Right. There's a couple of different things going on. One, the obesity rate in this country has increased, and a woman is at higher risk of having problems with the birth if she's overweight. Another thing that's going on is there are many, many more C-sections now than there were in the '80s. And with C-sections come risks, for example, blood clots that can kill a woman. The third thing that's going on is there are more women who are uninsured, and so that's a big issue if you're uninsured, you don't have access to the kind of prenatal care that's needed.
I want to be clear about something. The raw numbers of women who are dying, just the numbers are not huge. It's just that there's been this incredible increase. Dying in childbirth or from pregnancy is still a very rare thing to have happened.
CHETRY: Putting in perspective for us this morning, Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much.
ACOSTA: Democratic leaders are getting serious on health care, but Republicans are doing everything they can to prevent Democrats from maneuvering a reform bill into a complicated and still unresolved process called reconciliation. The focus right now is in the House where Speaker Nancy Pelosi is desperately trying to round up the yes votes she needs to move health care forward. President Obama wants a bill passed in the House by March 18th. That's his latest deadline, but the speaker is not making any promises.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: We will take up the bill when we're ready to take up the bill. But it is not something that we want to drag out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Suzanne Malveaux is following developments for us. She's live at the White House this morning. And, Suzanne, we're coming up on another White House deadline for health care reform that might not be met. We've seen this movie before, haven't we, Suzanne?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It's called Groundhog's Day, Jim.
ACOSTA: Yes.
MALVEAUX: I guess when you think about it here. Obviously the people I talked to here in the White House say they're thinking the president is you got to build on this momentum, you've got to keep this thing going here. It's the only way to get something done. But here's the calendar. Take a look at this, Jim, because here's what the president is up against.
March 18th, that is next Thursday when he leaves for Indonesia and Australia. The goal was, the hope was from the White House is at least the first part of this, the House will go ahead and pass the Senate version of health care reform. Very much looks like that is going to slip. So what's the next key date? It's March 28th. That is when the House and the Senate both go on their Easter recess break, that break. The White House hoping that at least maybe they can get part one of this process done by then.
But what we've seen, and we've seen it before is the White House strategy is to set up, create this artificial deadlines to help things keep moving. We saw it before in the August recess. That was a deadline that came and went. We also saw it at the end of the year. That was the reason why we even saw the Senate side pass their version of this health care reform on the eve of Christmas, Christmas Eve, if you will. But it is not surprising now, Jim, that we are hearing from the White House saying OK, we will soften our position once again, if it means we can enable this thing into getting it done. Here's how Robert Gibbs put it just yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Our hope is to get this done as soon as possible. If it takes a couple extra days after a year, it takes a couple of extra days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're backing off the 18th thing?
GIBBS: No, I am saying that the president wants us as everybody here wants to get this done as soon as possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So, Jim, why is this happening? Essentially there have been tons of meetings that have taken place between the president, the chief of staff as well as the Democratic leadership, and they have been telling them, look, this March 18th deadline is not helpful. Buy us more time. We need some more time. That is what the White House is doing, trying to be flexible here.
And here is what they're up against. Thirty-seven House Democrats who said no to the Senate version bill of health care reform last go round, they all have to say yes this time around. And what that means is they're working fast and furious on language that deals with abortion and immigration. Some very tough issues, Jim. ACOSTA: Right. And, Suzanne, the speaker of the House is reluctant to hold a vote, to schedule a vote if she doesn't have the votes. So that is part of the issue. Suzanne Malveaux at the White House. Thanks very much this morning. We'll see you later.
CHETRY: Six minutes past the hour right now. Also new this morning, New York City has agreed to pay up to $657 million to thousands of rescue workers who got sick in the ruins of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attacks. Most of the money would come out of a $1 billion federal grant. The deal has to be approved by a judge as well as those workers.
ACOSTA: The FBI is investigating the possibility that a New Jersey man may be a member of Al Qaeda. 26-year-old Sharif Mobley was arrested in Yemen and being treated at a hospital. He allegedly shot and killed a guard when he tried to escape. Mobley worked at several power plants in New Jersey before moving to Yemen two years ago.
CHETRY: And the wife of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is in serious condition this morning, after her minivan was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer on I-95 in Virginia. That crash broke Landra Reid's neck, back and nose. Reid's daughter was also in the car not seriously injured. She's been released from the hospital. The driver of that rig was charged with reckless driving.
ACOSTA: And in the Middle East, the Israeli army has sealed off the West Bank and tightened security around Jerusalem. There have been violent protests following an announcement by Israel that it plans to build hundreds of new apartments on disputed land, land that has been claimed by both the Israelis and Palestinians. At 6:30, that's coming up, we'll be joined by two Middle East experts to find out how this latest developments will impact the peace process in U.S.-Israeli relations, Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Well, meanwhile, seven minutes past the hour. Time to get a check of the weather with Rob Marciano this morning on this Friday morning. Boy, we've got some storms rolling through, huh?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, we do. Once again across the southeast and now for the weekend they're going to sneak up north. Let's go over the storms that are rolling through Alabama right now where the Storm Prediction Center out of Norman has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the next couple of hours.
There you see that yellow watch box and you also see that intense line of thunderstorms now moving through Birmingham. So Birmingham in the next 20 minutes, you're about to get hammered with some heavy rain. Certainly some gusty winds and maybe some hail as well.
And then across Florida, boy, you got pelted as well with a couple of tornadoes across Citrus and Polk counties. And here comes the rain for New York. D.C. and Philly, you're starting to see in the New York. It just looks to be a big, old mess tomorrow so plan accordingly for that. We'll talk more details about the weekend forecast in about 30 minutes. CHETRY: All right.
ACOSTA: That's an official weather term, big old mess.
MARCIANO: Yes.
CHETRY: Exactly.
CHETRY: Are you taking the train home to D.C.?
ACOSTA: Don't ask. That's a bad question. I'll get there.
CHETRY: That means -- that means he's walking. Rob, thanks.
Well, still to come on the Most News in the Morning, federal stimulus money being aimed at communities to get broadband Internet access. But is the money really going to the places that need it most? We're going to take a look this morning. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Eleven minutes past the hour. Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning on this Friday.
You know, communities across the country are in a fierce competition right now and the price is high speed Internet access.
ACOSTA: Yes.
CHETRY: Last year's federal stimulus package set aside $7.2 billion for broadband access. And as we speak, the government is getting ready to choose who gets that second and then final wave of grant.
ACOSTA: Yes, but not without some major criticism from House Republicans. They are crying foul saying money for broadband is not going to those areas that need it the most.
Mary Snow is with us this morning. She spoke to some who feel like they were left in the lurch. Some are feeling left in the lurch when it comes to the stimulus. Imagine that, Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They certainly do. And you know, it's hard to imagine not having high speed Internet access. You ask someone in rural America who doesn't have it, and what it's like, one man told us it's about as slow as sending something through the post office.
Twenty-two hundred companies applied for stimulus broadband to install broadband. Now we took a closer look at two of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): In southeastern Minnesota, it's this sound that worries residents about being left behind, dialup. Concerns about not having high speed Internet connections even stretches to this weather siren that warns the small town of Minneiska of tornadoes. David Priest is city clerk.
DAVID PRIEST, CITY CLERK, MINNEISKA, MN: The equipment that we have here is dated back in the '70s, '80s, maybe early '80s.
SNOW: Minneiska leaders say broadband could enable them to cable alerts directly into people's homes. And that's why they turned to Gary Evans, the CEO of Hiawatha Broadband.
GARY EVANS, CEO, HIAWATHA BROADBAND: That's what really what broadband connectivity means to rural America. It means survival.
SNOW: Evans serves a string of communities including the Prairie Island Indian Community next to a nuclear power plant. Residents have appealed to him for broadband saying they feel safer with faster connectivity. For these reasons, Evans thought he was a strong contender for broadband grants being giving out by the government. And we shocked when his application for nearly $6 million was rejected by two government agencies.
EVANS: They are real people with real needs that could be solved by technology. And we let them down.
SNOW: The Department of Commerce told Evans his application didn't score high enough and told us in a statement, "It didn't have the resources to debrief every applicant." A second agency, the Department of Agriculture rejected Hiawatha because the company didn't put up enough of its own money.
(on camera): Minnesota may have lost out, but the ski resort community here in Bretton Woods in New Hampshire is about to gain. Vacation home properties surrounding this resorts are about to benefit from a nearly $1 million broadband grant courtesy of U.S. taxpayers.
(voice-over): At the heart of community, the Mount Washington resort that's undergone a $50 million renovation. Real estate developer Charles Adams plans to build 900 vacation homes surrounding it.
CHARLES ADAMS, REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER: You can see the ski area. You can see the Mount Washington hotel.
SNOW: And says he was the one who encouraged Bretton Woods Telephone Company to apply for the government money, seeing broadband is key.
ADAMS: People even though they may be taking the weekend are constantly connected. They're connected to family. They're connected to work.
SNOW: So why did Bretton Woods in New Hampshire get government help and Hiawatha, Minnesota didn't?
We asked Jonathan Adelstein who's in charge of the broadband grants being distributed at the Department of Agriculture.
JONATHAN ADELSTEIN, ADMINISTRATOR, USDA RURAL UTILITIES SERVICES: It's not a question of which was more worthy. Both of them may be very worthy. Only one of the applications in this case was submitted to us properly in the way that was eligible.
SNOW: Adelstein says Hiawatha was turned down because it plans to fund only 20 percent of its project. The government required companies to pay half, a requirement Bretton Woods met.
But it turns out Hiawatha was hardly alone. So many rural communities were rejected, the government is now dropping the 50 percent money rule for a second round of grants.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: Now, Hiawatha was just one project in Minnesota. Others in the state did get funding. Government officials say because of the sheer volume of requests, there's some 2,200 applicants, there isn't enough money to pay for all of them even though the need is there.
One hundred sixty-eight projects did get the green light in round one. More than $5 billion will be distributed in the second round of applications. Those are due later this month.
CHETRY: I mean, it's also interesting, Mary, that they had to sort of (INAUDIBLE) the program and realizing that some of these communities could afford to pay for 50 percent of the broadband wiring.
SNOW: That was the bottom line and the government official said, you know what? We have to be more flexible going forward.
ACOSTA: Yes. But it's still a worthy program.
SNOW: Absolutely, and it's -- these communities are in real need.
ACOSTA: OK. Thanks a lot, Mary Snow. Appreciate it.
Broadband connectivity is considered a global economic indicator. Aside from the public safety benefits Mary mentioned, broadband access in rural communities can also spur economic growth, improve health care, help people with disabilities, allow farmers to improve their productivity, even help the environment.
But a recent survey showed 46 percent of homes in rural areas do not have access to broadband, and even among those who could get it, many do not. And many say it's either too expensive or they simply decided they don't need it, Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, coming up next on the Most News in the Morning, we're taking a closer look at the demise of Lehman Brothers and what role top executives may have played in it.
Our Christine Romans is "Minding Your Business" next.
Seventeen minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twenty minutes past the hour. It's time for "Minding Your Business."
And we're talking about deep discounts right now and also zero percent financing, all in an effort to get Toyota help boost its sales this month in the wake of the car maker's huge global recall.
Edmunds.com is reporting that Toyota's U.S. sales surged nearly 50 percent during the first eight days of this month over last year's numbers. The report, though, does note that industry wide U.S. car sales are also the strongest they've been in nearly a year.
ACOSTA: And the CEO of FedEx says when it comes to the economy we're not out of the woods yet. The head of the global delivery company told the "Financial Times" America's economy could see another downturn because many companies are still reluctant to invest in new equipment and technology.
Economists often turn to FedEx because the company is seen as a good indicator of the global economy's health.
CHETRY: Christine Romans here "Minding Your Business" for us this morning as well and you're talking to us a little bit about the -- the --
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: The Lehman collapse.
CHETRY: -- the inside --
ACOSTA: Wow.
CHETRY: -- and sort of who was responsible. They're still finger-pointing.
ROMANS: The -- Lehman is in bankruptcy, right? And so the bankruptcy -- the bankruptcy examiner has taken a hard look, over a year now, a $30 million investigation of what went wrong with this company, finds in a scathing 2,200 report -- page report finds that Lehman has no one to blame but itself, its executives and its auditor.
This report finding from the U.S. bankruptcy examiners that there were serious lapses by top executives' accounting gimmicks. In particular, something you're going to hear about a lot of called "Repo 105" where the company used some accounting tricks to move $50 billion in debt off of its books and didn't really disclose it.
It withheld information, and a scathing, scathing rebuke of Ernst & Young, its auditor, saying basically charging -- Ernst & Young, saying it could be charged with professional malpractice. That's what it said, because it just didn't ask these questions overall.
Also, pointing a finger at JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup, saying that those two companies demanding I think up to $16 billion in collateral back as this company was on the brink actually accelerated the slide into bankruptcy.
From top to bottom, painting a picture of a company that was over leveraged, hiding leverage, and even when we thought in 2008 it was starting to get its -- its house in order, it was not.
It also point out that the Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson six months before the collapse told the CEO of this company, Dick Fuld, you're going to have to have a survival plan. You're going to have to figure out how to fix these problems, and instead the company continued to downward spiral.
I will say, this is an exhaustive report. It is scathing. It's from the bankruptcy court. It talks a lot about malfeasance, but not necessarily about criminality. That's going to be up to attorneys.
All of the people involved in this, from CFOs to top executives to Ernst & Young to Citigroup and JPMorgan are either not commenting. They're saying they did nothing wrong or that this report shows no criminal findings, so we'll -- we'll keep you up to date on that.
ACOSTA: And the more we hear about this saga, the worse the details get. I mean it's just unbelievable.
ROMANS: And look, this is the collapse that brought the economy that had been at the brink over the brink.
ACOSTA: Right.
ROMAN: This is why it's important.
CHETRY: But is this just indication this (ph) -- for not -- I mean there's a lot of talk that they should have -- they should tried to prop up this company, right?
ROMANS: You know, the Treasury Department has said again and again, two different administrations, they didn't have the -- they didn't have the authority to prop up this company. They just didn't.
And it sounds like, you know, what -- from what this examiner -- if this is all true, and them, you know, a big multimillion dollar investigation for over a year, that it was really a mess over there.
ACOSTA: Yes. And do we have a Romans Numeral this morning?
ROMANS: Eight months, and this has to do with --
ACOSTA: Eight months?
ROMANS: -- from perfect to horrible.
CHETRY: This is -- it's how -- the slide --
ROMANS: The slide.
CHETRY: The slide of Lehman?
ROMANS: From record profits --
ACOSTA: You're good at this.
ROMANS: -- to bank -- she is very good.
CHETRY: I'm usually wrong, actually.
ROMANS: She's very good but she -- you know --
ACOSTA: I didn't even try.
ROMANS: From record profits to collapse, only eight months.
ACOSTA: Wow.
ROMANS: Think of that. From record to collapse in eight months.
CHETRY: Wow.
ROMANS: That shows you what -- the pillars of sand the financial system was really built on.
ACOSTA: It's amazing how far we fell and it's amazing how far we've come back in such a short period of time.
ROMANS: Exactly.
CHETRY: Christine Romans for us. Thank you.
ACOSTA: Thanks a lot Christine.
CHETRY: Coming up next on the Most News in the Morning, health insurance rates. They're continuing to go up. Insurers say it's because the cost of care is going up, but you wouldn't believe how much money some of these companies' CEOs are making.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Fitting song for this next segment.
Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
Top stories are just minutes away, but first the clock is ticking on President Obama's deadline for health care reform. Health insurance premiums, as we've been reporting, are going up and the nation's biggest health insurers are netting big profits, billions of dollars every year.
What is the deal with that? Here is Randi Kaye.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jim and Kiran.
If you're hoping your health care premiums are going to go down anytime soon, don't hold your breath.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KAYE (voice-over): Just take a look at this. Insurance companies have requested huge premium hikes. Blue Cross, 56 percent in Michigan, and Anthem, 39 percent in California, 24 percent in Connecticut, 23 percent in Maine.
And at the height of the health care debate in Washington, the president is up in arms.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Just last month, Anthem Blue Cross in California tried to jack up rates by nearly 40 percent -- 40 percent. Anybody's paycheck gone up 40 percent?
KAYE: The numbers are sobering. Health insurance premiums soared 131 percent in the last 10 years, costing the average family about $13,000 more over a decade.
American Medical Association president Dr. James Rochack says the Justice Department has done little to stop health insurance companies from merging, creating what he sees as a monopoly, a system that can dictate the market for the very product they push.
KAYE (on camera): Seventy percent of the market in 25 states is controlled by just two health insurances -- just two. And in the State of Alabama, one insurer, Blue Cross, controls 80 percent of the market.
DR. JAMES ROCHACK, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION: You've got that dominance of one insurer, and as a result they have a take it or leave it premium.
KAYE (voice-over): The insurance industry says they have to raise rates because the overall cost of care is going up, so they have to pass those increases along to policy holders.
KAREN IGNAGNI, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS: Health care costs are surging. We have to get those under control.
KAYE: Fair enough, but don't forget, these companies answer to shareholders who expect to see one thing -- profit.
KAYE (on camera): How much profit? That's what we wanted to know. So we checked the three biggest insurance companies in America.
United earned $3.8 billion last year, WellPoint took home $3.2 billion, and Aetna saw profits of $1.3 billion.
KAYE (voice-over): And it pays to be an executive at these companies. Angela Braly, the CEO of WellPoint, which owns Anthem Blue Cross, earned more than $1 million in salary in 2008, along with stock options valued at $8.5 million.
In 2008, United Healthcare CEO Stephen Hemsley earned $5 million, a fraction of what the CEO at Aetna took home. Ronald Williams was paid $38 million.
ROCHACK: That health plan executives still sleeping at home, not worried about how that person who doesn't have health insurance is going to get their medical care because it's not their problem.
KAYE: The insurance industry lobby insists salaries are set by the board of directors and have nothing to do with premiums charged. They also say they're being unfairly targeted.
IGNAGNI: What people are doing wrong right now is focusing laser-like only on our industry.
KAYE (on camera): And to fight back, insurance companies plan to spend millions of dollars in ads against the proposed health care reform -- Jim, Kiran.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: Randi Kaye for us this morning -- thank you.
ACOSTA: And it's 6:30, so it's time to check this morning's Top Stories.
This is an important one. Hundreds of women will die in America this year from pregnancy-related causes and about those deaths are preventable. Those findings headline a new report by Amnesty International, along with a sharp rise in the number of expected moms who nearly died during pregnancy. A lot of the blame is being directed at the federal government for not addressing flaws in the health care system -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, Democrats also say that they are close to the final phase in the health care reform bill. But the internal disputes in the House could derail President Obama's grand plan. He's pushing for a House vote by March 18th. But that deadline now appears unlikely. House Democrats will meet again today to try to work out some differences concerning the over haul bill.
ACOSTA: And a Toyota executive says his company is, quote, "mystified" by the claims that the gas pedal in a California man's Prius -- we've all been talking about this story -- got stuck, causing the hybrid to speed out of control down at freeway. Jim Sikes called 911 on Monday telling the operator that he could not stop his car. The feds are investigating and Toyota officials say they have talked to Sikes extensively.
CHETRY: Well, there's a new roadblock this morning for Mideast peace talks. Right now, the West Bank is sealed off from Palestinians. Israeli's army is keeping this ban in place for 48 hours. Israel says it's responding in a growing tensions and clashes over the past several weeks.
Meantime, Vice President Biden just wrapped up a four-day tour to the region, trying to open up dialogue, but ended up a little bit red face after an Israeli announcement to continue building settlements.
Here for the "A.M. Breakdown" with us: Robin Wright, senior fellow with the U.S. Institute of Peace. And also, Aaron David Miller, a public policy fellow with the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and a Middle East negotiator.
Thanks to both of you for being with us.
Aaron, let me start with you about this violence that we just mentioned. It was basically sparked by Israel's plans to construct these new homes on disputed land in Jerusalem. Why go there now? Why make that announcement?
AARON DAVID MILLER, MIDDLE EAST NEGOTIATOR: Well, first of all, I think it was -- this is, to some extent, was the left-hand not knowing what the right-hand was doing. The prime minister was probably, Netanyahu, blind-sided by the announcement. But there's no doubt that this announcement was intended to create one unmistakable signal, that if you're thinking about negotiating Jerusalem, forget it, because Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the state of Israel. And that's going to be a huge problem as these negotiations, assuming they get under way, proceed.
CHETRY: Robin, doesn't that put -- doesn't it -- make it really a nonstarter, Mahmoud Abbas facing increasing pressure from the Palestinians and they say there's no room for negotiation without talking about Jerusalem?
ROBIN WRIGHT, SENIOR FELLOW, U.S. INSTITUTE OF PEACE: Well, I think you have bigger problem besides just the issue of the new housing, and that is when they go into these proximity talks, the two have very different expectations. The Israelis are looking at this as pretty much process. This is how you talk about getting to the real talks; whereas, the Palestinians are looking for substance. And this is yet again a situation where the two sides are going into the beginning of a new effort with different expectations, different hopes, and that sets it up for problems along the way.
CHETRY: And, Aaron, it did put Vice President Biden in an awkward situation, a very difficult spot as he traveled to Israel this week by this settlement announcement. How damaging is it though for U.S. and Israeli relations?
MILLER: You know, I think, if you wanted to create a scenario in a laboratory that was more designed to screw up the U.S.-Israel's relationship, and more injurious to American interest, you could have concocted one better than what played out in Jerusalem this week. I think there are going to be tensions in the relationship, but this president, frankly, needs Israeli cooperation if he hopes to push the peace process forward. He's going to need Israeli cooperation on Iran.
So, if you are counting on an Israeli-American war, you're not going to find it. But there's no question we're in for some serious bumps down the road.
CHETRY: Where do you think that Israel is at in terms of why this happened, Robin?
WRIGHT: Well, again, we don't know the inside workings within the government, but there is a lot of speculation that this happened as a result of the Shas Party not -- being in control of the interior ministry and not telling the prime minister about the timing of this. But the reality is, Aaron pointed out, that the issue here is timing. And the prime minister did not refute the commitment to build new housing in Jerusalem, which is one of the most contentious issues between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
CHETRY: And, Aaron, what is it about this administration and Obama that the Israelis simply don't trust?
MILLER: You know, there's an expression that Israeli prime minister slept with one eye open. I guarantee you, the Prime Minister Netanyahu, when it comes to his relationship with the United States is sleeping with both eyes open.
I mean, the reality is, you have a potentially transformative president who came into office with very high expectations, but he was determined, it seems to me, to improve one credibility gap, and that is the credibility gap that exists between the United States and Arab world. And that's what his speech in Cairo was all about, that's his Mideast interviews were all about in the first few weeks of the administration. He's a kind of an empathizer-in-chief.
But I think he missed one note on this one, that the Arab- Israeli conflict is not one hand clapping, it's two sides. And it seems that over time, he's going to have to find a way to create a better relationship, even while the Israelis are provoking him with the prime minister.
CHETRY: And, Robin, what do you think is the biggest priority right now in terms of trying to restart the peace process for President Obama? Do you think it's a core priority right now?
WRIGHT: Well, I think, just getting process going and this -- we are at a stage that they're only talking about proximity talks, indirect talks. This is not something where they're going to sit down face to face. There's still a long way to go before you get to anything substantive.
But I think this issue also reflects the broader problem for the administration throughout the region. They were hoping that they could get something on Arab-Israeli in order to jump-start other issues, whether it was getting Syria onboard, drawing it further away from Iran, and they were hoping actually Iran would have a diplomatic outreach, come to the table as well, and talk about its controversial nuclear program. And on each of these issues, the administration has fallen short and discovered the tough realities of dealing with the Middle East.
The Arab-Israel issue would have been really important in terms of getting something going.
CHETRY: Right.
WRIGHT: And -- so, this kind of setback hurts the broader U.S. effort in the region as well.
CHETRY: Robin Wright and Aaron David Miller -- I want to thank both of you this morning for your perspective.
WRIGHT: Thank you.
MILLER: Thank you.
CHETRY: Thirty-seven minutes past the hour. A quick break, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ACOSTA: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
During the presidential campaign, Kiran, you'll recall that Hillary Clinton almost shattered the nation's ultimate glass ceiling. But she did thank her supporters for putting 18 million cracks into it.
CHETRY: Yes, that's one of her more memorable and important lines at the end of all of that.
ACOSTA: Absolutely.
CHETRY: But now, she's secretary of state.
ACOSTA: Right.
CHETRY: And Hillary Clinton is bringing new power and prestige to her fight for women's rights.
Our foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty, who's followed Hillary Clinton for years joins us live for an "A.M. Original."
And, good to have you with us, by the way, here in person.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, thank you, Kiran. It's a pleasure.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: So, she's making women's rights a big priority at the State Department.
DOUGHERTY: Oh, absolutely. You know, this week, I've been talking with a lot of people who really know Hillary Clinton very well. And they say that, ultimately, her legacy will be her support for women's rights.
This happens to be the 15th anniversary of a major speech on women that Clinton gave in Beijing. So, today at the U.N., she'll look back at that and examine what has happened. There is undeniable progress she'll say but it's not enough, and she'll call for expanding women's rights around the world.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DOUGHERTY (voice-over): In Indonesia, Hillary Clinton sees how women with almost no money survive.
In South Korea, a lighter moment -- she tells young women and students the meaning of love.
HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: How does anybody describe love? I mean, poets have spent millennia writing about love.
DOUGHERTY: There are events like this on almost every trip abroad. But do they make a difference?
Ann Njogu attended one such event in her native Kenya last August. This week, her work was honored by the secretary of state and award ceremony for women.
DOUGHERTY (on camera): A cynic might say, OK, Secretary Clinton shows up in Kenya and she says some good words. She's inspirational. But what does it really mean on the ground? What does it mean to you?
ANN NJOGU, KENYAN ACTIVIST: For us on the ground, the ordinary woman on the ground, they know they have a big friend somewhere who will not let the country perish.
CLINTON: Speaking with women --
DOUGHERTY (voice-over): As first lady, Clinton put women's rights front and center, traveling to 80 countries to make her point, including this now-famous speech at the U.N. World Conference on Women in Beijing.
CLINTON: If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights, once and for all.
(APPLAUSE)
DOUGHERTY: But as secretary of state, Clinton can do more than talk. In the Democratic Republican of Congo, she pledged more than $17 million in new funds to help stop rape as a weapon of war. In Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, she's pressed to make women a key part of the U.S. stabilization strategy.
A former undersecretary of state during the Bush administration says Clinton is incorporating women's issues at every turn.
PAULA DOBRIANSKY, THOMSON REUTERS: She's not only an activist, but she also is a symbol. She is looked up to by many women across the globe for what she's doing. They are inspired by her actions.
DOUGHERTY: And Clinton is inspired by what she has witnessed.
(on camera): Let me into her mind a little bit if you could. Why did she want to focus on women's rights? What motivates her?
MELANNE VERVEER, AMBASSADOR-AT-LARGE FOR GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES: Through all of those years as first lady seeing firsthand not only the terrible situation that women are in in so many places, but the tools that are at hand to make a difference, she knows deep down it's important for the women themselves, but critically important for the kind of societies we want to build.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DOUGHERTY: So, I've seen this evolution up close, guys. I covered Hillary Clinton at the White House 15 years ago and more, and now at the State Department. And today, we are going to get a chance to talk with her, do an interview over at the U.N. and talk about some of these issues.
CHETRY: It's interesting. One of the things that Jim was talking about as he covered the campaign, is that, at the time, you know, there was half of the country said they couldn't picture Hillary Clinton as president?
ACOSTA: Well -- I mean, obviously, you know, folks were uncomfortable with another Clinton coming back into the White House, and yet, in this role, and it's a role that if you read "Game Change," that book that just came out recently, President Obama really wanted Hillary Clinton in this role and he wanted her for a long time, which was something that not a lot of people knew about. But she's really put her own stamp on this job. And people seem to be comfortable with her in that role.
DOUGHERTY: Yes, and I think, one of the factors is Bill Clinton. I mean, Bill Clinton is not with her in this job.
ACOSTA: Yes.
DOUGHERTY: If she had been at the White House, he would have been a very much of a presence. But at the State Department, you know, he does work in that area.
ACOSTA: Sure.
DOUGHERTY: But certainly, with human rights and things. But it's Hillary by herself, and I think that that's -- that really is, as I said, is going to be a legacy. It's something she's been involved in for many, many years.
ACOSTA: And that's a difficult department to run. And she --
DOUGHERTY: Yes.
ACOSTA: But there -- it seems to be no trouble over there with respect to her leadership over there -- at least internally, it seems.
DOUGHERTY: Yes. Well, what she's trying to do is they have brought a big wide portfolio of all sorts of issues, you know, health, development, et cetera. And what she's doing is trying to inject women's issues into all of those areas.
CHETRY: Great. I can't wait for you to get a chance to talk to her today as well.
DOUGHERTY: Yes.
CHETRY: Jill Dougherty, thank you.
DOUGHERTY: Thank you.
ACOSTA: It is 6:45. It is almost time to check in with Rob on this morning's travel forecast. We will have that right after the break.
CHETRY: Yes, and coming up in ten minutes, don't get on Barbara Walter's bad side. Jeanne Moos takes a look at what happened when a tough men with the inquirer sat down with the ladies of the view.
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CHETRY: Good morning. It is a shot of the nation's capital this morning in the capitol building. That's where Jim is hoping to get back to today --
ACOSTA: Yes.
CHETRY: But, there is some rain now --
ACOSTA: Don't say that.
CHETRY: And a little bit later as well, some storms heading to D.C. sorry about that.
ACOSTA: Or some call it Washington.
CHETRY: Exactly.
Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Forty-eight minutes past the hour right now. Time for your AM House Call.
Good news for men who like a big bowl of cereal for breakfast.
ACOSTA: That's me.
CHETRY: Really?
ACOSTA: Yes, absolutely.
Swedish researchers say that men who get most of their calcium from food are 25 percent less likely to die over the next decade. The evidence backs up previous findings which points a calcium's ability to lower blood pressure cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
ACOSTA: It is 06:28 --
CHETRY: We're talking about cereal, and we're showing chunks of cheese.
ACOSTA: It's a cheesy cereal. Yes.
CHETRY: Chunks of blue cheese.
ACOSTA: Chunks of blue cheese. You know, that could be a topping.
CHETRY: You crumble that to your --
ACOSTA: Yes, exactly. It's my own unique blend. It's my breakfast blend.
It's 6:49. Time to get a check of this morning's weather headlines, and Rob, we couldn't think of better person to turn to get us out of a segment that has the wrong video of a cereal story, but that's why we can be -- that
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: You know, I was mocking around at some other things, but last I saw in the rundown was supposed to be something about guilt and men and women, were you, guys, not talking about that, it was something else?
ACOSTA: We'll get to that later.
CHETRY: We felt too guilty --
MARCIANO: All right. Okay.
CHETRY: And so we didn't do that one.
MARCIANO: Good because --
ACOSTA: What do you like on your cereal, Rob? That's what I wanted.
MARCIANO: You know, a little milk with a straight (ph) and you bet. Check out this storm shot. We' e watching this live picture of our Birmingham tower, camera WVMA. You got some lightning coming in through there. Nasty storms right now rolling through Central Alabama, and this tower cam was out of commission briefly because it got hit by lightning, and you can see some of the flashes of lightning happening right now.
All right. Take a look at this line, it's moving through Central Alabama. Birmingham is obviously getting it as Huntsville; this is all motoring quickly to the east at about 40 miles an hour. Some of the ails obviously have lightening, heavy rains, and maybe winds gusting to 50 or 60 miles an hour. So, severe thunderstorm warnings posted for all those storms.
Then look at all the moisture heading into Florida. This is beginning to expand. Mostly just heavy rain today, but yesterday, we had some severe weather roll through the Tampa Bay area. Check out some of the damage coming through. Polk County got hit with a couple of tornadoes. Forty people had to be evacuated out of this complex. 5,000 people I last checked in Pinellas County are without power, so a rough day for them yesterday.
This is all rolling up to the east in the form of some rain. D.C. to Philly right now as it will be stretching into New York later on today. We have flood warnings that are posted for the I-95 corridor right on through the weekend. Heavy rain and strong winds beginning later on tonight and lasting probably through Sunday morning. So, everybody in the east coast getting a little piece of it. Wow. Jim and Kiran, back up to you.
ACOSTA: That does not look good. Thanks, Rob. We appreciate it. It's 6:51 after the hour. We'll be right back. Stick with us.
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ACOSTA: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning, and it's time for the Moost News in the Morning with Jeanne. The most infamous of all tabloids, National Inquirer is up for Pulitzer Prize.
CHETRY: Yes.
ACOSTA: How about this?
CHETRY: I heard about it, but I also heard about the little smackdown, I guess, you could say on "The view." It didn't stop Barbara Walters from going after the National Enquirer's editor for some of the tabloid's old tricks. Here's Jeanne.
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JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Barbara Walters was dishing it out, and the main course was --
BARBARA WALTERS, HOST: This is just baloney.
MOOS: With the side helping of.
UNKNOWN FEMALE: They're crap.
MOOS: It comes just when the National Enquirer is finally getting respect accepted into the Pulitzer Prize competition for its coverage of the John Edwards' affair. Edwards had to eat his words of denial.
FORMER SENATOR JOHN EDWARDS (D) NORTH CAROLINA: Tabloid trash is full of lies.
I made a very serious mistake.
MOOS: But it wasn't the John Edwards copy Barbara was reading to the Enquirer's editor.
WALTERS: After 3 months of dating, Barbara has moved to Frank Langella who is an actor who is a friend of mine, a friend of Whoopi's into her New York apartment, and friends say a summer wedding is in the works. I looked all over my house I can't find him.
MOOS (on-camera): He may be the executive editor of the National Enquirer, but Barbara Walters was the one doing all the enquiring. WALTERS: Barbara and Frank moved in together in January, and he popped the question soon after. Barbara has secured Whoopi's blessing.
MOOS: The Enquirer reported Whoopie used to Langella, seem here playing Count Dracula.
The blood being spilled here was the editor sparing the bean (ph).
(CROSSTALK)
WALTERS: You never called me.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG, ENTERTAINER: Nobody called me to ask me Jack.
UNKNOWN MALE: All I can say, Barbara, is that we trust our sources. There are people around you --
(CROSSTALK)
UNKNOWN MALE: Or did you go out on dates with Frank?
WALTERS: I have lots of friends whom I go out with and so does Whoopi but doesn't mean that somebody is living in my apartment.
UNKNOWN MALE: We will look into the story again. I promise you.
WALTERS: Oh, baloney!
MOOS: No words of Count Dracula or do the tabloids blood end.
WALTERS: Baloney.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN.
WALTERS: Baloney.
MOOS: New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: That was an odd defend on his part. Why didn't he just say, we got this one wrong. I mean --
ACOSTA: Exactly.
CHETRY: She is there saying he is not living in my apartment.
ACOSTA: I love Barbara. Baloney!
CHETRY: We'll check our sources.
ACOSTA: Exactly. Or we're checking our sources.
CHETRY: We are. ACOSTA: Absolutely.
CHETRY: Fifty-seven minutes past the hour. We're going to take a quick break. Your top stories just ahead.
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