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American Morning

New Orleans Police Indicted by Justice Dept. for Danziger Bridge Shooting Deaths in Katrina Aftermath; Presidential Commission Questions Six-Month Drilling Moratorium on Gulf Coast; Ads With Eyes

Aired July 14, 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 to you. Thanks for being with us on this Wednesday, July 14th. I'm Kiran Chetry.

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Drew Griffin. John Roberts off today.

Boy, we were so hopeful yesterday, but we're going to begin right where we left off, watching and waiting. The new containment cap test that could be a turning point, we're hoping, in the Gulf of Mexico. It is now on hold, expected to begin today at the earliest. CNN traveled to the heart of the capping operation. We'll tell you what we found, plus we're live with new critical developments.

CHETRY: Was it unintended acceleration or driver error? A new report in the "Wall Street Journal" says that government investigators can't find a mechanical problem with Toyotas, suggesting that many of the claims could be a simple case of drivers hitting the gas instead of the brakes. So, is the auto giant off the hook this morning?

GRIFFIN: And emotions running high right here in New York over the battle -- plans to build a mosque in a Muslim community center just blocks from New York City's ground zero. We're going to take a look at both sides of the landmark controversy. That's just ahead.

CHETRY: Also, the AM Fix blog is up and running. Join the live conversation by going to CNN.com/AMFix.

GRIFFIN: But first, BP, right? Inching ever so close towards an end game for this ruptured oil well. It's a leak that after three months now has transformed and tarnished the Gulf of Mexico. Day 86, and this morning, BP announcing, once again, a delay. We told you yesterday the oil giant was preparing to close the valves on its new containment cap.

CHETRY: Yeah. Those crucial integrity tests have been put on hold. The reason why? According to BP, they say they need more time to analyze how they're going to be doing the testing procedures. And, because of that, they want to wait before they begin the complicated tests.

The stakes are so high, that retired Admiral Thad Allen is actually refusing to put any odds on success, knowing that the fate of the Gulf and BP may rest on whether this cap is the fix to stop the gushing oil. Our David Mattingly is live in New Orleans. David, you had a chance yesterday to spend the day with the Coast Guard. You were actually visiting the site of the oil spill. What did you see?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, what I saw was a massive operation out there in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico that appeared to be gearing up to collect oil, not gearing down, just in case this cap plan doesn't work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: You're looking at the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Resolute. That ship was our ride out here. It took us overnight coming from Pensacola. But now we've arrived at our destination. Behind us here is the very spot where the Deepwater Horizon rig caught fire, sank to the bottom of the ocean and started that huge environmental and economic disaster.

(voice-over): And this is a critical time. One mile beneath my feet, testing is underway that could lead to capping the well. These images of the oil spewing into the Gulf may soon be just a bad memory. But you wouldn't know it by what you see on the surface.

(on camera): Just some quick observations of what we see out here. It looks like a small city of vessels, about 10 or 20 large ships out there, two of them clearly producing oil, pumping it up from below. That's where we see the large flames erupting as they burn off the natural gas that comes up.

(voice-over): I asked our Coast Guard escort to go in for a closer look. I wanted to see if there was anything going on that might show this catastrophe is turning a corner. But this was as close as we could go.

(on camera): We're about a mile away right now. Why can't we get any closer?

LT. PATRICK MONTGOMERY, U.S. COAST GUARD: Right now, safety is paramount. Today is a very essential day in the operation. There is a lot of moving parts today. So, just for the safety of the operation, we need to stay about a mile back.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): These operations show no signs of standing down. The new cap may bring hope there will soon be an end to the leak, but there is still an oil sheen in the water, and smoke from burning gas and oil climbs up the horizon.

(on camera): While those flames are burning, that tells you that the well has not been shut off. And it is expected to be a very dramatic moment out here when those flames behind me are finally extinguished. When that happens, that means the flow of oil has been stopped, and that well has been capped.

(voice-over): But in the meantime, BP says work will continue on the surface to improve oil collection, in case their new capping plan does not work.

(END VIDEOTAPE) MATTINGLY: And part of that plan to continue working out there is bringing this new Helix Producer online that will more than double their capacity for collecting oil, essentially giving them the ability to capture all of the oil that is leaking out of that well, just in case this cap plan doesn't work. Kiran?

CHETRY: David Mattingly for us in New Orleans, fingers still crossed as, again, they say they're delaying starting these tests. They want more analysis on the procedure. Thanks so much.

GRIFFIN: In London yesterday, demonstrators hoping to remind BP executives of the pain folks along the Gulf are feeling. They knew exactly what would hurt them the most. take a listen.

Vuvuzelas, those noisy souvenirs from this years's World Cup tournament, were pointed towards BP's offices. Proceeds from yesterday's event, we're told, expected to go toward Gulf recovery efforts.

CHETRY: Also new this morning, in just a few hours the so-called Barefoot Bandit will be in federal court in Miami facing theft and burglary charges. Nineteen-year-old Colton Harris-Moore arrived from the Bahamas last night, after pleading guilty to illegally landing a plane there. He had been on the run since escaping a half-way house in Washington State two years ago. During that time, Moore allegedly committed dozens of crimes in six states.

GRIFFIN: Airport police in Los Angeles telling us that cutbacks at LAX are making the airport more vulnerable to terror attacks than any time since 9/11, is the quote. That's a letter that cites a 2004 study stating that the three most likely attack scenarios are a large truck bomb, a curbside car bomb, or a luggage bomb. The airport's executive director already firing back, saying there is no evidence to support the allegations.

CHETRY: Just in time for the tourist season, unfortunately, another great white shark sighting. They're causing quite a scare off the coast of Cape Cod. Three of them have now been spotted feeding on seals in the past few days. Beach-goers are being warned to remain alert and not go too far into the water.

GRIFFIN: I think that's good advice.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHETRY: Rob, thanks so much. Coming up, remembering the Boss. We got the news yesterday right when the show ended that Yankee fans, Major League Baseball all remembering George Steinbrenner. He took the Yankee legacy to a whole new level during his three decades as the team's owner.

And tempers flare at a hearing on whether to preserve a century- old building in the shadow of New York's Ground Zero or turn it into a mosque. Deb Feyerick has the emotional debate just ahead. It is eight minutes after the hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Welcome back. This is the most news in the morning. New this morning, a personal battle brewing between the NAACP and the Tea Party. The civil rights group yesterday passed a resolution condemning what it feels is rampant racism in the grassroots Tea Party movement. Tea Party loyalists call the move divisive and a lie.

Oakland, California this morning, 80 police officers there were forced to hand in their badges last night after contract talks between the union and the city broke down, meaning not enough money to continue the police force at its full level. So they had to lay off 80 officers. The city's police chief says these layoffs mean police will no longer be responding to certain situations that are not considered life threatening. In fact, they list them, 44 various crimes that they're no longer going to be able to pursue. They include burglary, vandalism, extortion, identity theft. The list went on and on.

GRIFFIN: Can you imagine this? Ridiculous.

CHETRY: It is technically 10 percent of the police force, which obviously is not good. But some have said it is political to just show sort of how is this going to play with the citizens?

GRIFFIN: Exactly. How is it going to play with the City Council? They have a mayor? OK to steal cars in Oakland. Go on out there, do it.

CHETRY: This morning, George Steinbrenner being remembered as a trailblazer. He built the New York Yankees into the world's most famous sports franchise. The boss loved and hated by some during his three decades as team owner. Steinbrenner died yesterday after suffering a heart attack. He was 80 years old.

GRIFFIN: Major League Baseball paid its respects prior to last night's All-staff Game in Anaheim.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In his memory, please join us for a moment of silence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Picture of Derek Jeter there, one of the Yankees who served under Steinbrenner. The Yankees say Steinbrenner's funeral will be private, but there is likely to be a public memorial for the boss.

Toyota is facing more than 100 lawsuits from customers who say their cars accelerated out of control. But a new report says government tests can't find a mechanical problem and that says it is suggesting driver error instead. So is Toyota off the hook?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GRIFFIN: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. You know, if there really is something wrong with the electronic throttle system in millions of Toyota-made vehicles responsible for the thousands of reports of sudden acceleration, then the government investigators are sure having a hard time pinpointing the problem. According to the "Wall Street Journal," government tests now conclude in many of those cases driver error was to blame. Mike Ramsey is one of the "Wall Street Journal" reporters who broke this story. He joins us from Southfield, Michigan.

Mike, why don't you just summarize what exactly your report is saying, because you're not saying all of them, you're just talking about these ones that are not attributed to stuck gas pedals or floor mats stuck to the accelerator, right?

MIKE RAMSEY, AUTOMOTIVE REPORTER, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": Right. The important thing here is that a couple weeks ago, the Department of Transportation said that they continue to have no evidence that electronic throttle control is to blame. What they didn't say is that in their testing -- and this is downloads from crashed Toyota vehicles that kind of measures what was going on in the vehicle at the time of the crash that in cases where people had claimed that they were standing on the brake, that there was no way that they could stop the car even though they were standing on the brake.

The crash data recorder basically said that, in fact, at the time of impact, the throttle was wide open and that there was no evidence of pressing on the brake at all.

GRIFFIN: Which means that the people were stepping on the gas pedal. Correct?

RAMSEY: That's correct. Yes.

GRIFFIN: And this information is culled from the black boxes which were inside the various cars, right? And only made available to NHTSA after NHTSA had basically asked Toyota to hand it over?

RAMSEY: Yes. What happens is the data actually has to come from the customer themselves. They have to agree to allow NHTSA to look at it. What NHTSA had to get from Toyota was the device that could read the data. I mean, Toyota had it itself, but it hadn't, you know, lent out the machinery to NHTSA until March. So, it wasn't until March that the agency could do the investigation on its own.

GRIFFIN: I was working on this case as well. There was a lot of speculation there was an electronic glitch, there was some computer problem in these Toyotas that was the causing the sudden acceleration, a lot of experts weighed in on that, that barring any other information coming out of Toyota, it has to be such. Why, I'm asking you, did Toyota wait to release this data or allow NHTSA to look at the data that would have exonerated them, perhaps, a long time ago?

RAMSEY: I think it's important here that Toyota has all along claimed that they -- that their evidence shows that there is no evidence of electronic throttle control being an issue. They have been very steadfast on that and said that they'll fight all the lawsuits against them. They claim that issue. And NHTSA basically has been ordered by Congress to ferret out any possible reason why, you know, other than what they've been saying, sticky pedal or entrapped floor mat, that cars could be doing this.

And so, in a way, Toyota has been saying it, but they also have been very careful to not try to blame customers, you know, for a problem with their car, which in a way, this evidence, which, by the way, this has not been released by NHTSA or certainly by Toyota. This is information that we were able to obtain from the agency which will probably be released some time later after it's been double checked by NASA, of all agencies, which is basically helping out NHTSA on doing this investigation.

GRIFFIN: Which brings us another problem here is the fact that you had to get this information leaked to you. NHTSA never has this information out in real time. Toyota I guess was trying to protect itself from future lawsuits not trying to show its card until it knew exactly what was going on. And yet there was this mass hysteria, huge sell-offs in the Toyota market. I mean, is this the way that we should be regulating cars and exposing problems real time in cars that are on the market?

RAMSEY: I think it's important to remember exactly what happened that caused this. There was a bad accident near San Diego, as everyone remembers in August of last year, that involved a highway patrolman where the floor mat was depressed, and the highway patrolman, you know, was killed in a terrible accident. And that kind of led to some investigation of other potential problems with these Toyota vehicles and it came about that Toyota had maybe known about this sticky accelerator pedal and hadn't done a recall in a timely manner.

They ended up getting fined for that. Meanwhile, there's a whole other set of people saying, neither of these problems are actually the issue. You know, that really is the deal here, is that so much attention was paid to them because of the floor mat and sticky pedal that these other issues came up and that, you know, government regulators and Congress were making, you know, really wanted to make sure that Toyota was doing everything to fix the problem. So, I mean it is important to remember there was a real issue here. These side issues have, you know, kind of taken the forefront, however, and overcome what was the real issue.

GRIFFIN: All right, Mike Ramsey, "Wall Street Journal," reporting this morning that potentially now we're learning that the electronics in Toyotas are not to blame for sudden acceleration. It may be just people stepping on the gas -- Kiran.

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Drew, thanks so much for that. Meanwhile, "Minding your Business" this morning, GPS company Tom-Tom made a name for itself using celebrity voices in their navigational devices to guide you turn by turn wherever you're going. From Michael Kane to Snoop Dogg, even Stuey from "Family Guy", now you can use the force to get home. Users can download directions from "Star Wars" characters, Yoda, Dark Vader, C-3PO. Next month, you can also get HandSolo (ph). Would you want Yoda directing you?

GRIFFIN: No. Yoda says everything backwards, right? He's a backwards guy. Huh, left I think you go.

CHETRY: That probably caused some accidents as well. Expanding audiences have forced a lot of theaters to expand their seats.

GRIFFIN: Oh, no way!

CHETRY: Look, forget the theaters, do it on airplanes first, come on! Anyway, they're making these wider seats. According to a company that designs theaters, the width of a typical theater seat has gone from 19 inches to 21 in the last century. That's to accommodate a 15 percent weight increase in the average American since 1960. Bigger seats mean fewer seats and slimmer profits though making it a challenge for some theaters to stay open. I don't know if that's their biggest problem.

GRIFFIN: The popcorn tub is getting bigger, too. It's now going to be jumbo size.

CHETRY: Honestly, I said I'll have the small. Yesterday, I took the kids to go see "Toy Story 3." Small is this, you know, for the popcorn. It fed four of us.

GRIFFIN: It would be extra juice (ph).

CHETRY: There you go.

GRIFFIN: Still to come on the Most News in the Morning, there's outrage over plans to build a mosque near ground zero in New York City. Deb Feyerick has an "AM Original" and that is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Welcome back. This is the Most News in the Morning. Fun gives music in the morning. It's time for an "AM Original." Something you'll see only on AMERICAN MORNING. Emotions running very high here in New York City. There is a proposal to build a mosque and Muslim Community Center just blocks from ground zero.

CHETRY: Yes. The city's Landmark Preservation Commission is now deciding whether a century-old building in lower Manhattan is worth preserving. And tempers flared at a hearing about it yesterday. Our Deb Feyerick was there, and she's here now with the story. There's politics behind this as well. I mean, some are saying that they're having this debate in order to block the building of the mosque and there are very, very heated opinions on both sides.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. You know, this proposed mosque is supposed to be a symbol of religious diversity and tolerance, but its proximity to ground zero, the ultimate symbol of Islamic extremism is evoking fears of both terrorism and Islam in the minds of a number of people who say the mosque doesn't belong there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DANIA DARWISH, MOSQUE ADVOCATE: My family died that day!

FEYERICK (voice-over): It was a meeting filled with pain, sorrow and outright anger. Many came to say no to building a mosque near ground zero.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have we forgotten what happened at 9/11?

FEYERICK: Others like Dania Darwish who lost an aunt and two friends on 9/11 came to say it's the right thing to do.

DARWISH: And all you people here yelling at me don't even know. And maybe if a mosque were built, then you guys would know what Islam was about.

FEYERICK: For three hours, tempers flared on both sides.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a very carefully planned effort on the part of radical Islamists.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's called Islamophobia, pure and simple.

FEYERICK: New York City's Landmark Preservation Commission took it all in as it considered the fate of this 19th century building, two blocks from ground zero. It designated the landmark the original building will remain. If not, American-Muslim groups will tear it down and move ahead with plans to build an interfaith community center and mosque.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do feel that it would be a terrible mistake to destroy a 154-year-old building in order to build a monument to terrorism.

FEYERICK: The meeting wasn't pretty as emotions boiled over.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then I'm ashamed to be an American today.

FEYERICK: Repika Flori (ph), a Muslim-American, reminded the crowd, people from many countries and religions died on 9/11.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anyone has a doubt, this is my American passport.

FEYERICK: Rosalyn Talen (ph) heckled for opposing the mosque spoke on behalf of her brother, a firefighter who gave his life saving those in the towers. Some were suspicious of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, whose initiative is behind the project with one gubernatorial candidate even calling for an investigation into the $100 million center's funding.

RICK LAZIO, (R) NY GUBENAORIAL CANDIDATE: And I would ask again in the context of this decision that you give people the time to have these questions answered.

FEYERICK: New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, rejects that. MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK: Government should never, never be in the business of telling people how they should pray or where they can pray.

FEYERICK: Imam Faisal was out of the country and unavailable for comment but a spokeswoman said the center would counter extremism by giving moderate Muslims a voice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK (on-camera): Now, a vote is expected next month around the country though in places like Tennessee, Wisconsin and Ohio, proposed mosques have met with similar resistance. The ground zero mosque in particular because so many see it as sacred ground, and I was just down there yesterday, and there's something really, really humbling about that site. You cannot walk in that area and forget what it is, what it means and what happened there.

CHETRY: What was it like to be down there?

FEYERICK: You know, it's really fascinating. We were able to see the memorials that are being built those. You're going to be ready on the anniversary this year. We went downstairs below basically these two waterfalls. There's going to be a huge museum, and there was a huge debate as what to do even in the museum. There was this staircase, some wanted it demolished. Others said, no, we got to keep this. This is the staircase people used to escape the building on that day.

Additionally, there is a retaining wall. There's a suri wall as what they call it. That suri wall, people said cover that up. They said, no, we can't cover that up. That suri wall held. Had it not on that day, all of lower Manhattan would have been flooded by the Hudson. So, every single issue, every single item is being negotiated and fought over because it is so emotional to so many people.

CHETRY: It really is. And that's why a lot of people said, wait a minute, why all these years later do we still have a hole in the ground and why haven't we been able to build? And you sort of just explained exactly why that's happened.

FEYERICK: It's gotten a lot better, I have to say, but you do wonder, ten years, a lot of people just really thought and wished that it had moved along a lot faster.

GRIFFIN. Deb Feyerick, thanks.

CHETRY: Thanks so much, and we're going to continue the debate about the building of that Islamic cultural center coming up in our 7:00 hour. 7:40 Eastern. We're going to hear from both sides of the controversy.

Meantime, we're crossing the half-hour right now. Time for this morning's top stories.

BP says that today will be the earliest before it begins any testing on a new containment cap over its ruptured well. Those tests were put on hold yesterday to give engineers some more time to review the testing procedures.

GRIFFIN: More bad news for President Obama. For the second time this week, a new poll showing America not happy with how he's dealing with the economy. A brand-new CBS News poll, 54 percent give a thumbs down. Just yesterday "Washington Post"/ABC poll showed exact same number, 54 percent disapproving of the president's handling of issue number one.

CHETRY: The U.S. military beefing up security at bases in Iraq because of a new threat from Iran. General Ray Odierno, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, says there is credible evidence that insurgents have received specialized training inside Iran to attack U.S. forces in Iraq. The general says it has stepped up joint operations as well with Iraqi security forces.

Federal justice officials are charging six members of the New Orleans Police Department for the deadly confrontation on the city's Danziger Bridge just days after Hurricane Katrina. The indictment alleged that the four officers gunned down a teenager and a 40-year- old disabled man both unarmed. The two supervisors are charged with obstructing justice.

Drew was on the scene in New Orleans covering this story when it first broke and it was actually his reporting that led to these investigations. Attorney General Eric Holder announced charges yesterday and said that the New Orleans Police Department still has a long way to go to win back the public's trust.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERIC HOLDER, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Put simply, we will not tolerate wrongdoing by those who are sworn to protect the public. This will not stand. We will hold all offenders accountable. But while accountability is a vital part of the reform process, it will take more than this investigation to renew the New Orleans Police Department and to allow it to thrive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

This shooting happened in just the days after Katrina. We did start asking questions from the get-go. The first investigation into this so-called Danziger Bridge killings led to charges, but no convictions, and ever since the case has remained a lightning rod for controversy in New Orleans. I had the chance to talk with one victim's family, a witness, and the city's police department to try to figure out what really happened on that bridge that day September 4th, five years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Chaos engulfing New Orleans, that Lance Madison and his mentally handicapped brother, Ronald, fleeing floodwaters, ran head-on into what's become known as the Danziger Bridge killings. ROMMEL MADISON, BROTHER KILLED ON DANZIGER BRIDGE: I said he was shot about right up in here. Right here. And we kept running up the bridge here, try go zigzag so they wouldn't hit us.

GRIFFIN: Crossing the bridge they suddenly found themselves being shot at by armed men dressed in t-shirts, driving a postal truck. What they didn't know was, the armed men were actually police who thought they were coming to the rescue. There had been a frantic radio call that Sunday morning. It was reporting police under fire, contractors being shot at, on this bridge.

(On camera): It turns out it was all just one big mistake in the chaos after Katrina. Some would say it was based on lies. There were no contractors under fire on this bridge. Police never found anybody with a gun. What they did find was a man running away from them, down this bridge. They chased him, shot him, and killed him. Two people were killed that day. Ronald Madison was one of them. Another four were wounded. The seven police officers involved have always said the shooting was justified. The New Orleans Police Department, which investigated itself, agreed.

PETER SCHARF, CRIMINOLOGY PROFESSOR, TULANE UNIVERSITY: The more critical question is not the seven guys on the bridge, but can this police department investigate itself.

GRIFFIN: Police say they fired in self-defense when Madison reached for his waist and turned on them. But CNN has been uncovering details that raise doubts. An autopsy revealing Madison was shot in the back. Lack of any evidence Madison was ever armed. And, finding a witness who says he saw officers line up and gun down a man running away.

KASIMIR GASTON, WITNESSED DANZIGER SHOOTINGS: With all motion, moving and just --

GRIFFIN (on camera): Then how did he fall?

GASTON: He just fell like -- like he was collapsing, like he was collapsing, like something had just like wiped him out.

GRIFFIN: You didn't see any gun on him?

GASTON: I didn't see any on him.

GRIFFIN (voice over): Seven police officers cheered as heroes by their colleagues were indicted for murder and attempted murder of Ronald Madison. But the case was thrown out on a technicality. You believe these officers did nothing wrong, that there was no crime or even misconduct on that bridge?

MICHAEL GLASSER, PRESIDENT, POLICE ASSOC. OF NEW ORLEANS: None whatsoever. We're confident that these officers acted appropriately, in fact heroically. And we're certain this investigation will have the same conclusion as the last one, that they did in fact act appropriately and heroically.

GRIFFIN: Rommel Madison says in the aftermath of Katrina, the police force did what it wanted.

(On camera): Of all the victims of Hurricane Katrina, your brother among them, was justice and the rule of law also a victim in this town?

MADISON: Yes. They were just as badly wounded as my brother was because it just doesn't exist.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: It is one of the worst cover-ups I've ever covered. Planted guns, evidence withheld, they didn't interview any witnesses. And I think that the New Orleans police at the time were betting on the fact that the people that were killed

CHETRY: The chaos?

GRIFFIN: Right? Were just poor blacks. I hate to say it but that's the case.

And Ronald Madison came from a well-establish New Orleans family, dentist in the family, doctors in the family, and they never gave up. It is the Madison family that really pushed this to justice. It is just sad that it's taken so long to get this far.

CHETRY: So what is the next step?

GRIFFIN: Well, the next step is to expose this and I guess a federal civil rights lawsuit that Attorney General Eric Holder is holding responsible but I think it needs to go even beyond that. You heard Peter Scharf from Tulane talking about this was a case of whether or not the New Orleans police can't investigate themselves. Clearly they could not in this case. And so you have to ask the question, are those same people still in charge, still at the New Orleans police? And do the people of New Orleans deserve a better police department that literally they've had for decades?

CHETRY: Amazing. You uncovered it. You're the reason that a lot of this is being reported and actually looked into in the first place. Good stuff.

GRIFFIN: Thanks.

Still ahead, we are talking about critics of the president's ban on deepwater drilling. They found an ally on the president's own oil spill commission. But whether or not that actually makes a difference for rig workers whose jobs are in limbo is another story. We'll talk about it with Julia Reed, contributor for "Newsweek" and someone who's been very critical of the administration's deepwater drilling ban. We'll get her take still ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Today could be the most critical day yet in the Gulf oil disaster but, man, we've heard that before, haven't we? Crews could begin testing a new containment cap trying to stop that. It involves closing valves that could actually stop the oil from gushing.

CHETRY: Right. They actually delayed the beginning of this. They want to analyze their testing procedures a little bit more, I guess want to make sure they get it right at this crucial stage.

Meantime, all of this comes as the presidential commission investigating the spill is now questioning the administration's deepwater drilling ban. Julia Reed is a "Newsweek" contributing editor and New Orleans resident, highly critical of the drilling moratorium as well.

Thanks for being with us this morning.

JULIA REED, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, "NEWSWEEK": Thank you.

CHETRY: Does this change anything that someone on the president's own commission is saying maybe this isn't the right yesterday?

REED: Well, it is the best news that residents down there have had, especially people affected by the moratorium. Just in three days, they've kind of gotten what Washington still hasn't. Bob Graham yesterday said he was concerned about the disconnect between Washington and the Gulf Coast. It's only taken him three days of listening to people's stories, and listening to what incredible economic devastation that the moratorium is going to cause, forget about the spill.

So it's encouraging that in that short of a time just being on the ground has made all the difference. I mean the word "disconnect" is one that locals have been using for the get-go. We feel like Washington is kind of one cool remove away. We can't quite figure out why that is.

GRIFFIN: Julia, do you think that this is real concern by the White House that there could be another blowout in some of these oil wells, or do you think this is politics trying to push his energy policy to get us away from oil?

REED: There are a lot of theories. More and more folks are making that judgment. But I just think that there's not been engagement on the part. In the best-case scenario there just hasn't been enough engagement. Nobody's come down there and listen to what the people on the commission have listened to for the last three days. I don't think-I mean, when the president said in his speech that the moratorium was going to cause some, quote, "difficulty" for the rig workers that just reflected a fundamental-or depending on who you talk to-willful misunderstanding of the business.

CHETRY: The trickle down affect from caters to people that service them, to everybody who is-

REED: Yes, and not even trickling down. That's huge -- like it is a huge oil service industry that's going on. Of course safety is -- that would be 300,000 jobs by the end of the summer just in the sort of closely related to the drilling jobs. That doesn't count the sort of people on the dock selling things, whatever. But the other thing is, yeah, of course there is safety issues, but somebody on the commission made the point yesterday, the Gulf has not been closed to tankers. One tanker carries as much oil as has been leaked into the Gulf. If you're worried about every single vessel or rig that's a possible accident waiting to happen, then you should just shut everything down. Don't let a tanker come through the Gulf.

That's obviously not going to happen, so it is crazy to say this dozen or so wells cannot function until we have a six-month commission? A commission can't -- they're not going to be able -- these guys are down there, like listening to people, and it's great that they're there, but that's not what's going to ensure the safety of the wells. We need people on the ground checking the wells. Whatever the Mineral Management company-commission is calling itself now. They need to just deploy some people, make sure that the safety guidelines that should have been met six months ago are being met now. That's not all that hard.

CHETRY: So that's the fundamental question, six months. Is it arbitrary, meaning it is not enough time to do what they claim they want to do, or it is taking too long? I mean, which one is it?

REED: Again, commissions are great. We have them after every single thing happens. But these guys sitting around in hotel rooms and conference rooms and listening to these folks talk to them has been good in the short term, because they're saying, wait a minute, this is kind of crazy. But in the long term, that's not going to ensure that these wells are safe. The Mineral Management service and now it is the Ocean something, something-they don't want to be remembered as the Minerals Management service anymore-needs to just do their job and require and make sure that what they're requiring these oil companies to do, is done. Seems to me that's not that tough of a deal. Inspect the wells that are there. There are not that many. It is not like we have thousands of them that need to be inspected.

GRIFFIN: That is what is so frustrating. Just go to well number one, check it, is it safe, OK, start it up. Move on.

REED: Does it have the equipment it needs to have? Where is their safety plan? Let's look at it for real. But we're talking, I mean, that is not a huge deal. We've had 80-some-odd days now -- 86.

GRIFFIN: 86.

CHETRY: 86.

REED: I'm losing track it has been so crazy. I mean, in 86 days, this could have already been done.

CHETRY: Question though is, as he said, look at the well, look at the safety plan, but I mean do you think anybody that went out to this well would have been able to tell that this could have happened? I mean is it a false security regardless of how long the moratorium is?

REED: Well, we now know that - you know, listen, we'll never be able to keep people from taking shortcuts that BP apparently took. And just sort of drive to get this done, who cares about the consequences, which seemed to lead to this accident. But I think, well first of all, I don't think there's not an oil company on the planet that wants this to happen. I think that you've got in the face of this people policing themselves a heck of a lot better. We also know what to require. We did not require, unlike most countries in the world, until now.

CHETRY: Bottom line, do you think they're going to lift this ban?

REED: You know, I am encouraged by the commission's attitude.

CHETRY: Great to talk to you this morning, Julia Reed, thanks so much.

REED: Thank you.

CHETRY: Right now, it's 45 minutes past the hour. Time for us to get a check when we come right back of the travel forecast. Rob Marciano is going to join us after the break.

GRIFFIN: And street ads with scanners targeting you as you walk by. You can't believe this one. Capturing images of your face to gather information? These devices could be coming to a street corner near you. Hey, buddy, want to buy a watch?

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GRIFFIN: Live look at New York City this morning. Hazy. I guess, we're going to get some thunderstorms later on. Seventy-five right now.

CHETRY: That's an inviting look, huh.

GRIFFIN: That looks really pretty. Gorgeous. Sparkling city here in New York.

CHETRY: Yes, it's 85 degrees later, thunderstorms, but yesterday, I think it was about 81 in the afternoon? It just felt like pea soup. Is Drew getting out of here today, Rob?

GRIFFIN: Yes, sir.

CHETRY: You got the travel forecast. Is he going anywhere?

GRIFFIN: I'm taking a train, guys. So, no worries.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: There you go. You'll be fine. But yes, travel is going to be at issue across much of the northeast and Atlanta as well with thunderstorms firing up this time of year, and the atmosphere is kind of juiced up with it as far as moisture and heat go. So, yes, northeast, northern plains, southeast, all of it getting hit. Look at the wide variety of areas yesterday that had rainfall totals that were impressive. Macon, Georgia, saw 4.5 inches, Greensboro, North Carolina saw 3.2, Joplin, Missouri getting into it, Trenton, New Jersey as well.

Some pictures for you out of Savannah, Georgia, which added up an over an inch of rain in a hurry and that flooded of the streets downtown. That's Habersham; it looks like a river there and it was a slow go. That's for sure. Some of the same areas getting the thunderstorms right now, Philadelphia to New York. This is a pretty good thunderstorm line that's moving across the Hudson Valley. This will move up towards the northeast in through Eastern New England and across parts of Long Island as well. So, this is definitely going to slow down some air travel.

Across the northern tier, we do have tornado watches that are in effect. There's Fargo. That line is moving rapidly to the east at about 40 miles an hour. Otter Tail County, Minnesota, under a tornado warning. Radar indicated tornado warning for the next hour there as these rough and tumble thunderstorms roll through. So much so that in Cannonball, North Dakota, they had hail last night the size of cannonballs. Four inches in diameter. So, that will do some damage for sure. The other big story today is going to be the heat. And actually, it will be for several days. Heat advisories and heat warnings out for parts of Oklahoma and Kansas, and actually takes over a wide swath of the nation's midsection.

There you go. Your forecast, expected delays today, Boston and New York metropolitan airports. Easily over an hour, I think. Atlanta, Charlotte, and Cincinnati as well, and Minneapolis. There's not many spots if you're doing some air travel where we think it's going to be smooth sailing. So, just back your patience as we like to say if you're traveling by airplane today. Drew and Kiran, back up to you.

CHETRY: He's taking the train.

GRIFFIN: Yes. Rob, great shout out to those towns this morning, Otter Tail and Cannonball.

MARCIANO: I love those Midwest towns.

CHETRY: And hail the size of cannonballs or were you exaggerating?

MARCIANO: No. 4.25 inches in diameter. I mean, depending on the size of the cannon. I would say that's a cannon-ball sized hail.

GRIFFIN: It's cannonball to me.

CHETRY: Thanks, Rob.

MARCIANO: All right, guys.

CHETRY: Still to come on the Most News in the Morning, street ads with scanners? They capture images of your face as you walk by. Right, and then, they sort of tailor their ad to you. What?

GRIFFIN: Annoying.

CHETRY: Yes. Exactly. Fifty-one minutes past the hour.

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CHETRY: Fifty-five minutes past the hour. A lot of stores use your shopping history to target you with new items you might be interested in, buying, advertising for those. But soon ads on the street could actually be scanning you, your face, to predict your interests based on your looks. Kyung Lah has today's "Edge of Discovery" report.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the world of advertising, you look at the ads. But soon, they'll be watching you. It's a future imagined at the 2002 movie "Minority Report," cameras capture and read Tom Cruise's face, then customize ads for his character pop up.

That future is now. This billboard sees you, scans your face, and then pulls up an ad you'll like.

LAH (on-camera): Here's how this works. When you walk up to the ad, a camera captures your image. The computer figures out if you're a man or a woman and your age. Meanwhile, an age and gender-specific ad rolls. This shows that I'm in my 30s, and I like seasonal pasta. The computer then determines how interested you are, how long you stay. That data is then recorded for the company.

LAH (voice-over): NEC engineers, Yuko Amagai (ph), says the facial recognition technology is accurate to within ten years of your actual age and the next gen system they're testing out is even more age accurate.

"This is a new age of advertising" says Amagai. "We can learn something we never knew from marketing." The new ads give real-time reaction to street sign. So, marketing can be more targeted and more effective. NEC believes the use of this technology in advertising is just the next step.

Kyung Lah, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Something (INAUDIBLE) about that. I don't know. Top stories coming your way after the break.

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