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American Morning
Cutting Taxes, Creating Jobs; Craigslist Cleanup Act; Catholic Women Priests; Palin to Rove: "Buck Up"; Delays Lead to Disaster?; Dude, You Have No Koran
Aired September 16, 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. Thanks so much for being with us. It's Thursday, September 16th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, 59 minutes after the hour. I'm Drew Griffin. John Roberts is off this morning.
A lot to talk about this morning. So let's get to it, shall we?
One down, two to go for the president. His $42 billion aid plan for small business should finally pass in the Senate today thanks to help from two Republicans.
So the debate now shifts to the Bush tax cuts and how to extend them for everybody. The president opposed but now a group of Democrats in the White House opposed to the president.
CHETRY: Mending fences. The Republican establishment now singing a different tune after Tea Party favorite Christine O'Donnell beat the party's pick in the Delaware in the Senate race there.
RNC chairman Michael Steele is talking to CNN. We're going to hear his blunt message to Republican naysayers like Karl Rove.
GRIFFIN: It was called the Wal-Mart of online sex trafficking. Now Craigslist promising to clean it up.
The Web site telling a House panel the adult services section is gone for good after immense pressure from the authorities and our authority.
Our investigation by Amber Lyon. She is going to be here with us with the highlights of that hearing.
CHETRY: Also, the "AM Fix" blog is up and running this morning. Join the live conversation right now. Just go to CNN.com/amfix.
GRIFFIN: We're going to go -- begin this morning, though, with your paycheck and the political battle over how much of it you'll get to take home in 2011 if you're lucky enough to have a job and a paycheck to take home.
CHETRY: Very true. Well, President Obama says that 500,000 new jobs are on the way now that his $42 billion small business aid bill is set to pass the Senate later today. Two Republicans jumped the aisle to help Democrats get that done.
Dan Lothian is live at the White House this morning.
So, now the focus is on the expiring Bush era tax cuts. The president wants to extend them for everyone but the top income earners, and now fellow Democrats could be standing in his way, Dan.
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, you know, when you have all these 31 House Democrats who have sent a letter to their House leadership wanting that -- wanting this extension to also go to all incomes, not just middle class Americans.
The reason for this is that they believe at this time they should not be raising taxes on any Americans at all because it would negatively impact economic growth.
The White House, though, has been very clear about this saying that this is something that the administration says that the America simply can't afford because they'd have to borrow $700 billion in order to pay for this.
So what lawmakers should do is move forward with these middle class tax cuts because those are the people who need it the most during this difficult economic time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Right now, we could decide to extend tax relief for the middle class. Right now, we could decide that every American household would receive a tax cut on the first $250,000 of their income.
But once again, the leaders across the aisle are saying no. They want to hold these middle class tax cuts hostage until they get an additional tax cut for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: Now reacting to these House Democrats, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs saying that the Democratic Party is a very big party with many different viewpoints just like Republicans. But the bottom line is that the president has not made any room for negotiation here.
What we're seeing, though, is this is just the latest push by the White House to get on top of the economy. We've seen them get this jobs bill now. You've seen the president pushing $350 billion in new proposals.
All of this is trying to show Americans during this very difficult time and leading up to the midterm elections that this administration is doing everything that it can to try and turn the economy around -- Drew, Kiran.
GRIFFIN: Dan, I want -- I want to just drill down on this jobs bill. Five hundred thousand new jobs are just magically going to appear by signing this bill. What is exactly in it that the president now say is going to trigger actual new jobs?
LOTHIAN: Now what you're looking at is more than $30 billion that will go to these smaller banks. That will then loan the money -- loan the money to these small businesses.
The biggest roadblock here, the hurdle that a lot of these small companies have been facing is -- listen, there's a lot of uncertainty. We don't know whether or not we can get the capital that we need me for new investment, for hiring.
And so the administration is saying if we can provide the capital for these small businesses, then they in turn will put that money into the economy and they will hire more people.
It's all about job creation. If the small businesses can get the money, then they can create the jobs.
GRIFFIN: All right, Dan, thanks.
LOTHIAN: OK.
CHETRY: Dan, thank you.
All right, well, coming up in about an hour and 40 minutes we're going to be joined by Congressman Gary Peters of Michigan. He's one of the 31 House Democrats who want the Bush tax cuts extended for everyone.
We're going to talk to him more about the situation as he's gearing up for a fight with -- within his own party and in the end which side will win.
GRIFFIN: Other news from the White House, the president is planning to name a Harvard Law professor, Elizabeth Warren, as a special adviser that -- she's going to help set up the government's new Consumer Financial Protection Agency created under that Wall Street Reform Bill.
The new government agency was indeed her idea. She's going to report to the president, of course, but also to the Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. That will be interesting because she has been very critical of the Treasury Department for its handling of the Wall Street bailout.
CHETRY: And the head of the RNC making it known that Christine O'Donnell, Tea Party favorite and Delaware's new Republican Senate nominee, will have the full backing of the GOP establishment -- the committee, at least.
Speaking to our John King, Michael Steele had a stern message for Karl Rove and others in his own party who are refusing to endorse O'Donnell.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL STEELE, RNC CHAIRMAN: How can you claim defeat before you attempt victory? This makes no sense. It makes no sense. So stop it. Stop it.
JOHN KING, HOST, "JOHN KING, USA": That's your message to them. Stop it?
STEELE: That's my message. Stop it. And let's get behind our nominees and win the election.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Steele expressed confidence that O'Donnell would beat Democrat Chris Coons in the general election.
Coming up in less than 30 minutes, our Jim Acosta breaks down why Karl Rove is still publicly criticizing O'Donnell and what some other high- profile Republicans have to say about the Tea Party favorite.
GRIFFIN: Well, also new this morning, seeking federal help for San Bruno. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a letter to the president requesting a disaster the declaration for the gas explosion and inferno that killed four and destroyed close to 40 homes.
The fire and heat so intense, first responders thought a plane went down.
Listen to this, now there's new evidence the disaster was extremely preventable. Dan Simon with the latest on the investigation later this hour.
CHETRY: The imam behind the planned Ground Zero Islamic center and mosque now being accused of being a slumlord.
A lawsuit alleges that Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf failed to properly maintain two apartment buildings that his own company owns in Union City, New Jersey. Among the tenant complaints, lack of heat, mold, garbage and bed bugs.
The imam has until this afternoon to show the court what he's doing to fix those problems.
GRIFFIN: Well, if you're at the Greenville Drive and Lakewood Blue Claws game last night, they were slugging it out. Literally. Watch this. Boom. The South Atlantic League championship series, Greenville, South Carolina.
It starts with that collision. The Greenville runner was out and started jawing with the pitcher. Then both benches cleared. And the base brawl was on.
CHETRY: Did anyone get in trouble?
GRIFFIN: Let's find out. Not really. Just looked pretty cool.
(LAUGHTER)
GRIFFIN: You know, baseball brawls. Nobody really gets hurt, do they? Shove around -- CHETRY: No, there's just a lot of shoving. Hats come off. They get thrown on the ground. They come back on. No.
GRIFFIN: Good thing.
CHETRY: (INAUDIBLE) bets.
GRIFFIN: Who won? I'm going to find out. Go ahead.
CHETRY: My money is on the Blue Claws.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: Seven minutes past the hour right now. Let's get a check of this morning's weather headlines. Rob Marciano in the Extreme Weather Center.
I'm sure Rob is shedding a little baseball tear today. Your beloved Yankees lost, right? Sorry.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I -- you know, I turned it off. No, they were ahead 3-2 when I turned it off.
CHETRY: They want to lose, guys.
GRIFFIN: I think they won, didn't they?
MARCIANO: Yes.
GRIFFIN: With Jeter with the fake hit?
CHETRY: They lost.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: You heard it here first at 6:07. Sorry, Rob.
MARCIANO: Well, Jeter does deserve an Academy Award for the acting job. I do appreciate his taking the first base and then a two-run blast after that to put them ahead.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MARCIANO: Back to you guys.
GRIFFIN: Hey, Rob?
MARCIANO: Sir?
GRIFFIN: The Blue Claws also won. They did. 6-1. Three more games to go in that Atlantic brawl of a series.
MARCIANO: It's a tight kind of race for whatever league the --
GRIFFIN: The Atlantic Southeast something, blah, blah, blah.
Thanks, buddy.
CHETRY: The Blue Claws.
GRIFFIN: We'll be back.
CHETRY: Rock on.
GRIFFIN: Still to come on the "Most News in the Morning," Craigslist on the hot seat on Capitol Hill. This coming after Amber Lyon's investigation into the Web site's adult services ads.
And Amber, Kiran, is going to join us next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the "Most News in the Morning." Twelve minutes past the hour right now.
Making sure that pilots get enough sleep. Obviously, if you're flying in a plane, you want to know that your pilot is well rested, right? Well, the House is going to be holding a hearing today on the problem of pilot fatigue.
Last week, the FAA proposed new rules including requiring pilots to take a minimum of 30 consecutive hours off each week. The changes came because of the commuter airline crash outside of Buffalo, New York last year that killed 50 people.
The NTSB also says that pilot fatigue has been linked to more than 250 airplane fatalities over the past 15 years.
GRIFFIN: An "AM Follow-Up" now and Craigslist coming clean about the epidemic of child sex trafficking on the Web.
An official with the site yesterday told a House panel its adult services section is gone and it's not coming back. But there's fear that the ads will just already -- and somehow already have apparently migrated to less responsible Web sites.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TINA FRUNDT, FOUNDER, COURTNEY'S HOUSE: The Internet has played a big part in sex traffic of every client for boys and girls. Not only Craigslist, every child we have has been sold on Craigslist, averaging ages of 11 to 17.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFIN: Amber Lyon is one of the people who brought these concerns right to the highest levels of Craigslist.
You went to Craig himself. And you're joining us from Washington this morning. So, I guess, is this a done deal for Craigslist?
AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that was a big question yesterday, Drew. That these representatives asked this representative of Craigslist. They were saying, you know, when this media pressure fizzles out, when the heat is down, are you going to reopen this under another name or possibly reopen the site when there's less attention.
And this rep said, you know what, we're done, we have no more intentions to open the adult services section.
At that point, the representatives really commended the site for making this decision. Calling Craigslist a potential leader in this industry in setting an example for others.
GRIFFIN: But, you know, Amber, I mean are they just going to get more creative with their ads? It was clear from your reporting that Craigslist had no idea what was going on on its Web site, didn't really have the ability or wherewithal to police its own site.
I'm just wondering, won't there be tricks of the trade, so to speak, that will allow this to continue not only on Craigslist but on other list as well?
LYON: I think more than anything, Drew, it is continuing on other sites. We aired a story yesterday, there's a 12-year-old girl who's being sex trafficked on Backpage.com. And in fact the Internet research group AIM came out with a study yesterday showing that Backpage is the number two behind Craigslist for making money off of these sex ads.
So that was a concern that was brought up at this meeting. Even the Craigslist rep himself said you know what? Even though you guys think we haven't done enough -- a good enough job working with the government, working with law enforcement, advocacy groups, look at these other sites. They're not working with you at all.
And the traffic is just going to flow on to those sites which is happening now, Drew.
GRIFFIN: Any wherewithal within the Congress to put more money, more enforcement into the actual trafficking itself? I mean these Web sites are just a conduit for this stuff to happen but obviously it's not going to stop.
LYON: Yes. That was a big concern yesterday, how much money does law enforcement need to fight this problem? How many - how much resources do these advocates need? How many more beds do they need to house these girls once they're rescued?
And, above all, Drew, an - the interesting point here which really shows how much focus, as a country, we've given to this issue, we have more research in the U.S. on the amount of children internationally that have been sex trafficked online than we do on the amount of children here in the U.S. who have been sex trafficked.
So that was another focus on this hearing, is just shifting to start focusing domestically on solving this problem.
GRIFFIN: All right. Amber Lyon, live from Washington. Thanks, Amber. LYON: Hey, thanks, Drew.
CHETRY: Well, coming up next on the Most News in the Morning, New York City is looking to ban smoking at some very popular outdoor locations - Times Square, Central Park. Is it a good policy or is the government going too far?
Sixteen minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: Yes. That does (ph) sound good.
Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Time for "Minding Your Business".
Nebraska's slogan is "The good life," and that's exactly what folks in Omaha are living - the good life, Kiran. According to "Metro Monitor", Omaha topping the list of recession-proof cities, in part because of its 5.5 percent unemployment rate.
Also on the list, Madison, Wisconsin; Des Moines, Iowa; and Austin, Dallas and Houston, Texas.
CHETRY: Pull up stakes and move towards the center of the country. That's the answer there.
GRIFFIN: Yes.
CHETRY: Well, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, by the way, wants to fine smokers for lighting up outdoors. He's backing a new bill that would ban smoking at beaches, marinas, boardwalks, parks, pedestrian plazas. Violators would be fined $50 for each offense.
The measure is scheduled to be introduce in New York City Council today, and it's expected to be pass.
GRIFFIN: That's going to be a very tough one to enforce.
CHETRY: Well, just places like Times Square, where you're walking through. And if you - you know, if you get behind a smoker, it's not fun.
GRIFFIN: Right.
CHETRY: But, at the same time, try to figure out how they're going to enforce that one.
GRIFFIN: You know, you travel around the country, New York smokes, people. There's a lot of people here that smoke, and I don't see them doing that (INAUDIBLE).
CHETRY: It's stressful, I guess.
GRIFFIN: I guess. They're all - just jump out of those buildings. All right. Coming up next on the Most News in the Morning, a secret Catholic bishop ordaining women priests? Not fiction. It's happening now, here in the United States, and Carol Costello is going to join us with an "A.M. Original" on that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twenty-three minutes past the hour.
Just in to CNN, new pictures of the pope, Pope Benedict, touching down in Scotland in the past hour. It is the first stop on a history- making four-day visit to the United Kingdom. It will be the first papal trip to Britain in 28 years and the first ever state visit by a pope.
The pope telling reporters on board the flight from Rome that the Catholic Church was not vigil enough in dealing with pedophile priests - Drew.
GRIFFIN: Thanks, Kiran.
Time now for an "A.M. Original", something you're only going to see on AMERICAN MORNING. Female Catholic priests. The Vatican vehemently opposed to the idea, calling it a crime similar to pedophilia.
Well, despite the Church's stand, more women are pursuing the calling of the priesthood, and Carol Costello has the story, joining us live in Washington. Good morning, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Drew.
You heard Kiran mention that Pope Benedict is now in Britain. He's there to appeal to the millions of Catholics in that country.
But his visit is not without controversy. Many tickets remain unsold, which suggest - which suggest many of Britain's Catholics are indifferent to his presence. You could argue many American Catholics feel the same way because of the way the Vatican handled the sex abuse scandal.
Some say it's time for a change in leadership. A big change. That includes women.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO (voice-over): For most Catholics, this is curious - women in priestly robes.
GLORIA CARPENETO, ROMAN CATHOLIC WOMEN PRIESTS: Mary is a part of that Trinity.
COSTELLO: Preaching from the altar.
ANDREA JOHNSON, ROMAN CATHOLIC WOMEN PRIESTS: This is the Lamb of God.
COSTELLO: Consecrating the bread and wine. Something considered a serious crime by the Catholic Church.
Gloria Carpeneto considers herself a Catholic priest, ordained thanks to an unnamed male bishop who secretly ordained the first female priests and bishops in 2002.
COSTELLO (on camera): Have you ever met the secret bishop?
CARPENETO: Secret bishop.
COSTELLO: The secret bishop?
CARPENETO: No, I have not met the secret bishop.
COSTELLO: Because if anyone ever found out who this bishop was, he would be - he would be done.
CARPENETO: It would be a tremendous personal risk for this bishop to come out.
COSTELLO (voice-over): According to Canon lawyers, though, the secret bishop has automatically been excommunicated or banned from participating in the church because he knowingly violated church law. And certainly, the Vatican made that clear when it restated recently that ordaining women as priest was a great offense, on the same level as pedophilia.
COSTELLO (on camera): When you saw that, what went through your mind?
CARPENETO: I was horrified. I was horrified. I thought for myself I didn't like that notion of suddenly I'm in the - the swimming pool with people who have been accused of - of sexual abuse, crimes against children.
COSTELLO (voice-over): Father Joseph Tobin appointed by the Vatican to oversee religious work worldwide says though the Vatican quickly said the comparison was inadvertent and wrong, the ordination of women is still a serious crime.
REV. FATHER JOSEPH TOBIN, "CONGREGATION FOR RELIGIOUS": The Catholic Church has traditionally not arrived to the point that it believes that it is the will of God. Now, I - I think I have to accept that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first women bishops to be ordained in the United States of America.
COSTELLO: But even the threat of excommunication isn't stopping Catholic women from what they consider the priesthood. Carpeneto says there are now five bishops, 47 priests, 10 deacons and 16 candidates in formation in the United States, all of them illegitimate in the eyes of the Catholic Church.
JOHNSON: What many people say to us is why don't you go somewhere else where you're accepted.
COSTELLO (on camera): I was just going to ask you that. I mean, why stick with Catholicism when Catholicism obviously isn't supportive of you?
JOHNSON: It's Catholicism that needs us.
May our God be with you.
COSTELLO (voice-over): And so they hold mass where they can, in their own homes or in non-Catholic churches, ministering to small, mostly female congregations who say the traditional Catholic Church is not meeting their needs.
COSTELLO (on camera): So if you had a meeting with the pope, if you could see Pope Benedict, what would you say to him?
MADELEINE ROTHE, RC WOMEN PRIESTS PARISHIONER: I'm not sure I'd like to have a meeting with this pope just because I don't - I don't think he's very open and that's a huge road block.
COSTELLO (voice-over): It's the kind of spiritual road block that Carpeneto was trying to remove and the Catholic Church is resisting.
COSTELLO (on camera): Is it up to God?
CARPENETO: Yes, I think it is up to God, and I think God has said to me you can be ordained.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: So how important is this movement?
I asked our Vatican analyst John Allen and this is what he told me. He said, you know, you look at the poll numbers, large numbers of Catholics support the ordination of women priests. At the same time most Catholics are not willing to follow these women before the church gives its blessing.
And, Drew, you know, I asked these women who consider themselves priests if they'll ever be recognized in the eyes of the church in their lifetime, and all of them said sadly and emphatically, no.
GRIFFIN: But they consider themselves pioneers maybe for the future?
COSTELLO: They consider themselves rebels. They say, unless they force the issue, things will never change.
GRIFFIN: All right. Carol Costello, a very interesting report. Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: Sure.
CHETRY: Meanwhile, 29 minutes past the hour right now. Time for a look at this the morning's top stories.
The BP well that leaked millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico could be permanently sealed by Sunday. Drilling on the relief well is expected to be completed later today. And then heavy mud will be pumped in. The procedure will permanently seal it, nearly five months after the first drops of oil spilled.
GRIFFIN: Craigslist cleaning up the website telling a House panel the adult services section is gone for good. But, of course, the problem of child sex trafficking is running much deeper than just one website.
CHETRY: And the president's $42 billion aid bill for small business is expected to pass the Senate today. Two Republicans on board with it. The big battle now is whether to extend the Bush era tax cuts for all Americans or just the middle class.
President Obama wants the wealthiest Americans to pay more next year, but 31 fellow Democrats in the House have signed a letter opposing that plan. They say that no American should see a tax hike.
GRIFFIN: Finally, all of those primaries are done. The field is set for both Republicans and Democrats. And in 47 days, voters will have their say.
CHETRY: Yes. And right now the parties are plotting their pads to victory. And when we say "CNN Equals Politics," we mean it. Every hour, we're going to be breaking down the big stories on the CNN political ticker. You can check it anytime at CNN.com/Politics.
Well, our Jim Acosta is live in Washington and you're checking out the political ticker this morning as well. The big story this morning, of course, is the GOP seeming to change their tune, and seeming to get behind Tea Party candidate Christine O'Donnell. She was the one who was victorious in the Republican Senate primary in Delaware.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they're singing a different tune this morning, Kiran. That might be because of who's leading the orchestra in the Republican Party. You know, Republican (AUDIO BREAK) O'Donnell following her upset win in the Delaware Senate primary. Karl Rove, as you remember, publicly criticized her, saying she was, quote, "nutty," making nutty statements in the past, he said.
But many Republicans are -- as you said -- changing their tune. In fact, GOP chairman, Michael Steele, tells our John King the naysayers, in his words, need to stop it, adding how you can claim defeat before you even attempt victory. And Sarah Palin who just endorsed Christine O'Donnell days before her primary, took issue with Karl Rove's comment, saying he, quote, "needs to buck up" and, quote, "realize that the time for primary debate is over," and that it is now time for unity.
And even Rush Limbaugh entered the fray, saying Republicans who are talking about O'Donnell's baggage need to realize that voters around the country think they've got baggage, too.
CHETRY: Right. And, you know, and as Rove went on to say, it's more of a referendum on what the voters don't think that they're, you know, representative -- I mean, she -- lose as a sitting congressman, they didn't think that they necessarily had any trust in him. But he has some pretty harsh things to say about Christine O'Donnell. He said that she had, quote, "serious character problems." He went on to say, why did she mislead voters about her college education, serious questions about how she makes her living? Why didn't she sue a well-known conservative think tank? I mean, he went on to say he doesn't think that Republicans can win it. Win that seat.
ACOSTA: Right, and there were other conservative voices in the days leading up to this primary who were slamming on the brakes, saying Christine O'Donnell can't win the general election because of all of these problems that she's had over the years. And, you know, essentially, Sarah Palin and, you know, Rush Limbaugh and those folks, were saying, hold on a second. We don't want these establishment Republicans coming, perhaps, from the moderate or liberal sides of the Republican Party representing the GOP, you know -- you know, folks who are out there anymore.
So, they want to see more purity in the Republican Party, and they think Christine O'Donnell will help bring that.
GRIFFIN: I just find it amazing. I mean, Karl Rove. He didn't get elected. The voters didn't vote for Karl Rove.
ACOSTA: Right.
GRIFFIN: She got the votes. So -- I mean, is there a power shift going on, Jim, in Washington, D.C., where, basically, that whole political industry is looking outside going -- oh, my gosh, the future does not look bright? I mean, Rove makes money in politics.
ACOSTA: Right. There is a big shift going on. And essentially, establishment Republicans like Karl Rove are either going to have to play along, get along, or they're going to find themselves sort of out in the cold.
And, you know, that night, that primary night that Christine O'Donnell won, there were those rumblings -- Jessica Yellin reporting these rumblings that perhaps she wouldn't get any money from Republican leaders. Well, the very next day, John Cornyn who is in charge of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign committee that gets Republican senators elected, got behind her and sent money her way. Mitt Romney sent money her way.
So, you know, this is an example of how things can change very quickly overnight in politics. And it doesn't help very much -- or it doesn't hurt very much when Sarah Palin comes in and says, hey, guys, knock it off.
And it does -- it does speak to who's in charge of the Republican Party right now. You know, the Democrats are saying this is the party of Palin, Rove, Glenn Beck, those types. Those are the voices who did come out of the woodwork to Christine O'Donnell's defense. And she raised a ton of money yesterday. So, this debate is going to continue on for Republicans.
Democrats love the fact that this is happening, and they're hoping that this infighting will continue. Just want to throw out one ticker item that's out there. A new CNN/"TIME"/Opinion Research poll shows the Senate majority leader who's running for reelection out in Nevada, his Republican challenger, Sharron Angle, who is also a Tea Party favorite, they're both in a dead heat, 42 percent backing Angle, 41 percent supporting Reid.
And we mentioned this yesterday -- the DNC, they have this new Web site out saying that they've got a new slogan "Change That Matters." You know, what matters is who wins these races out there.
And if Sharron Angle can somehow pull off this upset over Harry Reid out in Nevada, you're going to have folks like Sarah Palin, like, you know, these more conservative types in the Republican Party like Rush Limbaugh saying, see, we told you so. Go with where the energy is. Go with where the enthusiasm is and that's where the Tea Party is right now.
CHETRY: Yes, it's interesting. Quickly, what could be the tipping point if you're talking neck and neck in Nevada?
ACOSTA: You know, I -- I think it's the economy. You know, Harry Reid has been hoping that all of these problems that Sharron Angle has had, making various statements along the way, will hurt her in the end. But, in the end, voters -- they go to the polls with their pocketbooks in mind. And, you know, Harry Reid is going to be very lucky to eke this out in the end.
There is -- I think there's some new data -- economic data coming out today that once again shows Nevada is the -- has the highest foreclosure rate in the country. You know, voters aren't going to put that out of their minds and just focus on a few things that Sharron Angle has said that perhaps raise eyebrows out in Nevada. They're going to be thinking about what matters in their lives.
GRIFFIN: Yes.
ACOSTA: So, you know, that poll right there, even after all of that tough press Sharron Angle has had, to show that race that close or showing her ahead has got to be very worrying for the Reid campaign.
GRIFFIN: Yes. All right, Jim, thanks a lot for that.
And, remember, for the latest political news anytime, check out our political ticker, CNN.com/ticker.
CHETRY: Coming up on Most News in the Morning: we're taking a closer look at a decades' old gas line that caused a San Bruno explosion and fire. Now, we're learning that the utility company known as PG&E was given money to repair it. However, they used it for something else. Dan Simon investigates -- next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. Thirty- nine minutes past the hour now. Three people are still missing in San Bruno, California, almost a week after a gas explosion and fireball that incinerated 37 homes and killed at least four people. Well, now, there's new evidence this morning that the gas company knew these people may have been living on a ticking time bomb, even raised their rates to fix a section of that pipe nearby.
Dan Simon has the latest on the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kiran and Drew, we've learned that a nearby portion of the pipeline that exploded last week was scheduled to be replaced a couple of years ago. PG&E, the utility, got $5 million to do the work but it never happened.
(voice-over): The line that exploded last week was lay down in 1948. It was so old that for safety reasons, Pacific Gas and Electric made plans to replace a section of it in South San Francisco just a couple miles away. In 2007, it got rate increases to do the work. According to a consumer watchdog group, PG&E got $5 million for the project, but the group called TURN, The Utility Reform Network, says it never happened.
MIKE FLORIO, SENIOR ATTORNEY, TURN: The money is spent on what they call higher-priority work.
SIMON (on camera): And what was that?
FLORIO: Well, you can't track the dollars one by one. But we do know that they spent $62 million more on management incentive bonuses than they had forecasted in 2009.
SIMON (voice-over): Mike Florio is a senior attorney for the watchdog. He says PG&E spent the money dedicated to replace the pipeline. So, it is now seeking rate increases again -- another $5 million to replace the same stretch of pipeline.
(on camera): And how do you know this?
FLORIO: Because it's right in the documentation they file with the PUC to support the rate cases. You know, it's -- if you dig deep enough into these big, thick documents, this is what you find.
SIMON (voice-over): The California Public Utilities Commission or PUC is deciding whether to go with PG&E's request. Those documents provided by CNN by TURN say that section of pipe ranks in the top 100 for the highest risk of failure.
The PG&E documents also say if the replacement of the pipe does not occur, risks associated with this segment will not be reduced.
High-value natural gas lines snake through the San Bruno neighborhood. PG&E hasn't disclosed exactly where the problematic line is. But as we discovered, much of the line runs right through residential areas. (on camera): This is another large section of pipeline. This one is about a mile away from where the explosion happened. It is also feet away from many homes.
The location of pipelines like this are generally kept secret to literally prevent terrorists from coming in and blowing them up. So, it's possible that people might be living next to them and not even know it.
(voice-over): The only way to tell may be from these yellow sidewalk markers that, for example, are used to alert construction crews of danger.
According to PG&E, it won't be until 2013 now until that section of pipe it identified a few years ago will be replaced.
FLORIO: If they would have fixed that section that they said they wanted to fix maybe they would have found something that would have led them to look a mile or two south of there. We don't know that. What we do know is: the project was slated for 2009. It didn't get done. And now, they're proposing to do it again in 2013.
SIMON (on camera): PG&E provided us with a statement and I'm going to read it in its entirety. It says, quote, "PG&E is committed to performing the work necessary to assure the safety of its gas transmission system. Accordingly, PG&E has constantly prioritizing its projects using the most recent up to date information available.
In this particular case, PG&E did identify this line section as being a high priority project in its 2008 gas transmission rate case filing. Subsequent to that filing, PG&E performed and External Corrosion Direct Assessment in 2009 and based on the updated assessment and the reassurance it provided us, we rescheduled the project accordingly. PG&E spent more on its gas transmission capital project than authorized for the period 2008 and 2009."
So PG&E not denying the basic facts of its story, it's just saying that it rescheduled things based upon its priorities.
Kiran and Drew, back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: All right. Dan Simon, thanks.
Coming up on 44 minutes after the hour, still to come on the Most News in the Morning, Rob is going to have the morning's travel forecast. That's right after this break. Let's go.
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CHETRY: Beautiful shot this morning. Great music as the sun comes up over New York City. Fifty-eight degrees right now. It's clear, beautiful, September day. A little bit later, going up to a beautiful 76. Nice day to chill in Central Park.
GRIFFIN: Yes, but don't smoke. Forty-eight minutes after the hour. Let's check in with Rob Marciano with the travel forecast. Rob, I know a couple people heading to Jamaica. I don't know.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes?
MARCIANO: What do you think?
MARCIANO: Not too bad. Not too bad. Cancun actually not bad either. The storm Karl made its way all south with Cancun now heading across into the Bay of Campeche and into the Gulf of Mexico. This is going to strengthen back to hurricane status likely.
It's 50-mile-an-hour winds right now and certainly has brought a fair amount of rainfall and wind to parts of the Yucatan. Here's the forecast track bringing into the northern parts of Mexico late Saturday into early Sunday -- or actually, probably during the day on Saturday is when we'll see this happen as a category 1 storm.
So, they'll get beat up a little bit with this. As far as a little bit closer to home, we do have some thunderstorms that are rolling throughout the Great Lakes. This is what it did yesterday. In parts of Kansas, some storm chasers running these cells down in (INAUDIBLE) boom.
Look at hail there. We got reports of hale the size of softballs and that will certainly do some damage to your windshield. Also, numerous tornadoes touching down. Ten reports of that.
We will see some severe weather all probably to not that extent today across parts of the Great Lakes and into the Ohio River Valley. May be getting into the mid-Atlantic at some point later on over the next 36 to 48 hours. Here's Igor. Just want to show this because it's still a category 4 storm.
But it's likely going to be a fish storm. It will affect Bermuda because that's the only land mass that it will affect. So, if you're traveling to Bermuda, just maybe hold off another half a day until we nail down this track. Back to you, guys, in New York.
GRIFFIN: All right, Rob.
CHETRY: All right. We'll hold off. I didn't have any plans to go to Bermuda.
GRIFFIN: I wish I had plans to go to Bermuda. Storm or no storm.
CHETRY: Drew, about 10 minutes until the top of the hour and coming up, an unlikely hero disrupts a planned Koran burning in Texas. Jeanne Moos talk to the 20-something skateboarder who made a quick getaway.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GRIFFIN: One empty chair this morning back there. Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. It is 53 minutes, almost 54 past the hour and that means it is time for the Moos News in the Morning.
CHETRY: And proof that it takes a village to get this thing on the air.
GRIFFIN: Yes. It's part of that.
CHETRY: You know, did you hear the one about the skateboarder and the Koran? This is a dude who's an unlikely hero after he stopped a book burning, and in the process, he coined a particular phrase we'll probably be hearing a lot. Here's Jeanne Moos.
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JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two words you won't expect to find in the same sentence "dude" and "Koran" words uttered by this 23-year-old skateboarder as he snatched the Koran away from under a radical Christian threatening to burn it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sneak up behind him and took his Koran. He sticks up about burning the Koran. I was like, dude, you have no Koran and ran off.
MOOS: Ran off to his skateboard and took off. Now, his line has taken off.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was like dude you have no Koran.
MOOS: Now Jacob Isom (ph) is being duded to death. Dude, you are a hero. You rule, dude. God bless you, dirty hippie.
VOICE OF JACOB ISOM, SNATCHED KORAN: They agree like way to go what you did, and they make fun of my hair and stuff that cracks me up.
MOOS: Jacob works in a pizza shop and aspires to host a cooking show.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jake make cheesecake. Let's go.
MOOS: Jacob went to the "burn a Koran" event in Amarillo, Texas, to protest it. Demonstrators chanted at the guy threatening to burn the Muslim holy book. Protesters put their hands on the grill to prevent the burning, and Jacob pretended he was one of the burners standing behind their leader.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: what if someone burned the bible.
DAVID GRISHAM, ORGANIZED ANTI-KORAN EVENT: Let them do it. It's a free country.
MOOS: Seconds later, Jacob snatched the Koran which had already been doused with lighter fluid. Watch again behind the organizer's back. GRISHAM: (INAUDIBLE) because I'm not afraid of that.
MOOS: Jacob gave the book to a Muslim.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some brave young gentleman on a skateboard.
MOOS: Jacob describes himself as agnostic. Some described him as a thief to which Jacob says --
ISOM: Somebody is going to like purchase all the materials to make a bomb., and I'm going to steal it from them before they put their bomb together and blow it up. Does that make me a thief?
MOOS (on-camera): As for the skateboarder on which Jacob made his getaway, guess where that ended up --
MOOS (voice-over): Where else, eBay. We're not even sure Jacob uttered the exact words now plastered on a T-shirt. It sounds more like "it's called the stolen Koran."
MOOS (on-camera): Does this whole, "dude, you have no Koran" line remind you of anything?
MOOS (voice-over): Remember this guy?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't tase (ph) me, bro.
MOOS: Jacob wasn't tased (ph), but he did seem a little dazed.
ISOM: What radio station is this?
MOOS: No, it's not the radio, it's CNN.
ISOM: Oh, I'm talking to CNN right now?
MOOS: Yes, Jacob.
ISOM: Wow.
MOOS: The Koran didn't ignite, but Jacob sure is burning up the internet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dude, you have no Koran.
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dude, you have no Koran.
MOOS: New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: He's adorable.
GRIFFIN: But I mean, he didn't say it at the time. He said it's a stolen Koran. CHETRY: Yes.
GRIFFIN: I like accuracy, dude.
CHETRY: Yes. How about the glasses? How about the glasses? I mean, that aged him 20 years.
GRIFFIN: Yes, he needs a makeover.
Anyway, top stories coming your way after the break, dude.
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