Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Obama Vows "Direct Action" on ISIS; Grandmother of 18 Hooked on Heroin; American Mom Begs ISIS to Let Son Live

Aired August 27, 2014 - 10:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

The death of Douglas McAuthur McCain, the American killed in Syria while fighting for ISIS is renewing fears that not only are Americans helping militants overseas but that they could be returning to the United States to launch attacks within our borders.

It is also sparking questions about how this brutal group ISIS could amass so much power, taking over large parts of northern Iraq including key cities and oil fields while the United States seemed to be unaware of its rise.

Here to talk about that, Republican Senator Dan Coates of Indiana and Lee Hamilton, the former co-chair of the 9/11 Commission. Welcome, gentlemen.

SEN. DAN COATES (R), INDIANA: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much for being here. Lee, I want to start with you. Given the U.S. experiences on 9/11 and with al Qaeda, how is ISIS' rise possible?

LEE HAMILTON, CO-CHAIR, 9/11 COMMISSION: Well, it's pretty hard to explain, actually. I think several factors contributed to it. This is a region in enormous turmoil. Everywhere you look, America has problems. There is great division, sectarian, religious, ethnic divisions, war lords all over the place, enormous chaos in the region. It is not possible to cover everybody, every group, everywhere all the time.

U.S. intelligence has remarkable capabilities, but there isn't any doubt that ISIS kind of surprised us and they have become much more of a power than we would have anticipated a few months ago. It also relates to the structure of ISIS. ISIS is a very decentralized organization. You don't have a headquarters. Until recently, we didn't even know who the leaders were. So it's not an easy intelligence target to hit.

You mention they have taken over a vast amount of territory and they have but it's mostly desert. There's only been a few targets that they have succeeded at. And we need to know a lot more about them than we do now. We've been slow to get there but I think we're getting there pretty fast to learn a lot about this (inaudible) group.

COSTELLO: I hope so. Senator, you say it's likely that ISIS is already within the United States. If that's true, what steps should our government be taking now?

COATES: Well, first of all I appreciate the comments of Lee Hamilton, a great friend and colleague with a wealth of experience in terms of foreign policy issues and I plan on drawing on him as we try to work through this tangled mess of things in the Middle East.

And he's right. It's just overwhelming in terms of the problems and the policies that have to be enacted to give us some kind of a strategy as to how best to address this. The -- your direct question, however, is what do we do about those United States citizens that have ended up over there fighting for ISIS and have entree -- easy entree back to the United States.

I think we have to look very carefully at our visa waiver program in terms of how it's currently constructed. And to find a way in which we can at least address those that we know and those that we suspect. And they need to be treated in a different way in terms of entry to the United States, more security, more testing and checking at the entry points to protect ourselves. Britain and London has the same -- France, German -- these countries have the same problem. And it's something that we need to work together on, I think, with a coordinated policy.

The death of Douglas McAuthur McCain, the American killed in Syria while fighting for ISIS is renewing fears that not only are Americans helping militants overseas but that they could be

COSTELLO: And what you are talking about, Senator, just to be clear so if an American is traveling to Syria, for example, when they come back, they should be -- undergo extra security at the airport?

COATES: That's what I'm thinking. If we can identify those, and I think we have to be aware of the ISIS threat and take it seriously, that they are bringing it to our shores. We need to be aware of that and put the protections in.

Visa waiver is a way to avoid a lot of that check in security for people who come from certain countries or hold citizenship in these countries. And I don't know the exact answer to this. It expedites travel of course, but in another way we now face a significant threat here in the United States and we'll have to find a way to separate out that examination before we allow people back into the United States that we suspect might have a connection over there with ISIS.

COSTELLO: And Lee, many analysts say that the United States under estimated the threat of ISIS. Why do you suppose that happened? We know that the United States perhaps under estimated the strength of al Qaeda because, you know, the CIA didn't share information with our branches of government. Is the same sort of thing happening now with ISIS?

HAMILTON: These are very difficult intelligence targets. Did we underestimate them? Yes, of course we did. Were there a lot of mistakes made? I don't really know.

But keep in mind there are literally hundreds, if not thousands of groups in this region all of whom had their own axes to grind and this one was able -- ISIS was able to put together the components, the money, the skills, the manpower, fairly quickly, and we were slow to catch it. But we have caught it now, and the important thing now is what should our policy be?

Dan Coates who I respect and admire said correctly that we really don't have a strategy at this point as to how to deal with them. What kind of resources are we prepared to put into the effort in that region to deter, to contain, to eliminate, to defeat ISIS. I've heard those words used by everybody. We're all over the place in trying to describe what our policy is.

That needs to be focused and we need to make up our mind how we're going to deal with this threat. Not just in the United States, as Dan was talking about, but in the region itself.

COSTELLO: So Senator, you heard what Lee says. We have to decide what resources we're willing to use to fight ISIS and that may include boots on the ground. Would you be in favor of that?

COATES: You know, there's a number of things that need to be done but the first thing has to be a clarity of what our strategy is going to be. This has to come from the President in the executive branch. Congress -- it should be brought to Congress and talked about. And Congress I think needs to give approval to whatever plan is proposed. We don't know what that plan is. There is a lot of confusion going on here in terms of how we should best respond and we're waiting for the executive branch, the president, the commander in chief, to bring us something, and so that we can discuss this, so we can evaluate it. And I think he needs the support of the American people if we're going to be successful with this and I would urge the White House and the President to do this as quickly as possible.

COSTELLO: Senator, I'm sure you are well aware of how -- partisan our politics have be come. And there are some who say, "So the president goes to congress and explains his plan and congress won't do very much because midterms are coming up and they won't want to take a stand. It will turn into a game of political football?

COATES: I hope that is not the case. "This is a situation that's A Direct Threat To United States; To our allies this is something that she'll -- this is something that she'll rise above politics. We've done that before following 9/11. We can do it again. We're looking at something very serious threat to the health and safety of the American people and to our allies. We need to coordinate with them and we need to have Congress rise above the political even though it's closed to an election; and do the right thing here for the future of America.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much, Dan Coates and Lee Hamilton. I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COSTELLO: All this week, CNN is looking at deadly fixes, they affect people from different backgrounds like a Denver woman who seemed like she had it all -- a good job, eight children, 18 grandchildren. But for years she could not go a day without getting a hit of heroin sometimes meeting her dealers with her grandkids in the car.

She tells CNN's Ana Cabrera her heroin story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): This park is where you would pick up?

CYNTHIA SCUDO, HEROIN ADDICT: This is it. One of them.

CABRERA: How often?

SCUDO: Probably twice a week.

CABRERA (voice over): Cynthia was an all-American mom of eight with a deep dark secret.

(on camera): Did you care who was around?

SCUDO: Nope.

CABRERA: Never worried?

SCUDO: I was thinking about one thing and that was heroin.

CABRERA (on camera): Hooked on heroin for nearly a decade.

SCUDO: In the beginning it was a feel good. At the end, it was black.

CABRERA: It started innocently enough. She had pain in her hip, scar tissue perhaps from multiple c-sections. A doctor prescribed oxycontin, but in just two weeks, Scudo was addicted.

SCUDO: By the time I got to the second doctor, she said you are taking enough for three adult men.

CABRERA (on camera): Are doctors too quick to prescribe a pain killer.

DR. PATRICK FEHLING, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: Some of them definitely.

CABRERA: Addiction specialist Dr. Patrick Fehling says what happened to Scudo is not uncommon and neither is the jump from prescription meds to heroin.

FEHLING: They act on the exact same parts of the brain. They cause reinforcement, they cause euphoria.

CABRERA (voice over): But heroin is much cheaper. One oxycontin can cost $80 on a street. $100 worth of heroin could last Scudo up to three days. Scudo crisscrossed Colorado to meet with drug dealers -- at parks, strip malls, sometimes with her grandchildren in the car.

SCUDO: This is a good place to pick up because we've got sides of houses here, fences.

CABRERA: This mom and grandmom in her mid-40s at the time didn't shoot heroin like some addicts do, she smoked it.

SCUDO: And I would drive with my knee, pull the foil in one hand, a straw in my mouth, a lighter in the other. And I would be driving down I-70 going 65 miles an hour smoking heroin.

CABRERA: Driven by the drug for nine years, Scudo thought she was destined to die a drug addict until a wake up one day when she looked in the mirror.

SCUDO: I was a skeleton. I had this lovely green glow going, so I knew my liver was shutting down. The skin was hanging -- literally hanging off my body. Something about that moment when I saw myself triggered something in my head. Oh, home away from home.

CABRERA (on camera): What's going through your mind?

SCUDO: Chaos, hope for the first time in a long time.

CABRERA: That's what was happening when you first got here?

SCUDO: Yes. I knew I couldn't do it by myself and I didn't know how to do it.

CABRERA (voice over): Scudo was in rehab for 33 days. This was her intake picture.

SCUDO: Hell -- I threw up every 15 minutes. I would have to live in the shower with water temperature of 120 degrees to burn the skin to not feel the pain in my back.

CABRERA: The physical withdrawal was just the first hurdle. She has worked through a 12-step recovery. It's been over three years. No relapses, and Scudo now 55 and a grandmother of 18 has a new appreciation for life.

SCUDO: The only way I'm going to stay clean and sober is to remember where I came from.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: That was CNN's Ana Cabrera reporting for us.

You can find out much more on the deadly web of addictions. Just go to CNN.com/deadlyfix.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. We're just getting word that a military jet has crashed in western Virginia, just about 50 miles west of Stanton, Virginia. Right near the border with West Virginia. It crashed apparently in the mountains that separate the two states, Virginia and western Virginia. We don't have much more information than that.

If it was a military jet, it is possible the pilot could have ejected. We just don't know right now. Let's check in Corinne Geller, she's with the Virginia State Police. Corinne, what else can you tell us about the crash?

CORINNE GELLER, VIRGINIA STATE POLICE: at this time we still have Virginia state police with the assistance of the sheriffs office trying to reach the crash sight. We've got a visual of heavy smoke coming from the mountain in Deerfield community but that's a county so. We still have crews trying to get to the actual wreckage to confirm what kind of aircraft has crashed.

COSTELLO: So you are not sure at this point whether it was a military aircraft or civilian.

GELLER: Until we actually get to the scene and to confirm the exact aircraft we prefer not to make any statements at this time. Right now, we got folk that are looking to get up to the side of the mountain, we've got aviation, state police helicopters up there doing the best to get to the scene as quickly as possible with the hopes that we may find survivors associated with the crash.

COSTELLO: How difficult will it be to get to this possible crash site? How high up in the mountains are we talking about?

GELLER: I'm not quite sure. I'm actually en route myself. But I'm not like sure which mountain what we've got double -- like there was the national park. That's very high elevations with different mountains in the area. It's heavily wooded, rural area. No cell phone coverage in that area. It can be a little difficult to try to get there. We'll be working with whatever state and local resources we can deploy to get to the scene as quickly as possible.

COSTELLO: All right. Thank you so much, Corrine Geller with the Virginia state police. Of course, I'll pass it along to you. I want to get more information about this military jet crash.

Of course, I'll pass it along to you. Got to take a break. I'll be back with much more in the newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. For days now we've been telling you about the American journalist Stephen Sotloff being held by ISIS terrorists. He can be seen kneeling next to this terrorist covered in black. This image appeared on that same video where the American journalist James Foley was beheaded.

Just moments ago, on Al-Arabia television, Stephen Sotloff's mother made a plea for his life -- listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHIRLEY SOTLOFF, MOTHER OF STEPHEN SOTLOFF: I am sending this message to you, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi al-Kurashi, al-Hussein -- the Caliph of the Islamic Faith.

I am Shirley Sotloff. My son Stephen is in your hands. Stephen is a journalist who made a journey to cover the suffering of Muslims at the end of tyrants. Stephen is a loyal and generous son, brother and grandson. He's an honorable man and has always tried to help the weak.

We have not seen Stephen for over a year and we miss him very much. We want to see him home safe and sound and to hug him.

Since Stephen's capture, I have learned a lot about Islam. I've learned that Islam teaches that no individual should be held responsible for the sins of others. Stephen has no control over the actions of the U.S. government. He's an innocent journalist.

I've always learned that you, the caliph, can grant amnesty. I ask you to please release my child. As a mother, I ask your justice to be merciful and not punish my son for matters he has no control over. I ask you to use your authority to spare his life and to follow the example set by the Prophet Mohammed who protected people of the book. I want what every mother wants, to live to see her children's children. I plead with you to grant me this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Shirley Sotloff pleading for her son's life. You know the Sotloff family hasn't talked about Mr. Sotloff's capture, they wanted to keep things quiet to keep him safe. When he appeared in that video, it certainly forced their hand.

Even after he appeared in that video, the Sotloff family tried to keep things quiet. They tried to urge his friends not to talk. According to the New York Times thought, His friends insisted on talking about Mr. Sotloff more than 8,100 people according to the New York Times have signed a petition on the White House Web site and that was created on the same day the ISIS video was posted.

They were urging Mr. Obama to take immediate action to save Stephen's life by any means necessary and as we've told you the United States doesn't negotiate with terrorists, nor does it provide ransom money so Stephen Sotloff remains in captivity.

And we learned this morning by looking at Twitter of all things that ISIS is using Stephen Sotloff's death as sort of a bargaining chip and there's a hash tag and I won't repeat it because I really don't want to give them -- you know what I'm talking about.

I'm sorry? Who do we have available? Paul Cruikshank. Thank you very much. Paul, sorry about that -- I couldn't -- too my people were talking in my ear but I'm glad you're here. Do you think that Shirley Sotloff's plea will make a difference?

PAUL CRUIKSHANK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the prospects for this hostage, unfortunately, are pretty dire. They have already executed one of the hostages. They made it clear that they want to retaliate for U.S. Strikes -- those U.S. Strikes haven't stopped. They have just intensified and now it looks the United States may launch strikes as well in Syria which is ISIS' stronghold. That may well be a red line for ISIS where we see even more retaliation from the group.

COSTELLO: You know, and Stephen Sotloff's friends are pleading with President Obama to do something. But is there anything the President can do?

CRUIKSHANK: Well, It's going to be very difficult. They have already tried one rescue attempt to get these hostages. That failed. The hostages weren't there when they were expecting them to be there. So likely this group is taking huge security precautions in terms of keeping these hostages away from any potential U.S. rescue mission.

COSTELLO: All right. Thank you so much -- CNN's terrorism analyst Paul Cruikshank. Thanks for being quick on the draw. I certainly appreciate it. And thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.

"@THISHOUR" with Berman and Michaela starts now.