Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Major Offensive in Afghanistan; Senator Evan Bayh not Seeking Re-Election; McCain's GOP Challenger
Aired February 15, 2010 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for your top of the hour reset. I'm Tony Harris in the CNN NEWSROOM.
It is 9:30 p.m. in Afghanistan, where U.S. Marines are leading a major coalition operation against the Taliban. An assessment from National Security Adviser General James Jones.
It is 10:00 a.m. in Arizona, where any minute now former Congressman J.D. Hayworth will announce he is running for John McCain's Senate seat.
It is 9:00 a.m. in Washington state, where a 911 operator gets a call to save the life of his own baby boy. Can you imagine?
Let's get going here.
U.S. Marines are leading a massive coalition operation to force the Taliban out of southern Afghanistan. Our Atia Abawi is embedded with the troops, she tells us the Taliban are not backing down.
CNN's Frederik Pleitgen is also in Afghanistan. He reports from Kabul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It started with a massive air assault. Thousands of mostly British and American troops as well as Afghan soldiers landing deep in Taliban territory. But the insurgents had prepared and riddled the area with homemade bombs and landmines.
MAJ. GEN. GORDON MESSENGER, BRITISH MILITARY SPOKESMAN: The IED is the biggest threat to our troops, and it's something which these guys have been living with, you know, minute by minute.
PLEITGEN: Still, NATO says the Taliban have been putting up less of a fight than expected. Dozens of insurgents have already been killed.
MAJ. GEN. NICK CARTER, NATO COMMANDER FOR SOUTHERN AFGHANISTAN: It would appear we've caught the insurgents on the hop. He appears to be completely dislocated and a very impressive operation so far.
PLEITGEN: Hundreds of fighters could still be in the area, waiting to strike back. So far, the force, led by the Marines, has seized tons of explosives, weapons and ammunition.
Marjah is a swath of agricultural land in Helmand Province. Under Taliban control for years, it became a breeding ground for insurgents and poppy cultivation has flourished with drug money funding the insurgency.
Now on day three of the operation, the Marines say they are still facing scattered pockets of resistance as they expand their control over the area. The goal is to get an Afghan administration in place as fast as possible, to provide services to the people of Marjah and convince them to turn their backs on the Taliban.
GEN. STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL, COMMANDER, U.S. FORCES-AFGHANISTAN: President Karzai approved the conduct of this operation. He gave us some very specific guidance, and that guidance was to continue to protect the people of Afghanistan. And so this operation has been done with that in mind.
PLEITGEN: While the fighting may be over within a few days, the U.S. says only the coming months will show whether the Afghan government can actually hold on to the territory that was under Taliban control for so long.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kabul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And you will hear more about the situation in Afghanistan from National Security Adviser General James Jones in just a couple of minutes.
Other big stories that we're following right now.
Churchgoers duck for cover -- churchgoers, yes -- after three gunmen open fire. Video from inside a San Francisco area church shows some of the chaos and panic.
Can you believe this? Two teenagers were wounded in the shooting. They are expected to fully recover. Police say they are looking into whether someone was targeted.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BISA FRENCH, RICHMOND, CALIFORNIA, POLICE: And this is in the middle of church service, 12:30 in the afternoon. Very brazen attack.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you capital be safe at church, where can you be safe at?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a church. You know, to me it's like they committed a cardinal sin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Man. A professor, wife and mother now an accused killer. Amy Bishop Anderson faces capital murder charges in Friday's shooting at the University of Alabama Huntsville. It is not her first brush with the law.
She shot and killed her brother more than 23 years ago. An investigation found it to be an accident, but records disappeared and a lot of questions remain.
Some of her students say they didn't know about her past and she didn't seem on edge.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KOURTNEY LATTIMORE, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE: She didn't seem like, you know, she would do anything like this. She wasn't, you know, I don't want to say crazy, but it wasn't anything like that.
She didn't seem that way. She was a teacher. You know, you went to class and asked questions.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Never (INAUDIBLE)?
LATTIMORE: Not at all. No, not at all. She made jokes and everything. She was a normal professor.
LAUREN BREEDEN, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE: She was known for her difficulty, and there was no way around taking her. Like, everybody was like, gosh, now I have to take Bishop.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK. We will hear more on this story, this case from a "Boston Globe" reporter a bit later this hour.
Two commuter trains have collided head-on in a Brussels suburb. Belgian officials now say at least 18 people are dead, 55 injured. We're told those numbers may not be final. No confirmation yet on the cause of the crash.
We are waiting to learn whether a judge rules today on the fate of 10 Americans detained in Haiti. The 10 are being held on child abduction charges. They were arrested trying to take children across the border without proper documentation. Haiti's deputy attorney general says he will make his recommendation on bail to the judge today.
Now more on our top story, offensive in Afghanistan. National Security Adviser General James Jones says the strategy is different this time because Afghan forces are more involved.
Here's part of his conversation with our Candy Crowley on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEN. JAMES JONES (RET.), NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: It's an important moment in time because this is the first time that we really have put together all of the elements of the president's new strategy and the directions that he gave to his commanders, and also the accommodations and discussions we've had with allies, 43 nations involved in the country. And what it does is bring together not only security operations, but also follow-on economic recovery packages, better governance at the local and regional level, a much bigger Afghan face on this.
I think six, seven months ago, we were operating with -- for every one U.S. soldier, we had, you know, maybe 10 U.S. soldiers, one Afghan. Now it's two Afghans for every one U.S. soldier. So, much more of an Afghan face on this. And before we even started this operation, we consulted with the local elders and the village leaders and received overwhelming approval for our goals.
CANDY CROWLEY, HOST, "STATE OF THE UNION": And isn't that, in fact, almost the second part of this operation is maybe more important, or at least has the longest lasting effect, and that is, after you've cleared the area, are you moving in essentially another government, another sort of way of life that you hope will take hold?
JONES: Well, instead of clearing the area and leaving, as we frequently did in the past, we now have -- our plans call for clearing the area, holding the area, and then providing some building for the people. Better security, better economic opportunity, better governance, more of an Afghan face, and then eventually transitioning to full Afghan sovereignty in those provinces.
So, what's going on in the south is really a big story, I think, because I think we will be successful. I think they have a very solid plan.
The president, Karzai, has endorsed it. And so we're all very anxious to see the results here. But I think that the other thing that your viewers would like to know is that at the integration, the highest levels in our structures now, we have a senior civilian and a senior military commander working side by side to make sure these things all work well together.
Now, I've been doing this for about five or six years. And this is the first time that I've seen this cohesion exist both at the national and international level that brings in what I call the elements of a three-legged stool -- security, economic recovery, and good governance and rule of law.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: One big-named senator may be calling it quits, and another gets a well-known challenger. What is happening under the Capitol dome?
First, though, our "Random Moment" in 60 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: You know, former coaching great Digger Phelps enjoyed two successful decades at Notre Dame. Now he's a respected -- respected? Highly respected, highly regarded ESPN college basketball analyst.
And today, he is our "Random Moment."
Apparently, Digger likes to dance with cheerleaders. Here he is getting down at the University of Kentucky's Rupp Arena over the weekend.
OK. So we thought this was just a one-off, got caught up in the spirit of it. But no, here's Digger again, almost a year ago, getting down with the cheerleaders at UC Berkeley.
Look at that.
Go Digger! It's your birthday.
It's our "Random Moment of the Day."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Add another name to the growing list of lawmakers not running for re-election -- Democratic Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana. A source close to Senator Bayh tells CNN that the senator will not run for a third time.
Bayh is a former governor. He was first elected to the Senate in 1998.
Let's get some insight now, because we need it, from CNN political analyst Gloria Borger. She is joining us from Washington.
Gloria, good to see you.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Good to see you.
HARRIS: What is going on here with Senator Bayh? Why this decision now? What can you tell us?
BORGER: Well, I think, according to my sources -- and first of all, I had tipped (ph) to Mark Preston of CNN who first broke this story. According to my sources, this is something that the senator has been thinking about, talking to people in Indiana for quite some time. But I spoke with someone very close to the senator this morning who said that the tipping point for him was really when the Senate could not get its act together on that Deficit Reduction Commission.
HARRIS: Yes. Yes.
BORGER: And Republicans voted against a commission that they had actually supported in the first place. He's a centrist, he's a fiscal conservative, and I think in many ways he may have felt out of step with the Senate, maybe even within his own party, although that's not what people close to him want to say. They say it's more just frustration with Washington itself.
HARRIS: That's what it sounds like, yes.
BORGER: Yes.
HARRIS: What does this mean, Gloria, for Democrats in Indiana?
BORGER: Well, it's really not good. There's a little bit of confusion right now about how much time they have to name folks who are going to run.
Some say it's a couple of days. Some say they can put it off. But what it does mean, you know, Evan Bayh was going to face a tough re-election like any incumbent because this is an anti-incumbent year. But Evan Bayh's very popular in the state of Indiana -- 61 percent approval rating, had $10 million or $12 million he could spend on a campaign. He was being challenged by former Republican senator Dan Coats.
So, you know, this is not good for Democrats. This is one seat that is now up in the air. They have five Democrats retiring in the Senate. So it's not terrific news for them.
HARRIS: Well, Evan Bayh, former governor of Indiana, do you think he's done --
BORGER: No.
HARRIS: -- or just taking a bit of a break and reassessing here?
BORGER: Well, if I had to guess, I would say that he is not done. I was told by someone else who's close to him that, while he was governor of that state, remember, from 1989 to 1997, don't forget the current Republican governor, Mitch Daniels, who's very popular, is also term-limited, which means that if Bayh decided to move his family back to Indiana, perhaps he could take another stab at the governor's mansion. You know, this is somebody, when you talk to him, he, I think, liked being a governor a lot more than he liked being a senator.
HARRIS: Well, you know, you're our senior political analyst for a reason. Can you take a stab what's going on and how tough really things are for incumbents right now across the country?
BORGER: Well, look, I think it's a terrible time for incumbents. There's a lot of anger out there.
All the polls show that people are angry with both parties in Washington. Some folks, however, are, now, because the Democrats have control of all the levers of government in Washington, are clearly going to blame the Democrats more. And so, you know, you see in this poll only Democrats, only Republicans, both parties 48 percent.
So, you know, people just think Washington is broken. And they may decide that they want to go back to checks and balances, which would be to have a Congress of a different party from the president. But they don't like what they see.
And to go back to Evan Bayh, here's a fellow who tried very hard to get this bipartisan Deficit Reduction Commission because Congress did not have the political will to reduce the deficit, because either you have to raise taxes or cut spending. None of them are great political choices. And when even that could not get done and voted on in the Senate, he told some friends, you know, what can I do?
HARRIS: Where do you go? How do you get this done?
And Gloria, that's good stuff.
Gloria Borger for us in Washington.
Good to see you, Gloria. Thank you.
A fellow Republican is challenging Senator John McCain for his seat. Former congressman J.D. Hayworth announcing his candidacy this hour. He is taking on Senator McCain in the August 24th Republican primary.
Hayworth bills himself as the consistent conservative. He and John McCain have traded jabs recently, each labeling the other a big spender.
Could John McCain's Senate seat really be in jeopardy? McCain is not taking the challenge from Hayworth lightly.
CNN's Casey Wian reports on the political fight.
Turn around here and look at that jerk right there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Nice to meet you. Turn around here and look at that jerk right there.
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A CNN photographer takes a ribbing from Senator John McCain at a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Phoenix. McCain is spending a lot of time in his home state, preparing for what looks like a tough primary fight against conservative Republican J.D. Hayworth, a six-term former U.S. congressman.
MCCAIN: I'm tenacious. I fight and I love a good campaign.
WIAN (on camera): The primary is more than six months away, but McCain is already spending an entire week campaigning here in Arizona. He's clearly taking his challenger seriously.
MCCAIN: Actually I started campaigning on November the 4th, right after I didn't succeed in the presidential campaign.
WIAN (voice-over): Hayworth says McCain is too liberal on government spending and illegal immigration.
(on camera): Why do you see yourself as the conservative alternative to John McCain?
J.D. HAYWORTH, FMR. CONGRESSMAN: Well, in Arizona, this has come from the fact that John -- and, look, we all think the world of John. John's place in history is secured, but John no longer represents the common sense conservative philosophy that most Arizonans share.
WIAN: Hayworth has ventured into a Republican committee meeting in a Phoenix suburb that has been a big stronghold for John McCain in elections past. Its voters like these that Hayworth is going to need to capture a seat in the Senate that McCain has held for nearly a quarter of a century.
HAYWORTH: I will stand four square against amnesty of any form.
WIAN (voice-over): Hayworth and McCain both lost their last elections to Democrats. Analysts say McCain has since moved to the right on several national issues.
(on camera): Is he doing it just for political purposes?
DAN NOWICKI, POLITICAL REPORTER, ARIZONA REPUBLIC: Well, I think it's safe to say that McCain coming out of the presidential race was concerned about his possible re-election. I think he was kind of expecting a challenge from the right, so he definitely did shift to the right.
WIAN: McCain's campaign staff is already up and running full speed. They've secured endorsements from two darlings of the Tea Party movement, including his former presidential campaign running mate Sarah Palin, and newly-elected Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown.
(voice-over): Casey Wian, CNN, Phoenix, Arizona.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And this programming note. Tomorrow, on "ANDERSON COOPER 360," its' the new do-or-die litmus test. Career politicians understand attack because many think they just don't get it. The revealing "AC 360" series asks if they are "Not Republican Enough." That is tomorrow night at 10:00 Eastern Time.
We are finding out more about the woman being accused of killing three faculty members of the University of Alabama-Huntsville. I will speak to a "Boston Globe" reporter about her history in Massachusetts.
That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Checking our top stories now.
U.S. Marines are leading a joint NATO/Afghan offensive against the Taliban in southern Afghanistan. Our Atia Abawi is embedded with the Marines. She says the Taliban are not backing down. The operation is the largest one since the start of the war. Two commuter trains collided head-on in Brussels. At least in a suburb there of Brussels. Belgian officials now say at least 18 people were killed, 55 were injured.
We're told those numbers may not be final. No confirmation yet on the cause of the crash.
A deadly shooting at the University of Alabama-Huntsville, and the suspect, a professor, has a violent past. Did anyone know? And how did she get a teaching job to begin with?
Donovan Slack reports for "The Boston Globe," and she's been looking into the background of Amy Bishop Anderson.
It's good to see you. Thanks for your time.
DONOVAN SLACK, "THE BOSTON GLOBE": No problem. Thanks for having me.
HARRIS: Well, let's talk about Amy Bishop Anderson. She shot and killed her brother in Massachusetts, what, 20 years ago? It was called an accident at the time.
What have you learned about that case?
SLACK: Well, you know, it's fascinating. Just in the last few days, since the horrible tragedy in Huntsville, police up here near Boston have now dredged up this case from 1986, and it was supposed to be an accidental shooting of her brother. But now police here are raising questions about whether that case was handled properly.
HARRIS: What do you mean by questions being raised here? What kinds of questions? It sounds like there was an investigation, and the investigation included that the shooting was accidental. So what are the new questions?
SLACK: Well, there's a couple of very serious problems with that. And one is that the police report from the initial incident is somehow missing. And the police chief himself, in the town where she grew up, a little town called Braintree, said, hey, this shouldn't have happened this way.
HARRIS: Well, police reports don't go missing. What are you finding out, Donovan? What are you learning?
SLACK: Well, they're now open an investigation into what happened to this police report. A separate report from the prosecutors in the case did rule it accidental, but there's a couple of really troubling factors, questions that are out there.
One is that she supposedly shot her brother in their home, and it was an accident. But then she ran outside, according to police now, and pointed the gun at someone else in an attempt to get a getaway car. That part of the case was not ruled an accident by the D.A. We don't even know if it was investigated. HARRIS: What does this woman's resume look like in the years after this accidental shooting of her brother? What are you finding out about those years?
SLACK: Well, it's fascinating, because she actually then turned into what many people are saying was a brilliant scientist. She went from that shooting, which she was 21 at the time. She then got her biology degree at Northeastern University, and then was accepted at Harvard University. And later, did a post-doctoral fellowship at Children's Hospital here in Boston.
But again, as we learned today, she was -- she and her husband were both questioned in a mail bombing case.
HARRIS: In 1993?
SLACK: That's right, against a Harvard professor. And they were prime suspects in the case. She was, certainly. And apparently the evidence was too circumstantial to bring charges at that time.
HARRIS: But she had some real issues with the person who was targeted here, correct?
SLACK: That's right. We're told by law enforcement officials and also witnesses that she was worried that this professor was going to give her a negative evaluation on her lab work.
HARRIS: Right. Right.
Well, Donovan, do we have a motive in the Huntsville case yet? And is it as simple as tenure was denied, the appeal went against her, and, you know, she allegedly went after a few of the members of the department with a gun? Is that too simplistic or is that close?
SLACK: You know, nothing is ever as it seems. And I imagine in the days going forward, we're going to see a lot more texture, a lot more different facets of this motive.
Yes, what we know right now is that she was really upset that she was denied tenure. Her husband told us yesterday that he's still searching for what this trigger was that set her off that happened, you know, on Friday, because he said she had been denied tenure several months ago.
HARRIS: Yes. And he's cooperating? The husband in this case is cooperating?
SLACK: All we know is that he was questioned by police at length and then released.
HARRIS: All right.
Donovan Slack writes for "The Boston Globe" and is following this case.
Donovan, good to see you. Appreciate it. Thanks for your time. SLACK: No problem. Thank you.
HARRIS: Let's get you now to the Weather Center and our Chad Myers.
((WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: I've got to tell you, for those of you still sort of nursing Valentine's Day hangovers, I am still getting a lot of responses to our blog entry on Friday. Are women too picky these days when it comes to creating their lists for Mr. Right?
I'll bring you more of the responses after the break.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They want the big diamond ring. Oh, so you got engaged. The first thing you want to see is see the ring.
Forget the ring. Tell me more about the guy you're going to be spending the rest of your life with. You know? It's the ring.
You see, if I get married, I'm not going to do any rings. So, any girls out there that want a big, flashy ring, you're not getting it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Oh, boy. This is pretty good.
Are women creating unreasonable lists when it comes to finding their Mr. Right? It is a question we posed before Valentine's Day weekend. And we're still getting lots of answers.
First, our informal poll on the streets.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you feel like today's girls are looking for Mr. Perfect?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, indeed. I think they're not willing to take someone's faults. They think it's too easy to give up and try someone new.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I think they need to come down on their standards a little bit if they want to meet their Mr. Right. You know? And first would be money, what kind of car they drive, you know, that kind of stuff, because that's usually -- when they find out, oh, so you're an actor, oh, so you work at a grocery store, oh, you know, they kind of push you to the side.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm looking for honesty, trustworthy. He has to be tall, too, and preferably with dark hair. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a short guy. And that's usually the first thing -- "You're kind of short." You're like, oh, OK. Thanks a lot.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I need someone that has a strong spiritual nature, that can connect to something a little higher than all of us. Trustworthy is big on my list.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is that hard to find?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, these days it is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you feel like women these days are looking for Mr. Perfect?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am.
They complain a lot, and men can't be perfect. There's a lot of good men out there. And you just have to work with what you've got.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: They complain a lot.
And here's what you blogged me. Wow.
From someone who calls himself Newsman22, "It seems as though women these days want the men they see on TV. A man who wakes up and just looks stunning. NO crust in the corner of his eye. A man who has ripped abs and bulging muscles. But they don't want to put anything into the relationship."
Sayako says, "I have a list of 74 requirements for my 'Mr. Perfect.' I first started writing it back when I was in junior high, and I've added several along the way. Number 72: He can't just be a good dancer, but be able to spin me around and do dips."
And from Jonny, "Late last year I got dumped. The following phrase kept running through my mind: 'I was willing to settle for her! Why the hell wasn't she willing to settle for me?!'"
Sorry, I botched that a little bit.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, Google rolled out a new social media site they thought would be a great idea. Well, it turns out they've lost quite a few friends because of it.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: You know it is being called a rare miscalculation for Google. The search giant released its new Buzz social networking service last week. Days later, a big apology and a promise to revamp. What's going on here? Stephanie Elam joining us from New York now.
And what's the bad buzz about Buzz, Stephanie?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Especially when you say it like that, Tony, Buzz, yes. Well, here's the buzz on this one.
Google launched the social networking site Buzz nearly a week ago and then almost immediately users were up in arms over concerns about privacy. Buzz is essentially meant to keep track of all the activity happening on Google and other social networking sites, similar to Facebook. But the sign up process led users to believe that Buzz was publicizing their private relationships. Sign up was basically voluntary.
If you use Google's e-mail service, Gmail that would be Gmail, obviously, Buzz just appeared and linked your activity with a list of other users. People don't necessarily want other contacts knowing who they are e-mailing. So, needless to say, that did not sit well with a lot of people.
So after all the brouhaha, Google is now backtracking. Apologizing in a blog post on Saturday, Google said it would no longer automatically subscribe users to follow the postings of their close Gmail contacts. Obviously this is a big deal for a company that's viewed as being very savvy when it comes to privacy issues.
HARRIS: Right. Right.
ELAM: On the other hand, Google is known for letting its users have a say in how new products evolve. So new product. Big changes right away, Tony.
HARRIS: Well, it also sounds like a pretty sizable win for Facebook. Is there a little gloating going on here?
ELAM: Well, a rivalry between Google and Facebook has been developing ever since Facebook sold its 1.6 percent stake to Microsoft a few years ago. And there are also rumors of Facebook unveiling a rival e-mail service. But in a statement, Facebook said it was, quote, "interested to see how Google Buzz progresses over time." It went on to say that it is generally supportive of technologies that make the web more social and the world more open. Facebook itself can't really act like they've never gone through this.
HARRIS: Right.
ELAM: They're no stranger to user backlash and quick changes like the one Google is experiencing over Buzz. Of course, none of those changes -- or those backlashes seem to have affected Facebook's rapid growth at all. But Google backing down just a little bit here.
HARRIS: Yes. And the market's closed today?
ELAM: But, yes, you don't want people to know.
HARRIS: No, you don't. No.
ELAM: What did you say? HARRIS: You really don't.
ELAM: I don't need everyone knowing who I'm e-mailing, yes.
But, yes, the markets are closed today. That's why we have no numbers to show you today and that's why we're talking about the buzz on Google.
HARRIS: OK, Stephanie, thank you.
Toyota's president apologizing personally to a Prius customer at a dealership in Tokyo this weekend. Akio Toyoda bowed several times to the owner. He said Toyota will do its -- can you imagine a CEO of one of the big financial companies doing anything like this? Well, forget about the bowing. Just apologizing. He said Toyota will do its best and to please continue to have faith in Toyota vehicles. The Prius is among Toyota vehicles that have had braking problems. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has received new complaints that bring to 34 the total number of alleged deaths in Toyota vehicles due to sudden acceleration.
Do released Gitmo detainees become terrorists? That question is causing some to call for the president's homeland security advisers to resign. We are digging deeper on our security desk.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: All right. Taking a look at our top stories now.
The military is making headway in southern Afghanistan slowly but surely. That update from CNN's Atia Abawi. She is embedded with U.S. Marines. They're part of the coalition's largest offensive against the Taliban since the start of the war.
Can you believe this? The scene inside a San Francisco area church. The two teens who were hit by the gunfire yesterday are expected to fully recover. Meantime, a manhunt is underway for three suspects. Police say they don't know why the church was hit, but they are looking into whether someone inside was targeted.
Two leading Republican senators are calling for the ouster of President Obama's chief counter-terrorism adviser. Homeland Security Correspondent Jeanne Meserve is following this story at CNN's security desk in Washington.
Jeanne, good to see you again. What is this dust-up all about?
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, you know, members of Congress have been riled up about John Brennan, the president's counter terrorism adviser in his handling of the underwear bomber. But now some new comments have got them even more agitated. It has to do with some comments Mr. Brennan made over the weekend at NYU, where he talked about the recidivism rate of people released from Guantanamo Bay. Recidivism meaning the number of people who have gone back to their previous activities, namely terrorism. Here's a bit of what Mr. Brennan said. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN BRENNAN, WHITE HOUSE COUNTERTERRORISM ADVISER: People sometimes use that figure, 20 percent, and say, oh my goodness, one out of five detainees return to some type of extremist activity. The American penal system, the recidivism rate is up in about 50 percent or so as far as return to crime. Twenty percent isn't that bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: Well, that really provoked Senator Lindsey Graham. He call that comment just astounding.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: Do you want someone in charge of counter terrorism who finds a 20 percent return to the fight rate as acceptable? He has lost my confidence and is the best evidence yet how disconnected this administration has come from the fact that we're at war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: Now, Senator Kit Bond has also called for Brennen's resignation. So has Congressman Peter King. But the White House, at this point, pushing back saying, this is not warranted. In fact, they called Senator Bond's attacks last week pathetic. A pathetic attack.
HARRIS: Wow.
MESERVE: Back to you, Tony.
HARRIS: Yes, and Jeanne, you're following another story just coming to the security desk. What's going on?
MESERVE: Yes, there's someone who's been picked up by the name of Abdul Alsali Aliden (ph), known as Barud (ph). He's an explosives expert with al Qaeda. This according to U.S. intelligence sources.
According to a website that CNN monitors that often posts communications from al Qaeda, they talk about the capture of this individual and say he was carrying the names and phone numbers of about 300 operatives. It urges those in the field to change their locations, to change their cell numbers. If all of this is correct, this certainly is a boon to U.S. intelligence efforts, Tony.
HARRIS: Yes. All right, our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve from our security desk in Washington.
Jeanne, appreciate it. Thank you.
NASA has extended its current mission at the International Space Station by a day. The crew from Endeavour will now return home on the 21st. Yesterday astronauts took their second space walk of this particular trip. They spent about five hours working on a new room of the space lab. We are back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK. Now time for some of the hottest topics trending on the web. It is what you are talking about today.
Let's start with one of the hot searches on Google. The phrase, "send in the clowns." Yes, it's the song we're talking about here. If have you been watching the Olympics, you'd know it's what the German figure skating team skated to in the pairs short program yesterday. They placed second in their clown costumes.
Also trending today from CNN.com, a post published Saturday to CNN's political ticker blog we thought was interesting -- Help wanted: Obama's twitterer. The group Organizing for America is looking for a social network's manager to post Facebook updates and tweets on behalf of the president of the United States. You need writing skills that are strong and personable and you need to be able to start immediately.
Got to tell you, President Obama's troubles with his domestic agenda may be undermining his efforts on the world stage. Foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty takes a look at the struggles the president faces here at home and abroad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Two costly wars, an economy still reeling, no health care reform yet, and a political upset in Massachusetts torpedoes his Senate super majority.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're trying to, you know, bring some change that you can believe in.
DOUGHERTY: With his change agenda bogged down at home, what hope is there for President Obama's change agenda abroad?
DOUG PAAL, CARNEGIE FOUNDATION FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: When American presidents get weak at home, it really does infect their ability to act abroad.
DOUGHERTY: In his first year, Mr. Obama visited 21 countries. His mantra, engagement, even with your enemies.
HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: It's almost hard to remember how poorly much of the world viewed the United States when President Obama came into office.
DOUGHERTY: The secretary of state says she sees a lot of positive trends. But the scorecard so far is mixed. Iran still hounds its opponents and defends its nuclear program, now boasting its enriching its own uranium. North Korea still won't return to nuclear talks. The Mideast peace process is stalled. Even the president's friends say America's credibility is on the line. KING ABDULLAH II, JORDAN: I personally believe that the president is extremely committed to it, but we also know that America is dealing with many other issues internally, health plan, other issues. Massachusetts was, I think, something that hit the news.
DOUGHERTY: But after the reset button was pressed with Russia, relations did improve. Moscow's helping the U.S. to pressure Iran. And it's close to a new arms control agreement with Washington. But in Beijing, cyber attacks against U.S. companies like Google, disputes over arms sales to Taiwan and a controversial visit to the White House this week by the Dalai Lama, have relations with China at a boil. Surprisingly, the administration does claim one success in a war, Barack Obama opposed.
JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am very optimistic about Iraq. I think it's going to be one of the great achievements of this administration.
DOUGHERTY: Ah, come again?
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Putting what was broken back together and getting our troops home, which we intend to do in August of this year.
DOUGHERTY (on camera): The president's defenders admit his engagement strategy hasn't changed Iran or North Korea's behavior yet. But they claim it has helped unite the international community by proving the U.S. was willing to go the extra mile before resorting to tougher measures.
Jill Dougherty, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: As the effort continues to rebuild lives in Haiti, there is now fear the country's culture may be lost. CNN's Christiane Amanpour will have that story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Last month's earthquake in Haiti took a terrible toll. Not only in terms of lives lost and people left homeless, but with the island nation's cultural legacy now lost in the rubble. CNN's Christiane Amanpour reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): For the first time since is the earthquake struck January 12th, Frank Louissaint is painting again.
FRANK LOUISSAINT, PAINTER (through translator): Inevitably, you will see elements in my work that will reflect this moment. There will be a combination before the 12th and after the 12th.
AMANPOUR: Louissaint is among Haiti's foremost painters. And he finished this painting, called "American Rice," just weeks before the earthquake brought in tons of real American rice.
LOUISSAINT: It expresses aid and some people may see it and think it predicted aid here. That's the beauty of art.
AMANPOUR: Some of Haiti's galleries, historic sites and art museums haven't fared as well. At the Nader Museum, Georges Nader surveys what's left of a family collection.
GEORGES NADER JR., GALLERY OWNER: We had about 12,000 paintings here. So I think, from what I've seen so far, we might be able to save between 2,000 to 3,000.
AMANPOUR: The museum's security cameras caught the moment the quake hit.
NADER: This was full of paintings.
AMANPOUR: Nader comes daily to salvage what he can.
NADER: This is Artino Roset (ph), one of the most famous Asian artists. It's completely destroyed. The Crucifixion by Rober Sembris (ph), 1959. A very important painting.
AMANPOUR: Sometimes he feels overwhelmed.
This was the Santrada (ph), which gave the Haitian art movement global recognition.
MARITOU CHENET, ART PATRON: I only (ph) want (ph) to cry sometimes, you know, because it's awful for us. Everything is broken in this country. We have to do our best to start again.
AMANPOUR: Daniel Elie is working for the government to assess the damage to historic sites, including the heavily damaged national palace where Haiti's oldest painting, dating back to 1822, is still trapped in its walls. Elie also worries about the 1950s mural at the Cathedral of Saint Trinity, painted by Haiti's most renowned artists.
DANIEL ELIE, HEADING CULTURAL RESTORATION (through translator): It's going to be very difficult to restore this (INAUDIBLE). We are still waiting for the opinion of specialists. It's a monumental mural.
NADER: Haitian art has been considered as a miracle for Haiti. What I'm trying to preserve right now is what is left in Haitian art. Trying to restore what is left. Trying to conserve what is left because, for future generations, definitely needs to see these things and remember.
AMANPOUR: Christiane Amanpour, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: You are about to hear part of a 911 call from a very upset mom. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DISPATCHER: 911. What are you reporting?
CALLER: Chris! He's choking on something.
DISPATCHER: Who is?
CALLER: Jacob!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The 911 trainee answering this call just happens to be the choking baby's father. Can you imagine? The rest of the story in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: A life or death emergency becomes a family affair for a 911 operator. Drew Mikkelsen, of affiliate KING in Seattle, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DISPATCHER: 911. What are you reporting?
CALLER: Chris! He's choking on something.
DISPATCHER: Who is?
CALLER: Jacob!
DREW MIKKELSEN, KING 5 NEWS REPORTER: Six-month-old Jacob Scott is just fine now. But last week, he was unconscious and had stopped breathing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His eyes rolled back in his head. That was a moment where I thought, oh, my God.
MIKKELSEN: His mother call 911 looking for help. The dispatcher who answered was her husband.
DISPATCHER: Is he breathing?
CALLER: No, not really.
DISPATCHER: Is he coughing or crying?
CALLER: He's not doing anything.
DISPATCHER: OK. Listen carefully. I'll tell you what to do next, OK.
MIKKELSEN: The couple recognized each other's voices, but had no time for pleasantries.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I didn't want to say, hey, Chris, you know it's me, right? you know, it won't have helped in that moment. CHRIS SCOTT, 911 DISPATCHER: Just trying to separate myself from the actual relationship I guess so I wouldn't take it so personally and just do it as professionally and calm as possible.
MIKKELSEN: He calmly directed his wife to clear the boy's airway by slapping him on the back five times. Jacob coughed up the piece of plastic he was choking on.
CALLER: He's breathing again.
DISPATCHER: OK. I just let the fire department know, OK.
CALLER: OK.
DISPATCHER: OK. You did a really good job, all right.
CALLER: OK.
DISPATCHER: All right. Take a deep breath. I know it's really scary right now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's a pretty calm person.
MIKKELSEN: Jenna says there's no doubt her husband's demeanor saved her son's life.
SCOTT: That's just how I am with every call, just really calm. Nothing really flusters me that much.
MIKKELSEN: And Jacob is proof of that.
SCOTT: Wow, I could have lost you little crazy monkey.
MIKKELSEN: Drew Mikkelsen, King 5 News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Boy, that is good teamwork. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Ali Velshi.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: We're good teamwork, Tony.
