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President Obama Talks Oil Disaster; Dramatic Rescue in Oklahoma; American Hunting Bin Laden
Aired June 15, 2010 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Live from Studio 7 at CNN World Headquarters, the big stories for this Tuesday, June 15.
Eight weeks now of gushing oil polluting waters off the Gulf Coast. President Obama speaks this hour from the disaster zone, a prelude to his first Oval Office address to the nation tonight. We want to know what you think. We want to hear from you.
Plus this --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RAQUEL DAWSON, RESCUED FROM FLOOD: I started, like, shaking really bad while I was swimming, and I thought I was going to pass out. And I thought I was going to die.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: You saw her dramatic rescue from flash floods in Oklahoma. Now you will hear her account in her own words.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris.
Those stories and your comments right here, right now, in the CNN NEWSROOM.
The next two hours are yours. We're hearing from you on the oil disaster, how you're helping out, and what you'd like to see happen.
So, tonight, President Obama addresses the nation about the oil disaster in the Gulf. Within the hour, he speaks to the people of Pensacola, Florida.
On day 57 of the catastrophe, aides say the president will deliver a message of support to Florida panhandle communities and to troops at Pensacola Naval Air Station.
Yesterday, Mr. Obama visited Mississippi and Alabama. Executives from five major oil companies, including BP, facing tough questions on Capitol Hill right now. Congressman Ed Markey wants answers about safety, and he wants to hold oil companies accountable.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. ED MARKEY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: It is time to expect more from the oil industry, and that starts today. First, Congress must ensure that there is unlimited liability for oil spills by oil companies. While we try to cap this well, we must lift the cap on oil industry liability.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: BP is turning to actor Kevin Costner for help in the cleanup. They company has ordered 32 machines that Costner says can separate oil from water.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEVIN COSTNER, ACTOR AND DIRECTOR: I've had to be kind of silent for the last few weeks as this machine was put through a lot of hoops. And it just passed everything that BP could throw at it. And Doug -- and I choose to believe him. And today, he did. He put us in business, and he said he's going to help us.
And I think this is the key. It's the linchpin to, I think, people going back to work. It's certainly a way to fight oil spills in this 21st century.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK. We are hearing from Gulf Coast residents about what they want from President Obama during his visit. A sign in Pensacola summed up the frustration of some business owners hurt by the oil disaster. It reads, "Mr. President, please stop by. We need to talk about my BP claim."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAM CAMARIOTES, RUNS SEAFOOD RESTAURANT: As long as he can stop the oil and help some people around here, they're glad he's coming. If he can't do that, they don't care if he comes or not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Yes. OK.
More now on the president's fourth visit to the Gulf Coast and his speeches this morning and tonight.
Senior White House Ed Henry joining us live now from Pensacola, Florida.
And Ed, I know the president was planning on taking a walk along Pensacola Beach. Has what happened yet? And if it has, what did he likely see? I know you took that trip yesterday.
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, he actually was just on the beach. He'll be heading over here shortly, to the Pensacola Naval Air Station. There's a lot of young Navy, Marines behind me waiting to here him speak, because as you mentioned, he wants to thank some of the troops for helping deal with this crisis.
What he saw there is really a pristine beach. I can tell you from walking it yesterday and last night, the water is blue/green, the sand is white. It sort of looks like the Caribbean, and it's sort of surreal, because obviously there is this suspended animation where people on the beach are acknowledging they know the oil is coming any day now.
In fact, one woman who lives about a mile from the beach came up to me yesterday on the beach with a bucket that she took out of her back yard, grass, full of all kinds of oil that washed up on her back yard. She's on the bay about a mile from Pensacola Beach.
So, the oil is going to get there eventually, according to all the experts, but it's not there yet. And so some people are still on the beach. The president would have seen that.
He went to a little fish bar where they sell fish sandwiches. He's trying to promote the tourism and promote the seafood from this region. But in talking to small business owners, one restaurant owner there along the beach told me his business is down 40 percent. Because even though the beach looks great, the seafood tastes fine, people are not showing up because they know the oil is going to show up sooner or later and they don't want to be here for that -- Tony.
HARRIS: So, Ed, are we going to get something of a test run of the president's speech in just a few minutes here?
HENRY: Well, I think that his remarks here to the troops will be a bit different, because he's probably going to keep it pretty general in terms of their efforts to try and help deal with this crisis. You heard about people wanting the military to sort of take over. They haven't taken over, but they have played an important role, and he's going to acknowledge that.
I think tonight, what we're going to hear more of, two big themes, really. One, the president talking about how he wants to hold BP accountable.
You've noted how people are frustrated with BP. He's going to talk about this escrow fund, take some BP money, put it aside to make sure these claims get processed. But, also, he wants to talk about sort of the game plan moving forward.
When you talk to senior White House advisers, they acknowledge people, especially in this region, are confused about what the government has done and, more importantly, what it will be doing in the future to stem this crisis. The president wants to lay out a game plan tonight -- Tony.
HARRIS: And maybe what the government really can do.
All right. Oh, we just lost Ed. Ed Henry, our senior White House correspondent, with the president in Pensacola, Florida.
We will bring you live coverage of the president speaking in Florida later this hour. And, of course, CNN will have complete coverage of the president's speech tonight at 8:00 Eastern.
After you have heard what the president has to say, drop us a line or give us a call, if you would, and tell us what you think. Log on to CNN.com/Tony and leave us a comment there on my blog page, or you can give me a call at 1-877-742-5760.
(NEWSBREAK)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So, the battered folks of Oklahoma brace for more rain today after yesterday's storms dumped almost 10 inches of water in some areas. A state of emergency declared in 59 counties.
One young woman lucky to be alive. Racing floodwaters nearly swept her away until a news pilot from our CNN affiliate spotted her.
Here's Rusty Surette from KWTV in Oklahoma City.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAWSON: I started, like, shaking really bad while I was swimming, and I thought I was going to pass out. And I thought I was going to die.
RUSTY SURETTE, REPORTER, KWTV (voice-over): Raquel Dawson is surrounded by family, recalling the events that unfolded just hours before, when she was surrounded by water.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- able make it over there. She's still swimming, and you can see the current. She's just hanging on to trees here, guys.
DAWSON: The current just got stronger, and the water got deeper, and then I ended up having to go from, like, tree to tree trying to get to the road.
SURETTE: The 17-year-old said this happened as she was walking to work. She had spotted a lady trapped in her car off Sooner (ph) road and had to help.
DAWSON: Because she was struggling. I don't know, I just have this thing where if I see somebody in trouble, I have got to go try and help.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The water is really rushing here.
SURETTE: But the current was too strong and swept Raquel away. Searchers were desperate to find her. And finally, she was spotted by Sky News 9 pilot Mason Dunn.
MASON DUNN, TELEVISION HELICOPTER PILOT: There's somebody swimming down here.
SURETTE: With Mason's help, Raquel was rescued and finally made it to solid ground. Back at her home, Raquel meets the man who helped save her.
DUNN: Hello. Good to see you.
DAWSON: Good to see you, too.
SURETTE: Raquel says it was a relief to see Mason in the sky, because at that point she knew she wasn't alone and help was on the way.
DUNN: Well, it's good to see you standing. You went to hospital and they checked you out, and you're all right?
DAWSON: Yes.
DUNN: OK, good. How long were you in the water?
DAWSON: About two hours.
DUNN: Two hours? Really?
SURETTE: And the entire time, her family watched the rescue on live television, stunned at what was happening.
EVAN DAWSON, RAQUEL'S BROTHER: We just saw her swimming, and we didn't know why. And it's not like, you know, they opened the floodgates and then there is just water. So, we're thinking, is she trying to swim to work? I mean, we were completely in the dark.
SURETTE: The Dawsons say they're grateful for Mason's work and Raquel is grateful for those who risked their lives to save hers.
DAWSON: I want to tell them, thank you. Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Raquel Dawson is OK. Just a couple of bumps and bruises. Right?
And today, she talked to CNN's Kiran Chetry about what she went through after trying to reach another woman caught up in the floodwaters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAWSON: I helped her to the tree line and I gave her my kind of dark blue bag, but it sticks out a lot. And then I left her to go find help, and then I made it to this area of concrete, but there was water on the other side, too. So I started swimming again, and I didn't make it that far away from there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: So, we're talking about a tense calm right now in Osh, Kyrgyzstan, following the deadliest ethnic clashes there in decades. The central Asian nation hosts a U.S. military base that is vital for supplying troops in Afghanistan. Kyrgyzstan's interim government has sent more security forces to the affected areas. Still, national media report the death toll has risen to 170.
More than 100,000 ethnic Uzbeks have fled to camps in nearby neighboring Uzbekistan.
Pakistani police have detained a California construction worker who they say was on a mission to kill Osama bin Laden.
Reza Sayah is joining us now from Islamabad, Pakistan.
And Reza, what do we know about this American?
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony, this is a strange one.
Based on what Pakistani police are telling us, this American was on a one-man, Rambo-style mission to do what no one has been able to do since 9/11, and that's to capture the most wanted man in the world, Osama bin Laden. Pakistan investigators have identified this man as 52-year-old Gary Faulkner, a construction worker from California.
They say they picked him up a couple of nights ago in the district of Chitral, a beautiful scenic region in northwest Pakistan, right along the Afghan border. Police say he was staying at a hotel and he was assigned a police escort, which is not unusual for foreign visitors who want to hike around there and explore around there.
But police say he ditched his escort. There was a two-hour manhunt. They finally found him in a forest area about 10 miles from the Afghan border.
Initially, they didn't believe his story until they looked through this belongings. In his belongings, they found a pistol, a sword, a double-bladed dagger, night vision equipment, and Christian reading material.
So, Tony, this is one of those very strange stories. If we had the top 10 bizarre stories in Pakistan, this would certainly be one of them.
HARRIS: Yes. Well, Reza, was Faulkner found in an area in the basic region where Osama bin Laden is believed by some to be holed up?
SAYAH: It is in the general region. A couple of years ago, there were some rumors and some reports that Osama bin Laden may be in this Chitral district, but they were never verified and substantiated.
Chitral is just north of Pakistan's tribal region along the Afghan border, and the last solid U.S. intelligence indicated that Osama bin Laden may be here, but this was years ago, after 9/11, when troops invaded Afghanistan. Intelligence indicated that Osama bin Laden may have gone through the border and may be in this area.
When police talked to him, he said he had some sources that gave him information about the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden. It's not clear who those sources are and it's not clear what that information is. It's not even clear if this guy was serious or if he was maybe off his rocker a little bit -- Tony.
HARRIS: Yes. OK.
Our Reza Sayah for us in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Reza, good to see you.
OK. So while we're bringing you news from around the world, we are also watching what's hot online.
You know this lady. Ines Ferre is following what's trending online.
Oh!
INES FERRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the vuvuzela.
HARRIS: Yes.
FERRE: Those horns that so many people are talking about.
HARRIS: Scorned, hated by many. I actually kind of like it.
FERRE: Yes. Well, now there's an app that actually --
HARRIS: There's an app?
FERRE: -- recreates that sound.
(BUZZING)
HARRIS: Do it again.
FERRE: There you go.
HARRIS: That's it. That's it. I love it.
FERRE: I'll tell you about this, and also one that filters out the sound.
HARRIS: Is that my iPhone?
FERRE: It is.
HARRIS: Can I have that?
FERRE: There you go.
HARRIS: Thank you.
We're back in a moment.
You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So, President Obama is wrapping up his fourth visit in 57 days to the Gulf Coast. In just a couple of minutes he will talk about what he's seen and what he has heard this time around. Then he heads back to Washington to prepare for his first address to the nation on the oil disaster.
CNN, of course, plans to carry it live at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
(NEWSBREAK)
HARRIS: We should tell you that concerns about the oil industry are front and center because of the Gulf disaster.
CNN's Carol Costello looks at the safety of the industry overall.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The explosion that killed 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon has captured the nation's attention. But it isn't the first deadly accident in the oil industry.
On April 2nd, an explosion at the Tesoro refinery in Washington State killed seven. May 5th, two were injured at the AGE Refinery fire in San Antonio. May 17th, another fire broke out at Lyondelle Bassell's Houston refinery.
If you add up all the refinery and rig fires, you get 13 fires, 19 deaths, and 25 injured over just the past two months.
KIM NIBARGER, UNITED STEEL WORKERS: The workers that are injured or killed on the job --
COSTELLO: Kim Nibarger of the United Steel Workers' Union in D.C. to testify about job safety is appalled. And has been for a long time. 12 years ago he witnessed his fellow oil workers die on the job.
I live that nightmare in 1998 every day. I mean, it hurts me. I know what the families goes through. It needs to come to a stop. People shouldn't have to die just because they have to work.
COSTELLO: Oil industry representatives still insist though their industry is safe, but --
(on camera): So, even with these statistics that I've given you on the number of fires over the past two and a half months, you say that safety is not a problem at refineries on shore.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: All right. Very quickly now, let's get you to President Obama in Pensacola, Florida.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is great to be here.
I want everybody, first of all, give a big round of applause to Chief Ellison Telabo (ph) for leading us in the pledge and singing our "National Anthem" --
(APPLAUSE)
OBAMA: -- to Lieutenant Commander Rene Eckstrom (ph) for the wonderful invocation.
(APPLAUSE)
I want to thank your outstanding local leaders for welcoming me here today, including Captains Chris Plumber (ph), Mike Price (ph) and Brad Martin (ph).
Give them a big round of applause.
(APPLAUSE)
And your great senior enlisted leaders, including Master Chief Mike Dolen (ph).
Give them a big round of applause.
(APPLAUSE)
I want to thank all of the spouses and families who are joining us here today. You hold our military families together, so we honor your service as well.
Now, it is great to be here in Pensacola, America's oldest naval air station, the cradle of naval aviation.
We've got Navy, all the students at the Naval Air Technical Training Center.
(CHEERING)
We've got Training Wing 6, maybe a few Blue Angels. We've got United States Marines in the house.
(CHEERING)
Maybe a few Air Force and Army, too.
(CHEERING)
Now, I don't know how many could be here because they're out there in the water right now responding to the spill, but I want to thank all of the folks at Coast Guard Station Pensacola for their outstanding work.
(APPLAUSE)
And I know somebody who is especially proud of them, and that's the former commandant of the Coast Guard who postponed his retirement to answer his country's call once more and coordinate the federal response effort to the spill, and that's Admiral Thad Allen.
Please give him a big round of applause.
(APPLAUSE)
Now, I was just down at Pensacola Beach, Gulf Pier, at the Fish Sandwich Snack Bar. Now, I don't know if any of you have ever checked it out. It's a nice spot. And we were there with some of Florida's state and local leaders to discuss the situation here.
And I want to acknowledge the hard work that's being done by the governor of Florida, Charlie Crist. Florida's chief financial officer Alex Sink, Senators Bill Nelson, George Lemieux. Representatives who are here today. We've got Jeff Miller and Corrine Brown, and Ted Dutch (ph).
Please give them a big round of applause.
(APPLAUSE)
We've got Escambia County commissioner Grover Robinson and the Pensacola Mayor Mike Wiggins. Thank you for your outstanding efforts.
(APPLAUSE)
I know all of you join me in thanking these leaders and their communities because they're your neighbors, for the incredible support that they give all of the men and women and your families here in Pensacola. So we're grateful to you.
This is my fourth visit to the Gulf Coast since the start of this spill. Yesterday I was over in Gulfport, Mississippi; Theodore, Alabama; and now Pensacola, assessing the situation, reviewing the response, seeing what needs to be done better and faster, and talking with folks -- whether fishermen or small business people and their families -- who are seeing their lives turned upside down by this disaster.
Here in Pensacola, the beautiful beaches are still open. The sand is white, the water is blue. So folks who are looking for a good vacation, they can still come down to Pensacola. People need to know that Pensacola is still open for business. But that doesn't mean that people aren't angry. That doesn't mean that people aren't scared. That doesn't mean that people have concerns about the future. We all have those concerns. And people have every right to be angry. Those plumes of oil are off the coast. The fishing waters are closed. Tar balls have been coming ashore, and everybody's bracing for more.
So, I'll say today what I've been saying up and down the coast over the last couple of days and over the last month. Yes, this is an unprecedented environmental disaster. It's the worst in our nation's history. But we're going to continue to meet it with an unprecedented federal response and recovery effort, the largest in our nation's history. This is an assault on our shores and we're going to fight back with everything we've got. And that includes mobilizing the resources of the greatest military in the world.
(APPLAUSE)
Here at Naval Air Station Pensacola, you've been one of the major staging areas. You've helped to support the response effort. And I thank you for that. And I know the people of Pensacola thank you for that.
All along the Gulf Coast our men and women in uniform, active, Guard and Reserve, from across the country are stepping up and helping out. There are soldiers on the beaches putting out sandbags and building barriers and cleaning up the oil and helping people process their claims for compensation from BP. There are sailors and Marines offering their ships and skimmers and helicopters and miles of boom. There are airmen overhead, flying in equipment and spraying dispersant. And, of course, there are Coast Guard men and women on the cutters, in the air, working around the clock.
When I say this is the largest response of its kind in American history, I mean it. We've got more than 5,000 vessels out there -- skimmers, tugs, barges, dozens of aircraft. More than 27,000 personnel are on the scene fighting this every day, putting out millions of feet of boom and cleaning the shores.
All told, we've authorized the deployment of 17, 500 national guardsmen to respond to this crisis. So far only about 1,600 have been activated and that leaves a lot of guardsmen ready to help. And if our governors call on them, I know they'll be ready because they're always ready.
So I want the people of this region to know that my administration is going to do whatever it takes, for as long as it takes, to deal with this disaster. That includes the additional actions I announced yesterday to make sure that seafood from the Gulf is safe to eat. It includes steps we've taken to protect the safety of worker involved the cleanup. It includes the new command structure to make sure states and local communities like Pensacola, have the autonomy and the resources that they need to go forward. And that includes something else -- making sure that BP pays for the damages that it has caused.
(APPLAUSE)
Because this isn't just an environmental disaster. For many families and communities, it's an economic disaster.
Here in Pensacola and the Panhandle, tourism is everything. And when the tourists stay home, it ripples out and hits people across these communities. The charter boats, restaurants, the road side shops, the shops, the suppliers, the dive shops. And if you're inland waters are contaminated, if the bays and bayous are contaminated, it could be devastating, changing the way of life down here for years to come.
I'm going to speak to the nation tonight about this, but let me say to the people of Pensacola and the Gulf Coast, I am with you. My administration is with you for the long haul, to make sure BP pays for the damage it has done and to make sure you are getting the help you need to protect this beautiful coast, rehabilitate the damaged areas, to revitalize the region and to make sure that nothing like this happens again. That is a commitment I am making to the people of Florida, and the people all across this Gulf. Now, that spirit --
(APPLAUSE)
That spirit of resolve and determination and resilience. That's the same spirit we see in all of you -- the men and women in uniform. The spirit will need to meet other challenges of our time.
Obviously the news has been dominated lately by the oil spill, but our nation is at war and all of you have stepped forward. You volunteered. You took an oath. You stood tall and you said, I will serve. And here at Pensacola, you're carrying on the proud tradition of naval aviation that spans a century.
Here at the Barrancas National cemetery, our heroes from yesterday's wars are still inspiring us. And like generations before you, you're no strangers to sacrifice. Our prayers are with the families and friends of the crew that you lost in that training exercise two months ago. Today we send out our thoughts to all of the folks from Pensacola on the front lines at this very moment, including Iraq and Afghanistan. They are making us incredibly proud. And so are you.
As naval aviators and naval flight officers, you'll soon earn your wings of gold. Many of you will prove yourself as indispensable air crews -- the mechanics, electricians, maintenance crews, peoples' lives depending on what you do each and every day. I know you're looking ahead to your first operational tours, to join the fleet and your squadrons. And within weeks some of you may find yourselves serving on a carrier deck in the Arabian Sea, or working a busy flight line in Afghanistan.
As you begin your careers, as you look ahead to a life of service, I want you to know on behalf of the American people that your nation thanks you, your nation appreciates you, your nation will stand with you every step of the way. As your Commander in Chief, I want you to know something. I will not hesitate to use force to protect the American people or our vital interests. But I also will never risk your lives unless it's absolutely necessary. And if it is necessary, we are going to back you up to the hilt with the strategy and the clear mission and the equipment and the support that you need to get the job done right. That's my promise to every one of you, every man and woman who wears America's uniform.
That includes the right strategy in Iraq, where we're partnering with the Iraqi people for their long-term security and prosperity. And thanks to the honor and the heroism of our troops. We are poised to end our combat mission in Iraq this summer on schedule. (APPLAUSE)
As we end the war in Iraq, we're pressing forward in Afghanistan. We're working to break the momentum of the Taliban insurgency and train Afghan security forces, strengthen the capacity of the Afghan government and protect the Afghan people. We will disrupt and dismantle and ultimately defeat al Qaeda and its terrorist affiliates.
(APPLAUSE)
And we will support the aspirations of people around the world as they see progress and opportunity and prosperity because that's what we do as Americans.
As you meet the missions we ask of you, we're going to make sure you're trained and equipped to succeed. That's why we halted reductions in the Navy. That's why we increased the size of the Marine Corps.
(CHEERING)
That's why we're investing in the capabilities and technologies of tomorrow. And as we come up on the 100th anniversary of naval aviation next year, we're committed to the next generation of aircraft. We're going to keep you the best trained, best led, best equipped Military that the world has ever known.
(APPLAUSE)
Some of that is about technology. But the most important thing in our military is our people. It's all of you. And as you advance through the ranks and start families of your own, we want to be there for your loved ones, too.
This is one of the defining missions of the First Lady, Michelle Obama. On Sunday she visited the Navy Marine Corps team and their families at Camp Pendleton. They had a tough week because five outstanding Marines from Pendleton gave their lives last week in Afghanistan. During her visit, Michelle had a message for their families and for all Military families. America's going to keep faith with you, too.
When a loved one goes to war, that family goes to war. That's why we're working to improve family readiness and increase pay and benefits, working to give you more time between deployments. Increasing support to help spouses and families deal with the stresses and the separation of war. But this can't be the work of government alone. As Michelle's been saying, one percent of Americans may be fighting our wars, but 100 percent of Americans need to be supporting our men and women and their families in uniform. You guys shouldn't be carrying the entire burden.
That's why Michelle's challenging every sector of American society to support our Military families. Not just now with our nation at war, but at every stage of your lives. So we're improving care for our wounded warriors, especially those with posttraumatic stress and traumatic brain injury. We are funding the G.I. Bill to give you a chance to pursue your dreams. We've made an historic commitment to our veterans with one of the largest percentage increases to the V.A. budget in the last 30 years. Those are concrete actions we have taken to meet the commitment I have to you, and that the American people have to you. Because you've always taken care of America, America needs to take care of you. That's my main message here today. We're all in this together.
In our country, there isn't a military world and a civilian world. We're all Americans. There's not Democrats and Republicans when you take the long view. We're all Americans. We all rise and fall together and we all need to do our part to get through the challenges we face as a people.
So, yes, we're emerging from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Too many folks are still out of work here in Florida, and around the country. Yes, we're a nation at war with adversaries that will stop at nothing to strike our homeland and would kill innocent people, women and children with no compunction. Yes, we're now battling the worst economic/environmental disaster in American history. Any one of these challenges alone would test our country. Confronting them all at once might overwhelm a lesser nation. But look around you. Look at the person standing next to you.
You look around, and you see the strength and resilience that will carry us through. You look at this installation and the force that have stood watch over this bay and its people for centuries through the rise and fall of empires, through a terrible civil war. And as a nation healed itself, we became a beacon to the world. We've endured.
All of these men and women in uniform, all of you, represent the same spirit of service and sacrifice as those who have gone before, who defeated fascism, defeated tyranny, prevailed in a long cold war over communism. And now in our time you toppled regimes based on terror and dictatorship. You've given new hope to millions of people. You've earned your place among the greatest of generations.
And look at the people of this city and this region. Fishermen who made their lives on the water, families who lived here for generations, hard-working folks who've had to endure more than their share. Tough economic times and hurricanes and storms that forced so many families and communities to start over from scratch. But they never gave up. They started over and they rebuilt stronger than before.
As Americans, we don't quit. We keep coming. And none of these challenges we're facing going to be easy. None of them are going to be quick. But make no mistake, the United States of America has gone through tough times before, and we always come out stronger, and we will do so again.
(APPLAUSE)
And this city and this region will recover. It will thrive again. And America's Military will prevail in the mission to keep our country safe. And our nation will endure from these trials stronger than before.
(APPLAUSE)
That is the history of the United States of America. That is the legacy of our Armed Forces. And I promise you that we will not falter.
Past generations have passed on this precious gift to us, and future generations are depending on us. And as I look out at each and every one of your faces, I'm absolutely confident that you will meet that challenge.
God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
(END OF COVERAGE)
HARRIS: OK. There you have it. The president says people are angry and scared and worried about the beaches and in many cases, their careers, the wildlife to be sure. Everyone wants the leak capped and the cleanup to happen yesterday, and it just can't happen soon enough for all of us.
The president will head back Washington shortly to prepare for his first Oval Office address to the nation on the Gulf oil disaster. The president then reminding all of us that we are a nation fighting two wars, even as so much of the attention is focused on the Gulf. And the president adding that the nation is on track to draw down forces from Iraq later this summer.
But quickly back to the cleanup. When we come back, we will hear from two inventors who say they have come up with a way to separate the oil from the sand on Gulf Coast beaches. It is part of our focus on solutions to the Gulf disaster.
We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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HARRIS: So the president just moments ago offering remarks from the Naval Air Station in Pensacola. And video just into CNN from a short time ago, where the president is actually touring Pensacola Beach in Florida. And what we understand is that in various spots on that beach, you may get the occasional tar ball. But the president mentioned earlier that the sand is, for the most part, beautiful, white. The water is blue.
We have heard reports from time to time that you can now begin to smell some of the oil in the area that is still offshore. But there you see the president walking along the beach right now. But according to the president, the beach is beautiful. We are continuing our daily look at possible solutions to help clean up the Gulf and Josh Levs has that for us today -- Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Tony. We've been hearing from different ones every day. And actually, this worked well because we're going to talk about the beach coming right out of that.
I'm going to show you a system to remove oil from sand and, according to the people behind it, return the sand to where it was without a shred of oil. Not one tiny microscopic shred of oil left.
Joining me with our technology that BP has now taken some action on, actually, we've got Tony Watson and Gary Stevenson of Clean Beach Technologies. They're in Houston, Texas.
Gentlemen, you with us?
We are, good morning.
LEVS: Great. Thanks a lot for being here.
Tony, I want to start with you. Before we get to the science of how this works, talk to me about where things stand. I know you have approached BP and they've actually taken the next step with you.
Where do things stand?
TONY WATSON, CEO, CLEAN BEACH TECHNOLOGIES: Well, we have -- and thank you for having us. First, we'd like to extend our thoughts and prayers to the families of the men who were lost in this tragic event.
We know that this is a war we're engaged in, this oil spill. There's still a lot to be done. We have been working closely with BP and we've gotten through their process of the evaluation of 15,000 or 20,000 technologies, and we've worked through the process with them and it's resulted in our ability to demonstrate our technology with them, and --
LEVS: So that's where it's going to be next, that you're going to be demanding for them.
And Gary, let me bring you in here. We have some video also of what you do. Let's show that video. Gary, talk to me about the basics of how this works. You have these trucks that go along to the sand, they suck up a ton of it.
What do they do to clean that sand, to get rid of the oil?
GARY STEVENSON, PRESIDENT, CLEAN BEACH TECHNOLOGIES: The analogy we like to use is one that if you take a large glob of peanut butter, for example, and you try to consume it, it can be very messy, of course. But if you take that same peanut butter and spread it in a thin layer on a slice of bread it becomes easy to consume.
What we're doing here is exactly that. We're taking a large glob of contaminated sand, if you will, and oil, and when we process it through the machine, it breaks it down into very, very, very small particles, exposes it to the biodegradable material that the anaerobic enzyme. And over a period of 12 hours, that sand then becomes perfectly clean.
LEVS: You say perfectly clean. That's one thing that is so striking about what you're suggesting here. That it will get rid of all the sand.
Talk to me about the big picture. I understand what happens is you suck up this sand, it goes through this process and then you hold on to it, basically in a holding area for days. And days later you return it to the beach and you're confident what you return will be pristine, right?
STEVENSON: Absolutely. And we'll be testing it on a daily basis, hourly basis, until we're ready to return it. It takes a nominal 12 days to take raw sand, clean it perfectly clean, then return it from where it came on the beach. And that's important for reclamation of the beach, as opposed to taking that sand and hauling it off to the landfill and having to replace it.
LEVS: Quickly, Tony, let me give this one to you. What makes yours different from everyone else's? We're hearing a lot of clean up the beach ideas. I know you have this bean peanut butter idea that you're spreading it thin.
But what makes your faster, better than some of these other systems out there to clean up the beach?
WATSON: Well, first of all, the most significant thing is it's a single process that performs the remediation, bio-remediation, in place. So we don't have the long logistics train of hauling, returning, using landfills, et cetera, to replace it.
But it's a combination of the shearing of the small sand particles, putting them through a very high velocity exposure to this bio-remediation solution, and enabling virtually every grain of sand to be exposed to this remediation. It happens in a very short period of time and it's a technology that has been derived from Gary Stevenson's invention, which was originally designed to separate oil from sand in the Alberta oil --
LEVS: Thank you both for this. That's really interesting.
And obviously, look, everyone, the whole country, is wishing you good luck with this. I asked you beforehand how much it cost. I know you're not saying yet until you work it out with BP.
But Tony and Gary, thank you both so much for joining us today.
HARRIS: Good stuff. Great ideas. Huh, Josh.
LEVS: Yes. Everyone's hopeful that this is going to work out. We all want to see that --
HARRIS: We'll feature another tomorrow. Thanks, josh. And just a reminder, the president will be speaking to the nation at 8:00 Eastern time. CNN will bring you complete coverage from Washington, D.C. to throughout the Gulf Coast.
We want to hear from you, as well. Share your comments. Log on to CNN.com/tony or you can call me at 1-877-724-5760.
Live reports from the oil disaster zone. Next hour, our reaction to President Obama's visit from people hoe stand to lose the most in the Gulf Coast oil crisis.
And Arizona lawmakers now targeting the children of illegal immigrants. Our Ines Ferre will join me with details of a new proposal to deny citizenship to babies born to parents who are in the country illegally.
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