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Campbell Brown
Massive Flooding Hits Atlanta; Al Qaeda Preparing Another Attack on U.S. Soil?
Aired September 21, 2009 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Breaking news: Massive flooding hits the Atlanta area, a state of emergency declared.
Here are the questions we want answered. Is al Qaeda ready to attack again in the United States? Three men arrested under investigation for a plot to set off bombs.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Backpack bombs, hydrogen peroxide-based explosives, that they were looking at soft targets.
BROWN: What were the targets? How many al Qaeda cells could still be out there?
Also, will President Obama's media blitz win over critics or dilute the power of the bully pulpit? He's here, there and everywhere, even hitting "David Letterman" tonight.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: First of all, I think it's important to realize that I was actually black before the election. So...
BROWN: And tonight's breakout, more than a million people rocking out in Havana.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw all these beautiful faces, all people smiling and singing. And that's it. You know, that's the only thing matter.
BROWN: The controversial concert for peace.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is your only source for news. CNN prime time begins now. Here's Campbell Brown.
BROWN: Hi, everybody. Those are the big questions tonight. But we're going to start, as we always do, with the "Mash-Up." It is our look at the stories making an impact right now, the moments you may have missed today. We're watching it all, so you don't have to.
Breaking news tonight is where we're going to start, a state of emergency in effect in 17 Georgia counties as torrential rains swamp the Southeast. Look at these pictures. This is from Atlanta. You can see two people there floating on an air mattress, attempting to get into a house, massive flooding in Georgia, as creeks and rivers burst their banks, destroying property and claiming lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: One person is presumed drowned by flash flooding in Chattanooga. Two others were killed when the storms swept their vehicles off the road in metro Atlanta.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: The stalled storm system dumped more heavy rain overnight. In Atlanta, major freeways flooded, and many schools called off classes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Heavy rain fell all night long, so it was a very rapid rise and caught these folks off guard. You can see a car which tried to drive through the flooded streets.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you look through here, let the photographer can give you a shot, into these people's backyards, what that is back there is in fact the Chattahoochee River.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The grounded is so saturated from seven consecutive days of measurable rainfall here that the tree limbs and the root systems are being weakened and trees are starting to fall down.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven days it's been here, Rick. I have got mushrooms in my yard. And I'm thinking, oh, wow, look at all the rain. Look how wet it is. And then all of a sudden last night we got eight to 10 inches of rainfall in 12 hours.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: The National Guard on standby tonight. They're prepared to help out in any search-and-rescue efforts, a spokesperson urging Atlanta-area residents to stay at home, stay off the roads. We just are getting in some new pictures that are pretty incredible. Stay with us. We're going to have a lot more on this coming up in just a bit.
From Afghanistan tonight, a sobering message to the president from General Stanley McChrystal, the man supervising the war effort.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Top U.S. commander in Afghanistan reportedly says he needs a lot more troops, tens of thousands, to overcome the insurgency.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In a grim 66-page strategy report, McChrystal states, without additional forces, the U.S. war effort will likely result in failure.
JOHN ROBERTS, CO-HOST, "AMERICAN MORNING": Bob Woodward, veteran correspondent, broke the story. BOB WOODWARD, "THE WASHINGTON POST": This is a striking thing for the general to say to the secretary of defense and the commander in chief.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Although President Bush frequently boasted he gave his field commanders whatever they needed, this president has clearly signaled he is not about to rubber-stamp McChrystal's request.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, HOST, "THIS WEEK WITH GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS": The president is not alone in being torn over this decision. Administration officials say that Secretary Gates is undecided. And it's well known that Vice President Biden has been pushing for a narrow mission for some time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: General McChrystal writes in the memo that if U.S. forces fail to overpower the insurgency within a year, it may no longer be possible.
And there are new developments tonight in that alleged terrorist plot to detonate bombs right here in the United States. Three suspects in court today, the details in the case just now starting to emerge. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: In Denver, an airport shuttle driver and his father appeared in federal court. Here in New York, a Muslim cleric and funeral director went to court. This follows a series of raids in New York last week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Three men arrested over the weekend and charged with lying to FBI investigators appeared in court today to face the charges, including Najibullah Zazi of Denver. He showed up in New York a week-and-a-half ago carrying a laptop computer that the FBI says contained detailed instructions on how to make bombs.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Authorities say Zazi learned all that at an al Qaeda training camp in Pakistan, where he twice traveled in the last year and was then apparently sent back to the U.S. to carry out the plot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: All three of those suspects originally from Afghanistan. Sources close to the investigation tell CNN the alleged plot may have targeted a major transportation hub like a subway station or a railroad -- railroad, rather. And we're going to have more details on the suspects coming up in a moment as well.
World leaders are gathering here in New York City tonight for the United Nations General Assembly. Timed to coincide with the gathering, the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative. Former President Bill Clinton is Larry King's guest tonight. They sat down just a little while ago. Larry asked Clinton whether racism is at the heart of the anger over President Obama's health care plan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I believe that some of the right-wing extremists which oppose President Obama are also racially prejudiced and would prefer not to have an African- American president.
But I don't believe that all the people that oppose him on health care and all the conservatives are racists. And I believe, if he were white, every single person who opposes him now would be opposing him then.
Therefore, while I have devoted my life to getting rid of racism, I think this is a fight that my president and our party, this is one we need to win on the merits.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Much more of Bill Clinton on "LARRY KING LIVE." That's tonight at 9:00 Eastern time.
Meantime, a new book on President Clinton shines some light on some pretty bad behavior -- no, no, not his, though -- the behavior of some of those he came in contact with. "The Clinton Tapes" by Taylor Branch includes a surreal story about how the late Russian President Boris Yeltsin went on an alcoholic bender on a visit to Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, according to the book, one day in the predawn hours late September of 1994, Boris Yeltsin snuck out here of Blair House out here on to Pennsylvania Avenue dead truck, clad only in his underwear, alone, and tried to hail a taxicab.
When he was confronted by Secret Service agents, he had a loud argument with them, according to the book, slurred his words, said he didn't want to go into -- back into Blair House, said he wanted the cab to go get a pizza. When asked what came of the incident by the author, Mr. Clinton just shrugged and said, well, he got his pizza.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And what happened the next night?
Well, apparently, Yeltsin got hammered again, throwing security guards -- and giving security guards, rather, quite a square, who apparently mistook him for a drunken White House intruder.
And the next story tonight, really unbelievable and sure to strike a cord with every parent out there. Imagine this. After years of trying to conceive, a woman finally gets pregnant through in vitro fertilization, and then terrible news. The fertility clinic admits the embryo they implanted actually belongs to another couple.
Well, that is exactly what happened to Carolyn Savage and her husband, Sean. And they told their heartbreaking story on NBC's "Today Show."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The physician who performed the transfer, he let me know at that moment in almost one sentence that Carolyn was pregnant, but they had thought -- and transferred another couple's embryos.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We had an option to terminate. And he made it clear to us that, if we chose to continue the pregnancy, that we would have to give the baby back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fourteen weeks into the pregnancy, they reached out to the couple whose child was growing inside Carolyn. Then they met.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So they came into the room and we all kind of stood up, and it was very cordial. We shook hands.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She started with a thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was so grateful for what we had done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Carolyn Savage is due to give birth within two weeks, at which point she will hand the baby over to his genetic parents, a pretty amazing story.
And now we're going to lighten the mood a little bit, President Obama tonight on David Letterman's couch, a wide-ranging interview were covering lots of ground, from racism and health care, to Sasha and Malia's most excellent summer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: We decided there weren't going to be any fancy camps during the summer or anything. They basically just goofed off all summer, which I couldn't do.
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": Others have.
OBAMA: So, they...
(LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: So, a low-key summer for Sasha and Malia, nothing fancy, except for that trip to London and Paris. We're going to have much more on the president's "Letterman" appearance coming up as well.
And that brings us to tonight's "Punchline." This is courtesy of Neil Patrick Harris, who was host of last night's Emmy Awards, a man who clearly takes his job very seriously.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEIL PATRICK HARRIS, ACTOR: I am here to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Here's hoping Kanye West likes "30 Rock."
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Neil Patrick Harris, everybody. And that is the "Mash- Up" tonight.
When we come back: breaking news to tell you about. We have new pictures to show you of the massive flooding that hit the Southeast, a state of emergency in Georgia, pretty incredible, if you look at this, the destruction that we're seeing now just feeding in. We're going to take you there live when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Breaking news tonight now, things going from bad to worse at this hour in Georgia, five people now confirmed dead in flooding across much of the southeast, the governor of Georgia just now declaring a state of emergency in 17 counties after seeing the destruction from the air.
There are rescues under way at this hour just in the Atlanta suburbs. We have been showing you these incredible images here on CNN.
Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf is on the phone from the flood zone in the western Atlanta suburb of from Powder Springs, Georgia. Also with me right now, I have got Joe Jenkins, who is the mayor of Austell, Georgia, another western Atlanta suburb, and our meteorologist Chad Myers standing by in the CNN Severe Weather Center for us.
Reynolds, you were out there in it all day. Give us a sense for what it looks like, how bad the damage is.
Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Just amazing amounts of rainfall that we have seen here, Campbell, some places, up to 20 inches of rain. In our particular neighborhood, in Powder Springs, I can tell you that the rain and the flooding was so bad, that our neighborhood has actually been cut off from the rest of the county.
No one was able to leave our neighborhood. No one was able to get in. It's just been a mess. Some of our neighbors have lost quite a bit. Their basement has been flooded out. One couple was a few doors down from us, happened to have their basement filled up with water during the overnight hours. They had no idea. They kept their dog down in the basement. They came down this morning to get the dog out. They found four feet of water, and their dog had died in the floodwaters. Just a tremendous mess, to say the very least. The floodwaters have dropped back in a few places, but I tell you, it's still shocking just seeing see what has happened in this particular area.
(INAUDIBLE) last night, Campbell. I can tell you that we found out this morning. My wife actually woke me up around 5:30 this morning. We looked outside. We normally have a stream that runs maybe 100 yards behind our house, from our house. This morning, the waters had gone up within, I would say, maybe 50 feet of the house itself.
So, we are seeing -- starting to see it go back. And I'm telling you, a lot of people still dealing with flooding overnight, tomorrow. And then when all the floodwaters recede, we have got a huge cleanup for millions of people across Atlanta.
BROWN: Oh, yes, absolutely, just looking at the pictures. Reynolds, thanks.
Let me bring in the mayor here.
Give us the latest, Mayor, if you can, on what's happening in your town. We saw these incredible pictures of this fire truck submerged there where you are, I know, trying to get to this house on fire, but apparently not able to make it. What can you tell us about that?
JOE JENKINS, MAYOR OF AUSTELL, GEORGIA: Well, we got the fire out this morning. That's when they were having the fire problem.
We have had to rescue over 50 people out of the houses with boats. We have some airboats coming in and some boats we used just paddles to get into them. And all the streets are closed off (INAUDIBLE) except one, which is (INAUDIBLE) hill. That's the only way you can get in and out of Austell. The rest of them are covered up.
And we had about three tractor-trailers that got in the creek and floated down and hit one of our bridges. And they are still against the bridges. So, we feel like we may have some damages to some of the bridges.
BROWN: Mayor, we're having a hard time hearing you. I think we have a bad cell connection.
Let me just go to Chad.
Chad, I know you have been tracking the fallout from this all day -- 17 counties now declared a state of emergency. Walk us through the extent of the damage as you see it.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Here's what happened, Campbell.
The storm system literally sat over Atlanta all night long. I have backed the radar up 48 hours. Watch how long it rains in Atlanta. We will stop it. That's now. Back you up 48 hours. It's raining. It rains again. It comes again last night and again overnight tonight. And we're still seeing showers at this point.
That's the big picture. The problem is that all of this water came so fast and at night. People couldn't get out of the way in time. This is up near Shaw (ph) Road. And this isn't very far from where I live, water over the road, washing the road away and all the way down.
These are historic flood numbers here, some numbers larger than we have ever seen, record flood numbers from Peachtree Creek, from the (INAUDIBLE) west. Look at these guys. These guys are floating back to their home, trying to save what they can from the home. Here, this is near Austell and Powder Springs, basically the same large western suburb of Atlanta.
And the rains came down last night. I watched them from radar. I watched them from 7:00 last night until midnight. They were -- it was still pouring down rain. I woke up this morning. Literally, it was still thundering at my house 12 hours later. And people couldn't get out of the way.
BROWN: Well, so, Chad, is it over? Or is more rain coming?
MYERS: Well, more rain is coming. In fact, there's more rain back out to the west, Campbell. I will zoom back into this map again. There is severe weather coming through the Plains. This will be the last line, but that won't be until tomorrow. So, this could again happen all over again.
Now that everything is saturated, there's no place for this water to go. Basically, Georgia is full of clay. We can't plant too much here. We do our best, but not like a sandy soil like Florida, where the water can soak in. All this water is just going to run off again.
BROWN: All right, Chad Myers with the very latest on this -- Chad, appreciate it. Thanks.
MYERS: You're welcome.
And important new information tonight about kids and the swine flu vaccine. How many shots will they need? That's coming up next in the download. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWS BREAK)
BROWN: Tonight's big question, was an al Qaeda cell in the United States planning to blow up Grand Central terminal? Mass transit systems are being warned today to be on alert after the FBI makes a major bust. That's when we come back.
Plus, tonight's newsmaker, Barack Obama, an early look at his late-night appearance. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: STATES: First of all, I think it's important to realize that I was actually black before the election. So, the -- so...
(LAUGHTER)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: The world is watching President Obama this week. He is here in New York for this week's opening of the U.N. General Assembly.
He also appeared on five Sunday morning shows over the weekend. He's on "David Letterman" tonight, the communicator in chief just about everywhere you look these days. But is this unprecedented media blitz the best way to get a very serious message across and push his health care plan?
And joining me to talk about that is Democratic strategist and CNN political contributor James Carville, Amanda Carpenter, a columnist for the conservative-leaning "Washington Times" newspaper, and Daily Beast columnist John Avlon here with me in the studio.
James, let me start with you.
Five Sunday interviews, "Letterman" tonight. Does the president ultimately risk diluting the power of the bully pulpit?
JAMES CARVILLE, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, he is in different forums. I think they're trying to show him, that he's really committed to getting health care through, trying to show the Democrats in the Congress that he's out there out in front leading the charge here.
And, to some extent, right now, it makes some sense. But you can't do this continuously and forever. It's probably a strategy coming back from the summer. And it seems to have helped a little bit, to be honest about it. And it's probably going to run its course here pretty soon.
BROWN: But, listen, James, to what Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said on "Meet the Press" this weekend. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: He can be on every news show until the end of time. If he doesn't get Republicans and Democrats in a room and get off TV, we're never going to solve this problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Fair point?
CARVILLE: Fair point. I don't think any Republicans are going to get in a room with President Obama any time soon. But if they did, I'm sure he would have them there.
But there is going to be a time when he's just going to have to slam some bodies up against a wall and not be on TV. And whether that time is next month or next week, I don't know. But before this thing gets done, there's going to have -- he's going to have to break a couple bones.
BROWN: So, John, while this P.R. campaign is still under way, why is it he doesn't seem to have any backup? Why can't you put Joe Biden out? Why is it all on the president's shoulders? Should it be? Is this the right way to approach?
JOHN AVLON, AUTHOR, "INDEPENDENT NATION": Well, I think that's the reality.
President Obama is not only the best communicator for his party. He's the most popular member of his party, by a lot. And, look, in politics, like sports, the best defense is a good offense. I think getting out there and get the message is a good play.
But it does belie the fact that he is far ahead of his party. The Democratic Party has real problems. And even among independents, who have broken with this president on spending, on the growth of government, they like him personally. So, there's really no one else who can make this case but him.
BROWN: Amanda, as a conservative, if ultimately health care reform dies, if he's not able to make his case, couldn't this be a very short-term victory for Republicans, given the long-term outlook is likely to be that Americans will blame them for nothing getting done?
AMANDA CARPENTER, "THE WASHINGTON TIMES": Well, there's already Republicans that are declaring victory over this battle.
You can look at what Jim DeMint said at the tea parties. This is Waterloo, which he told a bunch of tea party activists, which they loved.
But I think there's this whole misconception that somehow the stalling that's occurred in the health care plan is somehow because Obama hasn't invested enough. He's been out there pushing this plan all summer long, 30-some-odd speeches and press events devoted just to health care before the five-show media blitz.
It's not because Obama isn't putting himself out there. I agree with James Carville. He hasn't been getting the work done in Washington. And I think that the only thing he can really do is maybe recognize what he needs to compromise on and find some good bipartisan solutions with Republicans if he wants anything to get done.
BROWN: So, James, where does he go from here? Bottom-line it. CARVILLE: Well, first of all, it probably is not the time for him to do the hard work in Washington. I think there are six bells out of six different committees. They obviously going to merge something, and they're going to have to get some votes and they've got to do some tough negotiating.
There's no question about it. This thing is as far along as it's ever been. You know, but look, they're in the red zone now. And it's hard to get -- I use a sports metaphor but they've got to get it in and, you know, at some point the media stuff can work so hard. But I think what he's doing is he's showing the Democrats he's really committed.
I also think that the nature of the attacks on him and this thing has mushroomed into something so much bigger than health care, has made it enormously difficult for Democrats to oppose him. I think that the veracity and the nature of the attacks on the president are going to cause a coalition of Democrats, and I sense that in conversations that I've had to date. It is going to be almost impossible to be a Democrat and buck the president when this thing gets down to the nitty-gritty.
BROWN: You think that's OK?
CARVILLE: It's going to be very difficult.
JOHN AVLON, COLUMNIST, "THEDAILYBEAST.COM: I think that's an interesting point. I mean, the extremes do tend to reinforce each other, and here's a case where that might not be a bad thing.
I mean, President Obama keeps saying that 80 percent where they grew on 80 percent in Washington. Well, you let the 10 percent on either side to say don't worry about them. Folks on that 80 percent get this ball down the field. Don't let the experience determine the terms of the debate which happens too often in Washington, too often in politics.
BROWN: Amanda, I'll give you the last word.
AMANDA CARPENTER, COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON TIMES": Well, I'd be interested to see how Barack Obama can bring his party together in this health care bill. This isn't -- right now, he doesn't have a problem getting a bipartisan bill. He can't get a partisan bill, and so he has to solve that problem first before James Carville can start blaming the Republicans for where this health care debate is going or the tenor of it, which is something Obama wanted to talk about yesterday, when he probably should have been pushing his health care message.
BROWN: All right, James.
CARVILLE: My point is this, is that the Republicans are bringing the Democrats together as much as President Obama is bringing the Democrats together.
BROWN: All right. We're ending it there. James Carville, Amanda Carpenter and John Avlon joining us tonight. Thanks, guys, appreciate it.
The centerpiece of the president's big media blitz this week, his one-on-one interview with David Letterman. We'll maybe not the centerpiece, but part of it. You don't have to stay up late to see the best moments. We've got them already.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: President Obama, as we've telling you, hit the Sunday talk show circuit hard yesterday. But he made time in his schedule tonight for a little late-night action. The president gave as good as he got when it came to funny business, but the talk also turned serious. Here is a sneak peek so you don't have to stay up late tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": I was looking at your itinerary for the day. And the activities and the stops and the visits and considering your day yesterday, it just makes me dizzy. When you wake up on a day like this, is this something you relish or is it something you say, oh, for heaven's sakes, I have to go see Letterman?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That was unexpected, seeing that appear on the schedule.
(LAUGHTER)
I was --
LETTERMAN: Well --
OBAMA: That's one of those where, you know, you ask your advisers, who's responsible for this?
LETTERMAN: That's exactly right.
OBAMA: And everybody kind of looks down and they pull out their BlackBerries. But I will say that nobody's accountable.
LETTERMAN: I started noticing when they would have these town hall meetings and there was vitriol and general animosity and anger and shouting and pushing and just unsavory behavior reported. I don't know if it was generally speaking, but it would be reported here and there.
And then within the last week, like a couple of days ago, Jimmy Carter started talking about this behavior and was speculating that perhaps this unease or poor decorum was because people was rooted in racism. Is he on to something there or is that just something to talk about?
OBAMA: Well, first of all, I think it's important to realize that I was actually black before the election so the -- so --
LETTERMAN: Really?
OBAMA: This is true. This is true.
LETTERMAN: How long have you been a black man?
OBAMA: And so the American people, I think, gave me this extraordinary honor and that tells you, I think, a lot about where the country is at. I actually think that what's happened is that whenever a president tries to bring about significant changes, particularly during times of economic unease, then there is a certain segment of the population that gets very riled up. And it happened.
FDR was called a socialist and a communist. You know, JFK, there are all kinds of names hurled at him. Ronald Reagan when he came into office, he was moving in a different direction and people were sure that he was bringing the country down. And so, this is not untypical.
You know, one of the things you sign up for in politics is folks yell at you. But -- but I think that what has been missing from the conversation is that the overwhelming majority of people, Republican or Democrat, I think they just want to see some common sense. They want to see some honesty and integrity in Washington. I think they're turned off by the shouting and the yelling, and they expect more from their public elected officials. And so, that's something that I want to --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: President Obama there with David Letterman.
New developments tonight, in the alleged terrorist plot believed to have targeted major transportation hubs and new details about the suspect, a man authorities say has admitted ties to Al Qaeda. We have the very latest on this coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: New developments to tell you about tonight in the alleged terror plot against New York City. Mass transit systems all over the country are being warned this evening to beef up patrols.
This out of concern about a man investigators fear was part of an Al Qaeda terror cell planning to detonate backpack bombs on New York City trains. That man, his father and an imam were all arrested this weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Prosecutors say Najibullah Zazi played a direct role in an alleged bomb plot that unraveled around the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. He and his father appeared in court in Denver today. A third suspect faced a judge here in New York.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Court documents revealed no details about the timing or targeting of the alleged explosives plot, but they allege that Najibullah Zazi lied about nine pages of detailed bomb- making instructions found on his computer.
BLITZER: Ron Kuby, he's the attorney for Imam Ahmad Afzali (ph).
RON KUBY, LAWYER OF AHMAD WAIS AFZALI: He was a source in the sense that he did exactly what the American people are always demanding that Islamic leaders do -- cooperate with the police.
Periodically, members of the joint terrorism task force would come to him with photographs, do you know this person? Or have you heard anything about this particular subject?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Each of the suspects appeared in court today. And let's go right now to our own Deborah Feyerick here in New York to sort of bottom line this for us.
And, Deb, I know you've been tracking this all day. Give us the latest.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Campbell, we can tell you this is still a very active investigation. Federal agents continue to gather evidence in connection with this plot. The reason they believe that it was perhaps targeted to Manhattan is because they found detailed plans of Grand Central terminal in the computer of one of the suspects, the suspect who has alleged ties to Al Qaeda.
Now, the three men were in court today, two in Colorado, one here in New York. They're charged with making false statements to investigators who are at the heart of this investigation here at federal court in Brooklyn. An imam, Ahmad Afzali, entered a not guilty plea. His lawyer saying that, in fact, police actually reached out to him as a contact, asking for his help to speak to these Denver people to find out what exactly it was they were up to when they traveled from Denver to New York over that September 11th weekend.
BROWN: And, Deb, talk to us a little bit more specifically about the imam in Queens. He was working with the FBI as we understand it. According to court papers, though, investigators believe that he turned around and that he warned Zazi, sort of the main character, that he was under surveillance, right?
FEYERICK: Well, that's what they're alleging. They're alleging that he made false statements, that he may have contradicted himself in various places. And that's what they've charged him with.
For example, one of the conversations that was recorded by FBI agents, for example, both the imam and Zazi both understand that they're under surveillance and that the conversations likely being recorded. Also, Zazi says that he knows that he was being trailed from Denver. And then the imam at that point says, well, without getting into specifics, did they find any evidence in the car? So, that was one of the statements.
Another statement, the imam says to Zazi, you know, it's a good sign that in fact they came to him, the imam, to ask for information about Zazi. The bad sign is the fact that they arrested these guys so quickly.
So all of that, investigators are saying, point to a clear indication that the imam somehow was trying to either signal them or trying to alert them that in fact they were being watched.
BROWN: All right. Deb Feyerick for us tonight. Deb, thanks.
I want to bring in CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin and CNN national security contributor Fran Townsend who is also President Bush's Homeland security adviser.
And, Fran, as we understand it, investigators had to move in before they could get more details. But from what you know from what's out there so far, how serious do you think this was?
FRANCES FRAGOS TOWNSEND, FMR. BUSH HOMELAND SEC. ADVISER: I think investigators believe it was very serious. I think they're also, Campbell, frustrated by the fact that they had to move so quickly.
I mean, part of the reason you move is, if you believe the targets have been signaled as they've alleged, the imam signaled to Zazi about the investigation, about the JTTF (ph) coming to him and asking about Zazi. And so I think they don't have as much as they'd like but every indication is that they've taken this pretty seriously and want to learn more, both about Zazi's connections in Pakistan and potentially other people here throughout the United States.
BROWN: Well, that's what I was going to ask is, you have sources telling you this investigation could expand out to other cities, right?
TOWNSEND: That's right. There's no question. When they did the searches, they would have recovered things on, you know, names, addresses, e-mails, telephone numbers from the computer, from documents. And those are the sorts of leads that they're following up all over the country now.
BROWN: And, Jeff, Zazi, again, the one who we believe is at the center of this, voluntarily talked to the FBI for three days? And he admitted allegedly, during those conversations, that he was trained by Al Qaeda in Pakistan. I mean, learned about weapons, learned about explosives. Why on that alone wouldn't they arrest him?
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, it appears like they did. He is under arrest just for making false statements so far. That's the kind of charge that the Justice Department uses as kind of a placeholder. It gets him arrested, it gets him off the streets but it allows the Justice Department to continue their investigation. If they want to charge him with something else later, they can.
BROWN: And, Fran, so much discussion about Al Qaeda being on the road -- on the run, rather, less able to launch attacks here in the U.S. Does the seriousness of this -- of it getting this far along say to us that we haven't really done as much damage here as maybe we thought? TOWNSEND: Well, Zazi and this cell represent the thing that the FBI has been most worried about, what they call clean skins. Those are individuals with no known ties to Al Qaeda central in Pakistan in the tribal regions, and the ability to move back and forth. When Zazi admits to having gone to a training camp and learned about explosives and then finding the explosives manual, if you will, the document, on his computer, along with diagrams of potential transportation hubs, that's really concerning to the FBI and suggests a greater tie to Al Qaeda central as we used to call it, than one would have expected.
I mean, I think that's part of what's got investigators very concerned here and eager to know more and understand more about the extent of those ties.
BROWN: They've got a real challenge, though, Jeff. I know you've been looking at a lot of these cases and sort of the post-9/11 era. And it's hard in terms of how they can proceed with their investigations.
TOOBIN: The mindset is completely changed at the Justice Department. It used to be that you had a crime, a bank robbery, a drug deal and then you prosecuted. But with terrorism, the stakes of letting the crime take place are so great, you have to move in faster.
The problem with that is you may not have enough evidence at that point. So the struggle that the Justice Department is facing in the 9/11 era, is when do you bring down a case when you have enough to make a case that sticks but before you endanger the population if you think there really might be a terrorist act in the future.
BROWN: We'll be tracking where this goes. Jeff Toobin for us tonight, and Fran Townsend. Fran, thanks.
TOWNSEND: Thank you.
BROWN: More breaking news tonight. A state of emergency in effect in 17 Georgia counties, massive flooding, lives uprooted. We're going to bring you all the latest information. And in tonight's breakout story, our Soledad O'Brien takes us to Cuba where performers literally risk their lives to perform in front of huge crowds this weekend. We're going to look at the controversial message behind the music.
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BROWN: Welcome back, everybody. Every night we bring you a breakout story from around the globe, the very best of CNN and a piece that we thought we just had to see again.
Tonight, it is all about one extraordinary sight, 1.2 million people crowded together in 100 degree heat for a rock concert. It wasn't just any concert, though. It was a concert in Havana, the biggest thing in Cuba since the pope's visit more than ten years ago. And the organizers hope it will be a concert for peace.
Soledad O'Brien has the story. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The concert was called "Peace Without Borders" and came to a place that never sees concerts of this magnitude. Havana, Cuba, with a lineup of 15 international rock stars. Superstars of Latin music like Olga Tanon and Miguel Bose (ph) and, of course, Juanes.
The concert is the brainchild of Juanes, a 37-year-old Colombian rock star whose spans stretch across the world. He's won 17 Latin Grammys and today won the affection of the Cuban people. His aim, as Juanes has said over 2 1/2 months of planning this concert is peace. That, in spite of numerous logistical obstacles and even death threats.
JUANES, LATIN ROCK STAR: It's just amazing. More than a million.
O'BRIEN: They have said 1.2 million.
JUANES: Yes. That's just, you know, amazing.
O'BRIEN: Is that success for you?
JUANES: Oh, it's more than that. More than that. And when I saw all these beautiful faces, of all the people smiling and singing, that's it. You know, that's the only thing that matters.
O'BRIEN: Another goal, to help thaw U.S./Cuba relations.
(on camera): What does that say to you then about opportunities down the road?
JUANES: You know, I mean, at least culture and music-wise, it's changing. I mean, something is happening. And this is a message -- a message for them, you know, like, hey, guys, we are here. I mean, we want to be together. Please, do something.
O'BRIEN (voice-over): Juanes saying with Cuban performers barred from the U.S. like Silvio Rodriguez (ph). But missing from this concert, well-known Cuban American performers like Gloria Estefan and Willy Chirino, fierce critics of the Cuban government.
WILLY CHIRINO, CUBAN MUSICIAN: Revolution (ph) is going to do win. You know, the system is dying already. You know? And they're going to give oxygen.
JUANES: I know, you know, in the years to come, Willy or Gloria or, I mean, all of them can come to Cuba, you know, their country. They are Cubans, and they have to come, sooner or later.
O'BRIEN (on camera): The concert was supposed to last four hours and it went much longer than that. Temperatures hit more than 90 degrees but as you can see from the crowd around me, didn't faze most of the people. Occasionally an ambulance would come through and take out someone who had fainted from overheating. Juanes says just a sheer number of people make this concert a huge success. His next concert will be on the U.S./Mexico border.
Reporting from Havana, Cuba, I'm Soledad O'Brien for CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: And coming next month, CNN presents "Latino in America," an in-depth look at how Latinos are reshaping American politics, business, schools, churches and neighborhoods. That's "Latino in America" this October on CNN.
"LARRY KING LIVE" with former President Bill Clinton just minutes away now. But first, an update on tonight's breaking news.
Meteorologist Chad Myers will be here with the very latest on the deadly Atlanta area flooding.
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BROWN: Back now to tonight's breaking news. You're seeing the pictures there.
Five people are dead in flooding across the Atlanta area. Tonight, Georgia's governor has declared a state of emergency in 17 counties. Scores of homes have been swallowed by the muddy waters. People are trying to salvage their belongings any way they can.
Meteorologist Chad Myers is back with us in the weather center with the very latest.
Chad, you've been watching this all day.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes.
BROWN: Give us your take on how widespread all of this is?
MYERS: Well, you know what? We're talking 17 counties having disaster declarations here by the governor. And I'm really worried tonight, Campbell, about rushing water in roadways that people don't know is actually flooded or for that matter, the roads may be gone altogether.
I'll take you to some of the pictures that we saw today earlier. I want to take you to this one home that caught on fire. It was on fire. The fire trucks came to put the fire out and literally they were stalled in the floodwater and they couldn't get out.
Look at this, this fire truck is all the way up to the doors there. Everybody out safe. Everybody got to high ground here, but this is a dangerous situation tonight and also for tomorrow.
Now, the rain has stopped. The rain has stopped for today. That's good. But the water will still run off and some water still going up. It depends on where you are in the creek or the stream. This water could be going up for the next two to three days -- Campbell. BROWN: All right. Chad, we appreciate it. We will be checking in with you as we keep an eye on these pictures throughout the night, Chad Myers.
And that is it for us. Tonight, "LARRY KING LIVE" starts right now. His guest tonight, Bill Clinton.
