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High Court Tosses Pledge Suit; Car Bomb Kills 13 in Iraq

Aired June 14, 2004 - 12:58   ET

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

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


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: "Under God," two controversial words from the pledge get two words from the Supreme Court, "case dismissed."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN ASHCROFT, ATTORNEY GENERAL: The American heartland was targeted for death and destruction by an al Qaeda cell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: An indictment involving an alleged terror plot. The target: a shopping mall.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He doesn't deserve this, and I plead with you all to please let my father go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: A plea for the release of a contractor kidnapped in Saudi Arabia. Is the kingdom doing enough to keep Americans safe there?

NGUYEN: And portrait of unity, the Clintons and the Bushes together for a special occasion at the White House.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Betty Nguyen.

O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. Kyra Phillips is off today. CNN's LIVE FROM... starts right now.

NGUYEN: We begin this hour with a star-spangled side-step, on Flag Day, no less. The highest court in the land reversed an appeals court ruling that the Pledge of Allegiance, in particular, the two- word phrase "under God" is unconstitutional. But the church and state had nothing to do with it. Instead the high court focused on father and daughter, home and family, standing and custody, and CNN's Bob Franken is standing by with the details.

Hi, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Welcome to the nation's highest family court, or at least that was the case today. Rather than dealing, as you pointed out, with the normal constitutional reasons for making a ruling, the justices decided that Michael Newdow, the atheist who had argued before the courts that his daughter was being harmed because she had to participate in the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance with the words "under God" on it, he had no standing.

He did not have adequate custody of his child. That the mother was the custodial parent. Therefore five of the justices said that he did not have the right, as Justice John Paul Stevens wrote, to dictate to others what they may or may not say about this child respecting religion. He didn't have the standing.

Now several of the other justices, three of them, O'Connor, Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justice Thomas wanted to speak out on the constitutionality of the words "under God." They concurred, it was an 8-0 decision, Scalia had opted out, but the three justices concurred. But their reasons had to do with the constitutionality, saying our national culture allows public recognition of our national religious history and character.

It would be impervious from heckler's veto, an unwarranted of the establishment of the establishment clause, the establishment clause, of course, the first words of the Bill of Rights saying that the government may not establish a religion. This however, according to the justices, is a ceremonial deism. They say it is not something that advocates religion. It's just there. Now this disappointed those who were challenging it, Newdow, of course, among them, but also those who argue for the separation of church and state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARRY LYNN, AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: I think there will be custodial parents lining up in California to bring this suit again so that it cannot be thrown out on a technical standing grounds. This is not the end of the debate over the constitutionality of the constitutionality of the use of "under God in the Pledge of Allegiance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: Now the fact of the matter is is that this is a very narrow, limited ruling, five of the justices, the majority, instead of being constitutional, dealt with family matters. Nevertheless, there is a bottom line, the words "under God" remain in the Pledge of Allegiance -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Bob, are you seeing a sense of disappointment that the high court didn't really take the issue head on in dealing mainly with a technicality here?

FRANKEN: Well, it's -- I suppose those of us who are law groupies and like to see sweeping constitutional decisions, this is mighty, mighty narrow. But the court just basically decided that there was no reason to exert itself, at least five of the members did.

NGUYEN: And Bob Franken, thank you.

O'BRIEN: It strikes fear in the hearts of first responders and government leaders, cops and cabinet officials and everybody in between. It's a terror attack on a shopping mall. The "American heartland," in the words of John Ashcroft, who today alleged such a plot has been foiled and a Somali native charged. Justice correspondent Kelli Arena following the case for us in Washington -- Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Miles, charges have been brought against Nuradin Abdi. As you said, he's a Somali citizen. Specifically the four-count indictment alleges that he conspired with admitted al Qaeda member, Iyman Faris, and others to detonate a bomb at an unidentified shopping mall. He has been in custody on immigration charges since November.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASHCROFT: Upon returning to the Columbus, Ohio, area, it is alleged that Abdi along with admitted al Qaeda operative Faris and other co-conspirators initiated a plot to blow up a Columbus area shopping mall. It is also alleged that in pursuit of this plot, Abdi received bomb-making instructions from one of these -- or those co- conspirators.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: Abdi is also charged with obtaining and using fraudulent travel documents. He allegedly lied about travel to Ethiopia where the government says that he received military-style training for violent jihad. And while announcing charges against Abdi, the attorney general also warned of the persistent threat posed by al Qaeda, saying once again that the terror organization wants to hit the United States and hit it hard -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Kelli Arena in Washington, thank you very much -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Now to Iraq where yet another car bombing has killed at least 13 people, this time near Liberation Square in the capital. CNN's Guy Raz is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Baghdad's landscape now characterized by chaos, a morning rush hour car bomb this time, the seventeenth car bomb in Iraq this month. Westerners were targeted, Iraqis part of a terrorist's collateral damage. Charred bodies were pulled from the rubble of this three-story building. Burning vehicles smoldered in the middle of the road.

Condemnations from all corners, still, those behind the attacks seem more determined than ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We deplore this terrorist act and vow to get the criminals to justice.

RAZ: An angry crowd gathered around the bomb site. "America is the enemy of God," they chanted Confused Iraqis passing along conspiracy theories blaming America and Jews.

Less than one month before administrative authority is handed over the Iraqi government, officials warn of more attacks to come, most of them silently concede they'll be difficult to stop.

Guy Raz, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: The lame duck Coalition Authority says the foes of Iraqi sovereignty are desperately trying to derail a process that's already under way.

DAN SENOR, COALITION SPOKESMAN: What's happening right now is there is a tremendous amount of progress that has been made, over half of the ministries, for instance, are in Iraqi control. Iraqis are running government operations at every level, the national level, the provincial level, the local, municipal level. And so what the terrorists are realizing is June 30 is not some magical date when sovereignty will be handed over and Iraqis suddenly assume authority. It's already happening. And so they are, I think, in a little bit of a panic mode and they're trying to throw things off track.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And through it all, the inmate population of Abu Ghraib Prison continues to shrink. Eight or nine busloads of former prisoners left the site today. Almost 600 Iraqis not considered -- or no longer considered threats to coalition forces or society. The U.S. promised to free or transfer control of some 1400 detainees by June 30 -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: An American civilian is still in the hands of Islamist kidnappers in Saudi Arabia, or so it appears. But the U.S. says the Saudis are doing everything possible to save him. He is Paul M. Johnson, a field engineer with Lockheed Martin. And his family is frantic, understandably so. CNN's Alina Cho is with them in Tuckerton, New Jersey -- Alina.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, in fact, CNN has just spoken to Johnson's uncle who tells us that the family is headed to the airport right now to pick up Johnson's son. He is on a flight from his home in Florida and is expected to arrive within the hour.

If you have been following this story at all, you know that Johnson's son has essentially been serving as the family spokesman throughout this ordeal. His father, Paul Johnson, was abducted in Riyadh Saturday, the same week that two other Americans were killed.

A group claiming to have links to al Qaeda posted on a Web site a passport-sized photo of Johnson, a driver's license, even a business card. Johnson is an Apache helicopter specialist with Lockheed Martin. He has been living in Saudi Arabia with his wife for more than a decade. Earlier his son told us he hasn't slept since he heard the news.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL JOHNSON III, KIDNAP VICTIM'S SON: I would trade in a heartbeat with my father. He don't deserve this and I plead with you all to please let my father go. He don't deserve it. We all got to do jobs, you know, and he just does not deserve what has happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Johnson's son also thanked the media for keeping the story alive, for keeping it "fresh," as he calls it. We also spoke to a close family friend earlier, as she visited Johnson's brother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARGE HULTS, FAMILY FRIEND: He's a good guy. He loved doing the job he's doing. Like I said, he's an all-American boy, you know, and this is sad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Saudi officials are taking the lead in this investigation, but of course, they are in very close contact with officials here in the United States. Lockheed Martin meanwhile has issued a statement, it came out a short time ago. Of course, the company is watching the developments, but the family perhaps the most anxious to hear any news at all about Johnson's fate overseas -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Alina Cho, thank you very much. In a few minutes we'll talk more about the rising tide of terror in the Saudi kingdom with defense and foreign policy analyst David Isby. That's at the bottom of this hour right here on LIVE FROM...

NGUYEN: Terrorist arrests, Pakistan calls it a major breakthrough, al Qaeda suspects and a whole bunch of weapons seized. More on that ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tornado number two, oh, it just hit another house. It just hit another house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And check this out. Tornadoes ripped through the heartland, cleaning up after the weekend wallop.

And for "Your Health," it's a condition often confused with Alzheimer's disease, but it is curable. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is on the case just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: A diet rich in vitamin C may help protect you from arthritis. A new study by British researchers found that people who eat foods rich in vitamin C less likely develop rheumatoid arthritis. More than 2 million Americans suffer from the disease which causes inflammation and pain in the joints. British researchers compared the diets of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers with those who do not have the disease. Individuals with low daily intake levels of vitamin C were three times, that's three times more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis.

Health news now for soccer moms and dads, a new report says kids at sports camps don't drink enough to replace the fluids they are sweating away. Researchers surveyed children attending soccer camps in Pennsylvania. They found by the second day, most of the kids were dehydrated. By the fourth day, they were dangerously dehydrated. Dehydration increases the children's risk of heat exhaustion, obviously. Researchers say camp counselors need to do more to get those kids to drink up.

NGUYEN: Well, a lot of attention has been focused on Alzheimer's disease following the death of former President Ronald Reagan. But there's a condition that doctors have difficulty distinguishing from the debilitating disease, and this one can be corrected.

Our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few years ago, stooping down to pick up balls, even speaking with his granddaughter was impossible for 74-year-old Bob Fowler (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good shot, Emma.

GUPTA: When she was a baby he wasn't allowed to pick her up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I fell two or three times and almost hit her. I was scared to death.

GUPTA: His health and his family were slipping from his grasp.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Driving a golf ball to driving a car to running our home, our business, all of that was dropping like a Stuka dive-bomber and it was very, very frustrating.

GUPTA: Scores of doctors visits across nine years and not one could tell him what was wrong. Then Bob had an MRI. His diagnosis was normal pressure hydrocephalus, or NPH, the symptoms include a slow, shuffling walk, frequent urination and dementia. But the biggest problem for doctors...

DR. ANTHONY MARMAROU, VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIV.: ... is to try to distinguish NPH from Alzheimer's.

GUPTA: The Hydrocephalus Association says 375,000 people in the U.S. are affected by NPH and many of them are mistaken for Alzheimer's patients. NPH is an abnormal buildup of fluid in the brain. On the left, a normal brain. On the right, a brain with NPH, the ventricles swelling with fluid.

MARMAROU: It's like if you were to take a garden hose that is running and pinch the end of it, it would blow up and that's what occurs to the ventricles.

GUPTA: The problem, says Dr. Anthony Marmarou, is that like Bob, many patients with NPH are either misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. But unlike Alzheimer's, NPH is reversible. It involves a simple operation using what's called a shunt, a device which diverts fluid from the brain to the abdomen. Seventy-two hours after surgery, most patients are nearly back to their normal selves.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A few weeks after my surgery, I could do anything I had done 10 years earlier.

GUPTA: Now Bob hopes that thousands of people like him will get their own diagnosis and get their lives back.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Bill and Hillary Clinton together at the White House again? A live report on the picture perfect occasion, that's just ahead.

And later, security concerns in Saudi Arabia. Is the kingdom doing enough to fight terror and keep Americans and other Westerners safe? We'll talk about it.

O'BRIEN: President Bush en route to the "Show Me State" after showing the Clintons, of all people, a good deal of kindness inside the White House. CNN's Elaine Quijano paints a picture -- actually make that two pictures for us.

Hello, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I didn't actually do the painting there, Miles. We'll get to that in just a moment. But as you said, President Bush left the White House a short time ago on his way to Missouri where he's set to talk about Medicare.

But earlier today it was a notable homecoming. President Bush gave a warm welcome back to the former first family, Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, for the unveiling of the presidential portrait. It was a ceremony that took place in the East Room of the White House, that unveiling taking place also before an audience that included members, current and former members of their staff.

There you see the president unveiling the portrait there. Chelsea, of course, in the audience as well. Now the ceremony also included the unveiling of Hillary Clinton's portrait, the former first lady, of course, now New York senator. And as President Bush pointed out, she's the only sitting U.S. senator whose painting hangs in the White House.

Now the portraits are taking on added significance because they're the first to be painted by an African-American artist, that artist name is Simmie Cox (sic), a self-taught painter born in Alabama in 1935 to a sharecropping family. He was actually recommended to the Clintons by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. He is also known to have painted a famous portrait of comedian Bill Cosby, as well as baseball legend Hank Aaron.

Now in unveiling the paintings, it's quite noteworthy, President Bush lavished praise on former President Clinton for the work that he did in office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It was clear that Bill Clinton loved the job of the presidency. He filled this house with energy and joy. He was a man of enthusiasm and warmth, who could make a compelling case and effectively advance the causes that drew him to public service.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: And for his part, former President Clinton offered his own words of praise for President Bush and the American government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, 42TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The president, by his generous words to Hillary and me today, has proved once again that in the end, we are held together by this grand system of ours that permits us to debate and struggle and fight for what we believe is right, and because it's free, because it is a system of majority rule and minority rights, we're still around here, after over 200 years. And most of the time, we get it right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: And Miles, I want to make one correction on the artist's name, Simmie Knox is his name, that's the name of the African-American painter who painted those portraits. President Bush now as we mentioned earlier turning his attention back to the campaign trail, heading off to Missouri, a key battleground state where he will tout the new Medicare prescription drug discount cards. The president saying that he believes it marks a major step forward in ensuring affordable medicine for the elderly. Democrats, however, argue that the cards are confusing and they say they do not result in real savings for seniors. By the way, that trip to Missouri, the president's eighteenth visit to that state -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Elaine Quijano at the White House, thank you very much.

The man who painted the Clintons' portrait himself an all- American portrait of hard work, immense talent and a little bit of good fortune. Simmie Knox talks with Paula Zahn tonight, 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific right here on CNN.

(MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Checking headlines for you, a Somali man accused of plotting to blow-up a shopping mall in Columbus, Ohio, the announcement made today by Attorney General John Ashcroft: 32-year-old Nuradin Abdi was indicted on four counts, including providing material support for al Qaeda. Abdi has been in custody since November on immigration charges.

Caught on tape. Did Enron plot to manipulate electricity during the big power crunch out West a few years ago? A public utility is preparing to release a batch of audio tapes in which it says energy traders are laughing about how they manipulated the markets. An Enron spokesperson says the company hasn't heard the tapes yet and isn't commenting.

On this Flag Day, folks reciting the Pledge of Allegiance will still say "one nation under God." The Supreme Court turned away a challenge to that phrase today. A California man wants the pledge banned from his daughter's school, but the justices said he doesn't have sufficient legal custody to sue on her behalf.

And President Bush is off to Liberty, Missouri, to spread word about Medicare drug discount cards. The cards are just temporary. They're supposed to be used until the prescription drug insurance begins under Medicare in 2006. So far, the cards have been slow to catch on.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired June 14, 2004 - 12:58   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: "Under God," two controversial words from the pledge get two words from the Supreme Court, "case dismissed."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN ASHCROFT, ATTORNEY GENERAL: The American heartland was targeted for death and destruction by an al Qaeda cell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: An indictment involving an alleged terror plot. The target: a shopping mall.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He doesn't deserve this, and I plead with you all to please let my father go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: A plea for the release of a contractor kidnapped in Saudi Arabia. Is the kingdom doing enough to keep Americans safe there?

NGUYEN: And portrait of unity, the Clintons and the Bushes together for a special occasion at the White House.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Betty Nguyen.

O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. Kyra Phillips is off today. CNN's LIVE FROM... starts right now.

NGUYEN: We begin this hour with a star-spangled side-step, on Flag Day, no less. The highest court in the land reversed an appeals court ruling that the Pledge of Allegiance, in particular, the two- word phrase "under God" is unconstitutional. But the church and state had nothing to do with it. Instead the high court focused on father and daughter, home and family, standing and custody, and CNN's Bob Franken is standing by with the details.

Hi, Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Welcome to the nation's highest family court, or at least that was the case today. Rather than dealing, as you pointed out, with the normal constitutional reasons for making a ruling, the justices decided that Michael Newdow, the atheist who had argued before the courts that his daughter was being harmed because she had to participate in the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance with the words "under God" on it, he had no standing.

He did not have adequate custody of his child. That the mother was the custodial parent. Therefore five of the justices said that he did not have the right, as Justice John Paul Stevens wrote, to dictate to others what they may or may not say about this child respecting religion. He didn't have the standing.

Now several of the other justices, three of them, O'Connor, Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justice Thomas wanted to speak out on the constitutionality of the words "under God." They concurred, it was an 8-0 decision, Scalia had opted out, but the three justices concurred. But their reasons had to do with the constitutionality, saying our national culture allows public recognition of our national religious history and character.

It would be impervious from heckler's veto, an unwarranted of the establishment of the establishment clause, the establishment clause, of course, the first words of the Bill of Rights saying that the government may not establish a religion. This however, according to the justices, is a ceremonial deism. They say it is not something that advocates religion. It's just there. Now this disappointed those who were challenging it, Newdow, of course, among them, but also those who argue for the separation of church and state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARRY LYNN, AMERICANS UNITED FOR SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE: I think there will be custodial parents lining up in California to bring this suit again so that it cannot be thrown out on a technical standing grounds. This is not the end of the debate over the constitutionality of the constitutionality of the use of "under God in the Pledge of Allegiance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: Now the fact of the matter is is that this is a very narrow, limited ruling, five of the justices, the majority, instead of being constitutional, dealt with family matters. Nevertheless, there is a bottom line, the words "under God" remain in the Pledge of Allegiance -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Bob, are you seeing a sense of disappointment that the high court didn't really take the issue head on in dealing mainly with a technicality here?

FRANKEN: Well, it's -- I suppose those of us who are law groupies and like to see sweeping constitutional decisions, this is mighty, mighty narrow. But the court just basically decided that there was no reason to exert itself, at least five of the members did.

NGUYEN: And Bob Franken, thank you.

O'BRIEN: It strikes fear in the hearts of first responders and government leaders, cops and cabinet officials and everybody in between. It's a terror attack on a shopping mall. The "American heartland," in the words of John Ashcroft, who today alleged such a plot has been foiled and a Somali native charged. Justice correspondent Kelli Arena following the case for us in Washington -- Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Miles, charges have been brought against Nuradin Abdi. As you said, he's a Somali citizen. Specifically the four-count indictment alleges that he conspired with admitted al Qaeda member, Iyman Faris, and others to detonate a bomb at an unidentified shopping mall. He has been in custody on immigration charges since November.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASHCROFT: Upon returning to the Columbus, Ohio, area, it is alleged that Abdi along with admitted al Qaeda operative Faris and other co-conspirators initiated a plot to blow up a Columbus area shopping mall. It is also alleged that in pursuit of this plot, Abdi received bomb-making instructions from one of these -- or those co- conspirators.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARENA: Abdi is also charged with obtaining and using fraudulent travel documents. He allegedly lied about travel to Ethiopia where the government says that he received military-style training for violent jihad. And while announcing charges against Abdi, the attorney general also warned of the persistent threat posed by al Qaeda, saying once again that the terror organization wants to hit the United States and hit it hard -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Kelli Arena in Washington, thank you very much -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Now to Iraq where yet another car bombing has killed at least 13 people, this time near Liberation Square in the capital. CNN's Guy Raz is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Baghdad's landscape now characterized by chaos, a morning rush hour car bomb this time, the seventeenth car bomb in Iraq this month. Westerners were targeted, Iraqis part of a terrorist's collateral damage. Charred bodies were pulled from the rubble of this three-story building. Burning vehicles smoldered in the middle of the road.

Condemnations from all corners, still, those behind the attacks seem more determined than ever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We deplore this terrorist act and vow to get the criminals to justice.

RAZ: An angry crowd gathered around the bomb site. "America is the enemy of God," they chanted Confused Iraqis passing along conspiracy theories blaming America and Jews.

Less than one month before administrative authority is handed over the Iraqi government, officials warn of more attacks to come, most of them silently concede they'll be difficult to stop.

Guy Raz, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: The lame duck Coalition Authority says the foes of Iraqi sovereignty are desperately trying to derail a process that's already under way.

DAN SENOR, COALITION SPOKESMAN: What's happening right now is there is a tremendous amount of progress that has been made, over half of the ministries, for instance, are in Iraqi control. Iraqis are running government operations at every level, the national level, the provincial level, the local, municipal level. And so what the terrorists are realizing is June 30 is not some magical date when sovereignty will be handed over and Iraqis suddenly assume authority. It's already happening. And so they are, I think, in a little bit of a panic mode and they're trying to throw things off track.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And through it all, the inmate population of Abu Ghraib Prison continues to shrink. Eight or nine busloads of former prisoners left the site today. Almost 600 Iraqis not considered -- or no longer considered threats to coalition forces or society. The U.S. promised to free or transfer control of some 1400 detainees by June 30 -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: An American civilian is still in the hands of Islamist kidnappers in Saudi Arabia, or so it appears. But the U.S. says the Saudis are doing everything possible to save him. He is Paul M. Johnson, a field engineer with Lockheed Martin. And his family is frantic, understandably so. CNN's Alina Cho is with them in Tuckerton, New Jersey -- Alina.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, in fact, CNN has just spoken to Johnson's uncle who tells us that the family is headed to the airport right now to pick up Johnson's son. He is on a flight from his home in Florida and is expected to arrive within the hour.

If you have been following this story at all, you know that Johnson's son has essentially been serving as the family spokesman throughout this ordeal. His father, Paul Johnson, was abducted in Riyadh Saturday, the same week that two other Americans were killed.

A group claiming to have links to al Qaeda posted on a Web site a passport-sized photo of Johnson, a driver's license, even a business card. Johnson is an Apache helicopter specialist with Lockheed Martin. He has been living in Saudi Arabia with his wife for more than a decade. Earlier his son told us he hasn't slept since he heard the news.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL JOHNSON III, KIDNAP VICTIM'S SON: I would trade in a heartbeat with my father. He don't deserve this and I plead with you all to please let my father go. He don't deserve it. We all got to do jobs, you know, and he just does not deserve what has happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Johnson's son also thanked the media for keeping the story alive, for keeping it "fresh," as he calls it. We also spoke to a close family friend earlier, as she visited Johnson's brother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARGE HULTS, FAMILY FRIEND: He's a good guy. He loved doing the job he's doing. Like I said, he's an all-American boy, you know, and this is sad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHO: Saudi officials are taking the lead in this investigation, but of course, they are in very close contact with officials here in the United States. Lockheed Martin meanwhile has issued a statement, it came out a short time ago. Of course, the company is watching the developments, but the family perhaps the most anxious to hear any news at all about Johnson's fate overseas -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Alina Cho, thank you very much. In a few minutes we'll talk more about the rising tide of terror in the Saudi kingdom with defense and foreign policy analyst David Isby. That's at the bottom of this hour right here on LIVE FROM...

NGUYEN: Terrorist arrests, Pakistan calls it a major breakthrough, al Qaeda suspects and a whole bunch of weapons seized. More on that ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tornado number two, oh, it just hit another house. It just hit another house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And check this out. Tornadoes ripped through the heartland, cleaning up after the weekend wallop.

And for "Your Health," it's a condition often confused with Alzheimer's disease, but it is curable. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is on the case just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: A diet rich in vitamin C may help protect you from arthritis. A new study by British researchers found that people who eat foods rich in vitamin C less likely develop rheumatoid arthritis. More than 2 million Americans suffer from the disease which causes inflammation and pain in the joints. British researchers compared the diets of rheumatoid arthritis sufferers with those who do not have the disease. Individuals with low daily intake levels of vitamin C were three times, that's three times more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis.

Health news now for soccer moms and dads, a new report says kids at sports camps don't drink enough to replace the fluids they are sweating away. Researchers surveyed children attending soccer camps in Pennsylvania. They found by the second day, most of the kids were dehydrated. By the fourth day, they were dangerously dehydrated. Dehydration increases the children's risk of heat exhaustion, obviously. Researchers say camp counselors need to do more to get those kids to drink up.

NGUYEN: Well, a lot of attention has been focused on Alzheimer's disease following the death of former President Ronald Reagan. But there's a condition that doctors have difficulty distinguishing from the debilitating disease, and this one can be corrected.

Our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few years ago, stooping down to pick up balls, even speaking with his granddaughter was impossible for 74-year-old Bob Fowler (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good shot, Emma.

GUPTA: When she was a baby he wasn't allowed to pick her up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I fell two or three times and almost hit her. I was scared to death.

GUPTA: His health and his family were slipping from his grasp.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Driving a golf ball to driving a car to running our home, our business, all of that was dropping like a Stuka dive-bomber and it was very, very frustrating.

GUPTA: Scores of doctors visits across nine years and not one could tell him what was wrong. Then Bob had an MRI. His diagnosis was normal pressure hydrocephalus, or NPH, the symptoms include a slow, shuffling walk, frequent urination and dementia. But the biggest problem for doctors...

DR. ANTHONY MARMAROU, VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIV.: ... is to try to distinguish NPH from Alzheimer's.

GUPTA: The Hydrocephalus Association says 375,000 people in the U.S. are affected by NPH and many of them are mistaken for Alzheimer's patients. NPH is an abnormal buildup of fluid in the brain. On the left, a normal brain. On the right, a brain with NPH, the ventricles swelling with fluid.

MARMAROU: It's like if you were to take a garden hose that is running and pinch the end of it, it would blow up and that's what occurs to the ventricles.

GUPTA: The problem, says Dr. Anthony Marmarou, is that like Bob, many patients with NPH are either misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. But unlike Alzheimer's, NPH is reversible. It involves a simple operation using what's called a shunt, a device which diverts fluid from the brain to the abdomen. Seventy-two hours after surgery, most patients are nearly back to their normal selves.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A few weeks after my surgery, I could do anything I had done 10 years earlier.

GUPTA: Now Bob hopes that thousands of people like him will get their own diagnosis and get their lives back.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Bill and Hillary Clinton together at the White House again? A live report on the picture perfect occasion, that's just ahead.

And later, security concerns in Saudi Arabia. Is the kingdom doing enough to fight terror and keep Americans and other Westerners safe? We'll talk about it.

O'BRIEN: President Bush en route to the "Show Me State" after showing the Clintons, of all people, a good deal of kindness inside the White House. CNN's Elaine Quijano paints a picture -- actually make that two pictures for us.

Hello, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I didn't actually do the painting there, Miles. We'll get to that in just a moment. But as you said, President Bush left the White House a short time ago on his way to Missouri where he's set to talk about Medicare.

But earlier today it was a notable homecoming. President Bush gave a warm welcome back to the former first family, Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, for the unveiling of the presidential portrait. It was a ceremony that took place in the East Room of the White House, that unveiling taking place also before an audience that included members, current and former members of their staff.

There you see the president unveiling the portrait there. Chelsea, of course, in the audience as well. Now the ceremony also included the unveiling of Hillary Clinton's portrait, the former first lady, of course, now New York senator. And as President Bush pointed out, she's the only sitting U.S. senator whose painting hangs in the White House.

Now the portraits are taking on added significance because they're the first to be painted by an African-American artist, that artist name is Simmie Cox (sic), a self-taught painter born in Alabama in 1935 to a sharecropping family. He was actually recommended to the Clintons by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. He is also known to have painted a famous portrait of comedian Bill Cosby, as well as baseball legend Hank Aaron.

Now in unveiling the paintings, it's quite noteworthy, President Bush lavished praise on former President Clinton for the work that he did in office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It was clear that Bill Clinton loved the job of the presidency. He filled this house with energy and joy. He was a man of enthusiasm and warmth, who could make a compelling case and effectively advance the causes that drew him to public service.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: And for his part, former President Clinton offered his own words of praise for President Bush and the American government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, 42TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The president, by his generous words to Hillary and me today, has proved once again that in the end, we are held together by this grand system of ours that permits us to debate and struggle and fight for what we believe is right, and because it's free, because it is a system of majority rule and minority rights, we're still around here, after over 200 years. And most of the time, we get it right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: And Miles, I want to make one correction on the artist's name, Simmie Knox is his name, that's the name of the African-American painter who painted those portraits. President Bush now as we mentioned earlier turning his attention back to the campaign trail, heading off to Missouri, a key battleground state where he will tout the new Medicare prescription drug discount cards. The president saying that he believes it marks a major step forward in ensuring affordable medicine for the elderly. Democrats, however, argue that the cards are confusing and they say they do not result in real savings for seniors. By the way, that trip to Missouri, the president's eighteenth visit to that state -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Elaine Quijano at the White House, thank you very much.

The man who painted the Clintons' portrait himself an all- American portrait of hard work, immense talent and a little bit of good fortune. Simmie Knox talks with Paula Zahn tonight, 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific right here on CNN.

(MARKET REPORT)

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O'BRIEN: Checking headlines for you, a Somali man accused of plotting to blow-up a shopping mall in Columbus, Ohio, the announcement made today by Attorney General John Ashcroft: 32-year-old Nuradin Abdi was indicted on four counts, including providing material support for al Qaeda. Abdi has been in custody since November on immigration charges.

Caught on tape. Did Enron plot to manipulate electricity during the big power crunch out West a few years ago? A public utility is preparing to release a batch of audio tapes in which it says energy traders are laughing about how they manipulated the markets. An Enron spokesperson says the company hasn't heard the tapes yet and isn't commenting.

On this Flag Day, folks reciting the Pledge of Allegiance will still say "one nation under God." The Supreme Court turned away a challenge to that phrase today. A California man wants the pledge banned from his daughter's school, but the justices said he doesn't have sufficient legal custody to sue on her behalf.

And President Bush is off to Liberty, Missouri, to spread word about Medicare drug discount cards. The cards are just temporary. They're supposed to be used until the prescription drug insurance begins under Medicare in 2006. So far, the cards have been slow to catch on.

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