CNN.com - Transcripts

Transcript Providers

Return to Transcripts main page

Live From...

Hundreds of Homes Threatened in Southern California; Is Iran Tied to 9/11?

Aired July 19, 2004 - 14:00 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.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Wildfires, erratic winds, dry conditions, and hundreds of homes threatened. It's a firefighter's nightmare in Southern California.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought we were going to die.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I thought we were going to get killed or get hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A wild ride -- a family outing in a hot air balloon -- or was it helium, not sure which. But it turns into a dangerous dilemma.

PHILLIPS: The 9/11 Commission connection -- the relationship between the Al Qaeda terrorists who struck America and Iran.

O'BRIEN: And brain food -- a new study shows why all of us should eat our vegetables. You listening, kids? From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Miles O'Brien.

PHILLIPS: I'm listening to you, Miles. And I'm Kyra Phillips. This hour of CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

O'BRIEN: We begin this hour on the trail of the California wildfires. From Yosemite to San Diego County, more than 40,000 acres of Golden State brush land are burning, blackened, or threatened, while hundreds of homes sit deserted, but certainly not forgotten. Hundreds of firefighters are having varying degrees of success against varying combinations of flames, and terrain, and weather. We get the latest from CNN's Miguel Marquez on the fringes of a fire that was started by an unlucky hawk who tangled with a power line -- Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, that's what the officials here are saying is that the official cause of the foothill fires about 25 miles north of Los Angeles was a hawk that hit two wires at the same time. You know, those birds, they land on wires all the time. They hit one, they're fine. They hit two, this hawk burst into flames, fell to the ground and started this fire up. Just in the last few minutes what has happened is the wind has started to change. We have now kind of a stiff breeze out of the North or out of the South, heading north, which actually may help firefighters push that fire onto areas that have already burned.

If you look out over the ridge here, that's a Blackhawk helicopter carrying a bucket, probably, 250 to 500 gallons or so, and they've been hitting this all day long, for several hours now, chopper after chopper of varying sizes, bringing in buckets into this ridge area. This is the head of the foothills fire, and they're trying to stop it cold in this area, because there's a small trail that goes up this ridge, and that allows them to anchor in and get a line around this fire.

If it gets away from this area, they fear they won't have much luck getting a hold of it anywhere else. About 5,700 acres this fire has now officially burned, 39 percent contained. One community now, Fair Oaks, the evacuation order has been lifted. Plaza Rita and San Canyon, they are still under mandatory evacuations.

We talked to a firefighter, a Hotshot, a short time ago. He tells us about the terrain and why it's so hard to fight this fire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The brush is really thick. We, in the Hotshot community, we call it family brush. They're always intertwined. It's really hard for the sawyers to get through. There's not much ground fuel for the fire to burn in, but just the duff layer underneath it, it can smolder underneath and preheat the canopy of the brush. So that kind of makes our situation awareness a little more keen on that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: Now, he used a couple of words in there -- sawyer, that's a person who operates a chainsaw. You can see that the fire has taken off now in a little canyon here in the Plaza Rita Canyon State Park, in the Angeles National Forest, sort of the foothills to the Angeles National Forest. The sawyer is someone who uses a chainsaw. Duff, as he talked about -- it's about 60 years since this area has burned, and duff is all that stuff that collects for years, and years, and years. And then, when it starts on fire, it can smolder for days and days, sometimes even weeks before it picks back up again.

Another chopper now moving in, as you can see, dumping off yet another load of water. Firefighters hoping that they can get a hold of this one today -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Miguel, they have plenty of aerial support there, all that they need?

MARQUEZ: They have quite a bit of aerial support. And although you've heard a lot about how fixed wings are no longer fighting fires, they do actually have three fixed wings that are operated by the California Department of Forestry. They're not being used today, because this canyon is just so narrow, and the wind conditions are such that it's just much better for helicopters to get in there. They can be much more precise with where they drop water -- Miles. O'BRIEN: Yeah, that would be a scary flight in one of those big fixed wings that were grounded. Thank you very much, Miguel Marquez. Appreciate that. Those firefighters are the first to admit they can only do so much. At the end of the day, their progress or setbacks come down mostly to weather...

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: We'll update you again at the bottom of the hour -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Going before the cameras -- the U.S. Marine who went missing in Iraq last month before turning up in Lebanon is apparently ready to speak publicly. Corporal Wassef Ali-Hassoun is now in the states at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia. He's expected to deliver a prepared statement at 3 PM Eastern today. We're told he's not taking questions. CNN will bring you his comments live when they happen.

Now to another disappearance in Iraq. Al Jazeera Television is reporting that an Egyptian truck driver held hostage there has been released. Egyptian officials tell Reuters that he's reached their embassy in Baghdad. This happened as the last of the Filipino troops in Iraq left the country earlier to satisfy the demands of militants holding a Filipino truck driver.

Our Michael Holmes has the latest now from Baghdad, where insurgents are again targeting Iraq police and high ranking officials.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As U.S. forces are more and more seen less on the streets of Iraq as they hand over security control to Iraqis, more and more Iraqis themselves are the targets of the insurgents -- police, in particular. On this occasion, it was a police station that was a target of a large truck bombing. It pulled up behind the police station in Al Dura, a southern suburb of Baghdad. The bomb was detonated and it left behind a scene of carnage.

At least nine people were killed, more than 60 were wounded, 20 of those critically, the bomb leaving a crater about 2 meters deep and about at least as far again wide. Now, a crowd gathered soon after. They were chanting pro-Saddam slogans, including, "With our blood, with our soul, we will sacrifice for Saddam." Iraqi military told the crowd to disperse. When they did not, warning shots were fired.

Another tactic being employed more and more by the insurgents is assassination. And there were two more assassinations over the last 24 hours -- one of a senior ministry of defense official who was gunned down in a drive-by shooting near his home in Baghdad, and another assassination taking place in Mosul in the North. This time, a senior member of the Turkmen National Front. He was gunned down in precisely the same manner -- a drive-by shooting. Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE) O'BRIEN: A secret passage for terror -- the much-anticipated fund report from the 9/11 Commission won't be released until Thursday. But fresh, disturbing details suggesting an Iranian connection are now emerging. There's word that Iranian border guards were ordered not to stamp the passports of Al Qaeda members traveling through Iran from Afghanistan in late 2000 and early 2001.

President Bush says the intelligence community has long been reviewing Iran's possible ties to the terrorists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This has been an issue that I have been concerned about ever since I've been the president, as to direct connections with September the 11th. You know, we're digging into the facts to determine if there was one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: We'll talk with an expert about this new development about 20 minutes from now. Intelligence officials are leery of what else could come out in that 9/11 Commission's final report. The CIA and FBI are still reeling from the criticisms in the last one. Leaked details say the new report calls for a national intelligence tsar. But the CIA argues there's no need. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux with our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Abraham Scott lost his beloved wife Janice at the Pentagon September 11. The one thing he wants to hear from the commission investigating the attacks is...

ABRAHAM SCOTT, LOST WIFE ON 9/11: What's being done and what needs to be done in order to prevent this from happening again?

MALVEUX: Thursday, the commission will release its final report, and sources familiar with it say it will call for a new national director of intelligence, a cabinet-level official to report directly to the president and oversee all 15 intelligence agencies. The goal? Better prepare for a terrorist attack by consolidating information. But the proposal is already drawing fire from the Pentagon and CIA, who stand to lose authority over the estimated $40 billion in the annual intelligence budget. The CIA's acting director argues it's his job to overhaul the agency.

Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee are divided.

SEN. DICK DURBIN, (D), ILLINOIS: I'm open to suggestions for reform for one basic reason. Intelligence is our first line of defense in any war on terrorism. Our intelligence failed us before the invasion of Iraq.

SEN. SAXBY CHAMBLISS, (R), GEORGIA: Now, if you just add another level of bureaucracy -- and that's exactly what Dick's talking about here that we need to look at -- if you just add that, we're not going to do anything.

MALVEAUX: Abraham Scott, who lost so much on September 11, wants more.

SCOTT: We need to bring in new blood that will get the job done.

MALVEAUX: Privately, sources familiar with the interagency talks on creating an intelligence tsar say there is such fierce opposition that the Bush administration is nowhere near reaching a consensus on intelligence reform.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Other news across America now, amazing pictures from a frightening crash. NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. expected to be back behind the wheel on Sunday, despite this fiery wreck yesterday. He suffered second-degree burns to his face and legs during a practice run at a track in Sonoma, California. Earnhardt is expected to leave the hospital today.

Bearing "Bobo" the tiger -- dozens of mourners in Florida paid tribute to the 600-pound Siberian tiger that was killed last week. Bobo was buried in a wooden coffin near the graves of other animals owned by former Tarzan actor Steve Sipek.

Some California Democrats are stewing over a pointed remark tossed out by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger over the weekend. They say the comment was sexist, homophobic, and distracting. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: If they don't have the guts to come out here in front of you and say, "I don't want to represent you. I want to represent those special interests for unions, the trial lawyers -- I want them to make the millions of dollars. I don't want to represent you." If they don't have the guys, I call them "girlie men." They should go back to the table, and they should fix the budget.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Schwarzenegger says he's not going to apologize for calling lawmakers "girlie men." You'll remember that line from Saturday Night Live, a skit on that show. And a spokesperson says if Democrats complain too much about it, well, maybe they're making the governor's point.

O'BRIEN: Well, a Sunday joyride turns into a hellish experience. The people on an out of control balloon talk about what it was like. Well, it's one thing both Kobe Bryant's defenders and prosecutors can agree on, but will a judge agree to keep cameras out of the courtroom in Colorado? A live report is ahead. PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, CROSSFIRE: And I am Paul Begala in Concord, New Hampshire, the state capital, sitting in the rain with electrical equipment hooked to my ears, just to prove I am not a girlie man.

TUCKER CARLSON, CO-HOST, CROSSFIRE: And I am Tucker Carlson in a state packed with prominent Democrats, or as Arnold Schwarzenegger would say, again, girlie men. We're going to interview some of them. We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Well, the driver of the CNN Campaign Express apparently got a little bit lost. We sent him to Boston -- they ended up in Concord. That's all right. Just head down 93 there, take a left at the Dunkin Donuts, and off you'll be at the Fleet Center. In the meantime, let's talk to our Hans and Franz of politics here, Paul Begala, Tucker Carlson, who are going to pump us up with some details about the impending convention, which has the entire world (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and with goose bumps, thinking about what might happen there. Gentlemen, will anything happen in Boston?

BEGALA: Well, you never now, Miles. Apparently, it's going to be so exciting that John Kerry's not even going to show up until the end. He's doing something -- actually, I think it's innovative, it's probably smart -- going through a lot of swing states. While the convention is going on in Boston, John Kerry will be in places like Colorado and in Norfolk, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, working his way to Boston, trying to impress swing voters.

But he'll actually be competing with his own convention. I think it's a risk worth taking to try to get some new attention and create a little news during that week.

O'BRIEN: Tucker...

CARLSON: I think it's an interesting tactic. I sort of agree with Paul. It may not be a bad idea. A cynic, however, might say that this is all part of a larger theme -- John Kerry being intimidated by other prominent figures in his party. You remember last week, this dance that the Kerry campaign went through, trying to keep Hillary Clinton from addressing the convention in Boston for fear that she would overshadow the candidate himself.

You might say that maybe, you know, while Hillary is speaking here, John Kerry is going to be attempting to make news outside of the convention. Maybe he just doesn't feel he can compete with real stars in the party. I mean, I'm leaving it open...

O'BRIEN: But let me ask you that, though. Isn't that something that is not necessarily unique to John Kerry? Isn't that the case for anybody who is anointed at the top of the ticket? There's always some concern...

CARLSON: Politicians can't handle, yeah.

(CROSSTALK)

O'BRIEN: They can't take the heat, right?

CARLSON: No politician can handle it, that's exactly right. They all do. I mean, John Kerry's maybe more fragile than most. I'm not a psychiatrist, though, obviously, I play one sometimes on television. But no, they all have fragile egos. They hate to share the limelight. They laugh at their own jokes and don't laugh at yours. That's the nature of politics.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala...

BEGALA: I would go along with that one.

O'BRIEN: Is this a bipartisan note of agreement that we have between the two of you on this point?

CARLSON: No.

BEGALA: No, of course not. Tucker's being silly about this. Look, John Kerry is a deeply secure person. Witness who he chose to be his running mate -- a guy who most commentators thought was more charismatic on the stump than Kerry. Kerry didn't care. He wanted the best person for the job, and so he picked John Edwards. Contrast that with George W. Bush, who could have picked John McCain -- much more electrifying on the stump. He could have picked Rudi Giuliani, who many people were impressed with his performance in office in New York City.

Instead, he picked the man from bland, Dick Cheney. There's no one more boring. There's no one more colorless. Although, he apparently, he has a potty mouth, which I find attractive. But other than that -- in fact, Mr. Bush, who's been quite afraid of being overshadowed by anybody in his party, Kerry does not have to worry.

He's going to be the star. It's his hometown. It's his party. It's going to be a great week for John Kerry.

O'BRIEN: All right. Well, let's go along with that for just a moment. Let's talk hypothetically here. Isn't possible, however, taking aside the psychoanalysis here, if you can, to use Hillary Clinton to your advantage in a situation like that? I mean, can't they be secure enough to put Hillary on there and perhaps have her bring some of her support -- Tucker.

CARLSON: Well, you'd think it would be a no-brainer. I mean, whatever I think of Hillary, you think of Hillary, she is awfully popular among the fervent Democratic base. They think she's wonderful. They bought more than a million copies of her book.

And so, what's especially odd -- that John Kerry refused, at least initially, to allow her to speak. And even now, she's speaking really in an auxiliary role, just introducing her husband, as if the man, by definition, by nature, by virtue of being a man, is more important. It's insulting, actually. I think there are a lot of feminists out there -- I've become almost a feminist over this issue, really, watching Ms. Clinton humiliated day after day by the Democratic leadership. I mean, it's sad.

O'BRIEN: A feminist, but not a girlie man, of course. You could make a case for having President Clinton introduce Senator Clinton. What about that one, Paul?

CARLSON: Of course, she's the one with a job.

O'BRIEN: There you go. She's got a gig, right?

BEGALA: You could, but let's be honest. President Clinton is a two-term president, the only person alive who's served two terms in the White House, and he's a huge star in this party. Hillary will have a prime time speaking role. She'll be introducing her husband, which is terrific. But she'll have enough to say on her own. Somebody made a mistake in the party, or maybe in the Kerry campaign, I don't know.

But what I understand happened is that John Kerry found out about it and he rectified. Again, I think that's a great contrast with President Bush, who believes if you make a mistake, you should just compound. You know, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. That seems to be our president's strategy pretty much on everything, from the economy to Iraq.

I like the fact that John Kerry sees the mistakes that his party makes and he corrects it. Hillary will be speaking in prime time. It's good for America.

O'BRIEN: All right, final thought here. I've been seeing the Bush schedule during the Boston Convention. If Kerry's out there on the hustings, Tucker, do you expect that the Bush campaign will be active, or will they lay low, as is the custom during the other party's convention?

CARLSON: Oh, I think Bush will probably spend his time in Nantucket windsurfing with trial lawyers. Oh, wait, sorry, that's John Kerry. No, of course, yeah. I mean, there are going to be Republican operatives all around Boston, hopefully buying free drinks for Paul and me, but trying to offer, you know, counter-spin. Yeah, you assume that Bush will be doing something earlier in the week to make news. But when it comes to Wednesday and Thursday, it's impossible to break through, and I imagine, the tradition is that the other party backs off for those days, and I think Bush probably will too.

BEGALA: What's interesting -- there was an article in the paper today, Miles... one of the things that I actually like about President Bush is he's pretty much a full time vacationer. I respect that. I like that. But he's actually found something so important to him that he's going to cut his vacation in half. It wasn't the threat of terrorism. We know he was warned about bin Laden having a plan to attack America.

He didn't cut short his vacation for that. But he's cutting it short this year, for the first time ever, so that he can campaign. So now we know that George Bush saving his own job is a lot more important to him than saving yours, or mine, or any of the people who work here in New Hampshire. So Bush will try, I think, to be out there campaigning. It's not going to do him much good.

O'BRIEN: All right, we'll leave it at that. I want you to give us -- give us the Hans and Franz pose as we leave. Give us that one. There you go.

CARLSON: Yeah, I'm not going to attempt it.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala, Tucker Carlson, always a pleasure. And, of course, that's just a taste of what you'll see on that fine program, "CROSSFIRE," which is so good it even has its own parody now on Comedy Central -- "Cross-balls." Yeah, these guys are good. We don't have a parody yet. We're working on that one. "CROSSFIRE," 4:30 Eastern today, right here on CNN -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, in Baltimore, officials say that one balloon will remain safety tethered to the ground today. Authorities have grounded the helium-filled balloon that bobbed aimlessly some 300 feet in the air this weekend near the city's inner harbor. It became stuck high above the city by high winds, with adults and children onboard. Four people suffered minor injuries.

Well, for many of those swaying over the city, it was a frightening ordeal. Earlier on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," one family on the ride recalls some pretty harrowing moments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We went through the one really turbulent time. Then it was calm for awhile. And you know, we kept thinking, why aren't they bringing us down? And when that second turbulent time came through, that's when we hit the building and that -- it was terrifying. I mean, you know, we were in positions just trying to protect the kids and holding on and bracing with our feet. So you know, that was my main concern.

MIKE MCGONIGLE, STRANDED IN BALLOON: I don't think that the system was designed -- I mean, unfortunately, there really was no backup system, so there wasn't really a plan B to default to. He was trying his best. But on the ground, they clearly were confused. They really -- you know, we went through the first gust, which was terribly unnerving. But the worst part was we sat there for 45 minutes of calm weather with the fire department showing up and everything, and all we could hear over the walkie-talkie was the computer's shutdown.

And then, after half an hour, they overrode the computer, but the emergency brake was still applied, and then the second swell hit us. So he was trying his hardest to keep everyone calm, but they were totally unprepared for it. The balloon really had no backup system whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, investigators are now looking into what went wrong.

O'BRIEN: Well, do you swat or flick? New information on the safest move to make when one of those pesky mosquitoes comes in for a landing. And bottoms up, literally. We're popping the cork on a champagne vintage found beneath the sea. That's ahead on "LIVE FROM."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Martha Stewart hoping her life won't be interrupted by five months behind bars. The domestic diva says she will appeal the prison sentence for lying about a stock sale. And tonight, on her first and only live interview since sentencing, Stewart will sit down with CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE," and she'll take your questions. That's at 9 PM Easter, 6 Pacific.

O'BRIEN: News around the world now. Davy Jones' locker apparently makes a pretty decent wine cellar. One expert calls some champagne that spent almost 50 years underwater in the English Channel absolutely fine, though lacking in fizz. British divers last week brought up samples from a stock of 20,000 bottles of bubbly in a French cargo vessel that sank in 1955 -- a good year for champagne at least, not for the crew of the vessel, of course.

Anyway, some soccer fans and security guards are nursing bruises from a dustup, as they say, at a weekend game in Geneva -- oh, that's more than a dustup. That's a slam-dunk. Anyway, a fan waving a banner invaded the pitch in the last seconds of a Swiss-Portuguese match. Security officers ran him down and then started wailing on him, and that brought more fans from the stands to attack the police officers, who later managed to escape, almost like a hockey game. The match was abandoned.

And monsoon season in South Asia. Weekend flooding widespread from China to India. Heavy rains and flood waters surging into central districts of Bangladesh. Ten are dead there.

(MARKET REPORT)

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 July 19, 2004 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Wildfires, erratic winds, dry conditions, and hundreds of homes threatened. It's a firefighter's nightmare in Southern California.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought we were going to die.

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: I thought we were going to get killed or get hurt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A wild ride -- a family outing in a hot air balloon -- or was it helium, not sure which. But it turns into a dangerous dilemma.

PHILLIPS: The 9/11 Commission connection -- the relationship between the Al Qaeda terrorists who struck America and Iran.

O'BRIEN: And brain food -- a new study shows why all of us should eat our vegetables. You listening, kids? From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Miles O'Brien.

PHILLIPS: I'm listening to you, Miles. And I'm Kyra Phillips. This hour of CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

O'BRIEN: We begin this hour on the trail of the California wildfires. From Yosemite to San Diego County, more than 40,000 acres of Golden State brush land are burning, blackened, or threatened, while hundreds of homes sit deserted, but certainly not forgotten. Hundreds of firefighters are having varying degrees of success against varying combinations of flames, and terrain, and weather. We get the latest from CNN's Miguel Marquez on the fringes of a fire that was started by an unlucky hawk who tangled with a power line -- Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, that's what the officials here are saying is that the official cause of the foothill fires about 25 miles north of Los Angeles was a hawk that hit two wires at the same time. You know, those birds, they land on wires all the time. They hit one, they're fine. They hit two, this hawk burst into flames, fell to the ground and started this fire up. Just in the last few minutes what has happened is the wind has started to change. We have now kind of a stiff breeze out of the North or out of the South, heading north, which actually may help firefighters push that fire onto areas that have already burned.

If you look out over the ridge here, that's a Blackhawk helicopter carrying a bucket, probably, 250 to 500 gallons or so, and they've been hitting this all day long, for several hours now, chopper after chopper of varying sizes, bringing in buckets into this ridge area. This is the head of the foothills fire, and they're trying to stop it cold in this area, because there's a small trail that goes up this ridge, and that allows them to anchor in and get a line around this fire.

If it gets away from this area, they fear they won't have much luck getting a hold of it anywhere else. About 5,700 acres this fire has now officially burned, 39 percent contained. One community now, Fair Oaks, the evacuation order has been lifted. Plaza Rita and San Canyon, they are still under mandatory evacuations.

We talked to a firefighter, a Hotshot, a short time ago. He tells us about the terrain and why it's so hard to fight this fire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The brush is really thick. We, in the Hotshot community, we call it family brush. They're always intertwined. It's really hard for the sawyers to get through. There's not much ground fuel for the fire to burn in, but just the duff layer underneath it, it can smolder underneath and preheat the canopy of the brush. So that kind of makes our situation awareness a little more keen on that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUEZ: Now, he used a couple of words in there -- sawyer, that's a person who operates a chainsaw. You can see that the fire has taken off now in a little canyon here in the Plaza Rita Canyon State Park, in the Angeles National Forest, sort of the foothills to the Angeles National Forest. The sawyer is someone who uses a chainsaw. Duff, as he talked about -- it's about 60 years since this area has burned, and duff is all that stuff that collects for years, and years, and years. And then, when it starts on fire, it can smolder for days and days, sometimes even weeks before it picks back up again.

Another chopper now moving in, as you can see, dumping off yet another load of water. Firefighters hoping that they can get a hold of this one today -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Miguel, they have plenty of aerial support there, all that they need?

MARQUEZ: They have quite a bit of aerial support. And although you've heard a lot about how fixed wings are no longer fighting fires, they do actually have three fixed wings that are operated by the California Department of Forestry. They're not being used today, because this canyon is just so narrow, and the wind conditions are such that it's just much better for helicopters to get in there. They can be much more precise with where they drop water -- Miles. O'BRIEN: Yeah, that would be a scary flight in one of those big fixed wings that were grounded. Thank you very much, Miguel Marquez. Appreciate that. Those firefighters are the first to admit they can only do so much. At the end of the day, their progress or setbacks come down mostly to weather...

(WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: We'll update you again at the bottom of the hour -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Going before the cameras -- the U.S. Marine who went missing in Iraq last month before turning up in Lebanon is apparently ready to speak publicly. Corporal Wassef Ali-Hassoun is now in the states at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia. He's expected to deliver a prepared statement at 3 PM Eastern today. We're told he's not taking questions. CNN will bring you his comments live when they happen.

Now to another disappearance in Iraq. Al Jazeera Television is reporting that an Egyptian truck driver held hostage there has been released. Egyptian officials tell Reuters that he's reached their embassy in Baghdad. This happened as the last of the Filipino troops in Iraq left the country earlier to satisfy the demands of militants holding a Filipino truck driver.

Our Michael Holmes has the latest now from Baghdad, where insurgents are again targeting Iraq police and high ranking officials.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As U.S. forces are more and more seen less on the streets of Iraq as they hand over security control to Iraqis, more and more Iraqis themselves are the targets of the insurgents -- police, in particular. On this occasion, it was a police station that was a target of a large truck bombing. It pulled up behind the police station in Al Dura, a southern suburb of Baghdad. The bomb was detonated and it left behind a scene of carnage.

At least nine people were killed, more than 60 were wounded, 20 of those critically, the bomb leaving a crater about 2 meters deep and about at least as far again wide. Now, a crowd gathered soon after. They were chanting pro-Saddam slogans, including, "With our blood, with our soul, we will sacrifice for Saddam." Iraqi military told the crowd to disperse. When they did not, warning shots were fired.

Another tactic being employed more and more by the insurgents is assassination. And there were two more assassinations over the last 24 hours -- one of a senior ministry of defense official who was gunned down in a drive-by shooting near his home in Baghdad, and another assassination taking place in Mosul in the North. This time, a senior member of the Turkmen National Front. He was gunned down in precisely the same manner -- a drive-by shooting. Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE) O'BRIEN: A secret passage for terror -- the much-anticipated fund report from the 9/11 Commission won't be released until Thursday. But fresh, disturbing details suggesting an Iranian connection are now emerging. There's word that Iranian border guards were ordered not to stamp the passports of Al Qaeda members traveling through Iran from Afghanistan in late 2000 and early 2001.

President Bush says the intelligence community has long been reviewing Iran's possible ties to the terrorists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This has been an issue that I have been concerned about ever since I've been the president, as to direct connections with September the 11th. You know, we're digging into the facts to determine if there was one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: We'll talk with an expert about this new development about 20 minutes from now. Intelligence officials are leery of what else could come out in that 9/11 Commission's final report. The CIA and FBI are still reeling from the criticisms in the last one. Leaked details say the new report calls for a national intelligence tsar. But the CIA argues there's no need. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux with our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Abraham Scott lost his beloved wife Janice at the Pentagon September 11. The one thing he wants to hear from the commission investigating the attacks is...

ABRAHAM SCOTT, LOST WIFE ON 9/11: What's being done and what needs to be done in order to prevent this from happening again?

MALVEUX: Thursday, the commission will release its final report, and sources familiar with it say it will call for a new national director of intelligence, a cabinet-level official to report directly to the president and oversee all 15 intelligence agencies. The goal? Better prepare for a terrorist attack by consolidating information. But the proposal is already drawing fire from the Pentagon and CIA, who stand to lose authority over the estimated $40 billion in the annual intelligence budget. The CIA's acting director argues it's his job to overhaul the agency.

Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee are divided.

SEN. DICK DURBIN, (D), ILLINOIS: I'm open to suggestions for reform for one basic reason. Intelligence is our first line of defense in any war on terrorism. Our intelligence failed us before the invasion of Iraq.

SEN. SAXBY CHAMBLISS, (R), GEORGIA: Now, if you just add another level of bureaucracy -- and that's exactly what Dick's talking about here that we need to look at -- if you just add that, we're not going to do anything.

MALVEAUX: Abraham Scott, who lost so much on September 11, wants more.

SCOTT: We need to bring in new blood that will get the job done.

MALVEAUX: Privately, sources familiar with the interagency talks on creating an intelligence tsar say there is such fierce opposition that the Bush administration is nowhere near reaching a consensus on intelligence reform.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Other news across America now, amazing pictures from a frightening crash. NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. expected to be back behind the wheel on Sunday, despite this fiery wreck yesterday. He suffered second-degree burns to his face and legs during a practice run at a track in Sonoma, California. Earnhardt is expected to leave the hospital today.

Bearing "Bobo" the tiger -- dozens of mourners in Florida paid tribute to the 600-pound Siberian tiger that was killed last week. Bobo was buried in a wooden coffin near the graves of other animals owned by former Tarzan actor Steve Sipek.

Some California Democrats are stewing over a pointed remark tossed out by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger over the weekend. They say the comment was sexist, homophobic, and distracting. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: If they don't have the guts to come out here in front of you and say, "I don't want to represent you. I want to represent those special interests for unions, the trial lawyers -- I want them to make the millions of dollars. I don't want to represent you." If they don't have the guys, I call them "girlie men." They should go back to the table, and they should fix the budget.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Schwarzenegger says he's not going to apologize for calling lawmakers "girlie men." You'll remember that line from Saturday Night Live, a skit on that show. And a spokesperson says if Democrats complain too much about it, well, maybe they're making the governor's point.

O'BRIEN: Well, a Sunday joyride turns into a hellish experience. The people on an out of control balloon talk about what it was like. Well, it's one thing both Kobe Bryant's defenders and prosecutors can agree on, but will a judge agree to keep cameras out of the courtroom in Colorado? A live report is ahead. PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, CROSSFIRE: And I am Paul Begala in Concord, New Hampshire, the state capital, sitting in the rain with electrical equipment hooked to my ears, just to prove I am not a girlie man.

TUCKER CARLSON, CO-HOST, CROSSFIRE: And I am Tucker Carlson in a state packed with prominent Democrats, or as Arnold Schwarzenegger would say, again, girlie men. We're going to interview some of them. We'll be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Well, the driver of the CNN Campaign Express apparently got a little bit lost. We sent him to Boston -- they ended up in Concord. That's all right. Just head down 93 there, take a left at the Dunkin Donuts, and off you'll be at the Fleet Center. In the meantime, let's talk to our Hans and Franz of politics here, Paul Begala, Tucker Carlson, who are going to pump us up with some details about the impending convention, which has the entire world (UNINTELLIGIBLE) and with goose bumps, thinking about what might happen there. Gentlemen, will anything happen in Boston?

BEGALA: Well, you never now, Miles. Apparently, it's going to be so exciting that John Kerry's not even going to show up until the end. He's doing something -- actually, I think it's innovative, it's probably smart -- going through a lot of swing states. While the convention is going on in Boston, John Kerry will be in places like Colorado and in Norfolk, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, working his way to Boston, trying to impress swing voters.

But he'll actually be competing with his own convention. I think it's a risk worth taking to try to get some new attention and create a little news during that week.

O'BRIEN: Tucker...

CARLSON: I think it's an interesting tactic. I sort of agree with Paul. It may not be a bad idea. A cynic, however, might say that this is all part of a larger theme -- John Kerry being intimidated by other prominent figures in his party. You remember last week, this dance that the Kerry campaign went through, trying to keep Hillary Clinton from addressing the convention in Boston for fear that she would overshadow the candidate himself.

You might say that maybe, you know, while Hillary is speaking here, John Kerry is going to be attempting to make news outside of the convention. Maybe he just doesn't feel he can compete with real stars in the party. I mean, I'm leaving it open...

O'BRIEN: But let me ask you that, though. Isn't that something that is not necessarily unique to John Kerry? Isn't that the case for anybody who is anointed at the top of the ticket? There's always some concern...

CARLSON: Politicians can't handle, yeah.

(CROSSTALK)

O'BRIEN: They can't take the heat, right?

CARLSON: No politician can handle it, that's exactly right. They all do. I mean, John Kerry's maybe more fragile than most. I'm not a psychiatrist, though, obviously, I play one sometimes on television. But no, they all have fragile egos. They hate to share the limelight. They laugh at their own jokes and don't laugh at yours. That's the nature of politics.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala...

BEGALA: I would go along with that one.

O'BRIEN: Is this a bipartisan note of agreement that we have between the two of you on this point?

CARLSON: No.

BEGALA: No, of course not. Tucker's being silly about this. Look, John Kerry is a deeply secure person. Witness who he chose to be his running mate -- a guy who most commentators thought was more charismatic on the stump than Kerry. Kerry didn't care. He wanted the best person for the job, and so he picked John Edwards. Contrast that with George W. Bush, who could have picked John McCain -- much more electrifying on the stump. He could have picked Rudi Giuliani, who many people were impressed with his performance in office in New York City.

Instead, he picked the man from bland, Dick Cheney. There's no one more boring. There's no one more colorless. Although, he apparently, he has a potty mouth, which I find attractive. But other than that -- in fact, Mr. Bush, who's been quite afraid of being overshadowed by anybody in his party, Kerry does not have to worry.

He's going to be the star. It's his hometown. It's his party. It's going to be a great week for John Kerry.

O'BRIEN: All right. Well, let's go along with that for just a moment. Let's talk hypothetically here. Isn't possible, however, taking aside the psychoanalysis here, if you can, to use Hillary Clinton to your advantage in a situation like that? I mean, can't they be secure enough to put Hillary on there and perhaps have her bring some of her support -- Tucker.

CARLSON: Well, you'd think it would be a no-brainer. I mean, whatever I think of Hillary, you think of Hillary, she is awfully popular among the fervent Democratic base. They think she's wonderful. They bought more than a million copies of her book.

And so, what's especially odd -- that John Kerry refused, at least initially, to allow her to speak. And even now, she's speaking really in an auxiliary role, just introducing her husband, as if the man, by definition, by nature, by virtue of being a man, is more important. It's insulting, actually. I think there are a lot of feminists out there -- I've become almost a feminist over this issue, really, watching Ms. Clinton humiliated day after day by the Democratic leadership. I mean, it's sad.

O'BRIEN: A feminist, but not a girlie man, of course. You could make a case for having President Clinton introduce Senator Clinton. What about that one, Paul?

CARLSON: Of course, she's the one with a job.

O'BRIEN: There you go. She's got a gig, right?

BEGALA: You could, but let's be honest. President Clinton is a two-term president, the only person alive who's served two terms in the White House, and he's a huge star in this party. Hillary will have a prime time speaking role. She'll be introducing her husband, which is terrific. But she'll have enough to say on her own. Somebody made a mistake in the party, or maybe in the Kerry campaign, I don't know.

But what I understand happened is that John Kerry found out about it and he rectified. Again, I think that's a great contrast with President Bush, who believes if you make a mistake, you should just compound. You know, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. That seems to be our president's strategy pretty much on everything, from the economy to Iraq.

I like the fact that John Kerry sees the mistakes that his party makes and he corrects it. Hillary will be speaking in prime time. It's good for America.

O'BRIEN: All right, final thought here. I've been seeing the Bush schedule during the Boston Convention. If Kerry's out there on the hustings, Tucker, do you expect that the Bush campaign will be active, or will they lay low, as is the custom during the other party's convention?

CARLSON: Oh, I think Bush will probably spend his time in Nantucket windsurfing with trial lawyers. Oh, wait, sorry, that's John Kerry. No, of course, yeah. I mean, there are going to be Republican operatives all around Boston, hopefully buying free drinks for Paul and me, but trying to offer, you know, counter-spin. Yeah, you assume that Bush will be doing something earlier in the week to make news. But when it comes to Wednesday and Thursday, it's impossible to break through, and I imagine, the tradition is that the other party backs off for those days, and I think Bush probably will too.

BEGALA: What's interesting -- there was an article in the paper today, Miles... one of the things that I actually like about President Bush is he's pretty much a full time vacationer. I respect that. I like that. But he's actually found something so important to him that he's going to cut his vacation in half. It wasn't the threat of terrorism. We know he was warned about bin Laden having a plan to attack America.

He didn't cut short his vacation for that. But he's cutting it short this year, for the first time ever, so that he can campaign. So now we know that George Bush saving his own job is a lot more important to him than saving yours, or mine, or any of the people who work here in New Hampshire. So Bush will try, I think, to be out there campaigning. It's not going to do him much good.

O'BRIEN: All right, we'll leave it at that. I want you to give us -- give us the Hans and Franz pose as we leave. Give us that one. There you go.

CARLSON: Yeah, I'm not going to attempt it.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala, Tucker Carlson, always a pleasure. And, of course, that's just a taste of what you'll see on that fine program, "CROSSFIRE," which is so good it even has its own parody now on Comedy Central -- "Cross-balls." Yeah, these guys are good. We don't have a parody yet. We're working on that one. "CROSSFIRE," 4:30 Eastern today, right here on CNN -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, in Baltimore, officials say that one balloon will remain safety tethered to the ground today. Authorities have grounded the helium-filled balloon that bobbed aimlessly some 300 feet in the air this weekend near the city's inner harbor. It became stuck high above the city by high winds, with adults and children onboard. Four people suffered minor injuries.

Well, for many of those swaying over the city, it was a frightening ordeal. Earlier on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," one family on the ride recalls some pretty harrowing moments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We went through the one really turbulent time. Then it was calm for awhile. And you know, we kept thinking, why aren't they bringing us down? And when that second turbulent time came through, that's when we hit the building and that -- it was terrifying. I mean, you know, we were in positions just trying to protect the kids and holding on and bracing with our feet. So you know, that was my main concern.

MIKE MCGONIGLE, STRANDED IN BALLOON: I don't think that the system was designed -- I mean, unfortunately, there really was no backup system, so there wasn't really a plan B to default to. He was trying his best. But on the ground, they clearly were confused. They really -- you know, we went through the first gust, which was terribly unnerving. But the worst part was we sat there for 45 minutes of calm weather with the fire department showing up and everything, and all we could hear over the walkie-talkie was the computer's shutdown.

And then, after half an hour, they overrode the computer, but the emergency brake was still applied, and then the second swell hit us. So he was trying his hardest to keep everyone calm, but they were totally unprepared for it. The balloon really had no backup system whatsoever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, investigators are now looking into what went wrong.

O'BRIEN: Well, do you swat or flick? New information on the safest move to make when one of those pesky mosquitoes comes in for a landing. And bottoms up, literally. We're popping the cork on a champagne vintage found beneath the sea. That's ahead on "LIVE FROM."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Martha Stewart hoping her life won't be interrupted by five months behind bars. The domestic diva says she will appeal the prison sentence for lying about a stock sale. And tonight, on her first and only live interview since sentencing, Stewart will sit down with CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE," and she'll take your questions. That's at 9 PM Easter, 6 Pacific.

O'BRIEN: News around the world now. Davy Jones' locker apparently makes a pretty decent wine cellar. One expert calls some champagne that spent almost 50 years underwater in the English Channel absolutely fine, though lacking in fizz. British divers last week brought up samples from a stock of 20,000 bottles of bubbly in a French cargo vessel that sank in 1955 -- a good year for champagne at least, not for the crew of the vessel, of course.

Anyway, some soccer fans and security guards are nursing bruises from a dustup, as they say, at a weekend game in Geneva -- oh, that's more than a dustup. That's a slam-dunk. Anyway, a fan waving a banner invaded the pitch in the last seconds of a Swiss-Portuguese match. Security officers ran him down and then started wailing on him, and that brought more fans from the stands to attack the police officers, who later managed to escape, almost like a hockey game. The match was abandoned.

And monsoon season in South Asia. Weekend flooding widespread from China to India. Heavy rains and flood waters surging into central districts of Bangladesh. Ten are dead there.

(MARKET REPORT)

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