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Ichiro Suzuki to Break Single Season Hits Record; NASA's Weightlessness Plane; Next Week's Presidential Debates.

Aired September 24, 2004 - 13:30   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: U.S. warplanes pound targets in the volatile Iraqi city of Fallujah. Planes struck two areas of that city, but there are no reports of casualties. Fallujah has been a stronghold for insurgents over the past few weeks. U.S. forces have targeted sights linked to the terror network of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
A CBS news legend weighs in on the docu-drama at his former network. Walter Cronkite says the scandal over questionable documents about President Bush's Texas Air National Guard service are embarrassing. But the 87-year-old news veteran says he thinks people should hold off final judgment until the results of the investigation are completed.

And the CIA officially has a new director. Porter Goss is sworn in this morning in the Oval Office. The Republican former Congressman from Florida won Senate confirmation yesterday by a vote of 77-17. Some Democrats question whether Goss can set aside his GOP loyalties and maintain a nonpartisan point of view at the CIA.

Other news across America now. Police in Philadelphia are questioning the staff of a nursing home after the feeding tubes of six patients were cut. The patients were not seriously hurt, and their tubes were reinserted. The patients can't help police identify the culprit. They are all mentally impaired.

The singer formerly known as Cat Stevens says he's taking legal action against the U.S. Yusuf Islam says he started the legal process to try to find out why he was denied entry into America. U.S. Homeland Security accused Islam of engaging in unspecified activities, potentially linked to terrorism. Islam denies that.

Olympic gymnast Paul Hamm is preparing to go to Switzerland in an effort to hold on to his gold medal. Hamm won the Men's All-Around title in Athens, but that is being challenged by a South Korean competitor. The Court of Arbitrations for Sport is hearing that case. It's decision is now binding.

Well, first it was Barry Bonds, now Ichiro Suzuki could soon be baseball's record-book legend. Ray D'Alessio reports on the Seattle Mariners' $6 million man.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAY D'ALESSIO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since joining the Seattle Mariners four years ago, Ichiro Suzuki has quietly come to the doorstep of breaking one of baseball's most elusive records: George Sisler's 257 hits in a single season, established in 1920.

PAUL MOLITOR, MARINERS HITTING COACH: It's a remarkable record in terms of consistency over a long-grinding season. And you know, it's a -- the fact that it stood as long as it has shows how difficult it is to approach it.

D'ALESSIO: Ichiro is 11 hits away from breaking Sisler's record with 10 games remaining. But the thing that has left an indelible impression among his teammates has been his mental approach to the game each day.

WILLIE BLOOMQUIST, MARINERS TEAMMATE: He sticks to his guns, you know, rain or shine. He does the same thing pretty much every day. And his goal is to hit the ball in the line or on the ground and use his speed to beat it out. So, he never tries to do too much, just stays within himself. And I think a lot can be said for that.

D'ALESSIO: At this point in his career, Ichiro is not surprised by his accomplishments. In addition to trying to break Sisler's record, he finds himself only nine hits away from becoming the all- time hits leader in the first four years of a major league career with 918 -- a record that's been on the books since 1932.

The media attention (INAUDIBLE) Ichiro's quest pales in comparison to the circus that follows Barry Bonds while he chases the all-time home run record. But there are those who feel that it's a significant achievement.

JOHN DONOVAN, SI.COM WRITER: It's a very significant record. He'll also probably get the record for singles -- most singles in a season that's held by Wee Willie Keeler. So, it's really significant. For what he is, nobody does it better.

D'ALESSIO: Had Ichiro begun his career in the majors, putting up the same type of numbers, he would be on pace to a 3,000 hit Hall of Fame career.

For CNN Sports, I'm Ray D'Alessio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, a little cosmic shout out to Miles now, because this is his kind of news, of course. The first solar wind samples recovered from the crashed Genesis space capsule have been sent to California researchers. Genesis crash landed in the Utah desert, you'll remember, earlier this month when its parachutes failed to deploy.

After initial dismay, NASA scientists now think they've recovered 75 to 80 percent of the lid foils that were exposed to solar wind throughout the three-year Genesis voyage. Captured space dust could reveal secrets about the origin of our solar system.

NASA calls it the vomit comet. It's a specifically equipped plane to help astronauts train for weightlessness. But now there's another version that allows anyone with $3,000 to go up, float around, and maybe throw up.

CNN's Jeanne Moos -- was she brave enough to take the ride? Let's watch and see.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It starts like a regular flight with the usual warnings. But though your tray table may stay in the upright and locked position, you won't. Three thousand bucks, you can experience weightlessness in a padded 727 -- a 727 that flies up and then down like an 8,000-foot roller coaster. And each time you go over the hump, you are weightless for about 30 seconds. And though you hear the warning, feet (ph) down.

This is how real astronauts train. This is how they film the weightless scenes in Apollo 13. And now, the public can do it. The press preview flight, four intrepid CNNers went up, and one cowardly correspondent waved goodbye from the hangar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People, the first time they go up, tend to think they're swimming. Of course, moving your arms and legs do no good.

MOOS: Take it from this poor little rabbit or this bird during a NASA weightless experiment. On the first flight, folks were having a ball. Miles O'Brien was playing Superman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeanne, you're missing out. You're missing out, Jeanne.

MOOS: But then, to borrow a phrase...

TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Houston, we have a problem.

MOOS: Clutching motion sickness bags, some scurried to seats in the back. For most of the flight, this reporter was merrily floating around. But then, she had to be helped away, uttering, "Aye-yi-yi.".

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel totally sick right now, but it was amazingly worth it. It was so fun. Nothing happened yet.

MOOS: It happened later.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... casualty ward...

MOOS: Out of 27 fliers, at least six either got sick or came...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very, very close.

MOOS: And speaking of close, a porn scene was once shot on a no- gravity fight. Though any body mingling here was merely accidental. Once G-Force One landed...

TIFFANY MCELROY, WB 11 REPORTER: It was amazing. It was like terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. But on that last run, it caught up with me. MOOS: The $3,000 flights will take off out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A former astronaut comes along.

BOB CENKER, FMR. NASA ASTRONAUT: It is like skydiving, only you never hit the ground. It's like scuba diving, only you don't have to hold your breath.

MOOS: What you do have to hold is your lunch.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, Newark, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. All I have to say, no one talked to Miles afterwards. We have to find out what happened.

Still to come -- the mission in Iraq and the politicians who keep going back and forth over the topic. What will happen when it's time for them to debate? We're going to debate it, coming up next.

And later, letting go of a priceless piece of history. Why it could be bittersweet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: John Kerry, in Philadelphia today, said if elected president he will get American troops out of Iraq and refocus on the fight against terrorism. Bush advisers say that is already the White House plan and that Kerry is merely trying to tear down the president's accomplishment.

Live pictures out of Janesville, Wisconsin, right now. The president was just introduced. If he goes back at John Kerry, we'll take those comments live. We are monitoring it for you.

Meanwhile we have got to talk about those two candidates. Let's debate -- or talk about the debate, rather, between them next week. Let's discuss it from our guest from each end of the political spectrum. Bob Barr is a CNN contributor, former Congressman from Georgia and author of the new book, "The Meaning of Is: The Squandered Impeachment & Wasted Legacy of William Jefferson Clinton" -- whoa, that's a long title; he joins us from Washington. And Amy Goodman, host of Pacifica Radio's talk show "Democracy Now" and is author of the new book, "The Exception to the Rulers", she joins us live from New York.

OK, now, out of Janesville, Wisconsin, a little value-added here, guys, the last time a president visited was in 1948. Name the president. Bob? Amy? Oh, my gosh.

AMY GOODMAN, HOST, "DEMOCRACY NOW":: In 1948?

PHILLIPS: 1948. I'm wondering if Bob can hear me. Bob, can you hear me? OK. I think we're having an audio issue with Bob, unless he's faking it because he doesn't know the president. All right, we're going to take a quick break. He has got it now. Bob, can you hear me? Bob Barr, can you hear me? OK. We're still trying to work that. All right, Amy, we'll see if he knows. OK? We'll play the test there. Actually, we can't debate unless both folks can hear me. We're going to take a quick break, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right. I think we've reached communications with our Bob Barr, former congressman from Georgia, also Amy Goodman, who hosts "Democracy Now". We can all hear each other, right?

GOODMAN: I can hear you.

BOB BARR, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I can hear you.

PHILLIPS: Excellent. Very good. OK. I kept thinking it was my political question. But we'll move past that. Anyway, let's start by talking Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. Let's talk about yesterday and how he came before this joint meeting at Congress. You had him telling folks, hey, everything is improving in Iraq, it's getting better. We need the U.S. help. But eventually we will be on our own, Elections will happen come January. President Bush saying everything is fine.

But it wasn't long ago where Allawi was saying we're in big trouble and we're having issues with insurgency. Now John Kerry coming forward and saying, you know what, this was all a big political stunt.

Amy, what did you make of yesterday's conversation?

GOODMAN: Yes. As the unelected prime minister of Iraq, Ayad Allawi, talked about how well the country he was just coming from was doing. I was wondering if he was referring to London, where he had just come from, Britain, or if he was actually talking about Iraq.

Both Allawi as well as President Bush, their descriptions did not in any way resemble what we are seeing on the ground right now in Iraq with the tremendous surge of resistance, with the number of U.S. soldiers who are being attacked in the last month escalating, not to mention the number of Iraqi civilians, the death toll on both sides.

They were not describing what is actually going on in Iraq. It looked like they were trying to make a campaign commercial for President Bush.

PHILLIPS: What do you think, Bob? Is Allawi just a political puppet here of the Republican Party right now just weeks before the election?

BARR: I don't know that I would say he is a political puppet. But clearly, he was engaged in an effort yesterday to put the very, very best face forward on a very difficult situation that I don't think anybody can really describe as optimal over in Iraq.

Even the secretary of defense, in testimony yesterday before the U.S. Senate, was forced to admit under repeated questioning that the security situation in Iraq is, if not getting worse, certainly the incidence of violence are increasing.

So certainly I can understand the prime minister trying to put the best face forward, but by the same token I don't think that means that we here in this country have to just blindly sit back and say, oh, yes, that must be the way the situation is.

There needs to be some very tough questions asked, and I'm not here to say whether Senator Kerry is doing it in the very best way. But certainly it is a very appropriate for us in this country, who are spending a great deal of our money and far too many U.S. lives, to ask some very tough questions.

PHILLIPS: Well, John Kerry is constantly at this point just tearing down the president's accomplishments, things that the president says, hey, these are my accomplishments. Things are working. If John Kerry were to become president, Amy, what would he do differently? Could it work?

GOODMAN: Well, it is about time that John Kerry started talking about what is actually going on in Iraq. He has had a hard time doing it. We know the famous comment when asked if he knew then what he knows now, would he have supported the invasion, and he said yes.

Now, he is turning around. He has got new advisers, he's coming out hard on Iraq. It is extremely important that we understand from these two major candidates where they stand about where the U.S. is and whether the soldiers should be pulled out. That's the real issue right now. Because we are in not only a quagmire, I think that would be putting it mildly, the horror that is Iraq right now.

And the question is will Kerry persist and escalate on the issue of truly describing what is happening on the ground there and what is the solution. Former President Carter just came out, was quoted in "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution" saying that the U.S. troops should be leaving. We're talking about a country that is suffering horribly right now, and John Kerry seems to -- just beginning to deal with this.

PHILLIPS: Political debate next week. Bob Barr, who is going to have the stronger argument when it comes down to Iraq?

BARR: Well, The American people deserve a more substantive debate than we've seen thus far. We've seen on the part of the administration, to be very honest, just the same repetitive messages, basically short soundbites. That doesn't really answer the tough questions.

And on the part of Senator Kerry's campaign, as Amy just mentioned, he really just now seems to be getting into some substantive disagreements. Whether or not we'll have enough time to really have the kind of vigorous debate we need on this before the election, I don't know. I'm not terribly optimistic. But unless Senator Kerry by next week can come up with some very specific responses, not just criticisms, but positive responses, then I'm afraid that President Bush will have the upper hand.

PHILLIPS: Bob Barr, Amy Goodman, appreciate the conversation today.

BARR: Sure.

PHILLIPS: Thank you.

We're going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Wanted: a new home for a bona fide piece of musical history. A San Diego musician is putting his most treasured instrument up for sale. How much? Well, how deeply would you dig into your pocket for the legacy of one of the most beloved composers of all time.

Tracye Hutchins, of CNN affiliate KFMB, reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRACYE HUTCHINS, KFMB REPORTER (voice-over): For Steven Tanner, music is a part of his life. But at 81, he can't tickle the ivories as smoothly as he used to.

Still, it will be difficult for him to part with what he calls a member of the family, this 157-year-old Plato (ph) piano is one of a kind, chosen and marked by hand by Polish composer Frederic Chopin.

STEVEN TANNER, SELLING CHOPIN'S PIANO: So the Chopez Society of Poems (ph) said as far as we know there is no other piano signed by Chopin that exists. There may have been some before, but we don't know of any.

HUTCHINS: Tanner bought the piano decades ago from the secretary of a famous Italian singer, Titta Ruffo. That's Tanner on the left. But now he is willing to sell the piano.

The question is: How much is this one of a kind really worth?

TANNER: The wisest answer I ever got was, look, I can tell you exactly what it's worth. I said, what's that? It's worth what you can get for it, not any more, not any less.

HUTCHINS: Other celebrity pianos have sold for more $2 million, but those were artists from this century. With the history behind these keys, Tanner is reminded of the piano's value every day.

TANNER: You turn on a classical music station, what do you hear? One out of every 10 things on it is Chopin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Tracye Hutchins from our affiliate in San Diego, KFMB. Thanks so much for that.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT) PHILLIPS: Coming up in our second hour of LIVE FROM, the Texas Rangers is riding in. What you may or may not know about Chuck Norris. He is going to join me live to discuss his career, his humanitarian work and his latest book, "Against All Odds: My Story." LIVE FROM's hour of power begins right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired September 24, 2004 - 13:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. warplanes pound targets in the volatile Iraqi city of Fallujah. Planes struck two areas of that city, but there are no reports of casualties. Fallujah has been a stronghold for insurgents over the past few weeks. U.S. forces have targeted sights linked to the terror network of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
A CBS news legend weighs in on the docu-drama at his former network. Walter Cronkite says the scandal over questionable documents about President Bush's Texas Air National Guard service are embarrassing. But the 87-year-old news veteran says he thinks people should hold off final judgment until the results of the investigation are completed.

And the CIA officially has a new director. Porter Goss is sworn in this morning in the Oval Office. The Republican former Congressman from Florida won Senate confirmation yesterday by a vote of 77-17. Some Democrats question whether Goss can set aside his GOP loyalties and maintain a nonpartisan point of view at the CIA.

Other news across America now. Police in Philadelphia are questioning the staff of a nursing home after the feeding tubes of six patients were cut. The patients were not seriously hurt, and their tubes were reinserted. The patients can't help police identify the culprit. They are all mentally impaired.

The singer formerly known as Cat Stevens says he's taking legal action against the U.S. Yusuf Islam says he started the legal process to try to find out why he was denied entry into America. U.S. Homeland Security accused Islam of engaging in unspecified activities, potentially linked to terrorism. Islam denies that.

Olympic gymnast Paul Hamm is preparing to go to Switzerland in an effort to hold on to his gold medal. Hamm won the Men's All-Around title in Athens, but that is being challenged by a South Korean competitor. The Court of Arbitrations for Sport is hearing that case. It's decision is now binding.

Well, first it was Barry Bonds, now Ichiro Suzuki could soon be baseball's record-book legend. Ray D'Alessio reports on the Seattle Mariners' $6 million man.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAY D'ALESSIO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since joining the Seattle Mariners four years ago, Ichiro Suzuki has quietly come to the doorstep of breaking one of baseball's most elusive records: George Sisler's 257 hits in a single season, established in 1920.

PAUL MOLITOR, MARINERS HITTING COACH: It's a remarkable record in terms of consistency over a long-grinding season. And you know, it's a -- the fact that it stood as long as it has shows how difficult it is to approach it.

D'ALESSIO: Ichiro is 11 hits away from breaking Sisler's record with 10 games remaining. But the thing that has left an indelible impression among his teammates has been his mental approach to the game each day.

WILLIE BLOOMQUIST, MARINERS TEAMMATE: He sticks to his guns, you know, rain or shine. He does the same thing pretty much every day. And his goal is to hit the ball in the line or on the ground and use his speed to beat it out. So, he never tries to do too much, just stays within himself. And I think a lot can be said for that.

D'ALESSIO: At this point in his career, Ichiro is not surprised by his accomplishments. In addition to trying to break Sisler's record, he finds himself only nine hits away from becoming the all- time hits leader in the first four years of a major league career with 918 -- a record that's been on the books since 1932.

The media attention (INAUDIBLE) Ichiro's quest pales in comparison to the circus that follows Barry Bonds while he chases the all-time home run record. But there are those who feel that it's a significant achievement.

JOHN DONOVAN, SI.COM WRITER: It's a very significant record. He'll also probably get the record for singles -- most singles in a season that's held by Wee Willie Keeler. So, it's really significant. For what he is, nobody does it better.

D'ALESSIO: Had Ichiro begun his career in the majors, putting up the same type of numbers, he would be on pace to a 3,000 hit Hall of Fame career.

For CNN Sports, I'm Ray D'Alessio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, a little cosmic shout out to Miles now, because this is his kind of news, of course. The first solar wind samples recovered from the crashed Genesis space capsule have been sent to California researchers. Genesis crash landed in the Utah desert, you'll remember, earlier this month when its parachutes failed to deploy.

After initial dismay, NASA scientists now think they've recovered 75 to 80 percent of the lid foils that were exposed to solar wind throughout the three-year Genesis voyage. Captured space dust could reveal secrets about the origin of our solar system.

NASA calls it the vomit comet. It's a specifically equipped plane to help astronauts train for weightlessness. But now there's another version that allows anyone with $3,000 to go up, float around, and maybe throw up.

CNN's Jeanne Moos -- was she brave enough to take the ride? Let's watch and see.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It starts like a regular flight with the usual warnings. But though your tray table may stay in the upright and locked position, you won't. Three thousand bucks, you can experience weightlessness in a padded 727 -- a 727 that flies up and then down like an 8,000-foot roller coaster. And each time you go over the hump, you are weightless for about 30 seconds. And though you hear the warning, feet (ph) down.

This is how real astronauts train. This is how they film the weightless scenes in Apollo 13. And now, the public can do it. The press preview flight, four intrepid CNNers went up, and one cowardly correspondent waved goodbye from the hangar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People, the first time they go up, tend to think they're swimming. Of course, moving your arms and legs do no good.

MOOS: Take it from this poor little rabbit or this bird during a NASA weightless experiment. On the first flight, folks were having a ball. Miles O'Brien was playing Superman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeanne, you're missing out. You're missing out, Jeanne.

MOOS: But then, to borrow a phrase...

TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Houston, we have a problem.

MOOS: Clutching motion sickness bags, some scurried to seats in the back. For most of the flight, this reporter was merrily floating around. But then, she had to be helped away, uttering, "Aye-yi-yi.".

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel totally sick right now, but it was amazingly worth it. It was so fun. Nothing happened yet.

MOOS: It happened later.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... casualty ward...

MOOS: Out of 27 fliers, at least six either got sick or came...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Very, very close.

MOOS: And speaking of close, a porn scene was once shot on a no- gravity fight. Though any body mingling here was merely accidental. Once G-Force One landed...

TIFFANY MCELROY, WB 11 REPORTER: It was amazing. It was like terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. But on that last run, it caught up with me. MOOS: The $3,000 flights will take off out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. A former astronaut comes along.

BOB CENKER, FMR. NASA ASTRONAUT: It is like skydiving, only you never hit the ground. It's like scuba diving, only you don't have to hold your breath.

MOOS: What you do have to hold is your lunch.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, Newark, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. All I have to say, no one talked to Miles afterwards. We have to find out what happened.

Still to come -- the mission in Iraq and the politicians who keep going back and forth over the topic. What will happen when it's time for them to debate? We're going to debate it, coming up next.

And later, letting go of a priceless piece of history. Why it could be bittersweet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: John Kerry, in Philadelphia today, said if elected president he will get American troops out of Iraq and refocus on the fight against terrorism. Bush advisers say that is already the White House plan and that Kerry is merely trying to tear down the president's accomplishment.

Live pictures out of Janesville, Wisconsin, right now. The president was just introduced. If he goes back at John Kerry, we'll take those comments live. We are monitoring it for you.

Meanwhile we have got to talk about those two candidates. Let's debate -- or talk about the debate, rather, between them next week. Let's discuss it from our guest from each end of the political spectrum. Bob Barr is a CNN contributor, former Congressman from Georgia and author of the new book, "The Meaning of Is: The Squandered Impeachment & Wasted Legacy of William Jefferson Clinton" -- whoa, that's a long title; he joins us from Washington. And Amy Goodman, host of Pacifica Radio's talk show "Democracy Now" and is author of the new book, "The Exception to the Rulers", she joins us live from New York.

OK, now, out of Janesville, Wisconsin, a little value-added here, guys, the last time a president visited was in 1948. Name the president. Bob? Amy? Oh, my gosh.

AMY GOODMAN, HOST, "DEMOCRACY NOW":: In 1948?

PHILLIPS: 1948. I'm wondering if Bob can hear me. Bob, can you hear me? OK. I think we're having an audio issue with Bob, unless he's faking it because he doesn't know the president. All right, we're going to take a quick break. He has got it now. Bob, can you hear me? Bob Barr, can you hear me? OK. We're still trying to work that. All right, Amy, we'll see if he knows. OK? We'll play the test there. Actually, we can't debate unless both folks can hear me. We're going to take a quick break, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right. I think we've reached communications with our Bob Barr, former congressman from Georgia, also Amy Goodman, who hosts "Democracy Now". We can all hear each other, right?

GOODMAN: I can hear you.

BOB BARR, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I can hear you.

PHILLIPS: Excellent. Very good. OK. I kept thinking it was my political question. But we'll move past that. Anyway, let's start by talking Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. Let's talk about yesterday and how he came before this joint meeting at Congress. You had him telling folks, hey, everything is improving in Iraq, it's getting better. We need the U.S. help. But eventually we will be on our own, Elections will happen come January. President Bush saying everything is fine.

But it wasn't long ago where Allawi was saying we're in big trouble and we're having issues with insurgency. Now John Kerry coming forward and saying, you know what, this was all a big political stunt.

Amy, what did you make of yesterday's conversation?

GOODMAN: Yes. As the unelected prime minister of Iraq, Ayad Allawi, talked about how well the country he was just coming from was doing. I was wondering if he was referring to London, where he had just come from, Britain, or if he was actually talking about Iraq.

Both Allawi as well as President Bush, their descriptions did not in any way resemble what we are seeing on the ground right now in Iraq with the tremendous surge of resistance, with the number of U.S. soldiers who are being attacked in the last month escalating, not to mention the number of Iraqi civilians, the death toll on both sides.

They were not describing what is actually going on in Iraq. It looked like they were trying to make a campaign commercial for President Bush.

PHILLIPS: What do you think, Bob? Is Allawi just a political puppet here of the Republican Party right now just weeks before the election?

BARR: I don't know that I would say he is a political puppet. But clearly, he was engaged in an effort yesterday to put the very, very best face forward on a very difficult situation that I don't think anybody can really describe as optimal over in Iraq.

Even the secretary of defense, in testimony yesterday before the U.S. Senate, was forced to admit under repeated questioning that the security situation in Iraq is, if not getting worse, certainly the incidence of violence are increasing.

So certainly I can understand the prime minister trying to put the best face forward, but by the same token I don't think that means that we here in this country have to just blindly sit back and say, oh, yes, that must be the way the situation is.

There needs to be some very tough questions asked, and I'm not here to say whether Senator Kerry is doing it in the very best way. But certainly it is a very appropriate for us in this country, who are spending a great deal of our money and far too many U.S. lives, to ask some very tough questions.

PHILLIPS: Well, John Kerry is constantly at this point just tearing down the president's accomplishments, things that the president says, hey, these are my accomplishments. Things are working. If John Kerry were to become president, Amy, what would he do differently? Could it work?

GOODMAN: Well, it is about time that John Kerry started talking about what is actually going on in Iraq. He has had a hard time doing it. We know the famous comment when asked if he knew then what he knows now, would he have supported the invasion, and he said yes.

Now, he is turning around. He has got new advisers, he's coming out hard on Iraq. It is extremely important that we understand from these two major candidates where they stand about where the U.S. is and whether the soldiers should be pulled out. That's the real issue right now. Because we are in not only a quagmire, I think that would be putting it mildly, the horror that is Iraq right now.

And the question is will Kerry persist and escalate on the issue of truly describing what is happening on the ground there and what is the solution. Former President Carter just came out, was quoted in "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution" saying that the U.S. troops should be leaving. We're talking about a country that is suffering horribly right now, and John Kerry seems to -- just beginning to deal with this.

PHILLIPS: Political debate next week. Bob Barr, who is going to have the stronger argument when it comes down to Iraq?

BARR: Well, The American people deserve a more substantive debate than we've seen thus far. We've seen on the part of the administration, to be very honest, just the same repetitive messages, basically short soundbites. That doesn't really answer the tough questions.

And on the part of Senator Kerry's campaign, as Amy just mentioned, he really just now seems to be getting into some substantive disagreements. Whether or not we'll have enough time to really have the kind of vigorous debate we need on this before the election, I don't know. I'm not terribly optimistic. But unless Senator Kerry by next week can come up with some very specific responses, not just criticisms, but positive responses, then I'm afraid that President Bush will have the upper hand.

PHILLIPS: Bob Barr, Amy Goodman, appreciate the conversation today.

BARR: Sure.

PHILLIPS: Thank you.

We're going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM, right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Wanted: a new home for a bona fide piece of musical history. A San Diego musician is putting his most treasured instrument up for sale. How much? Well, how deeply would you dig into your pocket for the legacy of one of the most beloved composers of all time.

Tracye Hutchins, of CNN affiliate KFMB, reports.

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TRACYE HUTCHINS, KFMB REPORTER (voice-over): For Steven Tanner, music is a part of his life. But at 81, he can't tickle the ivories as smoothly as he used to.

Still, it will be difficult for him to part with what he calls a member of the family, this 157-year-old Plato (ph) piano is one of a kind, chosen and marked by hand by Polish composer Frederic Chopin.

STEVEN TANNER, SELLING CHOPIN'S PIANO: So the Chopez Society of Poems (ph) said as far as we know there is no other piano signed by Chopin that exists. There may have been some before, but we don't know of any.

HUTCHINS: Tanner bought the piano decades ago from the secretary of a famous Italian singer, Titta Ruffo. That's Tanner on the left. But now he is willing to sell the piano.

The question is: How much is this one of a kind really worth?

TANNER: The wisest answer I ever got was, look, I can tell you exactly what it's worth. I said, what's that? It's worth what you can get for it, not any more, not any less.

HUTCHINS: Other celebrity pianos have sold for more $2 million, but those were artists from this century. With the history behind these keys, Tanner is reminded of the piano's value every day.

TANNER: You turn on a classical music station, what do you hear? One out of every 10 things on it is Chopin.

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PHILLIPS: Tracye Hutchins from our affiliate in San Diego, KFMB. Thanks so much for that.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT) PHILLIPS: Coming up in our second hour of LIVE FROM, the Texas Rangers is riding in. What you may or may not know about Chuck Norris. He is going to join me live to discuss his career, his humanitarian work and his latest book, "Against All Odds: My Story." LIVE FROM's hour of power begins right after this.

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