Return to Transcripts main page
Live From...
Private Craft Makes Journey to Space; Bush Visits Hurricane Damage, Releases Booklet Attacking Kerry; British Hostage Believed Alive
Aired September 29, 2004 - 13:00 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.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: I'll just put it in the word of Mike Melvill, who, once he got down on the ground, the pilot of Spaceship One, stood on top of his craft. And when asked about those rolls said, "Hey, that was fun."
Well, I don't know how fun it was for us down here. I've got to tell you, I was holding my breath. How about you, Kyra?
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-ANCHOR: Absolutely. But you know how it is, maybe you just give it too much juice. The next thing you know, you're in a tailspin.
O'BRIEN: There you go. Well, he said -- he said -- and part of what he said to us, the reporters, was, "I might have stepped on the rudders a little too hard and induced that roll."
There you see some pictures, as Spaceship One was dropped from the White Knight craft, its mother ship. They lit that candle, that combination of tire rubber and nitrous oxide. Yes, that's laughing gas.
No laughing matter up there, of course, as it approached in excess of mach 3, pointed straight up, and outside of Earth's atmosphere. There you see that shaky tracking camera shot. Excuse me, those spectacular shots, even though it's that far away.
And then, toward the end of the rocket burn of about 60 seconds or so, when the atmosphere got very thin, all of a sudden it started rolling. Mike Melvill indicating maybe he over controlled it a little bit. It is a very sensitive craft.
But even as he went through 30, 40, maybe even 50 rolls, beyond the atmosphere of earth, he was pointed in the right direction the whole way. He was headed up.
And, thus, he passed through that mythical barrier of 100 kilometers, or 62 statute (ph) miles, and entered space.
He said he had fun. You can see some of the pictures now, of the spinning, from on-board. Took some pictures, believe or not. He found time for that.
And then, after all was said and done, dropped like a shuttlecock down towards Earth, and made a safe glider landing here at the high desert at Mojave spaceport now. There you see that wonderful touchdown on terra firma.
When Mike Melvill had a chance to talk to reporters afterwards, he was really rather nonplused about something that looked kind of scary from where we sat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE MELVILL, PILOT, SPACESHIP ONE: Did I plan the roll? Well, I -- I'd like to say I did, but I didn't. It was -- you know, you're extremely busy at that point. Your feet and your hands and your eyes and everything is working about as fast as you can work them. And probably I stepped on something too quickly and caused the roll.
But it's nice to do a roll at the top of the climb.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: A roll at the top of the climb. A little bit of understatement. Little bit of test pilot understatement from Mike Melvill.
But the reason I'm on the phone right now, Kyra, is we're moving our satellite truck to the location of the news conference where he and the designer and builder of the spacecraft, Burt Rutan, and some of their team, as well as the financier of the project -- look at these wonderful pictures from the edge of space there: the curvature of the earth, the darkness of the sky.
And of course that roll being induced the whole way. Kind of a carnival ride like no other.
Anyway, we're going to hear from them in just a little while. We had to move our truck in order to do that.
We'll also hear from the X Prize committee, the Ansari X Prize committee, to tell us if this officially was a journey to space. If so, they've done 50 percent of what they need to do to win $10 million. They've flown a craft capable of flying three people to the edge of space. They have to do it twice in as many weeks.
Depending on how they feel about that roll that they didn't expect, they could fly as early as next month. Burt Rutan reserves the right to figure out everything he needs to know about that.
If it was as simple as Mike Melvill just hitting that rudder pedal a little too hard, expect a launch sooner, rather than later. We'll let you know. We'll keep you posted, and we'll try to get you that new conference, some of it live on the air in just a little bit, as soon as it begins -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Hey, Miles, real quickly, the corkscrew, just -- because a lot of people were asking questions in the newsroom, and you and I are able to explain sort of, kind of, a little bit what it feels like.
But from the mythical barrier, to the drop to the landing, sort of tell our viewers kind of what it feels like, what Mike felt when he went into that corkscrew, until he sort of came out of it and then began his descent.
O'BRIEN: Well, the one thing that's very different than what you and I have experienced is he was doing most of that corkscrewing beyond the bound of gravity.
Now, there would have been centrifugal force kind of pushing him around. But he was at the point where the craft was sort of free falling in weightlessness anyway, and so his -- the forces on him might have been a little different than you experience in a fighter that does the same thing, or an aerobatic craft.
And certainly, the forces on the craft itself, and that's a critical point here. It wouldn't have broken up in those conditions, because the air is so thin. It's virtually outside the atmosphere at that point.
And thus, he wasn't suffering a lot of loads on the aircraft that weren't -- it wasn't designed for.
So it was sort of a free-fall tumble, kind of like a tumble would be in -- without the impact of gravity on your body. And so I think that's why he said it was fun. If he was pulling G's, multiple forces times gravity, net (ph) times gravity, it would have been a little more uncomfortable ride for him.
PHILLIPS: Just slightly. All right, Miles, following through right there. We'll check in with you next hour. Thanks, Miles.
O'BRIEN: OK. Great, Kyra.
DREW GRIFFIN, CO-ANCHOR: It is the day before first big night, the debate, and that means an afternoon of travel for presidential candidates and debate opponents George W. Bush and John F. Kerry.
Bush heads to Florida from Texas, where he's been practicing for tomorrow night's showdown. Kerry comes from Wisconsin, where he's been doing the same, while trying to heal a strained throat.
Speaking of strains, a number of broadcasters, CNN among them, are refusing to abide by at least one of the ground rules that were painstakingly negotiated by the two campaigns. More on that in a moment.
First up, Bush on the road. Squeezing in yet another hurricane- damaged tour en route to Coral Cables, Florida.
CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joins us with that -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Drew, the campaign knows this is a critical time for the president, the next 24 to 48 hours.
President Bush in a couple of hours will be in Lake Wales area of Florida. That's where he's going to be assessing the hurricane damage, the damage from Jeanne. This is very important, as central Florida is a fast-growing swing area and really could be critical to a Bush win.
Now this is the fourth time the president will have visited Florida in six weeks. As you know, that state hard hit by hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne.
President Bush, we expect, as in occasions before, will stand side by side with his brother, Jeb Bush, the governor of Florida, and talk about federal assistance, offering federal assistance. So far, the president requesting some $12 billion.
Now Democrats are crying foul. They say this is political opportunism. Republicans and the Bush administration saying the president is simply doing his job.
And there's a lot of questions, a lot of speculation, about how this hurricane damage is going to have an impact on voter turnout, as well as the election results.
At the same time, of course, President Bush will be traveling on to Miami. He is still preparing for those critical debates for tomorrow.
His own campaign releasing this little black book earlier today, a debate briefing book. This essentially takes on Kerry in a number of positions, at least ten different issues they argue that he's inconsistent with.
Just to give you an example, they talk about Iraq, saying the current position, the removal of Saddam Hussein, has left America less secure. Goes on to say, "Your record, you voted for the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now you say the war you voted for made us less safe."
And then follows up saying, "Your attacks pretend like no position you have ever taken matters. Political opportunity, pessimism and the implication of inevitable defeat is the key here. Nobody knows what you really believe anyway."
This coming from the Bush campaign.
Now, I spoke with the Kerry campaign folks, who are firing back at this. They say this is simply the latest gimmick that they show, that the president is desperate.
One of those spokesmen saying to me earlier today, "The Bush campaign continues to stretch the limits of truth, twisting Kerry's positions. This is disingenuous and false. Kerry gave Bush the authorization to go to war, but has been critical of the way Bush used that authority. John Kerry has been saying the same thing from the beginning. George Bush abused his authority."
It goes on to say that "this book is a metaphor for the way that Bush governs, through gimmicks and misleading rhetoric to cover up his wrong choices."
And Drew, we should also let you know that the Kerry campaign expects to issue their own release criticizing President Bush's policies -- Drew.
GRIFFIN: Suzanne, I think that's the first time I've seen a guide book handed out by the political campaigns for how to watch an election. Thanks for that -- Kyra.
MALVEAUX: Sure.
PHILLIPS: Well, it's not what you know; it's not whom you know; it's whom your persuade. And that's the take from the Kerry camp the day before the clash at Coral Gables.
Kerry advisor, former Clinton press secretary Joe Lockhart revealed what he called a pretty simple formula on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE LOCKHART, KERRY CAMPAIGN ADVISOR: I think he's got to show, first and foremost, that there's a choice in this election, that George Bush, on this night, for the first time in a long time, will be held accountable for his record.
And then he's -- John Kerry has got to demonstrate that he's got a better way. And that's what he's -- that's what the focus is going to be for him. Holding the president accountable for his failed record, and demonstrating to the American public that he has the qualities that the public wants in a commander in chief.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: In their very political backgrounds, Bush and Kerry both leave trails of vanquished debate opponents. But until they debate each other, we can't possibly know who will come out on top. But we do know a bit about the candidates' styles, tactics.
CNN's Jeff Greenfield takes us back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush and Senator Kerry both have had plenty of debates in recent years, but sometimes the most intriguing clues to their strategies can be found earlier in their careers.
Look back, and you'll find that the contestants are both highly effective debaters, but with very different approaches.
Here's John Kerry back in 1984, in a Senate primary debate with a more conservative Democratic foe. Watch how he fuses his Vietnam record and his more liberal war and peace stance as he poses a question to his opponent. SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm concerned. You voted for the M.X. missile and then you said that was a mistake. You voted for the anti-satellite flight testing, and that's a mistake.
I fought in a mistake called Vietnam. How are we going to have confidence that you're not going to vote in a war and peace issue for another mistake at some time in the future?
GREENFIELD: Or consider this famous exchange during his tough 1996 re-election fight against Massachusetts governor Bill Weld. Weld challenged him to explain to the widow of a murdered police officer whether his death penalty opposition meant that Kerry valued a murderous life more than her husband's. Note the cryptic reference Kerry made to his combat experience.
KERRY: Yes, I've been opposed to the death penalty. I know something about killing. I don't like killing. And I don't think a state honors life by turning around and sanctioning killing.
GREENFIELD: If Kerry is a counter puncher, quick on his feet, then Bush's strength is something else: a relentless capacity to stay on-message. In 1994, Texas Governor Ann Richards repeatedly challenged Bush's business credentials. Here's how he turned that around.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think that this is a diversion away from not talking about the issues that face Texas. I want to discuss welfare, education. I want to discuss the juvenile justice system. And I think an attempt to smear my business record is simply a diversion away from trying to determine what's best for Texas.
GREENFIELD: And watch as Bush uses the same kind of defense against Richards' very tough indictment.
ANN RICHARDS, FORMER GOVERNOR OF TEXAS: I think the question is that you have got to have had some experience in the public sector before you get the chief executive's job.
BUSH: This business about trying to diminish my personality based upon my business career is, frankly, astounding to me. Here we are in the middle of a political campaign. The incumbent governor of the state of Texas is spending all her money on TV trying to make me something I'm not.
GREENFIELD (on camera): So are there clues here to what might happen Thursday night? Could be.
Don't be surprised if John Kerry tries to turn a question that challenges his consistency into an answer that challenges Bush on failing to face reality. And don't be surprised if Bush tries to raise, as often as he possibly can, the idea that America is a lot safer with Saddam Hussein out of power.
Jeff Greenfield, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: Now to the static over the details, not of the debates themselves, but how they're being staged.
TV networks, including CNN, are objecting to the campaign's agreement, implicitly accepted by the Commission on Presidential Debates, barring the use of cutaways. Those are the camera shots of one candidate reacting to another candidate's comments.
The broadcasters say no one but them should decide which shots are taken to air at any given moment. CNN, for one, reserves the right to make our own decisions about coverage during the debate, just as we always have. That's from our network spokesman, Matthew Furman.
We'll hear a lot more about this from the "CROSSFIRE" guys, Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson, the very next hour of LIVE FROM. The big event itself, 9 p.m. tomorrow, 6 on the West Coast. You want to catch our special predebate coverage. That starts at 7 Eastern, right here on CNN.
PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, the latest on the British hostage in Iraq, coming up on LIVE FROM.
Also ahead...
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ted Rowlands in Redwood City, California, where the lead detective in the Scott Peterson double murder trial is on the stand for a seventh day. We'll have the very latest from the courtroom coming up.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sean Callebs in Washington. For more than three decades, city leaders have begged for another chance to host a major league baseball team. Will it happen today? We'll have the very latest on LIVE FROM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: In Iraq, U.S. warplanes launched air strikes in Baghdad's Sadr City for the second time in two days. The aircraft fired upon a rocket launcher mounted on the back of a car overnight. That car destroyed. One person reported killed, another wounded.
Getting ready for a big celebration in Italy in front of the city hall there. Relief and excitement there after the two Italian aid workers in Iraq were released. Hundreds of well wishers celebrated as those women arrived home yesterday.
The two were freed by their captors hours earlier after three weeks in captivity. Italy's prime minister denies any ransom was paid for the release.
PHILLIPS: The family of British hostage Bigley is elated over indications that he is likely still alive. Today's Arabic language news network, Al Jazeera, aired a never seen before video of Bigley. This is a still image from that tape, which shows Bigley wearing an orange jump suit, sitting in a cage with a chain around his neck and hands.
Bigley's family also says it received an e-mail from his purported captors. Joining me on the phone now from Bigley's hometown, Liverpool, is CNN's Robyn Curnow.
Robyn, can you tell us just probably about the mixed feelings that are going on right now?
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Kyra, they are mixed feelings. Because of course, that video shows and proves that Ken Bigley is still alive, or was alive in the last few days when it was made.
But on the other hand, the conditions that he's being held in are chilling. He's got a chain around his neck. He's shackled. And he's in a cage.
And of course, for anybody who loves and knows Ken Bigley it must be a very sad and heartbreaking sight to see that image. It's a humiliating image, as such.
Of course, just remember, this is a man who was just a few weeks away from retirement when he was kidnapped, and he's also about to become a grandfather for the first time. So all of this is very much playing into this -- people's minds when they look at that image.
PHILLIPS: Seeing that image, we've also seen the images of the Italians being released, the Egyptians being released. It's a positive pattern. Is this helping the family at all?
CURNOW: Absolutely, a real glimmer of hope. This morning, particularly when the Italian aid workers were released, hopes were raised, not just within the family but across Liverpool. People thought, well, there seems to be some sort of trend going on here.
And they really just grasped that, anything they thought which could bring some good news. The fact that here is a video, the fact that he is alive, of course, very much buoying people's hopes, but also very concerned about the conditions he's being kept in -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Meanwhile, Robyn, you went to a mosque there in Liverpool. You've been following how the British Muslims even went over to Iraq, made a radio plea, distributed pamphlets.
How is that community dealing with that now? And do you think what they did made an impact?
CURNOW: Well, I think that's a big question. And the delegation who went over from the Muslim Council of Britain says that they went over to Iraq to show solidarity with a fellow Englishman.
And I think the whole issue about Ken Bigley's capture is that England at large -- it doesn't whether you're Muslim or Christian -- has really rallied behind this. And they're really very concerned as a community, as a nation, about the fate of this one man.
And of course the Muslim community here, very much saying that this -- this kidnapping, the fact that he's being held in these conditions, goes against what they say are the -- the faith of Muslim -- of Islam. And they say that Islam is not represented by those images we see coming out of Iraq at the moment of Ken Bigley in a cage and tied up with chains.
PHILLIPS: Robyn Curnow, live from Liverpool, thanks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM, a high-stakes fight for oil, money and power. We're live on the scene as a deadline approaches in Nigeria's delta region.
The price of oil is a hot topic now. But will it mean a cold winter for you? Later on LIVE FROM, speculation that speculating is part of the story.
And Mount St. Helen's lava dome on the moon. America's volatile volcano is in the LIVE FROM spotlight tomorrow.
We're back after this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: News around the world now. A bold quest for freedom in Beijing. Forty-four North Koreans successfully scaled the wall around the Canadian embassy in China today. The Canadian embassy is saying very little about the incident. One refugee inside the embassy tells CNN they just want to go to South Korea.
In Yemen, two men have been sentenced to death for their roles in the USS Cole bombing. One of the men was the apparent mastermind behind the attack. He's in U.S. custody. Seventeen American sailors were killed in that 2000 attack.
Russia is considering creating a terror alert system, similar to the one used here in the U.S. The head of Russia's security council confirms it's working on a system but says few details have been worked out.
GRIFFIN: As the price of oil, crude oil, hovers around $50 a barrel, many are keeping a close eye on a volatile political situation in Nigeria. Separatist rebels have warned oil producers and especially their workers in the delta region to shut down by October 1, saying that is when they plan to launch an all-out war there. Nigeria, the tenth largest oil producer.
CNN's Jeff Koinange has met with the rebel leader and joins us by phone with late-breaking news out of Lagos -- Jeff. JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I just got off the phone with the rebel leader. And he told me a couple hours ago he just met with the Nigerian president. They were in preliminary talks.
Now, these were supposed to be very hush-hush talks. But he got on the phone and was telling me that he was going to meet him. And I didn't believe him. But in the end he did meet him.
And this is what we know, Drew. Apparently, in these preliminary talks, each side has agreed not to fire on the other. Nothing detailed. That's it for now. It's all preliminary. No ceasefire signed. It's just that for now, each side is holding their positions. No one -- none will fire on the other. And they're going to go on for more talks later tonight.
Now what this means, in barely 48 hours, to the time when this rebel leader has said he was going to start targeting oil rigs and pipelines. All this is now up in the air. It looks like a deal may be struck before that deadline, Drew.
GRIFFIN: Jeff, there has been some violence there, and I know that the oil companies have basically shut down or are shutting down in anticipation of what they thought would be increased violence. What does this mean in term of oil production?
KOINANGE: It means that oil production will obviously be affected. But here's the deal.
I actually flew with some oil workers who were in that region, working for several big, multinational U.S. companies. And they were telling me they are getting memos, getting e-mail sent to them every single day, telling them, be very vigilant. Do not leave your compound, and do not venture out of your offices. Stay in your position. Because they're extremely worried in that area.
However, life in the streets of Port Harcourt, which is the main oil-producing region, that seems to be going on as normal.
Oil companies have vehemently said that production will go on. As you know, Drew, this country produces more than two million barrels of oil every single day. And it's the sweet light (ph) crude that the U.S. utilizes. So if production were to be affected, then it would go across the board.
And then I was also speaking to a security analyst who deals with a lot of these companies. And he said there must be a lot of pressure being borne to bear on the Nigerian president to, in his own words, to clean up his own house, Drew.
GRIFFIN: It's a stunning development, Jeff. They were basically on the verge of firing on each other. In fact, I think you talked to the president, who said he was going to launch a major offensive. So this is breaking news here on CNN. We thank you for that, Jeff Koinange in Lagos -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Consistently higher oil prices are causing some concern about oil's impact on the economy and jobs. Rhonda Schaffler joins us live from the New York Stock Exchange with that.
Hi, Rhonda.
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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 September 29, 2004 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: I'll just put it in the word of Mike Melvill, who, once he got down on the ground, the pilot of Spaceship One, stood on top of his craft. And when asked about those rolls said, "Hey, that was fun."
Well, I don't know how fun it was for us down here. I've got to tell you, I was holding my breath. How about you, Kyra?
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-ANCHOR: Absolutely. But you know how it is, maybe you just give it too much juice. The next thing you know, you're in a tailspin.
O'BRIEN: There you go. Well, he said -- he said -- and part of what he said to us, the reporters, was, "I might have stepped on the rudders a little too hard and induced that roll."
There you see some pictures, as Spaceship One was dropped from the White Knight craft, its mother ship. They lit that candle, that combination of tire rubber and nitrous oxide. Yes, that's laughing gas.
No laughing matter up there, of course, as it approached in excess of mach 3, pointed straight up, and outside of Earth's atmosphere. There you see that shaky tracking camera shot. Excuse me, those spectacular shots, even though it's that far away.
And then, toward the end of the rocket burn of about 60 seconds or so, when the atmosphere got very thin, all of a sudden it started rolling. Mike Melvill indicating maybe he over controlled it a little bit. It is a very sensitive craft.
But even as he went through 30, 40, maybe even 50 rolls, beyond the atmosphere of earth, he was pointed in the right direction the whole way. He was headed up.
And, thus, he passed through that mythical barrier of 100 kilometers, or 62 statute (ph) miles, and entered space.
He said he had fun. You can see some of the pictures now, of the spinning, from on-board. Took some pictures, believe or not. He found time for that.
And then, after all was said and done, dropped like a shuttlecock down towards Earth, and made a safe glider landing here at the high desert at Mojave spaceport now. There you see that wonderful touchdown on terra firma.
When Mike Melvill had a chance to talk to reporters afterwards, he was really rather nonplused about something that looked kind of scary from where we sat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE MELVILL, PILOT, SPACESHIP ONE: Did I plan the roll? Well, I -- I'd like to say I did, but I didn't. It was -- you know, you're extremely busy at that point. Your feet and your hands and your eyes and everything is working about as fast as you can work them. And probably I stepped on something too quickly and caused the roll.
But it's nice to do a roll at the top of the climb.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: A roll at the top of the climb. A little bit of understatement. Little bit of test pilot understatement from Mike Melvill.
But the reason I'm on the phone right now, Kyra, is we're moving our satellite truck to the location of the news conference where he and the designer and builder of the spacecraft, Burt Rutan, and some of their team, as well as the financier of the project -- look at these wonderful pictures from the edge of space there: the curvature of the earth, the darkness of the sky.
And of course that roll being induced the whole way. Kind of a carnival ride like no other.
Anyway, we're going to hear from them in just a little while. We had to move our truck in order to do that.
We'll also hear from the X Prize committee, the Ansari X Prize committee, to tell us if this officially was a journey to space. If so, they've done 50 percent of what they need to do to win $10 million. They've flown a craft capable of flying three people to the edge of space. They have to do it twice in as many weeks.
Depending on how they feel about that roll that they didn't expect, they could fly as early as next month. Burt Rutan reserves the right to figure out everything he needs to know about that.
If it was as simple as Mike Melvill just hitting that rudder pedal a little too hard, expect a launch sooner, rather than later. We'll let you know. We'll keep you posted, and we'll try to get you that new conference, some of it live on the air in just a little bit, as soon as it begins -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Hey, Miles, real quickly, the corkscrew, just -- because a lot of people were asking questions in the newsroom, and you and I are able to explain sort of, kind of, a little bit what it feels like.
But from the mythical barrier, to the drop to the landing, sort of tell our viewers kind of what it feels like, what Mike felt when he went into that corkscrew, until he sort of came out of it and then began his descent.
O'BRIEN: Well, the one thing that's very different than what you and I have experienced is he was doing most of that corkscrewing beyond the bound of gravity.
Now, there would have been centrifugal force kind of pushing him around. But he was at the point where the craft was sort of free falling in weightlessness anyway, and so his -- the forces on him might have been a little different than you experience in a fighter that does the same thing, or an aerobatic craft.
And certainly, the forces on the craft itself, and that's a critical point here. It wouldn't have broken up in those conditions, because the air is so thin. It's virtually outside the atmosphere at that point.
And thus, he wasn't suffering a lot of loads on the aircraft that weren't -- it wasn't designed for.
So it was sort of a free-fall tumble, kind of like a tumble would be in -- without the impact of gravity on your body. And so I think that's why he said it was fun. If he was pulling G's, multiple forces times gravity, net (ph) times gravity, it would have been a little more uncomfortable ride for him.
PHILLIPS: Just slightly. All right, Miles, following through right there. We'll check in with you next hour. Thanks, Miles.
O'BRIEN: OK. Great, Kyra.
DREW GRIFFIN, CO-ANCHOR: It is the day before first big night, the debate, and that means an afternoon of travel for presidential candidates and debate opponents George W. Bush and John F. Kerry.
Bush heads to Florida from Texas, where he's been practicing for tomorrow night's showdown. Kerry comes from Wisconsin, where he's been doing the same, while trying to heal a strained throat.
Speaking of strains, a number of broadcasters, CNN among them, are refusing to abide by at least one of the ground rules that were painstakingly negotiated by the two campaigns. More on that in a moment.
First up, Bush on the road. Squeezing in yet another hurricane- damaged tour en route to Coral Cables, Florida.
CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux joins us with that -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Drew, the campaign knows this is a critical time for the president, the next 24 to 48 hours.
President Bush in a couple of hours will be in Lake Wales area of Florida. That's where he's going to be assessing the hurricane damage, the damage from Jeanne. This is very important, as central Florida is a fast-growing swing area and really could be critical to a Bush win.
Now this is the fourth time the president will have visited Florida in six weeks. As you know, that state hard hit by hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne.
President Bush, we expect, as in occasions before, will stand side by side with his brother, Jeb Bush, the governor of Florida, and talk about federal assistance, offering federal assistance. So far, the president requesting some $12 billion.
Now Democrats are crying foul. They say this is political opportunism. Republicans and the Bush administration saying the president is simply doing his job.
And there's a lot of questions, a lot of speculation, about how this hurricane damage is going to have an impact on voter turnout, as well as the election results.
At the same time, of course, President Bush will be traveling on to Miami. He is still preparing for those critical debates for tomorrow.
His own campaign releasing this little black book earlier today, a debate briefing book. This essentially takes on Kerry in a number of positions, at least ten different issues they argue that he's inconsistent with.
Just to give you an example, they talk about Iraq, saying the current position, the removal of Saddam Hussein, has left America less secure. Goes on to say, "Your record, you voted for the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now you say the war you voted for made us less safe."
And then follows up saying, "Your attacks pretend like no position you have ever taken matters. Political opportunity, pessimism and the implication of inevitable defeat is the key here. Nobody knows what you really believe anyway."
This coming from the Bush campaign.
Now, I spoke with the Kerry campaign folks, who are firing back at this. They say this is simply the latest gimmick that they show, that the president is desperate.
One of those spokesmen saying to me earlier today, "The Bush campaign continues to stretch the limits of truth, twisting Kerry's positions. This is disingenuous and false. Kerry gave Bush the authorization to go to war, but has been critical of the way Bush used that authority. John Kerry has been saying the same thing from the beginning. George Bush abused his authority."
It goes on to say that "this book is a metaphor for the way that Bush governs, through gimmicks and misleading rhetoric to cover up his wrong choices."
And Drew, we should also let you know that the Kerry campaign expects to issue their own release criticizing President Bush's policies -- Drew.
GRIFFIN: Suzanne, I think that's the first time I've seen a guide book handed out by the political campaigns for how to watch an election. Thanks for that -- Kyra.
MALVEAUX: Sure.
PHILLIPS: Well, it's not what you know; it's not whom you know; it's whom your persuade. And that's the take from the Kerry camp the day before the clash at Coral Gables.
Kerry advisor, former Clinton press secretary Joe Lockhart revealed what he called a pretty simple formula on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE LOCKHART, KERRY CAMPAIGN ADVISOR: I think he's got to show, first and foremost, that there's a choice in this election, that George Bush, on this night, for the first time in a long time, will be held accountable for his record.
And then he's -- John Kerry has got to demonstrate that he's got a better way. And that's what he's -- that's what the focus is going to be for him. Holding the president accountable for his failed record, and demonstrating to the American public that he has the qualities that the public wants in a commander in chief.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: In their very political backgrounds, Bush and Kerry both leave trails of vanquished debate opponents. But until they debate each other, we can't possibly know who will come out on top. But we do know a bit about the candidates' styles, tactics.
CNN's Jeff Greenfield takes us back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush and Senator Kerry both have had plenty of debates in recent years, but sometimes the most intriguing clues to their strategies can be found earlier in their careers.
Look back, and you'll find that the contestants are both highly effective debaters, but with very different approaches.
Here's John Kerry back in 1984, in a Senate primary debate with a more conservative Democratic foe. Watch how he fuses his Vietnam record and his more liberal war and peace stance as he poses a question to his opponent. SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm concerned. You voted for the M.X. missile and then you said that was a mistake. You voted for the anti-satellite flight testing, and that's a mistake.
I fought in a mistake called Vietnam. How are we going to have confidence that you're not going to vote in a war and peace issue for another mistake at some time in the future?
GREENFIELD: Or consider this famous exchange during his tough 1996 re-election fight against Massachusetts governor Bill Weld. Weld challenged him to explain to the widow of a murdered police officer whether his death penalty opposition meant that Kerry valued a murderous life more than her husband's. Note the cryptic reference Kerry made to his combat experience.
KERRY: Yes, I've been opposed to the death penalty. I know something about killing. I don't like killing. And I don't think a state honors life by turning around and sanctioning killing.
GREENFIELD: If Kerry is a counter puncher, quick on his feet, then Bush's strength is something else: a relentless capacity to stay on-message. In 1994, Texas Governor Ann Richards repeatedly challenged Bush's business credentials. Here's how he turned that around.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think that this is a diversion away from not talking about the issues that face Texas. I want to discuss welfare, education. I want to discuss the juvenile justice system. And I think an attempt to smear my business record is simply a diversion away from trying to determine what's best for Texas.
GREENFIELD: And watch as Bush uses the same kind of defense against Richards' very tough indictment.
ANN RICHARDS, FORMER GOVERNOR OF TEXAS: I think the question is that you have got to have had some experience in the public sector before you get the chief executive's job.
BUSH: This business about trying to diminish my personality based upon my business career is, frankly, astounding to me. Here we are in the middle of a political campaign. The incumbent governor of the state of Texas is spending all her money on TV trying to make me something I'm not.
GREENFIELD (on camera): So are there clues here to what might happen Thursday night? Could be.
Don't be surprised if John Kerry tries to turn a question that challenges his consistency into an answer that challenges Bush on failing to face reality. And don't be surprised if Bush tries to raise, as often as he possibly can, the idea that America is a lot safer with Saddam Hussein out of power.
Jeff Greenfield, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: Now to the static over the details, not of the debates themselves, but how they're being staged.
TV networks, including CNN, are objecting to the campaign's agreement, implicitly accepted by the Commission on Presidential Debates, barring the use of cutaways. Those are the camera shots of one candidate reacting to another candidate's comments.
The broadcasters say no one but them should decide which shots are taken to air at any given moment. CNN, for one, reserves the right to make our own decisions about coverage during the debate, just as we always have. That's from our network spokesman, Matthew Furman.
We'll hear a lot more about this from the "CROSSFIRE" guys, Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson, the very next hour of LIVE FROM. The big event itself, 9 p.m. tomorrow, 6 on the West Coast. You want to catch our special predebate coverage. That starts at 7 Eastern, right here on CNN.
PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, the latest on the British hostage in Iraq, coming up on LIVE FROM.
Also ahead...
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ted Rowlands in Redwood City, California, where the lead detective in the Scott Peterson double murder trial is on the stand for a seventh day. We'll have the very latest from the courtroom coming up.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sean Callebs in Washington. For more than three decades, city leaders have begged for another chance to host a major league baseball team. Will it happen today? We'll have the very latest on LIVE FROM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRIFFIN: In Iraq, U.S. warplanes launched air strikes in Baghdad's Sadr City for the second time in two days. The aircraft fired upon a rocket launcher mounted on the back of a car overnight. That car destroyed. One person reported killed, another wounded.
Getting ready for a big celebration in Italy in front of the city hall there. Relief and excitement there after the two Italian aid workers in Iraq were released. Hundreds of well wishers celebrated as those women arrived home yesterday.
The two were freed by their captors hours earlier after three weeks in captivity. Italy's prime minister denies any ransom was paid for the release.
PHILLIPS: The family of British hostage Bigley is elated over indications that he is likely still alive. Today's Arabic language news network, Al Jazeera, aired a never seen before video of Bigley. This is a still image from that tape, which shows Bigley wearing an orange jump suit, sitting in a cage with a chain around his neck and hands.
Bigley's family also says it received an e-mail from his purported captors. Joining me on the phone now from Bigley's hometown, Liverpool, is CNN's Robyn Curnow.
Robyn, can you tell us just probably about the mixed feelings that are going on right now?
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Kyra, they are mixed feelings. Because of course, that video shows and proves that Ken Bigley is still alive, or was alive in the last few days when it was made.
But on the other hand, the conditions that he's being held in are chilling. He's got a chain around his neck. He's shackled. And he's in a cage.
And of course, for anybody who loves and knows Ken Bigley it must be a very sad and heartbreaking sight to see that image. It's a humiliating image, as such.
Of course, just remember, this is a man who was just a few weeks away from retirement when he was kidnapped, and he's also about to become a grandfather for the first time. So all of this is very much playing into this -- people's minds when they look at that image.
PHILLIPS: Seeing that image, we've also seen the images of the Italians being released, the Egyptians being released. It's a positive pattern. Is this helping the family at all?
CURNOW: Absolutely, a real glimmer of hope. This morning, particularly when the Italian aid workers were released, hopes were raised, not just within the family but across Liverpool. People thought, well, there seems to be some sort of trend going on here.
And they really just grasped that, anything they thought which could bring some good news. The fact that here is a video, the fact that he is alive, of course, very much buoying people's hopes, but also very concerned about the conditions he's being kept in -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Meanwhile, Robyn, you went to a mosque there in Liverpool. You've been following how the British Muslims even went over to Iraq, made a radio plea, distributed pamphlets.
How is that community dealing with that now? And do you think what they did made an impact?
CURNOW: Well, I think that's a big question. And the delegation who went over from the Muslim Council of Britain says that they went over to Iraq to show solidarity with a fellow Englishman.
And I think the whole issue about Ken Bigley's capture is that England at large -- it doesn't whether you're Muslim or Christian -- has really rallied behind this. And they're really very concerned as a community, as a nation, about the fate of this one man.
And of course the Muslim community here, very much saying that this -- this kidnapping, the fact that he's being held in these conditions, goes against what they say are the -- the faith of Muslim -- of Islam. And they say that Islam is not represented by those images we see coming out of Iraq at the moment of Ken Bigley in a cage and tied up with chains.
PHILLIPS: Robyn Curnow, live from Liverpool, thanks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS (voice-over): Next on LIVE FROM, a high-stakes fight for oil, money and power. We're live on the scene as a deadline approaches in Nigeria's delta region.
The price of oil is a hot topic now. But will it mean a cold winter for you? Later on LIVE FROM, speculation that speculating is part of the story.
And Mount St. Helen's lava dome on the moon. America's volatile volcano is in the LIVE FROM spotlight tomorrow.
We're back after this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: News around the world now. A bold quest for freedom in Beijing. Forty-four North Koreans successfully scaled the wall around the Canadian embassy in China today. The Canadian embassy is saying very little about the incident. One refugee inside the embassy tells CNN they just want to go to South Korea.
In Yemen, two men have been sentenced to death for their roles in the USS Cole bombing. One of the men was the apparent mastermind behind the attack. He's in U.S. custody. Seventeen American sailors were killed in that 2000 attack.
Russia is considering creating a terror alert system, similar to the one used here in the U.S. The head of Russia's security council confirms it's working on a system but says few details have been worked out.
GRIFFIN: As the price of oil, crude oil, hovers around $50 a barrel, many are keeping a close eye on a volatile political situation in Nigeria. Separatist rebels have warned oil producers and especially their workers in the delta region to shut down by October 1, saying that is when they plan to launch an all-out war there. Nigeria, the tenth largest oil producer.
CNN's Jeff Koinange has met with the rebel leader and joins us by phone with late-breaking news out of Lagos -- Jeff. JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I just got off the phone with the rebel leader. And he told me a couple hours ago he just met with the Nigerian president. They were in preliminary talks.
Now, these were supposed to be very hush-hush talks. But he got on the phone and was telling me that he was going to meet him. And I didn't believe him. But in the end he did meet him.
And this is what we know, Drew. Apparently, in these preliminary talks, each side has agreed not to fire on the other. Nothing detailed. That's it for now. It's all preliminary. No ceasefire signed. It's just that for now, each side is holding their positions. No one -- none will fire on the other. And they're going to go on for more talks later tonight.
Now what this means, in barely 48 hours, to the time when this rebel leader has said he was going to start targeting oil rigs and pipelines. All this is now up in the air. It looks like a deal may be struck before that deadline, Drew.
GRIFFIN: Jeff, there has been some violence there, and I know that the oil companies have basically shut down or are shutting down in anticipation of what they thought would be increased violence. What does this mean in term of oil production?
KOINANGE: It means that oil production will obviously be affected. But here's the deal.
I actually flew with some oil workers who were in that region, working for several big, multinational U.S. companies. And they were telling me they are getting memos, getting e-mail sent to them every single day, telling them, be very vigilant. Do not leave your compound, and do not venture out of your offices. Stay in your position. Because they're extremely worried in that area.
However, life in the streets of Port Harcourt, which is the main oil-producing region, that seems to be going on as normal.
Oil companies have vehemently said that production will go on. As you know, Drew, this country produces more than two million barrels of oil every single day. And it's the sweet light (ph) crude that the U.S. utilizes. So if production were to be affected, then it would go across the board.
And then I was also speaking to a security analyst who deals with a lot of these companies. And he said there must be a lot of pressure being borne to bear on the Nigerian president to, in his own words, to clean up his own house, Drew.
GRIFFIN: It's a stunning development, Jeff. They were basically on the verge of firing on each other. In fact, I think you talked to the president, who said he was going to launch a major offensive. So this is breaking news here on CNN. We thank you for that, Jeff Koinange in Lagos -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Consistently higher oil prices are causing some concern about oil's impact on the economy and jobs. Rhonda Schaffler joins us live from the New York Stock Exchange with that.
Hi, Rhonda.
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
