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President Bush Reacts to Duelfer Report

Aired October 07, 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.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We have tape which just came in to CNN, the president of the United States at the White House, and making some comments on what we've all been witnessing just a few moments ago. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: Chief weapons inspector Charles Duelfer has now issued a comprehensive report that confirms the earlier conclusion of David Kay that Iraq did not have the weapons that our intelligence believed were there.

The Duelfer report also raises important new information about Saddam Hussein's defiance of the world, and his intent and capability to develop weapons.

The Duelfer report showed that Saddam was systematically gaming the system, using the U.N. oil-for-food program to try to influence countries and companies in an effort to undermine sanctions.

He was doing so with the intent of restarting his weapons program once the world looked away.

Based on all the information we have to date, I believe we were right to take action, and America is safer today with Saddam Hussein in prison. He retained the knowledge, the materials, the means and the intent to produce weapons of mass destruction, and he could have passed that knowledge on to our terrorist enemies.

Saddam Hussein was a unique threat: a sworn enemy of our country, a state sponsor of terror, operating in the world's most volatile region.

BUSH: In the world after September the 11th, he was a threat we had to confront. And America and the world are safer for our actions.

The Duelfer report makes clear that much of the accumulated body of 12 years of our intelligence and that of our allies was wrong. And we must find out why and correct the flaws.

The Silberman-Robb commission is now at work to do just that. And its work is important and essential.

At a time of many threats in the world, the intelligence on which the president and members of Congress base their decisions must be better, and it will be. I look forward to the Intelligence Reform Commission's recommendations, and we will act on them to improve our intelligence, especially our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction.

Thank you all very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: All right. Obviously the president of the United States reacting to the Duelfer Report, which looked into the issue of weapons of mass destruction and the Saddam Hussein regime. And some of the findings that came out of that being interpreted, really, depending on which side of the aisle you're on, depending half full and half empty.

Dan Lothian, on the other side of the aisle, if you will, with the Kerry campaign in Englewood, Colorado.

What's the candidate been saying about Duelfer's report as the reaction continue there, Dan?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, the candidate has been behind closed doors preparing for the debate, so we have not heard a lot from him in terms of what he feels about this report. But his top advisers have been talking about it, also Senator Edwards has been sort of the front face on this issue.

Senator Kerry expected to come out here in about a half hour or so, and we're told that he will be talking about that report.

And what's interesting, his top advisers saying that this is something that he will go after President Bush on during the debate tomorrow. It is supposed to be about domestic issues, and they do plan to go after President Bush on the job numbers, expected to come out tomorrow. But they said he will also focus on a couple of things that happened this week. First of all were the statements Bremer made about the lack of enough troops on the ground in Iraq, and also the issues of weapons of mass destruction. They believe that this just bolsters their case the president did not have the proper plan before going into Iraq -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Dan Lothian in Englewood, Colorado, where, of course, there are preparations today for the big debate tomorrow, which we hope you will be watching -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Also another story we've been talking about throughout the morning are those rocket attacks that struck the Sheraton Hotel in central Baghdad, causing a fire, and also causing U.S. positions to return fire.

Also, we've been talking about, of course, the statement from John Kerry expecting to -- he will respond to that report, the CIA report that came out yesterday, talking about weapons of mass destruction.

We're working both of those angles with Elaine Quijano at the White House right now -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Kyra.

Well, interesting to give a little context on the president's statements, certainly not expected, not alluded to by his spokesman this morning, White House spokesman Scott McClellan. But yesterday, as details of the report were coming out, the president was out campaigning in two battleground states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, and he talked about the topic of Iraq, but not specifically referencing the Duelfer report.

This morning, reporters, as you can imagine, peppered spokesman Scott McClellan, asking whether or not the president in fact would be discussing the Duelfer report, making reference to it, while out on the stump today. The president is headed, as we have mentioned, is headed to Wausau, Wisconsin, in advance of the debate in St. Louis tomorrow.

And McClellan was unclear as to whether or not the president would say anything on the stump, on the campaign trail, instead saying that his comments at event today in Wausau would be similar to those comments that he made yesterday when he delivered a blistering attack against Senator John Kerry.

And then, just moments ago, that tape coming in, we learned that the president would in fact be making a statement on the Duelfer report. He took no questions. You heard his statement there, really echoing what the White House has been saying all along, as news of the report, the details of the Duelfer report, that no stockpiles were found, echoing the administration's earlier statements that they believe the U.S. did the right thing by invading Iraq -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Elaine Quijano, live from the White House, thank you so much. We're going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Get (INAUDIBLE) roll it. Get these lights off and roll it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: That's the voice of our Brent Sadler. If you didn't see that video, it shocked all of us here in the newsroom. It's a developing story we continue to follow. Rocket blasts and tracer fire in Baghdad. It isn't Sadr City; it's the Baghdad Sheraton, sanctuary for many western journalists and contractors as the apparent target of well-armed Iraqi insurgents.

Brent Sadler continuing to follow this story that has remained a little bit calm for the moment. But this gunfire is what we saw within the last hour. We'll have more coming up in the 2:00 hour. O'BRIEN: Another big story we're following, more fallout from the CIA report that found Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction in the run up to the war. Vice President Dick Cheney has seized on one of the reports' other findings, that Saddam Hussein had actively undermined the U.N. oil-for-food program, at a campaign stop in Miami. He said that was reason enough to go to war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY (R), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It turns out that the oil-for-food program under the United Nations was totally corrupted by Saddam Hussein. That he was using it to siphon off billions of dollars. He was, in effect, corrupting the program in such a way that he was trying to buy support from countries outside Iraq so that they would, in fact, support lifting the sanctions that had been imposed on Iraq.

There's a suggestion that employees of the United Nations were part of the scheme, as well. And it's clear that the whole sanctions regime structure that was in place was breaking down. He was actively and aggressively undermining it.

The notion that we could have swayed it, for example, not done anything, sooner or later Saddam would no longer be on the scene doesn't make any sense.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Joining me now from the view from the United Nations, who else, senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth. Richard?

RICHARD ROTH, SR. U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Miles, the United Nations is counseling patience, because they have their own investigation ordered that will look into intensively what exactly happened with that controversial oil-for-food program.

Charles Duelfer, the weapons report yesterday -- he used to be a weapons inspector here at the U.N. -- it wasn't the big part of his findings, but it may turn out to be the most explosive and most interesting. He basically is saying Saddam siphoned off $11 billion in deals moving around and manipulating the food-for-oil program.

He says Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, all illegally traded oil outside of sanctions that was imposed by the U.N. Security Council. The report says that the Iraqis claim, in various lists, that people such as the former head of the U.N. oil-for-food program, Benon Sevan, received oil vouchers from Saddam, and that Saddam Hussein personally approved all the names on this list, including: the former French interior minister; celebrated political figure in Russia, Vladimir Zhirinovsky. All of these people deny the allegations -- Zhirinovsky saying, "I never took a drop of oil."

U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) FRED ECKHARD, U.N. SPOKESMAN: I said what I said about the Duelfer report because the report was on weapons of mass destruction, and that was the overwhelming focus of the report. Although Mr. Duelfer did touch on the corruption of the oil-for-food scheme, that matter is clearly in the hands of Mr. Volcker.

Why should I prejudge what a serious an investigation by a man of stature would come up with? You just have to be patient and let this investigation come to a close.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: Miles, that tracer fire you just showed me reminded me of kind of the verbal volleys that break out whenever there's another article or report on oil-for-food.

And one final point to remember, the United States, as a member of the U.N. Security Council, had the access, the ability, the clout to go very public with problems in oil-for-food which it was aware of or to even veto certain parts of the investigation. Washington very interested in keeping the sanctions on. That was the tradeoff that led -- in effect, turn a blind eye to all of this.

O'BRIEN: So, turn a blind eye, let it continue, taking the lesser of two evils, I guess, then? Is that the theory?

ROTH: That's right. In order to keep France and Russia in line on the sanctions program, it had to, in effect, know that corruption was taking place -- massive on the scale, it seems, at this point.

O'BRIEN: Tantamount to hush money, I guess?

ROTH: Well, in a way. And maybe there were a lot of companies also profiting.

It's a huge, complicated thing. I mean, they had to take weeks and months, thousands of business contracts. Then, the weapons inspectors had to determine if this elevator or if this furnace was going to be used for dual use for Iraqi weapons.

People knew this was happening. To a lot of people, they're not really that surprised. Just how deep was it and who was really on the take, that's what people want to see -- if anybody was.

O'BRIEN: All right, Richard Roth. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.

Looking for a public official that is free from corruption? Aren't we all. Well, a Minnesota teenager hopes her town folk are looking for her. Her platform, her message, and -- well, her. (INAUDIBLE). It's a get. A LIVE FROM get. America votes for a teen, after this.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The view of the future in movies like "Minority Report" seems to be pretty far off in some respects. But for Professor Steven Feiner, that future is not as far away as it seems.

STEVEN FEINER, PROFESSOR, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: A lot of what we're -- just in lab is invented reality, which means overlaying material on top of what you see and hear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Professor Feiner and his team at Columbia University are developing the user interface of the future. Not for use on a computer screen, but something you would view as you walk in the world around you.

FEINER: I think just being able to walk down the street and to be able to see directions to a place you haven't been to before and that, of course, could mean the world to you if you're lost.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Professor Feiner's vision is that, by the end of the decade, the interface won't require the heavy backpack device shown here, but instead will run on something the size of a cell phone connected to a normal pair of glasses.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: OK, it's election time, and that political crackle is in the air, and it's when potential office holders must weigh the call to civic duty against life's other priorities, family, career, the prom, graduating high school. Our candidate focus today is on tiny St. Mary's Point, Minnesota, population: 350. One of two candidates for mayor is Erin Feehan Nelson. One vote she won't be getting is her own, though. She's not even old enough to vote.

Hi, Erin.

ERIN FEEHAN NELSON, MAYORAL CANDIDATE: Hello.

PHILLIPS: All right, you're 17 years old. Why are you running for mayor?

NELSON: Because I feel my city needs to have a change, and I can plan for the future, and I am that new fresh face that the city needs, so.

PHILLIPS: So you're not old enough to vote. And even if you were voted in as mayor, you can't legally take the position.

NELSON: Well, and here's the thing, the constitution of Minnesota says that you have to be 21, but the catch is, my city doesn't have any qualifications to be mayor. And so I feel like this -- or the whole state's reason for having election laws is to ensure that local elections are fair and honest. And I don't really see how 21 states whether that's fair and honest. It's the city's requirement, or the city should be making qualifications to be mayor, and my city didn't do that. So I will be 18 when I take office. PHILLIPS: All right, so tell me about your life experience as a 17, about almost 18-year-old that would make me want to make me vote for you for mayor?

NELSON: I'm honest. I'm fair. I'm open minded. I'm willing to hear people's opinions. I want to help my city a lot. I want to plan community events so people get to know each other in my city. I want to organize the city so it's running like a business again. And just things like that, so.

PHILLIPS: You know, a lot of mud slinging takes place in campaigns. Do you have anything hidden in your closet that might come out, a skeleton or two?

NELSON: I don't think so.

PHILLIPS: You don't see any negative advertising?

NELSON: No, just that I'm 17. But I am very mature, I think, so and I want to do this. I want to help my city. So I hope citizens vote for me.

PHILLIPS: Now, your mom and dad, both in politics, right?

NELSON: Ye.

PHILLIPS: All right, give me the background. Mom ran for a position but didn't win?

NELSON: No, she didn't win. But this time, I just felt like it was my turn. I could help the city, so.

PHILLIPS: And then your dad's running for city council?

NELSON: Yes, and we have the conversation about, who's going to get more votes. And he always says, well, I'm on the ballot, And I'm running as I write-in. But we've done our research, and I think write-ins have won in the past, so I've got a good chance.

PHILLIPS: So are you guys campaigning together?

NELSON: No, not at this point. I don't know if we will, actually.

PHILLIPS: Well, what are you doing? How are you campaigning?

NELSON: I'm going to go door to door. I haven't started going door to door yet. I've gotten signs up at the houses where I know I'll get their votes. And then as far as the door to door, that's going to come later on. I've got a brochure that I'm going to be handing out and literature and such, so.

PHILLIPS: What type of money are you using for your campaign?

NELSON: Just my family, my own money.

PHILLIPS: Are you working?

NELSON: Yes, I work. I film city council meetings for a city nearby.

PHILLIPS: Are you going to college?

NELSON: I will be next fall. And currently, I'm in high school, but I'm taking classes at a local community college.

PHILLIPS: All right, so your sister, Olivia, 8 years old, she's sort of jealous. She's wanting to get in on this election stuff.

NELSON: Oh, certainly, yes, she wanted to be on the camera, too.

PHILLIPS: So, where did this come from? Did someone encourage you to do this? Or you were just reading the paper? Or you were following local politics? I mean, how did this happen?

NELSON: Well, my whole family's just been really involved in the local government. We go to the city council meetings. We know the issues that's been going on, and I go to all the city council meetings as far as the local ones, and I just felt like it was my turn. I really feel like I could make the difference in the city that my city needs.

PHILLIPS: All right, I know you've got an attorney, too, ready to sue if indeed you do get a lot of votes. Erin Feehan Nelson, we're going to follow this in tiny St. Mary's Point, Minnesota. You're let us know what happens, right?

NELSON: All right. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Erin.

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

PHILLIPS: Well, coming up in the second hour of LIVE FROM -- I guess we're not going to a two-shot, even though Miles was looking at me like we should go to a two-shot.

O'BRIEN: Yes, Here I am.

PHILLIPS: This is a neat segment coming up. We're talking about portraits from around the world.

O'BRIEN: Portraits around the world. I think you've already done this one, right? Is it good?

PHILLIPS: No, we haven't done it yet. No, that was Annika Sorenstam.

O'BRIEN: Aneeka Sorenstam (ph).

PHILLIPS: Yes, as some people like to call her, incorrect.

O'BRIEN: All right. Sorry, portraits from around the world. We'll show you. It's actually all about coffee tables. No, no, no, it's coffee table book about other things with one of the photographers of "The National Geographic." They're pretty good picture takers there.

PHILLIPS: Tin type (ph), we're going to talk about tin type. Remember tin type.

O'BRIEN: Yes, yes, absolutely.

When LIVE FROM's hour of power begins after this.

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 October 7, 2004 - 13:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We have tape which just came in to CNN, the president of the United States at the White House, and making some comments on what we've all been witnessing just a few moments ago. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: Chief weapons inspector Charles Duelfer has now issued a comprehensive report that confirms the earlier conclusion of David Kay that Iraq did not have the weapons that our intelligence believed were there.

The Duelfer report also raises important new information about Saddam Hussein's defiance of the world, and his intent and capability to develop weapons.

The Duelfer report showed that Saddam was systematically gaming the system, using the U.N. oil-for-food program to try to influence countries and companies in an effort to undermine sanctions.

He was doing so with the intent of restarting his weapons program once the world looked away.

Based on all the information we have to date, I believe we were right to take action, and America is safer today with Saddam Hussein in prison. He retained the knowledge, the materials, the means and the intent to produce weapons of mass destruction, and he could have passed that knowledge on to our terrorist enemies.

Saddam Hussein was a unique threat: a sworn enemy of our country, a state sponsor of terror, operating in the world's most volatile region.

BUSH: In the world after September the 11th, he was a threat we had to confront. And America and the world are safer for our actions.

The Duelfer report makes clear that much of the accumulated body of 12 years of our intelligence and that of our allies was wrong. And we must find out why and correct the flaws.

The Silberman-Robb commission is now at work to do just that. And its work is important and essential.

At a time of many threats in the world, the intelligence on which the president and members of Congress base their decisions must be better, and it will be. I look forward to the Intelligence Reform Commission's recommendations, and we will act on them to improve our intelligence, especially our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction.

Thank you all very much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: All right. Obviously the president of the United States reacting to the Duelfer Report, which looked into the issue of weapons of mass destruction and the Saddam Hussein regime. And some of the findings that came out of that being interpreted, really, depending on which side of the aisle you're on, depending half full and half empty.

Dan Lothian, on the other side of the aisle, if you will, with the Kerry campaign in Englewood, Colorado.

What's the candidate been saying about Duelfer's report as the reaction continue there, Dan?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, the candidate has been behind closed doors preparing for the debate, so we have not heard a lot from him in terms of what he feels about this report. But his top advisers have been talking about it, also Senator Edwards has been sort of the front face on this issue.

Senator Kerry expected to come out here in about a half hour or so, and we're told that he will be talking about that report.

And what's interesting, his top advisers saying that this is something that he will go after President Bush on during the debate tomorrow. It is supposed to be about domestic issues, and they do plan to go after President Bush on the job numbers, expected to come out tomorrow. But they said he will also focus on a couple of things that happened this week. First of all were the statements Bremer made about the lack of enough troops on the ground in Iraq, and also the issues of weapons of mass destruction. They believe that this just bolsters their case the president did not have the proper plan before going into Iraq -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Dan Lothian in Englewood, Colorado, where, of course, there are preparations today for the big debate tomorrow, which we hope you will be watching -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Also another story we've been talking about throughout the morning are those rocket attacks that struck the Sheraton Hotel in central Baghdad, causing a fire, and also causing U.S. positions to return fire.

Also, we've been talking about, of course, the statement from John Kerry expecting to -- he will respond to that report, the CIA report that came out yesterday, talking about weapons of mass destruction.

We're working both of those angles with Elaine Quijano at the White House right now -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Kyra.

Well, interesting to give a little context on the president's statements, certainly not expected, not alluded to by his spokesman this morning, White House spokesman Scott McClellan. But yesterday, as details of the report were coming out, the president was out campaigning in two battleground states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, and he talked about the topic of Iraq, but not specifically referencing the Duelfer report.

This morning, reporters, as you can imagine, peppered spokesman Scott McClellan, asking whether or not the president in fact would be discussing the Duelfer report, making reference to it, while out on the stump today. The president is headed, as we have mentioned, is headed to Wausau, Wisconsin, in advance of the debate in St. Louis tomorrow.

And McClellan was unclear as to whether or not the president would say anything on the stump, on the campaign trail, instead saying that his comments at event today in Wausau would be similar to those comments that he made yesterday when he delivered a blistering attack against Senator John Kerry.

And then, just moments ago, that tape coming in, we learned that the president would in fact be making a statement on the Duelfer report. He took no questions. You heard his statement there, really echoing what the White House has been saying all along, as news of the report, the details of the Duelfer report, that no stockpiles were found, echoing the administration's earlier statements that they believe the U.S. did the right thing by invading Iraq -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Elaine Quijano, live from the White House, thank you so much. We're going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Get (INAUDIBLE) roll it. Get these lights off and roll it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: That's the voice of our Brent Sadler. If you didn't see that video, it shocked all of us here in the newsroom. It's a developing story we continue to follow. Rocket blasts and tracer fire in Baghdad. It isn't Sadr City; it's the Baghdad Sheraton, sanctuary for many western journalists and contractors as the apparent target of well-armed Iraqi insurgents.

Brent Sadler continuing to follow this story that has remained a little bit calm for the moment. But this gunfire is what we saw within the last hour. We'll have more coming up in the 2:00 hour. O'BRIEN: Another big story we're following, more fallout from the CIA report that found Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction in the run up to the war. Vice President Dick Cheney has seized on one of the reports' other findings, that Saddam Hussein had actively undermined the U.N. oil-for-food program, at a campaign stop in Miami. He said that was reason enough to go to war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY (R), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It turns out that the oil-for-food program under the United Nations was totally corrupted by Saddam Hussein. That he was using it to siphon off billions of dollars. He was, in effect, corrupting the program in such a way that he was trying to buy support from countries outside Iraq so that they would, in fact, support lifting the sanctions that had been imposed on Iraq.

There's a suggestion that employees of the United Nations were part of the scheme, as well. And it's clear that the whole sanctions regime structure that was in place was breaking down. He was actively and aggressively undermining it.

The notion that we could have swayed it, for example, not done anything, sooner or later Saddam would no longer be on the scene doesn't make any sense.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Joining me now from the view from the United Nations, who else, senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth. Richard?

RICHARD ROTH, SR. U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Miles, the United Nations is counseling patience, because they have their own investigation ordered that will look into intensively what exactly happened with that controversial oil-for-food program.

Charles Duelfer, the weapons report yesterday -- he used to be a weapons inspector here at the U.N. -- it wasn't the big part of his findings, but it may turn out to be the most explosive and most interesting. He basically is saying Saddam siphoned off $11 billion in deals moving around and manipulating the food-for-oil program.

He says Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, all illegally traded oil outside of sanctions that was imposed by the U.N. Security Council. The report says that the Iraqis claim, in various lists, that people such as the former head of the U.N. oil-for-food program, Benon Sevan, received oil vouchers from Saddam, and that Saddam Hussein personally approved all the names on this list, including: the former French interior minister; celebrated political figure in Russia, Vladimir Zhirinovsky. All of these people deny the allegations -- Zhirinovsky saying, "I never took a drop of oil."

U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) FRED ECKHARD, U.N. SPOKESMAN: I said what I said about the Duelfer report because the report was on weapons of mass destruction, and that was the overwhelming focus of the report. Although Mr. Duelfer did touch on the corruption of the oil-for-food scheme, that matter is clearly in the hands of Mr. Volcker.

Why should I prejudge what a serious an investigation by a man of stature would come up with? You just have to be patient and let this investigation come to a close.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: Miles, that tracer fire you just showed me reminded me of kind of the verbal volleys that break out whenever there's another article or report on oil-for-food.

And one final point to remember, the United States, as a member of the U.N. Security Council, had the access, the ability, the clout to go very public with problems in oil-for-food which it was aware of or to even veto certain parts of the investigation. Washington very interested in keeping the sanctions on. That was the tradeoff that led -- in effect, turn a blind eye to all of this.

O'BRIEN: So, turn a blind eye, let it continue, taking the lesser of two evils, I guess, then? Is that the theory?

ROTH: That's right. In order to keep France and Russia in line on the sanctions program, it had to, in effect, know that corruption was taking place -- massive on the scale, it seems, at this point.

O'BRIEN: Tantamount to hush money, I guess?

ROTH: Well, in a way. And maybe there were a lot of companies also profiting.

It's a huge, complicated thing. I mean, they had to take weeks and months, thousands of business contracts. Then, the weapons inspectors had to determine if this elevator or if this furnace was going to be used for dual use for Iraqi weapons.

People knew this was happening. To a lot of people, they're not really that surprised. Just how deep was it and who was really on the take, that's what people want to see -- if anybody was.

O'BRIEN: All right, Richard Roth. Thank you very much. Appreciate it.

Looking for a public official that is free from corruption? Aren't we all. Well, a Minnesota teenager hopes her town folk are looking for her. Her platform, her message, and -- well, her. (INAUDIBLE). It's a get. A LIVE FROM get. America votes for a teen, after this.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The view of the future in movies like "Minority Report" seems to be pretty far off in some respects. But for Professor Steven Feiner, that future is not as far away as it seems.

STEVEN FEINER, PROFESSOR, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: A lot of what we're -- just in lab is invented reality, which means overlaying material on top of what you see and hear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Professor Feiner and his team at Columbia University are developing the user interface of the future. Not for use on a computer screen, but something you would view as you walk in the world around you.

FEINER: I think just being able to walk down the street and to be able to see directions to a place you haven't been to before and that, of course, could mean the world to you if you're lost.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Professor Feiner's vision is that, by the end of the decade, the interface won't require the heavy backpack device shown here, but instead will run on something the size of a cell phone connected to a normal pair of glasses.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: OK, it's election time, and that political crackle is in the air, and it's when potential office holders must weigh the call to civic duty against life's other priorities, family, career, the prom, graduating high school. Our candidate focus today is on tiny St. Mary's Point, Minnesota, population: 350. One of two candidates for mayor is Erin Feehan Nelson. One vote she won't be getting is her own, though. She's not even old enough to vote.

Hi, Erin.

ERIN FEEHAN NELSON, MAYORAL CANDIDATE: Hello.

PHILLIPS: All right, you're 17 years old. Why are you running for mayor?

NELSON: Because I feel my city needs to have a change, and I can plan for the future, and I am that new fresh face that the city needs, so.

PHILLIPS: So you're not old enough to vote. And even if you were voted in as mayor, you can't legally take the position.

NELSON: Well, and here's the thing, the constitution of Minnesota says that you have to be 21, but the catch is, my city doesn't have any qualifications to be mayor. And so I feel like this -- or the whole state's reason for having election laws is to ensure that local elections are fair and honest. And I don't really see how 21 states whether that's fair and honest. It's the city's requirement, or the city should be making qualifications to be mayor, and my city didn't do that. So I will be 18 when I take office. PHILLIPS: All right, so tell me about your life experience as a 17, about almost 18-year-old that would make me want to make me vote for you for mayor?

NELSON: I'm honest. I'm fair. I'm open minded. I'm willing to hear people's opinions. I want to help my city a lot. I want to plan community events so people get to know each other in my city. I want to organize the city so it's running like a business again. And just things like that, so.

PHILLIPS: You know, a lot of mud slinging takes place in campaigns. Do you have anything hidden in your closet that might come out, a skeleton or two?

NELSON: I don't think so.

PHILLIPS: You don't see any negative advertising?

NELSON: No, just that I'm 17. But I am very mature, I think, so and I want to do this. I want to help my city. So I hope citizens vote for me.

PHILLIPS: Now, your mom and dad, both in politics, right?

NELSON: Ye.

PHILLIPS: All right, give me the background. Mom ran for a position but didn't win?

NELSON: No, she didn't win. But this time, I just felt like it was my turn. I could help the city, so.

PHILLIPS: And then your dad's running for city council?

NELSON: Yes, and we have the conversation about, who's going to get more votes. And he always says, well, I'm on the ballot, And I'm running as I write-in. But we've done our research, and I think write-ins have won in the past, so I've got a good chance.

PHILLIPS: So are you guys campaigning together?

NELSON: No, not at this point. I don't know if we will, actually.

PHILLIPS: Well, what are you doing? How are you campaigning?

NELSON: I'm going to go door to door. I haven't started going door to door yet. I've gotten signs up at the houses where I know I'll get their votes. And then as far as the door to door, that's going to come later on. I've got a brochure that I'm going to be handing out and literature and such, so.

PHILLIPS: What type of money are you using for your campaign?

NELSON: Just my family, my own money.

PHILLIPS: Are you working?

NELSON: Yes, I work. I film city council meetings for a city nearby.

PHILLIPS: Are you going to college?

NELSON: I will be next fall. And currently, I'm in high school, but I'm taking classes at a local community college.

PHILLIPS: All right, so your sister, Olivia, 8 years old, she's sort of jealous. She's wanting to get in on this election stuff.

NELSON: Oh, certainly, yes, she wanted to be on the camera, too.

PHILLIPS: So, where did this come from? Did someone encourage you to do this? Or you were just reading the paper? Or you were following local politics? I mean, how did this happen?

NELSON: Well, my whole family's just been really involved in the local government. We go to the city council meetings. We know the issues that's been going on, and I go to all the city council meetings as far as the local ones, and I just felt like it was my turn. I really feel like I could make the difference in the city that my city needs.

PHILLIPS: All right, I know you've got an attorney, too, ready to sue if indeed you do get a lot of votes. Erin Feehan Nelson, we're going to follow this in tiny St. Mary's Point, Minnesota. You're let us know what happens, right?

NELSON: All right. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Erin.

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

PHILLIPS: Well, coming up in the second hour of LIVE FROM -- I guess we're not going to a two-shot, even though Miles was looking at me like we should go to a two-shot.

O'BRIEN: Yes, Here I am.

PHILLIPS: This is a neat segment coming up. We're talking about portraits from around the world.

O'BRIEN: Portraits around the world. I think you've already done this one, right? Is it good?

PHILLIPS: No, we haven't done it yet. No, that was Annika Sorenstam.

O'BRIEN: Aneeka Sorenstam (ph).

PHILLIPS: Yes, as some people like to call her, incorrect.

O'BRIEN: All right. Sorry, portraits from around the world. We'll show you. It's actually all about coffee tables. No, no, no, it's coffee table book about other things with one of the photographers of "The National Geographic." They're pretty good picture takers there.

PHILLIPS: Tin type (ph), we're going to talk about tin type. Remember tin type.

O'BRIEN: Yes, yes, absolutely.

When LIVE FROM's hour of power begins after this.

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