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Protests Continue in Lebanon; President Clinton to Undergo Surgery

Aired March 08, 2005 - 15:00   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 ANCHOR: Former President Bill Clinton says he's doing great two days before follow-up heart surgery. Thursday, Clinton will have a procedure to remove fluid and scar tissue from his chest, a result of his quadruple bypass last fall. Clinton and former President George H.W. Bush recently got a look at tsunami relief efforts in Asia.
Today, they briefed the current President Bush. Doctors say the heart complication is relatively rare, but the surgery is low-risk and he should completely recover. For his part, Clinton says he feels fine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I found this condition when I did my regular test and they said I was in the top 5 percent of men my age in health. But they took a routine X- ray and found out that I had a lot of fluid buildup here, which is quite rare once the fluid goes down. And so all they have to do is drain it and take that little peel that holds the fluid out.

It's a routine sort of deal. And it will knock me out of commission for a week or two and then I will be back to normal. This is no big deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Now, stay with CNN and LIVE FROM for more on the former president's condition. In just a few moments, we'll talk with a cardiologist who will be making a house call for us here in Washington -- Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: In Lebanon today, the other side speaks on the streets of Beirut. After weeks of demonstrations against Syrian interference, there was a massive backlash today.

CNN's Brent Sadler reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): This is the end of another dramatic day of protests in the Lebanese capital.

Early this afternoon, for several hours, tens upon tens of thousands of people poured on to the streets of downtown Beirut in front of the headquarters of the United Nations in Lebanon protesting on two levels, primarily denouncing international interference in the relationship between Lebanon and Syria through United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559 that demands for an immediate and complete withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon.

It also demands the disbanding of militias. Now, Hezbollah is the last armed group left in Lebanon after Lebanon's civil war that ended in the early 1990s. Hezbollah called this rally, its leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, urging the crowd to denounce Resolution 1559, saying it was aimed at weakening Syria, aimed at helping Israel, and really was a policy that did not serve the interests of neither the Lebanese nor the Syrians.

The demonstrations in the Lebanese capital continued as reports were coming in of possible Syrian troop movements in parts of Lebanon. Lebanon's defense minister has said to expect significant movements of troops within the next 24 hours. We have heard that in the past. That may or may not be the case. Only seeing troops move eastward towards the Syrian border will actually confirm what's been promised all along.

Now, at the same time as there was a pro-Syrian protest going on, there was also anti-Syrian sentiment being heard on the streets of the Lebanese capital, again, protesters in Martyrs' Square, as it were, which is where former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is buried, protesting Syria's presence, wanting to see a full implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559.

And those supporters of that resolution would have been emboldened to hear President George W. Bush's speech calling for the Syrians to fully implement 1559 as soon as possible, ahead of planned parliamentary elections by mid-May, so that the Lebanese, said President Bush, can hold free and fair elections.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: President Bush saying today the seeds of democracy are sprouting in the Middle East. And he renewed his call on Syria to hightail it out of Lebanon. In a speech in Washington, Mr. Bush expounded on his newfound theme of spreading freedom to combat terrorism.

Dana bash with the story, joining us from the White House -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Miles.

And it is a bit of a shift for the president. Since 9/11, we have heard him talking about fighting the war on terrorism with the military, with intelligence agencies. Today, he said another key weapon is democracy. And his message in a speech earlier today was that he called a critical mass of events is taking place in the Middle East. He said that those are crucial, moves big and small, in an antidote, he said, for radicalism and terrorism in the Mideast.

He said, though, it was a duty of free nations, for the sake of long-term security, to push for even more change in that region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The entire world has an urgent interest in the progress and hope and freedom in the broader Middle East. The advance of hope in the Middle East requires new thinking in the region. By now, it should be clear that authoritarian rule is not the wave of the future. It is the last gasp of a discredited past.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And the president did single out what he considers the biggest impediments to democratic reforms across the Middle East, Syria and Iran. With regards to both countries, he said that they should stop using terror as a tool, even murder as a tool.

But specifically with regard to Syria, the president once again, as Brent Sadler was reporting, said it was critical for that country to pull all of its troops out of Lebanon, at least by that country's scheduled elections in May. And, as he was talking, though, he was trying to prop up the anti-Syrian movement in Lebanon, talking about the fact that the American people are with them.

But those are the pictures that were going on. That is the scene that was happening in -- on the streets of Beirut as Mr. Bush was talking. Those are pro-Syrian demonstrators that were, shall we say, off message as far as the White House is concerned. The president did not mention those at all. Instead, later when asked about it, the president's spokesman simply said that the president believes in free and fair speech no matter what, and that his ultimate goal, no matter what ultimate government of Lebanon is, is to have free and fair elections -- Mile.

O'BRIEN: Dana Bash at the White House, thank you very much -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Fighting the war on terror in Russia.

News media there reporting that the shooting death of a top Chechen rebel leader -- Russian television is showing what it says is the body of Aslan Maskhadov. He reportedly was killed during a special operation in a Chechen village. Maskhadov has long symbolized the fight for Chechen independence and its move to break away from Russia. In 1997, he was elected president of Chechnya, receiving congratulations from then Russian President Boris Yeltsin. In later years, Russia placed a bounty on his head.

O'BRIEN: The federal government reports that more than 40 terror suspects were able to buy firearms in the U.S. last year. The Government Accountability Office says background checks found no reason to stop the sales. Current law does not prohibit a member of a suspected terrorist organization from owning a gun. The GAO urges the Justice Department to make sure counterterrorism officials receive data from gun purchase background checks and it recommends more FBI oversight. Labor unions and safety advocates are fighting Wal-Mart in a move to extend the work day for truckers. Public Citizen and other groups held a news conference today to oppose the amendment to the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill. Wal-Mart and other retailers and the snack food industry are lobbying Congress for the change. Critics say letting truckers drive 16 hours instead of 14 would make roadways more dangerous for all drivers.

Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

In the Michael Jackson trial, the brother of Jackson's accuser crumbled under cross-examination today.

CNN's Miguel Marquez heard it all in the courtroom in Santa Maria, California.

Tell us what happened, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I don't know if I would put it as quite a crumbling, but certainly parts of his testimony were questioned fairly heavily by Mr. Jackson's defense under cross- examination.

There was no real big moment where the kid was caught, but I can go through a few things that he testified through to -- to today. We have ended early today, by the way, because of -- the judge has a meeting today.

The kid said that he lied when he was deposed in an earlier hearing in which his family was suing J.C. Penney. He testified today that his parents -- testified then that his parents never fought and that his father never beat him. And the defense attorneys in this current case say that the family and the kids lie when there is a profit motive at stake, when there's something to gain from it.

If there is a gotcha moment today, maybe the biggest one was when the prosecution yesterday had showed a picture of an adult magazine to the boy that was seized at Neverland and the boy said, yes, that's the magazine that Jackson showed to us. Today, Jackson's defense showed the same picture to the boy and he said again, yes, that's the picture he showed to us.

And then Mr. Jackson's attorney, Tom Mesereau, in sort of Perry Mason-like fashion, that that Jackson -- that that magazine was from October or August 2003. That was after the family was at Neverland Ranch. They were no longer at Neverland Ranch in August 2003.

The boy also testified that there was an electronic bell that sounded every time they walked into Jackson's bedroom. He said that electronic bell went off the two times that he said he saw his brother being molested by Jackson. And when asked why Jackson didn't hear it, he said, well, maybe the door might must have been closed and that's why he didn't hear the bell go off. But the lawyers seemed it to score some small points on all of this, breaking down his story to some degree. But he seemed also to be laying a lot of foundation for what comes tomorrow, more cross-examination of this witness -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Miguel Marquez, live from Santa Maria, California, thank you -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Another hospital visit, another operation for former President Clinton. So, how risky is Mr. Clinton's second surgery? We'll talk about it with a doctor from G.W. University Hospital up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Now more on our top story.

Bill Clinton heads back to the O.R. in about 48 hours or so for a procedure to repair what could be described as an uncommon side effect of his heart surgery last year. What's involved in the operation?

Dr. Jannet Lewis is director of noninvasive cardiology at George Washington University Hospital sitting right beside me here in our D.C. bureau.

Good to have you with us.

DR. JANNET LEWIS, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL: Thank you. My pleasure.

O'BRIEN: Decortication.

LEWIS: Decortication.

O'BRIEN: Is the technical term.

LEWIS: Yes.

O'BRIEN: As I gather, it has something to do with scar tissue and fluid buildup as a result of these surgeries. What is the surgery about?

LEWIS: Well, just to back up just a little bit, after bypass surgery, some patients, a minority, get a fluid accumulation within the lung. And that can be persistent and problematic. And, in this case, it has caused some inflammation of the lining, so that has to be basically peeled away.

O'BRIEN: And, as I gather from just hearing other doctors talk today and reading what I've seen on the Web, it's pretty rare for this to occur in the wake of a bypass open surgery.

LEWIS: It probably -- it's not unheard, of course, but it probably occurs in less than 5 percent of patients.

O'BRIEN: And left unchecked, this is a pretty serious thing?

LEWIS: Left unchecked, it frequently goes away on its own. In this case, it did not. And, certainly, he will be a lot more comfortable with his breathing when this is taken care of.

O'BRIEN: And when you say discomfort, and he alluded to it today, give us a sense of what the symptoms are.

LEWIS: Some pain, some shortness of breath just locally, but not the kind of pain one would have from cardiac pain.

O'BRIEN: Right. So it would be something somebody who's been through what Mr. Clinton has been through, he would know the difference, then, between this and the kind of pain that he dealt with before he had the surgery.

LEWIS: Yes, and so would his physicians. And I'm sure they've evaluated that as well.

O'BRIEN: OK. So, and the surgery itself, of course, general anesthesia poses a risk any time one endures that, but otherwise healthy person faced with this presents a pretty good outcome here, right?

LEWIS: A very good outcome. He should be out and about within a few days.

O'BRIEN: All right, now, in the meantime, he's sneaking down to Florida for a golf tournament. Would you advise him as his doctor to do that?

LEWIS: I am going to have to defer to his physicians. But if he's feeling well and if he's not short of breath, this should not pose a problem.

O'BRIEN: And for those out there who have been through there this, and there are a lot of people who have had these bypass surgeries, with great effect, if they have similar kinds of pains, they should definitely be calling their doctor, I assume.

LEWIS: They should definitely call their physician.

Like you said, this is not a common problem to occur, but it's a well-recognized problem and easily taken care of.

O'BRIEN: The other thing to consider here, too, in the wake of open heart surgery, is, you really have to stay on top of your health. And by all accounts, President Clinton has had a history of, you know, favoring the junk food and so forth. It's really important for people after these surgeries to go through a whole change in lifestyle, isn't it?

LEWIS: The lifestyle is entirely different. Your risk factors have to be controlled. The events that led up to this, the high cholesterol, the eating habits, any lack of exercise, all of this has to be reversed to have the best possible outcome.

O'BRIEN: It's funny, because I think a lot of people, we hope for silver-bullet solutions, that have the surgery and we're better. But it really involves something that is more ongoing. As best you can tell, it looks like the president, by all accounts, looks like he's doing well.

LEWIS: It looks like he is following the advice of his physicians to the letter. He looks like he's doing quite well.

O'BRIEN: Finally, how many times have you done this (AUDIO GAP)

PHILLIPS: It really was live. But what happens is, the signal freezes every now and then when we go back and forth from here to Washington.

So, we'll get that fixed. We'll bring Miles back to you, as he was talking to a surgeon about the surgery Bill Clinton will be going under soon, after a golf tournament, actually, that he's playing in with Greg Norman tomorrow to raise money for tsunami victims.

Meanwhile, straight ahead, she's a out of prison and back in the spotlight. Now her every move is captured by the media. Next, our Jeanne Moos on the fascination for some with the domestic diva.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Taking a look at news around the world now, China may authorize military force to prevent Taiwan from formally seceding. The National People's Congress heard that proposal today and a party leader says that force would be a last resort if peaceful unification efforts should fail.

Two women protesting British Prince Charles' visit to New Zealand face charges of disorderly behavior after exposing their breasts as he arrived in Wellington for an official function. A message on one woman's bare front said, "Get your colonial shame off my breasts." Well, a growing movement wants to dump the British monarchy in the former colony.

And here's one way to let off tension in the Mideast. Hundreds of young people held a pillow fight last night in downtown Tel Aviv, yes, a pillow fight. It's part of a new worldwide phenomenon called mobile clubbing.

Well, here's a story that might make you want to take a second look through your coin collection. A rare 1894 dime was auctioned for $1.3 million in Baltimore yesterday. That's the most ever paid for a dime. It was one of the only 24 made that year at the San Francisco Mint. They were intended to be gifts for visiting bankers.

Well, since Martha Stewart was freed from prison four days ago, the media have pretty much followed her every move. It's too much of a good thing, we wonder?

CNN's Jeanne Moos takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just out of jail and already we've seen Martha wash her dishes, feed her horses, walk her dog, toss lemons and savor a home-cooked meal. The press ate up every Martha utterance and reported back to editors.

QUESTION: What did you have for breakfast?

MARTHA STEWART, MARTHA STEWART LIVING OMNIMEDIA: I haven't had breakfast yet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She hasn't had breakfast yet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She hasn't had -- she has not had breakfast yet.

MOOS: Whenever she moved, the press moved, out in front of her bucolic Bedford, New York estate. Even when Martha sent out cocoa to the press, it was captured.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you thank Martha for this for me?

MOOS: Even Martha joked about the coverage.

STEWART: Because it's made the news. Here's my poncho.

MOOS: Crocheted for her by a new friend in prison. She wore it leaving the big house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was like an Oscar walk.

MOOS: But some curmudgeons in the press were unimpressed.

O'BRIEN: Oh, come on.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Who cares?

HEMMER: We're going to care for a little bit.

CAFFERTY: She's a 63-year-old convicted felon.

MOOS: No one was tougher than Don Imus, touring with his own reporter outside Martha's house.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "IMUS IN THE MORNING")

DON IMUS, HOST: This is sick. You're sick and this is sick. This is just...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not sick.

IMUS: Look it, looking in her window there. This makes me uncomfortable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not looking in her windows.

IMUS: Yes, you were. Later on, you'll be out there going through the garbage trying to find something.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: They half jokingly gave reporter Anne Thompson, a new nickname.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "IMUS IN THE MORNING")

IMUS: You're a peeping Thompson.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: But the press wouldn't be peeping if the audience didn't want us to peep. But not all viewers were happy.

CAFFERTY: Who the hell cares if Martha Stewart can now fit into her skinny jeans?

MOOS: Who cares? Well, CNN's ratings nearly doubled during live, middle of the night coverage of Martha's release. To Martha or not to Martha, that is the question for reporters. This one brought along her dog.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where's Martha?

MOOS: She's probably off trying to engineer more coverage. After all, this heartwarming video was supplied by the company Martha founded.

During our live coverage of her rousing welcome by employees, the shot inexplicably headed for her feet.

O'BRIEN: The photographer there doesn't have a shoe fetish. He's trying to show the point there that she is not wearing the electronic ankle bracelet.

MOOS: Hey, who needs an ankle bracelet when we're televising every move she makes?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you rolling right by?

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, that wraps up this Tuesday edition of LIVE FROM.

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 March 8, 2005 - 15:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Former President Bill Clinton says he's doing great two days before follow-up heart surgery. Thursday, Clinton will have a procedure to remove fluid and scar tissue from his chest, a result of his quadruple bypass last fall. Clinton and former President George H.W. Bush recently got a look at tsunami relief efforts in Asia.
Today, they briefed the current President Bush. Doctors say the heart complication is relatively rare, but the surgery is low-risk and he should completely recover. For his part, Clinton says he feels fine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I found this condition when I did my regular test and they said I was in the top 5 percent of men my age in health. But they took a routine X- ray and found out that I had a lot of fluid buildup here, which is quite rare once the fluid goes down. And so all they have to do is drain it and take that little peel that holds the fluid out.

It's a routine sort of deal. And it will knock me out of commission for a week or two and then I will be back to normal. This is no big deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Now, stay with CNN and LIVE FROM for more on the former president's condition. In just a few moments, we'll talk with a cardiologist who will be making a house call for us here in Washington -- Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: In Lebanon today, the other side speaks on the streets of Beirut. After weeks of demonstrations against Syrian interference, there was a massive backlash today.

CNN's Brent Sadler reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): This is the end of another dramatic day of protests in the Lebanese capital.

Early this afternoon, for several hours, tens upon tens of thousands of people poured on to the streets of downtown Beirut in front of the headquarters of the United Nations in Lebanon protesting on two levels, primarily denouncing international interference in the relationship between Lebanon and Syria through United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559 that demands for an immediate and complete withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon.

It also demands the disbanding of militias. Now, Hezbollah is the last armed group left in Lebanon after Lebanon's civil war that ended in the early 1990s. Hezbollah called this rally, its leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, urging the crowd to denounce Resolution 1559, saying it was aimed at weakening Syria, aimed at helping Israel, and really was a policy that did not serve the interests of neither the Lebanese nor the Syrians.

The demonstrations in the Lebanese capital continued as reports were coming in of possible Syrian troop movements in parts of Lebanon. Lebanon's defense minister has said to expect significant movements of troops within the next 24 hours. We have heard that in the past. That may or may not be the case. Only seeing troops move eastward towards the Syrian border will actually confirm what's been promised all along.

Now, at the same time as there was a pro-Syrian protest going on, there was also anti-Syrian sentiment being heard on the streets of the Lebanese capital, again, protesters in Martyrs' Square, as it were, which is where former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is buried, protesting Syria's presence, wanting to see a full implementation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1559.

And those supporters of that resolution would have been emboldened to hear President George W. Bush's speech calling for the Syrians to fully implement 1559 as soon as possible, ahead of planned parliamentary elections by mid-May, so that the Lebanese, said President Bush, can hold free and fair elections.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: President Bush saying today the seeds of democracy are sprouting in the Middle East. And he renewed his call on Syria to hightail it out of Lebanon. In a speech in Washington, Mr. Bush expounded on his newfound theme of spreading freedom to combat terrorism.

Dana bash with the story, joining us from the White House -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Miles.

And it is a bit of a shift for the president. Since 9/11, we have heard him talking about fighting the war on terrorism with the military, with intelligence agencies. Today, he said another key weapon is democracy. And his message in a speech earlier today was that he called a critical mass of events is taking place in the Middle East. He said that those are crucial, moves big and small, in an antidote, he said, for radicalism and terrorism in the Mideast.

He said, though, it was a duty of free nations, for the sake of long-term security, to push for even more change in that region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The entire world has an urgent interest in the progress and hope and freedom in the broader Middle East. The advance of hope in the Middle East requires new thinking in the region. By now, it should be clear that authoritarian rule is not the wave of the future. It is the last gasp of a discredited past.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And the president did single out what he considers the biggest impediments to democratic reforms across the Middle East, Syria and Iran. With regards to both countries, he said that they should stop using terror as a tool, even murder as a tool.

But specifically with regard to Syria, the president once again, as Brent Sadler was reporting, said it was critical for that country to pull all of its troops out of Lebanon, at least by that country's scheduled elections in May. And, as he was talking, though, he was trying to prop up the anti-Syrian movement in Lebanon, talking about the fact that the American people are with them.

But those are the pictures that were going on. That is the scene that was happening in -- on the streets of Beirut as Mr. Bush was talking. Those are pro-Syrian demonstrators that were, shall we say, off message as far as the White House is concerned. The president did not mention those at all. Instead, later when asked about it, the president's spokesman simply said that the president believes in free and fair speech no matter what, and that his ultimate goal, no matter what ultimate government of Lebanon is, is to have free and fair elections -- Mile.

O'BRIEN: Dana Bash at the White House, thank you very much -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Fighting the war on terror in Russia.

News media there reporting that the shooting death of a top Chechen rebel leader -- Russian television is showing what it says is the body of Aslan Maskhadov. He reportedly was killed during a special operation in a Chechen village. Maskhadov has long symbolized the fight for Chechen independence and its move to break away from Russia. In 1997, he was elected president of Chechnya, receiving congratulations from then Russian President Boris Yeltsin. In later years, Russia placed a bounty on his head.

O'BRIEN: The federal government reports that more than 40 terror suspects were able to buy firearms in the U.S. last year. The Government Accountability Office says background checks found no reason to stop the sales. Current law does not prohibit a member of a suspected terrorist organization from owning a gun. The GAO urges the Justice Department to make sure counterterrorism officials receive data from gun purchase background checks and it recommends more FBI oversight. Labor unions and safety advocates are fighting Wal-Mart in a move to extend the work day for truckers. Public Citizen and other groups held a news conference today to oppose the amendment to the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Bill. Wal-Mart and other retailers and the snack food industry are lobbying Congress for the change. Critics say letting truckers drive 16 hours instead of 14 would make roadways more dangerous for all drivers.

Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

In the Michael Jackson trial, the brother of Jackson's accuser crumbled under cross-examination today.

CNN's Miguel Marquez heard it all in the courtroom in Santa Maria, California.

Tell us what happened, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I don't know if I would put it as quite a crumbling, but certainly parts of his testimony were questioned fairly heavily by Mr. Jackson's defense under cross- examination.

There was no real big moment where the kid was caught, but I can go through a few things that he testified through to -- to today. We have ended early today, by the way, because of -- the judge has a meeting today.

The kid said that he lied when he was deposed in an earlier hearing in which his family was suing J.C. Penney. He testified today that his parents -- testified then that his parents never fought and that his father never beat him. And the defense attorneys in this current case say that the family and the kids lie when there is a profit motive at stake, when there's something to gain from it.

If there is a gotcha moment today, maybe the biggest one was when the prosecution yesterday had showed a picture of an adult magazine to the boy that was seized at Neverland and the boy said, yes, that's the magazine that Jackson showed to us. Today, Jackson's defense showed the same picture to the boy and he said again, yes, that's the picture he showed to us.

And then Mr. Jackson's attorney, Tom Mesereau, in sort of Perry Mason-like fashion, that that Jackson -- that that magazine was from October or August 2003. That was after the family was at Neverland Ranch. They were no longer at Neverland Ranch in August 2003.

The boy also testified that there was an electronic bell that sounded every time they walked into Jackson's bedroom. He said that electronic bell went off the two times that he said he saw his brother being molested by Jackson. And when asked why Jackson didn't hear it, he said, well, maybe the door might must have been closed and that's why he didn't hear the bell go off. But the lawyers seemed it to score some small points on all of this, breaking down his story to some degree. But he seemed also to be laying a lot of foundation for what comes tomorrow, more cross-examination of this witness -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Miguel Marquez, live from Santa Maria, California, thank you -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Another hospital visit, another operation for former President Clinton. So, how risky is Mr. Clinton's second surgery? We'll talk about it with a doctor from G.W. University Hospital up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Now more on our top story.

Bill Clinton heads back to the O.R. in about 48 hours or so for a procedure to repair what could be described as an uncommon side effect of his heart surgery last year. What's involved in the operation?

Dr. Jannet Lewis is director of noninvasive cardiology at George Washington University Hospital sitting right beside me here in our D.C. bureau.

Good to have you with us.

DR. JANNET LEWIS, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL: Thank you. My pleasure.

O'BRIEN: Decortication.

LEWIS: Decortication.

O'BRIEN: Is the technical term.

LEWIS: Yes.

O'BRIEN: As I gather, it has something to do with scar tissue and fluid buildup as a result of these surgeries. What is the surgery about?

LEWIS: Well, just to back up just a little bit, after bypass surgery, some patients, a minority, get a fluid accumulation within the lung. And that can be persistent and problematic. And, in this case, it has caused some inflammation of the lining, so that has to be basically peeled away.

O'BRIEN: And, as I gather from just hearing other doctors talk today and reading what I've seen on the Web, it's pretty rare for this to occur in the wake of a bypass open surgery.

LEWIS: It probably -- it's not unheard, of course, but it probably occurs in less than 5 percent of patients.

O'BRIEN: And left unchecked, this is a pretty serious thing?

LEWIS: Left unchecked, it frequently goes away on its own. In this case, it did not. And, certainly, he will be a lot more comfortable with his breathing when this is taken care of.

O'BRIEN: And when you say discomfort, and he alluded to it today, give us a sense of what the symptoms are.

LEWIS: Some pain, some shortness of breath just locally, but not the kind of pain one would have from cardiac pain.

O'BRIEN: Right. So it would be something somebody who's been through what Mr. Clinton has been through, he would know the difference, then, between this and the kind of pain that he dealt with before he had the surgery.

LEWIS: Yes, and so would his physicians. And I'm sure they've evaluated that as well.

O'BRIEN: OK. So, and the surgery itself, of course, general anesthesia poses a risk any time one endures that, but otherwise healthy person faced with this presents a pretty good outcome here, right?

LEWIS: A very good outcome. He should be out and about within a few days.

O'BRIEN: All right, now, in the meantime, he's sneaking down to Florida for a golf tournament. Would you advise him as his doctor to do that?

LEWIS: I am going to have to defer to his physicians. But if he's feeling well and if he's not short of breath, this should not pose a problem.

O'BRIEN: And for those out there who have been through there this, and there are a lot of people who have had these bypass surgeries, with great effect, if they have similar kinds of pains, they should definitely be calling their doctor, I assume.

LEWIS: They should definitely call their physician.

Like you said, this is not a common problem to occur, but it's a well-recognized problem and easily taken care of.

O'BRIEN: The other thing to consider here, too, in the wake of open heart surgery, is, you really have to stay on top of your health. And by all accounts, President Clinton has had a history of, you know, favoring the junk food and so forth. It's really important for people after these surgeries to go through a whole change in lifestyle, isn't it?

LEWIS: The lifestyle is entirely different. Your risk factors have to be controlled. The events that led up to this, the high cholesterol, the eating habits, any lack of exercise, all of this has to be reversed to have the best possible outcome.

O'BRIEN: It's funny, because I think a lot of people, we hope for silver-bullet solutions, that have the surgery and we're better. But it really involves something that is more ongoing. As best you can tell, it looks like the president, by all accounts, looks like he's doing well.

LEWIS: It looks like he is following the advice of his physicians to the letter. He looks like he's doing quite well.

O'BRIEN: Finally, how many times have you done this (AUDIO GAP)

PHILLIPS: It really was live. But what happens is, the signal freezes every now and then when we go back and forth from here to Washington.

So, we'll get that fixed. We'll bring Miles back to you, as he was talking to a surgeon about the surgery Bill Clinton will be going under soon, after a golf tournament, actually, that he's playing in with Greg Norman tomorrow to raise money for tsunami victims.

Meanwhile, straight ahead, she's a out of prison and back in the spotlight. Now her every move is captured by the media. Next, our Jeanne Moos on the fascination for some with the domestic diva.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Taking a look at news around the world now, China may authorize military force to prevent Taiwan from formally seceding. The National People's Congress heard that proposal today and a party leader says that force would be a last resort if peaceful unification efforts should fail.

Two women protesting British Prince Charles' visit to New Zealand face charges of disorderly behavior after exposing their breasts as he arrived in Wellington for an official function. A message on one woman's bare front said, "Get your colonial shame off my breasts." Well, a growing movement wants to dump the British monarchy in the former colony.

And here's one way to let off tension in the Mideast. Hundreds of young people held a pillow fight last night in downtown Tel Aviv, yes, a pillow fight. It's part of a new worldwide phenomenon called mobile clubbing.

Well, here's a story that might make you want to take a second look through your coin collection. A rare 1894 dime was auctioned for $1.3 million in Baltimore yesterday. That's the most ever paid for a dime. It was one of the only 24 made that year at the San Francisco Mint. They were intended to be gifts for visiting bankers.

Well, since Martha Stewart was freed from prison four days ago, the media have pretty much followed her every move. It's too much of a good thing, we wonder?

CNN's Jeanne Moos takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just out of jail and already we've seen Martha wash her dishes, feed her horses, walk her dog, toss lemons and savor a home-cooked meal. The press ate up every Martha utterance and reported back to editors.

QUESTION: What did you have for breakfast?

MARTHA STEWART, MARTHA STEWART LIVING OMNIMEDIA: I haven't had breakfast yet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She hasn't had breakfast yet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She hasn't had -- she has not had breakfast yet.

MOOS: Whenever she moved, the press moved, out in front of her bucolic Bedford, New York estate. Even when Martha sent out cocoa to the press, it was captured.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you thank Martha for this for me?

MOOS: Even Martha joked about the coverage.

STEWART: Because it's made the news. Here's my poncho.

MOOS: Crocheted for her by a new friend in prison. She wore it leaving the big house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This was like an Oscar walk.

MOOS: But some curmudgeons in the press were unimpressed.

O'BRIEN: Oh, come on.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Who cares?

HEMMER: We're going to care for a little bit.

CAFFERTY: She's a 63-year-old convicted felon.

MOOS: No one was tougher than Don Imus, touring with his own reporter outside Martha's house.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "IMUS IN THE MORNING")

DON IMUS, HOST: This is sick. You're sick and this is sick. This is just...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not sick.

IMUS: Look it, looking in her window there. This makes me uncomfortable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not looking in her windows.

IMUS: Yes, you were. Later on, you'll be out there going through the garbage trying to find something.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: They half jokingly gave reporter Anne Thompson, a new nickname.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "IMUS IN THE MORNING")

IMUS: You're a peeping Thompson.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: But the press wouldn't be peeping if the audience didn't want us to peep. But not all viewers were happy.

CAFFERTY: Who the hell cares if Martha Stewart can now fit into her skinny jeans?

MOOS: Who cares? Well, CNN's ratings nearly doubled during live, middle of the night coverage of Martha's release. To Martha or not to Martha, that is the question for reporters. This one brought along her dog.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where's Martha?

MOOS: She's probably off trying to engineer more coverage. After all, this heartwarming video was supplied by the company Martha founded.

During our live coverage of her rousing welcome by employees, the shot inexplicably headed for her feet.

O'BRIEN: The photographer there doesn't have a shoe fetish. He's trying to show the point there that she is not wearing the electronic ankle bracelet.

MOOS: Hey, who needs an ankle bracelet when we're televising every move she makes?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you rolling right by?

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, that wraps up this Tuesday edition of LIVE FROM.

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