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U.S. Marine Thwarts Attack at Syria Border; Ethics of Congress Travel; Update After Autopsy on Drowned Georgia Toddlers
Aired April 26, 2005 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Close, but no Zarqawi. We learned today of a very near-miss for U.S. forces, who'd been trying to capture Iraq's most wanted, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, apparent architect of countless insurgent attacks. Sources tell CNN that U.S. troops chased down a vehicle in which Zarqawi had apparently been traveling near Ramadi, back on February 20th. By the time the vehicle was stopped, Zarqawi was gone, but a top aide and a computer, supposedly containing a treasure trove of information, were seized. On the record, the top brass was vague, but optimistic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. RICHARD MYERS, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: I'm going to stick with my earlier comment. We were close, and if you go much further into this, then you get into some of the operational methods, which we can't discuss.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A $25 million bounty is being offer Zarqawi's capture or death.
One of the most dangerous places in Iraq is the western border with Syria. Earlier this month, U.S. Marines there faced a frightening example of Iraqi insurgent's boldness and cunningness.
CNN's senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In war, the outcome often hinges on the actions of a single person, like 21-year-old Lance Corporal Joshua Butler of Altoona, Pennsylvania.
MELISSA BENSON, BUTLER'S MOTHER: This is my son's room. You can tell he's proud to be a Marine.
MCINTYRE: According to his mother, Butler wanted since childhood to be a Marine, like his cousin, uncle and great-grandfather before him.
BENSON: The earliest recollection that I have is him putting on my brother's Marine Corps shirt and hat, and marching up and down the hall, and saying, I'm going to be a Marine some day.
MCINTYRE: He begged his mother to sign his enlistment papers, which she did, only to be shocked when she later saw him at Camp LeJeune.
BENSON: And when he'd come walking across the parking lot with that big gun, I was like, oh, my gosh, that's my baby carrying that gun.
MCINTYRE: It was Butler's big gun that thwarted a bold attack two weeks ago on a remote Marine outpost on the Iraq/Syria border. It began when a suicide bomber tried to ram a truck past the camp's defenses. Firing from his number two guard tower, Corporal Butler forced the truck to veer to the side. The resulting explosion knocked Butler down and filled the air with white smoke.
What came next, Butler told a "Washington Post" reporter, was like something out of a movie.
STEVE FAINARU, WASHINGTON POST REPORTER: You had the smoke that was left over from the first bomb and the debris. And it hadn't yet cleared. And then here came this fire truck, just literally out of the smoke, heading straight toward the base.
MCINTYRE: The Marines had been warned insurgents were planning to use a fire truck as a weapon, but were beginning to think it was a myth.
COL. ROBERT CHASE, U.S. MARINES OP. OFFICER: In that particular case, we had heard fire trucks were in the area and could possibly be used. So when they saw it coming, it was not a surprise to them.
MCINTYRE: As it sped past a mural bidding travelers goodbye from free Iraq, the fire truck may not have been a surprise. But it was terrifying.
FAINARU: One of the Marines said that when he actually saw it coming up the road, it was like the grim reaper himself driving up this road heading for the base. And that his heart basically stopped.
MCINTYRE: Again, it was Butler's quick reaction and heavy machine gun fire that forced the fire truck to explode before it could get past the inner defenses. An inspection of the tangled wreckage revealed the fire truck was packed with propane tanks of explosives, and outfitted with a bulletproof windshield to protect the two suicide attackers inside.
Marine commanders admit it was an audacious plan.
CHASE: I think the idea was that the first two vehicles would attempt to breach, the sheer weight and size and mass of the fire truck would then force its way through whatever breach was caused.
MCINTYRE: The attack had failed. But the battle continued for almost 24 hours. When the dust cleared, the Marines say some 19 insurgents were dead and the Marines had suffered no serious casualties.
Back home in Altoona, a Marine's mother is bursting with pride and worry. BENSON: I go from being so extremely proud that I can't stand it and wanting the whole world to know what he's done, and then go into a complete panic.
MCINTYRE: And as for her son's promised safe return? That chapter of his story will have to wait until October when he's scheduled to come home.
Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Regrettable, yes; wrongdoing, no. That said to be the finding of a U.S. military investigation of left month's attack on a car that was carrying a newly-freed Italian hostage to Baghdad Airport. A senior Pentagon official tells CNN that the troops who opened fire at a military checkpoint, wounding the former hostage and killing an Italian agent, did nothing wrong and face no disciplinary actions. The shooting caused shockwaves in Italy, where the hostage and government -- and government officials, rather, have angrily contradicted the U.S. version of events.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIULIANA SGRENE, EX-HOSTAGE WOUNDED BY G.I (through translator): I didn't trust the investigation, given the past experiences we've had in these kind of investigations. Obviously, if this will be the result coming from the commission, it will be even worse than what I expected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Italians say that the Americans fired without warning and were even told in advance that the car would be coming. Americans say just the opposite. Italy's prime minister isn't commenting, at least not today, insisting that the probe isn't over yet.
Straight ahead, TV star George Lopez going to be indebted to his wife for a long time. Coming up, the amazing gift that she gave him.
Prince harry plagued by a paparazzi. Insiders say they're getting too close for comfort.
Plus, what's the number one story on cnn.com right now? Find out in today's dot-com desk report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the prosecution's case could be in the final days in the Michael Jackson child molestation trial, and it look like Jackson's ex-wife will take the stand.
Let's check in with CNN's Ted Rowlands in Santa Maria, California -- Ted.
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Debbie Rowe, Jackson's ex-wife and mother of two of his three children, is scheduled to take the stand tomorrow for the prosecution. According to multiple sources familiar with the case, she will be the first witness for the prosecution tomorrow. That assumes that the current witness, Hamid Moslehi, who's a videographer, won't spill in to tomorrow. But the bottom line is, Debbie Rowe is coming and is coming soon.
The prosecution expects to finish up its presentation of evidence by Friday, so Debbie Rowe will be one of the final witnesses for the prosecution. She is expected to be one of the only witnesses for the prosecution to actually tie Michael Jackson to the conspiracy theory that he was behind possibly imprisoning the accuser's family and behind the inner workings of the rebuttal to Martin Bashir's documentary. She will testify that Jackson called her himself and brought her into Neverland's fold to produce this documentary as a rebuttal, to make Michael Jackson look good.
She's expected to testify that, in exchange for her participation in this video, she would be given visitation to her two children, which Jackson has custody of. She gave up custody of the two children in an agreement with Jackson, but she is now in a custody battle with Jackson. Until now, we haven't really heard much about Michael Jackson's direct involvement with any conspiracy theory. Debbie Rowe, the prosecution, is hoping, undoubtedly, to clear that up, as they wind up their case.
On the stand right now, a videographer that worked for Jackson, Hamid Moslehi. Earlier this morning, we heard from Cynthia Montgomery, and she was a travel agent that says she booked a one-way ticket for the accuser' s family to Brazil. That helping to bolster the prosecution's theory that this family was being shepherded out of the country to keep them from talking to the press and that it was done so without their participation -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Ted, just talking about ex-wives and talking about Debbie Rowe, I'm just throwing this out there, is it possible that we could even hear at some point from Lisa Marie Presley?
ROWLANDS: Not -- it doesn't appear we're going to hear from Lisa Marie Presley, at least this week. Maybe she could be brought up as a rebuttal witness, depending on what the defense brings into their presentation of evidence. At this point, there's no character witnesses allowed in the presentation of witness.
The defense, if they open that door, Lisa Marie Presley, among others, could be brought on to refuse what the defense projects as Michael Jackson's character. But at this point, Lisa Marie Presley would be before the current accuser came into the fold and therefore, not germane to the prosecution's case. So we don't expect her at this point.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ted Rowlands, from Santa Maria, California. Thank you so much.
Well, the ethics issues dogging House Majority Leader Tom DeLay include accusations of travel paid for by lobbyists. For more on privately-funded travel by Congress, let's turn to former congressman and CNN contributor Bob Barr.
Good to see you.
BOB BARR, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Let's get down to some numbers. "Political Money Line" putting these numbers out, actually, saying that this is from a five-year analysis of 5,410 congressional trips taken since the year 2000. Who pays for travel? Tax exempt and private groups, trade associations and corporations. They lay out the money here. A lot of gray area. What is ethical and what is not?
BARR: Well, there are really two questions, Kyra. One is the most important one that you've asked, and that is, what is ethical? Another question is, what is appropriate? It's certainly appropriate for members of Congress and senators to take trips. The public needs to have their members well-informed. They can't sit in a cocoon in Washington.
But the question is, as you posed, what is ethical? And there's nothing wrong with outside groups that don't have direct lobbying interests in the Congress to publicly fund, that is, full public disclosure, a legitimate, relevant trip for an member of Congress to visit a facility, to visit a particular region. But there are a lot of gray areas, you're absolutely correct about that. And as a former candidate for president said once, the devil is in the details.
PHILLIPS: So, what exactly needs to be tackled? Now that this is all out and there's all these investigations that are taking place, and you have so many members of Congress now looking back at travel expenses and organizations that they went and visited with, where does it go from here with regard to what's going to be scrutinized?
BARR: I think probably this is a very, very good thing. You sort of need this house cleaning every decade or so in the Congress, because clearly, members and the members of the House bureaucracy, as it were, everybody has a tendency to sort of settle down after there's been a big scandal like the checkbook of the House banking scandal a decade ago. They sort of clean things up and then everything settles back down, and then you start to have problems again.
Congress needs to make sure that one, there are enough staff members in the House Ethics Committee to really monitor all of this paperwork that comes into them and identify problems early on, rather than wait until years down the road.
PHILLIPS: Well, let me ask you about that. Let's say, OK, I'm a member of Congress, I get this request. Now, do I have -- tell me the kind paperwork I have to fill out. What do I need to do to check out this group? What do my staffers need to do? And then, how exactly does it work as it goes through the ethics department? What's the -- kind of take me through the process of what we are -- or a congressperson is supposed to do. BARR: Well, of course, the very first question for any member of Congress is, does this trip, does this request, does it make sense? Is it politically appropriate? And many times, these requests come in and you'll say, that's political inappropriate. Even though it might be ethical to do it, we don't want to do that. Of the relatively small number that remain, what the member of Congress really has to do is have a good chief of staff, a person that knows the House rules and is ethical himself or herself. They go through it. They are supposed to check it out, to make sure that it isn't secretly being funded by somebody else -- and this is the problem with Jack Abramoff in that investigation.
Then they have to make sure that the paperwork is done on a timely basis, and that's not easy sometimes to get those records from the outside group. But it's the chief of staff that has to make sure that gets done, the member signs off on it, then they submit it to the committee. And the problem is, a lot of times there just isn't the staff on the Ethics Committee to really monitor that stuff and make sure that there aren't problems there for the member.
PHILLIPS: But there has to be, there has to be more people involved in the ethical process. Hopefully that's what we'll see come through. And I've got to ask you this before we go. As you look back, when you were a congressman, all the trips that you made, are you looking at this and thinking, ooh, I could have been caught up in this?
BARR: Well, of course, one hopes not. And it is sort of comical to see a lot of the members scurrying around and going back and repaying things that they thought had been paid. But I don't think so. We seemed, I think, to have had a pretty good staff that monitored this stuff. But I mean, there are -- no matter how good your staff is, there always are going to be problems from time to time. The question is, were they inadvertent or were they really an effort to cover up? And that's what might get some members in trouble.
PHILLIPS: Well, it will be interesting to see how big this gets. Bob Barr, thank you so much.
BARR: Sure.
PHILLIPS: All right. Aye caramba! It's a Simpsons' celebration. Hi, Sibila.
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kyra. I like your aye caramba! Bart, Lisa, Marge and Homer Simpson were out partying late last night in Hollywood. I'll tell you why. Plus, the stars of a new action thriller triple their fun at a high octane party. I'll have the details when CNN's LIVE FROM continues.
PHILLIPS: And what's wrong with this picture? Raising a racket on the tennis court, when LIVE FROM returns. We'll tell you who won the match.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Proof positive that Buffalo, or bison, if you will, can roam anywhere. Today, about ten of them turned Pykesville, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore, into the wild west. It took police using 13 patrol cars, a helicopter, two hours to herd them onto the tennis court, even longer to load them on to a livestock truck. Still don't really know where they came from or why they ended up there.
But anyway, people are stampeding to our Web site. All the day's news just a click away, of course. Christina Park at the dot-com desk with some of the hottest stories right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINA PARK, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: You can find the most popular stories on cnn.com any time. To get there, just surf on over to our Web site and click on "Most Popular" at the top right-hand side of your page.
One of our most popular stories, the Michael Jackson molestation trial. Just days before the defense is expected to start presenting its case to jurors, one of his lawyers, Brian Oxman, is off the defense team, no reason given. Oxman was caught on tape Monday having an animated discussion with lead attorney Thomas Mesereau, Jr. outside the courthouse.
Another most popular story on cnn.com, a Texas man who got a new liver from a donor who responded to ads he put on billboards, has died, eight months after a transplant. It's not clear why 32-year-old Todd Krampitz died. He made his appeal last year, sparking controversy over advertising for organ transplants.
And finally, girls as young as 9 years old using steroids to get toned. Experts say an alarming number of girls are using dangerous body-building steroids to get that lean, sculpted look of models and movie stars. Researchers say youngsters usually get illegal steroids on the black market from sources like friends, the local gym, even over the Internet.
Those are just some of the hottest stories making waves on cnn.com right now. Reporting for the dotcom desk, I'm Christina Park.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Pointing fingers at the paparazzi, palace aides say tabloid photographers put Prince Harry in danger when they chased his car in Botswana recently. The prince was on safari. Newspapers deny any dangerous driving. You'll recall Harry's mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a high-speed crash while her car was trying to outrun the paparazzi.
He calls himself Ice Cube, but he's hot in a new action flick. Meanwhile, two other celebrities are sidelined from the action for medical transplants. CNN's entertainment correspondent Sibila Vargas join us, coming up soon, from Los Angeles, but first I want to take you to Warren County, Georgia, where we are hearing more about those toddlers that drowned. Is this the coroner? Paul Lowe, the coroner, telling us right now about the investigation.
PAUL LOWE, WARREN COUNTY, GA, CORONER: ...we'll be looking at some other avenues, but right now, there's still no evidence of foul play, and we are going to turn our investigation back over to the GBI. They'll be concluding, maybe later this afternoon -- but right now, there's no evidence of foul play and the cause of death is drowning of the toddlers in Warrenton (ph). Thank you.
QUESTION: Is the manner of death accidental, then, or have you ruled on that?
LOWE: We have not ruled on the manner. We're still waiting to put some things together with GBI. Right now, we're going to hold out on that.
QUESTION: Do you know how long they were dead?
LOWE: I'm going to turn it back over to the GBI and they'll discuss that later.
QUESTION: What's the next thing for your office?
LOWE: Just, we're going to wait on the GBI and see what they've come back with.
QUESTION: Were there any other sign of trauma?
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) ...speak with the family?
LOWE: That was -- that's my reason for being here, I just spoke with the family. The family is drawing some comfort from the fact that -- knowing what actually happened, and seem to be doing well that the point.
QUESTION: Compared to other investigations that you've conducted, was this consistent with what you've seen in similar cases?
LOWE: Well, we're a small community and, fortunately, we don't have to deal with this very much. But it is pretty much consistent.
QUESTION: Do you have a (ph) time of death?
LOWE: We're still working on that.
QUESTION: Sir, was there any other signs of trauma? I mean, it appears to be accidental drowning?
LOWE: No signs of trauma. OK, thank you very much.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) ...for those of us who may not know.
LOWE: Sir?
QUESTION: Say your name, please.
LOWE: My name is Paul Lowe, L-o-w-e. PHILLIPS: Paul Lowe, the coroner there in the small town of Warrenton, Georgia. It's a story we've been covering, the deaths of a little boy and his sister, found in a pond. Right now, the coroner telling us, no evidence of foul play, cause of death, drowning. But they've not ruled out if it was accidentally or not. No signs of trauma. We'll continue to follow the story and keep you updated.
Moving on, Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, is not known for being particularly cool, but a new friendship could change all that. Susan Lisovicz has the story from the New York Stock Exchange now.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is a great story, Kyra.
Bill Gates says he was already acquainted with U2's lead singer Bono through his philanthropic work, but it was music that brought them together over the weekend. The Microsoft co-founder says he was one of 20,000 screaming fans at the U2 concert in Seattle over the weekend. But, Gates was the only one to have Bono as his overnight house guest.
Both Gates and Bono are big advocates of third world development and relief effort. However, when asked if their friendship would prompt him to buy a limited edition U2 iPod from Microsoft's arch- rival Apple, Gates reportedly said, absolutely not. One reason, Kyra, could be because Microsoft has its own portable music player, not quite as well known.
PHILLIPS: Well, IBM's being a little generous today. What is it doing?
LISOVICZ: Well, the stock is going up because IBM gave its shareholders an treat at its annual meeting. The company says it is hiking its dividend by 11 percent to 20 cents a share. IBM has raised its dividend for 10 years in a row, and investors like dividends, especially in years like this where all three major averages are down, year-to-date. Big Blue, one of the few Dow components in the plus column today: shares are up one-and-a-half percent. It's the best performing Dow stock, but stocks are mostly lower on a drop of consumer confidence. There you see, blue chips down, 66 points, the NASDAQ, meanwhile, down nearly one full percent. That's the latest from Wall Street. Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right, Susan, thank you so much.
Well, there are new pictures today of the woman who says she found a finger her chili at Wendy's. Find out what she told the judge.
Also ahead in our next hour, the glue holding the U.S./Saudi relationship together. Is it only about oil? We're going to talk about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: "Now in the News," after 29 years of occupation, Syria withdrew the last of its troops from Lebanon today. International pressure had been steadily mounting on Syria since the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February. U.N. Secretary Kofi -- or, general -- Kofi Annan says that a U.S. team has been sent to verify that pullout.
Close encounter with the most wanted terrorist in Iraq: U.S. officials tell CNN they almost captured Abu Mussad al-Zarqawi near the city of Ramadi. It happened in February after U.S. forces received a tip he that might be in the area. They missed him, but sources tell CNN one of Osama bin Laden's lieutenants was seized, along with a computer, providing more evidence of ties between al-Zarqawi and bin Laden.
The skyscraper planned for the World Trade Center site is undergoing changes even before it's built. New York City officials say the design for the Freedom Tower is being modified to improve safety after security experts raised concerns. The changes are expected to delay the planned 2009 opening by several months.
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Aired April 26, 2005 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Close, but no Zarqawi. We learned today of a very near-miss for U.S. forces, who'd been trying to capture Iraq's most wanted, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, apparent architect of countless insurgent attacks. Sources tell CNN that U.S. troops chased down a vehicle in which Zarqawi had apparently been traveling near Ramadi, back on February 20th. By the time the vehicle was stopped, Zarqawi was gone, but a top aide and a computer, supposedly containing a treasure trove of information, were seized. On the record, the top brass was vague, but optimistic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. RICHARD MYERS, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: I'm going to stick with my earlier comment. We were close, and if you go much further into this, then you get into some of the operational methods, which we can't discuss.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A $25 million bounty is being offer Zarqawi's capture or death.
One of the most dangerous places in Iraq is the western border with Syria. Earlier this month, U.S. Marines there faced a frightening example of Iraqi insurgent's boldness and cunningness.
CNN's senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In war, the outcome often hinges on the actions of a single person, like 21-year-old Lance Corporal Joshua Butler of Altoona, Pennsylvania.
MELISSA BENSON, BUTLER'S MOTHER: This is my son's room. You can tell he's proud to be a Marine.
MCINTYRE: According to his mother, Butler wanted since childhood to be a Marine, like his cousin, uncle and great-grandfather before him.
BENSON: The earliest recollection that I have is him putting on my brother's Marine Corps shirt and hat, and marching up and down the hall, and saying, I'm going to be a Marine some day.
MCINTYRE: He begged his mother to sign his enlistment papers, which she did, only to be shocked when she later saw him at Camp LeJeune.
BENSON: And when he'd come walking across the parking lot with that big gun, I was like, oh, my gosh, that's my baby carrying that gun.
MCINTYRE: It was Butler's big gun that thwarted a bold attack two weeks ago on a remote Marine outpost on the Iraq/Syria border. It began when a suicide bomber tried to ram a truck past the camp's defenses. Firing from his number two guard tower, Corporal Butler forced the truck to veer to the side. The resulting explosion knocked Butler down and filled the air with white smoke.
What came next, Butler told a "Washington Post" reporter, was like something out of a movie.
STEVE FAINARU, WASHINGTON POST REPORTER: You had the smoke that was left over from the first bomb and the debris. And it hadn't yet cleared. And then here came this fire truck, just literally out of the smoke, heading straight toward the base.
MCINTYRE: The Marines had been warned insurgents were planning to use a fire truck as a weapon, but were beginning to think it was a myth.
COL. ROBERT CHASE, U.S. MARINES OP. OFFICER: In that particular case, we had heard fire trucks were in the area and could possibly be used. So when they saw it coming, it was not a surprise to them.
MCINTYRE: As it sped past a mural bidding travelers goodbye from free Iraq, the fire truck may not have been a surprise. But it was terrifying.
FAINARU: One of the Marines said that when he actually saw it coming up the road, it was like the grim reaper himself driving up this road heading for the base. And that his heart basically stopped.
MCINTYRE: Again, it was Butler's quick reaction and heavy machine gun fire that forced the fire truck to explode before it could get past the inner defenses. An inspection of the tangled wreckage revealed the fire truck was packed with propane tanks of explosives, and outfitted with a bulletproof windshield to protect the two suicide attackers inside.
Marine commanders admit it was an audacious plan.
CHASE: I think the idea was that the first two vehicles would attempt to breach, the sheer weight and size and mass of the fire truck would then force its way through whatever breach was caused.
MCINTYRE: The attack had failed. But the battle continued for almost 24 hours. When the dust cleared, the Marines say some 19 insurgents were dead and the Marines had suffered no serious casualties.
Back home in Altoona, a Marine's mother is bursting with pride and worry. BENSON: I go from being so extremely proud that I can't stand it and wanting the whole world to know what he's done, and then go into a complete panic.
MCINTYRE: And as for her son's promised safe return? That chapter of his story will have to wait until October when he's scheduled to come home.
Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Regrettable, yes; wrongdoing, no. That said to be the finding of a U.S. military investigation of left month's attack on a car that was carrying a newly-freed Italian hostage to Baghdad Airport. A senior Pentagon official tells CNN that the troops who opened fire at a military checkpoint, wounding the former hostage and killing an Italian agent, did nothing wrong and face no disciplinary actions. The shooting caused shockwaves in Italy, where the hostage and government -- and government officials, rather, have angrily contradicted the U.S. version of events.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GIULIANA SGRENE, EX-HOSTAGE WOUNDED BY G.I (through translator): I didn't trust the investigation, given the past experiences we've had in these kind of investigations. Obviously, if this will be the result coming from the commission, it will be even worse than what I expected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Italians say that the Americans fired without warning and were even told in advance that the car would be coming. Americans say just the opposite. Italy's prime minister isn't commenting, at least not today, insisting that the probe isn't over yet.
Straight ahead, TV star George Lopez going to be indebted to his wife for a long time. Coming up, the amazing gift that she gave him.
Prince harry plagued by a paparazzi. Insiders say they're getting too close for comfort.
Plus, what's the number one story on cnn.com right now? Find out in today's dot-com desk report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the prosecution's case could be in the final days in the Michael Jackson child molestation trial, and it look like Jackson's ex-wife will take the stand.
Let's check in with CNN's Ted Rowlands in Santa Maria, California -- Ted.
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Debbie Rowe, Jackson's ex-wife and mother of two of his three children, is scheduled to take the stand tomorrow for the prosecution. According to multiple sources familiar with the case, she will be the first witness for the prosecution tomorrow. That assumes that the current witness, Hamid Moslehi, who's a videographer, won't spill in to tomorrow. But the bottom line is, Debbie Rowe is coming and is coming soon.
The prosecution expects to finish up its presentation of evidence by Friday, so Debbie Rowe will be one of the final witnesses for the prosecution. She is expected to be one of the only witnesses for the prosecution to actually tie Michael Jackson to the conspiracy theory that he was behind possibly imprisoning the accuser's family and behind the inner workings of the rebuttal to Martin Bashir's documentary. She will testify that Jackson called her himself and brought her into Neverland's fold to produce this documentary as a rebuttal, to make Michael Jackson look good.
She's expected to testify that, in exchange for her participation in this video, she would be given visitation to her two children, which Jackson has custody of. She gave up custody of the two children in an agreement with Jackson, but she is now in a custody battle with Jackson. Until now, we haven't really heard much about Michael Jackson's direct involvement with any conspiracy theory. Debbie Rowe, the prosecution, is hoping, undoubtedly, to clear that up, as they wind up their case.
On the stand right now, a videographer that worked for Jackson, Hamid Moslehi. Earlier this morning, we heard from Cynthia Montgomery, and she was a travel agent that says she booked a one-way ticket for the accuser' s family to Brazil. That helping to bolster the prosecution's theory that this family was being shepherded out of the country to keep them from talking to the press and that it was done so without their participation -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Ted, just talking about ex-wives and talking about Debbie Rowe, I'm just throwing this out there, is it possible that we could even hear at some point from Lisa Marie Presley?
ROWLANDS: Not -- it doesn't appear we're going to hear from Lisa Marie Presley, at least this week. Maybe she could be brought up as a rebuttal witness, depending on what the defense brings into their presentation of evidence. At this point, there's no character witnesses allowed in the presentation of witness.
The defense, if they open that door, Lisa Marie Presley, among others, could be brought on to refuse what the defense projects as Michael Jackson's character. But at this point, Lisa Marie Presley would be before the current accuser came into the fold and therefore, not germane to the prosecution's case. So we don't expect her at this point.
PHILLIPS: All right, Ted Rowlands, from Santa Maria, California. Thank you so much.
Well, the ethics issues dogging House Majority Leader Tom DeLay include accusations of travel paid for by lobbyists. For more on privately-funded travel by Congress, let's turn to former congressman and CNN contributor Bob Barr.
Good to see you.
BOB BARR, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Let's get down to some numbers. "Political Money Line" putting these numbers out, actually, saying that this is from a five-year analysis of 5,410 congressional trips taken since the year 2000. Who pays for travel? Tax exempt and private groups, trade associations and corporations. They lay out the money here. A lot of gray area. What is ethical and what is not?
BARR: Well, there are really two questions, Kyra. One is the most important one that you've asked, and that is, what is ethical? Another question is, what is appropriate? It's certainly appropriate for members of Congress and senators to take trips. The public needs to have their members well-informed. They can't sit in a cocoon in Washington.
But the question is, as you posed, what is ethical? And there's nothing wrong with outside groups that don't have direct lobbying interests in the Congress to publicly fund, that is, full public disclosure, a legitimate, relevant trip for an member of Congress to visit a facility, to visit a particular region. But there are a lot of gray areas, you're absolutely correct about that. And as a former candidate for president said once, the devil is in the details.
PHILLIPS: So, what exactly needs to be tackled? Now that this is all out and there's all these investigations that are taking place, and you have so many members of Congress now looking back at travel expenses and organizations that they went and visited with, where does it go from here with regard to what's going to be scrutinized?
BARR: I think probably this is a very, very good thing. You sort of need this house cleaning every decade or so in the Congress, because clearly, members and the members of the House bureaucracy, as it were, everybody has a tendency to sort of settle down after there's been a big scandal like the checkbook of the House banking scandal a decade ago. They sort of clean things up and then everything settles back down, and then you start to have problems again.
Congress needs to make sure that one, there are enough staff members in the House Ethics Committee to really monitor all of this paperwork that comes into them and identify problems early on, rather than wait until years down the road.
PHILLIPS: Well, let me ask you about that. Let's say, OK, I'm a member of Congress, I get this request. Now, do I have -- tell me the kind paperwork I have to fill out. What do I need to do to check out this group? What do my staffers need to do? And then, how exactly does it work as it goes through the ethics department? What's the -- kind of take me through the process of what we are -- or a congressperson is supposed to do. BARR: Well, of course, the very first question for any member of Congress is, does this trip, does this request, does it make sense? Is it politically appropriate? And many times, these requests come in and you'll say, that's political inappropriate. Even though it might be ethical to do it, we don't want to do that. Of the relatively small number that remain, what the member of Congress really has to do is have a good chief of staff, a person that knows the House rules and is ethical himself or herself. They go through it. They are supposed to check it out, to make sure that it isn't secretly being funded by somebody else -- and this is the problem with Jack Abramoff in that investigation.
Then they have to make sure that the paperwork is done on a timely basis, and that's not easy sometimes to get those records from the outside group. But it's the chief of staff that has to make sure that gets done, the member signs off on it, then they submit it to the committee. And the problem is, a lot of times there just isn't the staff on the Ethics Committee to really monitor that stuff and make sure that there aren't problems there for the member.
PHILLIPS: But there has to be, there has to be more people involved in the ethical process. Hopefully that's what we'll see come through. And I've got to ask you this before we go. As you look back, when you were a congressman, all the trips that you made, are you looking at this and thinking, ooh, I could have been caught up in this?
BARR: Well, of course, one hopes not. And it is sort of comical to see a lot of the members scurrying around and going back and repaying things that they thought had been paid. But I don't think so. We seemed, I think, to have had a pretty good staff that monitored this stuff. But I mean, there are -- no matter how good your staff is, there always are going to be problems from time to time. The question is, were they inadvertent or were they really an effort to cover up? And that's what might get some members in trouble.
PHILLIPS: Well, it will be interesting to see how big this gets. Bob Barr, thank you so much.
BARR: Sure.
PHILLIPS: All right. Aye caramba! It's a Simpsons' celebration. Hi, Sibila.
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kyra. I like your aye caramba! Bart, Lisa, Marge and Homer Simpson were out partying late last night in Hollywood. I'll tell you why. Plus, the stars of a new action thriller triple their fun at a high octane party. I'll have the details when CNN's LIVE FROM continues.
PHILLIPS: And what's wrong with this picture? Raising a racket on the tennis court, when LIVE FROM returns. We'll tell you who won the match.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Proof positive that Buffalo, or bison, if you will, can roam anywhere. Today, about ten of them turned Pykesville, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore, into the wild west. It took police using 13 patrol cars, a helicopter, two hours to herd them onto the tennis court, even longer to load them on to a livestock truck. Still don't really know where they came from or why they ended up there.
But anyway, people are stampeding to our Web site. All the day's news just a click away, of course. Christina Park at the dot-com desk with some of the hottest stories right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINA PARK, CNN.COM CORRESPONDENT: You can find the most popular stories on cnn.com any time. To get there, just surf on over to our Web site and click on "Most Popular" at the top right-hand side of your page.
One of our most popular stories, the Michael Jackson molestation trial. Just days before the defense is expected to start presenting its case to jurors, one of his lawyers, Brian Oxman, is off the defense team, no reason given. Oxman was caught on tape Monday having an animated discussion with lead attorney Thomas Mesereau, Jr. outside the courthouse.
Another most popular story on cnn.com, a Texas man who got a new liver from a donor who responded to ads he put on billboards, has died, eight months after a transplant. It's not clear why 32-year-old Todd Krampitz died. He made his appeal last year, sparking controversy over advertising for organ transplants.
And finally, girls as young as 9 years old using steroids to get toned. Experts say an alarming number of girls are using dangerous body-building steroids to get that lean, sculpted look of models and movie stars. Researchers say youngsters usually get illegal steroids on the black market from sources like friends, the local gym, even over the Internet.
Those are just some of the hottest stories making waves on cnn.com right now. Reporting for the dotcom desk, I'm Christina Park.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Pointing fingers at the paparazzi, palace aides say tabloid photographers put Prince Harry in danger when they chased his car in Botswana recently. The prince was on safari. Newspapers deny any dangerous driving. You'll recall Harry's mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a high-speed crash while her car was trying to outrun the paparazzi.
He calls himself Ice Cube, but he's hot in a new action flick. Meanwhile, two other celebrities are sidelined from the action for medical transplants. CNN's entertainment correspondent Sibila Vargas join us, coming up soon, from Los Angeles, but first I want to take you to Warren County, Georgia, where we are hearing more about those toddlers that drowned. Is this the coroner? Paul Lowe, the coroner, telling us right now about the investigation.
PAUL LOWE, WARREN COUNTY, GA, CORONER: ...we'll be looking at some other avenues, but right now, there's still no evidence of foul play, and we are going to turn our investigation back over to the GBI. They'll be concluding, maybe later this afternoon -- but right now, there's no evidence of foul play and the cause of death is drowning of the toddlers in Warrenton (ph). Thank you.
QUESTION: Is the manner of death accidental, then, or have you ruled on that?
LOWE: We have not ruled on the manner. We're still waiting to put some things together with GBI. Right now, we're going to hold out on that.
QUESTION: Do you know how long they were dead?
LOWE: I'm going to turn it back over to the GBI and they'll discuss that later.
QUESTION: What's the next thing for your office?
LOWE: Just, we're going to wait on the GBI and see what they've come back with.
QUESTION: Were there any other sign of trauma?
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) ...speak with the family?
LOWE: That was -- that's my reason for being here, I just spoke with the family. The family is drawing some comfort from the fact that -- knowing what actually happened, and seem to be doing well that the point.
QUESTION: Compared to other investigations that you've conducted, was this consistent with what you've seen in similar cases?
LOWE: Well, we're a small community and, fortunately, we don't have to deal with this very much. But it is pretty much consistent.
QUESTION: Do you have a (ph) time of death?
LOWE: We're still working on that.
QUESTION: Sir, was there any other signs of trauma? I mean, it appears to be accidental drowning?
LOWE: No signs of trauma. OK, thank you very much.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) ...for those of us who may not know.
LOWE: Sir?
QUESTION: Say your name, please.
LOWE: My name is Paul Lowe, L-o-w-e. PHILLIPS: Paul Lowe, the coroner there in the small town of Warrenton, Georgia. It's a story we've been covering, the deaths of a little boy and his sister, found in a pond. Right now, the coroner telling us, no evidence of foul play, cause of death, drowning. But they've not ruled out if it was accidentally or not. No signs of trauma. We'll continue to follow the story and keep you updated.
Moving on, Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, is not known for being particularly cool, but a new friendship could change all that. Susan Lisovicz has the story from the New York Stock Exchange now.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is a great story, Kyra.
Bill Gates says he was already acquainted with U2's lead singer Bono through his philanthropic work, but it was music that brought them together over the weekend. The Microsoft co-founder says he was one of 20,000 screaming fans at the U2 concert in Seattle over the weekend. But, Gates was the only one to have Bono as his overnight house guest.
Both Gates and Bono are big advocates of third world development and relief effort. However, when asked if their friendship would prompt him to buy a limited edition U2 iPod from Microsoft's arch- rival Apple, Gates reportedly said, absolutely not. One reason, Kyra, could be because Microsoft has its own portable music player, not quite as well known.
PHILLIPS: Well, IBM's being a little generous today. What is it doing?
LISOVICZ: Well, the stock is going up because IBM gave its shareholders an treat at its annual meeting. The company says it is hiking its dividend by 11 percent to 20 cents a share. IBM has raised its dividend for 10 years in a row, and investors like dividends, especially in years like this where all three major averages are down, year-to-date. Big Blue, one of the few Dow components in the plus column today: shares are up one-and-a-half percent. It's the best performing Dow stock, but stocks are mostly lower on a drop of consumer confidence. There you see, blue chips down, 66 points, the NASDAQ, meanwhile, down nearly one full percent. That's the latest from Wall Street. Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right, Susan, thank you so much.
Well, there are new pictures today of the woman who says she found a finger her chili at Wendy's. Find out what she told the judge.
Also ahead in our next hour, the glue holding the U.S./Saudi relationship together. Is it only about oil? We're going to talk about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: "Now in the News," after 29 years of occupation, Syria withdrew the last of its troops from Lebanon today. International pressure had been steadily mounting on Syria since the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February. U.N. Secretary Kofi -- or, general -- Kofi Annan says that a U.S. team has been sent to verify that pullout.
Close encounter with the most wanted terrorist in Iraq: U.S. officials tell CNN they almost captured Abu Mussad al-Zarqawi near the city of Ramadi. It happened in February after U.S. forces received a tip he that might be in the area. They missed him, but sources tell CNN one of Osama bin Laden's lieutenants was seized, along with a computer, providing more evidence of ties between al-Zarqawi and bin Laden.
The skyscraper planned for the World Trade Center site is undergoing changes even before it's built. New York City officials say the design for the Freedom Tower is being modified to improve safety after security experts raised concerns. The changes are expected to delay the planned 2009 opening by several months.
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