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Live From...
Some Still Refuse to Leave New Orleans. President at Odds with Louisiana Governor. National Guard Member Shares View of Rescue Operations. Survivors Search for Family Members. Former New Orleans SWAT Member Makes Way Back to City.
Aired September 05, 2005 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, HOST: Sandbag by sandbag it's slow progress fixing the broken levees of New Orleans. We're live on the repair and rescue efforts.
And heading home. People in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, get a few moments to gather what's left after the storm.
From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.
Right now live pictures in of the president of the United States. You heard him just moments ago. Actually, this is tape turnaround that we just got. You heard him moments ago with Bishop T.D. Jakes inside one of those shelters inside Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Now, the president touring through these shelters. He was just speaking with a pregnant woman over there in the corner that was resting, and she was telling him her story of what she's been through. And now this center of the shelter obviously where all the kids and the babies and the infants are staying in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The president touring through, signing autographs, shaking hands, and meeting with those affected by the storm.
Now, week two after the flood, seven days and several hours after New Orleans drowned in the waters of Lake Pontchartrain, it's still mission critical on many fronts. Three search and recovery teams are on mortuary detail this hour picking up bodies wherever they lie and taking them north to be recorded and, if possible, even identified.
Fifty-nine had been brought out at last report, including 10 from the Superdome, and experts warn as the water drops, searching won't be an issue.
Rescues are still job one. Homeland security in Washington estimates 17,000 lives saved in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama since Katrina with more than twice that many evacuated without need of rescue.
But even that number pales when compared to the known displaced population: 135,000 people now in Red Cross shelters in the dozen states, a quarter million sheltered in various sites around Texas alone.
The general in charge of the military effort guesstimates fewer than 10,000 remain in New Orleans, out of a pre-storm population of 460,000. CNN's Nic Robertson is one of them -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, we just had an update on what's going on in the rescue and recovery operation from Deputy Police Chief Warren Riley.
What he told us was that they are continuing with the rescue effort. They are still finding people in their homes who want to be rescued. But one thing he did say that is surprising them, they are being surprised that they're finding a lot of people who want to stay in their homes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEPUTY POLICE CHIEF WARREN RILEY, NEW ORLEANS POLICE: There are, to our surprise, still thousands of people, thousands of people that are in this city that we are trying to identify and locate, unfortunately there are some people who at this point do not want to leave the city.
We are working with them and talking to them and trying to convince them that there is absolutely nothing here for them to stay: no jobs, no food or any reason for them to stay. So we're working with those people, as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Now, Riley also said that the police are empowered, if they so choose, to tell these people, to force them to leave. He said they haven't made that decision at the moment to force them, compel them to leave, but it is something, an option that they have open to them.
The teams of morticians that we are understand that are going through, beginning their job of going through the houses today to try and find and locate the bodies that are believed to be out on the streets and in some of those houses, that work is beginning.
Three different teams, 31 on each team, medical examiners, morticians on those teams, they will locate the bodies. They will retrieve the bodies, bring them to dry land, put them in refrigerated trucks, we're told, and then move those trucks to a central temporary mortuary, where DNA analysis, dental record analysis, fingerprinting will be done to determine the identity of those people who have been recovered, of the bodies who have been recovered.
The other important work that's going on at this time will likely speed the recovery of bodies, and that is the beginning of the receding, if you will, of the floodwaters here.
Two levees in the city are still being repaired by the Army Corps of Engineers. A spokesman for them said that they can see that the water is receding. A water and sewage board official said today -- say that they hope to today, at least hope to, get on line two of their big pumps.
They say they will have to check the operation of those pumps before they can put them online, properly check that they are ready, ready to begin pumping. But they hope to have those two very big pumps running today, beginning to pump water out of the city, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Nic Robertson there in downtown New Orleans. Thank you so much.
And for the second time in three days President Bush is getting his sit rep up close and first hand. He flew into Baton Rouge this morning. You saw the pictures just a little while ago, with a visit planned to the southern Mississippi town of Poplarville later this hour.
CNN's Deborah Feyerick joins me now with more on that -- Deb.
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, we can tell you that the president is now here at the command center. This is where FEMA is coordinating all operations. Members of every different government agency here on site, not only just the federal government but state and local, as well.
He arrived here probably about 12:30. That would be Eastern Time, about a half an hour ago. Went into the command center briefly. We saw a lot of people snapping photographs. But from where we were standing, we couldn't get a clear vision of him.
And then he is now inside meeting with different people. We are told that he is with the governor. There was a little bit of tension and controversy this morning, because the governor was not notified that he was going to be arriving here in Louisiana.
As a matter of fact, she had her office call the White House chief of staff and was only then told at about 6 this morning that, indeed, yes, he was going to be on his way here and he was going to be heading possibly to the command center. And even FEMA, the folks on the ground here, knew that the president would be arriving, but the governor did not know.
There's been some tension. The president wanted to federalize the National Guard so that he could organize law enforcement efforts. But the governor said that it was really important for her to be the one to remain in control so that those troops could, in fact, really patrol the streets and try to bring order to places that have been in complete and total chaos.
She was at the airport waiting to greet him. We are told that they did travel together, and so whether they're hammering out their differences, well, hopefully that's something we'll know later. But right now the president inside and it does appear that he may even be making a couple of statements there.
He spoke earlier at the shelter just to boost morale and reinforce the recovery efforts are strong and well under way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The first mission, of course, is to save lives, and so long as any life is in danger, we got work to do. And they'll continue to save lives, whether it be in New Orleans or the surrounding parishes or up and down the coast of Mississippi.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Now, the governor's office had accused the White House of strong-arming the governor and giving her an ultimatum to try to sign over command of the National Guard.
The White House says it was nothing to do with strong-arming. It was really about consolidating and coordinating the command of security.
Both the president and the governor very focused on getting this state and the others around it up and running and, of course, focused on getting those people out who are still alive and making sure that those who are not alive get the proper kind of burial and identification -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Not an easy task. Deborah Feyerick there in Baton Rouge, thank you very much.
And a pair of former presidents unveiled the Bush/Clinton Katrina Fund in Houston today. CNN's Keith Oppenheim is there with more -- Keith.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.
And the former presidents described what they called the Bush/Clinton Katrina Fund as a way to fill in the gaps, to raise money and then to divert it to the three main states that need it: Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
This is a major fund-raising effort. Wal-mart Corporation, along with the Walton Family Foundation, is giving $20 million. Other major corporate contributors include Nike and Microsoft. Some presidential libraries are also kicking in some dollars.
We're going to hear now from former President Bush, who described the mechanics of how the money is going to be distributed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The job is too big and it's too overwhelming for any one group, and so we conferred with the three governors of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama and decided to establish the Bush/Clinton Katrina Fund. We will turn this money over to the governors, who will then decide how best to use it. We felt strongly that the governors needed to -- needed funds at their disposal, since they're the ones who will be most responsible for rebuilding their states.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPENHEIM: Former President Bill Clinton really emphasized the importance of corporate job responsibility, in other words, that any companies that have had employees who were evacuated from the devastated areas should look into rehiring those employees in other areas, and specifically he talked about how Wal-Mart is doing just that. Let's hear from him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They still have over 20 stores that are closed, and so when the employees of those stores are relocated to other communities, even in other states, they're given a job at the nearest Wal-Mart store wherever they go, wherever they locate anywhere in America.
Now most companies don't have that many outlets. So I think one of the things we ought to ask ourselves is what could we do to give incentives for people to get jobs where they have to relocate? A lot of these people will be out of their homes for a year or more.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OPPENHEIM: The former presidents are, of course, a powerful bipartisan team, and their together for the tsunami and in Asia and now for the hurricane relief fund here in the United States can be very effective. I think they know that. So they really are using their symbolism together to raise money to then divert it to these other state-run funds.
After the news conference that took place here at the Reliant Center just next to the Astrodome, it was former President George Bush, along with Senator Hillary Clinton who was with her husband, who went to meet with the evacuees. We understand, also, that former President Bush prayed with some evacuees, as well. Their presence here, obviously, has had quite an impact on the whole community here, knowing that two former presidents showed up.
Back to you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Keith Oppenheim, thank you so much.
Well, straight ahead, imagine being evacuated from home and not knowing what, if anything, survived that hurricane. Well, today some people got their first look at what's left. That's just ahead.
Also, coming up, from the heavy human toll to the animals left behind, the founder of PetFinder.com joins me with information on what's being done to help those stranded pets.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, a week after Katrina slammed ashore search and rescue teams are looking for some of the most vulnerable victims: animals left to fend for themselves when their owners were forced to evacuate without them.
Dozens of cats and dogs, even snakes and exotic birds have been plucked to safety and taken to temporary shelters. Just minutes from now, more on how evacuate ways may be able to track down their pets.
Hundreds of people who live in Jefferson Parish are heading back home now to search for their pets and inspect their property and grab what personal items they can before officials make them leave again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hopefully everything is going to be fine, but I'm skeptical. I don't know. You know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think it was a good idea to let Jefferson Parish residents come in for a day?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, I mean people, they're worried about their stuff. They don't know what is happening. At least to get in and get an idea of what's going on. They really need that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've been mobilizing. There's three of us that traveled in together, and we're definitely going to try to take out as much as we can and paperwork and needy stuff and then go on. And I don't know what we're going to do. I'm a business owner here, so it's up in the air right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, the airport in nearby Kenner is where some of the planes loaded with relief supplies are landing right now. It's also serving as an emergency medical facility for evacuees.
CNN's Rick Sanchez is on the scene there -- Rick.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, things are buzzing once again here, Kyra. We've been seeing a lull from time to time, but now what you see behind me for the most part are contingencies with the Nevada Air National Guard -- Army Air National Guard, I should add.
And we're joined right now by one of their specialists from the Nevada Air National Guard. This is Naomi Raap.
You've been here since Wednesday. Tell us how difficult this process has been for you and in terms of just getting the job done.
SPEC. NAOMI RAAP, NATIONAL GUARD: It's been really hard emotionally trying to take care of these families who have nothing. They've been lost in the water for many days without food or water. They can't find their family members. They can't find their pets. We're just trying to keep them together and keep their spirits up and make sure that they're healthy.
SANCHEZ: That has got to be one of the most difficult tasks for you, is seeing kids separated from their parents. What's that been like, and how do you cope with it?
RAAP: I turn around and cry sometimes when nobody is watching. I give them a hug to let them know that I feel their pain, that I'm going to fight with them and that I'm just grateful that I have a family at home still and I know that they're safe.
SANCHEZ: Are you able to put some of these families back together again here, because I know that sometimes they end up here but one may be at the front of the line and one may be at the back of the line. How do you make sure that happens?
RAAP: Well, sometimes I get their names and I get descriptions of what they look like and then sometimes I've been able to find their family members, because it's a simple as they get off on different sides of the chopper when they come here. And because somebody is more sick than the other person they'll just never see them again. They'll get evacuated to different cities.
But I was able to reunite a mother with her son who was autistic.
SANCHEZ: Well, what if they go to a different city? We ran into a child yesterday who was still here, but his parents were apparently in Houston. Is there any kind of database, or is there any way of being able to put that child back together with his family? Is there a roster written somewhere?
RAAP: I believe the Red Cross is responsible for that, and we keep a manifest of all the passengers that leave here, their flight number, and they're Social Security number and where they're going.
SANCHEZ: Is this tough for you?
RAAP: It's one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life.
SANCHEZ: Specialist Naomi Raap, thanks so much for talking to us.
RAAP: Thank you.
SANCHEZ: There you have it. She's been here since Wednesday, Kyra. She's been dealing with the families and the sick. And she says the process, in and of itself, is arduous because of all the work involved. You have to go a long way to get from inside the building back out to the tarmac.
But the most difficult part of it, not according to just her but many other people we've talked to here, is the emotional toll it's taking on all of them.
I'm Rick Sanchez. Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: And no doubt that emotional toll is going to last a really long time, Rick. Thank you very much.
Live pictures right now. We're just getting in, as you can imagine, the restoration process already starting. These are power crews working through the day and through the night, trying to restore power. This is in Jefferson Parish, actually.
So as we continue to talk about search and rescue, and, of course, the daunting toll of finding the dead and dealing with all the bodies right now, we're also going to talk about what dedicated workers are doing to get this city up and running, people like this power crew right now, trying to restore power in Jefferson parish.
Also straight ahead, Hurricane Katrina separated thousands of families, as you know, including children and their parents. We're going to have an update on what's being done to reunite them, just ahead on LIVE FROM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: When Katrina hit CNN set up the victims and relief desk. It's a site on our web page devoted to connecting hurricane evacuees with their loved ones. CNN's Fredricka Whitfield has an update on all that for us now.
Hi, Fred.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello to you, Kyra.
At the CNN victims and relief desk, there is a constant stream of inquiries from people looking for loved ones.
The latest, a call has gone out for anyone with information on Jada and Shalonda Daniels, 7 and 10 years old. The pair was last known to be staying at the Sara T. Reid High School shelter in New Orleans East.
Also missing, 55-year-old Brenda Rainey. A family member believes she is in Kenner, however, that family member cannot locate which shelter Ms. Rainey may be in.
Our crews in the field are doing what they can to help people get in touch with their missing loved ones. Here are a few of the people we've been able to talk to.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma, if you're out there I want you to know I'm safe and I'm all right and I made it through the storm.
TANYA ROBERT, LOOKING FOR FAMILY: I can't get in touch with my family, and I need them to know I'm OK. I'm alive and my children are OK, and I need them to know where I am.
YVETTE GARNER, LOOKING FOR FAMILY: Hi, my name is Yvette Garner. I'm looking for my daughter Brittany (ph). I'm located at the Reliant Center. You can get in touch with me there.
Brittany (ph), I love you. Please try to get in touch with me. Brittany (ph), I miss you. Just call me. We're all right. I just want to know where you're at, Brittany (ph). And I'm looking for my momma, too. Brittany (ph), I love you. Just try to call me at the Reliant Center so I can see if you're all right, Brittany (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: It is just heartbreaking.
We continue to receive e-mails from people looking for loved ones. Cadet Jason Smith is searching for his grandmother, 88-year-old cancer survivor Jeanette Dufrene. She was last known to be at her senior living facility in New Orleans.
The family of 13-year-old Megan Jane Carter is desperate to find her. Megan is autistic and is unable to speak. She's reported to be with her caregiver, who is also missing -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Fredricka. We'll continue to check in with you.
And of course, we're getting so many e-mails and pictures and calls. We're trying to do the best that we can to get all of that on the air.
And you can also go to CNN.com/HelpCenter. And you can find out how you can help and how you can get help. Plus go to CNN.com/safe to find out if your loved ones are safe and OK. We really have had some pretty amazing stories of people finding each other.
More of our coverage of the aftermath of Katrina straight ahead.
But first, we want to take you -- I'm being told -- you know, we've been talking to so many people that have been able to go back to New Orleans, believe it or not, after everybody was taken out of there.
Slowly but surely we've been able to find people and connect with them as they're moving back into New Orleans to actually take a look at their homes, see if anything is left and try to recover what is there.
And one of those individuals we've been trying to reach for a really long time is someone that we have on our air quite a bit as a law enforcement analyst for us. He's a former SWAT Commander of the NOPD and former police chief of the Thibideau (ph) Police Department. And he's now heading back into New Orleans and a lot on his mind right now.
Howard Robertson joining us by phone.
Can you hear me OK, Howard?
HOWARD ROBERTSON, FORMER SWAT COMMANDER, NOPD: Hello, Kyra. We miss you out here.
PHILLIPS: Yes, I'll tell you what, I wish I could say I miss working in New Orleans right now. Actually a part of me does, but it's killing me just talking to you and so many others I've known for so long and what you're dealing with. And I know you're finally getting a chance to head back into the city. What's it like?
ROBERTSON: Well, the one word that I can tell anybody who is listening is patience is the key. And traffic is absolutely horrible. There's only one road in, but police are only allowing everybody to come in Highway 61. So whether coming in from northern Louisiana or western Louisiana, everybody is filtering into one two-lane highway. They're keeping everybody off the interstate for emergency vehicles.
So we were parked for an hour to go like five miles because of traffic merging together, and as people -- cars parked on the side of the road that are out of gas. There's one gas station on Highway 61 as soon as you come out of the bottleneck that has a line at least, I'd say, 300 yards long. People trying to get gas because they've been stuck in that line waiting, and everybody is running out of gas.
Luckily he has gas. But anybody coming in, I'm telling you, you have to be patient.
We came through Lake Neopod (ph), you know, which is a big fishing area.
PHILLIPS: Right.
ROBERTSON: There are thousands of dead fish all along the highway that just got blown up. The smell of driving through there with all the dead fish is incredible. And the water is just like -- you can smell New Orleans all the way, and we're still probably 20 miles out.
PHILLIPS: Now, as you're getting back into the city and I want to ask you more about that but we're looking at aerials and video that we have of some of the remaining New Orleans police officers. And, Howard, you were SWAT Commander. You were there through so many hurricanes.
And I mean, when this happened, usually you see NOPD carrying out the search and rescue. I'm assuming that you have never seen anything like this before and that this was hell on earth for the NOPD.
ROBERTSON: The officers that remain, hats off to them. They were incredible.
But the thing that I haven't seen yet, I can tell you, normally we have boats in the sheriff's office. The sheriff there -- the criminal sheriff in New Orleans has a fleet of boats that would normally, you know, make sure we have availability to use in case you have a rescue.
Actually, buses being used, also. You know, local buses to take people out of the city when they need to move them. Even if they need to move them toward the universities, we have 10 universities that have basketball stadiums that have buses that could have got people at least out of the Superdome and get them somewhere (INAUDIBLE).
I know in Louisiana -- I'm one of those refugees of that fled because my house is under water, and I fled to my Uncle Bob's house in Lake Providence, Louisiana.
Well Lake Providence sent their whole fleet of school buses to New Orleans and the local east (INAUDIBLE) sheriff's office (INAUDIBLE), and they got turned around and sent back. They never even got close to New Orleans. Once they got to that rodablock they got sent back. This is when they were trying to evacuate people.
So there was a lot of miscommunication. I mean, one hand didn't know what the other hand was doing, but we really lost a lot of resources.
PHILLIPS: Well, and I had a chance, Howard, finally to make contact with some of our friends there, active police officers. And they said, "You know what? I'm telling you this right now, we had to loot in order to survive. We didn't want to leave the city. We wanted to protect the people." And these are some of the few officers that remained.
And so -- and I know you know this. There are some dedicated police officers. But then when so many leave, it really tells you something about how the mayor and the police force are going to have to look at this and completely reorganize how you respond to an emergency, a natural disaster, yes?
ROBERTSON: I think the whole country better look at this, because we keep talking about homeland security, and a terrorist attack. If we can't handle this, how are we going to handle a terrorist attack? And homeland security, that's -- this is exactly what homeland security is supposed to be about.
But, you know, I mean, let me make one thing really clear. There were people looting, who were taking food. And I don't think anybody in this country would object to anybody stealing water or food or milk for their babies. Listen, Wal-Mart opens up, and they're giving away free food. They're giving away free food to people who need it. And then people go over and steal televisions and guns. That's not the same thing, you know? That's not the same thing.
PHILLIPS: That's true, and you dealt with that, you dealt with that as the commander of the SWAT team. You know that when that kind of criminal activity, you know, is combined with a natural disaster, I mean, talk about the ultimate nightmare.
ROBERTSON: Well, it all goes back to the National Guard and military coming in do not have the power to enforce the law, only to (INAUDIBLE) a lack of local law enforcement, because there's not enough there. There certainly wasn't enough police officers in the Superdome. They just didn't have enough to cover it. You know, it creates a tremendous burden unless martial law is declared.
PHILLIPS: Yes. Good, well (INAUDIBLE)...
ROBERTSON: I mean, the governor, I thought the governor did a great job and really tried to hold everything together. But you got to realize, this is her first term. She's never experienced this. The mayor has never experienced this. And even the police department, you know, most of the rank and file in the police department are pretty young and have not experienced any type of major hurricane before. Most of the old dogs are gone. That makes a big difference also. PHILLIPS: Yes, there'll be some new training put forward, that's for sure. Howard Robertson, thank you so much for calling in and giving us an update and your feedback of what you've observed. Keep in touch in touch with us, Howard. We want to hear how your home, of course, and everything is once you get there back home.
Howard Robertson, thank you so much.
ROBERTSON: Thanks, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, more of our coverage of the aftermath of Katrina straight ahead on LIVE FROM....
But first, the other big story of the day, the new chief justice of the United States could be John Roberts. We're live from Washington with the latest right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: And as we all remember Chief Rehnquist and his life and what he represented, you can notice the live pictures from the U.S. Supreme Court with the flag at half-staff.
And it's not often you get a promotion before you even get a job. When we went to bed, Joe -- John Roberts was still the nominee to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court, but following the death of William Rehnquist, the president is now tapping Roberts to become the 17th chief justice of the United States.
CNN's Joe Johns with more on this swift decision and those now- delayed nomination hearings. Joe?
JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the confirmation hearings were scheduled to begin on Tuesday, Kyra. Of course, that's changed, we're told now. Thursday at the earliest, time, at least, for the body of the chief justice to lie in repose at the Supreme Court on Tuesday, and then for his funeral on Wednesday.
There's also a possibility these confirmation hearings for John Roberts won't even start until next Monday.
So a lot of this all up in the air after the president announced earlier today at the White House that he was nominating John Roberts to be chief justice.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is in the interests of the court and the country to have a chief justice on the bench on the first full day of the fall term. The Senate is well along in the process of considering Judge Roberts's qualifications. They know his record and his fidelity to the law. I'm confident that the Senate can complete hearings and confirm him as chief justice within a month.
(END VIDEO CLIP) JOHNS: But a lot of Democrats are suggesting there will be a completely different level of scrutiny for John Roberts, now that he's being nominated to be chief justice. As you know, just a month ago, nominated to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the high court.
Earlier today, Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, very influential Democrat, put out a statement which said in part, "Before the Senate acts on John Roberts' new nomination, we should know even more about his record, and we should know whom the president intends to propose to nominate as a replacement for Sandra Day O'Connor. The American people care deeply about the overall balance of their highest court and its dedication as an institution to the protection of their rights."
Democrats are also citing the fact that the country right now is focused on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, suggesting that the government ought to go slow on the Supreme Court, as it stands now.
Back to you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Joe Johns, thank you so much.
Well, it's believed to be the first time an associate justice nominee has been nominated for chief justice before getting confirmed to the post.
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin joins us now from New York with more on the interesting questions that the Roberts nomination raises, and...
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: It's been a good week for John Roberts, wouldn't you say?
PHILLIPS: I tell you what. I mean, and let me ask you, before we get into this discussion, Jeffrey, I'm just curious, from what you've heard -- and I should ask Joe this also -- you know, considering what we're dealing with, with the nation's worst natural disaster ever, is this an appropriate time to move forward, and, you know, do you think this is a distraction? Or does this need to go forward, even as we're dealing with what's happening in Mississippi and Louisiana and Alabama?
TOOBIN: Well, you know, I think that's a question that obviously came up last week when the magnitude of Hurricane Katrina was, you know, became evident. I also -- I do think also that it's important that the Supreme Court function with as many justices as possible, and that the -- You know, Chief Justice Rehnquist himself was a great believer in the institution of the court, and in the court operating at full strength. And I think he would want this to proceed expeditiously.
I don't think there is much doubt that these hearings are going to go forward. The Republicans, who are in charge of the Senate, are very determined to have President Bush start having his stamp on the court as an institution. So right or wrong, I don't think there's any doubt this train is moving very quickly. And whether it starts Thursday or next Monday, John Roberts is going to be confirmed by the first Monday in October. I don't think there's much doubt.
PHILLIPS: All right. Well, before talking about just the fact that he could be chief justice, let's do a little Chief Justice 101. And this position, you know, how is it different from the other justices? I mean, what is it a chief does that takes him to a different level?
TOOBIN: Well, he has one important practical responsibility, which is that opinions -- in decisions where the chief is in the majority, he assigns which justice writes the opinion. And that's very important strategically. But he also only has one vote out of nine. He has some responsibility to appoint lower court judges to certain other special courts, like a court that oversees intelligence wiretaps, which is important, especially now in the post-9/11 world.
But mostly it's symbolic importance. You know, the title is not chief justice of the Supreme Court. The title is chief justice of the United States. And I think that's significant. We're going to talk about the Roberts court like we talked about the Rehnquist court, the Burger court, the Warren court. So I think it is more symbolic than anything, but symbols are important.
PHILLIPS: All right, Jeffrey Toobin, we'll be following it, of course, throughout the day. Thank you so much.
TOOBIN: OK, see you.
PHILLIPS: And straight ahead, we're going to talk more about the nation's worst natural disaster. We're going to check in on the pet rescues also going on along the Gulf Coast, and tell some of the displaced folks in shelters how they can try and reconnect with their dogs, cats, snakes, and everything else.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, we know that many of you are worried sick about the pets that you were forced to leave behind. And a massive effort is under way to rescue these helpless victims.
Helping to coordinate that effort is Petfinder.com, an organization launched 10 years ago.
Joining me now, its president and founder, Betsy Saul.
Betsy, thanks for being with us.
BETSY SAUL, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, PETFINDER.COM: Thank you, Kyra. And thank you for bringing this important story to the forefront.
PHILLIPS: Well, the -- we have, we've been receiving so many e- mails and so many calls. So let's just get right to it. For those that are in shelters or even in other areas across the country, maybe with friends and relatives, what do they need to do if they had to leave their pets behind? Do they start by going on your Web site?
SAUL: The first thing that they can do is either go on our Web site at Katrina.Petfinder.com, and they can see there a list, you know, of hotline numbers, if they don't have access -- if they won't have access to the Internet later. And they can make sure that they file a report of the pet that they left behind. Or they can go there to find out who might have their pet if it has already been rescued.
There are hundreds of people on the ground who are trained in emergency animal disaster response, just waiting to get into the areas hardest hit, so that we can give people this comfort of having their loved ones.
PHILLIPS: Well, as you mentioned, there are a lot of people on the ground, Betsy. We just by phone got Michael Skidmore on the line. He's actually been working day and night to try to rescue these pets.
Michael, can you hear me OK?
Michael, do you hear me all right?
MICHAEL SKIDMORE, NEW ORLEANS RESIDENT (on phone): I do.
PHILLIPS: OK, great. We've got Betsy Saul on the line too. She's the president and founder of Petfinder.com. And we're talking about how these folks can find their displaced pets.
You've been out there rescuing them. Tell me how you've been doing it, what type of pets you've been rescuing, and where are you taking them?
SKIDMORE: Well, I haven't actually been the one rescuing them, but Robin -- I have a phone number for her -- she has gotten a guy to charter a bus, just for pets, and the people with them, and it's on its way now.
PHILLIPS: So Betty, let me ask you -- or Betsy, let me ask you, where should that bus go with these pets?
SAUL: We're actually coordinating a database right now of all the national animal welfare organizations who are on the area with resources. And that database will pull in the information from hotline numbers, numbering probably eight or nine, where people have been calling in for the last week. That information will be available on Katrina.Petfinder.com. And certainly if they want to contact us directly, because I know that there's a bus on the way, then we can make sure that they have the information they need to get to the closest spot.
There are temporary shelters set up right now in Lafayette, in Gonzalez, with HSUS, Humane Society of the United States, American Humane Association, Best Friends is down there. We have a lot of national groups. And, of course, the local agencies, like the Louisiana SPCA, Mississippi SPCA, all have temporary facilities that they've just -- I'm sorry, the Animal Rescue League, the Mississippi Animal Rescue League. They've all have temporary facilities, and they're going to need support.
Whether or not those are animals that people want to be bussed elsewhere is another question. We know, though, that any support that's offered is greatly appreciated in that area.
PHILLIPS: Michael...
SKIDMORE: (INAUDIBLE)...
PHILLIPS: Go ahead, Michael.
SKIDMORE: This is what Robin's doing, is, she's bringing the bus from Baton Rouge, and that's where they're taking it. So from there, they're going to need assistance to take the pets from there, and the people, from Baton Rouge.
PHILLIPS: And tell me, the pets, I mean, these animals, I mean, they're pretty resilient. It's pretty unbelievable what they can survive and how they can figure out to reside, or to survive, Michael. I mean, can you tell me the types of pets that have been found? I mean, is it every? I mean, we're looking at video, of course, of horses and dogs and cats. And what can you tell us?
SKIDMORE: Mainly, what we've been working with, actually everybody there, is just dogs and cats.
PHILLIPS: Dogs and cats.
SKIDMORE: Pretty much. One lady has a bird, but she's not going to leave, so we're just...
PHILLIPS: And Betsy, it's pretty amazing. I mean, a lot of these survivors say, You know what? If my dog wouldn't have started barking, and wouldn't have given me warning signs, I would have never gotten out of my house.
SAUL: Right, and so many of those people then aren't able to take that same dog that probably saved their life with them. And that's why it's so important that we all pull together now.
And I have to say that people at home are probably wondering what they can do to help. And one of the most important things we can do is encourage them to donate to any of the national animal welfare organizations that they have a relationship with, because they're all pitching in for support for this great collaborative effort. But we are having fairly serious distribution issues, the same as we do for human disaster response, and so we really need dollars so we can purchase the gasoline for the rescue vehicles and so that we can buy food for the volunteers who are donating their own time.
PHILLIPS: Michael, it's hard enough to try and find the people and even the bodies. What's it like, I mean, trying to get these pets out and find these animals? Is it difficult? Are they trapped? Any stories about the efforts?
SKIDMORE: Well, this is basically -- the -- in the we're at is, the people that stayed only because they couldn't take their pets. Those are the people that are -- that we've been dealing with, mostly, because just right here in the French Quarter is where we're at, and it's just awesome that somebody on the other side of this swamp here was able to say, Hey, I'm going to pay for it, and I'm going to make sure that these people and their pets get out. That's what it's all about.
PHILLIPS: Betsy, have you heard about some pretty amazing survival stories about, you know, pets and their owners, and just the warning signs?
SKIDMORE: There are amazing stories. Pets always amaze me. I think the most important thing to remember is that pets give us so much hope, and oftentimes they're the only people -- the only people -- only family members that we have that we can really relate to. So many people only have a pet as a family member. And so it's important that we assist those people and make sure that we get those pets and treat that relationship the way it should be treated.
I -- the outpouring of support has been amazing, and so many people who are taking in human victims of the storm are opening their homes to their own -- to the pets that are victims, as well, so that people and families can bring their pets. And I've been seeing more and more temporary animal shelters are opening right next door to the human shelters, so people can go over several times a day and visit their pets.
It's really -- this is really -- really heartwarming to see people opening their arms to the pet situation.
PHILLIPS: Betsy Saul, president and founder of Petfinder.com. But you can logon to Katrina.Petfinder.com. And then Michael Skidmore, out there on his own, trying to rescue those pets, even working a bus right now to take a bunch of them to Baton Rouge.
Both of you, thank you very much. I think there's going to be a lot of people anxious to log on to that Web site. Thank you so much.
SAUL: Thank you.
SKIDMORE: Thank you. But I want to clear up, Robin is the one that has actually gotten the bus. I didn't do that.
PHILLIPS: All right.
SKIDMORE: (INAUDIBLE).
PHILLIPS: You're working side by side with Robin. I'm assuming Robin is a friend of yours, a co-worker with you, Michael?
SKIDMORE: Madam, I just moved here.
PHILLIPS: You just moved... SKIDMORE: Everybody's my friend. I don't know anybody...
PHILLIPS: But is it somebody that you met and someone that's helping you?
SKIDMORE: Yes, this morning.
PHILLIPS: There you go, Betsy. It's, like, people from all over the city, just jumping in and helping. It's amazing.
Betsy, Michael, thank you.
We're going to take a quick break. More LIVE FROM... right after this.
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PHILLIPS: Well, (INAUDIBLE), none of us will forget the day that the mayor of New Orleans said that he was going to use the Superdome to house storm refugees once the hurricane hit. And then, as the days unfolded, we saw the thousands and thousands of people line up outside to get inside and get food and water and a place to sleep. And then as the days unfolded, the stories that we heard of what was taking place inside that Superdome were just heart-wrenching, from people dying, to people not getting their medical needs, and eventually the toilets overflowing, and conditions just becoming unbearable.
So where does everything stand today, in light of the troops coming in and trying to get everybody out?
Adaora Udoji is outside the Superdome now to give us an update on just the condition of the Superdome and the people inside, if, indeed, there are still many inside there. Adaora?
ADAORA UDOJI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.
We're actually on Interstate 10, which sort of loops around the Superdome. We just came from Elysian Fields, which is just northeast of the city, where they are still taking people from their homes. It's a neighborhood of blocks and blocks for miles (INAUDIBLE). And there are dozens of rescue crews from all over the country.
And the big problem they're facing right New Orleans is, there are people, Kyra, who are refusing to leave their homes. We went out on a boat with a firefighter from Los Angeles who has come in as part of a FEMA team, and ran -- came upon one home where there were seven people inside. They refused to leave. The man said his wife had died last year, that every earthly possession that they owned was in the house, that he was not going to leave.
We ran into another home where there were three people. They had no food, but they were refusing to leave. Rescue workers saying that they're no longer dropping food because they're trying to get everyone out. They're really concerned at how quickly everything will deteriorate, as the weather continues to be very hot, and the water becomes more rancid and more toxic over time. We saw dozens of dogs, we saw fires. There are -- the firefighter from Los Angeles, Jim Campbell was saying he thought it was probably a natural gas line, the watering bubble -- the water bubbling up around it. There are dozens and dozens of dogs out there.
For the people they are bringing in, they are being treated at a triage center on the freeway, Kyra, on the freeway. And helicopters, military helicopters, Hueys and (INAUDIBLE) -- are landing, and they're taking some of them away in those helicopters, and they're taking others away in ambulances. These ambulances have come from all over the region, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Adaora Udoji there on the I-10, you know, just aside from the Superdome there, as helicopters continue to come in and get those stranded out of New Orleans. Thanks, Adaora.
We're going to have more LIVE FROM... right after a quick break.
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