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International Aid Arrives in Pakistan; Is Disaster Relief Wreaking Havoc on the Economy?

Aired October 11, 2005 - 14:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: The man who was videotaped being beaten by New Orleans police says he holds no animosity against anyone. Robert Davis appeared on CNN today to give his side of the story. Davis said he wasn't drunk at the time of Saturday's beating, as officers alleged, and he wants the charges against him dropped. Davis also thanked the city's new police chief, who suspended the officers, for his quick action.
The president and the first lady celebrated the reopening of an elementary school in hurricane-battered Mississippi today. The visit came during the president's eighth tour of the damaged Gulf Coast. Mr. and Mrs. Bush started their day at Habitat for Humanity work site in Louisiana. They are now on their way back to Washington.

Florida authorities have arrested four people and are searching for two others who allegedly took money intended for Hurricane Katrina victims. Police in Titusville believe the six posed at hurricane victims and collected at least $9,000 in donations to the Red Cross.

Now back to our top story, the aftermath of the massive South Asia earthquake. Despite rain, wind and cold, international aid is beginning to arrive in the area. CNN's Satinder Bindra reports from Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Pakistani-ruled portion of Kashmir.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They've come from the war in Afghanistan, eight U.S. helicopters here at Rawalpindi Chaklala Air Base, near Pakistan's capital, to help the country with its largest ever relief operation.

Captain Brandon McCray (ph) is a 26-year-old Blackhawk pilot from Ft. Worth, Texas. On Tuesday, Captain McCray loads up his Blackhawk and takes off for a 40-minute flight to one of the worst-affected areas in the mountains of Kashmir.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: However we can help out, I pray that we can do that and help these people out tremendously.

BINDRA: When Captain McCray's helicopter and the others land in the mountain city of Muzaffarabad, Pakistani soldiers are waiting for them.

(on camera): It's absolutely critical to get these tents and bags of flour to hundreds of thousands of survivors in Pakistan's remote areas. Many people there have been complaining they haven't eaten a proper meal in days. And at this rate, they say, they may not be able to hold on for too long.

BINDRA: Riaza Khan (ph) has broken both his legs. The Americans will take him back to the Pakistani capital for treatment. His family will remain here.

"Three of my daughters are injured," he says. "They're in hospital. My wife is also injured."

Many of the wounded are young children. Most were hurt when their schools collapsed on them. The critical element in these missions is the weather. Many sorties have had to be canceled because of heavy winds and rain. Riaza Khan gets out just before the weather turns nasty.

"Allah blessed the Americans," he says. "They've been very kind. I want to thank them for that."

Less than an hour after we began our journey, it's time to turn back. A lightning-fast mission that will have to be repeated for many days then weeks to come.

Satinder Bindra, CNN, Muzaffarabad, Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Now, the U.S. has a long history of helping other countries in times of needs. This latest relief effort comes even as Congress struggles for ways to pay for disaster relief on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Where is all the money coming from? That's one of the biggest questions being asked.

Economist Robert Reich was secretary of labor during the Clinton administration and he joins us now from Boston. Today, the U.N. is asking for $272 million from the world to help in the quake relief. I have to ask you this, because on top of that, you've got the tsunami, you've got Katrina disaster. With all of this, how can the world come together and afford to help in these foreign disaster relief efforts?

ROBERT REICH, FMR. LABOR SECRETARY: Well, Betty, keep in mind a couple of things. Number one, the United States is now the recipient from the rest of the world of about $2 billion a day. That's how much of rest of the world is sending us to keep us afloat because of our huge budget deficit and also because Americans don't really save very much.

So the least we can do, as the most powerful nation of the world, even though we're borrowing so much from the rest of the world, is provide some disaster relief. It's in our interest, also, it's in our enlightened self-interest. We need to win and maintain the hearts and minds of the rest of the war in this war against terror. And it's the least we can do.

NGUYEN: But is it disaster overload?

REICH: Now, where is the money going to come from? NGUYEN: It just seems like there's been disaster after disaster. Can all of these countries, the world, afford to help in paying for disaster relief? The U.S., all the other countries involved?

REICH: Betty, obviously, it's a huge amount of money. The amounts that we are talking about here in the United States are maybe hundreds of millions of dollars. But what about all the pork that we provided to American companies and that transportation bill this summer, all of the corporate subsidies and corporate welfare we provided to energy companies and that energy bill this summer. I mean, get rid of all of that and we have plenty of money, not only for Katrina and the Gulf, but also for at least some response to disasters around the world.

NGUYEN: You know, you raise a very interesting point. Because the U.S. is considered and viewed by the world as being very generous. But break down the numbers for us. Taking in the U.S. economy, how much does the U.S. really give to foreign aid?

REICH: We give, as a percentage of our national economy, Betty, actually the smallest percentage of any advanced economy.

NGUYEN: Really.

REICH: We're probably about number -- yes, we're about number nine or ten. Again, if you look at foreign aid as a percentage of our national economy, and foreign aid itself -- I mean, there's a big question among economists whether foreign aid, just simply giving money to other countries, is a very wise use of our resources.

But in a disaster situation, when people are desperate, when they absolutely need help, they need help with medical supplies, they need help right away with places, houses, shelters; in those circumstances, foreign aid is absolutely necessary. And if it's not going to be us, it's going to be other countries. Why shouldn't we, again, as the most powerful country in the world, come to people's aid? As I said, it is in our rational self-interest, in our enlightened self-interest, because it's important that the rest of the world know that we are a generous people.

NGUYEN: Well, can the U.S. economy...

REICH: Al Qaeda is not going to come to anybody's aid.

NGUYEN: Right, well, can the U.S. economy afford to give more, then? Because you're saying the U.S. is not giving very much. Can the economy afford to give more? Because there's a lot of questions, especially around New Orleans. And, you know, where is that money going to come from to rebuild that city? Can the U.S. afford, can the economy afford, to give more in foreign aid?

REICH: Well, the short answer is, yes. The question, where's that going to come from? I listed some possibilities. That is, get the money back from all of the pork that we provided in that -- in that transportation bill. There are billions of dollars there. And they're just pork. I mean, they're bridges to nowhere in Alaska. There are just ski trails going nowhere in Vermont.

The second thing we can do is get back some of the corporate welfare from that energy bill. Billions of dollars in support for oil companies who don't need it. I mean, they are doing very, very well right now, thank you. They don't need a lot of government handouts. We also could, and the president should, decide not to extend those temporary tax breaks. We don't need those temporary tax breaks extended. That's an extra amount money that the federal government is not going to get.

We do have the means. We are the -- again, the most powerful country in the world. We may not be the richest. We're not saving anything. And I got to -- I want to just stress this to you, Betty. We are actually asking the rest of the world to lend us or invest in us, according to just about $2 billion a day. Now, if the rest of the world is giving us that kind of money, the least we can do, when the rest of the world is in disaster, is provide some disaster relief.

NGUYEN: But I do have to make the point that the American people have given a lot to the disasters out of their own pockets, which does not come from the federal budget. So that does need to be stated here.

REICH: Oh, of course.

NGUYEN: Robert Reich.

REICH: Absolutely.

NGUYEN: We appreciate your time. Thanks for laying it out for us.

REICH: Thanks very much, Betty. Bye-bye.

NGUYEN: Testing the first line of defense. Are public health workers educated and equipped to handle a possible bird flu epidemic? See what happens when many first responders are put to the test.

And stolen jet. A $7 million dollar Cessna plane is lost, then found. The story, ahead on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: In our "Security Watch" today, more ominous warnings about bird flu. On a tour of Asia, Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt said the risk of a pandemic is very high. Person-to-person transmission of the virus is rare for now, but if there was an outbreak here at home, discovering it quickly could be crucial. So there is concern about a recent report.

CNN homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve has those details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An emergency room physician calls a public health department reporting a patient with symptoms of deadly botulism. He is told, I wouldn't worry too much if I were you. A caller to another health department describes bubonic plague. An employee there says, don't worry, go back to bed. The calls were part of a test. The results, sobering.

DR. NICOLE LURIE, RAND: We have a long way to go to train our public health work force to be a first line of defense.

MESERVE: Experts predict millions could die in an avian flu outbreak. But, as with other diseases, rapid detection could help curb its spread and lower the death toll. That is why local public health departments are supposed to be able to receive information about a wide range of serious illnesses 24/7. But Rand researchers discovered that some aren't even answering the phone.

In 2003, they made a series of calls to nineteen public health departments claiming to be doctors or nurses reporting urgent cases of illness. Three agencies were dropped from the test after failing to answer or return five consecutive calls. Many departments failed to respond in 30 minutes as mandated by the Centers for Disease Control. And some took more than 10 hours. Only two met all federal deadline guidelines.

DR GEORGES BENJAMIN, EXEC. DIR., AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH: That's not acceptable at all. Absolutely not. We now, in today's environment, we have to have 24-hour emergent contact in the public health system.

MESERVE: When the calls were answered, the quality of advice was sometimes poor. When researchers described small pox symptoms, none of the health departments suggested isolating the patient or using personal protective equipment, though the dangerous disease is highly contagious.

(on camera): Since September 11, an estimated $3 billion has been spent on public health. If the tests had been conducted before that spending, experts speculate the results might have been even worse. If they were conducted now, the results might be better.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And you want to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.

Well, bird flu is just one concern on the minds of Americans. They're also speaking about many other issues.

Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport joins us now looking at the poll numbers. Frank, sources now say it was a hoax, but in the wake of last Thursday's warning of a possible threat to New York City's subways, where is the public's opinion on the issue of the nation's preparedness for a possible terrorist attack?

FRANK NEWPORT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, GALLUP: Well, Betty, we've been looking at a lot of the data, and you cannot escape politics. I thought this was quite interesting as we reviewed what we found. To ask about federal homeland security efforts, Republicans overwhelmingly are positive, independents are in the middle, and look at Democrats -- 68 percent negative. So the way the Americans looks at the world colored by their underlying partisan orientation, perhaps, as much as by the reality of the situation.

Also, we asked this, and I think this is important. The New York scare, of course, brought home Americans' concerns that something relating to terror could happen in their local community. How prepared are local agencies to handle it, we asked Americans, in your community? Not a lot of optimism here. Just 12 percent said very prepared. Another 50 said somewhat prepared. So Americans, I think, are worried if something were to happen wherever they might live.

NYUGEN: OK. Shifting from terrorist attacks to natural disasters, the president's on his eighth visit -- or just wrapped it up -- from the Gulf coast to the hurricane-hit areas there. How is the public's opinion on his response?

NEWPORT: Well, not good. We looked at all the recent polling that we could find on Bush approval -- that is, job approval for the president -- handling Katrina, not Rita, which was higher in our polling. But Katrina, and across the board, is not good at all. Our latest poll, 40 percent. AP-Ipsos press (ph) poll, 26. "Newsweek" poll just released fairly recently, just 41 percent so in general, these low poll numbers for Katrina may help explain why once again the president was down in that region today, as you mentioned.

NGUYEN: OK, on a similar note, you know, gas prices are slowly -- very slowly -- starting to come down but how much do Americans blame the recent rise in those gas prices on the hurricane?

NEWPORT: Well, you cannot go wrong blaming the oil companies. We thought this was of interest. A lot of polling we've done here at Gallup shows no matter what happens, Americans say it is the oil companies that are at fault. So, we thought it was of interest to the look at this recently released poll by CBS News.

Three choices, the hurricane, the war in Iraq and the oil companies, blamed for the rising gas prices. It doesn't matter. Hurricanes, refineries out in the Gulf -- it doesn't matter. It's the oil companies themselves to get the blame from the American public. In fact, in a list of industries that we tested briefly, oil and gas companies were at the bottom in terms of Americans' positive evaluations.

NGUYEN: And you did mention Iraq. Tensions are high in Iraq as Saturday's referendum on the new constitution gets closer, so how does the public view the situation there now?

NEWPORT: Well, we were looking what Americans thought might happen going forward. We'll know more once, of course, once the vote on Saturday is in, and the news reports of that. But we looked at polling and said, all right, Americans, do you think there will be a Democratic condition in Iraq say within one year? And there Americans are split even, not too bad. But in the long range we did find 55 percent to 43 percent of Americans saying, yes, Democracy will reign in the long run. So despite all the doom and gloom about Iraq and a lot of negative poll numbers, at least there is a ray of optimism from Americans. They think in the long run maybe, just maybe, Democracy will take hold in that country.

NGUYEN: Gallup editor-in-chief, Frank Newport. As always, thank you.

A missing plane mystery. A charter jet stolen from a Florida airport is found in another state. Our Tony Harris is on the story next on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Here in Georgia, it is a case of who done it. Authorities are hunting for the person or persons who stole a $7 million Cessna aircraft in St. Augustine, Florida, and flew it to an airport just outside of Atlanta.

CNN's Tony Harris is here with all the details. Quite a mystery.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. Good to see you, Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes.

HARRIS: We received new information on the story just a few minutes ago. The FBI in Atlanta is telling us this was more a joyride than anything else, and that there is no indication that terrorism had anything to do with the stealing of this jet.

So what do we know? Well, we know a charter jet, a $7 million Cessna citation 7, as Betty just mentioned, owned by Pinnacle Air out of Springdale, Arkansas, was reported missing yesterday morning from an airport in St. Augustine, Florida. The aircraft was located yesterday afternoon in the Atlanta suburb at the Lawrenceville, at the Gwinnett County Airport Briscoe Field, which as you know, Betty, is just north and slightly east of Atlanta.

Understand something. The person who stole this jet is no trainee with 100 hours of flight time, a point made very clear to us by Matthew Smith, a director of Briscoe Airport.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW SMITH, BRISCOE AIRPORT DIRECTOR: This is going to take a lot more training, you know, a lot more background checks. You have to be certificated for that specific type of aircraft.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: OK, so what do we have here? Well, was this an inside job? Well, sure, it's possible. On the one hand, you can't walk up to a general aviation airport and waltz around the hangars and onto the ramp and check out the planes. But on the other hand, access is not impossible. General aviation airports are just not at buttoned down as your big international airports.

As it was described to me earlier by someone who used to run one of these airports, if you have captain stripes on your soldier, a flight band in your hand, and can identify the aircraft, chances are, you're in.

NGUYEN: All right. So how was this plane able to land and be unnoticed?

HARRIS: In the overnight hours. It was...

NGUYEN: Is it not staffed? Is the airport not staffed?

HARRIS: Exactly, that's it. The plane was most likely taken in the overnight hours between Saturday night and Sunday morning. And in a lot of these general aviation, these smaller airports, there is no staffing. There is no one in the tower.

NGUYEN: And, actually, it was damaged.

HARRIS: (INAUDIBLE) knows.

NGUYEN: Apparently whoever took this plane wanted to hide it.

HARRIS: Sure.

NGUYEN: Because tell me where it was parked.

HARRIS: It was between two hangars. And it was a case of just, whoever stole it, just wanted to hide it. You know, when you steal a car to joyride a car -- not anything I have experience with, obviously -- but, you know, you hide it. You hide it. And that's what happened here. There as a little damage on the aircraft. And we presume it from trying to hide it between some hangars.

NGUYEN: OK, it's one thing to get in and, you know, to really say you're -- I'm someone who knows how to fly a plane, I've been here, I can get into. But I think people, especially if you're not familiar with planes, want to know how do you actually get into...

HARRIS: Access the plane?

NGUYEN: Is it like a car? Do you have a key? How do you get in it?

HARRIS: Well, here's the thing about the keys. Yes, there is a key, but you don't fly an aircraft with a key. You may use the key to open the door. Maybe. The bottom line on this, Betty, is if you know how to fly a plane, it's pretty easy to steal a plane.

NGUYEN: And so does where does the -- I mean, does the trail just end there? At the airport?

HARRIS: No, it's in Atlanta. It's here in Atlanta. There is a person of interest believed to be in the Atlanta area. The FBI is trying to find -- locate that person right now, and there is word that there may be a second person involved in this, as well.

NGUYEN: And just to be clear, no terrorism involved?

HARRIS: None whatsoever at this point.

NGUYEN: All right. Tony Harris, thanks so much, Captain.

HARRIS: Yes, good to see you.

NGUYEN: Appreciate that.

All right. Moving on. Meeting force with force and without fear of prosecution. Some say a new Florida law is a throwback to the Wild West. We'll hear from both sides. That's next on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Gun control advocates are taking aim at a new Florida law and they are trying to make their point by targeting a sensitive spot, the state's lucrative tourism industry. Tourism officials say it's a cheap shot.

CNN's John Zarrella has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Florida's is tough to beat.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the Florida tourism officials want you to see.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Seafood, night life.

ZARRELLA: But this flyer conjures up a different image.

KEN ELLIS, MIAMI VISITOR: I'm wondering whether we're, you know, moving back to the Old West, and I don't mean west Florida. I mean the old west.

ZARRELLA: The Brady Campaign, a gun control group, has taken aim at the state's new no-retreat law, called common sense by Governor Jeb Bush.

(on camera): It says any person can stand their ground, meet force with force if he or she believes it's necessary to prevent death or bodily harm. There is no longer any obligation to try to retreat first, whether in your house, your car or on the street.

(voice-over): Supporters say law-abiding citizens can now protect themselves without fear of prosecution. The Brady Campaign says the law may lead to the reckless use of guns. The group is handing out its flyer at Florida airports.

ZACK RAGBOURN, BRADY CAMPAIGN: The people who are most at risk of being in one of these tragic misunderstandings are the people who don't know that deadly force can now be used more often in Florida. Those are the people who don't live in Florida.

ZARRELLA: State tourism officials fire back -- it's scare tactics.

VANESSA WELTER, FLORIDA TOURISM BOARD: They're picking on Florida. That's because we're a top tourism destination. We're a global tourism destination.

ZARRELLA: The flyer warns tourists to take precautions, saying: "Do not argue unnecessarily with local people."

At Miami airport, Dana Brooks agrees with tourism officials.

DANA BROOKS, MIAMI VISITOR: Why else would you distribute these at an airport, knowing people are flying in for vacation or other reasons, if you're not handing this out to scare people?

ZARRELLA: The Brady Campaign says it's not trying to scare visitors, just inform them. State tourism officials charge the campaign is trying to leverage tourism dollars to make a political point.

ZARRELLA: John Zarrella, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: And that wraps up this Tuesday edition of LIVE FROM. I'm Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Now Kyra Phillips and Ali Velshi are in for Wolf Blitzer, live in "THE SITUATION ROOM."

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