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Congressman John Boehner Chosen New House Majority Leader; Selling the Agenda; Examining Title IX

Aired February 02, 2006 - 13:59   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And we continue to follow a developing story right now. Live pictures as we wait for various leaders to step up to the podium. Get ready to hear a lot more about Congressman John Boehner.
As you know, if you've been following CNN, House Republicans chose him today as the replacement for majority leader Tom DeLay.

CNN Congressional Correspondent Ed Henry has been following the vote on Capitol Hill. We also have Bob Barr with us, former Republican congressman.

Ed -- Bob, I want to go to you in just a second to talk about what goes on behind these secret ballot election events behind closed doors.

But Ed, maybe we can just kind of recap. This was pretty tight.

ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right.

PHILLIPS: We didn't really expect this turnout during the first vote.

HENRY: That's right. And Bob Barr knows as well as anyone how these things go. It's a secret ballot. So Roy Blunt was the front- runner and was saying publicly all along he had the votes to wrap this up.

He needed 117 House Republican colleagues to vote for him. And instead, it turns out he did not have the votes.

John Boehner, in a dramatic development, really against the odds, he had only about 40 or 50 public supporters, and it seemed like he was far behind Roy Blunt. He has won on the second ballot, as you mentioned, 122-109.

He beats Blunt, who is a DeLay protege. This is race to replace Tom DeLay as House majority leader. Of course he was pushed out amid some of these Republican scandals. And I think this is a clear sign that Republican rank and file members are nervous about the midterm elections that are coming up.

They thought Roy Blunt was going to be too much status quo. They wanted to go in a different direction.

John Boehner, though, it's interesting that he's kind of now seen as the reformer. He's somebody, as Bob Barr knows better than anyone, was in the Republican leadership following the Republican revolution and got bounced out of the leadership amid some other Republican troubles a few years ago.

And one final note s that this was also dramatic in the sense that on the first ballot they had to do a revote because it turns out that more ballots were turned in than actual Republican members who were in the room to vote. Concerns about irregularities. They had to revote on the first ballot. And then again, as I mentioned, they -- they did not get a clear-cut winner on the first ballot.

So John Shadegg, who was the third one, the third candidate, he dropped out because he didn't get that many votes. Then it became Blunt against Boehner and Boehner wins -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Bob Barr, do you know John Boehner?

BOB BARR, FMR. CONGRESSMAN: I know John Boehner and the other candidates very, very well.

PHILLIPS: So tell us about him. What do you know? What has it been like to work with him?

BARR: He's a very affable fellow, somebody that almost every member, certainly myself included when I was up there, got along with. He knows the system, but this is a very, very interesting vote because the true reform candidate, of course, was John Shadegg, late entrant in the case.

So the caucus wanted reform, they wanted to make a break with the past, and Blunt really was seen as the status quo candidate. But they didn't want to go really quite as far as the true reform candidate, John Shadegg.

So this is in a way sort of a compromise, but a very important one, because it really does establish that the -- that caucus, by and large, recognizes that there has to be change. They recognize that they cannot be seen publicly as simply embracing the old team, even though to some extent, as was just mentioned, John Boehner is very much a member of the old team. But he has made changes and is perceived as the reform candidate.

PHILLIPS: Yes, you keep mentioning reform. I mean, just taking a look at Tom DeLay, indicted in Texas, the Jack Abramoff scandal, this is definitely a time where people want to hear about reform. There's a tremendous concern about ethics and scandals within this old school, I guess, as you're sort of pointing this old school group.

BARR: Well, there -- the Abramoff scandal, we have not seen the end of it, Kyra. Its roots go very, very deep. It goes back also time-wise to the very start of the Republican majority back in January of 1995.

So there's going to be an awful lot more that comes out on that. And we also need to keep in mind that the Republican Party, the Republicans in the House, are going to need to do a lot more than they did yesterday with really what is sort of a silly move to say that members that also do lobbying can't be in the House gym. I mean, come on. That's not going do anything, they're going to have to do more than that, and I think Boehner recognizes that.

PHILLIPS: Bob, take us behind the scenes, behind the closed doors of these secret ballot elections. What takes place? What happens/ Give us a sense for what we didn't see.

BARR: A very good question again, Kyra. The public, I think, by and large, sees all the Republicans in the House as sort of Republicans in the House and the Democrats as Democrats.

The fact of the matter is, that every one of these more than 200 members on the Republican side of the aisle think of themselves and are in many respects very important, very unique, very individualistic. And even though they have ties to the party, ultimately each one is their own man or their own woman.

And consequently, they resent, I think, the fact that if any member such as Roy Blunt I think did in overplaying his hand a little bit, goes out and takes their votes for granted, they're going to get their back up. And he probably lost a number of votes by doing that.

These meetings get very, very contentious, Kyra. It's not all back-slapping. There's a lot of back-stabbing that might go on as well because an awful lot is at stake here.

Not only is the person who now steps in the position of majority leader the number two Republican in the House of Representatives, but that person sort of automatically now becomes the front-runner to replace Dennis Hastert when Dennis steps down in a couple of years as speaker of the House. So there was an awful lot at stake in this vote.

PHILLIPS: Ed Henry, no doubt Democrats watching with a lot of interest.

HENRY: That's right. And I think that the Democrats may say that John Boehner is somebody they can work with, as Bob Barr was noting.

It's pretty poisonous up here right now, obviously. But John Boehner is an affable person, seen as somebody -- a bit of a back- slapper. That was working against him in some respects, because some people were saying that, you know, he didn't focus on other things sometimes. But he showed that after he lost that leadership race after the '98 elections, he went back to work, became the chairman of the House Education Committee, earned a lot of credit with conservatives and others in the Republican Party by pushing through the president's No Child Left Behind legislation and not sitting around being sour about losing that leadership race, and instead going back to work.

And I think as Bob noted, there was probably a bit of an alliance here between John Shadegg, who was seen as the real reform candidate by a lot of conservatives, an alliance with Boehner. Once Shadegg dropped out after the first ballot, he may have thrown some of his support behind John Boehner.

And I think you're going to hear a lot not just about lobbying reform, but this so-called earmark reform. What that means is spending reform. There are a lot of these pork barrel projects we've heard all about that get tucked into these bills at the last minute.

John Boehner was very active in saying that he had never pushed for any of these special interest provision and he wants to put a stop to it. So we're going to hear about, as Bob said, some of the lobbying things, but also some other process issues up here that they need to fix because there's a lot of abuse -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Ed Henry, Bob Barr, thank you so much.

Of course we're going continue to follow this throughout the day.

Let's go ahead and go over to the White House. Dana Bash standing by.

I know, Dana, we've got some other things to talk about. Actually, I apologize, you're in Maplewood, Minnesota, where the president was speaking today. I want to get to his speech in a moment, but any reaction with regard to the new House majority leader?

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Not so far, Kyra. Of course this news just happened.

You know, the White House certainly tends to and does stay out of the inside of these kinds of races. Certainly as Ed was talking about, this is a surprise win for John Boehner, but I think it's important to note how crucial this role is for the White House, for the president, particularly this year, for the president to get the agenda you just heard him talk about two nights ago through the Congress.

The House of Representatives is the first stop. And that particular role, the House majority leader, is the person who helps, who really gets it through and makes it possible for the president to either get his agenda through or not.

And actually, one of the things that the president -- the thing the president is talking about here in Minnesota is one of the issues that Republicans are most concerned about, Kyra, when it comes to this election year, and that is the fact that Americans simply do not think that the economy is going well. And they're trying to turn that around.

And that is exactly what the president tried to do, tried to ease the anxieties. That is what he talked about here in Minnesota. It is part of what the president launched a couple of nights ago he is calling his competitiveness initiative. And he talked about the need for America to stay in a leadership role that is all aimed at the psyche of Americans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's some uncertainty in America today. And I can understand why.

There's uncertainty when it comes to our economy, people beginning to see competitors emerge, India and China. I'm a fellow who likes competition. I think it's good to have competition. I think it makes us do things better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, the president, as you heard, talking about his -- what he calls his competitiveness initiative, and that is really, Kyra, compromised of several modest proposals, including making what had expired, a tax credit for research and development, renewing that. That is a big part of his proposal, and the president actually tried to sort of illustrate what it means to have innovation.

Here, he's actually at a 3M plant, the headquarters of 3M. This is the company that created -- that invented things that we all use, like the Post-it Notes. So the president trying to talk up this whole concept of American leadership and innovation.

Now, one interesting thing, part of this initiative is also education, Kyra. Interestingly, John Boehner is somebody who worked closely with the White House back when the president first took office to get through his education proposals and programs -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And of course we're following live coverage right now of John Boehner of Ohio, the new House majority leader.

We might have representatives step up to the mic, Dana, any minute now. We're going to take that live. But you've been talking about the president's speech there in Minnesota, surviving and succeeding in the global marketplace. But the president also expected to go to Congress and ask for more money for Katrina relief, in addition to Iraq and Afghanistan, yes?

BASH: That's correct. CNN has confirmed that the White House next week, when it presents its budget to Congress, is going to ask for $70 billion for both Iraq and Afghanistan, additional money. In addition, will ask for $18 billion more for Katrina relief.

Now, back on Iraq, not sure how much of that approximate $70 billion will be for Iraq or Afghanistan, but that is on top specifically for Iraq of $250 billion that Congress has appropriated so far for that war -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Dana Bash, thank you so much.

And once again, if you are just tuning in, we continue to follow that live picture there on the Hill. John Boehner of Ohio the new House majority leader.

We are expecting various leaders, representatives to step up to the microphone. That may happen any minute now. We'll take that live. We'll go for a reaction from both sides, of course, both parties when that takes place. We're going to move on and talk about al Qaeda, more than four years after 9/11 still a major threat to the United States. So declares the nation's top intelligence officer in a rare public session of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN NEGROPONTE, NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR: This week's statement by Zawahiri is another indication that the group's leadership is not completely cut off and can continue to get its message out to followers. The quick turnaround time and the frequency of Zawahiri's statements in the past year underscore the high priority al Qaeda places on propaganda from its most senior leaders.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Joining us now with more on the Senate hearing, CNN National Security Correspondent David Ensor.

David, besides al Qaeda, what are some of the other main threats to the U.S. that were discussed at this hearing?

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Negroponte talked about the threat that Iran might acquire a nuclear weapon. He said it's the U.S. intelligence community's assessment at this point that Iran does not have the bomb or the fissile material to make one, but that it is feverishly working on acquiring one.

So there's considerable concern about that, and, of course, we're seeing a lot of activity on the diplomatic front on that, too -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Iran's nuclear capabilities also a big concern. We've been talking about this throughout the day. We've been talking to Matthew Chance in Vienna about what could happen, come before the U.N.?

ENSOR: It may welcome before the U.N. And if so, new evidence that apparently the IAEA has partly from the U.S. and others that there may be a connection, a link between the work that Iran is doing on its supposedly peaceful nuclear program and the work that -- top secret work that the Iranian military is doing on refining missiles and creating a warhead that might carry a nuclear weapon.

If there's links between that -- and we're now hearing that there's evidence that there may be -- that obviously will play an important role in the discussions at the U.N. if it comes up -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Still some hard feelings about the NSA's program from Democrats?

ENSOR: That is putting it mildly. That was the main topic at the hearing today, some very forceful and blunt questions from Democrats, angry that more of them were not briefed about the national security domestic surveillance or terrorist surveillance program, as the president calls it.

Here's a sample from Senator Rockefeller.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JAY ROCKEFELLER (D), WEST VIRGINIA: How can this committee reconcile this ongoing intimate understanding and evaluation of the NSA's overseas activities with the wall that the White House has constructed around the NSA's warrantless collection of phone calls and e-mails inside of the United States? What is unique about this one particular program among all the other sensitive NSA programs that justifies keeping Congress in the dark?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ENSOR: By contrast, Kyra, the questions from Republican tended to talk about leaks of secret information to the media. The talk about the CIA secret prisons in Europe, they said that damaged U.S. national security. This NSA story they say has damaged national security. And the witnesses tended to agree with them -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: David Ensor, thank you so much.

Well, keeping mum on domestic spying. "The New York Times" reports that the White House is refusing to give the Senate Judiciary Committee classified legal opinions on the practice that critics call unconstitutional.

The Bush administration insists both the Constitution and a post- 9/11 statute authorized surveillance on e-mails and phone calls between people in America and others in other countries. The president admits that he's bypassing the special secret court set up for this very purpose. We're talking about FISA. But Attorney General Alberto Gonzales tells our Kelli Arena too much is being made of this special court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERTO GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL: But the question whether or not FISA is effective or not is, quite frankly, irrelevant to the question of whether or not the president is acting lawfully. If the president is acting without any kind of legal authority, the fact that FISA is effective or not, quite frankly, doesn't make -- shouldn't make a difference.

And if, in fact -- if we all assume or believe that the president is acting lawfully, then the president, as commander in chief, should choose which tool is the most effective, the tools under the terrorist surveillance program, the tools under FISA. The president should choose which tool is the most effective in protecting America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Gonzales is due to testify next week before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

It was a pretty busy first day, first full day for the newest member of the highest court in the land. First a swearing in ceremony at the White House, then a life-and-death decision that caught many who thought they knew Sam Alito by surprise.

Alito broke with court conservatives to uphold a stay in the execution of a death row inmate. This man right here, Michael Taylor in Missouri.

Alito sided with the high court's moderate to liberal faction and against conservative colleagues, Thomas, Scalia and new Chief Justice Roberts.

From the nation's most powerful courtroom to a classroom, it was a long goodbye, but Sandra Day O'Connor wasted no time starting her post-Supreme Court career as a teacher. She's teaching a course on, what else, the Supreme Court at the University of Arizona Law School in Tucson.

O'Connor announced her retirement last year but agreed to hang in, as it turned out for months, until her successor was confirmed. Word has it that class has a waiting list.

You remember El Nino and, of course, La Nina. Well, one of these weather systems is making a return and could have a big impact on your weather in the coming months.

Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras brings us up to speed straight ahead on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: To the nation's governors at the epicenter of Hurricane Katrina, front and center on Capitol Hill. Louisiana's Kathleen Blanco and Mississippi's Haley Barbour went before the Senate panel investigating government elapses and logjams after unprecedented catastrophe. Blanco blamed the failure of federally-built levees for her state's biggest problems and disagreed with earlier testimony that there was no plans to evacuate nursing homes and hospitals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. KATHLEEN BLANCO (D), LOUISIANA: I don't think that anyone stopped to ask about public or private facilities. Indeed, we had privately-owned hospitals that were evacuated by whatever assets we could command. I would take issue with that particular characterization, because in the end we evacuated 60,000 people. We had limited assets with unlimited needs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Like I said, the powerful lessons from Katrina are being put in place before the next hurricane season begins in June.

And just what they didn't need in New Orleans, two suspected tornadoes tearing up homes that were devastated by Katrina five months ago. Flights were grounded at the city's main airport after a twister knocked out the power. Another tornado ripped into the city, knocking down at least one house on the hurricane-ravaged lakefront.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: We told you we were following a live shot there on Capitol Hill, waiting for reaction to John Boehner becoming the new House majority leader. As you know, representatives Roy Blunt of Missouri and John Boehner of Ohio had battled in a runoff today as House Republicans met to choose a success to Representative Tom DeLay as majority leader. You'll remember he was indicted in Texas and later got caught up in the Jack Abramoff scandal.

Well, Republican Roy Blunt came up to the mics just a little while ago and made these comments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ROY BLUNT (R), MISSOURI: I'm going to do something with John Boehner later when he thinks it's the right thing to do -- right time to do it. And, you know, politics is competitive. Politics, you have people who win, people who don't win.

I've been on both sides of that. And believe me, the world goes on. We're going to have a great leadership team.

John Boehner and I are good friends. We came through this kind of competition I think about as well as you possibly could.

I made a commitment when I started making those first phone calls that I wasn't going to mike a single phone call that I didn't say something good about John Boehner. I may have overdone that a little bit, in fact. And then when Mr. Shadegg got in, I tried to say something nice about both of them.

What we -- as I said when I stepped in a few weeks ago as temporary leader -- actually now four months ago -- I said, "What we do here is so much more important than who we are." That continues to be the case today. We're going to move forward with a great team.

We're going to work to make the Congress better, but more importantly, we're going to work to make the country better. And I look forward to working with John Boehner, the majority leader, to make that happen.

So thank you all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, in the first balloting, Blunt had received 110 votes, Boehner 79. But then in the second balloting, that's when John Boehner came out the winner as the new House majority leader, 122-109.

We'll follow the reaction from both parties throughout the day.

Also coming up, Capitol Hill cops say they were wrong to act as fashion police and vow to bone up on House rules. Shirting the issue as LIVE FROM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Ah, never mind. The great Capitol Hill garment crisis turns out to be a tempest in a T-shirt.

Here are the players, antiwar activist Cindy Sheehan and staunch advocate for the troops, Beverly Young, wearing the shirts that got them both bounced from the State of the Union on Monday. Capitol Hill police chief Terrance Gainer cops to the double blunder, saying his officers were operating under outdated guidance.

It turns out political T-shirts aren't unlawful in chambers unless the wearer tries to draw attention to the message. Now both women have gotten plenty of attention.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEVERLY YOUNG, EJECTED FROM BUSH SPEECH: They told me outside that they had an incident and that they didn't want this to be to be another incident, and that, you know, I could be arrested. So I told him, "Arrest me, take me, whatever. You're not going to tell me I can't do this."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, Gainer says that Beverly Young and her spouse, Congressman Bill Young, have gotten an apology. He says he hasn't been able to reach Sheehan in person but left a message.

So, will Sheehan now drop her plans to sue? Judging from her comments, it seems you unlikely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CINDY SHEEHAN, ANTIWAR ACTIVIST: They had me in jail for four hours yesterday, last night. And they charged me with unlawful conduct. That seems like between the time they arrested me, 8:30, and time they let me go, at 12:30, that somebody could have figured out that what I did was not against the law.

PHILLIPS: Straight to Jacqui Jeras. Another tornado warning coming across the screen.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Well, some frequent car renters could get stuck with paying storm damage and other acts of nature. Allan Chernoff has the story from the New York Stock Exchange -- Allan.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, this story actually really does hit home. While we were covering Hurricane Wilma in Florida, two of our SUVs from Hertz were trashed. We didn't have to pay for the damage, but now Hertz is sending letters to its gold members, their most frequent customers, saying that they'll be responsible for damage from natural causes such as windstorms, hurricanes and tornadoes.

The company says it had already imposed that policy on regular customers. Avis and Budget also have similar policies. Now, some states do have laws preventing rental companies from forcing consumers to pay for damage from natural disasters, but apparently not Florida. Kyra, I think next time I'm going to have my cameraman rent the vehicle.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Then you don't have to deal with it, right?

All right, sticking on the travel theme, a renovating frenzy taking over the nation's hotels.

CHERNOFF: That's right. Well, actually, I certainly know at least one hotel in Florida that could use some renovation after that storm. But nationwide, hotels are planning to spend a record $5 billion in renovation this year. That according to consultant PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Chains are planning to add amenities like wireless Internet access. Hotels, perhaps, could be trying to justify higher room rates. Prices rose more than five percent last year and they're expected to climb by that much again this year.

(MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Straight to the news room, Fredricka Whitfield working a developing story for us -- Fred.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Kyra, more now on that 575 foot tanker loaded with about 100,000 barrels of various types of oils which broke free from an Alaskan port and ran aground.

Now, a salvage operation is apparently under way. The tanker is intact, so it's believed that no leakage is taking place. The U.S. Coast Guard's Eric Chandler is on the phone with us from Juneau. And, Mr Chandler, where is the tanker in relation to the port? What's the distance between the two?

ERIC CHANDLER, U.S. COAST GUARD: Yes, the tanker is in Cook Inlet. I'm not sure exactly the distance to the port. Let's see, if I have this here. No, I don't have that information.

WHITFIELD: So it may not be an issue of many miles away, but instead maybe a few hundred feet away from its original port location?

CHANDLER: I think it's more of a matter of miles. It's ran aground in Cook Inlet, south of Nikiski.

WHITFIELD: OK, well, then talk to me about the risks involved in trying to tow, if indeed towing is an option, to move that tanker back to port? Or would it be taken somewhere else?

CHANDLER: At this time, the hull is intact as far as the information that we have. The Marine Safety Detachment from Kenai is on scene assessing the situation. I'm sure they'll determine whether or not it's safe to dislodge it from its grounding. From the information we have at this time, it was a soft grounding so there isn't any damage to the vessel.

WHITFIELD: More than an hour ago as we were reporting this, it was unclear why it broke free. Any better understanding now?

CHANDLER: We have different reports coming in, but none of them are confirmed. We know that there's large amounts of ice floe in the water there. And It's possible that the ice accumulated on the hull until it caused more and more pressure on the mooring lines which snapped them.

WHITFIELD: While you mentioned no punctures at this juncture of the hull, any way of determining whether there are any risks, any jeopardizations of any people or animals in that area?

CHANDLER: We don't have any reports of any injuries at this time. We don't have reports of any amount of loss of oil. So at this time, I wouldn't speculate that there would be any kind of danger of that, no.

WHITFIELD: All right. U.S. Coast Guard Eric Chandler joining us from Juneau, thank you so much. Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Fred, thanks.

Threats and disagreement in the escalating struggle over nukes in Iran -- it seems less a question of whether than when the issue will wind up at the U.N. Security Council. A move, Tehran vows to answer by ramping up uranium enrichment. Iran's unpredictable leader made a point of touring a nuclear plant on the eve of today's diplomatic meeting in Vienna.

CNN's Matthew Chance is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, those intensive negotiations here at the headquarters of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, the IAEA, in Vienna have adjourned for the evening. They'll resume on Friday afternoon, but still the stage is very much set for a diplomatic showdown with Iran over its nuclear program.

But within the next few days, of course, that draft resolution will be voted on, a draft resolution that would recommend sending Iran to the United Nations Security Council where, of course, it would eventually face punitive measures.

It's a text, that resolution, set out by the five permanent members of the Security Council including Russia and China, Iran's main allies. According to diplomats, it also has support of a large number of other countries, too. The draft resolution makes clear the basic problem with Iran, is that the international community lacks confidence in its intentions.

Iran, of course, says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, not for the production of weapons. The resolution also calls on Iran to provide full and prompt cooperation with the IAEA to help clarify what it calls possible activities which could have a military nuclear dimension.

So that's important because there are these dubious aspects of the Iranian program that have cast a shadow of doubt over it for many years now. While the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency is Mohamed ElBaradei here's what he had to say earlier.

MOHAMED ELBARADEI, INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY: This is a critical stage, but in no way a crisis situation. This is about confidence building, the urgent need for Iran to take confidence building, but it is not about any imminent threat.

Whether the board outcome will be to report to the Security Council or not, everybody agrees that the only way to move forward is to go through diplomacy, through negotiation, and there are still a window of opportunity for all concerned parties to find a way forward.

CHANCE: Well, Iran has said that any involvement of the United Nation's Security Council would mean an end to diplomacy as far as its concerned. It said that if that happens, it will end voluntary inspections by the IAEA of its nuclear facilities on the ground in Iran.

It also says it will resume full uranium enrichment activities, exactly the kind of activities that the international community is trying to prevent Iran from mastering.

So this debate and the outcome of this debate over the next few days will be very crucial in setting the international community and Iran potentially on a collision course.

Matthew Chance, CNN, at the IAEA in Vienna.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Thirty-four years of Title IX. It was meant to level collegiates playing field, so why do so many would-be athletes feel cheated? We're going to look at who's been helped and who's been hurt, when LIVE FROM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, they call it Title IX, and while it's opened doors for women, some men feel they've been shut out. It's the 1972 law that bans discrimination against women at schools and colleges.

Here's what it says: "No person in the United States shall, on the basis on the sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance." The fights have always been over sports.

Cat Reddick Whitehill is an Olympic gold medalist and member of the U.S. National Women's Soccer Team. She's in Raleigh, North Carolina. Daniel Fell used to be a wrestler at Marquette University, I hear a pretty darn good one. He's in Chicago. Great to have you both with us.

CAT REDDICK WHITEHALL, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Hey, how you doing?

DANIEL FELL, FMR. MARQUETTE WRESTLER: Thanks a lot, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, Cat, let's start with you. You went before senators yesterday and testified. What did you tell them?

WHITEHALL; Well, you know, basically, I was just there to tell them where I came from, tell them my testimony of why Title IX means so much to me and just express to them how much we really need this and to help young girls grow up in an environment where they can improve their lives.

And I just was sitting on a panel with some of the great players today. Jennie Finch was sitting right beside me, but then I had Dominique Dawes and Dot Richardson sitting right there, and it was an amazing experience.

PHILLIPS: Wow. And I you were pretty passionate about this, because growing up, you always had to play with the boys, right?

WHITEHALL: I did. All the way into to my freshman year in high school, I had to play on a boy's team soccer team, because in Alabama we just didn't know much about soccer. It kind of stayed in the football realm.

PHILLIPS: Now, some critics might say, well, see, she played with the boys, it made her tougher, she's a better player, she didn't need to play with the girls.

WHITEHALL: A lot -- I could see a lot of people wanting to say that, but right now -- I was just talking to my coach at UNC, Anson Dorrance. They're bringing in a girl from Alabama to try and recruit her and she played all the way with girls. And so you know that she's on the youth national team and so it's not just the boys that make her tough, it's playing with girls and just playing with better coaches and people who know more about the sport.

PHILLIPS: Now Daniel, you had a different experience because of Title IX.

FELL: Much different. You know, first off, I would like to, you know, compliment Cat. You know, she's -- tremendous accomplishments. And I'm humbled being with an Olympic gold medalist, so my hats off to you.

But I think a lot of people, you know -- obviously, I'm against sex discrimination, as I think most people are. But what really happens in Title IX is not fair. I mean, Marquette wrestling, where I'm from, I think is a prime example.

And Marquette wrestling, when I was on the team, we were self- funded. In other words, we were fund by alumni to avoid losing the program. So we weren't costing the school anything. We weren't costing them any resources. Everyone who was in that program was paying full tuition, and it was just guys that wanted to compete. I mean, the essence of amateur sports.

2001, they cut the program. Why? There's not an equal number of male athletes as female athletes. Great. So how does this law then improve, you know, opportunities for female athletes? They didn't add any women's sports, nor are there more women participating in Marquette. And I think this side of Title IX nobody ever wants to talk about, and that's why I'm glad you guys are having me on, so I can, you know, obviously show the other side.

PHILLIPS: Well, Daniel, some critics would say, well, you know, it's up to athletic directors. They can decide what to keep and what not to keep. It's not necessarily Title IX, it's really the athletic director's decision. Is that what you faced?

FELL: No, I mean it was proportionality. You know, yes, the athletic director, they didn't want to spend the money to create another women's sport. What they could have done, let's get women rugby in there. Have them, you know, be self-funded.

And I think -- you know, the other thing about Title IX that I'm really just upset about is you only see this in sports. How about, you know, dance programs or other extracurricular activities at universities? You never see you know what, there's 50 girls on dance program, there's only ten guys. We got to cut 40 girls who really want to dance to have 10 guys and 10 girls. It just doesn't make sense to me.

PHILLIPS: Cat, I know that if it were not for Title IX, you would have probably never made it to the Olympics, right?

WHITEHALL: I would have definitely never made it to the Olympics. I would have never gone to the University of North Carolina because I wouldn't have been able to go up there based on my financial status. I would have never improved the way that I did just from the coaching that I was able to get just by coming to a different school -- and where the knowledge is there.

And, you know, playing in the Olympics is an incredible experience and I know that I attribute a lot to that to Title IX. And, you know, we just want to look at it as it's not against male and female, we want to look at it as we're just operating on just fair play and just wanting to make equal ground and equal opportunities for everybody.

And it's hard to just blame Title IX for something when we just want it to be fair for everyone, and we just want girls to have the same opportunities as guys do.

PHILLIPS: And Cat, but you and Daniel both are really up on this. Listening to Daniel's situation, and now you had to go before senators, what would be your solution to prevent what happened to Daniel and his wrestling team? WHITEHALL: Well, it's hard to prevent anything from a Title IX perspective just because, you know, it is hard to control each university and what they do with each program. But again, it's all about equal play. And girls have come from so much and so there is a higher rate of women participating at schools.

And We're sad to see a wrestling program like that that, you know, is funded completely by yourself -- but at the same time, you can see the girls being able to play and just getting the opportunity just to improve their lives. And you know, it's hard for anyone just to blame Title IX. And you just want to, you know -- because Title IX is just there for everybody to have an equal opportunity.

PHILLIPS: We got to break away to go to some developing news, but Dan, maybe just real quickly, ten seconds or less, what would you have told the senators yesterday?

FELL: What would I have told the senators? I mean, I think it's a terrible law and somebody has got to, you know, stand up against it. And I think everybody is really afraid to stand up. I mean, I'm for you know people like Cat. I think it's great that women and men are having more opportunities to participate in sports.

And we need to increase these opportunities. I don't think, you know, cutting a men's program -- like at Marquette, yes, we'll have less male athletes, but we didn't increase the female athletes. We're not doing anything for women. I think, you know, we've just got to be open, and I don't quotas are the answer.

PHILLIPS: Daniel Fell, Cat Reddick, we'll be following you both. Cat, we're watching your career, as well. Cat, we're watching your career, as well. I thank you both very much. You both have a lot of passion, both great athletes. Appreciate it.

WHITEHALL: Thank you very much.

FELL: Thanks a lot, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's get straight to Fredricka Whitfield for a developing story in the newsroom -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Kyra, we're keeping a close watch on a brushfire taking place in south Florida, in particular in Miami Gardens. This happens to be the city, which is also the home of the Miami Dolphins Stadium. It is near a residential area. This aerial view that we're looking at the brushfire. Firefighters are on the scene trying to douse the flames.

This is an unusual time of year to see these kinds of brushfires popping up in a Florida area, particularly because it's been so hot. Certainly the conditions have been ripe for such fires to take place just yesterday, just southwest of Tampa In Lithia there was a brushfire that firefighters were battling. Today the issue is here in Miami Gardens, Florida, in Dade County. Kyra?

PHILLIPS: All right Fred, we'll keep our eyes on it, thanks so much. Those live pictures coming to us from our affiliate WSVN there out of Miami.

Well his life story could fill a book. In fact it has filled a book. Today we honor a mushing legend who showed the world how fun 100 years of living could be, you'd do it right now. LIVE FROM dreams big, straight ahead.

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PHILLIPS: It's not the cost of heating oil that has a Long Island couple steaming, just the oil itself. Listen to this. A driver for a heating oil company pumped at least 50 gallons into a pipe attached to their house before realizing it was the wrong address. When the couple got home, they found their finished basement, carpet, furniture, pictures ruined. They're staying in a hotel while the fumes subside and the house is cleaned at the oil company's expense.

Well the news keeps coming. We'll keep bring it to you. More LIVE FROM right after a quick break.

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