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A Mardi Gras to Remember; New Maneuvers in Case Against Scooter Libby

Aired February 24, 2006 - 13:30   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, as our Kathleen Koch reported, Katrina devastated her hometown of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. So many people lost everything, but they haven't lost their spirit. The city's Mardis Gras children's parade got started a little while ago. And Kathleen has a unique perspective there from that convertible, and she's accessorized with beads, boa, and mic in hand. And she's also the grand marshal -- Kathleen.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka.

You know. this is such an honor here. The people of Bay St. Louis, those who are left, are really turning out for this parade, and I'm kind of getting the hang of the bead throwing. It's very tricky. They get tangled easily, but this is such a great parade. It's the children's parade of Bay St. Louis. The theme is because of the children, and the kids here have had a real tough time the last six months, but they're bouncing back. We've got kids participating of all ages. The king and the queen, who just went ahead of me, are 5- year-olds from Bay Catholic Elementary School. We've got kids from Saint Stanislaw (ph), participating, our lady academy.

And from my high school, the Bay High Band is here playing, and they're playing with what instruments they've gotten since the storm. They lost all their instruments in the hurricane, so half of the instruments they're using today were donated, used instruments, and half are brand-new. So they're really excited that now they can put a band back together again, but normally just a high school band, but they've had to draft seventh and eighth-graders to help fill out the roster.

What's else is really special, Fredricka, in this is that besides the children participating, as they normally do, we've got Red Cross marching in the parade, the Salvation Army. We've got this group called City Team that's been here feeding people since the hurricane, and they have volunteers from five states who are here marching, too. So it's a great day for everybody.

WHITFIELD: Wow. So, Kathleen, I've got to ask you, these beads that you've got on your left arm there, are those for throwing, or those that you have caught?

KOCH: No, those are for throwing. I'm actually -- see, I'm neglecting my duties as grand marshall as I talk to you. I should be throwing my beads, because that's what people are here for.

WHITFIELD: That's right, you've got a job to do there. KOCH: I do. But people -- we had one parade earlier this weekend, the folks in the parade said, you know, normally people come running up to them mob them to get the beads, but they said this year people were running up and saying, thank you, because everyone just needs a little bit of joy, and I little normalcy in their lives.

Oh, I think I hit someone.

But it's really special. I mean, Mardi Gras in Mississippi is a real family event. You know, it's something where, you know, it's not bawdy, people don't get drunk. It's just a hometown family celebration, and everyone here looks forward to this so much, so this is just something that people really needed. They really needed a break from digging in the debris and gutting their houses.

WHITFIELD: And it seems like quite the contrast, because as we saw in a report earlier from Dan Lothian, that not everybody is celebrating in New Orleans the idea of Mardi Gras, and we saw a lot of friction leading up to it. You know, the divide widening, but it seems as though there you're saying the common point of view is everyone feels this is really what they needed right now, and this is a way of coming together.

KOCH: It really is. And because, again, in Mississippi, it's a real family celebration. I would estimate that maybe a tenth of the people here, if that, are tourists. It's all people who live here. So this isn't a real boost to the economy; it's a boost to the spirit, and spirits that have been pretty low.

And there is my buddy, Pat Kiergstan (ph). Some of his great video made it in our documentary, one of the brave people, or crazy people, who rode on this storm, you insane man, but it's been a great experience for me. I'm seeing all my friend from high school, and my brothers' and sisters' friends and my teachers, and it's just so great to be back.

WHITFIELD: And they recognize you even with those glasses on, eh?

KOCH: Yes, they told me I have to wear them. Part of Mardi Gras is masking.

WHITFIELD: I like it.

KOCH: So I can't unmask myself yet, until the end of the parade. I like it.

WHITFIELD: Well, because I'm so envious of your accessories, we've a few here. I hold on to this one for you. This is the official CNN Mardi Gras beads.

KOCH: I didn't get any of those.

WHITFIELD: I'm saving this for you. You've got one now.

KOCH: All right. Well, see, I should have had some, because then I could have thrown them.

WHITFIELD: Yes, this would be a really good bargaining chip out there, I'm sure.

KOCH: I do have one of the official hurricane beads. They have special Katrina beads that are very hard to come by here on the Gulf Coast, but they're a collector's edition, and some very kind folks have given those to me and to my crew members that are working so very hard, Ron, and Skip, and Peter, my producer, and Ray, my (INAUDIBLE) operator. So we're all bedecked with our Mardi Gras finery.

WHITFIELD: All right, everyone on board out there. So good to see you. And I know a lot of folks are happy to see you there in your hometown of Bay St. Louis. You're doing a great job out there.

Thanks so much, Kathleen.

KOCH: Thanks, Fredricka. We're happy to be here. And happy Mardi Gras.

WHITFIELD: Happy Mardis Gras.

Well, CNN is also live in New Orleans, as I was alluding to, for that city's Mardis Gras celebrations, hence the beads we've got here. "AMERICAN MORNING" and "ANDERSON COOPER 360" will be live from New Orleans beginning Monday at 6:00 a.m. Eastern, and all day and all night.

Coming up on LIVE FROM, 26 hours of terror here in Atlanta, and hopes for averting a replay. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Almost a year now after an inmate terrorized Atlanta, a commission met today to discuss security upgrades at the Fulton County Courthouse. The brazen escape of Brian Nichols and the horrifying hours that followed cost the jobs of several deputies, and sparked a hard look at how the court does business. Here with the story, CNN's Rusty Dornin.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was the final report for the Fulton County Security Commission. They came up with a lot of things that they have done already, things like changing holding cells to make sure that when the prisoners are brought in and put into a cell, that they don't just take the cuffs off him, that they put them through a port, so that they're locked into a cell and then the deputies can take their handcuffs off while they're locked inside a cell.

Things like gun lockers, they no longer have keys. You can't unlock a gun locker. You have to do it on a keypad. There's more lights, there's more security, there's more alarms, that kind of thing, a couple of new magnometers.

Those are the things that are done, but they also have a wish list. They talked about it being something that they're building it -- a security wall, one brick, two bricks at a time. So those are the things that they have done so far.

And the things they want to do in the future, they want to get all of the courtrooms set up with cameras. Apparently, they have wired all the courtrooms, but they don't have cameras in all of them, so they can't see what's going on in every single courtroom.

Also, they talked about the really big understaffing in that courthouse, that they need 314 deputies and there's only 200, 235. Somebody in that commission raised their hand and said, well, that is going to cost about $8 million. So all of the things that they ...

WHITFIELD: And is the money there?

DORNIN: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: So that's the other obstacle.

DORNIN: Exactly. And then they talked about also building concrete barriers around the courthouse, of course, for car bombs, something like that, building fences and an eight-foot perimeter fence to make it harder for people to maybe jump a fence and get into a courthouse.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

DORNIN: And then just adding security for the judges, and that sort of thing, having a security manager who's a liaison between the judges and sheriff's department.

WHITFIELD: A lot of layers.

DORNIN: A lot of layers. A lot of layers, and the things that have been done so far -- I mean, there's a lot to still do.

WHITFIELD: Yes, are these realistic expectations, some of these things, such as this, you know, very high fence we're talking about, you know, being able to fortify the building a bit more? Did anyone in this, you know, hearing say, wait a minute, they seems like unrealistic expectations?

DORNIN: They don't really -- I don't think they really are unrealistic, but they are things that they're definitely going to have to go along and get approved, you know, money-wise and that sort of thing, through budgets and all that. So they're doing what they can now and they're doing it incrementally, as you said, one or two bricks at a time.

They're not promising the world and not delivering at this point, and they're taking a hard look at what went on. Of course, there was a lot of controversy, a lot of criticism towards the sheriff's department.

And as Sheriff Myron Freeman, the Fulton County Sheriff just said, it was a catastrophe. You know, and now this commission has come in and trying to make sure it doesn't happen again. WHITFIELD: And since there's been a lot of pressure in order to get to this point, so perhaps they're finally getting, you know, some positive feedback, at least in that respect.

DORNIN: Right.

WHITFIELD: All right. Rusty Dornin, thanks so much.

And this programming note. LIVE FROM's own Kyra Phillips will host a special "CNN PRESENTS: 26 HOURS OF TERROR." For the first time, Ashley Smith goes back to the apartment that Brian Nichols forced his way in to.

Also, for the first time, family members of the victims talk about the courthouse rampage and the manhunt that followed. "26 HOURS OF TERROR" premieres on Saturday, March 11th at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.

Well, news today of an attempted suicide mission against an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia. The attackers failed. They were killed by their own explosives and the oil plant was not damaged.

Joining me now to talk about Saudi oil security and the oil industry as a terror target is former U.S. Congressman and CNN contributor Bob Barr.

All right, Bob. Good to see you.

BOB BARR, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Well, you have been to this very port where this latest incident took place. What are your impressions about security there, and why this would be a target for such a terrorist attack?

BARR: Thank you, Fredricka. Yes, I visited these particular facilities and a number of others just exactly a year ago as part of a fact-finding mission over there.

And I have to tell you, I spent a number of years, as you know, with the CIA, worked on the Congress, worked at the Department of Justice, and I have never been at any facility within our government or anywhere else in the world that has better security than Saudi Aramco, which is the parent company for all of these oil-producing and exporting facilities over there.

They have the very latest technology, they have the very latest security equipment, the very best training. I was very, very impressed, and we saw that today in this abortive attack, which may very well have been sort of a test or a probe by some of these terrorist organizations.

So we may see more of this sort of thing, but I think the one thing that all of us here in an oil-consuming country, the United States, should take away from this is that the strategic partnership that we have with the Saudis, and the security measures and the security mentality that they exhibited are very, very good. They are working well, as we saw today. WHITFIELD: Well, you know what's interesting, in order to try and connect the dots here, if I may, this is the kind of scenario, this type of terrorist attack attempt on this refinery, this Saudi Arabian port, is exactly what a lot of people are envisioning when they hear the words the United Arab Emirates company managing six imports in the U.S.

Is this kind of fear, is this kind of scenario realistic or even justified? Or do you think that people are having a knee-jerk reaction when they hear that a United Arab Emirates company may be managing a port, and that trying to associate terrorism with that management is wrong or off-base?

BARR: I think certainly the concerns are very, very real. And we need to take these concerns very seriously. We may see more attempts by the terrorists over in that part of the world. We may see attempts by terrorists to disrupt facilities here in this country.

But I think what this points out to is today, is that, at least in Saudi Arabia, with Saudi Aramco, they have both the wherewithal and the interest and the conviction to stand up to these sorts of security threats.

Here in this country, I think we have a lot to do, because the security at the oil facilities in Saudi Arabia are much better than the security facilities we have at our ports. So we have a lot of work to do here.

And I think this also points out that even though we are going through a controversy right now regarding a port management company headquartered in the UAE, Dubai, for example, that we cannot simply dismiss these companies, these organizations, because they're over in the Middle East.

These countries have to put up with the very same types of security/terrorist threats that we face here, and they have a pretty good track record of standing up to and defeating these sorts of things.

So I think, if anything, this points out to us today that the sort of, again, strategic partnership we have with the UAE and especially with Saudi Arabia, may be just what the doctor ordered.

WHITFIELD: Congress is -- or at least some members of Congress are now trying to block this deal altogether. Do you think that is the right move right now? Even though the president responded today that, while he's happy this company has decided to hold off for a moment -- it gives everyone a chance to investigate, to ask some more questions, to discover -- is it premature for members of Congress to say let's look at a way to block this deal?

BARR: I think it's both premature and ill-advised. I don't think it's at all improper to do what many of the cooler heads in the Congress are calling for, and that is simply to take a little bit more time to satisfy themselves and their constituents that he -- what the administration is saying, that they have vetted this thoroughly through the security process and found it to be appropriate.

But I do think that those members of Congress calling to cut off the deal, to stop it, really perhaps don't understand and perhaps are playing either politics or a little bit of jingoism here, because really the security will and should remain in the hands of the United States.

The port management company, headquartered in Dubai, will not be in charge of security, and really what these members of Congress ought to be looking at is doing a much better job of oversight on U.S. security capabilities and focusing less on the actual management of the port.

WHITFIELD: All right. Former Congressman Bob Barr, thanks so much for being with us and talking with us about both those topics.

BARR: Sure, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, he was once chief of staff to Dick Cheney. Now he's back in federal court. Straight ahead, an update on Lewis Libby and the CIA leak investigation. We'll go live to the federal courthouse in Washington.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: New maneuvers in the case against the former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney. Lewis Libby is back in court today. Libby, you may recall, is accused of lying about the leak of a CIA operative's identity. He resigned his White House post after he was indicted last fall.

And CNN's Brian Todd is standing by at the federal courthouse in Washington to give us an idea of what's happening now -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, a little bit of news to report. Just a few minutes ago, Lewis Scooter Libby arrived here at U.S. District Court. Not a surprise. He's been here for just about every other hearing in this case.

And here's what's going to go on about 40, 45 minutes from now. His attorneys, the defense, is expected to ask the judge, Reggie Walton, to order Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor, to release some key classified documents, nearly 300 so-called presidential daily briefings, dating from May of 2003 to March of 2004. These presidential daily briefings. They call them PDBs, they are the very highly classified intelligence briefings that the president gets just about every day.

Now, why do they want these released to scooter Libby's defense team? Well, the defense claims that this is going to prove that Libby was distracted. As he testified before the grand jury during that timeframe, distracted by matters of national security. Again, the timeframe we're talking about, May of 2003 to March of 2004, very key timeframe in the Iraq War and other matters, and the defense is going to claim that Mr. Libby was distracted by those matters of national security. At the time he was also testifying before the grand jury and to investigators, and therefore unclear necessarily about the context in which he was to speak to reporters or in which he spoke to reporters.

The prosecution has already opposed all of this on the grounds of national security and executive privilege. They're expected to argue those matters in court before Judge Reggie Walton, as I say, in about 40 minutes -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And, Brian, the prosecutors also have a problem with the special counsel, Patrick Fitzgerald, also, right? Saying that he was not appointed by the White House, and so thereby, he may have overstepped his bounds?

TODD: Well, essentially, yes, what we're talking about in this 40-page ream of documents here. This is a motion to dismiss the charges against Scooter Libby. This was filed yesterday, and essentially it contends that the special counsel, Mr. Fitzgerald, may not have been appointed in a way that complied with procedure.

Now, understand that context, the special counsel in all of these cases, here's the procedure. He or she is appointed by the president. He or she has to be confirmed by the president. He or she has to answer to top Justice officials whenever they want to bring an indictment or grant immunity. None of those things have occurred in the case of Mr. Fitzgerald. He was appointed by an acting attorney general. He was never confirmed by the Senate. He has had sweeping power in this case to essentially do as he chooses. And the defense is claiming this has gone against procedure.

WHITFIELD: Interesting.

All right, Brian Todd, thanks so much, in the nation's Capitol.

TODD: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Well, a little Olympic update. Move over Picabo Street, here comes Julia Mancuso. The 21-year-old, who is a Californian, she is golden. After flying down the slope in blinding snow, her victory in the giant slalom was her first in a major race. It also brought the U.S. women their first Olympic alpine medal since Street, Picabo Street, won gold back in 1998.

And as promised, Mancuso's ski tech followed her down the slope in celebration minus the ski pants just to make the photo interesting.

The U.S. men's curling team was much more subdued. After finally reaching the medal podium themselves. Cheered on by their fans, they held off Great Britain for the bronze.

The talk in Torino is about another medals battle, which has given figure skating a new champion. Japan's Shizuka Arakawa skated a clean and elegant final program to win her country's first medal of the Games and Japan's first Olympic gold in that sport. The favorite, reigning world champion Irina Slutskaya skating last and tumbled to third. American Sasha Cohen also literally fell short of her Olympic dream. Afterwards, she told CNN she was just thrilled she didn't give up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SASHA COHEN, SILVER MEDAL, FIGURE SKATING: It's very nice after competing at this level and working hard for so many years to take home an Olympic medal. It's part of a dream, and, you know, I think it's a little gift for persevering through a lot of hard times over a lot of years, and I'm very thankful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And next on LIVE FROM, a search for the culprits behind a record heist is a darling plot -- or rather a daring plot beginning to come unraveled? New details on the developing story right after this.

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