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CNN Live Today
Florida Recovering from Hurricane Frances; Kerry Changes Campaign Advisers, Strategies; Documentary Examines 9/11 Impact on Children
Aired September 06, 2004 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Checking the stories now in the news.
Frances has a return engagement with Florida. The now tropical storm is expected to blow ashore along the Panhandle later today. Meanwhile, utility crews and relief workers are moving into the south and central part of the state lashed by Frances over the weekend. About 2.3 million people are still without electricity.
Seven U.S. Marines were killed in a car bombing outside Fallujah today. It was the highest one-day casualty count for the Marine Expeditionary Force since April. Several other Marines were wounded and three Iraqi troops were killed in this morning's attack. The wounded were taken away in helicopters and troops sealed off the area.
Erratic winds are pushing a 10,000-acre wildfire near California's wine country. Hot and dry conditions are also hampering firefighters, who don't expect to have the Sonoma County fire contained for two more days. Officials say four homes and a dozen cars were destroyed by the fires. Two firefighters have been injured. Two smaller fires are also burning in northern California.
And Vice President Dick Cheney addresses a town hall meeting at the Minnesota state fair this hour. Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards will speak at a Labor Day picnic in St. Paul later today. Minnesota is considered a toss up state in the race for president.
Good morning. Across Florida, dazed homeowners and beleaguered officials are trying to get a handle on the staggering amount of damage left in the wake of Hurricane Frances. It may take days for a firm dollar estimate, but the scope and severity are obvious.
Reporter Carl Willis of CNN affiliate WSTV is in the wake of the storm and joins us now from Cocoa Beach.
Good morning to you.
CARL WILLIS, WSTV CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you.
It seems that fear from the storm has made way for frustration right now.
We're standing at Cocoa Beach, one of the main roads leading into Cocoa Beach, where there is a lot of damage, a lot of flag -- a lot of power poles down on the ground, a lot of traffic lights swaying in the road, making it very dangerous.
Right now we're being told that people living on Cocoa Beach cannot return. They've been here, some of them, since 5 a.m. in the morning. But the locals are -- the local officials are saying that it's just way too dangerous with all those conditions over there to get back.
We've talked to people in there. They're so frustrated, some are saying that they'd rather wait out the storm next time and stay put in their homes than deal with this. A lot of them have been waiting for days, some of them out of town for weeks just dealing with this. And that is a little bit over the top.
We do want everyone to continue to evacuate, of course. But that's just -- it just shows you how frustrated these folks are.
Like I mentioned, there are power poles down. There are -- there's tree debris all in the streets. And there are traffic signals swaying in the road. You can probably see that in some of that video.
Now we are expecting a little bit of a briefing tonight, actually, this morning, at 10:30. Maybe then these folks will learn when they can return back to their home. There's thousands of people out here right now, a family in each car.
It's -- one person categorized it as ridiculous and they are just ready to go home and get some relief and see what damage actually happened to their homes.
NGUYEN: A lot of frustration there. Carl Willis of WSTV this morning, thank you for that.
We want to get an update on the storm, because it's now a tropical depression. Rob Marciano is in the weather center with an update for us.
Good morning, Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Rob.
Well, it's first hit -- came with sound and fury, it is still violent. Frances is lining up to take a second shot at Florida. Here's a look at the damage described by some of -- who made it through the storm.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was scary. It was scary, because one of those shutters was banging. And the noise was incredible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going over the bridge, the Hummer almost blew off into the water. It was just crazy. And it was scary. I've never been that scared in my life.
Huge trees, trees that you never think would -- probably sitting there for 50 years, were just flying away like nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I lost everything on the farm. Everything's wiped out clean. Nothing left. Everything's gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So now you have to rebuild?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything has to be rebuilt, replanted and everything. All the sheep, the goats, the hogs, everything.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An outer band came up and it was unbelievable. I was having eight-foot waves coming over the decks of the boats. And the wind got in and actually exploded the boat into 20,000 pieces. I mean, that's what you see floating all over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We had insurance, but I let it expire, and I just never picked it up. I kept forgetting. I kept forgetting. And I can't even talk.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The fire company was here, and I said I can't live here now. It's, you know -- so I have to leave. There's so much -- you know, this is my home. This is my life. You know? It's hard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was the longest one I've ever gone through, and I've gone through quite a few. It was very, very long. It sounded like -- the wind sounded like 180 wheelers racing around the house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a strange storm, I'll tell you. And it is -- it's the worst one that this area has seen in many years, because it was climbing up the coast and going as slow as a turtle and chewing you up like a buzz saw. I mean, it was a long night in Vera Beach last night.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just got back after five months in Baghdad, Iraq, and I thought that was a problem, getting shot at on the RPG Alley in the airport every day with body armor. And today I wish I was back in Baghdad. I'll tell you. The nightmare has only begun for everybody.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And we want to take a look at relief and recovery efforts in Florida through the eyes of one of the decision makers. Toni Jennings is the lieutenant governor of Florida, and she joins us now from Tallahassee.
Good morning to you.
LT. GOV. TONI JENNINGS (R), FLORIDA: Good morning. How's everybody in Atlanta?
NGUYEN: Well, we're doing great. But the question is, how is everyone in Florida? We've been looking at live pictures coming out of Florida this morning of the damage. How extensive is the damage throughout Florida? JENNINGS: Well, obviously the storm is still in our state. It's working off of our west coast. It will go to the gulf area.
We're hoping it will -- it won't refortify itself. But we here in the big band or the Tallahassee Panhandle area are expecting tropical winds and tropical force winds and rain again today.
So we haven't gotten through with this storm yet. It is probably the largest storm we've ever had. It's engulfed the entire state. Fifty-seven of our 67 counties have been impacted by loss of power alone.
So what we're doing is working our way through restoration. We're focused on mass care at this point. That's the ice, water, food, comfort stations, headed toward those areas in southeast Florida that had the first of the impact.
And we're encouraging people, please, to stay off the roads. We know a lot of people evacuated to south Georgia, and to Alabama. We're asking them to have a little patience. Stay one more day where you are, because we need to have those roads accessible for our emergency people who are coming through the state, our utility companies, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, all of them have helped so tremendously. We just need -- our tanker trucks bringing fuel.
So we're asking people to please stay where you are for another day, and have a little patience. This is going to be awhile to get back to normal.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. And you mentioned fuel. There is a problem with getting enough gas to the gas pumps for people throughout Florida.
JENNINGS: Absolutely there is. And part of that is not just a fuel shortage. Most areas have fuel; they don't have electricity. And of course, the electricity has to run the pumps.
So what we are making sure of is that we do have -- and the port of Everglades is open. It is dispensing fuel as we speak. The highway patrol is escorting the tankers to the distribution areas and from the distribution areas out to the individual retailers.
But our first priority, of course, is to have fuel for those first responders, and for our emergency operations centers and for our hospitals and health centers so that we can provide that service.
So it will be a little while before your -- your corner gas station is probably pumping gas. But it will have a lot more to do with the electricity to pump that gas than it will the supply of fuel.
NGUYEN: Lieutenant Governor, what about restoring power to the millions who are without it right now? What's the status of that?
JENNINGS: Well, millions is absolutely the number. When Charley came through the state several weeks ago from the southwest going out at Daytona Beach, we lost power to about two million people. We're upwards of six million today.
We are probably -- again, as I said, we've impacted almost every county in Florida. Some of them, eight or ten of them with less than 20 percent of the people in their counties having power. It's going to take a little while. Patience will be the word of the week. But...
(AUDIO GAP)
NGUYEN: All right. We've obviously lost that shot with the lieutenant governor, Toni Jennings, there in Florida. If we can get her back, we will.
But for now, more information on Frances, and all you have to do is log onto CNN.com. Our web site has so much information on how to prevent con artists from taking advantage of you. So stay tuned for that. And just log onto CNN.com.
John Kerry kicks off the week with news that the president has pulled ahead in the polls. A live report from the campaign trail with word that Kerry has made a few changes.
Later, a look back at the seven days that followed the September 11 attacks. Meet two people who were caught in the mayhem and documented it for the whole world to see.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Time for a check on the election campaign.
President Bush is trying to secure Missouri's 11 electoral votes. Late this afternoon he will be at a rally in Poplar Bluff, where more than 10,000 people signed petitions, inviting him to visit.
The president flies to Kansas City tonight and has three other speeches in the state tomorrow. Now, two new polls show the president has opened a double-digit lead on Kerry among voters nationwide.
Kerry's getting some help in trying to close that gap in the polls. John Sasso has been named senior adviser traveling with Kerry. Sasso had been working with the Democratic National Committee.
And CNN's Ed Henry is with the Kerry campaign in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, with the latest on all of this.
Good morning to you.
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Betty.
That's right. Senator John Kerry just wrapped up a campaign event here in Canonsburg. He's still behind me in a private home.
But the bottom line here is that, on this Labor Day, John Kerry is trying to refocus his message on domestic issues. He's trying to hit the jobs issue very hard, saying that President Bush is on tap to be the first president since Herbert Hoover to lose jobs during his first term in office.
Democrats are grumbling right now that Kerry's message in August was muddled, that President Bush was able to surge ahead in the polls you just mentioned, because he was so tightly focused on his strength: the war on terror. So Kerry is now trying to refocus a bit, talking about bread and butter issues: not just jobs, but also education and Medicare.
But at this front porch event, Kerry was repeatedly confronted by Bush supporters. And one heckler in particular was hitting Kerry pretty hard when the senator was trying to say that he would fight for average Americans. It led to a pretty interesting exchange.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The tax burden of the average American family has gone up over the course of the last four years. And me, to just answer that guy, because he's right. I'm privileged. My tax burden went down. And I don't think that's right. I think your tax burden ought to go down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: You can see John Kerry there trying to turn the heckling around, trying to refocus his message.
And this comes at a time right after a long phone conversation Saturday evening between John Kerry and Bill Clinton from his hospital bed. The former president was counseling John Kerry a bit to try to try to pull back from the talk about Vietnam; instead focus on these economic issues, focus on the issues that Bill Clinton was able to ride into office in '92 and '96 on.
And also it comes, as you mentioned, at a time when there have been a lot of staff changes, in addition to John Sasso and Michael Whouley from Boston taking larger roles in the Kerry operation. Also Joe Lockhart, Doug Sosnik, Joel Johnson, various former Clinton officials taking on big roles in the campaign, as well.
A lot of Kerry aides here trying to downplay these changes, saying that the Clinton camp is not taking over the Kerry campaign. What they're saying is that they knew all along that right around Labor Day, as we hit the final stretch of the campaign, there would be a lot of coming and going. It would be all hands on deck. And the Kerry people are saying they need all the help they can get, Betty.
NGUYEN: Ed, how difficult is it to refocus so late in the game, so close to the election?
HENRY: It's very difficult to all of a sudden shift gears. But I can tell you, the model that the Kerry aides are laying out is they are saying that privately the senator is saying he feels this race is going to be just like '96, when he was up a very tough race against Republican Bill Weld. Kerry was behind in the polls. He refocused on those kinds of domestic issues.
He likes to be the comeback guy, sort of when all the chips are down. That's when he really focuses.
It's going to be difficult. The Kerry people are saying that, privately, he says this feels like '96 all over again. He only has two months to get that going. So we'll find out whether or not that's true, Betty.
NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Ed Henry, traveling with the Kerry camp in Pennsylvania today. Thank you.
Painful days to remember. Three years after the attacks, these days are -- many won't forget -- are days that many won't forget. Meet two people who documented what they saw and shared it with the world. And this is what we're working on for our next hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: The stories CNN is following today, September 6.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my home. This is my life. It's hard.
ANNOUNCER: Hurricane Frances takes a toll on Florida. At 11, the hardest hit areas and where the storm is moving next.
Then, former President Clinton undergoes bypass surgery. We're live from New York.
And at noon, Kerry and Bush, the latest on the campaign trail.
Stay with CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Haunting images of the September 11 attacks, just days before the third anniversary, a time capsule of sorts becomes available on DVD. Tomorrow marks the release of "Seven Days in September," a documentary that talks about 9/11's impact on young people.
And it revisits two of the children interviewed three years ago, both 12-years-old at the time. Shane Ferrer-Sheehy articulated the hawkish perspective in the days after the attacks, and Max Rosenbaum, the son of the film's director, made the dove's case for peace. They are now 15 years old and join us from New York.
Good morning to you both.
SHANE FERRER-SHEEHY, APPEARS IN "SEVEN DAYS IN SEPTEMBER": Good morning.
MAX ROSENBAUM, APPEARS IN "SEVEN DAYS IN SEPTEMBER": Good morning,
NGUYEN: Max, talk to us. Take us back to that day when the attacks occurred. What was going through your mind?
ROSENBAUM: Well, it was -- it was a really confusing time, because we really didn't know what was going on. And it was just -- it was -- a lot of people were really sad. And I feel that we -- we really got a sense of unity after that. And I think that sense, you know, really is what held us together.
NGUYEN: We want to show a clip right now of what Shane had to say right after the attacks. Let's listen.
FERRER-SHEEHY: It's really horrible, you know, that thousands of people just ended, you know, suddenly ended. And that fuels anger and hatred. And I just am very, you know, I'm about to cry right now. But I'm just, you know, very sad and angry that this happened and so many people had to die, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't have to die.
FERRER-SHEEHY: And they didn't have to die. I mean, there's no need for this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Pretty powerful statement, Shane. How have these attacks affected you some three years later?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, the attacks, of course, affected all of America. And it raised us to a heightened risk, a heightened -- we're -- the country, is -- it's not impregnable. That's what we learned from September 11. And before, you know, we felt that America was -- at least I did, was almost invulnerable. But now we realized that we are vulnerable. And it made me feel very vulnerable.
NGUYEN: What about you, Max?
ROSENBAUM: I had much the same feeling where I felt like, you know, it was America. You know, you couldn't harm it. But, you know, it really taught us that it could be harmed. And, you know, now we have a post-9/11 phase, where it's almost -- it's like we're afraid of everything in a way.
NGUYEN: Max, did September 11 play a big role in what you decided to do with your life? You want to become a filmmaker and play a role in politics as well?
ROSENBAUM: Yes, it definitely did. I -- I've done many things since then. I've made -- actually, I just finished a film all about George Bush, and the past four years. You can it at CameraPlanet.com/sevendays, actually.
NGUYEN: A little plug there for you.
OK. Well, Shane, how has it affected you and what you plan to do with your life and the career ahead of you?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, I don't want to get into politics, because I don't like politicians. But 9/11 did get me much more involved with politics than I was before. And I pay attention to the world much more now. And I hope -- I plan to use my power when I get old enough to vote.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. We want to show a quick clip now of what both of you had to say about what America should do following these attacks. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FERRER-SHEEHY: Osama Bin Laden, and it hasn't been confirmed yet, but you know, Saddam Hussein has been a suspect in supplying him with the resources and things. So I think, you know, those two should be, you know, quote, "brought to justice," unquote, as many of our leaders. But you know, in reality I think we should kill them.
ROSENBAUM: I have to admit I am, like, mad at whoever would do this, but nobody -- we don't know who. So like, you know, we shouldn't blame anybody. And, I mean, if we were to have peace, like, it would show that we were really civilized.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Max, do you still feel people shouldn't be blamed for this?
ROSENBAUM: Well, my opinion has changed a bit. And I feel that, I think, you know, there are people who are guilty for what happened. But the way that we went about, you know, and sort of brought justice, I don't think it was the right way.
I think that the war in Iraq was really, you know, it showed that we aren't as civilized as I think we are in a way. We kind of -- we just took revenge. And in the end, our president ended up using our own anger against us.
NGUYEN: Shane, quickly, we're almost out of time, but do you still feel the same about Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, Saddam Hussein still hasn't been proved to be linked to the 9/11 attacks. But I still think that in all cases, he was a bad -- he was a bad man, and we should have -- I think we should have taken care of him in the first Desert Storm.
And on -- along the lines of Osama Bin Laden? I think that we should find him, and we should bring him to justice.
NGUYEN: All right. Shane Ferrer-Sheehy and Max Rosenbaum, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate that.
FERRER-SHEEHEY: Thank you.
ROSENBAUM: Thank you.
NGUYEN: And for a special 9/11 memorial, turn to the CNN web site. That address is CNN.com/specials/2000/memorial. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired September 6, 2004 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Checking the stories now in the news.
Frances has a return engagement with Florida. The now tropical storm is expected to blow ashore along the Panhandle later today. Meanwhile, utility crews and relief workers are moving into the south and central part of the state lashed by Frances over the weekend. About 2.3 million people are still without electricity.
Seven U.S. Marines were killed in a car bombing outside Fallujah today. It was the highest one-day casualty count for the Marine Expeditionary Force since April. Several other Marines were wounded and three Iraqi troops were killed in this morning's attack. The wounded were taken away in helicopters and troops sealed off the area.
Erratic winds are pushing a 10,000-acre wildfire near California's wine country. Hot and dry conditions are also hampering firefighters, who don't expect to have the Sonoma County fire contained for two more days. Officials say four homes and a dozen cars were destroyed by the fires. Two firefighters have been injured. Two smaller fires are also burning in northern California.
And Vice President Dick Cheney addresses a town hall meeting at the Minnesota state fair this hour. Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards will speak at a Labor Day picnic in St. Paul later today. Minnesota is considered a toss up state in the race for president.
Good morning. Across Florida, dazed homeowners and beleaguered officials are trying to get a handle on the staggering amount of damage left in the wake of Hurricane Frances. It may take days for a firm dollar estimate, but the scope and severity are obvious.
Reporter Carl Willis of CNN affiliate WSTV is in the wake of the storm and joins us now from Cocoa Beach.
Good morning to you.
CARL WILLIS, WSTV CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you.
It seems that fear from the storm has made way for frustration right now.
We're standing at Cocoa Beach, one of the main roads leading into Cocoa Beach, where there is a lot of damage, a lot of flag -- a lot of power poles down on the ground, a lot of traffic lights swaying in the road, making it very dangerous.
Right now we're being told that people living on Cocoa Beach cannot return. They've been here, some of them, since 5 a.m. in the morning. But the locals are -- the local officials are saying that it's just way too dangerous with all those conditions over there to get back.
We've talked to people in there. They're so frustrated, some are saying that they'd rather wait out the storm next time and stay put in their homes than deal with this. A lot of them have been waiting for days, some of them out of town for weeks just dealing with this. And that is a little bit over the top.
We do want everyone to continue to evacuate, of course. But that's just -- it just shows you how frustrated these folks are.
Like I mentioned, there are power poles down. There are -- there's tree debris all in the streets. And there are traffic signals swaying in the road. You can probably see that in some of that video.
Now we are expecting a little bit of a briefing tonight, actually, this morning, at 10:30. Maybe then these folks will learn when they can return back to their home. There's thousands of people out here right now, a family in each car.
It's -- one person categorized it as ridiculous and they are just ready to go home and get some relief and see what damage actually happened to their homes.
NGUYEN: A lot of frustration there. Carl Willis of WSTV this morning, thank you for that.
We want to get an update on the storm, because it's now a tropical depression. Rob Marciano is in the weather center with an update for us.
Good morning, Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: All right. Thank you, Rob.
Well, it's first hit -- came with sound and fury, it is still violent. Frances is lining up to take a second shot at Florida. Here's a look at the damage described by some of -- who made it through the storm.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was scary. It was scary, because one of those shutters was banging. And the noise was incredible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Going over the bridge, the Hummer almost blew off into the water. It was just crazy. And it was scary. I've never been that scared in my life.
Huge trees, trees that you never think would -- probably sitting there for 50 years, were just flying away like nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I lost everything on the farm. Everything's wiped out clean. Nothing left. Everything's gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So now you have to rebuild?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything has to be rebuilt, replanted and everything. All the sheep, the goats, the hogs, everything.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: An outer band came up and it was unbelievable. I was having eight-foot waves coming over the decks of the boats. And the wind got in and actually exploded the boat into 20,000 pieces. I mean, that's what you see floating all over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We had insurance, but I let it expire, and I just never picked it up. I kept forgetting. I kept forgetting. And I can't even talk.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The fire company was here, and I said I can't live here now. It's, you know -- so I have to leave. There's so much -- you know, this is my home. This is my life. You know? It's hard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was the longest one I've ever gone through, and I've gone through quite a few. It was very, very long. It sounded like -- the wind sounded like 180 wheelers racing around the house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a strange storm, I'll tell you. And it is -- it's the worst one that this area has seen in many years, because it was climbing up the coast and going as slow as a turtle and chewing you up like a buzz saw. I mean, it was a long night in Vera Beach last night.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just got back after five months in Baghdad, Iraq, and I thought that was a problem, getting shot at on the RPG Alley in the airport every day with body armor. And today I wish I was back in Baghdad. I'll tell you. The nightmare has only begun for everybody.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: And we want to take a look at relief and recovery efforts in Florida through the eyes of one of the decision makers. Toni Jennings is the lieutenant governor of Florida, and she joins us now from Tallahassee.
Good morning to you.
LT. GOV. TONI JENNINGS (R), FLORIDA: Good morning. How's everybody in Atlanta?
NGUYEN: Well, we're doing great. But the question is, how is everyone in Florida? We've been looking at live pictures coming out of Florida this morning of the damage. How extensive is the damage throughout Florida? JENNINGS: Well, obviously the storm is still in our state. It's working off of our west coast. It will go to the gulf area.
We're hoping it will -- it won't refortify itself. But we here in the big band or the Tallahassee Panhandle area are expecting tropical winds and tropical force winds and rain again today.
So we haven't gotten through with this storm yet. It is probably the largest storm we've ever had. It's engulfed the entire state. Fifty-seven of our 67 counties have been impacted by loss of power alone.
So what we're doing is working our way through restoration. We're focused on mass care at this point. That's the ice, water, food, comfort stations, headed toward those areas in southeast Florida that had the first of the impact.
And we're encouraging people, please, to stay off the roads. We know a lot of people evacuated to south Georgia, and to Alabama. We're asking them to have a little patience. Stay one more day where you are, because we need to have those roads accessible for our emergency people who are coming through the state, our utility companies, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, all of them have helped so tremendously. We just need -- our tanker trucks bringing fuel.
So we're asking people to please stay where you are for another day, and have a little patience. This is going to be awhile to get back to normal.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. And you mentioned fuel. There is a problem with getting enough gas to the gas pumps for people throughout Florida.
JENNINGS: Absolutely there is. And part of that is not just a fuel shortage. Most areas have fuel; they don't have electricity. And of course, the electricity has to run the pumps.
So what we are making sure of is that we do have -- and the port of Everglades is open. It is dispensing fuel as we speak. The highway patrol is escorting the tankers to the distribution areas and from the distribution areas out to the individual retailers.
But our first priority, of course, is to have fuel for those first responders, and for our emergency operations centers and for our hospitals and health centers so that we can provide that service.
So it will be a little while before your -- your corner gas station is probably pumping gas. But it will have a lot more to do with the electricity to pump that gas than it will the supply of fuel.
NGUYEN: Lieutenant Governor, what about restoring power to the millions who are without it right now? What's the status of that?
JENNINGS: Well, millions is absolutely the number. When Charley came through the state several weeks ago from the southwest going out at Daytona Beach, we lost power to about two million people. We're upwards of six million today.
We are probably -- again, as I said, we've impacted almost every county in Florida. Some of them, eight or ten of them with less than 20 percent of the people in their counties having power. It's going to take a little while. Patience will be the word of the week. But...
(AUDIO GAP)
NGUYEN: All right. We've obviously lost that shot with the lieutenant governor, Toni Jennings, there in Florida. If we can get her back, we will.
But for now, more information on Frances, and all you have to do is log onto CNN.com. Our web site has so much information on how to prevent con artists from taking advantage of you. So stay tuned for that. And just log onto CNN.com.
John Kerry kicks off the week with news that the president has pulled ahead in the polls. A live report from the campaign trail with word that Kerry has made a few changes.
Later, a look back at the seven days that followed the September 11 attacks. Meet two people who were caught in the mayhem and documented it for the whole world to see.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Time for a check on the election campaign.
President Bush is trying to secure Missouri's 11 electoral votes. Late this afternoon he will be at a rally in Poplar Bluff, where more than 10,000 people signed petitions, inviting him to visit.
The president flies to Kansas City tonight and has three other speeches in the state tomorrow. Now, two new polls show the president has opened a double-digit lead on Kerry among voters nationwide.
Kerry's getting some help in trying to close that gap in the polls. John Sasso has been named senior adviser traveling with Kerry. Sasso had been working with the Democratic National Committee.
And CNN's Ed Henry is with the Kerry campaign in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, with the latest on all of this.
Good morning to you.
ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Betty.
That's right. Senator John Kerry just wrapped up a campaign event here in Canonsburg. He's still behind me in a private home.
But the bottom line here is that, on this Labor Day, John Kerry is trying to refocus his message on domestic issues. He's trying to hit the jobs issue very hard, saying that President Bush is on tap to be the first president since Herbert Hoover to lose jobs during his first term in office.
Democrats are grumbling right now that Kerry's message in August was muddled, that President Bush was able to surge ahead in the polls you just mentioned, because he was so tightly focused on his strength: the war on terror. So Kerry is now trying to refocus a bit, talking about bread and butter issues: not just jobs, but also education and Medicare.
But at this front porch event, Kerry was repeatedly confronted by Bush supporters. And one heckler in particular was hitting Kerry pretty hard when the senator was trying to say that he would fight for average Americans. It led to a pretty interesting exchange.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The tax burden of the average American family has gone up over the course of the last four years. And me, to just answer that guy, because he's right. I'm privileged. My tax burden went down. And I don't think that's right. I think your tax burden ought to go down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: You can see John Kerry there trying to turn the heckling around, trying to refocus his message.
And this comes at a time right after a long phone conversation Saturday evening between John Kerry and Bill Clinton from his hospital bed. The former president was counseling John Kerry a bit to try to try to pull back from the talk about Vietnam; instead focus on these economic issues, focus on the issues that Bill Clinton was able to ride into office in '92 and '96 on.
And also it comes, as you mentioned, at a time when there have been a lot of staff changes, in addition to John Sasso and Michael Whouley from Boston taking larger roles in the Kerry operation. Also Joe Lockhart, Doug Sosnik, Joel Johnson, various former Clinton officials taking on big roles in the campaign, as well.
A lot of Kerry aides here trying to downplay these changes, saying that the Clinton camp is not taking over the Kerry campaign. What they're saying is that they knew all along that right around Labor Day, as we hit the final stretch of the campaign, there would be a lot of coming and going. It would be all hands on deck. And the Kerry people are saying they need all the help they can get, Betty.
NGUYEN: Ed, how difficult is it to refocus so late in the game, so close to the election?
HENRY: It's very difficult to all of a sudden shift gears. But I can tell you, the model that the Kerry aides are laying out is they are saying that privately the senator is saying he feels this race is going to be just like '96, when he was up a very tough race against Republican Bill Weld. Kerry was behind in the polls. He refocused on those kinds of domestic issues.
He likes to be the comeback guy, sort of when all the chips are down. That's when he really focuses.
It's going to be difficult. The Kerry people are saying that, privately, he says this feels like '96 all over again. He only has two months to get that going. So we'll find out whether or not that's true, Betty.
NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Ed Henry, traveling with the Kerry camp in Pennsylvania today. Thank you.
Painful days to remember. Three years after the attacks, these days are -- many won't forget -- are days that many won't forget. Meet two people who documented what they saw and shared it with the world. And this is what we're working on for our next hour.
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ANNOUNCER: The stories CNN is following today, September 6.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my home. This is my life. It's hard.
ANNOUNCER: Hurricane Frances takes a toll on Florida. At 11, the hardest hit areas and where the storm is moving next.
Then, former President Clinton undergoes bypass surgery. We're live from New York.
And at noon, Kerry and Bush, the latest on the campaign trail.
Stay with CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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NGUYEN: Haunting images of the September 11 attacks, just days before the third anniversary, a time capsule of sorts becomes available on DVD. Tomorrow marks the release of "Seven Days in September," a documentary that talks about 9/11's impact on young people.
And it revisits two of the children interviewed three years ago, both 12-years-old at the time. Shane Ferrer-Sheehy articulated the hawkish perspective in the days after the attacks, and Max Rosenbaum, the son of the film's director, made the dove's case for peace. They are now 15 years old and join us from New York.
Good morning to you both.
SHANE FERRER-SHEEHY, APPEARS IN "SEVEN DAYS IN SEPTEMBER": Good morning.
MAX ROSENBAUM, APPEARS IN "SEVEN DAYS IN SEPTEMBER": Good morning,
NGUYEN: Max, talk to us. Take us back to that day when the attacks occurred. What was going through your mind?
ROSENBAUM: Well, it was -- it was a really confusing time, because we really didn't know what was going on. And it was just -- it was -- a lot of people were really sad. And I feel that we -- we really got a sense of unity after that. And I think that sense, you know, really is what held us together.
NGUYEN: We want to show a clip right now of what Shane had to say right after the attacks. Let's listen.
FERRER-SHEEHY: It's really horrible, you know, that thousands of people just ended, you know, suddenly ended. And that fuels anger and hatred. And I just am very, you know, I'm about to cry right now. But I'm just, you know, very sad and angry that this happened and so many people had to die, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't have to die.
FERRER-SHEEHY: And they didn't have to die. I mean, there's no need for this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Pretty powerful statement, Shane. How have these attacks affected you some three years later?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, the attacks, of course, affected all of America. And it raised us to a heightened risk, a heightened -- we're -- the country, is -- it's not impregnable. That's what we learned from September 11. And before, you know, we felt that America was -- at least I did, was almost invulnerable. But now we realized that we are vulnerable. And it made me feel very vulnerable.
NGUYEN: What about you, Max?
ROSENBAUM: I had much the same feeling where I felt like, you know, it was America. You know, you couldn't harm it. But, you know, it really taught us that it could be harmed. And, you know, now we have a post-9/11 phase, where it's almost -- it's like we're afraid of everything in a way.
NGUYEN: Max, did September 11 play a big role in what you decided to do with your life? You want to become a filmmaker and play a role in politics as well?
ROSENBAUM: Yes, it definitely did. I -- I've done many things since then. I've made -- actually, I just finished a film all about George Bush, and the past four years. You can it at CameraPlanet.com/sevendays, actually.
NGUYEN: A little plug there for you.
OK. Well, Shane, how has it affected you and what you plan to do with your life and the career ahead of you?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, I don't want to get into politics, because I don't like politicians. But 9/11 did get me much more involved with politics than I was before. And I pay attention to the world much more now. And I hope -- I plan to use my power when I get old enough to vote.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. We want to show a quick clip now of what both of you had to say about what America should do following these attacks. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FERRER-SHEEHY: Osama Bin Laden, and it hasn't been confirmed yet, but you know, Saddam Hussein has been a suspect in supplying him with the resources and things. So I think, you know, those two should be, you know, quote, "brought to justice," unquote, as many of our leaders. But you know, in reality I think we should kill them.
ROSENBAUM: I have to admit I am, like, mad at whoever would do this, but nobody -- we don't know who. So like, you know, we shouldn't blame anybody. And, I mean, if we were to have peace, like, it would show that we were really civilized.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Max, do you still feel people shouldn't be blamed for this?
ROSENBAUM: Well, my opinion has changed a bit. And I feel that, I think, you know, there are people who are guilty for what happened. But the way that we went about, you know, and sort of brought justice, I don't think it was the right way.
I think that the war in Iraq was really, you know, it showed that we aren't as civilized as I think we are in a way. We kind of -- we just took revenge. And in the end, our president ended up using our own anger against us.
NGUYEN: Shane, quickly, we're almost out of time, but do you still feel the same about Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein?
FERRER-SHEEHY: Well, Saddam Hussein still hasn't been proved to be linked to the 9/11 attacks. But I still think that in all cases, he was a bad -- he was a bad man, and we should have -- I think we should have taken care of him in the first Desert Storm.
And on -- along the lines of Osama Bin Laden? I think that we should find him, and we should bring him to justice.
NGUYEN: All right. Shane Ferrer-Sheehy and Max Rosenbaum, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate that.
FERRER-SHEEHEY: Thank you.
ROSENBAUM: Thank you.
NGUYEN: And for a special 9/11 memorial, turn to the CNN web site. That address is CNN.com/specials/2000/memorial. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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