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President Bush Makes Remarks Later Today at a National Guard Convention; A Conversation with Laila Ali

Aired September 14, 2004 - 11:31   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.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR": I'm Daryn Kagan in Atlanta. Let's check what's happening now in the news for this Tuesday, September 14th. President Bush is in Colorado this morning, promoting his reform plans for health care. Later today, he'll be in Las Vegas to thank National Guardsmen for their help in Iraq and Afghanistan.
CIA director-nominee Porter Goss is in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee at this hour. There's Senator Paul Levin of Michigan. If confirmed, he'll succeed George Tenet, who resigned in June, but proposed intelligence reforms leave the job of CIA director in doubt at this point.

Hurricane Ivan moved into the Gulf of Mexico today, after brushing the western tip of Cuba. Top sustained winds are at 155 miles an hour. Landfall is expected along the central U.S. Gulf Coast probably by Thursday.

Jurors in the Scott Peterson murder case will hear more testimony today from a state criminalist. She testified that tiny specs of blood were found on the Peterson's bed, but she said no blood was found on two mops in the Peterson home.

Keeping you informed, CNN is the most trusted name in news.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: That includes the mayor New Orleans. He isn't taking any chances, as Hurricane Ivan storms toward the Gulf Coast. He has called for a voluntary evacuation of the Big Easy. Mayor Ray Nagin join me in the last hour, telling me that the city is especially vulnerable, since most of it is below sea level.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MYR. RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: We are preparing like the storm will hit New Orleans, or within the New Orleans area, and have some significant impact, negative impact on the city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The mayor says that he's urging people who aren't able to leave New Orleans to move to hotels or high-rise buildings. They call that vertical evacuations.

We move on to the storm of politics. President Bush's remarks later today at a National Guard convention come smack dab in the middle of the latest flap over his own service in the Guard. CNN plans to air portions of President Bush's speech live during CNN's "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:00 p.m. Why not bring in "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff, joining us to talk about the speech, also implications for the presidential campaign.

Judy, good morning.

JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Daryn. Good morning.

KAGAN: Do we expect the president to address, anyway, these latest questions coming up about whether or not he did fulfill his Guard obligations.

WOODRUFF: Well, we don't think so, Daryn. Our political editor, John Mercurio, has been told by the Bush people that the president is not likely to bring it up. Instead, he is likely to spend some time talking up his own strong support for the military, and he'll get in a few zingers in John Kerry's direction, trying to criticize him for being inconsistent in supporting the war on terror.

KAGAN: And so, meanwhile, what are critics of President Bush doing about trying to drive home questions about his service?

WOODRUFF: Well, they're busy today, Daryn. The DNC, the Democrat National Committee chairman, Terry McAuliffe, holding a news conference this morning. They're announcing a new initiative called "Operation Fortunate Son." They're going to be unveiling a new video, which we're told is going to focus on what they call the unanswered questions about President Bush's service in the National Guard.

Separately, a group calling itself Texans for Truth is going to hold a news conference later this morning, in which they are going to say they're putting out a reward for anyone who comes forward with information offering definitive proof that Bush fulfilled his military obligations while he served in the Guard in Alabama. So on two fronts they're going after the president.

KAGAN: Well, and so Bush supporters will say, look, John Kerry is letting the others do the dirty work for him. Is the candidate having anything to say about this?

WOODRUFF: Again, we're told by the Kerry campaign that John Kerry himself won't talk about that. Instead, he's going to point the finger back at President Bush, and talk about the time that President Bush said that he might veto the appropriations for the war in Iraq, because he might not like the way it was structured.

But, Daryn, I have to say, I think the Kerry people are more likely to talk today about two important endorsements they're getting. One connected with all of this is a group of military families, something like 1,700 military families are holding a news conference today. They're calling themselves "Military Families Speak Out." They're going to accuse the president of betraying the national Guard, because they say, he sent National Guardsmen over to Iraq, based on what they call lies about what was going on there. So there's that, and then there's also some endorsements from the widows of the victims of the World Trade Center attack, the so-called "Jersey Girls." They're going to be endorsing John Kerry, too. So my guess is the campaign's going to be pointing to that more than they are to anything else.

KAGAN: So all these news conferences, the election seven weeks from today, this explains why we've put your show "INSIDE POLITICS" on steroids and expanded it from now until the election.

WOODRUFF: I don't know whether that's an apt analogy or not, but thanks for the plug. That's right, we start at 3:00 Eastern, starting yesterday actually. But you're right, Daryn, we are seven weeks, and can you believe only seven weeks from this election? It seems like only yesterday we were back in 2000, doesn't it?

KAGAN: Amazing. So fact, and you were sitting here and sitting here all night long.

WOODRUFF: And sitting here and sitting here.

KAGAN: Yes, that was a long night.

Judy, thank you. We'll see you later today.

WOODRUFF: OK, thanks, Daryn.

KAGAN: Well, Are you feeling a little bit cramped when you're back there flying coach? That might be the least of your problems. The real danger of those long flights is coming up in your "Daily Dose" of health news.

And later, America's queen of the ring is following in the footsteps of her legendary father. Look at that beautiful woman. Laila Ali is with me coming up in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Long hours spent in a cramped airplane seat can be uncomfortable. It can even be dangerous. Now, doctors have come up with new recommendations to reduce the risk of blood clots for air travelers.

Senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has details in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Some refer to it as Coach Syndrome. It's called deep vein thrombosis, or deep venus thrombosis. These are clots that form in your leg when you don't move around enough. You get dehydrated, or even sitting in a plane for too long.

What it is basically is a clot -- a blood clot deep in some of the veins in your legs. The concern is that it can break off sometimes, travel through the bloodstream, and end up in your lung. Because they are somewhat common, researchers are forming new guidelines to try and prevent these things from happening in the first place.

And the journal "Chest," they have some new guidelines. Here they are. First of all, injection of a low-molecular form of Heparin. That is a blood thinner. Sometimes doctors will actually recommend that you get an injection of these before you get on a long flight.

There's also something known as compression stockings -- they're called TED hose. You've seen them before. They're white. They go up to your knee. The goal is to keep the blood moving from your lower legs up into the rest of your body.

Now, there are also some common-sensical type guidelines, as well: don't wear any tight-fitting clothes; stay as well hydrated as you can; and stretch those calf muscles as much as possible.

Interestingly, aspirin is not typically recommended to try and prevent these clots. Not enough studies done on these. And aspirin can have some side effects, including stomach irritation and longer periods of bleeding time, as well.

The good news is not everyone is predisposed to these DVTs. There are people who are more likely to develop them, and they should follow these guidelines more closely. They are people who have had previous blood clots, who a family history, bad varicose legs -- those are those ugly veins on the legs -- and people with chronic illness. Watch out if you have any of those conditions.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

For your "Daily Dose" of health news online, logon to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical stories, special reports, and a health library. The address is cnn.com.

All right. Up next, her father floated like a butterfly, stung like a bee. She's got a serious sting of her own. Ms. Laila Ali is my guest. I intend to be nice. Look at those muscles.

I'll be back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAILA ALI, BOXER: No, you stood up to me, little mama. You stood up...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Break it up. Break it up. Break it up. Break it up.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KAGAN: Two boxers, one big fight. That was Laila Ali and Christy Martin fighting before their actual fight last August. By the way, Ali did win that match, destroying her opponent on four one-sided rounds to take TKO.

That was then, this is now. The daughter of famed fighter Muhammad Ali. She is famous in her own right, having fought her way to 18-0 record with 15 knockouts. She's going after another win soon, squaring off against Gwendolyn O'Neil. Laila Ali, here, for a light heavyweight world title.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: Good morning.

ALI: Good morning.

KAGAN: Thrilled to meet you.

ALI: Thank you.

KAGAN: You're going over weight class for this next fight.

ALI: Yes, yes. This girl happens to be a little heavier, which is no problem for me; I just don't have to watch what I eat as much, because I normally walk around at a heavier weight anyway. But you know, I really have it out for her, because we were supposed to fight last year in Africa.

KAGAN: Well, this is what I want to ask you about. This goes back to January, earlier this year.

ALI: Yes.

KAGAN: There was supposed to a fight. She said you were scared to show up.

ALI: Right, right, right.

KAGAN: So what's up with that, Laila? Were you scared?

ALI: Come on now.

KAGAN: She wasn't scared. She was not scared.

ALI: No, what happened was is that, you know, we were dealing with some promoters, the deal didn't go through, so I didn't go out to Africa for business reasons. I didn't get what I was supposed to get before I went.

But she went out there. So basically, she got in the ring, and they just staged this whole show like I didn't show up. They weren't going to tell her, oh, we didn't pay her, so that's why she's not here, you know, so.

KAGAN: But you say it's a business deal gone bad. ALI: Exactly.

KAGAN: Rescheduled for now. This woman, who you're fighting Gwendolyn O'Neil, she's a mother of five. How do you get in the ring and hit a mother of five?

ALI: What does that have to do with anything?

KAGAN: No one cares.

ALI: You know, I don't care. I mean, you get in the ring, you want to fight me. This woman's a world champion. I'm coming up. I'm challenging her, do you know what I mean. There's nobody that's a mandatory opponent for me. I can fight pretty much whoever I want to fight.

So that -- you can kill the noise about me being scared, because if I was scared, I wouldn't fight her. I have no reason to be scared. Well, we'll see that. That's the same thing a lot of these other women have said, and I'm the one who is undefeated with all the knockouts.

KAGAN: You're record does speak for itself.

I just want to share some of these words. And please stay seated, because their her words, not mine; I'm just the messenger here, where she says that she thought you were scared. She said, "She tried to duck me. I know I would have knocked her out. I'm still prepared to fight her once she has the guts to mix it up with me. I'm not in this business to joke around. This is a serious business; 40,000 people turned up at that stadium to witness that battle."

ALI: Exactly. And you know what, now's that opportunity to back all that up, because we're going to be fighting here in Atlanta on the 24th at the Phillips Arena, and I'm going be right there in that ring in front of her, so she can throw all that noise out.

KAGAN: We will settle -- or you actually will settle this in the ring. You intend to add perhaps another knockout to your record.

ALI: Well, I'm the one that everybody knows. I'm the one with the famous name. My dad fought in Africa. He's loved in Africa. And you know, how you think that made me feel to have all of those African people thinking that I didn't show up. They don't know what happened, do you what I mean. They just know that I was supposed to be there, and I wasn't, so that was very hurtful to begin with. So I really have it out for this girl.

KAGAN: OK, glad I'm not her.

Let me ask you a question about your dad, because he made some news over this last week. He went to Congress and testified about boxing reforms, talking about the sport. I imagine in terms of men, how do you feel like the sport is developing for women?

ALI: I think that it is developing. It's definitely going to take time, you know what I mean. Women's boxing is so far behind men's boxing, you know what I mean. A lot of times when they're making these changes, like you said, my dad is going and talking about boxing, he's talking about men's boxing, not really women's boxing, you know what I mean. And then, later on, those changes will trickle down, you know, but there's a lot of things that need to be changed in women's boxing, like women fight two minute rounds instead of three. For what reason? There isn't one?

KAGAN: You want to see it longer, you want to see it more intense?

ALI: Yes, exactly.

KAGAN: But you know, you grew up in the sport. You have seen what has happened, the effects of boxing many years, to the men. You're not concerned about the same things happening to you.

ALI: You're not talking about a difference between two and three minutes, you're talking about boxing.

KAGAN: No, I'm just talking overall.

ALI: Right, well any fighter that's in the ring is aware of what can happen, and that's what makes us different, a little off, in my opinion. Right, and that's fine. I feel fine for you to feel that way. I feel fine for anyone watching to think that I'm crazy, because maybe I am, because sometimes I think I am, but this is what my heart desires to do. So while I'm on this Earth, that's what I'm going to do.

KAGAN: That is what you're going to do.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: OK, and just for the record, I've got to say, she's got the tough side, but the girl has time to get a good pedicure.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: You've got the girl thing down well.

ALI: I am married, and my husband does appreciate me to look and act like a lady outside of the ring.

KAGAN: And that you're doing.

Well, good luck with the fight.

ALI: All right. Thank you.

KAGAN: Laila Ali, the fight right here in Atlanta, September 24th. Thanks for stopping by.

ALI: Thanks for having me on.

We're going to take a break. We're back after this. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

KAGAN: That's going to wrap it up for me, Daryn Kagan. I'll be right back here, tracking Hurricane Ivan for you tomorrow morning.

Meanwhile, Wolf Blitzer takes over. He is back in his seat in Washington D.C.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired September 14, 2004 - 11:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR": I'm Daryn Kagan in Atlanta. Let's check what's happening now in the news for this Tuesday, September 14th. President Bush is in Colorado this morning, promoting his reform plans for health care. Later today, he'll be in Las Vegas to thank National Guardsmen for their help in Iraq and Afghanistan.
CIA director-nominee Porter Goss is in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee at this hour. There's Senator Paul Levin of Michigan. If confirmed, he'll succeed George Tenet, who resigned in June, but proposed intelligence reforms leave the job of CIA director in doubt at this point.

Hurricane Ivan moved into the Gulf of Mexico today, after brushing the western tip of Cuba. Top sustained winds are at 155 miles an hour. Landfall is expected along the central U.S. Gulf Coast probably by Thursday.

Jurors in the Scott Peterson murder case will hear more testimony today from a state criminalist. She testified that tiny specs of blood were found on the Peterson's bed, but she said no blood was found on two mops in the Peterson home.

Keeping you informed, CNN is the most trusted name in news.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: That includes the mayor New Orleans. He isn't taking any chances, as Hurricane Ivan storms toward the Gulf Coast. He has called for a voluntary evacuation of the Big Easy. Mayor Ray Nagin join me in the last hour, telling me that the city is especially vulnerable, since most of it is below sea level.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MYR. RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: We are preparing like the storm will hit New Orleans, or within the New Orleans area, and have some significant impact, negative impact on the city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The mayor says that he's urging people who aren't able to leave New Orleans to move to hotels or high-rise buildings. They call that vertical evacuations.

We move on to the storm of politics. President Bush's remarks later today at a National Guard convention come smack dab in the middle of the latest flap over his own service in the Guard. CNN plans to air portions of President Bush's speech live during CNN's "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:00 p.m. Why not bring in "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff, joining us to talk about the speech, also implications for the presidential campaign.

Judy, good morning.

JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Daryn. Good morning.

KAGAN: Do we expect the president to address, anyway, these latest questions coming up about whether or not he did fulfill his Guard obligations.

WOODRUFF: Well, we don't think so, Daryn. Our political editor, John Mercurio, has been told by the Bush people that the president is not likely to bring it up. Instead, he is likely to spend some time talking up his own strong support for the military, and he'll get in a few zingers in John Kerry's direction, trying to criticize him for being inconsistent in supporting the war on terror.

KAGAN: And so, meanwhile, what are critics of President Bush doing about trying to drive home questions about his service?

WOODRUFF: Well, they're busy today, Daryn. The DNC, the Democrat National Committee chairman, Terry McAuliffe, holding a news conference this morning. They're announcing a new initiative called "Operation Fortunate Son." They're going to be unveiling a new video, which we're told is going to focus on what they call the unanswered questions about President Bush's service in the National Guard.

Separately, a group calling itself Texans for Truth is going to hold a news conference later this morning, in which they are going to say they're putting out a reward for anyone who comes forward with information offering definitive proof that Bush fulfilled his military obligations while he served in the Guard in Alabama. So on two fronts they're going after the president.

KAGAN: Well, and so Bush supporters will say, look, John Kerry is letting the others do the dirty work for him. Is the candidate having anything to say about this?

WOODRUFF: Again, we're told by the Kerry campaign that John Kerry himself won't talk about that. Instead, he's going to point the finger back at President Bush, and talk about the time that President Bush said that he might veto the appropriations for the war in Iraq, because he might not like the way it was structured.

But, Daryn, I have to say, I think the Kerry people are more likely to talk today about two important endorsements they're getting. One connected with all of this is a group of military families, something like 1,700 military families are holding a news conference today. They're calling themselves "Military Families Speak Out." They're going to accuse the president of betraying the national Guard, because they say, he sent National Guardsmen over to Iraq, based on what they call lies about what was going on there. So there's that, and then there's also some endorsements from the widows of the victims of the World Trade Center attack, the so-called "Jersey Girls." They're going to be endorsing John Kerry, too. So my guess is the campaign's going to be pointing to that more than they are to anything else.

KAGAN: So all these news conferences, the election seven weeks from today, this explains why we've put your show "INSIDE POLITICS" on steroids and expanded it from now until the election.

WOODRUFF: I don't know whether that's an apt analogy or not, but thanks for the plug. That's right, we start at 3:00 Eastern, starting yesterday actually. But you're right, Daryn, we are seven weeks, and can you believe only seven weeks from this election? It seems like only yesterday we were back in 2000, doesn't it?

KAGAN: Amazing. So fact, and you were sitting here and sitting here all night long.

WOODRUFF: And sitting here and sitting here.

KAGAN: Yes, that was a long night.

Judy, thank you. We'll see you later today.

WOODRUFF: OK, thanks, Daryn.

KAGAN: Well, Are you feeling a little bit cramped when you're back there flying coach? That might be the least of your problems. The real danger of those long flights is coming up in your "Daily Dose" of health news.

And later, America's queen of the ring is following in the footsteps of her legendary father. Look at that beautiful woman. Laila Ali is with me coming up in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Long hours spent in a cramped airplane seat can be uncomfortable. It can even be dangerous. Now, doctors have come up with new recommendations to reduce the risk of blood clots for air travelers.

Senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta has details in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Some refer to it as Coach Syndrome. It's called deep vein thrombosis, or deep venus thrombosis. These are clots that form in your leg when you don't move around enough. You get dehydrated, or even sitting in a plane for too long.

What it is basically is a clot -- a blood clot deep in some of the veins in your legs. The concern is that it can break off sometimes, travel through the bloodstream, and end up in your lung. Because they are somewhat common, researchers are forming new guidelines to try and prevent these things from happening in the first place.

And the journal "Chest," they have some new guidelines. Here they are. First of all, injection of a low-molecular form of Heparin. That is a blood thinner. Sometimes doctors will actually recommend that you get an injection of these before you get on a long flight.

There's also something known as compression stockings -- they're called TED hose. You've seen them before. They're white. They go up to your knee. The goal is to keep the blood moving from your lower legs up into the rest of your body.

Now, there are also some common-sensical type guidelines, as well: don't wear any tight-fitting clothes; stay as well hydrated as you can; and stretch those calf muscles as much as possible.

Interestingly, aspirin is not typically recommended to try and prevent these clots. Not enough studies done on these. And aspirin can have some side effects, including stomach irritation and longer periods of bleeding time, as well.

The good news is not everyone is predisposed to these DVTs. There are people who are more likely to develop them, and they should follow these guidelines more closely. They are people who have had previous blood clots, who a family history, bad varicose legs -- those are those ugly veins on the legs -- and people with chronic illness. Watch out if you have any of those conditions.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

For your "Daily Dose" of health news online, logon to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical stories, special reports, and a health library. The address is cnn.com.

All right. Up next, her father floated like a butterfly, stung like a bee. She's got a serious sting of her own. Ms. Laila Ali is my guest. I intend to be nice. Look at those muscles.

I'll be back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAILA ALI, BOXER: No, you stood up to me, little mama. You stood up...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Break it up. Break it up. Break it up. Break it up.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KAGAN: Two boxers, one big fight. That was Laila Ali and Christy Martin fighting before their actual fight last August. By the way, Ali did win that match, destroying her opponent on four one-sided rounds to take TKO.

That was then, this is now. The daughter of famed fighter Muhammad Ali. She is famous in her own right, having fought her way to 18-0 record with 15 knockouts. She's going after another win soon, squaring off against Gwendolyn O'Neil. Laila Ali, here, for a light heavyweight world title.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: Good morning.

ALI: Good morning.

KAGAN: Thrilled to meet you.

ALI: Thank you.

KAGAN: You're going over weight class for this next fight.

ALI: Yes, yes. This girl happens to be a little heavier, which is no problem for me; I just don't have to watch what I eat as much, because I normally walk around at a heavier weight anyway. But you know, I really have it out for her, because we were supposed to fight last year in Africa.

KAGAN: Well, this is what I want to ask you about. This goes back to January, earlier this year.

ALI: Yes.

KAGAN: There was supposed to a fight. She said you were scared to show up.

ALI: Right, right, right.

KAGAN: So what's up with that, Laila? Were you scared?

ALI: Come on now.

KAGAN: She wasn't scared. She was not scared.

ALI: No, what happened was is that, you know, we were dealing with some promoters, the deal didn't go through, so I didn't go out to Africa for business reasons. I didn't get what I was supposed to get before I went.

But she went out there. So basically, she got in the ring, and they just staged this whole show like I didn't show up. They weren't going to tell her, oh, we didn't pay her, so that's why she's not here, you know, so.

KAGAN: But you say it's a business deal gone bad. ALI: Exactly.

KAGAN: Rescheduled for now. This woman, who you're fighting Gwendolyn O'Neil, she's a mother of five. How do you get in the ring and hit a mother of five?

ALI: What does that have to do with anything?

KAGAN: No one cares.

ALI: You know, I don't care. I mean, you get in the ring, you want to fight me. This woman's a world champion. I'm coming up. I'm challenging her, do you know what I mean. There's nobody that's a mandatory opponent for me. I can fight pretty much whoever I want to fight.

So that -- you can kill the noise about me being scared, because if I was scared, I wouldn't fight her. I have no reason to be scared. Well, we'll see that. That's the same thing a lot of these other women have said, and I'm the one who is undefeated with all the knockouts.

KAGAN: You're record does speak for itself.

I just want to share some of these words. And please stay seated, because their her words, not mine; I'm just the messenger here, where she says that she thought you were scared. She said, "She tried to duck me. I know I would have knocked her out. I'm still prepared to fight her once she has the guts to mix it up with me. I'm not in this business to joke around. This is a serious business; 40,000 people turned up at that stadium to witness that battle."

ALI: Exactly. And you know what, now's that opportunity to back all that up, because we're going to be fighting here in Atlanta on the 24th at the Phillips Arena, and I'm going be right there in that ring in front of her, so she can throw all that noise out.

KAGAN: We will settle -- or you actually will settle this in the ring. You intend to add perhaps another knockout to your record.

ALI: Well, I'm the one that everybody knows. I'm the one with the famous name. My dad fought in Africa. He's loved in Africa. And you know, how you think that made me feel to have all of those African people thinking that I didn't show up. They don't know what happened, do you what I mean. They just know that I was supposed to be there, and I wasn't, so that was very hurtful to begin with. So I really have it out for this girl.

KAGAN: OK, glad I'm not her.

Let me ask you a question about your dad, because he made some news over this last week. He went to Congress and testified about boxing reforms, talking about the sport. I imagine in terms of men, how do you feel like the sport is developing for women?

ALI: I think that it is developing. It's definitely going to take time, you know what I mean. Women's boxing is so far behind men's boxing, you know what I mean. A lot of times when they're making these changes, like you said, my dad is going and talking about boxing, he's talking about men's boxing, not really women's boxing, you know what I mean. And then, later on, those changes will trickle down, you know, but there's a lot of things that need to be changed in women's boxing, like women fight two minute rounds instead of three. For what reason? There isn't one?

KAGAN: You want to see it longer, you want to see it more intense?

ALI: Yes, exactly.

KAGAN: But you know, you grew up in the sport. You have seen what has happened, the effects of boxing many years, to the men. You're not concerned about the same things happening to you.

ALI: You're not talking about a difference between two and three minutes, you're talking about boxing.

KAGAN: No, I'm just talking overall.

ALI: Right, well any fighter that's in the ring is aware of what can happen, and that's what makes us different, a little off, in my opinion. Right, and that's fine. I feel fine for you to feel that way. I feel fine for anyone watching to think that I'm crazy, because maybe I am, because sometimes I think I am, but this is what my heart desires to do. So while I'm on this Earth, that's what I'm going to do.

KAGAN: That is what you're going to do.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: OK, and just for the record, I've got to say, she's got the tough side, but the girl has time to get a good pedicure.

ALI: That's right.

KAGAN: You've got the girl thing down well.

ALI: I am married, and my husband does appreciate me to look and act like a lady outside of the ring.

KAGAN: And that you're doing.

Well, good luck with the fight.

ALI: All right. Thank you.

KAGAN: Laila Ali, the fight right here in Atlanta, September 24th. Thanks for stopping by.

ALI: Thanks for having me on.

We're going to take a break. We're back after this. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

KAGAN: That's going to wrap it up for me, Daryn Kagan. I'll be right back here, tracking Hurricane Ivan for you tomorrow morning.

Meanwhile, Wolf Blitzer takes over. He is back in his seat in Washington D.C.

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