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CNN Live Today

Assessing the Damage from Hurricane Jeanne; Virgin Announces Plans for Regular Space Flights; Sports Getaways

Aired September 27, 2004 - 11:30   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: Well, good morning, I'm Betty Nguyen here in Atlanta. Let's heck what's happening now in the news for Monday the 27th of September.
The Army is reportedly considering cutting the time troops spend in combat zones. "The New York Times" quotes senior Army officials as saying they are considering shortening the 12-month tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's believed that such a move would be a way of boosting recruitment and troop retention rates. But the Army tells CNN this is just a consideration and that nothing has been decided.

Gas prices are climbing again. They're up a nickel over the past two weeks to a national average of $1.91 a gallon. Analysts blame a series of hurricanes that swept Florida, shutting down oil rigs in the Gulf as well as coastal refineries.

And the Bureau of Prisons has given Martha Stewart an inmate number, putting her one step closer to incarceration. A federal judge has ordered Stewart to begin serving her five-month sentence by October 8th.

About 2.6 million homes and businesses are without power this morning in the aftermath of Hurricane Jeanne. A lot of people experiencing damage. Homes are destroyed, roofs are ripped off.

We want to talk right now on the phone with Theresa Woodson. The Indian River County Emergency Operations Center, that's where she is. And Theresa, are you there first off?

THERESA WOODSON, INDIAN RIVER CO. EMERG. OPS.: Yes, I am.

NGUYEN: All right. Good morning to you. We're looking at some pictures of the devastate that Jeanne caused there. Talk to us about the damage that you've been able to assess so far.

WOODSON: Well, I think what we're seeing, and probably your viewers are seeing at this point, is the damage from Hurricane Jeanne is in excess, by far, of the damage that we had with Hurricane Frances. And it is probably because of Hurricane Frances and the remnants of Ivan that we've received -- that the damage is as significant as it is, plus the fact that the storm had stronger winds.

But when the storm came in, we had weakened conditions, that our ground was softer because it was wet, our trees were already weakened by Hurricane Frances beating at them, as were our homes -- our structures of our homes and our businesses. So, then to have increased winds with Hurricane Jeanne on those weakened structures is, I believe, what has left us with the images that you're seeing now.

NGUYEN: Yes, just devastating images. And part of the problem is when Frances came along, Jeanne came not too far behind it and they made similar paths. I think -- I imagine you're experiencing some difficulty trying to determine exactly what was caused by Frances and what is caused by Jeanne.

WOODSON: That is true. I mean, there are some places that we do know specifically what it looked like, you know, after Frances and -- but yes, at this point it's just -- the recovery operation is consolidated. We were still recovering from Frances and now we're trying to recover from Jeanne. So, it's all been a consolidated effort there.

NGUYEN: And as you continue this recovery, what are crews doing today?

WOODSON: Well, today we have -- we've got, of course, our utility companies are scrambling, because that will be the key to recovery is the sooner we can get power, the sooner we can get people to be able to care for themselves independently.

Until that happens, we are having to pull resources through the state and federal government for food, water, and ice just to keep people functioning at some level. What will help us greatly, for any of your viewers who are out of the area, evacuated to other areas of the State of Florida or other states -- and we've had many calls from them -- these images help us to allow them to understand why it is just too soon for them to return.

We are not allowing any access to the island at this time. And even in areas on the mainland, there will be no power for a significant period of time; we're told up to three weeks. If they are safe and comfortable where they are, we would recommend they stay there for a while.

NGUYEN: All right. Possibly even three weeks or longer. No power. Looking at the devastation in that video. We thank you for your time, Theresa Woodson, with the Indian River County Emergency Operation Center on this phone with us this morning.

By the way, Theresa Woodson didn't even have power herself, so she was just talking to us on the phone. Could not even see the pictures that we were putting up there, but obviously knows them firsthand.

We want to talk to Jacqui Jeras about Jeanne, as she is still blowing out there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: All right, Jacqui Jeras, thank you.

Thirty-six days to go until the presidential election, and the candidates are getting ready to face each other and the public in their first debate later this week. Democrat John Kerry is in Wisconsin. Here's a live picture right now, holding a town hall meeting in Spring Green. He's pressing his criticism of the president's handling of Iraq and the war on terror. Kerry spends the rest of the day off the trail, prepping for Thursday's debate.

Now, a similar drill today for President Bush. He takes time out from debate preps at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, to hold campaign events in Ohio.

As always, "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff is keeping a close watch on the candidates and their strategy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Hi, Betty.

NGUYEN: Judy, just days before the first debate, the rhetoric over Iraq and terror is really heating up, isn't it?

WOODRUFF: That's right, Betty. And it's not just heating up on the trail. We are seeing increasingly very tough language in the ads that the campaigns are running and their allies.

The last few days, a group calling itself Progress for America -- and it's one of those so-called 527 groups -- put an ad out, not only with pictures of Osama bin Laden, but pictures of Mohammed Atta, one of the September 11th hijackers. And the message of the ad was would you trust John Kerry against these fanatic killers? It probably goes further than any other ad we've seen.

And it picks up, frankly, on the messages we've been hearing from President Bush on the campaign trail. He's been arguing that these mixed messages from John Kerry and his allies give aid and comfort to the enemy, in so many words.

And coming back, for their part, the Kerry camp is now being forced to defend themselves. They've had to put out an ad over the weekend where they say what the Bush/Cheney camp is doing is despicable. They're calling on the president to disavow these ads.

So, it's gotten pretty down and dirty. And Betty, I think it's going to stay this way right up through Election Day, with debates coming up, starting this Thursday, and for the next two weeks after that.

NGUYEN: Judy Woodruff, looking forward to all that you have to say on "INSIDE POLITICS." Thank you.

WOODRUFF: Thanks, Betty. We'll see you at 3:00 Eastern.

NGUYEN: All right. Thanks, Judy.

Well, CNN of the first presidential debate from Coral Gables, Florida, begins at 8:00 Eastern this Thursday night.

Meanwhile, a medical alert from the CDC this week. We'll find out why the agency is urging some Americans to get their flu shots sooner than later.

Also, how about a vacation with a kick? We'll check out some of the best getaways for sport fans.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Whether flying around the world in a balloon or racing across the ocean, for Richard Branson the sky is no longer the limit when it comes to travel adventures. His next horizon: space.

That's right. Branson has just announced a plan to launch regular passengers into space. He joins me now from London with the latest on this. Good morning to you.

RICHARD BRANSON, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, THE VIRGIN GROUP: Good morning.

NGUYEN: Well, let's talk about this. It's going to be called Virgin Galactic. How exactly is this going to work?

BRANSON: Well, in three years' time, we plan to build -- or completed building five manned spacecraft to take people into space. Paul Allen and Burt Rutan have pioneered it with SpaceShipOne, the technology. And we're taking that technology and -- again, to enable, hopefully, three or 4,000 people over the next five years to become astronauts, to go up into space, to experience weightlessness, to experience space travel, to look back at the earth and see it as round.

And so today, Virgin Galactic Airways is born, and we're going to start looking for our passengers and building our craft.

NGUYEN: Five years. That's coming up pretty quickly. Is that a lofty goal, or do you think you really can do it within five years' time? And how many people are you looking at to launch this with?

BRANSON: Well, three years from now, we plan to launch the first craft, VSS Enterprise. And I've certainly booked my ticket on that one. And then, over the next -- over the following two to three years, we think we can take three or 4,000 people. So, it's really quite soon.

This Wednesday, one of the test crafts, SpaceShipOne, will be going up into space. And next Monday, another flight will be going up in SpaceShipOne. And it's that technology that we're adapting and that we've actually licensed from Paul Allen, which is going to enable us to do it.

NGUYEN: How much are tickets on these flights going to cost? Obviously it's going to be a pretty penny.

BRANSON: Initially, the tickets will not be cheap. They will be something like $170,000. But if we can get the first 3,000 passengers signed up and on board and flying, you know, our pledge is that we'll re-invest any profits we make in trying to bring the price of tickets down. And i think if we can get those prices down by a half, then I think a lot more people would be able to fly. So, either that's something which we're aiming to do.

NGUYEN: Quickly, let me ask you, how far into space will these flights go? And do you have to be under certain physical constraints? Are there certain requirements for passengers on these flights?

BRANSON: No. Age is no limit. My father is 86, has already booked his ticket. He'll be 90 by the time we fly. And you know, so physical fitness is not an essential part of it.

You'll be going about 130 miles up. So, you'll be -- space is 100 miles from here. So, you'll be going into space by about 130 miles. The whole spacecraft then turns into a shuttle cart and drifts back out of space very gracefully. So, you don't have to burst through the earth's atmosphere in the way that NASA spaceships have to do with all the inherent risks of that.

NGUYEN: Richard Branson, it appears nothing is unimaginable with you. Thank you so much for your time.

BRASON: You going to come up?

NGUYEN: You know, I'm kind of scared, but we'll talk about it. How about that? Thank you.

BRANSON: I'll hold your hand.

NGUYEN: All right. All right. You've got a deal then.

We have your "Daily Dose" of health news. That's next. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Keeping the president healthy is important to the health of the government. Most people don't realize it, but a doctor is always just a few heartbeats away from the president, providing immediate access to medical care.

Our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes an inside look in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. CONNIE MARIANO, FMR. W.H. MEDICAL UNIT LEADER: You're on this plane, you're on his helicopter, you're in his motorcade. The doctor is always within a few feet away. So, you essentially shadow the president.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Connie Mariano ran the White House Medical Unit under President Clinton. Five military doctors, five nurses, five physician assistants, three corpsmen or medics, and three administrators. The mission: executive medicine. Keep the president healthy day to day. And protective medicine: treat the commander-in-chief in a worst-case scenario, like an assassination attempt.

The nerve center for White House medical care since President Hoover is an office next to the Map Room, across from the elevator the president takes to get to the West Wing from his residence upstairs.

MARIANO: It's beautifully situated, because it's right opposite the elevator, so the president and first family can just walk across.

GUPTA (on camera): How would you rate the medical facilities of the White House?

MARIANO: At the White House itself, it's very much your typical doctor's office. It's got a private exam room on the ground floor, which has a crash cart.

GUPTA (voice-over): A crash cart is used for emergency resuscitation. The goal: stabilize the president and get him to a hospital.

Air Force One also comes equipped with tremendous medical capabilities, including a pharmacy, a burn kit, even an operating room table.

MARIANO: This is a patient like no other. Their decisions impact millions of lives.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Now for more of Dr. Gupta's inside look at the world of White House medicine, tune in to "The First Patient: Health and the Presidency," this Sunday, October 3rd, at 9:00 Eastern, 6:00 Pacific.

Time now to check in with Rhonda Schaffler at the stock market for a look there.

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

NGUYEN: OK. Thank you, Rhonda.

Well, this world has some great sporting events: the World Series, the U.S. Open, and this -- there you go. You won't want to bring these cowboys home to dinner, but it's still something worth taking a trip to see. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Put down that remote control. "GQ" magazine lists 64 reasons for dedicated fans to hit the road this autumn for a sports getaway. We want to run through a few of them with "GQ" Executive Editor Any Ward. He joins us now from the Time-Warner Center in New York. Hi there, Andy.

ANDY WARD, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "GQ" MAGAZINE: Hi, how are you?

NGUYEN: I'm doing great. We want to put that map up, because you have so many picks here. We have 58, I believe, right here in the U.S. Among those picks, just run through a few of your favorite.

WARD: Well, it depends on what area of the country you're looking to travel in. But if you're on the east coast, it looks like we have a very good chance of another Yankees/Red Sox playoff series coming up here in a couple weeks.

NGUYEN: Good game.

WARD: And if that's the case, tough ticket to get, but we do in "GQ" try to help you out with that. You can go, before the game, four hours before every game, at Gate C at Fenway Park, they raffle off a bunch of standing room only tickets. And that's something that most people don't know about. And that's a way to get into these games that may be -- you know, getting to be the most intense in the major leagues right now.

NGUYEN: All right. So, for travel lovers, let's talk going overseas, if you will. Something called a Spanish Civil War? What's that all about?

WARD: That's the Real Madrid/FC Barcelona soccer game.

NGUYEN: OK.

WARD: And that takes place on November 21st. And it's -- for soccer fans, it's the holy grail. It makes the Yankees/Red Sox series look like nothing.

NGUYEN: Pale in comparison, yes.

WARD: Right. It's 93,000 fans in a beautiful modern stadium in one of the great cities in the world. And as we describe it in the piece, this is not a game, it's a blood feud. And it's really a battle for the soul of Spain.

NGUYEN: Andy, you know, you are asking a lot of people, because basically you can sit on your couch and watch about any sporting event you want, but to travel to go to these things, how expensive is it?

WARD: It's very expensive. The travel to one cost, and to get a ticket to a game like FC Barcelona versus Real Madrid, this is an impossible ticket to get through normal means. So, if you're going to do something, I would say, less legal, it could cost up to $1,200 for a ticket.

NGUYEN: Ouch, you better be a sports fan for that much, yes.

WARD: So, you got to be a fan, but it's also -- you know, you can make a vacation out of this, and it's a wonderful place to go for a few days.

NGUYEN: Yeah, try telling the wife it's a vacation.

WARD: That's right.

NGUYEN: Yeah, sure it's a vacation.

Now, I understand that there's something dealing with a prison rodeo. This is a sporting event?

WARD: "Sporting event" in quotes, I think. This is a little more for the offbeat sports fan, but twice a year down in Angola Prison, which is a maximum security prison in Louisiana, they have a rodeo. And the bull riders and bronco riders are prisoners who have no rodeo experience.

NGUYEN: That could be fun to watch. No rodeo experience?

WARD: Yes. Either a lot of fun to watch or a medieval form of torture.

NGUYEN: Oh, goodness. Have the emergency crews on hand for that one.

WARD: That's right.

NGUYEN: Andy Ward, executive director of "GQ" magazine. We thank you for your time and your tips.

WARD: Thank you very much.

NGUYEN: All right.

Well, that does it for CNN's LIVE TODAY. I'm Betty Nguyen here in Atlanta. We want to toss it now off to Wolf Blitzer who is in Washington. He'll be next.

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "NEWS FROM CNN": Thanks very much, Betty.

A busy hour ahead here on CNN. We'll have an advanced look at the debate -- the preparations for the first presidential debate. That's coming up this Thursday night.

Also, Tropical Storm Jeanne -- we're watching what's happening right now and what has already happened. All that coming up in the hour ahead.

First, some headlines, though -- now in the news.

Another body blow to the stagger state of Florida. Hurricane Jeanne, now Tropical Storm Jeanne, deepens the state of misery inflicted by the effects of three previous storms. At least six people are dead. Damage estimated in the billions -- well into the billions. And officials now are warning of a growing threat of floods. The latest on this storm coming right up. Authorities in Pakistan bracing for potential reprisals after the shooting death of a terrorist. Pakistan says its forces killed Amjad Hussain Farooqi yesterday during a raid on his hideout. He was wanted in connection with the attempted assassinations of the Pakistani president, Pervez Musharraf. And he'd also been linked to the beheading of the American journalist Daniel Pearl.

Officials in Dubai fear dozens of people may be trapped in a construction disaster. At least five people were killed when a terminal under construction collapsed at the Emirates International Airport.

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Aired September 27, 2004 - 11:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, good morning, I'm Betty Nguyen here in Atlanta. Let's heck what's happening now in the news for Monday the 27th of September.
The Army is reportedly considering cutting the time troops spend in combat zones. "The New York Times" quotes senior Army officials as saying they are considering shortening the 12-month tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's believed that such a move would be a way of boosting recruitment and troop retention rates. But the Army tells CNN this is just a consideration and that nothing has been decided.

Gas prices are climbing again. They're up a nickel over the past two weeks to a national average of $1.91 a gallon. Analysts blame a series of hurricanes that swept Florida, shutting down oil rigs in the Gulf as well as coastal refineries.

And the Bureau of Prisons has given Martha Stewart an inmate number, putting her one step closer to incarceration. A federal judge has ordered Stewart to begin serving her five-month sentence by October 8th.

About 2.6 million homes and businesses are without power this morning in the aftermath of Hurricane Jeanne. A lot of people experiencing damage. Homes are destroyed, roofs are ripped off.

We want to talk right now on the phone with Theresa Woodson. The Indian River County Emergency Operations Center, that's where she is. And Theresa, are you there first off?

THERESA WOODSON, INDIAN RIVER CO. EMERG. OPS.: Yes, I am.

NGUYEN: All right. Good morning to you. We're looking at some pictures of the devastate that Jeanne caused there. Talk to us about the damage that you've been able to assess so far.

WOODSON: Well, I think what we're seeing, and probably your viewers are seeing at this point, is the damage from Hurricane Jeanne is in excess, by far, of the damage that we had with Hurricane Frances. And it is probably because of Hurricane Frances and the remnants of Ivan that we've received -- that the damage is as significant as it is, plus the fact that the storm had stronger winds.

But when the storm came in, we had weakened conditions, that our ground was softer because it was wet, our trees were already weakened by Hurricane Frances beating at them, as were our homes -- our structures of our homes and our businesses. So, then to have increased winds with Hurricane Jeanne on those weakened structures is, I believe, what has left us with the images that you're seeing now.

NGUYEN: Yes, just devastating images. And part of the problem is when Frances came along, Jeanne came not too far behind it and they made similar paths. I think -- I imagine you're experiencing some difficulty trying to determine exactly what was caused by Frances and what is caused by Jeanne.

WOODSON: That is true. I mean, there are some places that we do know specifically what it looked like, you know, after Frances and -- but yes, at this point it's just -- the recovery operation is consolidated. We were still recovering from Frances and now we're trying to recover from Jeanne. So, it's all been a consolidated effort there.

NGUYEN: And as you continue this recovery, what are crews doing today?

WOODSON: Well, today we have -- we've got, of course, our utility companies are scrambling, because that will be the key to recovery is the sooner we can get power, the sooner we can get people to be able to care for themselves independently.

Until that happens, we are having to pull resources through the state and federal government for food, water, and ice just to keep people functioning at some level. What will help us greatly, for any of your viewers who are out of the area, evacuated to other areas of the State of Florida or other states -- and we've had many calls from them -- these images help us to allow them to understand why it is just too soon for them to return.

We are not allowing any access to the island at this time. And even in areas on the mainland, there will be no power for a significant period of time; we're told up to three weeks. If they are safe and comfortable where they are, we would recommend they stay there for a while.

NGUYEN: All right. Possibly even three weeks or longer. No power. Looking at the devastation in that video. We thank you for your time, Theresa Woodson, with the Indian River County Emergency Operation Center on this phone with us this morning.

By the way, Theresa Woodson didn't even have power herself, so she was just talking to us on the phone. Could not even see the pictures that we were putting up there, but obviously knows them firsthand.

We want to talk to Jacqui Jeras about Jeanne, as she is still blowing out there.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: All right, Jacqui Jeras, thank you.

Thirty-six days to go until the presidential election, and the candidates are getting ready to face each other and the public in their first debate later this week. Democrat John Kerry is in Wisconsin. Here's a live picture right now, holding a town hall meeting in Spring Green. He's pressing his criticism of the president's handling of Iraq and the war on terror. Kerry spends the rest of the day off the trail, prepping for Thursday's debate.

Now, a similar drill today for President Bush. He takes time out from debate preps at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, to hold campaign events in Ohio.

As always, "INSIDE POLITICS" anchor Judy Woodruff is keeping a close watch on the candidates and their strategy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Hi, Betty.

NGUYEN: Judy, just days before the first debate, the rhetoric over Iraq and terror is really heating up, isn't it?

WOODRUFF: That's right, Betty. And it's not just heating up on the trail. We are seeing increasingly very tough language in the ads that the campaigns are running and their allies.

The last few days, a group calling itself Progress for America -- and it's one of those so-called 527 groups -- put an ad out, not only with pictures of Osama bin Laden, but pictures of Mohammed Atta, one of the September 11th hijackers. And the message of the ad was would you trust John Kerry against these fanatic killers? It probably goes further than any other ad we've seen.

And it picks up, frankly, on the messages we've been hearing from President Bush on the campaign trail. He's been arguing that these mixed messages from John Kerry and his allies give aid and comfort to the enemy, in so many words.

And coming back, for their part, the Kerry camp is now being forced to defend themselves. They've had to put out an ad over the weekend where they say what the Bush/Cheney camp is doing is despicable. They're calling on the president to disavow these ads.

So, it's gotten pretty down and dirty. And Betty, I think it's going to stay this way right up through Election Day, with debates coming up, starting this Thursday, and for the next two weeks after that.

NGUYEN: Judy Woodruff, looking forward to all that you have to say on "INSIDE POLITICS." Thank you.

WOODRUFF: Thanks, Betty. We'll see you at 3:00 Eastern.

NGUYEN: All right. Thanks, Judy.

Well, CNN of the first presidential debate from Coral Gables, Florida, begins at 8:00 Eastern this Thursday night.

Meanwhile, a medical alert from the CDC this week. We'll find out why the agency is urging some Americans to get their flu shots sooner than later.

Also, how about a vacation with a kick? We'll check out some of the best getaways for sport fans.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Whether flying around the world in a balloon or racing across the ocean, for Richard Branson the sky is no longer the limit when it comes to travel adventures. His next horizon: space.

That's right. Branson has just announced a plan to launch regular passengers into space. He joins me now from London with the latest on this. Good morning to you.

RICHARD BRANSON, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, THE VIRGIN GROUP: Good morning.

NGUYEN: Well, let's talk about this. It's going to be called Virgin Galactic. How exactly is this going to work?

BRANSON: Well, in three years' time, we plan to build -- or completed building five manned spacecraft to take people into space. Paul Allen and Burt Rutan have pioneered it with SpaceShipOne, the technology. And we're taking that technology and -- again, to enable, hopefully, three or 4,000 people over the next five years to become astronauts, to go up into space, to experience weightlessness, to experience space travel, to look back at the earth and see it as round.

And so today, Virgin Galactic Airways is born, and we're going to start looking for our passengers and building our craft.

NGUYEN: Five years. That's coming up pretty quickly. Is that a lofty goal, or do you think you really can do it within five years' time? And how many people are you looking at to launch this with?

BRANSON: Well, three years from now, we plan to launch the first craft, VSS Enterprise. And I've certainly booked my ticket on that one. And then, over the next -- over the following two to three years, we think we can take three or 4,000 people. So, it's really quite soon.

This Wednesday, one of the test crafts, SpaceShipOne, will be going up into space. And next Monday, another flight will be going up in SpaceShipOne. And it's that technology that we're adapting and that we've actually licensed from Paul Allen, which is going to enable us to do it.

NGUYEN: How much are tickets on these flights going to cost? Obviously it's going to be a pretty penny.

BRANSON: Initially, the tickets will not be cheap. They will be something like $170,000. But if we can get the first 3,000 passengers signed up and on board and flying, you know, our pledge is that we'll re-invest any profits we make in trying to bring the price of tickets down. And i think if we can get those prices down by a half, then I think a lot more people would be able to fly. So, either that's something which we're aiming to do.

NGUYEN: Quickly, let me ask you, how far into space will these flights go? And do you have to be under certain physical constraints? Are there certain requirements for passengers on these flights?

BRANSON: No. Age is no limit. My father is 86, has already booked his ticket. He'll be 90 by the time we fly. And you know, so physical fitness is not an essential part of it.

You'll be going about 130 miles up. So, you'll be -- space is 100 miles from here. So, you'll be going into space by about 130 miles. The whole spacecraft then turns into a shuttle cart and drifts back out of space very gracefully. So, you don't have to burst through the earth's atmosphere in the way that NASA spaceships have to do with all the inherent risks of that.

NGUYEN: Richard Branson, it appears nothing is unimaginable with you. Thank you so much for your time.

BRASON: You going to come up?

NGUYEN: You know, I'm kind of scared, but we'll talk about it. How about that? Thank you.

BRANSON: I'll hold your hand.

NGUYEN: All right. All right. You've got a deal then.

We have your "Daily Dose" of health news. That's next. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Keeping the president healthy is important to the health of the government. Most people don't realize it, but a doctor is always just a few heartbeats away from the president, providing immediate access to medical care.

Our senior medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes an inside look in our "Daily Dose" of health news.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. CONNIE MARIANO, FMR. W.H. MEDICAL UNIT LEADER: You're on this plane, you're on his helicopter, you're in his motorcade. The doctor is always within a few feet away. So, you essentially shadow the president.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Connie Mariano ran the White House Medical Unit under President Clinton. Five military doctors, five nurses, five physician assistants, three corpsmen or medics, and three administrators. The mission: executive medicine. Keep the president healthy day to day. And protective medicine: treat the commander-in-chief in a worst-case scenario, like an assassination attempt.

The nerve center for White House medical care since President Hoover is an office next to the Map Room, across from the elevator the president takes to get to the West Wing from his residence upstairs.

MARIANO: It's beautifully situated, because it's right opposite the elevator, so the president and first family can just walk across.

GUPTA (on camera): How would you rate the medical facilities of the White House?

MARIANO: At the White House itself, it's very much your typical doctor's office. It's got a private exam room on the ground floor, which has a crash cart.

GUPTA (voice-over): A crash cart is used for emergency resuscitation. The goal: stabilize the president and get him to a hospital.

Air Force One also comes equipped with tremendous medical capabilities, including a pharmacy, a burn kit, even an operating room table.

MARIANO: This is a patient like no other. Their decisions impact millions of lives.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Now for more of Dr. Gupta's inside look at the world of White House medicine, tune in to "The First Patient: Health and the Presidency," this Sunday, October 3rd, at 9:00 Eastern, 6:00 Pacific.

Time now to check in with Rhonda Schaffler at the stock market for a look there.

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

NGUYEN: OK. Thank you, Rhonda.

Well, this world has some great sporting events: the World Series, the U.S. Open, and this -- there you go. You won't want to bring these cowboys home to dinner, but it's still something worth taking a trip to see. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Put down that remote control. "GQ" magazine lists 64 reasons for dedicated fans to hit the road this autumn for a sports getaway. We want to run through a few of them with "GQ" Executive Editor Any Ward. He joins us now from the Time-Warner Center in New York. Hi there, Andy.

ANDY WARD, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "GQ" MAGAZINE: Hi, how are you?

NGUYEN: I'm doing great. We want to put that map up, because you have so many picks here. We have 58, I believe, right here in the U.S. Among those picks, just run through a few of your favorite.

WARD: Well, it depends on what area of the country you're looking to travel in. But if you're on the east coast, it looks like we have a very good chance of another Yankees/Red Sox playoff series coming up here in a couple weeks.

NGUYEN: Good game.

WARD: And if that's the case, tough ticket to get, but we do in "GQ" try to help you out with that. You can go, before the game, four hours before every game, at Gate C at Fenway Park, they raffle off a bunch of standing room only tickets. And that's something that most people don't know about. And that's a way to get into these games that may be -- you know, getting to be the most intense in the major leagues right now.

NGUYEN: All right. So, for travel lovers, let's talk going overseas, if you will. Something called a Spanish Civil War? What's that all about?

WARD: That's the Real Madrid/FC Barcelona soccer game.

NGUYEN: OK.

WARD: And that takes place on November 21st. And it's -- for soccer fans, it's the holy grail. It makes the Yankees/Red Sox series look like nothing.

NGUYEN: Pale in comparison, yes.

WARD: Right. It's 93,000 fans in a beautiful modern stadium in one of the great cities in the world. And as we describe it in the piece, this is not a game, it's a blood feud. And it's really a battle for the soul of Spain.

NGUYEN: Andy, you know, you are asking a lot of people, because basically you can sit on your couch and watch about any sporting event you want, but to travel to go to these things, how expensive is it?

WARD: It's very expensive. The travel to one cost, and to get a ticket to a game like FC Barcelona versus Real Madrid, this is an impossible ticket to get through normal means. So, if you're going to do something, I would say, less legal, it could cost up to $1,200 for a ticket.

NGUYEN: Ouch, you better be a sports fan for that much, yes.

WARD: So, you got to be a fan, but it's also -- you know, you can make a vacation out of this, and it's a wonderful place to go for a few days.

NGUYEN: Yeah, try telling the wife it's a vacation.

WARD: That's right.

NGUYEN: Yeah, sure it's a vacation.

Now, I understand that there's something dealing with a prison rodeo. This is a sporting event?

WARD: "Sporting event" in quotes, I think. This is a little more for the offbeat sports fan, but twice a year down in Angola Prison, which is a maximum security prison in Louisiana, they have a rodeo. And the bull riders and bronco riders are prisoners who have no rodeo experience.

NGUYEN: That could be fun to watch. No rodeo experience?

WARD: Yes. Either a lot of fun to watch or a medieval form of torture.

NGUYEN: Oh, goodness. Have the emergency crews on hand for that one.

WARD: That's right.

NGUYEN: Andy Ward, executive director of "GQ" magazine. We thank you for your time and your tips.

WARD: Thank you very much.

NGUYEN: All right.

Well, that does it for CNN's LIVE TODAY. I'm Betty Nguyen here in Atlanta. We want to toss it now off to Wolf Blitzer who is in Washington. He'll be next.

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "NEWS FROM CNN": Thanks very much, Betty.

A busy hour ahead here on CNN. We'll have an advanced look at the debate -- the preparations for the first presidential debate. That's coming up this Thursday night.

Also, Tropical Storm Jeanne -- we're watching what's happening right now and what has already happened. All that coming up in the hour ahead.

First, some headlines, though -- now in the news.

Another body blow to the stagger state of Florida. Hurricane Jeanne, now Tropical Storm Jeanne, deepens the state of misery inflicted by the effects of three previous storms. At least six people are dead. Damage estimated in the billions -- well into the billions. And officials now are warning of a growing threat of floods. The latest on this storm coming right up. Authorities in Pakistan bracing for potential reprisals after the shooting death of a terrorist. Pakistan says its forces killed Amjad Hussain Farooqi yesterday during a raid on his hideout. He was wanted in connection with the attempted assassinations of the Pakistani president, Pervez Musharraf. And he'd also been linked to the beheading of the American journalist Daniel Pearl.

Officials in Dubai fear dozens of people may be trapped in a construction disaster. At least five people were killed when a terminal under construction collapsed at the Emirates International Airport.

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