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CNN Live Today
Pope's Last Will and Testament Released; Camilla Parker Bowles to Become Duchess of Cornwall
Aired April 07, 2005 - 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The Irish Republican Army says that it's considered -- it's considering Gerry Adams' appeal to lay down arms. The Sinn Fein leader yesterday called on the outlawed group to embrace politics. Today's statement from the IRA said it would respond to Adams' request in due time.
NASA is a step closer to resuming space flight. The shuttle Discovery reached a launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center earlier today. Discovery is being prepared for a midday lift-off to the International Space Station. It would be the first NASA mission since the Columbia tragedy more than two years ago.
And so you say you don't like the idea of fellow airline passengers yacking it up on their cell phones? Well, then you are among a majority of Americans. That's according to a new survey that was commissioned by the Association of Flight Attendants. The group is holding a news conference in Washington this hour. The FCC is considering ending the ban on in-flight cell phone use.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go back now to those live pictures that we've been sharing with you from St. Peter's Basilica. Public mourners have about five and a half more hours now -- that's five and a half more hours -- to view Pope John Paul II's body, then the basilica will close because they have to prepare, of course, for tomorrow's funeral.
Rome officials estimate that by the time of the funeral, five million people have will visited the Vatican City. What we want to do now is get another spin on this story and that's the details now on Pope John Paul II's last will and testament. In fact, it was released just before we went on the air here, and for that, let's turn to our Vatican analyst, Delia Gallagher. She's good enough to join us.
There's something about the pope suddenly becoming extremely introspective some years ago. They say he started to begin to wonder and they learned this from his will, Delia, whether he had accomplished what he wanted to do. What is that all about?
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Well, Rick, that is about -- in the year 2000, at the millennium, the pope began to look back on his pontificate. Because on the day that he was elected, the Polish Prime Cardinal Wyszynski said to him, your job will be to carry the church through to the third millennium.
So the pope arrives in the year 2000 and he says, now I've got the century behind me. I've done my mission. Now what? I'm 80 years old. And the pope reflects on a parable of Simeon (ph), an old man in the Bible, who saw the baby Jesus and said now my mission has been accomplished.
So the pope says I wonder if it is not the case that I should follow Simeon and say is my mission accomplished? Then he goes on to say, well, I asked the Lord to let me know when my mission is accomplished. So that can be interpreted as a reflection on retiring, as a reflection on death. The two things together, really.
SANCHEZ: We should not read into that or that he was frustrated any way and was thinking about resigning, as we often look at things like this traditionally in the corporate world, right? It wasn't that.
GALLAGHER: Right. That's a very good point, Rick. I think that we have to take it in the context that the pope meant it, which is very clear in the text and he is suggesting a kind of meditation on his life and a completion of his mission. He's not saying, I'm old, I'm infirm, I can't take it anymore. He's saying I have accomplished what I had set out to do, what I believe God entrusted me to do.
And so that sort of prophecy, if you will, of Cardinal Wyszynski, was always in his mind. And when he arrived 2000, he was 80 years old, and he said, well, what else is there for me to do? But he does end it by saying, I leave it in God's hands. I'm fully entrusted to God's hands and whatever his decision is, I will go with it.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you one more question before I let you about the security concerns there. They must be many concerns at this point, right, with all of the leaders coming in and with so little room in that area?
GALLAGHER: Yes, well, all of the side streets, of course, around the Vatican are very, very small, cobblestone streets. So the crowds are having to sort of wind around the streets. There's some -- many of the streets are being shut off because of the heads of state that are coming. So the security has been amped up, mainly for the heads of state. Before it was a little bit more relaxed, just to let all of those pilgrims go through. They didn't have to go through metal detectors, they could go right into the basilica.
But now we have a lot of streets closed off, a lot more police presence, helicopters and so forth, so you can imagine the difficulty for many people to even reach the Vatican at this stage. They're coming on foot from miles away, and everything is virtually shut down until tomorrow's funeral.
SANCHEZ: Delia Gallagher, following the story for us, as our analyst from Rome. We thank you so much for bringing us up-to-date on that. Daryn, to Washington now, over to you..
KAGAN: Rick, with me here in Washington to talk about papal influence and the challenges facing the next pope, Reverend Robert Drinan, the former congressman and professor of law at Georgetown University. Father, good morning.
REV. ROBERT DRINAN, FMR. U.S. CONGRESSMAN: Good morning.
KAGAN: I want to just get your comments on the development of this morning. Of -- you were hearing Delia Gallagher report about the reading of the pope's will and how there was discussion in there that he did consider resigning back in 2000. You say you're not surprised by that.
DRINAN: No, because in the church now all cardinals, bishops, are required to resign at the age of 75. And no cardinal over the age of 80 can vote. There seems to be a contradiction. However, if you say that the pope is term-limited and at the age of 80 he has to go like all of the bishops, it poses big problems. Suddenly, he's appointing bishops.
And from a long time, the pope has served until death. And the Jesuit general serves until death. The Supreme Court justices serve until death. It's a big policy question, should we say that everybody should be term-limited? But there's nothing really surprising in the pope's will. Everybody forms a will years ago and he has no property to bequeath. But that he obviously was a very spiritual man. The church and the next pope has some very basic, fundamental questions to resolve.
KAGAN: What do you think is at the top of that list?
DRINAN: Well, women.
KAGAN: Well, is there a difference -- let me ask you this. As an American Catholic, is there a difference about some of the questions American Catholics would like to see resolved and addressed and what other Catholics around the world...
DRINAN: No, I don't think they're different. I think there's anxiety all over the world for the position of women. And I think there's resentment among women's groups and others everywhere at the intervention or the intrusion of the Holy City into women's groups in Egypt and in Beijing.
I mean, there's no denying it, and the pope understood this and the pope did make some concessions. Women can have more positions in the church. But that has to be resolved.
KAGAN: More positions, but he was very clear -- he didn't even want it discussed whether women could be priests.
DRINAN: Which is undemocratic, to say the least. And there's other questions resolved too, like on centrality. He certainly centralized the papacy, has never before in 2,000 years. And that has good things and it also has bad things. People who are Catholics don't like to see this huge institution. The church is the people of God. Vatican II said that it's the mystical body of Christ, it's invisible and it should be local, as in the Philippines. They have what they call the communities of base. The people run the church.
I don't know whether the next pope will think of doing that. If he is a non-European, there's all types of challenges to bring in the culture. But it's obviously an historic moment. But I think Catholics everywhere, Christians everywhere, are saying well, what did God intend the church to be? We don't like to see a big, huge corporation, and with unbending rules. Would we have a better church if we had more autonomy among the laity? In Vatican II, the big council from '62 to '65, certainly said that. And the decree in the laity says that laity are the church.
KAGAN: Well, are you saying that Catholics and Christians around the world will watching, I think, indicative of the world religious leaders that will be at the funeral tomorrow, not just Christians will be watching, but the entire world and religions all over.
Father Drinan, thank you for your insight. Good to see you this morning. Rick, back to you.
SANCHEZ: Here's one of the things that we're going be following on this day, Daryn. After that royal marriage, Camilla Parker Bowles will officially become the duchess of Cornwall. Well, if you go to Cornwall and you ask the people who what they think of that, what would they tell you? You're going to find out, because that's what we're going to ask right here, when CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We have a developing story that we're following now that could affect you, it could affect millions of people. Pfizer is announcing today that it is pulling the painkiller Bextra off the market. Here now to talk about what this could possibly mean to the people who take the drug is CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen, who's looking into this throughout most of the morning.
What are you finding out?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, they're having a press conference right now, the FDA is, about this. And let me read to you from the press release that the FDA has just put out. They say the FDA has asked Pfizer to withdraw Bextra from the market, because the overall risk versus-benefit profile for the drug is unfavorable. Well, to put that in layman's terms, what they're basically saying is that Bextra does more harm than good, and the harm that they're talking about is an creased risk of a heart attack or a stroke if you take Bextra, also an increased risk of having a life- threatening skin condition that already has caused or appears to have caused about four deaths.
Now Pfizer says that they disagree with what the FDA is doing. They say they respectfully disagree with the FDA's position regarding the overall risk-benefit profile of Bextra. But they say that they have agreed to suspend sales of the medicine pending further discussions with the FDA. Now 12.8 million prescriptions were written for Bextra. It's in the same family of drugs as Celebrex and as Vioxx, which has already been taken off the market, and they -- that's about $1.2 billion in sales.
SANCHEZ: Let's talk about what could possibly affect people. People watching us right now could be using this particular drug. What do they need to do? What do they need to know?
COHEN: They need to not take it.
SANCHEZ: Stop taking it?
COHEN: Well, they should talk to their doctor first, and they obviously can't buy any more of it, because Pfizer has said that they're taking it off the market. But the key thing is to talk to your doctor first, and also to remember that this drug has not caused heart and stroke or skin problems in everyone who's taken it. As a matter of fact, most people who've taken it have not had these problems, and the problems in many ways are related to how long you've taken. More chance of having these problems if you've taken it for longer and in higher doses.
SANCHEZ: Before I let you go, quick answer if you possibly could. Is there anything else they could take that's similar to Bextra?
COHEN: Well, Celebrex is still on the market, but now Celebrex has to carry, as of now, a black-box warning. It's a boxed warning on the label that warns about gastrointestinal bleeding and also about heart attacks and strokes. Now there are over-the-counter pain relievers, but they're also non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, which is the same bigger family. Those are also going to have warnings, not quite as strong as with Bextra, what Celebrex has to do, but there also going to be warnings on things like Advil, things like Aleve. You really have to talk to your doctor, you have to talk about, how much good are these drugs doing you, and what's your risk?
SANCHEZ: It's amazing. We're seeing a pattern here, aren't we?
COHEN: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much, Elizabeth, for bringing us that up to date on that. Let's go over to Daryn now with more news.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: Get ready for cheese and pimento sandwiches. It is time for the Masters, how the first day of play is shaping up, if they even get past the raindrops. A live report from Augusta, when CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We want to show you some new pictures we're just getting in from Vatican City, live pictures, but also some pictures -- there you it. OK, this is actually some video that just came in a few minutes ago. You see Senator John Kerry. You see Senator Ted Kennedy as well. They are part of a congressional contingent who has gone to pay their last respects to Pope John Paul II. Of course the official U.S. contingent is President Bush, Mrs. Bush, former President Clinton and former President Bush. Much more ahead from Vatican City in just a moment.
Now to Rick.
SANCHEZ: Two of the most prominent Catholics in our government, as a matter of fact, Kennedy and Kerry.
Thanks so much, Daryn.
A British journalist claims that he slipped past security at Windsor Castle days before Prince Charles is to marriage Camilla Parker Bowles. A reporter for "The Sun" newspaper said that pretended to be a deliveryman in a van and then just snuck a box marked "bomb" past the castle security carrier. The reporter claims that he got close to the chapel where the couple will be blessed, and to apartments reserved for Queen Elizabeth. London police are investigating this breach.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: Well, when the prince does marry Camilla Parker Bowles, she will become the duchess of Cornwall. But what do the people of Cornwall have to say about that new title and their new duchess? Our senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers went to Cornwall to find out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The magic land of Cornwall. Legend holds King Arthur was born here in these mists, and when Camilla marries Prince Charles, she becomes duchess of all this, the land and some eccentrics, including innkeepers pretending to be Long John Silver.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Camilla? The rottweiler is what Diana used to call her, wasn't it?
RODGERS: Even in the shadow of ancient churches, there is no gospel of forgiveness, and most Cornish refuse to accept the woman who will replace Princess Diana in their future king's bed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not particularly.
She's a bloody trollop, isn't she, you know?
RODGERS: Rural Cornwall has not had a duchess since about 1904. Part of the unwillingness to embrace Camilla may be simple fatigue with all things royal.
(on camera): What does the duchess of Cornwall do?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.
RODGERS: Do you think she knows?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't.
RODGERS: She doesn't have a house down here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: She doesn't overnight down here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: She doesn't have any responsibilities.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: So what's the title duchess of Cornwall worth?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not very much, I don't think.
RODGERS (voice-over): In the Globe Pub in Las Withyal (ph), this hub of village life, the men lay down ancient rules for accepting Camilla as their duchess.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If she buys a drink, it's her round.
RODGERS: But the barmaid says the bar is higher than that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very simple. Diana was pretty and she isn't. And that's why people dislike her and I think that's very shallow.
RODGERS: Here where daffodils bow to dark brooks, Cornish hostility is not shallow, but cold and deep. The village pastry baker explains.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Diana is still well-remembered and well-loved and I think Camilla, bless her, has a mountain to overcome.
RODGERS (on camera): Another aspect of this resentment may simply be tribal. Cornwall is remote, the people insular. It's the only part of England the Romans could not conquer. So like it or not, Camilla may just be perceived as another outsider, even in her own duchy.
(voice-over): Ironically, it is in Cornwall's witch's covens we found the greatest charity. Self-declared witches, who have known cruelty themselves, seem less judgmental of Camilla.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think she's very misunderstood.
RODGERS (on camera): So you think Camilla's been persecuted like witches?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think she's been persecuted like witches, no, but I think she's had a hard time.
RODGERS (voice-over): A hard time in a hard land, beaten by storm and sea. Camilla's challenge as duchess will be to rise above it all.
Walter Rodgers, CNN, in Cadgille (ph), in the royal duchy of Cornwall. (END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And join us Saturday morning for CNN's live coverage of the royal wedding. It begins at 6:00 p.m. Eastern. We're coming back with your forecast and some stormy weather at the Masters.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Back to CNN LIVE TODAY. I'm Rick Sanchez in Augusta, Georgia. The 69th Master's golf tournament was supposed to start about three hours ago. Instead, it's been raining again.
Patrick Snell is with CNN Sports. He's in Augusta National, where just about everybody's just watching and waiting. I was listening, Patrick, to a comment the other day from one of the big names on tour and he said he can't remember a year when rain has interfered more with more tournaments.
PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Thanks, Rick. Thanks very much indeed.
Yes, this tournament certainly synonymous worldwide with miserable conditions, a bit like the Wimbledon tennis championships in London. You're absolutely right. If play does start at 12:30 local time, that will be a delay of some four and a half hours. The promised rain has come down here at Augusta National and it's still coming down in absolute torrents.
Now this is the fourth straight year that this event has been affected by some sort of rain delay. And also, on the U.S. calendar golfing circuit, generally speaking, this is the ninth out of 16 tournaments to be affected so far this season.
The organizers here have just confirmed that they will be introducing what's called two tee starts. That players teeing off at hole one and hole 10 simultaneously. They're going to do that for rounds one and two. That's obviously in a bid to try and save as much time as possible. Thousands of spectators ready, chomping at the bit trying to get onto this course for the first major of the year, the 69th Masters.
And of course , one player they're all looking to try and feast their eyes on, is the defending champion, the 34-year-old Californian Phil Mickelson, who has high hopes of defending his champion. Now lefty in very good form, it has to be said. He's just recorded his third tour victory of the season earlier this week, Monday, at the BellSouth Classic in Atlanta. And he's arrived in high spirits. And he says he's very much relishing the opportunity to defend what was his first major title.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHIL MICKELSON, DEFENDING MASTERS CHAMP: There's a special feeling to be able to relive a victory walk of the back nine and to be a part of -- not just to be a part of the tournament, but to have those memories of the shots that I pulled in the clutch and to birdie five of the last seven was just a memory that I'll never forget. So it's something that I enjoy coming back to and reliving.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNELL: Mickelson got to the course a couple of hours ago now and he's been spending a bit of time on the practice range and also putting as well, I am told. When he does tee off, among his three bull will be the young American amateur Ryan Moore. So many people gathering for that one, to catch a glance of the defending champion -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: A lot of folks are watching this now, Patrick, and they don't know where why the Masters is so important. Give them a sentence on why the Masters matters so much.
SNELL: Well, this is the first major of the new year, of the golfing calendar, really. There's a gap of some six, seven months between the PGA championship and this one. So it's eagerly anticipated among the players. They basically can't wait to get started and attack a new campaign, a new season of majors. For the fans, of course, it's the mystique of the Masters. It dates back to the 1930s. Everyone wants a piece of the action here -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: This one's really special, then.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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Aired April 7, 2005 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The Irish Republican Army says that it's considered -- it's considering Gerry Adams' appeal to lay down arms. The Sinn Fein leader yesterday called on the outlawed group to embrace politics. Today's statement from the IRA said it would respond to Adams' request in due time.
NASA is a step closer to resuming space flight. The shuttle Discovery reached a launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center earlier today. Discovery is being prepared for a midday lift-off to the International Space Station. It would be the first NASA mission since the Columbia tragedy more than two years ago.
And so you say you don't like the idea of fellow airline passengers yacking it up on their cell phones? Well, then you are among a majority of Americans. That's according to a new survey that was commissioned by the Association of Flight Attendants. The group is holding a news conference in Washington this hour. The FCC is considering ending the ban on in-flight cell phone use.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go back now to those live pictures that we've been sharing with you from St. Peter's Basilica. Public mourners have about five and a half more hours now -- that's five and a half more hours -- to view Pope John Paul II's body, then the basilica will close because they have to prepare, of course, for tomorrow's funeral.
Rome officials estimate that by the time of the funeral, five million people have will visited the Vatican City. What we want to do now is get another spin on this story and that's the details now on Pope John Paul II's last will and testament. In fact, it was released just before we went on the air here, and for that, let's turn to our Vatican analyst, Delia Gallagher. She's good enough to join us.
There's something about the pope suddenly becoming extremely introspective some years ago. They say he started to begin to wonder and they learned this from his will, Delia, whether he had accomplished what he wanted to do. What is that all about?
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Well, Rick, that is about -- in the year 2000, at the millennium, the pope began to look back on his pontificate. Because on the day that he was elected, the Polish Prime Cardinal Wyszynski said to him, your job will be to carry the church through to the third millennium.
So the pope arrives in the year 2000 and he says, now I've got the century behind me. I've done my mission. Now what? I'm 80 years old. And the pope reflects on a parable of Simeon (ph), an old man in the Bible, who saw the baby Jesus and said now my mission has been accomplished.
So the pope says I wonder if it is not the case that I should follow Simeon and say is my mission accomplished? Then he goes on to say, well, I asked the Lord to let me know when my mission is accomplished. So that can be interpreted as a reflection on retiring, as a reflection on death. The two things together, really.
SANCHEZ: We should not read into that or that he was frustrated any way and was thinking about resigning, as we often look at things like this traditionally in the corporate world, right? It wasn't that.
GALLAGHER: Right. That's a very good point, Rick. I think that we have to take it in the context that the pope meant it, which is very clear in the text and he is suggesting a kind of meditation on his life and a completion of his mission. He's not saying, I'm old, I'm infirm, I can't take it anymore. He's saying I have accomplished what I had set out to do, what I believe God entrusted me to do.
And so that sort of prophecy, if you will, of Cardinal Wyszynski, was always in his mind. And when he arrived 2000, he was 80 years old, and he said, well, what else is there for me to do? But he does end it by saying, I leave it in God's hands. I'm fully entrusted to God's hands and whatever his decision is, I will go with it.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you one more question before I let you about the security concerns there. They must be many concerns at this point, right, with all of the leaders coming in and with so little room in that area?
GALLAGHER: Yes, well, all of the side streets, of course, around the Vatican are very, very small, cobblestone streets. So the crowds are having to sort of wind around the streets. There's some -- many of the streets are being shut off because of the heads of state that are coming. So the security has been amped up, mainly for the heads of state. Before it was a little bit more relaxed, just to let all of those pilgrims go through. They didn't have to go through metal detectors, they could go right into the basilica.
But now we have a lot of streets closed off, a lot more police presence, helicopters and so forth, so you can imagine the difficulty for many people to even reach the Vatican at this stage. They're coming on foot from miles away, and everything is virtually shut down until tomorrow's funeral.
SANCHEZ: Delia Gallagher, following the story for us, as our analyst from Rome. We thank you so much for bringing us up-to-date on that. Daryn, to Washington now, over to you..
KAGAN: Rick, with me here in Washington to talk about papal influence and the challenges facing the next pope, Reverend Robert Drinan, the former congressman and professor of law at Georgetown University. Father, good morning.
REV. ROBERT DRINAN, FMR. U.S. CONGRESSMAN: Good morning.
KAGAN: I want to just get your comments on the development of this morning. Of -- you were hearing Delia Gallagher report about the reading of the pope's will and how there was discussion in there that he did consider resigning back in 2000. You say you're not surprised by that.
DRINAN: No, because in the church now all cardinals, bishops, are required to resign at the age of 75. And no cardinal over the age of 80 can vote. There seems to be a contradiction. However, if you say that the pope is term-limited and at the age of 80 he has to go like all of the bishops, it poses big problems. Suddenly, he's appointing bishops.
And from a long time, the pope has served until death. And the Jesuit general serves until death. The Supreme Court justices serve until death. It's a big policy question, should we say that everybody should be term-limited? But there's nothing really surprising in the pope's will. Everybody forms a will years ago and he has no property to bequeath. But that he obviously was a very spiritual man. The church and the next pope has some very basic, fundamental questions to resolve.
KAGAN: What do you think is at the top of that list?
DRINAN: Well, women.
KAGAN: Well, is there a difference -- let me ask you this. As an American Catholic, is there a difference about some of the questions American Catholics would like to see resolved and addressed and what other Catholics around the world...
DRINAN: No, I don't think they're different. I think there's anxiety all over the world for the position of women. And I think there's resentment among women's groups and others everywhere at the intervention or the intrusion of the Holy City into women's groups in Egypt and in Beijing.
I mean, there's no denying it, and the pope understood this and the pope did make some concessions. Women can have more positions in the church. But that has to be resolved.
KAGAN: More positions, but he was very clear -- he didn't even want it discussed whether women could be priests.
DRINAN: Which is undemocratic, to say the least. And there's other questions resolved too, like on centrality. He certainly centralized the papacy, has never before in 2,000 years. And that has good things and it also has bad things. People who are Catholics don't like to see this huge institution. The church is the people of God. Vatican II said that it's the mystical body of Christ, it's invisible and it should be local, as in the Philippines. They have what they call the communities of base. The people run the church.
I don't know whether the next pope will think of doing that. If he is a non-European, there's all types of challenges to bring in the culture. But it's obviously an historic moment. But I think Catholics everywhere, Christians everywhere, are saying well, what did God intend the church to be? We don't like to see a big, huge corporation, and with unbending rules. Would we have a better church if we had more autonomy among the laity? In Vatican II, the big council from '62 to '65, certainly said that. And the decree in the laity says that laity are the church.
KAGAN: Well, are you saying that Catholics and Christians around the world will watching, I think, indicative of the world religious leaders that will be at the funeral tomorrow, not just Christians will be watching, but the entire world and religions all over.
Father Drinan, thank you for your insight. Good to see you this morning. Rick, back to you.
SANCHEZ: Here's one of the things that we're going be following on this day, Daryn. After that royal marriage, Camilla Parker Bowles will officially become the duchess of Cornwall. Well, if you go to Cornwall and you ask the people who what they think of that, what would they tell you? You're going to find out, because that's what we're going to ask right here, when CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We have a developing story that we're following now that could affect you, it could affect millions of people. Pfizer is announcing today that it is pulling the painkiller Bextra off the market. Here now to talk about what this could possibly mean to the people who take the drug is CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen, who's looking into this throughout most of the morning.
What are you finding out?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, they're having a press conference right now, the FDA is, about this. And let me read to you from the press release that the FDA has just put out. They say the FDA has asked Pfizer to withdraw Bextra from the market, because the overall risk versus-benefit profile for the drug is unfavorable. Well, to put that in layman's terms, what they're basically saying is that Bextra does more harm than good, and the harm that they're talking about is an creased risk of a heart attack or a stroke if you take Bextra, also an increased risk of having a life- threatening skin condition that already has caused or appears to have caused about four deaths.
Now Pfizer says that they disagree with what the FDA is doing. They say they respectfully disagree with the FDA's position regarding the overall risk-benefit profile of Bextra. But they say that they have agreed to suspend sales of the medicine pending further discussions with the FDA. Now 12.8 million prescriptions were written for Bextra. It's in the same family of drugs as Celebrex and as Vioxx, which has already been taken off the market, and they -- that's about $1.2 billion in sales.
SANCHEZ: Let's talk about what could possibly affect people. People watching us right now could be using this particular drug. What do they need to do? What do they need to know?
COHEN: They need to not take it.
SANCHEZ: Stop taking it?
COHEN: Well, they should talk to their doctor first, and they obviously can't buy any more of it, because Pfizer has said that they're taking it off the market. But the key thing is to talk to your doctor first, and also to remember that this drug has not caused heart and stroke or skin problems in everyone who's taken it. As a matter of fact, most people who've taken it have not had these problems, and the problems in many ways are related to how long you've taken. More chance of having these problems if you've taken it for longer and in higher doses.
SANCHEZ: Before I let you go, quick answer if you possibly could. Is there anything else they could take that's similar to Bextra?
COHEN: Well, Celebrex is still on the market, but now Celebrex has to carry, as of now, a black-box warning. It's a boxed warning on the label that warns about gastrointestinal bleeding and also about heart attacks and strokes. Now there are over-the-counter pain relievers, but they're also non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, which is the same bigger family. Those are also going to have warnings, not quite as strong as with Bextra, what Celebrex has to do, but there also going to be warnings on things like Advil, things like Aleve. You really have to talk to your doctor, you have to talk about, how much good are these drugs doing you, and what's your risk?
SANCHEZ: It's amazing. We're seeing a pattern here, aren't we?
COHEN: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much, Elizabeth, for bringing us that up to date on that. Let's go over to Daryn now with more news.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: Get ready for cheese and pimento sandwiches. It is time for the Masters, how the first day of play is shaping up, if they even get past the raindrops. A live report from Augusta, when CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: We want to show you some new pictures we're just getting in from Vatican City, live pictures, but also some pictures -- there you it. OK, this is actually some video that just came in a few minutes ago. You see Senator John Kerry. You see Senator Ted Kennedy as well. They are part of a congressional contingent who has gone to pay their last respects to Pope John Paul II. Of course the official U.S. contingent is President Bush, Mrs. Bush, former President Clinton and former President Bush. Much more ahead from Vatican City in just a moment.
Now to Rick.
SANCHEZ: Two of the most prominent Catholics in our government, as a matter of fact, Kennedy and Kerry.
Thanks so much, Daryn.
A British journalist claims that he slipped past security at Windsor Castle days before Prince Charles is to marriage Camilla Parker Bowles. A reporter for "The Sun" newspaper said that pretended to be a deliveryman in a van and then just snuck a box marked "bomb" past the castle security carrier. The reporter claims that he got close to the chapel where the couple will be blessed, and to apartments reserved for Queen Elizabeth. London police are investigating this breach.
Daryn, over to you.
KAGAN: Well, when the prince does marry Camilla Parker Bowles, she will become the duchess of Cornwall. But what do the people of Cornwall have to say about that new title and their new duchess? Our senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers went to Cornwall to find out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The magic land of Cornwall. Legend holds King Arthur was born here in these mists, and when Camilla marries Prince Charles, she becomes duchess of all this, the land and some eccentrics, including innkeepers pretending to be Long John Silver.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Camilla? The rottweiler is what Diana used to call her, wasn't it?
RODGERS: Even in the shadow of ancient churches, there is no gospel of forgiveness, and most Cornish refuse to accept the woman who will replace Princess Diana in their future king's bed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not particularly.
She's a bloody trollop, isn't she, you know?
RODGERS: Rural Cornwall has not had a duchess since about 1904. Part of the unwillingness to embrace Camilla may be simple fatigue with all things royal.
(on camera): What does the duchess of Cornwall do?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.
RODGERS: Do you think she knows?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't.
RODGERS: She doesn't have a house down here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: She doesn't overnight down here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: She doesn't have any responsibilities.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
RODGERS: So what's the title duchess of Cornwall worth?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not very much, I don't think.
RODGERS (voice-over): In the Globe Pub in Las Withyal (ph), this hub of village life, the men lay down ancient rules for accepting Camilla as their duchess.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If she buys a drink, it's her round.
RODGERS: But the barmaid says the bar is higher than that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very simple. Diana was pretty and she isn't. And that's why people dislike her and I think that's very shallow.
RODGERS: Here where daffodils bow to dark brooks, Cornish hostility is not shallow, but cold and deep. The village pastry baker explains.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Diana is still well-remembered and well-loved and I think Camilla, bless her, has a mountain to overcome.
RODGERS (on camera): Another aspect of this resentment may simply be tribal. Cornwall is remote, the people insular. It's the only part of England the Romans could not conquer. So like it or not, Camilla may just be perceived as another outsider, even in her own duchy.
(voice-over): Ironically, it is in Cornwall's witch's covens we found the greatest charity. Self-declared witches, who have known cruelty themselves, seem less judgmental of Camilla.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think she's very misunderstood.
RODGERS (on camera): So you think Camilla's been persecuted like witches?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think she's been persecuted like witches, no, but I think she's had a hard time.
RODGERS (voice-over): A hard time in a hard land, beaten by storm and sea. Camilla's challenge as duchess will be to rise above it all.
Walter Rodgers, CNN, in Cadgille (ph), in the royal duchy of Cornwall. (END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And join us Saturday morning for CNN's live coverage of the royal wedding. It begins at 6:00 p.m. Eastern. We're coming back with your forecast and some stormy weather at the Masters.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Back to CNN LIVE TODAY. I'm Rick Sanchez in Augusta, Georgia. The 69th Master's golf tournament was supposed to start about three hours ago. Instead, it's been raining again.
Patrick Snell is with CNN Sports. He's in Augusta National, where just about everybody's just watching and waiting. I was listening, Patrick, to a comment the other day from one of the big names on tour and he said he can't remember a year when rain has interfered more with more tournaments.
PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Thanks, Rick. Thanks very much indeed.
Yes, this tournament certainly synonymous worldwide with miserable conditions, a bit like the Wimbledon tennis championships in London. You're absolutely right. If play does start at 12:30 local time, that will be a delay of some four and a half hours. The promised rain has come down here at Augusta National and it's still coming down in absolute torrents.
Now this is the fourth straight year that this event has been affected by some sort of rain delay. And also, on the U.S. calendar golfing circuit, generally speaking, this is the ninth out of 16 tournaments to be affected so far this season.
The organizers here have just confirmed that they will be introducing what's called two tee starts. That players teeing off at hole one and hole 10 simultaneously. They're going to do that for rounds one and two. That's obviously in a bid to try and save as much time as possible. Thousands of spectators ready, chomping at the bit trying to get onto this course for the first major of the year, the 69th Masters.
And of course , one player they're all looking to try and feast their eyes on, is the defending champion, the 34-year-old Californian Phil Mickelson, who has high hopes of defending his champion. Now lefty in very good form, it has to be said. He's just recorded his third tour victory of the season earlier this week, Monday, at the BellSouth Classic in Atlanta. And he's arrived in high spirits. And he says he's very much relishing the opportunity to defend what was his first major title.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHIL MICKELSON, DEFENDING MASTERS CHAMP: There's a special feeling to be able to relive a victory walk of the back nine and to be a part of -- not just to be a part of the tournament, but to have those memories of the shots that I pulled in the clutch and to birdie five of the last seven was just a memory that I'll never forget. So it's something that I enjoy coming back to and reliving.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SNELL: Mickelson got to the course a couple of hours ago now and he's been spending a bit of time on the practice range and also putting as well, I am told. When he does tee off, among his three bull will be the young American amateur Ryan Moore. So many people gathering for that one, to catch a glance of the defending champion -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: A lot of folks are watching this now, Patrick, and they don't know where why the Masters is so important. Give them a sentence on why the Masters matters so much.
SNELL: Well, this is the first major of the new year, of the golfing calendar, really. There's a gap of some six, seven months between the PGA championship and this one. So it's eagerly anticipated among the players. They basically can't wait to get started and attack a new campaign, a new season of majors. For the fans, of course, it's the mystique of the Masters. It dates back to the 1930s. Everyone wants a piece of the action here -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: This one's really special, then.
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