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CNN Live Today

Economics And Outrage; Missing Soldier; Death Row Escapee; SUV In River In Seattle; Travel Tips

Aired November 04, 2005 - 10:00   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Want to show you some breaking news that we're already following getting started here. This just in to CNN. Live pictures from Seattle. Just around the Seattle area. Rescuers trying to reach the driver of that SUV. It has handed in the Pilchuck River. That's near Lake Stephens, which is just north/northeast of Seattle. The SUV, as you can see, is half submerged in the middle of this fast-moving river. We're hearing from our affiliate KIRO television reporting a dive team have been called out for the rescue.
Now how the SUV ended up in the middle of that river in the first place, that one is still a mystery. But we will continue to monitor the situation from Lake Stephens, Washington. North/northeast of Seattle. More on that as more information becomes available.

Right now, let's take a look at what else is happening "Now in the News."

The search is on for an escaped Texas death row inmate. Authorities say Charles Thompson was able to get out of the Harris County Jail dressed in civilian clothes. He was also carrying an I.D. indicating he worked in the attorney general's office. Thompson was re-sentenced to death this week for the shooting deaths of two people.

Also in Texas, all but one of the dozen injured in a high school bus accident are now out of the hospital. The bus was carrying a junior varsity football team to a game yesterday. The driver told police he was taking a curve when he felt the bus's back wheels come off the ground. The bus flipped, partially blocking the road.

The Senate has passed a budget-cutting bill. The measure is estimating to trim 2 percent of the deficit over the next five years. A compromise will have to be worked out with the House version. That bill imposes new fees on Medicaid patients. The Senate plan targets the drug industry for savings.

And the House has passed legislation to counter a Supreme Court ruling on private property. The measure would cut off federal funds for states and cities that use economic development as a reason to seize property. New York and Baltimore use such funding for projects there.

And good morning to you on this Friday morning. I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta.

First up this hour, President Bush is in the Argentine resort of Mar del Plata. It is no vacation for the president. Mr. Bush is there to discuss free trade at today's start of the Summit of the Americas. Thousands of protesters have descended on the area as well. They plan to demonstrate against the U.S.-led war in Iraq and what they denounce as U.S. economic imperialism. Our Elaine Quijano is in Mar del Plata and has the latest.

Elaine, hello.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Daryn.

It was about an hour or so ago that we saw President Bush walk out and stand side by side with the Argentine president, Nestor Kirchner. And he appeared before the cameras very briefly. Now it was expected that the two leaders would take questions.

They didn't and now we know why. A senior Bush administration official says that right up until the last minute there were negotiations apparently taking place with the Argentinians who wanted statements only. And in the end, that's what they got. Nevertheless, the president, in his statement, praised his Argentine counterpart.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Argentina and the United States have a lot in common. We both believe in rule of law. We both believe in minority rights. We both believe in free press. We both believe in free religion. We both understand that institutions are important for the betterment of the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, President Bush's visit here to Latin America comes at a time when there is strong anti-U.S. sentiment. Perhaps that is why we saw the president earlier today trying to emphasize the positive. The president started off his day sitting down with leaders who do agree with him on free trade. Namely leaders who have signed off on CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

Nevertheless, there is one leader attending the Summit of the Americas who is very open about the fact that he does not agree with President Bush on free trade. That is Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president, who has made clear he believes the U.S. is a capitalist, imperialist model of democracy.

Now the U.S. is largely glossing over the issue, but there have been widespread or large protests, we should say. Thousands of demonstrators traveling here to Argentina, outside the secure area here at the Summit of the Americas, but expressing their displeasure with President Bush.

Now, nevertheless, U.S. officials are saying that president remains focused on his agenda. And we should tell you, Daryn, that the official theme here at the Summit of the Americas is creating jobs to fight poverty and strengthen democratic governments.

Daryn. KAGAN: Elaine, with the layout of the summit and where the protesters are, will President Bush ever even see them?

QUIJANO: It's very unlikely. This is a heavily fortified area, as you can expect. And certainly what we saw in advance of the president's visit was a large portion of this particular area cordoned off and unavailable to the general public. We have seen a wide security perimeter, as is common, and certainly U.S. officials say that any time the president travels globally, that it's not unexpected to see large demonstrations. But those demonstrations certainly began early this morning and are planning to continue for the rest of the day. This summit continuing, as you know, Daryn, through tomorrow.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Elaine Quijano in Argentina. Thank you.

Well, those protests are not only strong in number, but celebrity as well. One of the most prominent is Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona. After donning a t-shirt that included a swastika in the Bush name, Maradona lead protesters in a march.

Clearly, President Bush's trip abroad has not allowed him to leave his problems at home and those problems are indeed considerable. According to the latest poll from the Associated Press, Mr. Bush's approval rating has slipped two more points over the last month. Thirty-seven percent approve of his performance, 59 percent disapprove. A CBS News poll shows Mr. Bush's approval rating even lower. Thirty-five percent approve of what he's doing and 57 percent disapprove.

A raging gun battle south of the Iraqi city of Baquba has left a half dozen police officers dead and another dozen wounded. Officials say three vehicles filled with some 40 gunmen opened fire on the checkpoint. The commander of the checkpoint is among those who was killed in the attack.

An American is also among this week's losses. The U.S. military says the soldier died last night of non-battle-related causes near Tallil. Authorities are investigating the incident. No other details are available.

So at the Pentagon today, there will be a meeting with the parents of the only U.S. soldier who currently is listed as captured in Iraq. Army Reserve Sergeant Keith "Matt" Maupin has been missing since April of last year. That's when insurgents ambushed his fuel truck convoy west of Baghdad. The next week, Arab TV network, al Jazeera, aired a video of Maupin at gunpoint. Senior Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre has more on today's meeting with the Ohio couple and the search for their son.

Jamie, hello.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The parents of Matt Maupin, Keith and Carolyn, are due to meet with army officials this morning at the Pentagon. They're going to get a briefing on the continuing search for their son and an attempt to account for what happened to him.

As you recall, he was shown in that videotape on al Jazeera shortly after his capture in April of 2004. Later, the network aired another videotape showing someone being murdered but it was not clear that it was Maupin. They claimed that Maupin was killed at the time.

Since then he's been listed as missing and the search for him or his body continues. And at the Pentagon briefing yesterday, Pentagon officials said that there's a heightened awareness among commanders that revolving Maupin's status is a priority.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. GEN. JAMES T. CONWAY, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, JCS: I can only tell you that he is in everybody's mind. I had an opportunity to review an army daily report yesterday and there's a box there for Sergeant Maupin and the most recent information available. So he is not forgotten.

LAWRENCE DIRITA, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: It is one in which the commanders there are mindful of. They know that we have a missing soldier and we're applying such capability as we have to trying to resolve that however it can be resolved. So it's something of importance.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE: Now one of the things that Specialist Maupin, now Sergeant Maupin's parents will be told about are the -- some of the efforts that are going on in the Abu Ghraib area to look for his body. Members of the 10th mountain division recently received a tip that he might have been buried in a location along one of the roads there near Abu Ghraib. They dug up a lot of the area. They did recover some material that could be from a U.S. military uniform. It's being sent to the United States for testing to see if there's any way to determine if it's a lead in the search for Matthew Maupin.

And again, apparently the parents were somewhat disturbed that they heard some of these details first from a news report from an embedded reporter with the 10th mountain division. The army says it's making every effort to keep the Maupin family updated on the continued search for their son in an attempt to find out exactly what happened to him.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Jamie, I know it's a different case, but this reminds me of the situation with Pat Tillman's family, the former NFL player that was killed in Afghanistan. That family says they were lied to on the original version of what happened to their son in Afghanistan.

MCINTYRE: Well, that account, in which Pat Tillman was killed by friendly fire and was initially reported as having been killed in hostile fire, provoked an entire review of the army notification procedures. The army insists all along that the initial confusion was just that and then they delayed in getting the full facts to the family because they wanted to nail down everything. But they admit they didn't do the right thing in that case. And again, there's a whole new set of procedures going on to make sure that they give the correct information to the family as soon as it's available.

This case is a little different in that what they're trying to do here is just make sure they keep the family updated on what's going on. You know, they say they can't call them every time there's a new mission to go out and look for their son, but they also realize that they need to keep the family updated every time there's a significant development. And having them to the Pentagon today to meet with the army is part of that effort.

KAGAN: Jamie McIntyre live at the Pentagon.

Jamie, thank you.

Authorities believe that a death row inmate got help in making an escape from a Houston, Texas, jail. Charles Thompson not only left jail in civilian clothes, he also had an I.D. that appeared to be from the attorney general's office. Ned Hibberd, from our affiliate KRIV, has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NED HIBBERD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Charles Victor Thompson is a convicted double murderer who has twice been sentenced to die for his crimes. Most recently just last Friday. Thompson was being held on the second floor of the Bakers Street Jail when he somehow shed his orange jumpsuit and donned khaki pant, a dark blue suit and white tennis shoes.

LT. JOHN MARTIN, HARRIS COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: He also had some kind of a tag or an I.D. that indicated he was with the attorney general's office and he used that to convince our deputy to let him out of the building.

HIBBERD: Around 3:30 in the afternoon, as jail officials were questioning him to discover how an attorney general investigator ended up in the bowels of the jail without a visitor's pass, Thompson allegedly told him he needed to go let his partner know about the holdup and walked out the door.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No way. Are you serious?

HIBBERD: Visitors to the jail whose visiting hours were canceled in the ensuing lockdown cannot believe deputies let Thompson walk away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they're not able to find him right now?

HIBBERD: They're looking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, do you guys have a picture so we'll know what he looks like? That's him? Oh, my gosh!

HIBBERD: In 1998, Thompson murdered his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend. He was convicted, sentenced to death, but the punishment was overturned and he was re-sentenced to the same fate last week. With nothing to lose, he must have hatched an escape plan and cops conclude he did not carry it out alone.

MARTIN: It's clear that he had to have had some help in getting the clothing and the I.D.s.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's really crazy. I want to go home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And, once again, that report from Ned Hibberd with our Houston affiliate KRIV.

Let's pop up to the Seattle area and give you an update on what's happening with this river rescue. An SUV halfway submerged in the river there near Lake Stephens. Our affiliates are flying overhead and just a few minute ago we received this report. This is Eric Kirschner, the helicopter pilot for KING television. Let's listen to see what Eric had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIC KIRSCHNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And for the first time we've found the fire tracks here. Now this is going opposite where the car is. There's those tire track, this SUV or a van, through the brush area and right there into the river. Now I'll chase the river down, see how far he got down, because the river is flowing from north to south, all the way down and Pilchuck River. He gets all the way down to the center section here.

And, again, things are not getting better. They seem to be getting worse for this individual. The driver sitting there in the car. The divers now off the shore. They just arrived. But again, they're trying to figure out, and we are as well, the current is moving so swift, how they're going to have to go across there.

They did try to cut a path through the thicket but the brush is so thick down this area and is so deep and the bank just kind of falls off. They gave up on that, came back down. They're thinking this is the best place to take off and jump back into the water. But again, to get in that water and swim against that current and get to that vehicle, it's going to be a real mystery as to see if they can get to it.

KAGAN: And we'll continue to monitor it with the latest information from KING television. Eric Kirchner, the helicopter pilot there, bring us the latest on how that SUV ended up in the Pilchuck River in the first place, north/northeast of Seattle, Washington.

The road to recovery following Hurricane Katrina. A unique look at the everyday struggles through the eyes of a young high school student. How she and her classmates are coping.

And is this for real? Parents potty training their kids from birth, no diapers. Why some are trying to choose to toss the diapers ahead this hour on CNN LIVE TODAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Once again, we're keeping an eye on these live pictures from Snohomish, Washington, north northeast of Seattle. That SUV, according to the local sheriff's department, lost control and veered into that river. They are still trying to get to it so they can rescue the driver. But as you can see with the strong flow of the current, that is a difficult task indeed. More on that as it becomes available.

As we move on, during our Hurricane Katrina coverage last month, we met high school senior Lizzie Maloy from Long Beach, Mississippi, and we wanted to find out how she and her friends are coping in the aftermath of the storm. So we gave her a video camera to make a diary. Now her latest update.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LIZZIE MALOY: 6:15. I'm going to go take a shower and get ready for school because I have to be up there in 45 minutes. So, I'm off.

I wanted to show you this intersection right here. And there's a road to my left, as well as a road behind me. These roads still don't have working traffic lights. And I'm going to pull into this parking lot right here because you can see there's still a lot of debris lying around and I think this would be an excellent place to show that. Still lots of piles all around the city.

There's definitely barbed wire strung from one side of our town to the other end all along the tracks. It definitely makes it look like a war zone.

This is my high school. Long Beach High School. It's 7:06 right now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Go to school in a trailer and then go home to the trailer.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We couldn't find anywhere like to live, so we rented an apartment in Gulfport.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The table in our trailer folds down to a bed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, you like push . . .

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You push the . . .

MALOY: So how are things going?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With the yearbook?

MALOY: Yes. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're working hard, but we don't know if our hard work is going to pay off or not.

MALOY: What do you mean?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't have any funding for our yearbook.

MALOY: How much does it cost to print the annual?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Roughly $100,000.

MALOY: Do you know how much we have?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think we have $21,000.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you very much for your donations to our annual. Huge corporation have turned us down with claims that they cannot afford to give us anything. Others in Florida have understood and have give us what they could. It seems the only ones willing to give are those who do not possess a fortune. Thank you again for your generosity.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've lost so much that we've lost a bit of our identity, a bit of our culture. And I'm just not willing for them to lose any more. And so we're working really hard at trying to put this yearbook back -- to put this yearbook together, despite the gargantuan odds against us. But I really believe that we can do it.

MALOY: I do, too. I do.

I guess I just wanted to say that things have been crazy, but it's getting better. I'm not going to fail calculus. I'm exaggerating. I'm going to get an A. But, yes, I guess that's all for now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Well, we do want to tell you that the students now have $23,000 for their yearbook. Mostly from the school system, a little from outside sources, and the school is also getting help for its homecoming from far away. Students at a high school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, are helping out with that.

Want to get back to our breaking news story out of Washington state, north/northeast of Seattle in Snohomish, Washington. The rescue efforts are on for an SUV that is half submerged in a river there. I have on the phone with me right now Deputy Robert Ravanno with the Snohomish Sheriff's Department.

Deputy, what can you tell us about the rescue?

DEPUTY ROBERT RAVANNO, SNOHOMISH COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: This assignments -- we're awaiting to amass people. We've got some dive units here. We're trying to get a boat in. The water is running very swift and, as you can probably know, we're getting quite a bit of rain and snow in the area here. KAGAN: Actually, it's hard for us to tell that by the pictures. Can you tell us a little bit more about how you think the SUV ended up in this situation in the first place?

RAVANNO: At this point, we don't really know. It was driven directly into the water. But we don't know exactly what the circumstances are yet.

KAGAN: And how many people do you think are in that SUV?

RAVANNO: We've only identified one person so far.

KAGAN: And do you have any contact with communicating with the person in that car?

RAVANNO: At this point I'm not sure. We're quite a ways from the scene here, but the fire aid unit has indicated that they have made some kind of contact, that the person is getting kind of cold.

KAGAN: So the . . .

RAVANNO: (INAUDIBLE) hypothermia.

KAGAN: The plan right now is to try to use a boat to rescue this person.

RAVANNO: That's correct.

KAGAN: Because it would be to -- the current is too swift to try to put people in the water?

RAVANNO: That's correct.

KAGAN: All right.

RAVANNO: We've got our swift water team showing up, but, at this point, we don't have then (ph) available. So we're just kind of waiting and watching to see what happens.

KAGAN: OK. We wish you well with those rescue effort. Thank you so much, Deputy Robert Ravanno with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Department in Washington state. We' will be back and forth with that story as more pictures and information are available.

Meanwhile, a movie that is blurring the lines between real life and reality cinema. Ahead this hour, Mr. Moviefone, remember him? Russ Leatherman? He tells us if "Jarhead" lives up to all of the hype.

First though, planning on traveling for the holidays? This is the woman you need to see first.

Hi, Gerri.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Good to see you. If you're going over the river and through the woods for the holidays, we'll show you how to save money on your airfare. "Five Tips" is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: This holiday season will be the toughest in recent memory for finding an air travel bargain. But don't give up. Not until you listen to our Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis with your top five tips on getting the best travel deals.

Gerri, good morning.

WILLIS: Good morning, Daryn. Good to see you.

My first tip, don't wait. You've got to act right away because fares are going up. In fact, they're already up 12 to 15 percent, Daryn.

KAGAN: So you want to keep tabs on the price.

WILLIS: That's right. And the interesting thing we found out, listen to this. I know people sometimes wait to buy because they're afraid that prices might come down. Well, guess what? If they do, you can get a voucher to make up the difference. So there's no advantage to waiting around to see if fares are going to fall lower because, at the end of the day, if they do discount the price, on the very flight that you booked, you can get that voucher and be made whole.

KAGAN: OK. Well, do not pass go, go directly to the discount carriers.

WILLIS: I know. A lot of people like to use a discount carrier, Southwest, JetBlue. They're great, but you're not going to see their fares on a lot of the discount websites that bring together all the prices from all the different carriers. You've got to go to JetBlue's website. You've got to go to Southwest's website to get those numbers. So you've really got to cast your net wide when looking for the best fares.

KAGAN: You might qualify for a bunch of different discounts and not even realize it.

WILLIS: That's right. If you're under 25 or if you're over 50, guess what, you can get a break. Startravel.com can help you if you're under 25, if you're one of those youngins out there. And the AARP have discounts for people over 50 and a lot of the airlines, you should check this out, if you're over 65 they're going to give you a break on the price. You should always, always, always ask if you're in that age category.

KAGAN: And so loyalty will actually buy you nothing when you're shopping around.

WILLIS: Yes, you know, like in a lot of places, loyalty is not really well regarded or well rewarded, I should say, anymore. You want to check out some of these discount websites that bring together some of the information. Smarter travel, Cheap Flights, Best Fares, Fare Compare. You've got to troll around and see the very best deal that you can get. And I think act soon.

One other tip quickly, Priceline.com. I know some people would get frustrated with the website because you couldn't really say, I want to travel on x day on x airline. Well, now you can. They've got a new tool on their website that gives you a little more control over your travel. You might want to check that out.

KAGAN: Gerri, I have to tell you, I've been ripped off.

WILLIS: You have?

KAGAN: The notes I get on your "Top Five Tips" did not give me your fifth tip. So I just have to ask you what it is.

WILLIS: Well, it was forget loyalty and the little bit about -- that I was tell young about Priceline.com.

KAGAN: Oh, OK. Well, there we go.

WILLIS: There you go.

KAGAN: Just four and five today.

Well, at least I can prepare now to do the shopping for the holiday travel.

WILLIS: There you go. And we'll give you six tips on Monday.

KAGAN: Yes, I think you owe me one.

Thank you, Ger.

WILLIS: You're welcome.

KAGAN: Goof to see you.

Once again, we are keeping an eye on what's happening in Washington state. An SUV driver is stuck in this river. It's the Pilchuck River close to Lake Everest, close to Seattle, Washington. Just north/northeast of Seattle, Washington. They believe there's one person in that car. It veered off the highway. As you can see, the weather -- well, the weather's one factor that they apparently can't see, as difficult as it is there on the ground, but also the flow of the water making it difficult to get to that driver. And we talked to a deputy from Snohomish, Washington, a few minutes ago. He said they're going to try to get a boat in the river to rescue the driver because the water is just moving to swiftly to put any rescuers directly into the river. We'll continue to monitor live here on CNN.

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