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CNN Live Today
Questions of Police Conduct in Patrick Kennedy Crash; New Tapes Portray Zarqawi as Bumbler
Aired May 05, 2006 - 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: We have been following the case of Congressman Patrick Kennedy and his car crash in Washington, D.C. We now have the police report, and Carol Lin has details from that -- Carol.
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, I've got the copy of the police report in my hand right now, and what's interesting, when you take a look at the fine print of the investigation, I mean this is what the police are saying happened. The police on the scene, in checking certain boxes about what happened that night, said that, yes, ability was impaired. And then another box checked yes, alcohol influence.
Daryn, they noted in their police report here that the Congressman's eyes were red and watery, speech slightly slurred. And upon exiting his vehicle, his balance was unsure. And the reporting officer also stated that the Congressman was, quote, "headed to the Capitol to make a vote." This at 2:47 in the morning.
Daryn, what's interesting to note here -- and this may be why there are going to be two investigations into this incident, one involving how the police handled the investigation to begin with. Because though they say that they checked the box that yes, was there alcohol influence, the Congressman denies that he was drinking. But there's no mention of a sobriety test here. So this is an indication that perhaps police on the scene were just eyeballing the situation and came to that conclusion.
The Congressman saying that's he going to fully cooperate with the investigation and that he wasn't drinking. He was under the influence of two prescription drugs. But, you know, as we read into this report, we're going to give you more detail. But just wanted to let you know that, because now there is a question into how the police conducted the investigation on the scene.
KAGAN: All right, Carol, thank you for the details from the police report.
Just ahead, we're going to Jazz Fest and we're talking with a special resident of New Orleans, Art Neville of the Neville Brothers. We're going to get a look inside house, got stuck with a lot of damage during Katrina. There he is, welcoming us in. We're going to get a tour, we're going to talk about playing Jazz Fest, and what's ahead for him and his brothers and his city. Just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAGAN: People with money will buy just about anything. And believe it or not, they fork over more than $150 for this snack in London. A British chef says it's the world's most expensive sandwich. It goes between slices of fermented bread. It's mayonnaise of French foie gras and black truffle, Japanese Kobe beef, English plum tomatoes, a French brie and Spanish long peppers. Sixty of these have sold in just the last two and a half weeks.
(BUSINESS HEADLINES)
KAGAN: It is Friday, no ordinary Friday, Cinco De Mayo, the fifth of May. The Mexican holiday is celebrated in this country with plenty of parties. And this year some protests as well. Rallies against illegal immigrants are scheduled today in New York and California. There are a few misconceptions about Cinco De Mayo.
Let's get a "Fact Check."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN (voice-over): Cinco De Mayo, when translated from Spanish, means "fifth of May." It's a national holiday in Mexico. It commemorates the Mexican Army's victory at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. They beat the French army, which was much larger and better outfitted. France ultimately won the war, but the Battle of Puebla came to symbolize the courage of the Mexican people. Cinco De Mayo is often mistaken for Mexico's independence day. That is actually September 16th, 1810, some 52 years before the Battle of Puebla.
Today some critics say that Cinco De Mayo celebrations have become too commercialized. In Mexico, Cinco De Mayo observances are relatively low-key compared to celebrations in the U.S.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: Well the celebration in New Orleans is Jazz Fest, the return of Jazz Fest, post-Katrina. Art Neville played there. He's going to tell us about that, his spirit, and also give us a tour of his home, which was devastated during Katrina. We'll see how things are coming back there.
We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Ground Zero and $1 billion, the latest estimate on the cost of the 9/11 memorial at the World Trade Center site. New York's mayor says expenses should be capped half of that. The state's governor is also calling for limits. Some perspective on the billion- dollar price tag. It is five times the cost of the World War II memorial in Washington, and some 25 times the expense of the Vietnam War Memorial.
A memorial is also taking shape in Pennsylvania. A house panel has approved $5 million to buy the land where United Flight 93 crashed on 9/11. The approval came only after a North Carolina Congressman dropped his two-year long opposition. Republican Charles Taylor demanded assurances that private donations would help cover the cost.
A terror master caught in the Pentagon spin cycle. The military believes that these outtakes of Abu Musab Al Zarqawi may be more useful than the finished product.
CNN senior national correspondent John Roberts reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN SR. NATL. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is a totally new tactic in the propaganda war against Zarqawi. President Bush had demonized him, even made him a campaign issue.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's a dangerous man. He hates what we stand for.
ROBERTS: Now the U.S. military says Zarqawi is a bumbler, a wannabe leader who can't even handle a machine gun.
MAJ.GEN. RICK LYNCH, CMDR., COALITION FORCE IRAQ: He's very proud of the fact that he can operate this machine gun.
ROBERTS: With captured outtakes from al Qaeda-produced video, General George Lynch mocked Zarqawi and his assistants as the gang that can't shoot straight.
LYNCH: Here is Zarqawi, the ultimate warrior, trying to shoot his machine gun. He's shooting single shots. He looks down, can't figure it out. Calls his friend to come unblock the stoppage.
ROBERTS: This scene was carefully left out of an Internet video that only showed a muscular Zarqawi fiercely wielding the weapon.
(on camera): I reviewed the outtakes with CNN's Security Analyst Richard Falkenrath, who believes they could be damaging to Zarqawi's image in the Arab world.
RICHARD FALKENRATH, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: I think it would play pretty badly. I mean, Arabs traditionally like strong men, men who really are strong leaders, fighters. And that's how he's tried to portray himself in the past. This video shows him as a bit of a bumbler.
ROBERTS (voice-over): But why would the U.S. after building Zarqawi into the uber-terrorist and using the full force of the military to go after him, suddenly turn 180 and say he's incompetent?
MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: I think they're trying a little bit of everything. I think this is just a small tactical move in the psychological warfare game. And we hope that it might happen to take Zarqawi down a notch among some of his followers or perhaps even if we get lucky, make him look so silly that somebody wants to knock him off.
ROBERTS: General Lynch also took aim at Zarqawi's attire, mocking his tennis shoes, though they are the footwear of choice for militias and insurgents in the Middle East.
And in an obvious violation of weapons 101, Lynch pointed out that another aide grabs the machine gun's hot barrel, burning his hand. The very picture of incompetence, he seemed to think.
LYNCH: It makes you wonder.
ROBERTS: No one has previously accused Zarqawi of being incompetent. He has certainly proven he can carry out major attacks against American and Iraqi targets. And it's believed he wielded the knife in the killing of U.S. hostage Nicholas Berg.
But the U.S. insists it is closing in on Zarqawi. And now destroying his credibility, appears part of the plan.
FALKENRATH: Well, I think it's one round in an ongoing propaganda war. And it's a loss for him on this one.
ROBERTS (on camera): The U.S. military believes it was hot on Zarqawi's trail and may have just missed him at the safe house south of Baghdad where the video outtakes were found.
But in portraying him as a bumbler, officials run the risk that if Zarqawi were to launch another major attack, they may look foolish for doubting his abilities.
John Roberts, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: A Kennedy and a late-night car crash. Exactly what happened?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REP. PATRICK KENNEDY (D), RHODE ISLAND: I never asked for any preferential treatment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: A closer look at the questions and a Congressman's answers, just ahead.
And diamonds in the dump. It's worse than looking for a needle in a haystack. An Arizona's couple's stinky search, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Digging for diamonds in mounds of trash. This story just stinks, I'm going to tell you that. But an Arizona couple just had to do it. Details on the treasure hunt from Sandy Rathbun of our affiliate KVOA in Tucson.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANDY RATHBUN, KVOA REPORTER (voice-over): Today Barbara Davis has her diamond rings back on her fingers. Last month, the family heirlooms were buried in eight tons of trash, a pile the size of this one. Davis had washed her hands and left four rings in a paper towel, when her husband Bill came along to tidy up.
BILL DAVIS, HUSBAND: Inadvertently, I came in about a few minutes later, picked up the paper towel, crumpled it up and threw it in the sack of garbage.
RATHBUN: Neither noticed until the next day after waste management picked up the trash.
DON ROSS, WASTE MANAGEMENT: When she initially called me, in the back of my mind, I thought, there's no way we're going to find rings in this mess.
BARBARA DAVIS, OWNER OF DIAMOND RINGS: This is how we did it.
RATHBUN: Still, waste management offered to dump its truck and two employees and the Davises started digging.
BARBARA DAVIS: It was worse than any needle in a haystack.
RATHBUN (on camera): If you think digging through this is stinky and gross, it is.
BARBARA DAVIS: There were, of course, a lot of unmentionables. I was afraid I'd come upon a body part or something. And there was animal waste in there and quite a bit of broken glass. I said, God, I hate to pray for something of material value, but would you please help me find the rings?
BILL DAVIS: She was doing a lot of praying; I was doing a lot of digging at the time.
RATHBUN (voice-over): Finally, after about three hours.
BILL DAVIS: I reached down and I grabbed it, and as soon as I grabbed it, I knew that they were inside. And I just said Barbara.
BARBARA DAVIS: And there they were!
RATHBUN: Diamonds in the rough.
Sandy Rathbun, News 4.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: This year's New Orleans Jazz Festival hits a final high note on Sunday, but there's going to be something missing. For the first time in years, the Neville Brothers will not close the show.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
KAGAN (voice-over): The Neville sound, a unique mix of R & B, funk and soul. A key ingredient in New Orleans 'musical gumbo.
AARON NEVILLE, NEVILLE BROTHERS: New Orleans had like a gumbo of different -- you know, cultures. And it's like a melting pot, you know? And it's -- you got from the Caribbean, we got the French, the Cajun, the Spanish, you name it.
KAGAN: The Nevilles grew up in one of New Orleans' toughest neighborhoods. They performed together for the first time in 1976, and are ambassadors of the city's music, along with the like of Dr. John, Fats Domino and Wynton Marsalis.
But the band's not playing Jazz Fest this year. Aaron Neville has respiratory problems. Brother Art plays the fest Sunday with his own band, called The Meters. Art Neville is the only brother who still calls New Orleans home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And in fact, Art Neville, nice enough to invite us over to his home in New Orleans this morning. Art, good morning.
ART NEVILLE, NEVILLE BROTHERS: Good morning. How you do?
KAGAN: I'm doing great. Thanks for inviting us over your house. Could we have a little tour? I understand this house had quite a bit of damage after Katrina.
NEVILLE: Well, I can go so far. I'll try walking this way a little bit...
KAGAN: OK.
NEVILLE: ... if you'd follow me. We had a lot of just -- this is in disarray right at the moment. The only thing that's good is my piano right there. But we haven't -- we got to get some work done here. We haven't done it yet, but we will.
KAGAN: How...
NEVILLE: We're doing all kind of events -- pardon?
KAGAN: How did this look -- what did this look like? Like these rooms, what did it look like right after Katrina?
NEVILLE: Well, it looked pretty bad.
KAGAN: Yes.
NEVILLE: It was -- yes. My wife took some of the -- most of the stuff out of here. And we live down the street right now, about two doors away, and it's pretty good there. But this house took a beating. But we're going to put it back together, get it fixed and, you know, come back up to par with it.
KAGAN: Absolutely. What was worse after Katrina? Was it the flooding or the looters and other people who might have done damage to your homes?
NEVILLE: I think -- well, as far as my home is concerned, the looters did more damage, you know, than anything. They didn't take very much. They took a few things. And, you know, the looters in New Orleans, period, did a job on their own. But we're going -- it's going come back, you know. In fact, we're doing...
KAGAN: Go ahead.
NEVILLE: I'm listening.
KAGAN: No, go ahead. In fact, you're what?
NEVILLE: I said we're doing benefits for, you know, to bring New Orleans back to the wetlands or just New Orleans period. We just did a couple of benefits. We're going to go out with Dr. John and someone else, I don't know who it is right now. The Neville Brothers and Dr. John are doing the benefit for New Orleans again.
KAGAN: I really want to talk to you about the music, but I just have to ask you this because I read it. It's fascinating. Is it true that you put your Grammy Awards in the dryer?
NEVILLE: My wife did.
KAGAN: In the clothes...
NEVILLE: And good thing she did, because they would have taken it. It was good. But, I mean, a storm -- like I said, what happened was the levees breached and the water came in. I said I wasn't ever going leave until the water come. Well it came this time.
KAGAN: Well, Art, you know how they do things done there in New Orleans. You have a nice little visit. And what I'd like to do, if it's OK -- I mean, you invited us over to your home. We have to get to some news at the top of the hour here, but if you'd be so kind as to let us come back like in about 30 minutes and continue our visit? I want to talk to you about Jazz Fest and some of these fundraisers that you're doing and see how your brothers are doing, as well.
NEVILLE: Great, great.
KAGAN: How's that? OK?
NEVILLE: That's great.
KAGAN: So we'll be back with you in about a half hour. Great.
NEVILLE: Thank you.
KAGAN: Art Neville, live with us from New Orleans. We're going to talk -- as I said, Jazz Fest. He's played Jazz Fest. And hear how his brothers are doing as well, and the recovery of New Orleans.
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