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American Morning

America Under Attack: Whether Not Posing Problems for President's Visit to New York

Aired September 14, 2001 - 09:42   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.
PAULA ZAUN: Now, it remains to be seen what impact this is going to have on the president's traveling plans after he finishes up at the national prayer service at the National Cathedral. He is expected to come here to New York to get his firsthand look of what has happened to this city.

And Major Garrett now joining us from the White House with more details on that.

Is the weather going to change anything, Major?

MAJOR GARRETT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Paula, there's no indication of that now. I've checked with White House sources repeatedly this morning, they say the president still intends to travel to New York City. I've spoken with representatives in the office of Representative Jerrold Nadler, he is a Democrat from New York, in whose district the World Trade Center resides, what's left of it. They say they haven't received no word from the White House the president will not in fact carry out with his intentions to travel to New York City after the national prayer service at the National Cathedral. So that's where we are right now.

But, clearly, weather an issue. The underlying thought was that the president would take Air Force One to the general area, then from undisclosed location fly by helicopter to see and survey the damage from above. Clearly, if there is inclement weather that makes the question of a helicopter trip all the more real. But no announcement officially from the White House that this trip in fact will not occur. Every indication, both from Capitol Hill and from the White house, is the president will in fact go on to New York City. We will keep you posted on that.

I can tell you at this very moment the president is meeting with his entire cabinet in the Cabinet Room here at the White House. It is the first full cabinet meeting the president has convened since the disastrous, catastrophic events Tuesday. The president trying to coordinate as best he can all federal relief efforts, which will probably touch almost every agency of the federal government in one way or another. And he can do that now with the confidence that the White House and Congress have reached a deal on a $40 billion emergency supplemental spending bill; $10 billion of that 40 billion will be made immediately available to president to use for recovery efforts in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania, but most especially in New York City, where the rubble is so incredibly immense and the task so daunting for those on the ground.

So that's what we know here so far, Paula. I can also tell you I've talked to the Secret Service again just moments ago. The security perimeter that was extended about 3:00 yesterday afternoon around the White House, bumping it out a two full blocks to the north, will continue today. And in fact the Secret Service told me that it is still operating on what it describes as a very high state of alert. There is, as Jim Mackin, the spokesman for the Secret Service told me, a lot of intelligence coming in, and the Secret Service will maintain that extensive and extended perimeter of security around the White House. Mr. Mackin telling CNN that it could shrink sometime today, but it could also go back to what it is right now. And he said that could go on for many, many days because the Secret Service does believes there is a continuing threat to the White House, and so it's going to take every single precaution it believes necessary to protect not only the president, the press who work here, the larger White House staff family, but also the very citizenry of Washington D.C. that works in this general area. -- Paula.

ZAUN: Major, unfortunately, once again, I missed part of your report because we're constantly be handed new information.

I know the last time I spoke with you, you mentioned that the vice president, Dick Cheney, will not be at the prayer service. Explain to us why.

GARRETT: He is not scheduled to be at the prayer service. He is not on any official list of those who will be attending. The vice president was moved from the White House complex yesterday to the Camp David presidential retreat. Why? Because the Secret Service determined that for security reasons it was not a good idea to have the vice president and the president of the United States in the same place at the same time. That gives you a sense of just how pronounced the security concerns are for the Secret Service. They want to separate the commander-in-chief from the second-in-command or second in line for the presidency at this moment of heightened security alert here at the White House.

So all the information we've gathered this morning, the vice president will remain at Camp David, the president will be here, and he will not be with president at that prayer service at the National Cathedral.

ZAUN: All right, Major, thanks so much for that update.

And I should add to what Major just said on the New York front, that most of us that were out in the city early this morning have never seen the degree of security that now is in place to greet the president when he arrives here later today.

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