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American Morning

Anthrax Investigation: Most of Capitol Hill Closed for Search

Aired October 18, 2001 - 09:01   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 ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's start in Capitol Hill today, where anthrax testing has shut down some of the government.

Jonathan, tell us a little bit more about that. Good morning again.

JONATHAN KARL, CNN ANCHOR: Well, virtually entire Capitol complex closed down, all the Senate office buildings -- that is where most of those committee hearings take place -- that is where the Senate offices are -- and the House completely shut down. The only thing that is open is the Senate side of the Capitol building.

So what I have been seeing this morning is senators milling about, trying to cram into the tiny office spaces that most of them have in the Capitol building, small one room rooms that they call hideaways. They have moved in extra computers, extra phone lines, to try to make room for staff. The first vote will be at 10:00 this morning, but that is day that will be like none other that the Congress has ever seen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL (voice-over): For the first time in history, the House of Representatives is closed for public health reasons.

REP. DENNIS HASTERT (R-IL), HOUSE SPEAKER: We think we owe it to the people who work here, we think we owe it to our staffs that come from all across this country to serve the people of this nation, and quite frankly, we owe it to the members of this country, the people who elect us.

KARL: But in the Senate, the only place where anthrax has been detected, the work goes on.

SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MAJORITY LEADER: And we will not let this stop the work of the Senate.

KARL: In session sort of. The Senate side of the Capitol building will be open, but the Senate's three office buildings, where most of the work is done, are closed until Monday. Senate leaders said the anthrax problem was contained, the offending substance detected in only two places, the office where the letter to Daschle was opened in the Hart Senate Office Building and in the Senate mailroom in the adjacent Dirksen Building. DR. KENNETH MORITSUGU, DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: At this time, there has been no evidence of spores in the ventilation system.

KARL: About 2,000 Senate staffers have taken nose swab tests. So far just over 30 have tested positive, three of them in the office of Senator Russ Feingold, which is adjacent to Daschle's. The rest, staffers and police who had been inside Daschle's office. Some of those may have exposed each other with a simple act of compassion after the initial discovery of the anthrax letter.

DASCHLE: There were some hugs that you'd expect and people were hugging each other, and I think maybe in that effort there could have been the transfer from one person to the next as well.

KARL: So far, officials report only exposure to anthrax, not infection. And if anybody is infected, this strain of the bacteria responds to antibiotics.

SEN. BILL FRIST (R), TENNESSEE: And that's good news and that means this thing is eminently treatable.

KARL: All things considered, there was a remarkable calm on Capitol Hill. A press conference on an aviation security bill went forward even after the House announced a shutdown. And on the base of Capitol Hill, rap star M.C. Hammer joined several members of Congress to film a music video. The video's proceeds will go to the victims of the September 11 attacks.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

In the midst of all this, a significant policy development, believe it or not -- late yesterday, House and Senate negotiators met and came to agreement, a deal, on that anti-terrorism bill that Attorney General John Ashcroft has been asking for, to give him new powers to track down terrorists. Although they have come to a deal now, they have a practical problem: They can't get into the offices where you need to go and put the paperwork together, print out the copies, and get it ready for a vote. Of course, the House isn't around to vote on it. So a vote will be delayed on that deal. A deal has been struck, but a vote will be delayed until early next week -- Paula.

ZAHN: Jon Karl, I love that little part of that PSA. It put a smile an on a lot of people's faces this morning. Good work on our representatives' part.

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