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American Morning

Guests of Honor

Aired January 29, 2003 - 09:35   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: They had two of the best seats in the house for the State of the Union speech right before -- or right beside the first lady as the president's guests. Air Force Captain Maureen Allen, a flight nurse from Alabama, was honored for her service in Afghanistan. And Lenny Compton, an Americorps volunteer, who was recognized for tutoring and mentoring young people in Michigan. They both join us from Washington this morning.
Glad to have both of you with us. Congratulations on that great honor both of you were bestowed last night.

Captain Allen, I wanted to start with you this morning, and quickly replay a small part of the president's speech when he talked very clearly about potential plans for attacking Iraq.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Saddam Hussein does not fully disarm for the safety of our people and for the peace of the world, we will lead a coalition to disarm him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: So, Captain Allen, you actually volunteered to serve in Afghanistan. Would you be willing to serve in Iraq if it ends up being that war has to be waged against Iraq?

CAPT. MAUREEN ALLEN, U.S. AIR FORCE NURSE: I support the decisions of the president, and I'm always ready to do what I need to do for my country.

ZAHN: What kind of a case, Captain Allen, do you think he built last night for going to war?

ALLEN: Again, I support any decisions that he would make.

ZAHN: And, Lenny, can you tell us how the president's speech played where you were last night?

LENNY COMPTON, AMERICOPRS VOLUNTEER: President Bush has been extremely supportive of community service initiatives, and I think it's a service that he mentioned, I hope that Congress, as well as the president, will work to be able to pass that.

ZAHN: How important is that commitment? COMPTON: It's very important, because a lot of people across the nation are volunteering and making dramatic impact on people's lives, and I'm just proud to be a symbol of what many people are doing.

ZAHN: Lenny, tell us about your experience of sitting where you sat and what sort of led up to it. You had incredible access. I'm told you spent a lot of time at the White House yesterday, in addition to spending time with the first lady. You met Condoleezza Rice, White House chief of staff Andy Card and the president's communication adviser Karen Hughes.

COMPTON: It was an honor to meet the president and his wife, and just be at the historic event, where the president gave a wonderful speech.

ZAHN: And, Captain Allen, the president addressed the troops directly last night, saying America believes in you. When you were stationed in Afghanistan, is that something any of you much talked about, what the politicians were saying back home, or what the president was saying about your service?

ALLEN: In Afghanistan, there was a high sense of camaraderie and patriotism among all of the members that were there, and we are just very happy to be able to serve our country.

ZAHN: And I know, Captain Allen, I know how proud you are of the country. Can you give us any sense of what some of your colleagues must feel like now as they wait to see if they might be deployed down the road?

ALLEN: We've always ensured we're fully trained and qualified and ready for any in addition.

ZAHN: Well, we were proud to see you both sitting there last night, and thank you for sharing part of your experience with us this morning, Captain Maureen Allen and Lenny Compton.

Best of luck to both of you.

COMPTON: Thank you.

ALLEN: Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired January 29, 2003 - 09:35   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: They had two of the best seats in the house for the State of the Union speech right before -- or right beside the first lady as the president's guests. Air Force Captain Maureen Allen, a flight nurse from Alabama, was honored for her service in Afghanistan. And Lenny Compton, an Americorps volunteer, who was recognized for tutoring and mentoring young people in Michigan. They both join us from Washington this morning.
Glad to have both of you with us. Congratulations on that great honor both of you were bestowed last night.

Captain Allen, I wanted to start with you this morning, and quickly replay a small part of the president's speech when he talked very clearly about potential plans for attacking Iraq.

Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Saddam Hussein does not fully disarm for the safety of our people and for the peace of the world, we will lead a coalition to disarm him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: So, Captain Allen, you actually volunteered to serve in Afghanistan. Would you be willing to serve in Iraq if it ends up being that war has to be waged against Iraq?

CAPT. MAUREEN ALLEN, U.S. AIR FORCE NURSE: I support the decisions of the president, and I'm always ready to do what I need to do for my country.

ZAHN: What kind of a case, Captain Allen, do you think he built last night for going to war?

ALLEN: Again, I support any decisions that he would make.

ZAHN: And, Lenny, can you tell us how the president's speech played where you were last night?

LENNY COMPTON, AMERICOPRS VOLUNTEER: President Bush has been extremely supportive of community service initiatives, and I think it's a service that he mentioned, I hope that Congress, as well as the president, will work to be able to pass that.

ZAHN: How important is that commitment? COMPTON: It's very important, because a lot of people across the nation are volunteering and making dramatic impact on people's lives, and I'm just proud to be a symbol of what many people are doing.

ZAHN: Lenny, tell us about your experience of sitting where you sat and what sort of led up to it. You had incredible access. I'm told you spent a lot of time at the White House yesterday, in addition to spending time with the first lady. You met Condoleezza Rice, White House chief of staff Andy Card and the president's communication adviser Karen Hughes.

COMPTON: It was an honor to meet the president and his wife, and just be at the historic event, where the president gave a wonderful speech.

ZAHN: And, Captain Allen, the president addressed the troops directly last night, saying America believes in you. When you were stationed in Afghanistan, is that something any of you much talked about, what the politicians were saying back home, or what the president was saying about your service?

ALLEN: In Afghanistan, there was a high sense of camaraderie and patriotism among all of the members that were there, and we are just very happy to be able to serve our country.

ZAHN: And I know, Captain Allen, I know how proud you are of the country. Can you give us any sense of what some of your colleagues must feel like now as they wait to see if they might be deployed down the road?

ALLEN: We've always ensured we're fully trained and qualified and ready for any in addition.

ZAHN: Well, we were proud to see you both sitting there last night, and thank you for sharing part of your experience with us this morning, Captain Maureen Allen and Lenny Compton.

Best of luck to both of you.

COMPTON: Thank you.

ALLEN: Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com