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American Morning
Former Secretary of State Insists International Situation Needs Kerry
Aired July 29, 2004 - 07:00 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: John Kerry over the top -- a roll call vote making the presidential nomination official in Boston.
A contrast in style and in message for last night's two most memorable speakers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What John Kerry and I believe is that we should never look down on anybody, we ought to lift people up.
REV. AL SHARPTON, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDER: In all due respect, Mr. President, read my lips, our vote is not for sale.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: And now the stage is set for John Kerry about to make the most important speech of this convention and of his life.
All starting on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: This is AMERICAN MORNING from the Democratic national convention in Boston, here's Bill Hemmer.
HEMMER: Good morning and welcome back. It is Thursday, day four of the Democratic national convention. Our special coverage continues throughout the morning here. Getting ready now for the main event.
There's a sense here in Boston that tonight is what everyone has been waiting for, John Kerry playing to his biggest audience yet. How will he do? That will be a major focus for our coverage this morning.
Last night, plenty of energy here -- Senator John Edwards, the Reverend Al Sharpton, each in his own way getting the crowd standing and clapping and screaming.
Sharpton brought a few surprises along the way, straying away from his script, going longer than expected to make several pointed jabs at the White House and President Bush. We will talk a lot today about what happened here last night.
We'll talk about also what Senator Kerry has to do here later tonight, as well.
So far this morning in only the first hour today, we'll talk to John Kerry's daughters, his stepsons, as well, here in Boston, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Republican perspective from the New York Mayor, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
And we'll talk this hour with film director Rob Reiner about his role and the role of celebrities at these conventions and whether or not people pay attention to them -- and a whole lot more after that.
Also good morning to Heidi Collins back in New York. Heidi, good morning to you.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning, Bill. Happy day four.
HEMMER: Yes, happy day four, indeed. Almost there, almost.
COLLINS: Almost there. All right. Well, there is a lot of other news to cover this morning as well.
We are going to get a report on a possible terrorism case in Texas. Authorities have detained a woman traveling on a South African passport. Her name was on a terror list, an FBI watch list. We're going to tell you more about that.
For now, though, Jack is here as well. Good morning, sir.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I don't know if Al Sharpton could run the country, but he's a lot more interesting to listen to than most of those politicians up there.
COLLINS: He's kind of loud.
CAFFERTY: Plus your hair looks better Reverend Al. You've got that "do" under control.
A huge audience for John Kerry tonight, but if he wants to be the President of the United States, he is going to have to figure out a way to ring the chimes of a very tiny, tiny group of people. And we'll take a look at that in a few minutes.
COLLINS: All right. Good question, as always. Thanks, Jack.
For now, though, we are going to send it back to Bill in Boston -- Bill?
HEMMER: All right, Heidi.
As we mentioned, Senator Kerry takes the stage later tonight, the biggest speech of his life to date, that stage set last night by John Edwards declaring, among other things, hope is on the way.
Here's Bob Franken now this morning for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Finally tonight is John Kerry tonight. Come to think of it, it's been John Kerry's week.
JOHN GLENN (D), FMR. SEN. FROM OHIO: Ohio takes great pride tonight in being the state to put this voting over the top in making John Kerry candidacy official as we cast 159 votes for the next president of the United States, John Kerry.
FRANKEN: So with battleground state Ohio putting him over the top, presumptive nominee John Kerry is now official nominee John Kerry, who is joined at the hip by John Edwards and proceeded as main speaker last night by Edwards, saying what he says best.
EDWARDS: What we believe, what John Kerry and I believe is that we should never look down on anybody, we ought to lift people up.
FRANKEN: It was a good night for the Edwards family -- good times all-around.
ELIZABETH EDWARDS, WIFE OF SEN. JOHN EDWARDS: In two days we will celebrate 27 years of marriage...
(APPLAUSE)
ELIZABETH EDWARDS: ... the way we always do. We'll do it the way we always do, at Wendy's.
FRANKEN: Who would have known -- the convention with a commercial for a hamburger restaurant? And one speaker who tried to shred the Republican president for even suggesting he should get African-American support.
SHARPTON: Mr. President, in all due respect Mr. President, read my lips, our vote is not for sale.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN: Well, tonight John Kerry will try and sell himself, define himself to a nation outside this FleetCenter so the Republicans can't -- Bill?
HEMMER: Bob, what do Democrats want to hear from him tonight?
FRANKEN: That he can beat George W. Bush. That, of course, is what has united the Democrats, in fact uniquely so. And that's going to be the marching order, to get out there and take it to the Republicans.
HEMMER: Thank you, Bob. Bob Franken high above the FleetCenter here.
Conventional wisdom says tonight's speech is the most important of his life for John Kerry. It's the moment Democrats are waiting for and the Kerry clan chief among them.
With us now to talk about this and the speech tonight, say hello Vanessa and Alex Kerry, along with Chris and Andre Heinz here at the FleetCenter in Boston.
Nice to see all of you.
VANESSA KERRY, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S DAUGHTER: How are you?
CHRIS HEINZ, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S STEPSON: Good morning.
ANDRE HEINZ, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S STEPSON: Good morning.
HEMMER: We've got five people on this set, not bad, huh?
VANESSA KERRY: Yes.
CHRIS HEINZ: Amazing.
HEMMER: Your father came in yesterday blaring the sounds of Bruce Springstein, no retreat, no surrender. What are you're expectations, Vanessa, for this speech tonight?
VANESSA KERRY: What are my expectations? What -- it's more what do I feel very comfortable saying about my father and I feel that I know -- is that he is going to speak exactly the way he's spoken for months.
And also setting out a real vision for this country, talking about the how, the why, health care for all Americans, creating jobs, making sure that we're investing in this country, making sure that this country is safe overseas and stronger here at home.
And I think you're going to hear not just what, but also how we are going to do that.
HEMMER: Alex, for those who say your father can be stiff and sometimes lacking a sense of intimacy, how do you, as a daughter, help him with that in this campaign?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: How do we help them with that? Well, we try to keep him laughing, sometimes it's at us and sometimes it's with us. But I think that, you know, generally when we hear that notion it makes us laugh because it's not really the person that we know in the sense that he is very playful. And he can be very irreverent and witty and silly.
Sometimes telling about that isn't as interesting probably, as showing it. And I think people in the press are seeing a lot more of that side of him on the trail because it really is who he is.
HEMMER: If that his personality, Chris, what about your mother? We know she's outspoken. She makes no regrets about it. She doesn't back down from it in any way.
Growing up, how did her personality influence you and your brother?
CHRIS HEINZ: You tell us. At the end of the day I think that both our father and mother valued our opinion, tried to extract it from us. Every night, you know, we talked about issues. We talked about family.
So if you have something to say and your member of the Heinz family, and it's something that's intelligent and worthy of being said, I think we've always been incented to say it. And that's part of our character.
HEMMER: Andre, are you ever concerned she might go one step too far?
ANDRE HEINZ: No more so than anyone in any family would. I think everything is done in the spirit of openness in dialogue. So -- I think the American people know when they're listening to Mom and to John.
And for that matter, I'd hope they would expect that from any public servant. So, for me, it's all within the realm of reason.
HEMMER: Back to Alex and Vanessa here, your father is a competitive man. We know that. He's running against a very competitive man in George Bush.
As daughters, do you feel a sense of competition with his own daughters, with them on the campaign?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: No, I mean, we're not running for office. They're not running for office. I respect their privacy and their independence, certainly. And I don't think anything about this is about that.
And I think even in general about the competition about my father and the president, I think it's about policies and platforms more than it is about their own biding competition against each other.
HEMMER: You said this week is like a rock star for you without an instrument. What do you mean by that?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: Oh, no, I said -- On the campaign trail, I said sometimes we feel like rock stars but without the instruments just in the sense that the pace and the hotel rooms and things like that.
HEMMER: Well good luck later tonight.
Andre, I understand you do some mean impersonations. Care to share?
ANDRE HEINZ: Surely not.
CHRIS HEINZ: He's doing one right now.
ANDRE HEINZ: Mic not working? I'll have to save that...
HEMMER: Are you sure you don't want to share now?
CHRIS HEINZ: You could say, this is CNN.
HEMMER: You were excellent off stage. ANDRE HEINZ (Bill Clinton impersonation): That wouldn't be fair. After all, actually I had my hour in the spotlight. I appreciate that so much, though, thanks.
HEMMER: Thank you for that.
A three of clubs and a four of clubs are the Kerry daughters here in the Democratic deck of cards.
VANESSA KERRY: Oh, no. Let's keep those folded over.
HEMMER: Good luck later tonight, and we appreciate you spending time with us today.
VANESSA KERRY: Thank you.
HEMMER: All right.
ALEXANDRA KERRY: Thank you.
HEMMER: Also, a lineup tonight, the speakers on the platform, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will be there. She is followed by the former NATO commander ex-Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark. He's there. Senator Joe Lieberman out of Connecticut, and a former rival of Kerry, will speak also. And, of course, Senator Kerry gives his acceptance speech later tonight.
We will be here to see all of it and much more from the FleetCenter when we continue this morning on our Thursday edition here from Boston.
Back to Heidi now, though, in New York.
COLLINS: All right, Bill, thanks so much.
A woman is being held in possible terrorism case -- the woman was detained last week in Texas near the border with Mexico. Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve in Boston is following this story for us.
And Jeanne, I know authorities have been very concerned about this Mexican border for quite some time.
JEANNE MESERVE, HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: They are. That border, we know, is very porous. They've been afraid that terrorists might try to come across it. This woman apparently did.
She claims to be 48, South African. She says her name is Farida Goolam Mohamed Ahmed. Government officials tell CNN's Kelli Arena that she is on an FBI watch list, that her name surfaced during an investigation of an overseas terrorist event. And they say she is of concern.
She was stopped on July 19 in the McEllen, Texas, as she tried to board a flight to New York, by agents of customs and border protection. She did not have a visa. She did not have a stamp in her passport, indicated she had entered the U.S. legally. And six pages had been ripped out of her South African passport.
She also was carrying about $7,000, most of it in U.S. currency. She also had a muddy bag of clothes. And according to court documents, she later did admit to officials that she had come across the border illegally.
She is being detained without bond in Texas now as officials continue to investigate if she is who she says she is, whether or not she has ties to al Qaeda and what she might have been up to -- Heidi?
COLLINS: So Jeanne, what is the background then for all of this?
MESERVE: Well, as you mentioned, the Mexican border and its possible exploitation by terrorists. Also, the fact that there's been concern that terrorist organizations might be trying to recruit women as operatives.
Also of course, there's been concern expressed about the run up to the U.S. election and whether or not terrorists might try to make a strike before November.
And finally, South African officials are acknowledging that some of their passports have fallen into the hands of criminal syndicates. So you put it all together, and they want to look much more carefully at this individual -- Heidi?
COLLINS: Well it certainly sounds like it. All right. Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve. Thanks so much, Jean.
11 minutes past the hour now. Time for a look at some of today's other news with Daryn Kagan. Good morning, Daryn.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, good morning to you.
Let's begin in Iraq, that report that another hostage has been kidnapped in Iraq. A Kuwaiti company has been given 48 hours to withdraw from Iraq or risk the life of a Somali truck driver.
Meanwhile, two Pakistani hostages have reportedly been killed. The Arabic language network Al-Jazeera says it was given a videotape showing the bodies of the men. Those images were not broadcast.
Back here in the U.S., authorities in Southern California want to question a man in connection with some contaminated baby food. Three jars of Gerber banana yogurt tested positive for traces of castor bean, that is a source of the poison ricin. Consumers discovered the contamination after finding threatening notes inside the jars. Two babies who ate the food are reportedly fine.
The accuser in Kobe Bryant's sexual assault case wants an apology after some confidential information was publicly released again. At issue, a judge's order giving the accuser's last name and referring to DNA tests taken from Bryant during a hospital exam last July. The document was temporarily posted on a court Web site yesterday.
And finally, a massive amount of rain has fallen overnight in the Dallas area. Up to a foot of rain fell in some parts of the region, flooding roads and damaging hundreds of homes. One motorist was killed when his truck knocked over a utility pole and the live wires fell onto the vehicle.
More rain is expected throughout the day. I know the folks in Texas are really going to hear what Rob Marciano has to say today about the weather. He's in for Chad Myers.
Rob, good morning.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Daryn. You're right about that. More rain is expected today.
(WEATHER BREAK)
MARCIANO: Bill, back over to you in Boston.
HEMMER: All right, Rob, thanks for that.
The DNC focusing on foreign policy later tonight. The Kerry camp here in Boston, they say their man is stronger than President Bush on security. Polls show that most Americans seem to disagree. We'll talk to one of Kerry's policy advisers, Madeleine Albright, on that topic.
Also ahead, sibling rivalry in "Political Pop", why Ron Reagan is at odds with one of his brothers.
And the latest on the Lori Hacking case in Utah -- her husband the only person of interest police have named so far, so why are they not keeping a closer eye on him? Much more this hour.
Live in Boston in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: High above the FleetCenter, those balloons, 100,000 of them in addition to 1,000 pounds of confetti all will come down tonight somewhere around 11:00 Eastern time when John Kerry finishes his acceptance speech here in Boston.
Foreign policy expected to be the focus later tonight. Former Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, now an adviser to Senator John Kerry on these issues. She'll address the delegates also onstage later tonight. She's my guest here now at the FleetCenter.
Madame Secretary, good morning to you.
MADELEINE ALBRIGHT, FMR. SECRETARY OF STATE: Good to be with you, Bill.
HEMMER: Nice to see you up in Boston.
A Republican strategist said his about the war on terror and keeping America safe, "Is there a willingness to accept the gauntlet thrown down by the Democrats and make the campaign about national security issues, you bet."
Is there a risk in that strategy?
ALBRIGHT: Absolutely not, because I have to tell you, as somebody who's been involved in foreign policy my whole life, this international situation is a mess. That's a diplomatic term of art. And it requires new leadership.
And so, I think this is something that we need to discuss in front of the American people and make clear that John Kerry is the right leader to be able to protect America.
HEMMER: What's such a mess, specifically?
ALBRIGHT: Specifically, the war in Iraq was a great success. But the post part is a disaster.
Yesterday, there was another suicide bombing. Many people died. They need to be getting ready for their elections. The security situation there is bad.
Nothing is happening on the Middle East peace process. We are very worried about what is going on in Afghanistan where President Karsi is a great guy, but he's had to postpone elections, and the dangers there -- still people are dying.
HEMMER: Let me stop you then. Let's fast forward. Let's say in January John Kerry is the new president in this country. How does Afghanistan change? How does Iraq change? How does the war on terror change?
ALBRIGHT: Well obviously, one has to see what happens in the next months. But in Afghanistan, for instance. I think we need to make clear, again, that, that is a priority. That's where the terrorists came from.
And basically, the security situation there is bad. Drugs are back, huge sales of drug, opium, coming out of there. On Iraq, I think it will require us to try to get more help. And no matter what the Bush administration is saying, they do not have enough international assistance. And the U.N. can't do its job because they don't have security.
HEMMER: No matter what comes out of this speech tonight, though, Republicans are going to say that John Kerry is still the most liberal senator in Congress today. How do you defend that?
ALBRIGHT: Well, first of all, they can say what they want. They have to really look at how strong John Kerry is, how he cares about the people. If that's what liberal is about, that's not so bad. He cares about where the American people are.
Last night, John Edwards made very clear what the program was in terms of taking care of the poor, making sure that there are good jobs. Those are the things that American people care about and they care about being safe and secure and they will have a president who has put his life on the line for our country before.
HEMMER: Will you serve in a cabinet position if John Kerry is president?
ALBRIGHT: Well let me tell you, I had a fantastic cabinet position which I loved, and usually that doesn't happen twice. But if I'm asked to do anything, I obviously will.
HEMMER: Madame Secretary, thanks for your time here. Madeleine Albright here in Boston.
ALBRIGHT: Great to be with you again, Bill. Good luck.
HEMMER: Thank you.
Let's get a break here. In a moment, we'll get some of the reaction of the claims of the Kerry campaign. In a moment here live in Boston, I'll talk to the one man who led New York City through 9/11. The former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, my guest live in Boston when we continue.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Oil prices hit a record high, so how will this affect prices at the pump and your wallet? Andy Serwer is here now "Minding Your Business."
Probably not very well.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: No, it might not be that bad, Heidi. Let's talk about what's happening.
Yesterday, the price of oil crossed the $43 a barrel threshold. After that, it touched back down to $42.90, still not really good news.
Don't blame Iraqi insurgents, the Saudis or OPEC this time. It's a troubled Russian oil company called Yukos. That's the culprit. It's a dispute with the Russian government.
The Russian government says this company owes it billions of dollars in taxes. The company said well, then we'll have to shut down our oil production. They account for about 20 percent of Russia's oil production, about 1.6 million barrels a day.
After that, the Russian government said, whoa, wait a minute. We don't want you to do shut down production. So that's why the price of oil went back down.
And in fact, Heidi, that's why experts here in the United States think the price of oil will not -- the price of gasoline that is -- will not go way back over $2.00 a gallon. One analyst saying a gas station selling $2.20 gas, as you can see there, is not going to be making a lot of friends.
Also Labor Day is coming, and that is the end of the heavy driving season. So probably not a whole lot to worry about. Still, our dependence on foreign oil, be it from Russia or be it from Iraq or be it from Saudi Arabia causes problems like this, no question.
COLLINS: What about the market?
SERWER: Yesterday, quickly, we kind of had a mixed picture. That higher oil prices did impact stocks a little bit. The Dow managed to eke out a bit of a gain, though. You can see there. The blue chips did OK this morning. Futures are looking pretty good though.
COLLINS: All right. Excellent.
Thanks, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
COLLINS: Jack, Cafferty file, "Question of the Day."
CAFFERTY: Yes, indeed. Thanks, Heidi.
A lot of pressure on Senator Kerry tonight when he makes that acceptance speech up there in Boston at the Democratic national convention.
The country, you know this, has not been this sharply divided in a good, long while. The polls continue to suggest the race will be very, very close and the outcome will ultimately be decided by a very small number of undecided voters. And those are the people that Senator Kerry has to figure out how to touch somehow tonight in his remarks.
History suggests that voters who remain undecided late in the campaign tend to eventually break for the challenger. So the heat is definitely on. And here's the question, what does Kerry have to say tonight to change the minds of the undecided?
They are the key to the election. I mean the people that hate George Bush would vote for the Democratic candidate if they ran Mickey Mouse and vice versa. But it's that tiny little segment of the population that hasn't made up their minds yet. And he's got to say something tonight that resonates there because he doesn't have enough, I don't think, yet to win it.
COLLINS: Yes, about 7 percent or so still undecided.
CAFFERTY: Is that what it is?
COLLINS: Yes so, we'll see what happens on that one. Thanks so much Jack, Andy.
Still to come this morning, Bill will be joining us from Boston. He'll talk to former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. We'll here what Giuliani says about the Democratic claims that John Kerry can do the best job of protecting America.
Plus, the latest on the search for Lori Hacking -- why a trip to the store for cigarettes may reveal some clues.
Keep it here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Aired July 29, 2004 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: John Kerry over the top -- a roll call vote making the presidential nomination official in Boston.
A contrast in style and in message for last night's two most memorable speakers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What John Kerry and I believe is that we should never look down on anybody, we ought to lift people up.
REV. AL SHARPTON, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDER: In all due respect, Mr. President, read my lips, our vote is not for sale.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: And now the stage is set for John Kerry about to make the most important speech of this convention and of his life.
All starting on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: This is AMERICAN MORNING from the Democratic national convention in Boston, here's Bill Hemmer.
HEMMER: Good morning and welcome back. It is Thursday, day four of the Democratic national convention. Our special coverage continues throughout the morning here. Getting ready now for the main event.
There's a sense here in Boston that tonight is what everyone has been waiting for, John Kerry playing to his biggest audience yet. How will he do? That will be a major focus for our coverage this morning.
Last night, plenty of energy here -- Senator John Edwards, the Reverend Al Sharpton, each in his own way getting the crowd standing and clapping and screaming.
Sharpton brought a few surprises along the way, straying away from his script, going longer than expected to make several pointed jabs at the White House and President Bush. We will talk a lot today about what happened here last night.
We'll talk about also what Senator Kerry has to do here later tonight, as well.
So far this morning in only the first hour today, we'll talk to John Kerry's daughters, his stepsons, as well, here in Boston, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Republican perspective from the New York Mayor, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
And we'll talk this hour with film director Rob Reiner about his role and the role of celebrities at these conventions and whether or not people pay attention to them -- and a whole lot more after that.
Also good morning to Heidi Collins back in New York. Heidi, good morning to you.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning, Bill. Happy day four.
HEMMER: Yes, happy day four, indeed. Almost there, almost.
COLLINS: Almost there. All right. Well, there is a lot of other news to cover this morning as well.
We are going to get a report on a possible terrorism case in Texas. Authorities have detained a woman traveling on a South African passport. Her name was on a terror list, an FBI watch list. We're going to tell you more about that.
For now, though, Jack is here as well. Good morning, sir.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I don't know if Al Sharpton could run the country, but he's a lot more interesting to listen to than most of those politicians up there.
COLLINS: He's kind of loud.
CAFFERTY: Plus your hair looks better Reverend Al. You've got that "do" under control.
A huge audience for John Kerry tonight, but if he wants to be the President of the United States, he is going to have to figure out a way to ring the chimes of a very tiny, tiny group of people. And we'll take a look at that in a few minutes.
COLLINS: All right. Good question, as always. Thanks, Jack.
For now, though, we are going to send it back to Bill in Boston -- Bill?
HEMMER: All right, Heidi.
As we mentioned, Senator Kerry takes the stage later tonight, the biggest speech of his life to date, that stage set last night by John Edwards declaring, among other things, hope is on the way.
Here's Bob Franken now this morning for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Finally tonight is John Kerry tonight. Come to think of it, it's been John Kerry's week.
JOHN GLENN (D), FMR. SEN. FROM OHIO: Ohio takes great pride tonight in being the state to put this voting over the top in making John Kerry candidacy official as we cast 159 votes for the next president of the United States, John Kerry.
FRANKEN: So with battleground state Ohio putting him over the top, presumptive nominee John Kerry is now official nominee John Kerry, who is joined at the hip by John Edwards and proceeded as main speaker last night by Edwards, saying what he says best.
EDWARDS: What we believe, what John Kerry and I believe is that we should never look down on anybody, we ought to lift people up.
FRANKEN: It was a good night for the Edwards family -- good times all-around.
ELIZABETH EDWARDS, WIFE OF SEN. JOHN EDWARDS: In two days we will celebrate 27 years of marriage...
(APPLAUSE)
ELIZABETH EDWARDS: ... the way we always do. We'll do it the way we always do, at Wendy's.
FRANKEN: Who would have known -- the convention with a commercial for a hamburger restaurant? And one speaker who tried to shred the Republican president for even suggesting he should get African-American support.
SHARPTON: Mr. President, in all due respect Mr. President, read my lips, our vote is not for sale.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FRANKEN: Well, tonight John Kerry will try and sell himself, define himself to a nation outside this FleetCenter so the Republicans can't -- Bill?
HEMMER: Bob, what do Democrats want to hear from him tonight?
FRANKEN: That he can beat George W. Bush. That, of course, is what has united the Democrats, in fact uniquely so. And that's going to be the marching order, to get out there and take it to the Republicans.
HEMMER: Thank you, Bob. Bob Franken high above the FleetCenter here.
Conventional wisdom says tonight's speech is the most important of his life for John Kerry. It's the moment Democrats are waiting for and the Kerry clan chief among them.
With us now to talk about this and the speech tonight, say hello Vanessa and Alex Kerry, along with Chris and Andre Heinz here at the FleetCenter in Boston.
Nice to see all of you.
VANESSA KERRY, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S DAUGHTER: How are you?
CHRIS HEINZ, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S STEPSON: Good morning.
ANDRE HEINZ, SEN. JOHN KERRY'S STEPSON: Good morning.
HEMMER: We've got five people on this set, not bad, huh?
VANESSA KERRY: Yes.
CHRIS HEINZ: Amazing.
HEMMER: Your father came in yesterday blaring the sounds of Bruce Springstein, no retreat, no surrender. What are you're expectations, Vanessa, for this speech tonight?
VANESSA KERRY: What are my expectations? What -- it's more what do I feel very comfortable saying about my father and I feel that I know -- is that he is going to speak exactly the way he's spoken for months.
And also setting out a real vision for this country, talking about the how, the why, health care for all Americans, creating jobs, making sure that we're investing in this country, making sure that this country is safe overseas and stronger here at home.
And I think you're going to hear not just what, but also how we are going to do that.
HEMMER: Alex, for those who say your father can be stiff and sometimes lacking a sense of intimacy, how do you, as a daughter, help him with that in this campaign?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: How do we help them with that? Well, we try to keep him laughing, sometimes it's at us and sometimes it's with us. But I think that, you know, generally when we hear that notion it makes us laugh because it's not really the person that we know in the sense that he is very playful. And he can be very irreverent and witty and silly.
Sometimes telling about that isn't as interesting probably, as showing it. And I think people in the press are seeing a lot more of that side of him on the trail because it really is who he is.
HEMMER: If that his personality, Chris, what about your mother? We know she's outspoken. She makes no regrets about it. She doesn't back down from it in any way.
Growing up, how did her personality influence you and your brother?
CHRIS HEINZ: You tell us. At the end of the day I think that both our father and mother valued our opinion, tried to extract it from us. Every night, you know, we talked about issues. We talked about family.
So if you have something to say and your member of the Heinz family, and it's something that's intelligent and worthy of being said, I think we've always been incented to say it. And that's part of our character.
HEMMER: Andre, are you ever concerned she might go one step too far?
ANDRE HEINZ: No more so than anyone in any family would. I think everything is done in the spirit of openness in dialogue. So -- I think the American people know when they're listening to Mom and to John.
And for that matter, I'd hope they would expect that from any public servant. So, for me, it's all within the realm of reason.
HEMMER: Back to Alex and Vanessa here, your father is a competitive man. We know that. He's running against a very competitive man in George Bush.
As daughters, do you feel a sense of competition with his own daughters, with them on the campaign?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: No, I mean, we're not running for office. They're not running for office. I respect their privacy and their independence, certainly. And I don't think anything about this is about that.
And I think even in general about the competition about my father and the president, I think it's about policies and platforms more than it is about their own biding competition against each other.
HEMMER: You said this week is like a rock star for you without an instrument. What do you mean by that?
ALEXANDRA KERRY: Oh, no, I said -- On the campaign trail, I said sometimes we feel like rock stars but without the instruments just in the sense that the pace and the hotel rooms and things like that.
HEMMER: Well good luck later tonight.
Andre, I understand you do some mean impersonations. Care to share?
ANDRE HEINZ: Surely not.
CHRIS HEINZ: He's doing one right now.
ANDRE HEINZ: Mic not working? I'll have to save that...
HEMMER: Are you sure you don't want to share now?
CHRIS HEINZ: You could say, this is CNN.
HEMMER: You were excellent off stage. ANDRE HEINZ (Bill Clinton impersonation): That wouldn't be fair. After all, actually I had my hour in the spotlight. I appreciate that so much, though, thanks.
HEMMER: Thank you for that.
A three of clubs and a four of clubs are the Kerry daughters here in the Democratic deck of cards.
VANESSA KERRY: Oh, no. Let's keep those folded over.
HEMMER: Good luck later tonight, and we appreciate you spending time with us today.
VANESSA KERRY: Thank you.
HEMMER: All right.
ALEXANDRA KERRY: Thank you.
HEMMER: Also, a lineup tonight, the speakers on the platform, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will be there. She is followed by the former NATO commander ex-Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark. He's there. Senator Joe Lieberman out of Connecticut, and a former rival of Kerry, will speak also. And, of course, Senator Kerry gives his acceptance speech later tonight.
We will be here to see all of it and much more from the FleetCenter when we continue this morning on our Thursday edition here from Boston.
Back to Heidi now, though, in New York.
COLLINS: All right, Bill, thanks so much.
A woman is being held in possible terrorism case -- the woman was detained last week in Texas near the border with Mexico. Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve in Boston is following this story for us.
And Jeanne, I know authorities have been very concerned about this Mexican border for quite some time.
JEANNE MESERVE, HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: They are. That border, we know, is very porous. They've been afraid that terrorists might try to come across it. This woman apparently did.
She claims to be 48, South African. She says her name is Farida Goolam Mohamed Ahmed. Government officials tell CNN's Kelli Arena that she is on an FBI watch list, that her name surfaced during an investigation of an overseas terrorist event. And they say she is of concern.
She was stopped on July 19 in the McEllen, Texas, as she tried to board a flight to New York, by agents of customs and border protection. She did not have a visa. She did not have a stamp in her passport, indicated she had entered the U.S. legally. And six pages had been ripped out of her South African passport.
She also was carrying about $7,000, most of it in U.S. currency. She also had a muddy bag of clothes. And according to court documents, she later did admit to officials that she had come across the border illegally.
She is being detained without bond in Texas now as officials continue to investigate if she is who she says she is, whether or not she has ties to al Qaeda and what she might have been up to -- Heidi?
COLLINS: So Jeanne, what is the background then for all of this?
MESERVE: Well, as you mentioned, the Mexican border and its possible exploitation by terrorists. Also, the fact that there's been concern that terrorist organizations might be trying to recruit women as operatives.
Also of course, there's been concern expressed about the run up to the U.S. election and whether or not terrorists might try to make a strike before November.
And finally, South African officials are acknowledging that some of their passports have fallen into the hands of criminal syndicates. So you put it all together, and they want to look much more carefully at this individual -- Heidi?
COLLINS: Well it certainly sounds like it. All right. Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve. Thanks so much, Jean.
11 minutes past the hour now. Time for a look at some of today's other news with Daryn Kagan. Good morning, Daryn.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, good morning to you.
Let's begin in Iraq, that report that another hostage has been kidnapped in Iraq. A Kuwaiti company has been given 48 hours to withdraw from Iraq or risk the life of a Somali truck driver.
Meanwhile, two Pakistani hostages have reportedly been killed. The Arabic language network Al-Jazeera says it was given a videotape showing the bodies of the men. Those images were not broadcast.
Back here in the U.S., authorities in Southern California want to question a man in connection with some contaminated baby food. Three jars of Gerber banana yogurt tested positive for traces of castor bean, that is a source of the poison ricin. Consumers discovered the contamination after finding threatening notes inside the jars. Two babies who ate the food are reportedly fine.
The accuser in Kobe Bryant's sexual assault case wants an apology after some confidential information was publicly released again. At issue, a judge's order giving the accuser's last name and referring to DNA tests taken from Bryant during a hospital exam last July. The document was temporarily posted on a court Web site yesterday.
And finally, a massive amount of rain has fallen overnight in the Dallas area. Up to a foot of rain fell in some parts of the region, flooding roads and damaging hundreds of homes. One motorist was killed when his truck knocked over a utility pole and the live wires fell onto the vehicle.
More rain is expected throughout the day. I know the folks in Texas are really going to hear what Rob Marciano has to say today about the weather. He's in for Chad Myers.
Rob, good morning.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Daryn. You're right about that. More rain is expected today.
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MARCIANO: Bill, back over to you in Boston.
HEMMER: All right, Rob, thanks for that.
The DNC focusing on foreign policy later tonight. The Kerry camp here in Boston, they say their man is stronger than President Bush on security. Polls show that most Americans seem to disagree. We'll talk to one of Kerry's policy advisers, Madeleine Albright, on that topic.
Also ahead, sibling rivalry in "Political Pop", why Ron Reagan is at odds with one of his brothers.
And the latest on the Lori Hacking case in Utah -- her husband the only person of interest police have named so far, so why are they not keeping a closer eye on him? Much more this hour.
Live in Boston in a moment.
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HEMMER: High above the FleetCenter, those balloons, 100,000 of them in addition to 1,000 pounds of confetti all will come down tonight somewhere around 11:00 Eastern time when John Kerry finishes his acceptance speech here in Boston.
Foreign policy expected to be the focus later tonight. Former Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, now an adviser to Senator John Kerry on these issues. She'll address the delegates also onstage later tonight. She's my guest here now at the FleetCenter.
Madame Secretary, good morning to you.
MADELEINE ALBRIGHT, FMR. SECRETARY OF STATE: Good to be with you, Bill.
HEMMER: Nice to see you up in Boston.
A Republican strategist said his about the war on terror and keeping America safe, "Is there a willingness to accept the gauntlet thrown down by the Democrats and make the campaign about national security issues, you bet."
Is there a risk in that strategy?
ALBRIGHT: Absolutely not, because I have to tell you, as somebody who's been involved in foreign policy my whole life, this international situation is a mess. That's a diplomatic term of art. And it requires new leadership.
And so, I think this is something that we need to discuss in front of the American people and make clear that John Kerry is the right leader to be able to protect America.
HEMMER: What's such a mess, specifically?
ALBRIGHT: Specifically, the war in Iraq was a great success. But the post part is a disaster.
Yesterday, there was another suicide bombing. Many people died. They need to be getting ready for their elections. The security situation there is bad.
Nothing is happening on the Middle East peace process. We are very worried about what is going on in Afghanistan where President Karsi is a great guy, but he's had to postpone elections, and the dangers there -- still people are dying.
HEMMER: Let me stop you then. Let's fast forward. Let's say in January John Kerry is the new president in this country. How does Afghanistan change? How does Iraq change? How does the war on terror change?
ALBRIGHT: Well obviously, one has to see what happens in the next months. But in Afghanistan, for instance. I think we need to make clear, again, that, that is a priority. That's where the terrorists came from.
And basically, the security situation there is bad. Drugs are back, huge sales of drug, opium, coming out of there. On Iraq, I think it will require us to try to get more help. And no matter what the Bush administration is saying, they do not have enough international assistance. And the U.N. can't do its job because they don't have security.
HEMMER: No matter what comes out of this speech tonight, though, Republicans are going to say that John Kerry is still the most liberal senator in Congress today. How do you defend that?
ALBRIGHT: Well, first of all, they can say what they want. They have to really look at how strong John Kerry is, how he cares about the people. If that's what liberal is about, that's not so bad. He cares about where the American people are.
Last night, John Edwards made very clear what the program was in terms of taking care of the poor, making sure that there are good jobs. Those are the things that American people care about and they care about being safe and secure and they will have a president who has put his life on the line for our country before.
HEMMER: Will you serve in a cabinet position if John Kerry is president?
ALBRIGHT: Well let me tell you, I had a fantastic cabinet position which I loved, and usually that doesn't happen twice. But if I'm asked to do anything, I obviously will.
HEMMER: Madame Secretary, thanks for your time here. Madeleine Albright here in Boston.
ALBRIGHT: Great to be with you again, Bill. Good luck.
HEMMER: Thank you.
Let's get a break here. In a moment, we'll get some of the reaction of the claims of the Kerry campaign. In a moment here live in Boston, I'll talk to the one man who led New York City through 9/11. The former mayor, Rudy Giuliani, my guest live in Boston when we continue.
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COLLINS: Oil prices hit a record high, so how will this affect prices at the pump and your wallet? Andy Serwer is here now "Minding Your Business."
Probably not very well.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: No, it might not be that bad, Heidi. Let's talk about what's happening.
Yesterday, the price of oil crossed the $43 a barrel threshold. After that, it touched back down to $42.90, still not really good news.
Don't blame Iraqi insurgents, the Saudis or OPEC this time. It's a troubled Russian oil company called Yukos. That's the culprit. It's a dispute with the Russian government.
The Russian government says this company owes it billions of dollars in taxes. The company said well, then we'll have to shut down our oil production. They account for about 20 percent of Russia's oil production, about 1.6 million barrels a day.
After that, the Russian government said, whoa, wait a minute. We don't want you to do shut down production. So that's why the price of oil went back down.
And in fact, Heidi, that's why experts here in the United States think the price of oil will not -- the price of gasoline that is -- will not go way back over $2.00 a gallon. One analyst saying a gas station selling $2.20 gas, as you can see there, is not going to be making a lot of friends.
Also Labor Day is coming, and that is the end of the heavy driving season. So probably not a whole lot to worry about. Still, our dependence on foreign oil, be it from Russia or be it from Iraq or be it from Saudi Arabia causes problems like this, no question.
COLLINS: What about the market?
SERWER: Yesterday, quickly, we kind of had a mixed picture. That higher oil prices did impact stocks a little bit. The Dow managed to eke out a bit of a gain, though. You can see there. The blue chips did OK this morning. Futures are looking pretty good though.
COLLINS: All right. Excellent.
Thanks, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
COLLINS: Jack, Cafferty file, "Question of the Day."
CAFFERTY: Yes, indeed. Thanks, Heidi.
A lot of pressure on Senator Kerry tonight when he makes that acceptance speech up there in Boston at the Democratic national convention.
The country, you know this, has not been this sharply divided in a good, long while. The polls continue to suggest the race will be very, very close and the outcome will ultimately be decided by a very small number of undecided voters. And those are the people that Senator Kerry has to figure out how to touch somehow tonight in his remarks.
History suggests that voters who remain undecided late in the campaign tend to eventually break for the challenger. So the heat is definitely on. And here's the question, what does Kerry have to say tonight to change the minds of the undecided?
They are the key to the election. I mean the people that hate George Bush would vote for the Democratic candidate if they ran Mickey Mouse and vice versa. But it's that tiny little segment of the population that hasn't made up their minds yet. And he's got to say something tonight that resonates there because he doesn't have enough, I don't think, yet to win it.
COLLINS: Yes, about 7 percent or so still undecided.
CAFFERTY: Is that what it is?
COLLINS: Yes so, we'll see what happens on that one. Thanks so much Jack, Andy.
Still to come this morning, Bill will be joining us from Boston. He'll talk to former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. We'll here what Giuliani says about the Democratic claims that John Kerry can do the best job of protecting America.
Plus, the latest on the search for Lori Hacking -- why a trip to the store for cigarettes may reveal some clues.
Keep it here on AMERICAN MORNING.
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