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American Morning
Death Toll From Tropical Storm Jeanne Rises in Haiti; Latest Developments in Presidential Campaign
Aired September 24, 2004 - 08:00 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.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Ivan without the teeth. The storm finishing its path of destruction with a big rain in Texas.
Hurricane Jeanne bringing much more, and she may well bring it to Florida this weekend.
Recent polls show the gap between President Bush and Senator Kerry shrinking. But is it the same story on the electoral map?
And tracking the most wanted terrorist in Iraq -- is the United States getting any closer to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, on this AMERICAN MORNING?
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
COLLINS: Good Friday morning, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins in for Soledad.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bill Hemmer.
Coming up to the end of the week here. I'm watching this story from California, the Michael Jackson matter. It turns out as recently as about nine days ago, authorities conducted raids looking for more evidence in that case. What does it all say about the investigation and where it's headed? We'll talk to Jeff Toobin about that this hour.
COLLINS: Also, one of the most amazing shows you'll ever see. It's got to be Cirque de Soleil. I learned some French when I did this story. Anyway, I went to visit a performance recently up in Montreal, at the training facility there. I got a behind-the-scenes look at their really rigorous lifestyles that they live, lots of travel, of course. So we're going to show you a little bit about what that's like in just a few minutes.
HEMMER: They do things that are not humanly possible.
COLLINS: Well, there are, no kidding, contortionists that travel with the show. So, yes, not humanly possible for us, that's for sure.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did you try any of that stuff?
COLLINS: On new year -- actually, they tell you -- they're Mongolian contortionists -- that you have to be born with a certain... CAFFERTY: No, I mean like on the trapezes and stuff, the other stuff.
COLLINS: I really, really wanted to and kept begging and I even wore, you know, my trapeze clothing because I have some.
CAFFERTY: Oh, you have some trapeze clothing?
COLLINS: And I don't...
CAFFERTY: What do you use that for?
COLLINS: And they wouldn't let me do it. It's like -- Cafferty.
You know, every time he just goes in that direction.
HEMMER: This kind of stuff might be good for your back, you know, the Mongolian contortionists, you know? Hire them a New Jersey.
CAFFERTY: Of course, it couldn't hurt.
HEMMER: Hey.
COLLINS: There's a big, big show coming up this weekend in "People In The News" on Cirque de Soleil.
HEMMER: Great.
COLLINS: I hope you all will watch.
CAFFERTY: I will. And I see, when they run it on cable, I see it. It's terrific. It's...
COLLINS: It's good.
CAFFERTY: And nobody has to clean up after the whatchamacallits at the end.
COLLINS: No animals, right?
CAFFERTY: Coming up in the "Cafferty File," another celebrity -- we have videotape -- acting like a complete jerk because a photographer dared to take his picture.
We also have pictures of the poor man's version of Siegfried & Roy.
And we'll give you an update on naked yoga man. So, the barrel was almost empty today.
COLLINS: Oh, how do we go on?
CAFFERTY: There's nothing much left in the barrel.
COLLINS: The well is dry.
CAFFERTY: Yes.
COLLINS: All right, Jack, thanks so much.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
COLLINS: We want to turn it over now to Kelly Wallace, handling the stories now in the news this morning -- hi, Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It must be Friday, right?
COLLINS: Yes, it is Friday.
WALLACE: Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Good morning to you.
Good morning, everyone.
We begin with Iraqi Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. He is at Arlington National Cemetery this hour there. He is due to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The prime minister yesterday thanked Americans for their service in Iraq, saying their sacrifice will not be in vain. A number of Americans filled in Iraq are buried at Arlington.
Just an hour from now, President Bush will swear in a new CIA director. Porter Goss, an eight term Florida congressman, was chosen by the president last month to lead the beleaguered agency. He was confirmed by the Senate Wednesday. He does have a tough job ahead. The CIA has been blasted for its handling of Iraq and pre-September 11 intelligence.
Billions of dollars worth of tax cut extensions sail through Congress. Legislators yesterday approved the fourth major tax relief package of the Bush administration. The measure extends three popular middle class tax cuts, including the $1,000 child tax credit. But critics call the cuts a political move that will add to the growing budget deficit.
And U.S. cycling champ Tyler Hamilton can keep his gold now that he's been cleared of doping at the Olympics. The International Olympic Committee dropped its investigation after a lab blunder ruined Hamilton's test results. The cyclist still faces possible sanctions stemming from a positive blood test at the Tour of Spain. We'll be watching that.
HEMMER: Well, as far as the Olympics go, that will put all those doubters back to the curb, right?
WALLACE: He keeps that gold.
COLLINS: Yes.
HEMMER: Yes. And good for him.
COLLINS: And his bike. WALLACE: Yes. He's got keep that.
COLLINS: Yes.
HEMMER: Thank you, Kelly.
WALLACE: Sure.
HEMMER: It is happening again, another hurricane now eyeing the State of Florida. This time it is Jeanne. Residents along the state's east coast know the drill -- stock up on supplies, seal up the windows and get out. A hurricane watch now in effect from Florida City to St. Augustine as Jeanne approaches there.
Meanwhile, further east in the Atlantic, as the death toll from tropical storm Jeanne rises in Haiti, the relief operation there appears to be falling apart. Haitian authorities say the death toll now is well over 1,100.
Karl Penhaul is reporting now that everyone is desperate for just about everything.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This was the scene at one of the emergency food distribution centers in Gonaives.
ERIC MOUILLEFARRIL (ph), U.N. COORDINATOR: They have to eat. There's no way we don't give something to these people. There is no way. It is our aim. It is our mission and we will do it. But we will try to avoid the chaos.
PENHAUL: Aid convoys are slowly arriving by road. But Haitian officials say hundreds of thousands need help. The scale of the disaster dwarfs the relief effort. By the time many of these people make it through the gates, they've been nearly crushed by hundreds behind them. Troops from the U.N. stabilization force have been called in to prevent a riot, but they can do little to hold back the stampede.
(on camera): Many of the people here say they've been waiting since early morning and that they've not eaten since the weekend. That makes for an explosive mix -- hunger and desperation.
(voice-over): Denise Rosi is one of lucky ones. She says she and her three children have scarcely eaten since tropical storm Jeanne demolished their home. "The house was full of mud and water. We only had a piece of bread and avocado to eat. We don't even have any clothes," she says.
It's been a battle to get the handout of rice, peas, oil and wheat. Now, she must struggle home with enough supplies to help her family survive for a few more days.
There's chaos, too, across at the cemetery. The grave diggers say they haven't been paid for burying hundreds of storm victims. They say they're hungry, too.
The main point now for international relief organizations is to care for the living. And for the desperate crowds outside the gates, it's a fight with no holds barred, survival of the fittest.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Gonaives, Haiti.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HEMMER: That is the story with Haiti.
Now to the story on the satellite.
Here's Chad Myers at the CNN Center.
What are you seeing -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning, Bill.
The satellite is getting filled in a little bit. You can't see the eye as well as you could earlier. We're kind of getting some cloud cover over the eye. But I am seeing some increased convection. Notice the yellows and the oranges wrapping itself around.
There's a lot of dry air to the north of this hurricane and it's gulping in some of that dry air. And that's kind of mixing it up, not really a well formed center right now, but that could and probably will change.
Here is the official track from the Hurricane Center, the 8:00 a.m. advisory. There are the numbers for you there. This storm is moving to the west and that three there does mean category three hurricane, as it makes its approach to Florida.
Remember, this storm could be here or it could be farther west, way out here. This is just the center of that track, the center of the cone as it moves onshore. It's getting a lot closer, probably still in that 48 hour away kind of category.
Here you go, Lake Charles back up to Shreveport. This is the remnants of Ivan. The rain from Ivan could caused some flooding in. Some spots near Beaumont picked up almost 12 inches of rain yesterday alone and more rain is coming down today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: But here you see the warm air, here you see the cool air and literally, Bill, there are two bad spots for the entire weekend -- Ivan and Jeanne. The rest of the country is awesome.
Back to you.
HEMMER: And the history is amazing, too. Is this true, 1886 is the last time a single state got hit by four hurricanes -- Texas?
MYERS: Didn't -- I don't know that. But that's very possible. Sure.
HEMMER: All right, well, it's coming out of the National Hurricane Center down in Miami.
MYERS: Yes.
HEMMER: That's extraordinary.
MYERS: That is extraordinary.
HEMMER: More than 100 years ago.
MYERS: There you go.
HEMMER: Chad, thanks.
We hope to talk with Ed Rappaport a bit later this morning.
Thanks for that.
We'll talk to you again in a few moments.
Here's Heidi again -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Today in Philadelphia, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry outlines his plan for fighting and winning the war on terror. But yesterday, comments Kerry made regarding President Bush, the Iraqi interim prime minister and the war in Iraq led to some angry words from Vice President Dick Cheney.
National correspondent Bob Franken with the Kerry campaign now in Philadelphia this morning -- Bob, good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And what we're seeing almost every day is that the candidate is scrapping plans to focus on issues domestic and putting his emphasis on matters international. A calculation has been made that that is the issue that is going to decide this election.
So, we are now at a point where we're not going to be seeing much discussion for a while on the trail of matters domestic. As I said, it will be those matters international.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
FRANKEN (voice-over): It didn't take long after the Bush-Allawi mutual admiration society had begun its upbeat Iraq assessment for John Kerry to regain his voice.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The prime minister and the president are here, obviously, to put their best face on the policy.
FRANKEN: Well, Vice President Cheney was shocked at that. DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was appalled at the complete lack of respect Senator Kerry showed for this man of courage when he rushed out to hold a press conference and attacked the prime minister, the man America must stand beside to defeat the terrorists.
FRANKEN: The candidates are fanning out to get in some last licks before they start cramming for the first debate. But we're already getting nonstop previews of the coming attraction.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I believe a leader must be consistent and clear, and not change positions when times get tough.
KERRY: I think that a president who fails to admit his mistakes is a president who proves that he doesn't know how to make the course correct.
BUSH: To retreat now would betray our mission, our word and our friends. Mr. Prime Minister, America will keep its commitments.
KERRY: I want victory. I want to win. And I have a better plan to win than George Bush does.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
FRANKEN: So we've heard all their lines and now the two candidates are going to begin intense training, beginning with the cardinal rule of presidential debates -- first do no harm to yourself -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Boy, that's a good one, too.
All right, Bob Franken, thanks so much this morning.
The political anger over Iraq has been rising all week and yesterday it may have peaked with the clash of the candidates over the Iraqi interim prime minister that Bob was just talking about.
CNN political analyst Carlos Watson here now to sort it out for a little bit.
You heard what Bob said in his story about everything that went down yesterday. I'm sure you saw it, as well.
Has Iraq really impacted this election yet?
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Not yet. But I bet over the next week or so, particularly with the debate coming next week, I bet by then we'll start to see it in the polls. Remember, right now it's kind of maybe the third issue, behind terrorism, behind the economy in a lot of these national polls. But the last time Iraq was the number one issue, Heidi, was back in the spring. And, by the way, that was the last time John Kerry had a double digit lead, 55-43, back in kind of the March-April time frame.
COLLINS: So by going back to this issue once again for John Kerry, this could be a good thing?
WATSON: It could be, because he's able to challenge the president on two fronts. He's able to challenge him on policy grounds, to say fundamentally this is the wrong policy, it costs too much, troops are dying needlessly, we're being diverted from the war on terror. And in a way he's almost able to challenge him on personal grounds, Heidi. It's almost an integrity challenge. He's saying to him where are the WMDs? You're not being honest. You keep hearing him talk about the truth and being straightforward.
So it's a double edged sword for John Kerry.
COLLINS: But when we go and we look at CNN's electoral map now, if we could do that, we realize all kinds of different things here. Iowa and New Hampshire moved into the Bush column, giving the president a total of 301 electoral votes and John Kerry 237. As most people know, you need 270 to win.
So what do you make of the map? I mean does it seem like this 301 to 237 is insurmountable by John Kerry?
WATSON: No, actually, so it's unequivocally good news for the president. New Hampshire was a state he won four years ago. But Iowa was not. And Iowa hasn't gone Democratic since 1984. So a big deal, it's good news.
But things are still very fluid at this point. And remember, you can have big swings in the final weeks of an election. Go back to 1980. Ronald Reagan enjoyed a 17 point swing within a span of two weeks, going from eight down to nine and a half up.
But one other interesting thing to note is that a lot of these national polls won't capture what I think are some of the most interesting state dynamics, Heidi, particularly Hispanic turnout, Hispanic votes. Four really interesting Southwestern states. I'm talking about Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado -- a state you know well -- and Nevada, all places where one out of 10, maybe as many as, in some cases, one out of three votes, will come from a Hispanic voter.
COLLINS: Yes, so there's still some -- a lot of issues that we just don't have the answers to yet. We're going to have to get closer for that.
WATSON: Yes.
COLLINS: As we mentioned, already quite a bit of talk about Iraq as far as this election is concerned.
What about other issues, though, that might come up? As we've been saying, like 39 days or so until November 2? What are we going to be hearing about?
WATSON: You know, two issues that you haven't heard a lot about but you might hear more about, one is the deficit. Remember back in 1992, Ross Perot had his little charts and...
COLLINS: I remember it too well.
WATSON: And, you know, but he captured 20 percent of the vote, you know, one of the best showings of all time of a third party candidate. And we haven't heard a lot about the deficit even though the president and the Congress are about to sign into another $145 billion...
COLLINS: But do you think the federal deficit really registers with the average American voter?
WATSON: I think it's something that you have to stay on. And I think to the extent that someone decides to ride this issue in a major way, and you've heard even John McCain come out recently and charge that his own party and the Congress is being reckless from a fiscal perspective, then you might hear a little bit more about it.
But, no, right now it's kind of a sleeper issue on the margin.
You know the other one, though, I think that could mobilize some people is the Supreme Court. That doesn't sound like a sexy issue, but remember, we haven't had a new appointment in 10 years. That's the longest gap since the 1820s. The next president is likely to appoint not one, but probably as many as three new justices. And when you say that there are lots of important issues, including privacy, including race based issues, including poverty issues that this next Supreme...
COLLINS: A lot about gay marriage.
WATSON: A lot about gay marriage. I think both sides, evangelical Christians in one case and I think some particularly strong liberals on the other case, may be very motivated to go to the polls by this issue.
COLLINS: Carlos Watson, thanks so much for that.
WATSON: It's good to be in New York.
COLLINS: It's always so good of you to lay that out for us.
WATSON: Yes.
COLLINS: Appreciate it.
WATSON: Thank you.
COLLINS: And Senator John Kerry will give more details on his plan to fight the war on terror this morning. Once again, that is coming up 10:00 a.m. Eastern. We will have live coverage right here no CNN -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Heidi, a bit later our "Gimme A Minute" panel looks at the politics of hurricanes. Could big storms impact the race there in Florida?
Also, one of the main forces behind the insurgency in Iraq -- where is he and what is the U.S. going to track him down? Zarqawi now in the crosshairs in Iraq.
And a bit of nervousness on the part of prosecutors. There's a new development in the Michael Jackson matter. Jeffrey Toobin stops by for that after this on a Friday edition of AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Good morning, again from New York City.
A great shot of Central Park.
And welcome back here to our studios at Time/Life.
A newly released court document shows authorities raided the home of Michael Jackson's personal assistant back in mid-September, the 15th, in fact. The raid appears to confirm that investigators are still searching for evidence in the pop star's child molestation matter.
How significant, though, is this development? That's our question for our legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, stopping by here -- and good morning.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, sir.
HEMMER: Unusual? Significant? You think what?
TOOBIN: It's very unusual to have a case that is already indicted, has a trial date set and the authorities are still executing search warrants. Very unusual.
HEMMER: Does that say the hunt is still on?
TOOBIN: Well, it could mean a couple of different things and they could mean very different things. And there's really almost no way of knowing at this point. But it could mean that prosecutors think they have a weak case, they're desperate to shore it up in any way they can. It could mean that there are productive new veins that they're discovering and there could be even ongoing criminal conduct.
HEMMER: Which would mean that other people are coming forward or other people are still cooperating or maybe cooperating more than they have in the past?
TOOBIN: Right. That could be that. It strikes me, frankly, more as a positive sign for Jackson than for the prosecutors.
HEMMER: Really?
TOOBIN: That they are so unsure of their case that they still need to investigate it at this point.
HEMMER: You say unsure. Would that indicate a sign of desperation, also, possibly?
TOOBIN: Well, it could be. I mean, the key fact that we surely don't know is what they found. If they found something significant, incriminating, well, that's good for the prosecutors. But we don't know if they did.
HEMMER: It's reported that some of the items seized -- a fax sent on behalf of the client to his lawyer regarding possible witnesses. That's what it was labeled. Three folders labeled Mesereau...
TOOBIN: But that's very risky for the prosecution and that's why the defense is so upset, is there is the possibility of invading the attorney-client privilege, you know, finding documents that relate to communications between Jackson and his lawyers...
HEMMER: Who is Mesereau.
TOOBIN: That would be very -- Mesereau, Thomas Mesereau is his current lawyer. That would be a violation of his rights.
One practical piece of significance here is I think this could very well delay the trial. The trial is supposed to take place in January. If they are still arguing over searches that are just taking place a week ago, that's the kind of thing that could push the trial back.
HEMMER: Prosecutors are also saying they want this stuff kept under seal.
TOOBIN: You know, this case...
HEMMER: And they do that because?
TOOBIN: Well, this case more than any other case I've seen, documents have been kept under seal. This is virtually a secret trial. I mean there is a whole new body of law emerging in these celebrity cases where documents that are ordinarily public are being kept secret.
HEMMER: Well, I can understand that on the defense side, certainly, with the celebrity status of Michael Jackson.
But why would the prosecution want this so badly?
TOOBIN: Well, the prosecution is saying that we don't want to hear down the road that he couldn't get a fair trial because of pretrial publicity, so let's keep everything from the press. It's an unbelievable veil of secrecy in this case.
HEMMER: You like this case, don't you?
TOOBIN: This is an interesting case.
HEMMER: I can tell when you...
TOOBIN: This is an absolutely interesting case, yes.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff. TOOBIN: All righty.
HEMMER: Have a great weekend, OK?
TOOBIN: You, too.
HEMMER: All right -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Still to come, we're running away with the circus, if only for a few minutes. We'll take you inside this -- Cirque de Soleil, the Circus of the Sun, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Checking in with Jack now once again and The Question of the Day. Heinz-Kerry, yes?
CAFFERTY: Yes.
We haven't heard a lot from Mrs. Kerry since she told a reporter to shove it. We all remember that because the media just played it to death.
Well, now she's back and she's talking and she's everywhere. She's saying things like she wouldn't be surprised if Osama bin Laden got caught just before the election next month. She says she's embarrassed about getting tax cuts advocated by President Bush. It should be noted that her husband could have voted against extending those tax cuts yesterday, but instead he chose not to vote at all.
But that's not The Question of the Day. The Question of the Day is this. Is Teresa Heinz Kerry helping or hurting her husband's campaign?
And we begin with my friend Paul over there in Hellertown, Pennsylvania: "Mrs. Let Me Step On My Tongue Kerry and Laura the Stepford Wife Bush should be part of the debates." There's an idea. "Mrs. Kerry would be represented by a pair of chattering teeth and Mrs. Bush by a bottle head doll. It would surely turn out to be more informative than the now scheduled husband debates."
Annette -- you might be right.
Annette in Florence, Alabama: "The quieter Teresa Heinz Kerry is, the better off the presidential campaign is for Mr. Kerry. However, I cannot see her being quiet for four years."
Gary writes this: "It doesn't matter. I don't listen to her or W.'s wife. Most voters just don't care about them. In defense of Mrs. Kerry, at least she's talking about the issues."
And L. in Florida writes this: "Since John Kerry is behind in the polls, Mrs. Kerry is just trying to help him catch up"...
HEMMER: Oh, yes. All right.
CAFFERTY: " -- before the elections."
HEMMER: Pass the pickles.
What is her net worth? What, some say a billion dollars, some say upwards to $3 billion.
CAFFERTY: It's a lot.
HEMMER: It's kind of a gray area.
COLLINS: It's a lot.
HEMMER: It is a lot, that's right.
CAFFERTY: A lot of viewers write in and point out that a lot of the Heinz Company plants are overseas. A little observation.
HEMMER: The reason I bring that up, there are more billionaires now on this new Fortune list than ever before.
CAFFERTY: Ohm, I'm sorry.
HEMMER: The 400 richest. That's all right.
COLLINS: Excellent segue, though.
HEMMER: Once again at the top, Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Estimated worth, $48 billion. He could be president. Investor Warren Buffett right behind, $41 billion.
CAFFERTY: Wow!
HEMMER: A $20 billion net worth lands Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen in third. And then the Walton family takes like five, six, seven, eight. Look at that, $18 billion apiece.
CAFFERTY: Oh, man.
HEMMER: The Wal-Mart fortune is estimated to be about $18 billion, as you see there on the screen. So...
COLLINS: Yes, you're just reminding people, too, that Bill Gates gave away $28 billion and he's still got that much left. Unbelievable, isn't it?
HEMMER: Billions to get billions.
COLLINS: Now, that's a billion billion billion billionaire.
HEMMER: Get a break here.
In a moment here, we're going to get back to the very serious news of what's happening in Iraq and this insurgency. The man pulling the strings in that country may be rivaling Osama bin Laden as a terrorist mastermind. And what is the U.S. doing to find Zarqawi?
Back in a moment after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired September 24, 2004 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Ivan without the teeth. The storm finishing its path of destruction with a big rain in Texas.
Hurricane Jeanne bringing much more, and she may well bring it to Florida this weekend.
Recent polls show the gap between President Bush and Senator Kerry shrinking. But is it the same story on the electoral map?
And tracking the most wanted terrorist in Iraq -- is the United States getting any closer to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, on this AMERICAN MORNING?
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.
COLLINS: Good Friday morning, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins in for Soledad.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bill Hemmer.
Coming up to the end of the week here. I'm watching this story from California, the Michael Jackson matter. It turns out as recently as about nine days ago, authorities conducted raids looking for more evidence in that case. What does it all say about the investigation and where it's headed? We'll talk to Jeff Toobin about that this hour.
COLLINS: Also, one of the most amazing shows you'll ever see. It's got to be Cirque de Soleil. I learned some French when I did this story. Anyway, I went to visit a performance recently up in Montreal, at the training facility there. I got a behind-the-scenes look at their really rigorous lifestyles that they live, lots of travel, of course. So we're going to show you a little bit about what that's like in just a few minutes.
HEMMER: They do things that are not humanly possible.
COLLINS: Well, there are, no kidding, contortionists that travel with the show. So, yes, not humanly possible for us, that's for sure.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did you try any of that stuff?
COLLINS: On new year -- actually, they tell you -- they're Mongolian contortionists -- that you have to be born with a certain... CAFFERTY: No, I mean like on the trapezes and stuff, the other stuff.
COLLINS: I really, really wanted to and kept begging and I even wore, you know, my trapeze clothing because I have some.
CAFFERTY: Oh, you have some trapeze clothing?
COLLINS: And I don't...
CAFFERTY: What do you use that for?
COLLINS: And they wouldn't let me do it. It's like -- Cafferty.
You know, every time he just goes in that direction.
HEMMER: This kind of stuff might be good for your back, you know, the Mongolian contortionists, you know? Hire them a New Jersey.
CAFFERTY: Of course, it couldn't hurt.
HEMMER: Hey.
COLLINS: There's a big, big show coming up this weekend in "People In The News" on Cirque de Soleil.
HEMMER: Great.
COLLINS: I hope you all will watch.
CAFFERTY: I will. And I see, when they run it on cable, I see it. It's terrific. It's...
COLLINS: It's good.
CAFFERTY: And nobody has to clean up after the whatchamacallits at the end.
COLLINS: No animals, right?
CAFFERTY: Coming up in the "Cafferty File," another celebrity -- we have videotape -- acting like a complete jerk because a photographer dared to take his picture.
We also have pictures of the poor man's version of Siegfried & Roy.
And we'll give you an update on naked yoga man. So, the barrel was almost empty today.
COLLINS: Oh, how do we go on?
CAFFERTY: There's nothing much left in the barrel.
COLLINS: The well is dry.
CAFFERTY: Yes.
COLLINS: All right, Jack, thanks so much.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
COLLINS: We want to turn it over now to Kelly Wallace, handling the stories now in the news this morning -- hi, Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It must be Friday, right?
COLLINS: Yes, it is Friday.
WALLACE: Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Good morning to you.
Good morning, everyone.
We begin with Iraqi Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. He is at Arlington National Cemetery this hour there. He is due to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The prime minister yesterday thanked Americans for their service in Iraq, saying their sacrifice will not be in vain. A number of Americans filled in Iraq are buried at Arlington.
Just an hour from now, President Bush will swear in a new CIA director. Porter Goss, an eight term Florida congressman, was chosen by the president last month to lead the beleaguered agency. He was confirmed by the Senate Wednesday. He does have a tough job ahead. The CIA has been blasted for its handling of Iraq and pre-September 11 intelligence.
Billions of dollars worth of tax cut extensions sail through Congress. Legislators yesterday approved the fourth major tax relief package of the Bush administration. The measure extends three popular middle class tax cuts, including the $1,000 child tax credit. But critics call the cuts a political move that will add to the growing budget deficit.
And U.S. cycling champ Tyler Hamilton can keep his gold now that he's been cleared of doping at the Olympics. The International Olympic Committee dropped its investigation after a lab blunder ruined Hamilton's test results. The cyclist still faces possible sanctions stemming from a positive blood test at the Tour of Spain. We'll be watching that.
HEMMER: Well, as far as the Olympics go, that will put all those doubters back to the curb, right?
WALLACE: He keeps that gold.
COLLINS: Yes.
HEMMER: Yes. And good for him.
COLLINS: And his bike. WALLACE: Yes. He's got keep that.
COLLINS: Yes.
HEMMER: Thank you, Kelly.
WALLACE: Sure.
HEMMER: It is happening again, another hurricane now eyeing the State of Florida. This time it is Jeanne. Residents along the state's east coast know the drill -- stock up on supplies, seal up the windows and get out. A hurricane watch now in effect from Florida City to St. Augustine as Jeanne approaches there.
Meanwhile, further east in the Atlantic, as the death toll from tropical storm Jeanne rises in Haiti, the relief operation there appears to be falling apart. Haitian authorities say the death toll now is well over 1,100.
Karl Penhaul is reporting now that everyone is desperate for just about everything.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This was the scene at one of the emergency food distribution centers in Gonaives.
ERIC MOUILLEFARRIL (ph), U.N. COORDINATOR: They have to eat. There's no way we don't give something to these people. There is no way. It is our aim. It is our mission and we will do it. But we will try to avoid the chaos.
PENHAUL: Aid convoys are slowly arriving by road. But Haitian officials say hundreds of thousands need help. The scale of the disaster dwarfs the relief effort. By the time many of these people make it through the gates, they've been nearly crushed by hundreds behind them. Troops from the U.N. stabilization force have been called in to prevent a riot, but they can do little to hold back the stampede.
(on camera): Many of the people here say they've been waiting since early morning and that they've not eaten since the weekend. That makes for an explosive mix -- hunger and desperation.
(voice-over): Denise Rosi is one of lucky ones. She says she and her three children have scarcely eaten since tropical storm Jeanne demolished their home. "The house was full of mud and water. We only had a piece of bread and avocado to eat. We don't even have any clothes," she says.
It's been a battle to get the handout of rice, peas, oil and wheat. Now, she must struggle home with enough supplies to help her family survive for a few more days.
There's chaos, too, across at the cemetery. The grave diggers say they haven't been paid for burying hundreds of storm victims. They say they're hungry, too.
The main point now for international relief organizations is to care for the living. And for the desperate crowds outside the gates, it's a fight with no holds barred, survival of the fittest.
Karl Penhaul, CNN, Gonaives, Haiti.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HEMMER: That is the story with Haiti.
Now to the story on the satellite.
Here's Chad Myers at the CNN Center.
What are you seeing -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning, Bill.
The satellite is getting filled in a little bit. You can't see the eye as well as you could earlier. We're kind of getting some cloud cover over the eye. But I am seeing some increased convection. Notice the yellows and the oranges wrapping itself around.
There's a lot of dry air to the north of this hurricane and it's gulping in some of that dry air. And that's kind of mixing it up, not really a well formed center right now, but that could and probably will change.
Here is the official track from the Hurricane Center, the 8:00 a.m. advisory. There are the numbers for you there. This storm is moving to the west and that three there does mean category three hurricane, as it makes its approach to Florida.
Remember, this storm could be here or it could be farther west, way out here. This is just the center of that track, the center of the cone as it moves onshore. It's getting a lot closer, probably still in that 48 hour away kind of category.
Here you go, Lake Charles back up to Shreveport. This is the remnants of Ivan. The rain from Ivan could caused some flooding in. Some spots near Beaumont picked up almost 12 inches of rain yesterday alone and more rain is coming down today.
(WEATHER REPORT)
MYERS: But here you see the warm air, here you see the cool air and literally, Bill, there are two bad spots for the entire weekend -- Ivan and Jeanne. The rest of the country is awesome.
Back to you.
HEMMER: And the history is amazing, too. Is this true, 1886 is the last time a single state got hit by four hurricanes -- Texas?
MYERS: Didn't -- I don't know that. But that's very possible. Sure.
HEMMER: All right, well, it's coming out of the National Hurricane Center down in Miami.
MYERS: Yes.
HEMMER: That's extraordinary.
MYERS: That is extraordinary.
HEMMER: More than 100 years ago.
MYERS: There you go.
HEMMER: Chad, thanks.
We hope to talk with Ed Rappaport a bit later this morning.
Thanks for that.
We'll talk to you again in a few moments.
Here's Heidi again -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Today in Philadelphia, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry outlines his plan for fighting and winning the war on terror. But yesterday, comments Kerry made regarding President Bush, the Iraqi interim prime minister and the war in Iraq led to some angry words from Vice President Dick Cheney.
National correspondent Bob Franken with the Kerry campaign now in Philadelphia this morning -- Bob, good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And what we're seeing almost every day is that the candidate is scrapping plans to focus on issues domestic and putting his emphasis on matters international. A calculation has been made that that is the issue that is going to decide this election.
So, we are now at a point where we're not going to be seeing much discussion for a while on the trail of matters domestic. As I said, it will be those matters international.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
FRANKEN (voice-over): It didn't take long after the Bush-Allawi mutual admiration society had begun its upbeat Iraq assessment for John Kerry to regain his voice.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The prime minister and the president are here, obviously, to put their best face on the policy.
FRANKEN: Well, Vice President Cheney was shocked at that. DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was appalled at the complete lack of respect Senator Kerry showed for this man of courage when he rushed out to hold a press conference and attacked the prime minister, the man America must stand beside to defeat the terrorists.
FRANKEN: The candidates are fanning out to get in some last licks before they start cramming for the first debate. But we're already getting nonstop previews of the coming attraction.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I believe a leader must be consistent and clear, and not change positions when times get tough.
KERRY: I think that a president who fails to admit his mistakes is a president who proves that he doesn't know how to make the course correct.
BUSH: To retreat now would betray our mission, our word and our friends. Mr. Prime Minister, America will keep its commitments.
KERRY: I want victory. I want to win. And I have a better plan to win than George Bush does.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
FRANKEN: So we've heard all their lines and now the two candidates are going to begin intense training, beginning with the cardinal rule of presidential debates -- first do no harm to yourself -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Boy, that's a good one, too.
All right, Bob Franken, thanks so much this morning.
The political anger over Iraq has been rising all week and yesterday it may have peaked with the clash of the candidates over the Iraqi interim prime minister that Bob was just talking about.
CNN political analyst Carlos Watson here now to sort it out for a little bit.
You heard what Bob said in his story about everything that went down yesterday. I'm sure you saw it, as well.
Has Iraq really impacted this election yet?
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Not yet. But I bet over the next week or so, particularly with the debate coming next week, I bet by then we'll start to see it in the polls. Remember, right now it's kind of maybe the third issue, behind terrorism, behind the economy in a lot of these national polls. But the last time Iraq was the number one issue, Heidi, was back in the spring. And, by the way, that was the last time John Kerry had a double digit lead, 55-43, back in kind of the March-April time frame.
COLLINS: So by going back to this issue once again for John Kerry, this could be a good thing?
WATSON: It could be, because he's able to challenge the president on two fronts. He's able to challenge him on policy grounds, to say fundamentally this is the wrong policy, it costs too much, troops are dying needlessly, we're being diverted from the war on terror. And in a way he's almost able to challenge him on personal grounds, Heidi. It's almost an integrity challenge. He's saying to him where are the WMDs? You're not being honest. You keep hearing him talk about the truth and being straightforward.
So it's a double edged sword for John Kerry.
COLLINS: But when we go and we look at CNN's electoral map now, if we could do that, we realize all kinds of different things here. Iowa and New Hampshire moved into the Bush column, giving the president a total of 301 electoral votes and John Kerry 237. As most people know, you need 270 to win.
So what do you make of the map? I mean does it seem like this 301 to 237 is insurmountable by John Kerry?
WATSON: No, actually, so it's unequivocally good news for the president. New Hampshire was a state he won four years ago. But Iowa was not. And Iowa hasn't gone Democratic since 1984. So a big deal, it's good news.
But things are still very fluid at this point. And remember, you can have big swings in the final weeks of an election. Go back to 1980. Ronald Reagan enjoyed a 17 point swing within a span of two weeks, going from eight down to nine and a half up.
But one other interesting thing to note is that a lot of these national polls won't capture what I think are some of the most interesting state dynamics, Heidi, particularly Hispanic turnout, Hispanic votes. Four really interesting Southwestern states. I'm talking about Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado -- a state you know well -- and Nevada, all places where one out of 10, maybe as many as, in some cases, one out of three votes, will come from a Hispanic voter.
COLLINS: Yes, so there's still some -- a lot of issues that we just don't have the answers to yet. We're going to have to get closer for that.
WATSON: Yes.
COLLINS: As we mentioned, already quite a bit of talk about Iraq as far as this election is concerned.
What about other issues, though, that might come up? As we've been saying, like 39 days or so until November 2? What are we going to be hearing about?
WATSON: You know, two issues that you haven't heard a lot about but you might hear more about, one is the deficit. Remember back in 1992, Ross Perot had his little charts and...
COLLINS: I remember it too well.
WATSON: And, you know, but he captured 20 percent of the vote, you know, one of the best showings of all time of a third party candidate. And we haven't heard a lot about the deficit even though the president and the Congress are about to sign into another $145 billion...
COLLINS: But do you think the federal deficit really registers with the average American voter?
WATSON: I think it's something that you have to stay on. And I think to the extent that someone decides to ride this issue in a major way, and you've heard even John McCain come out recently and charge that his own party and the Congress is being reckless from a fiscal perspective, then you might hear a little bit more about it.
But, no, right now it's kind of a sleeper issue on the margin.
You know the other one, though, I think that could mobilize some people is the Supreme Court. That doesn't sound like a sexy issue, but remember, we haven't had a new appointment in 10 years. That's the longest gap since the 1820s. The next president is likely to appoint not one, but probably as many as three new justices. And when you say that there are lots of important issues, including privacy, including race based issues, including poverty issues that this next Supreme...
COLLINS: A lot about gay marriage.
WATSON: A lot about gay marriage. I think both sides, evangelical Christians in one case and I think some particularly strong liberals on the other case, may be very motivated to go to the polls by this issue.
COLLINS: Carlos Watson, thanks so much for that.
WATSON: It's good to be in New York.
COLLINS: It's always so good of you to lay that out for us.
WATSON: Yes.
COLLINS: Appreciate it.
WATSON: Thank you.
COLLINS: And Senator John Kerry will give more details on his plan to fight the war on terror this morning. Once again, that is coming up 10:00 a.m. Eastern. We will have live coverage right here no CNN -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Heidi, a bit later our "Gimme A Minute" panel looks at the politics of hurricanes. Could big storms impact the race there in Florida?
Also, one of the main forces behind the insurgency in Iraq -- where is he and what is the U.S. going to track him down? Zarqawi now in the crosshairs in Iraq.
And a bit of nervousness on the part of prosecutors. There's a new development in the Michael Jackson matter. Jeffrey Toobin stops by for that after this on a Friday edition of AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Good morning, again from New York City.
A great shot of Central Park.
And welcome back here to our studios at Time/Life.
A newly released court document shows authorities raided the home of Michael Jackson's personal assistant back in mid-September, the 15th, in fact. The raid appears to confirm that investigators are still searching for evidence in the pop star's child molestation matter.
How significant, though, is this development? That's our question for our legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, stopping by here -- and good morning.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good morning, sir.
HEMMER: Unusual? Significant? You think what?
TOOBIN: It's very unusual to have a case that is already indicted, has a trial date set and the authorities are still executing search warrants. Very unusual.
HEMMER: Does that say the hunt is still on?
TOOBIN: Well, it could mean a couple of different things and they could mean very different things. And there's really almost no way of knowing at this point. But it could mean that prosecutors think they have a weak case, they're desperate to shore it up in any way they can. It could mean that there are productive new veins that they're discovering and there could be even ongoing criminal conduct.
HEMMER: Which would mean that other people are coming forward or other people are still cooperating or maybe cooperating more than they have in the past?
TOOBIN: Right. That could be that. It strikes me, frankly, more as a positive sign for Jackson than for the prosecutors.
HEMMER: Really?
TOOBIN: That they are so unsure of their case that they still need to investigate it at this point.
HEMMER: You say unsure. Would that indicate a sign of desperation, also, possibly?
TOOBIN: Well, it could be. I mean, the key fact that we surely don't know is what they found. If they found something significant, incriminating, well, that's good for the prosecutors. But we don't know if they did.
HEMMER: It's reported that some of the items seized -- a fax sent on behalf of the client to his lawyer regarding possible witnesses. That's what it was labeled. Three folders labeled Mesereau...
TOOBIN: But that's very risky for the prosecution and that's why the defense is so upset, is there is the possibility of invading the attorney-client privilege, you know, finding documents that relate to communications between Jackson and his lawyers...
HEMMER: Who is Mesereau.
TOOBIN: That would be very -- Mesereau, Thomas Mesereau is his current lawyer. That would be a violation of his rights.
One practical piece of significance here is I think this could very well delay the trial. The trial is supposed to take place in January. If they are still arguing over searches that are just taking place a week ago, that's the kind of thing that could push the trial back.
HEMMER: Prosecutors are also saying they want this stuff kept under seal.
TOOBIN: You know, this case...
HEMMER: And they do that because?
TOOBIN: Well, this case more than any other case I've seen, documents have been kept under seal. This is virtually a secret trial. I mean there is a whole new body of law emerging in these celebrity cases where documents that are ordinarily public are being kept secret.
HEMMER: Well, I can understand that on the defense side, certainly, with the celebrity status of Michael Jackson.
But why would the prosecution want this so badly?
TOOBIN: Well, the prosecution is saying that we don't want to hear down the road that he couldn't get a fair trial because of pretrial publicity, so let's keep everything from the press. It's an unbelievable veil of secrecy in this case.
HEMMER: You like this case, don't you?
TOOBIN: This is an interesting case.
HEMMER: I can tell when you...
TOOBIN: This is an absolutely interesting case, yes.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff. TOOBIN: All righty.
HEMMER: Have a great weekend, OK?
TOOBIN: You, too.
HEMMER: All right -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Still to come, we're running away with the circus, if only for a few minutes. We'll take you inside this -- Cirque de Soleil, the Circus of the Sun, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Checking in with Jack now once again and The Question of the Day. Heinz-Kerry, yes?
CAFFERTY: Yes.
We haven't heard a lot from Mrs. Kerry since she told a reporter to shove it. We all remember that because the media just played it to death.
Well, now she's back and she's talking and she's everywhere. She's saying things like she wouldn't be surprised if Osama bin Laden got caught just before the election next month. She says she's embarrassed about getting tax cuts advocated by President Bush. It should be noted that her husband could have voted against extending those tax cuts yesterday, but instead he chose not to vote at all.
But that's not The Question of the Day. The Question of the Day is this. Is Teresa Heinz Kerry helping or hurting her husband's campaign?
And we begin with my friend Paul over there in Hellertown, Pennsylvania: "Mrs. Let Me Step On My Tongue Kerry and Laura the Stepford Wife Bush should be part of the debates." There's an idea. "Mrs. Kerry would be represented by a pair of chattering teeth and Mrs. Bush by a bottle head doll. It would surely turn out to be more informative than the now scheduled husband debates."
Annette -- you might be right.
Annette in Florence, Alabama: "The quieter Teresa Heinz Kerry is, the better off the presidential campaign is for Mr. Kerry. However, I cannot see her being quiet for four years."
Gary writes this: "It doesn't matter. I don't listen to her or W.'s wife. Most voters just don't care about them. In defense of Mrs. Kerry, at least she's talking about the issues."
And L. in Florida writes this: "Since John Kerry is behind in the polls, Mrs. Kerry is just trying to help him catch up"...
HEMMER: Oh, yes. All right.
CAFFERTY: " -- before the elections."
HEMMER: Pass the pickles.
What is her net worth? What, some say a billion dollars, some say upwards to $3 billion.
CAFFERTY: It's a lot.
HEMMER: It's kind of a gray area.
COLLINS: It's a lot.
HEMMER: It is a lot, that's right.
CAFFERTY: A lot of viewers write in and point out that a lot of the Heinz Company plants are overseas. A little observation.
HEMMER: The reason I bring that up, there are more billionaires now on this new Fortune list than ever before.
CAFFERTY: Ohm, I'm sorry.
HEMMER: The 400 richest. That's all right.
COLLINS: Excellent segue, though.
HEMMER: Once again at the top, Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Estimated worth, $48 billion. He could be president. Investor Warren Buffett right behind, $41 billion.
CAFFERTY: Wow!
HEMMER: A $20 billion net worth lands Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen in third. And then the Walton family takes like five, six, seven, eight. Look at that, $18 billion apiece.
CAFFERTY: Oh, man.
HEMMER: The Wal-Mart fortune is estimated to be about $18 billion, as you see there on the screen. So...
COLLINS: Yes, you're just reminding people, too, that Bill Gates gave away $28 billion and he's still got that much left. Unbelievable, isn't it?
HEMMER: Billions to get billions.
COLLINS: Now, that's a billion billion billion billionaire.
HEMMER: Get a break here.
In a moment here, we're going to get back to the very serious news of what's happening in Iraq and this insurgency. The man pulling the strings in that country may be rivaling Osama bin Laden as a terrorist mastermind. And what is the U.S. doing to find Zarqawi?
Back in a moment after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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