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American Morning
Interview With Senator Richard Durbin, Senator John Cornyn; Scott Peterson Trial; Stranded Hikers
Aired October 22, 2004 - 8:59 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: Good morning. Close races that could bring huge swings in the electoral college. John Kerry and George Bush battling for any edge in just a handful of states.
Police in Boston forced to answer painful questions after a 21- year-old fan is killed during a Red Sox celebration.
And the stranded hikers going home. What the mountain took away the mountain has returned on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, this is AMERICAN MORNING on the road with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
HEMMER: Good morning, everyone, on a Friday. We're at the Adler Planetarium. What another great site it is here in Chicago. The e- mail is probably going nuts by now because we named the wrong movie.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: You named the wrong movie.
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: I got a mouse in my pocket over here. "The hunter" was filmed in Chicago at the...
O'BRIEN: I'm sorry, are you saying you were wrong?
HEMMER: I was.
CAFFERTY: But you know what? You know what? It gives us a chance to point out that the Chicago skyline is one of the most beautiful in the entire country, except for those two ugly buildings. These are mud-ugly structures right in the middle of all this beautiful architecture.
HEMMER: That's right, mud-ugly we say.
CAFFERTY: Mud ugly.
HEMMER: Been a great week for us. We started last Monday right near the marina towers along the Chicago River, and we're still flying, still cruising through the town here. On
Tuesday, went over to the Water Tower on Michigan Avenue. Yesterday -- or excuse me, Wednesday, Union Station. Yesterday is the Field Museum and Sue. And today we're at the Adler Planetarium.
So welcome back, everyone. And good morning from Chicago. Last day here. Been a great week.
O'BRIEN: It has been a fantastic week.
We're talking politics this morning. In the campaign we've got some new poll numbers to talk about that hone in on a key battleground state. We're going to talk about that with Republican Senator John Cornyn and also Democratic Senator Dick Durbin.
Also, we'll find out how Democrats are preparing for a controversial documentary, parts of which are set to be broadcast.
HEMMER: Also in this hour, in the Scott Peterson matter, jurors have been allowed to go home every day for the last several months. That's a matter that will change soon. Check out the developments inside the courtroom as of yesterday with reporter Gloria Gomez coming up in a moment.
They have scheduled now closing arguments for November 1 and November 2. November 2, obviously, is Election Day. They could be deliberating while the country is waiting for its next president. We shall see next week.
Good morning, Jack. How are you?
CAFFERTY: How are you?
"Desperate Housewives," huge hit on ABC. One of the local Chicago papers has a picture of them on the front page, and the headline is "Lawn Tarts," which I like a lot. Anyway, the handwringers are convinced it's going to cause the decline of American civilization.
ABC is ringing the cash register. Ad rates have doubled. It's a huge controversy. AM@CNN.com, read some e-mails later.
O'BRIEN: All right, Jack. Thanks very much.
CAFFERTY: "Lawn Tarts."
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You've been watching it?
O'BRIEN: You like that, huh?
CAFFERTY: No, I haven't seen it.
HEMMER: Have you?
COLLINS: Yes, I've seen it.
HEMMER: And?
COLLINS: It's very entertaining. CAFFERTY: Did you see the -- what about the -- did you see the thing on the dining room table? Apparently these people were doing something besides laying out the bone china on the ding room table, if you get my drift.
COLLINS: I get your drift. All right, Jack. Thanks. Want to get straight to the news now this morning.
Boston police have launched an internal investigation into the death of a Red Sox fan. Twenty-one-year-old Victoria Snelgrove was hit with a pepper spray canister during a Boston victory party yesterday morning. Police are taking full responsibility for her death. The mayor is considering a ban on liquor sales during the upcoming World Series in Boston to cut down on possible post-game violence.
A Senate Democrat blasting the Pentagon for exaggerating intelligence linking Iraq to al Qaeda to support the Bush push for war. A report released yesterday by Senator Carl Levin singles out the office of Defense Undersecretary Douglas Feith. The Pentagon strongly disputes the report's conclusions.
To Florida now. A ruling is expected today in the bitter right- to-die case involving Terri Schiavo. Schiavo's parents may find out if their request for her husband's removal as guardian is granted. Yesterday, the Florida Supreme Court struck down an effort by the governor to keep the comatose woman alive.
And finally, lighter note now. Paul Hamm says he expects no apology from the International Gymnastics Federation. Officials had suggested Hamm would give up his all-around gold medal following a challenge from a South Korean gymnast. But yesterday, the sport's highest court ruled Hamm should keep the gold. And Soledad talked with him a little bit earlier this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL HAMM, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: My life is really great. And, you know, I went to the Olympics, I won three medals and I'm healthy. And, you know, what more could you ask for being a 22-year-old?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Hamm became the first American to ever win the men's all-around title on August 18. And if you remember that incredible moment in gymnastics, these guys are still giving me a hard time about being excited about it. Twelfth place. Remember, he was in 12th place.
HEMMER: That's right.
COLLINS: Only two events left. Came back and won.
HEMMER: Were you surprised they let him keep the gold?
COLLINS: I'm not surprised. HEMMER: No?
COLLINS: I'm not surprised, because when I looked back at the scoring there were some problems with the South Korean's performance on the high bar. He had too many holds, which was...
O'BRIEN: You know, even though he would have technically won, I thought Paul Hamm actually made an excellent point in the interview, which was you never know. I mean, unless you go into your competition with an idea of how many points you need to get to win...
COLLINS: Yes, you've got to hit it hard at every event, absolutely.
O'BRIEN: Yes. So I think that he had a good point. It wasn't a technicality, in fact.
COLLINS: And he also said people around the country...
O'BRIEN: You can talk.
HEMMER: I'm just hanging out with my ladies over here.
(CROSSTALK)
COLLINS: People loved him and supported him a lot. Very interesting.
HEMMER: Very true. Thank you, Heidi.
O'BRIEN: Yes, we're happy for him today. He's thrilled.
Let's go back and talk about politics, shall we? Sinclair Broadcasting Group is going to air parts of a highly critical anti- Kerry film, "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal," tonight in 39 markets across the country. Some of them are in key battleground states. How much of this will have an impact on voters, the question is today?
U.S. Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois is a co-chair of the Democratic National Committee. He joins us here.
Nice to have you. Thanks for being with us.
SEN. RICHARD DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Welcome to Chicago.
O'BRIEN: Thank you very much. We've had a wonderful time, by the way.
Let's first show this new ad, which has just been released by the Bush campaign. I just want to show a small chunk of it. It's called "Wolves." Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In an increasingly dangerous world, even after the first terrorist attack on America, John Kerry and the liberals in Congress voted to slash America's intelligence operations by $6 billion. Cuts so deep they would have weakened America's defenses. And weakness attracts...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: Obviously they're talking about the terror threat. The title of it is "Wolves," as I said. What do you make? What's your reaction to this ad?
DURBIN: It's all about the fear factor. Will America be afraid enough not to ask hard questions as to whether we've done enough to protect our country, and whether we could do better in terms of making life a little more reasonable for working families.
O'BRIEN: The polls show that the president is very strong on this issue. What can Senator Kerry do to chip away at the president's strength?
DURBIN: Well, I think Senator Kerry made that point in the debates. He's just as committed as the president, if not more so, when it comes to homeland security and fighting terrorism. And that's the point that we made and made effectively, I think, in the first debate.
President Bush picked the topic for the first debate. It was going to be terrorism and foreign policy. John Kerry got on the stage, and when it was all over, most people said he won the debate.
O'BRIEN: At the same time, when you see an emotional ad like this, it's essentially a knockoff of an ad that Ronald Reagan did, the bear ad years ago. Do you think that it has the potential to really grasp the hearts and minds of the voting public as we head just days away from the election?
DURBIN: You know, I think there's a built-in skepticism by the voters this late in the campaign. This is the kitchen sink period of the campaign when candidates throw everything at one another.
I think that skepticism is at work. And most people have made their decision in terms of where they're headed, and they understand John Kerry is committed to America's security as much, if not more, than the president.
O'BRIEN: We've been talking, everybody's been talking about the Sinclair Broadcast, and parts of this documentary about Senator Kerry. They're now only going to show chunks of it, apparently. How concerned are you about the broadcast and the impact of the broadcast?
DURBIN: I'm very concerned. Sinclair Broadcasting is not dedicated to the public interest. They're dedicated to a political agenda.
They have, for example, decided when ABC "Nightline" wanted to memorialize the troops that died in combat in Iraq, they wouldn't let them show the program because they thought it might be viewed as critical of the Bush administration. Now they've come in with this pro-Bush documentary in the closing days of the campaign, and I just think it's just fundamentally unfair. I think when it's all over, the FCC or the Federal Election Commission is going to hold Sinclair accountable.
O'BRIEN: We'll see. Dick Durbin, nice to have you. Thanks for having us in your fine city. We appreciate it.
Let's turn now to Senator John Cornyn, a Republican of Texas, for the other side this morning.
Nice to see you, sir. Thanks for being with us.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R), TEXAS: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: You heard what Dick Durbin had to say. He said this is essentially politics of fear, this new ad coming out from the Bush campaign. How do you respond to that?
CORNYN: Well, I think you know, while Senator Kerry did well in the debates, it's not what you say, it's what you actually have done. And as the best predictor of what you're likely to do if elected. And, of course, he didn't dispute the facts in the ad, the fact that Senator Kerry did vote for dramatic slashes in intelligence budgets.
While he voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq, he then voted against the $87 billion that would have funded the troops in the field. So I think it's what you've done and what you're likely to do rather than what you say that counts the most.
O'BRIEN: But some people say that this ad which I mentioned moments ago many people are saying is essentially a knockoff of an ad that Ronald Reagan did years ago, is designed to reach sort of the guts and the hearts and to scare, say critics, the American public. What do you make of that?
CORNYN: Well, I agree with Senator Durbin. And I think at this point in the campaign, they've pretty well decided what they're going to do. And now it's a matter of each side trying to get their ground game going, get people out to vote.
I think people understand what's at stake with the war on terror. That we were attacked on 9/11. And there's only two choices. One is victory and one is surrender. And I think that that's why the president is doing so well, because people have confidence in his resolve and his leadership in fighting and winning the war on terror.
O'BRIEN: Not doing so well, though, or leading the way in Ohio, a state that obviously is in big play. It's fair to say the numbers there don't bode -- bode, excuse me -- very well for the president. If you look at the numbers of registered voters, Kerry at 50 percent, President Bush at 44 percent, who say that that would be their likely choice for president.
The focus there, of course, domestic issues. How is the president -- what's the strategy to take over there? CORNYN: Well, the -- you know, registered voters are important. It's important to register as many voters as we can. But ultimately what counts is who actually goes to vote.
And that's why I say that so much effort, the volunteer effort in Ohio is very strong, about at least triple the number of people volunteering on behalf of the Bush-Cheney ticket than they did in the year 2000. And I think from all of my sources in Ohio, they're feeling very good.
Whether it's medical costs associated with high medical liability insurance premiums, whether it's government-run medical care, which will cost $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years, I think eventually, by November the 2nd, the Ohio voters, voters across the country are going to decide that President -- that Senator Kerry is on the wrong side of those issues and that President Bush is on the right side.
O'BRIEN: Bill Clinton, Al Gore will be out campaigning for Senator Kerry. How concerned are you about their weighing in on this campaign now?
CORNYN: Well, I'm glad to see President Clinton feeling strong enough to get back on the campaign trail. And all of us wish him well. But I don't think this is an election on -- that has much to do with President Clinton or Al Gore.
They had their time in the limelight. Al Gore had his shot and he was unsuccessful in 2000. This is really a choice between President Bush's strong leadership in a very dangerous world and John Kerry's lack of resolve and steady hand on the rudder during a very perilous time in our nation's history.
O'BRIEN: Senator John Cornyn joining us from Capitol Hill this morning. Nice to see you, sir. Thanks for being with us.
CORNYN: Thank you very much.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: About 11 minutes past the hour now. The judge in Scott Peterson's double murder trial say jurors will be sequestered for deliberations. Those deliberations expected to begin a week after next.
KOVR-TV reporter Gloria Gomez back with us today, live in Sacramento.
Gloria, good morning and welcome back here.
GLORIA GOMEZ, REPORTER, KOVR-TV: Good morning, Bill.
HEMMER: There's this doctor, Dr. Charles March (ph), on the stand yesterday. He testified on behalf of the defense, saying that the unborn child lived at least five days after Laci disappeared. Apparently his testimony had some holes upon cross-examination. What happened there, Gloria? GOMEZ: I've got to tell you, Bill, it was a complete meltdown for this witness. Remember, this is the heart of the defense's case.
They said they were going to prove baby Conner was born alive and lived past December 24. And if that's true, that means that Scott Peterson couldn't have killed Laci because he was under heavy police surveillance.
But this witness under cross-examination completely just began to fall apart. And what happened is, is that he actually said on the stand that, yes, a lot of his findings were based on assumptions and even gossip from a baby shower. And then during cross-examination, they actually admitted that, you know, his results were wrong. In fact, that his dates were wrong.
And then he turns to the jury and says, "Oh, gee, I made a mistake." He goes, "Please, you know, cut me some slack, like you did with the other experts."
And the jury just kind of looked at him puzzled. Some were even laughing. They put their note pads away and were pretty much just interested in seeing how he would react to the rest of the testimony.
HEMMER: You're saying jurors were laughing. How many jurors were laughing?
GOMEZ: I would say about five or six of them as I was looking at them were clearly chuckling and just looking like quizzical at him when he was saying things about the baby shower. He says, "Well, how do you know that was the day of conception?" "Well, you know, Laci mentioned that at a baby shower." And he said, "Well how do you know that was the day" -- "Well, because women talk."
And a lot of the women there were just like in disbelief that he was saying these types of things.
HEMMER: So what you're saying is that he offered no science in his testimony?
GOMEZ: He basically based the overall conclusions on this baby shower information, that this gossip that apparently Laci Peterson had told people that she had -- you know, basically was pregnant on that day. But, of course, it was all based on other assumptions, and so clearly this guy was shuffling his hair, fidgeting through his notes, looked very, very distraught.
HEMMER: There was another witness, Richard Cardoba (ph). He was a neighbor. He's also, what I understand, a superior court judge. He was supposed to lend some credibility as to the disappearance of Laci. How did he hold up?
GOMEZ: Oh, he did very well on the stand. In fact, you know, this goes to the defense's theory that police rushed to judgment, that they did not check out all these tips very thoroughly. And clearly, this judge sat there and said, "Yes, as a matter of fact, days before Laci Peterson disappeared there was a man who approached my home looking for money, and I thought he was casing the neighborhood."
So he called Modesto police, told them about this. Also, a pair of shoes that he found across from the Peterson neighborhood, that he thought may have been Laci's.
Police never picked up the shoes. And Mark Geragos suggested, "Why wouldn't police pick up the shoes?" This just shows they weren't seriously looking for someone else involved in Laci Peterson's disappearance.
HEMMER: Thanks, Gloria, for getting up for us early this morning. By the way, closing arguments still scheduled for right around Election Day, is that right, November 2?
GOMEZ: Yes.
HEMMER: All right. Gloria Gomez, thanks. KOVR Television out of Sacramento for us. Thanks -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to the weather now. Orelon Sidney at the CNN Center with the latest for us because Chad is off.
Good morning, again, Orelon.
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: All right, Orelon. Thanks a lot.
HEMMER: In a moment, a story of "Extra Effort" right here in the city of Chicago. Lessons of life taught onstage. An extraordinary teacher and his very special students coming up.
O'BRIEN: Also ahead, what do Ebert and Roeper think about "Fahrenheit 9/11" and its chances for a best picture Oscar? Toure is going to sit down for part two of his interview with the Chicago movie critics.
HEMMER: Also next, the search for missing hikers in the West. Several have been rescued, but the search continues for more today. The latest on their effort as AMERICAN MORNING continues after this on a Friday morning on the road in Chicago.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Two elderly hikers are missing this morning in California's Sequoia National Park. The couple, 70 and 66 years old, are the latest of a number of hikers to become stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. An early season blizzard dumped heavy snow across the region.
Keith Lober is the rescue coordinator at Yosemite National Park, and he joins us from the park this morning.
Good morning, Keith. Nice to talk to you. Let's talk a little bit about the two claimers who are now trapped at El Capitan or on El Capitan in Yosemite. What's their condition? I know you've had a chance to drop some supplies to them.
It looks like Keith's having a little trouble.
You know, Keith, I'm going to take another stab at it and see if you can hear me. We were talking about these two climbers that are now trapped on El Capitan. I know you've had an opportunity to drop some supplies from the air to them. What's their condition? Do you know?
Yes, it looks like we're having some trouble. They're going to update us on those rescue efforts, really two dozen climbers at this point have had trouble. We'll get him back in just a little bit. OK.
Mr. Lober, I'm told that you might be able to hear me now. Can you hear me?
KEITH LOBER, YOSEMITE RESCUE COORDINATOR I can hear you now.
O'BRIEN: Oh, wonderful. OK. Let's talk about these two climbers who are trapped on El Capitan. You've dropped some supplies to them. How are they doing, do you know?
LOBER: They're probably surviving the night pretty well. They've actually reached the end of their resources. They tried to climb out yesterday, and they retreated back down to their tenth (ph) camp high up on the Salife (ph) route on the face of El Capitan.
(CROSSTALK)
O'BRIEN: I know the conditions there have really been -- I'm sorry. Let me ask you about the conditions. They've been terrible. Do you think you're going to be able to get them off that El Capitan this morning?
LOBER: My impression is we'll be able to pull them off probably before noon today, yes. That's our intention.
O'BRIEN: Rescue efforts are incredibly difficult. When you look at pictures of just how steep that is, some 32-under feet, a sheer drop, that really got in the way of trying to rescue, or really I should say recover the bodies of the Japanese couple that got stuck in the blizzard. Describe for me what you were trying to do with those -- with those climbers.
LOBER: I couldn't hear the question. Can you repeat that?
O'BRIEN: Yes. I'm sorry that we're having audio problems. Let me apologize to you. Obviously it's a tough place to get out of.
Talk about the recovery of the bodies of the two Japanese climbers. I've read descriptions that you could see through a telescope that they were desperate to try to save their own lives. How hard was it to get to them finally, even though it was too late to save them?
LOBER: Well, on Tuesday we saw them leave their highest camp position. That indicated to us that they were absolutely desperate, because the tactic was probably dangerous to do. And ultimately proved to be so.
When they left their camp we realized that we had to go. And so that's when we launched full-scale efforts to try to intervene.
Of course it was an 11-mile approach hike, and a huge, unbelievably violent storm. And we weren't able to get into position prior to their dying on the face. We recovered them yesterday by lowering troops or rescuers down about 600 feet down below the face and then hauling them back up to the top. And we flew them off.
O'BRIEN: I'm sure something that's very tough on all the rescuers who have been sent in. Thank you for talking with us. And again, thanks for putting up with our little audio glitches. We certainly appreciate it.
Keith Lober from -- a rescue coordinator.
LOBER: You bet.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: In a moment here, young voters this year may be the decisive vote in this year's election. And what's the buzz on campus? Jack goes back to school in a moment for that.
Also in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING, we continue right after this live in Chicago on a Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. We are back inside the Adler Planetarium. And we've asked Dr. Mark Hammergren, an astronomer here, to talk to us a little bit about -- a little bit about -- easy for me to say -- the Mars rover, the replica that you have here.
Good morning. Thanks for being with us.
DR. MARK HAMMERGREN, ASTRONOMER: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: This has got to be a hugely popular exhibit here, right?
HAMMERGREN: Absolutely. It's one of the focal pieces of the exhibits we have around here.
This is a full scale replica, as you said, of the Martian -- the Mars exploration rovers that are currently operating on the surface of Mars. They've been up there since January of this year.
O'BRIEN: They've been a huge success story. Supposed to go for 90 days, have gone three times that. So they've been up there about nine months already. Do you have lots of school groups coming through?
HAMMERGREN: We do. We do. And when kids come here, they'll just ring this and look at this thing.
And this is, you know, full scale. This is what these things -- how big they really are. A lot of people say they're bigger than they thought they were. Some people say they're smaller.
O'BRIEN: It's nice to be able to get an up-close look. Dr. Mark Hammergren joining us this morning with a look. And, of course, this is just one of many fantastic exhibits here at the Adler Planetarium.
So thank you. And thank you for having us, all of you this morning.
HAMMERGREN: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: Sure appreciate it -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad. Soledad, thanks for that.
Back out here with Jack and his bomber jacket today.
Good morning. You're looking pretty stylish.
CAFFERTY: Well, you know, it works against the Chicago breezes.
HEMMER: That it does.
CAFFERTY: "The Cafferty File" cameras out all week talking to Chicagoans all over this fine town. DePaul University students brought us up to speed about the buzz on campus and the issues that have the college crowd fired up.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a lot of talk about the presidential election right now. And even though say it's really divided, half and half, it just seems like everyone's saying Kerry. And, I don't know, I'm kind of pro-Bush. And I'm not really sure why everyone thinks he's such a bad guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tuition is a big one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Financial aid.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Financial aid is -- yes, financial aid is a really big issue that a lot of students struggle with, because it's so expensive to go to school and just to get an education. And the littlest things add up.
So -- and paying the loans off, getting the loans, having the government grant you money. Even if your parents make a certain amount, the government won't grant you anything.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Politics are definitely big with the debates and everything. Everyone's talking about that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People wearing shirts that say things, one way or another, that wouldn't be appropriate otherwise.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need more scholarships. And probably (ph) financial aid through people -- the students that work hard aren't getting it. It's the people that don't have anything that are getting everything.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CAFFERTY: The lament of college students all over the country: money, money, money.
Later on, e-mails about "Desperate Housewives," or, as one Chicago paper dubbed them, "Lawn Tarts."
(LAUGHTER)
HEMMER: You know, we talk to students all the time in our job. They want to know questions about what we do.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
HEMMER: The youth vote really hasn't moved in terms of percentages. You'll remember about 12 years ago when MTV came out with a big "Rock the Vote" campaign.
CAFFERTY: "Rock the Vote," yes.
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: It moved a little bit, but really not in big degrees. So we'll see if it's different this year.
CAFFERTY: All right.
HEMMER: Thank you, jack.
In a moment here, health care, guns, soccer moms. The candidates trying to find the issue that will put them over the top.
Back in a moment in Chicago after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired October 22, 2004 - 8:59 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Close races that could bring huge swings in the electoral college. John Kerry and George Bush battling for any edge in just a handful of states.
Police in Boston forced to answer painful questions after a 21- year-old fan is killed during a Red Sox celebration.
And the stranded hikers going home. What the mountain took away the mountain has returned on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, this is AMERICAN MORNING on the road with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
HEMMER: Good morning, everyone, on a Friday. We're at the Adler Planetarium. What another great site it is here in Chicago. The e- mail is probably going nuts by now because we named the wrong movie.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: You named the wrong movie.
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: I got a mouse in my pocket over here. "The hunter" was filmed in Chicago at the...
O'BRIEN: I'm sorry, are you saying you were wrong?
HEMMER: I was.
CAFFERTY: But you know what? You know what? It gives us a chance to point out that the Chicago skyline is one of the most beautiful in the entire country, except for those two ugly buildings. These are mud-ugly structures right in the middle of all this beautiful architecture.
HEMMER: That's right, mud-ugly we say.
CAFFERTY: Mud ugly.
HEMMER: Been a great week for us. We started last Monday right near the marina towers along the Chicago River, and we're still flying, still cruising through the town here. On
Tuesday, went over to the Water Tower on Michigan Avenue. Yesterday -- or excuse me, Wednesday, Union Station. Yesterday is the Field Museum and Sue. And today we're at the Adler Planetarium.
So welcome back, everyone. And good morning from Chicago. Last day here. Been a great week.
O'BRIEN: It has been a fantastic week.
We're talking politics this morning. In the campaign we've got some new poll numbers to talk about that hone in on a key battleground state. We're going to talk about that with Republican Senator John Cornyn and also Democratic Senator Dick Durbin.
Also, we'll find out how Democrats are preparing for a controversial documentary, parts of which are set to be broadcast.
HEMMER: Also in this hour, in the Scott Peterson matter, jurors have been allowed to go home every day for the last several months. That's a matter that will change soon. Check out the developments inside the courtroom as of yesterday with reporter Gloria Gomez coming up in a moment.
They have scheduled now closing arguments for November 1 and November 2. November 2, obviously, is Election Day. They could be deliberating while the country is waiting for its next president. We shall see next week.
Good morning, Jack. How are you?
CAFFERTY: How are you?
"Desperate Housewives," huge hit on ABC. One of the local Chicago papers has a picture of them on the front page, and the headline is "Lawn Tarts," which I like a lot. Anyway, the handwringers are convinced it's going to cause the decline of American civilization.
ABC is ringing the cash register. Ad rates have doubled. It's a huge controversy. AM@CNN.com, read some e-mails later.
O'BRIEN: All right, Jack. Thanks very much.
CAFFERTY: "Lawn Tarts."
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You've been watching it?
O'BRIEN: You like that, huh?
CAFFERTY: No, I haven't seen it.
HEMMER: Have you?
COLLINS: Yes, I've seen it.
HEMMER: And?
COLLINS: It's very entertaining. CAFFERTY: Did you see the -- what about the -- did you see the thing on the dining room table? Apparently these people were doing something besides laying out the bone china on the ding room table, if you get my drift.
COLLINS: I get your drift. All right, Jack. Thanks. Want to get straight to the news now this morning.
Boston police have launched an internal investigation into the death of a Red Sox fan. Twenty-one-year-old Victoria Snelgrove was hit with a pepper spray canister during a Boston victory party yesterday morning. Police are taking full responsibility for her death. The mayor is considering a ban on liquor sales during the upcoming World Series in Boston to cut down on possible post-game violence.
A Senate Democrat blasting the Pentagon for exaggerating intelligence linking Iraq to al Qaeda to support the Bush push for war. A report released yesterday by Senator Carl Levin singles out the office of Defense Undersecretary Douglas Feith. The Pentagon strongly disputes the report's conclusions.
To Florida now. A ruling is expected today in the bitter right- to-die case involving Terri Schiavo. Schiavo's parents may find out if their request for her husband's removal as guardian is granted. Yesterday, the Florida Supreme Court struck down an effort by the governor to keep the comatose woman alive.
And finally, lighter note now. Paul Hamm says he expects no apology from the International Gymnastics Federation. Officials had suggested Hamm would give up his all-around gold medal following a challenge from a South Korean gymnast. But yesterday, the sport's highest court ruled Hamm should keep the gold. And Soledad talked with him a little bit earlier this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL HAMM, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: My life is really great. And, you know, I went to the Olympics, I won three medals and I'm healthy. And, you know, what more could you ask for being a 22-year-old?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Hamm became the first American to ever win the men's all-around title on August 18. And if you remember that incredible moment in gymnastics, these guys are still giving me a hard time about being excited about it. Twelfth place. Remember, he was in 12th place.
HEMMER: That's right.
COLLINS: Only two events left. Came back and won.
HEMMER: Were you surprised they let him keep the gold?
COLLINS: I'm not surprised. HEMMER: No?
COLLINS: I'm not surprised, because when I looked back at the scoring there were some problems with the South Korean's performance on the high bar. He had too many holds, which was...
O'BRIEN: You know, even though he would have technically won, I thought Paul Hamm actually made an excellent point in the interview, which was you never know. I mean, unless you go into your competition with an idea of how many points you need to get to win...
COLLINS: Yes, you've got to hit it hard at every event, absolutely.
O'BRIEN: Yes. So I think that he had a good point. It wasn't a technicality, in fact.
COLLINS: And he also said people around the country...
O'BRIEN: You can talk.
HEMMER: I'm just hanging out with my ladies over here.
(CROSSTALK)
COLLINS: People loved him and supported him a lot. Very interesting.
HEMMER: Very true. Thank you, Heidi.
O'BRIEN: Yes, we're happy for him today. He's thrilled.
Let's go back and talk about politics, shall we? Sinclair Broadcasting Group is going to air parts of a highly critical anti- Kerry film, "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal," tonight in 39 markets across the country. Some of them are in key battleground states. How much of this will have an impact on voters, the question is today?
U.S. Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois is a co-chair of the Democratic National Committee. He joins us here.
Nice to have you. Thanks for being with us.
SEN. RICHARD DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: Welcome to Chicago.
O'BRIEN: Thank you very much. We've had a wonderful time, by the way.
Let's first show this new ad, which has just been released by the Bush campaign. I just want to show a small chunk of it. It's called "Wolves." Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In an increasingly dangerous world, even after the first terrorist attack on America, John Kerry and the liberals in Congress voted to slash America's intelligence operations by $6 billion. Cuts so deep they would have weakened America's defenses. And weakness attracts...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: Obviously they're talking about the terror threat. The title of it is "Wolves," as I said. What do you make? What's your reaction to this ad?
DURBIN: It's all about the fear factor. Will America be afraid enough not to ask hard questions as to whether we've done enough to protect our country, and whether we could do better in terms of making life a little more reasonable for working families.
O'BRIEN: The polls show that the president is very strong on this issue. What can Senator Kerry do to chip away at the president's strength?
DURBIN: Well, I think Senator Kerry made that point in the debates. He's just as committed as the president, if not more so, when it comes to homeland security and fighting terrorism. And that's the point that we made and made effectively, I think, in the first debate.
President Bush picked the topic for the first debate. It was going to be terrorism and foreign policy. John Kerry got on the stage, and when it was all over, most people said he won the debate.
O'BRIEN: At the same time, when you see an emotional ad like this, it's essentially a knockoff of an ad that Ronald Reagan did, the bear ad years ago. Do you think that it has the potential to really grasp the hearts and minds of the voting public as we head just days away from the election?
DURBIN: You know, I think there's a built-in skepticism by the voters this late in the campaign. This is the kitchen sink period of the campaign when candidates throw everything at one another.
I think that skepticism is at work. And most people have made their decision in terms of where they're headed, and they understand John Kerry is committed to America's security as much, if not more, than the president.
O'BRIEN: We've been talking, everybody's been talking about the Sinclair Broadcast, and parts of this documentary about Senator Kerry. They're now only going to show chunks of it, apparently. How concerned are you about the broadcast and the impact of the broadcast?
DURBIN: I'm very concerned. Sinclair Broadcasting is not dedicated to the public interest. They're dedicated to a political agenda.
They have, for example, decided when ABC "Nightline" wanted to memorialize the troops that died in combat in Iraq, they wouldn't let them show the program because they thought it might be viewed as critical of the Bush administration. Now they've come in with this pro-Bush documentary in the closing days of the campaign, and I just think it's just fundamentally unfair. I think when it's all over, the FCC or the Federal Election Commission is going to hold Sinclair accountable.
O'BRIEN: We'll see. Dick Durbin, nice to have you. Thanks for having us in your fine city. We appreciate it.
Let's turn now to Senator John Cornyn, a Republican of Texas, for the other side this morning.
Nice to see you, sir. Thanks for being with us.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R), TEXAS: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: You heard what Dick Durbin had to say. He said this is essentially politics of fear, this new ad coming out from the Bush campaign. How do you respond to that?
CORNYN: Well, I think you know, while Senator Kerry did well in the debates, it's not what you say, it's what you actually have done. And as the best predictor of what you're likely to do if elected. And, of course, he didn't dispute the facts in the ad, the fact that Senator Kerry did vote for dramatic slashes in intelligence budgets.
While he voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq, he then voted against the $87 billion that would have funded the troops in the field. So I think it's what you've done and what you're likely to do rather than what you say that counts the most.
O'BRIEN: But some people say that this ad which I mentioned moments ago many people are saying is essentially a knockoff of an ad that Ronald Reagan did years ago, is designed to reach sort of the guts and the hearts and to scare, say critics, the American public. What do you make of that?
CORNYN: Well, I agree with Senator Durbin. And I think at this point in the campaign, they've pretty well decided what they're going to do. And now it's a matter of each side trying to get their ground game going, get people out to vote.
I think people understand what's at stake with the war on terror. That we were attacked on 9/11. And there's only two choices. One is victory and one is surrender. And I think that that's why the president is doing so well, because people have confidence in his resolve and his leadership in fighting and winning the war on terror.
O'BRIEN: Not doing so well, though, or leading the way in Ohio, a state that obviously is in big play. It's fair to say the numbers there don't bode -- bode, excuse me -- very well for the president. If you look at the numbers of registered voters, Kerry at 50 percent, President Bush at 44 percent, who say that that would be their likely choice for president.
The focus there, of course, domestic issues. How is the president -- what's the strategy to take over there? CORNYN: Well, the -- you know, registered voters are important. It's important to register as many voters as we can. But ultimately what counts is who actually goes to vote.
And that's why I say that so much effort, the volunteer effort in Ohio is very strong, about at least triple the number of people volunteering on behalf of the Bush-Cheney ticket than they did in the year 2000. And I think from all of my sources in Ohio, they're feeling very good.
Whether it's medical costs associated with high medical liability insurance premiums, whether it's government-run medical care, which will cost $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years, I think eventually, by November the 2nd, the Ohio voters, voters across the country are going to decide that President -- that Senator Kerry is on the wrong side of those issues and that President Bush is on the right side.
O'BRIEN: Bill Clinton, Al Gore will be out campaigning for Senator Kerry. How concerned are you about their weighing in on this campaign now?
CORNYN: Well, I'm glad to see President Clinton feeling strong enough to get back on the campaign trail. And all of us wish him well. But I don't think this is an election on -- that has much to do with President Clinton or Al Gore.
They had their time in the limelight. Al Gore had his shot and he was unsuccessful in 2000. This is really a choice between President Bush's strong leadership in a very dangerous world and John Kerry's lack of resolve and steady hand on the rudder during a very perilous time in our nation's history.
O'BRIEN: Senator John Cornyn joining us from Capitol Hill this morning. Nice to see you, sir. Thanks for being with us.
CORNYN: Thank you very much.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: About 11 minutes past the hour now. The judge in Scott Peterson's double murder trial say jurors will be sequestered for deliberations. Those deliberations expected to begin a week after next.
KOVR-TV reporter Gloria Gomez back with us today, live in Sacramento.
Gloria, good morning and welcome back here.
GLORIA GOMEZ, REPORTER, KOVR-TV: Good morning, Bill.
HEMMER: There's this doctor, Dr. Charles March (ph), on the stand yesterday. He testified on behalf of the defense, saying that the unborn child lived at least five days after Laci disappeared. Apparently his testimony had some holes upon cross-examination. What happened there, Gloria? GOMEZ: I've got to tell you, Bill, it was a complete meltdown for this witness. Remember, this is the heart of the defense's case.
They said they were going to prove baby Conner was born alive and lived past December 24. And if that's true, that means that Scott Peterson couldn't have killed Laci because he was under heavy police surveillance.
But this witness under cross-examination completely just began to fall apart. And what happened is, is that he actually said on the stand that, yes, a lot of his findings were based on assumptions and even gossip from a baby shower. And then during cross-examination, they actually admitted that, you know, his results were wrong. In fact, that his dates were wrong.
And then he turns to the jury and says, "Oh, gee, I made a mistake." He goes, "Please, you know, cut me some slack, like you did with the other experts."
And the jury just kind of looked at him puzzled. Some were even laughing. They put their note pads away and were pretty much just interested in seeing how he would react to the rest of the testimony.
HEMMER: You're saying jurors were laughing. How many jurors were laughing?
GOMEZ: I would say about five or six of them as I was looking at them were clearly chuckling and just looking like quizzical at him when he was saying things about the baby shower. He says, "Well, how do you know that was the day of conception?" "Well, you know, Laci mentioned that at a baby shower." And he said, "Well how do you know that was the day" -- "Well, because women talk."
And a lot of the women there were just like in disbelief that he was saying these types of things.
HEMMER: So what you're saying is that he offered no science in his testimony?
GOMEZ: He basically based the overall conclusions on this baby shower information, that this gossip that apparently Laci Peterson had told people that she had -- you know, basically was pregnant on that day. But, of course, it was all based on other assumptions, and so clearly this guy was shuffling his hair, fidgeting through his notes, looked very, very distraught.
HEMMER: There was another witness, Richard Cardoba (ph). He was a neighbor. He's also, what I understand, a superior court judge. He was supposed to lend some credibility as to the disappearance of Laci. How did he hold up?
GOMEZ: Oh, he did very well on the stand. In fact, you know, this goes to the defense's theory that police rushed to judgment, that they did not check out all these tips very thoroughly. And clearly, this judge sat there and said, "Yes, as a matter of fact, days before Laci Peterson disappeared there was a man who approached my home looking for money, and I thought he was casing the neighborhood."
So he called Modesto police, told them about this. Also, a pair of shoes that he found across from the Peterson neighborhood, that he thought may have been Laci's.
Police never picked up the shoes. And Mark Geragos suggested, "Why wouldn't police pick up the shoes?" This just shows they weren't seriously looking for someone else involved in Laci Peterson's disappearance.
HEMMER: Thanks, Gloria, for getting up for us early this morning. By the way, closing arguments still scheduled for right around Election Day, is that right, November 2?
GOMEZ: Yes.
HEMMER: All right. Gloria Gomez, thanks. KOVR Television out of Sacramento for us. Thanks -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to the weather now. Orelon Sidney at the CNN Center with the latest for us because Chad is off.
Good morning, again, Orelon.
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning.
(WEATHER REPORT)
O'BRIEN: All right, Orelon. Thanks a lot.
HEMMER: In a moment, a story of "Extra Effort" right here in the city of Chicago. Lessons of life taught onstage. An extraordinary teacher and his very special students coming up.
O'BRIEN: Also ahead, what do Ebert and Roeper think about "Fahrenheit 9/11" and its chances for a best picture Oscar? Toure is going to sit down for part two of his interview with the Chicago movie critics.
HEMMER: Also next, the search for missing hikers in the West. Several have been rescued, but the search continues for more today. The latest on their effort as AMERICAN MORNING continues after this on a Friday morning on the road in Chicago.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Two elderly hikers are missing this morning in California's Sequoia National Park. The couple, 70 and 66 years old, are the latest of a number of hikers to become stranded in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. An early season blizzard dumped heavy snow across the region.
Keith Lober is the rescue coordinator at Yosemite National Park, and he joins us from the park this morning.
Good morning, Keith. Nice to talk to you. Let's talk a little bit about the two claimers who are now trapped at El Capitan or on El Capitan in Yosemite. What's their condition? I know you've had a chance to drop some supplies to them.
It looks like Keith's having a little trouble.
You know, Keith, I'm going to take another stab at it and see if you can hear me. We were talking about these two climbers that are now trapped on El Capitan. I know you've had an opportunity to drop some supplies from the air to them. What's their condition? Do you know?
Yes, it looks like we're having some trouble. They're going to update us on those rescue efforts, really two dozen climbers at this point have had trouble. We'll get him back in just a little bit. OK.
Mr. Lober, I'm told that you might be able to hear me now. Can you hear me?
KEITH LOBER, YOSEMITE RESCUE COORDINATOR I can hear you now.
O'BRIEN: Oh, wonderful. OK. Let's talk about these two climbers who are trapped on El Capitan. You've dropped some supplies to them. How are they doing, do you know?
LOBER: They're probably surviving the night pretty well. They've actually reached the end of their resources. They tried to climb out yesterday, and they retreated back down to their tenth (ph) camp high up on the Salife (ph) route on the face of El Capitan.
(CROSSTALK)
O'BRIEN: I know the conditions there have really been -- I'm sorry. Let me ask you about the conditions. They've been terrible. Do you think you're going to be able to get them off that El Capitan this morning?
LOBER: My impression is we'll be able to pull them off probably before noon today, yes. That's our intention.
O'BRIEN: Rescue efforts are incredibly difficult. When you look at pictures of just how steep that is, some 32-under feet, a sheer drop, that really got in the way of trying to rescue, or really I should say recover the bodies of the Japanese couple that got stuck in the blizzard. Describe for me what you were trying to do with those -- with those climbers.
LOBER: I couldn't hear the question. Can you repeat that?
O'BRIEN: Yes. I'm sorry that we're having audio problems. Let me apologize to you. Obviously it's a tough place to get out of.
Talk about the recovery of the bodies of the two Japanese climbers. I've read descriptions that you could see through a telescope that they were desperate to try to save their own lives. How hard was it to get to them finally, even though it was too late to save them?
LOBER: Well, on Tuesday we saw them leave their highest camp position. That indicated to us that they were absolutely desperate, because the tactic was probably dangerous to do. And ultimately proved to be so.
When they left their camp we realized that we had to go. And so that's when we launched full-scale efforts to try to intervene.
Of course it was an 11-mile approach hike, and a huge, unbelievably violent storm. And we weren't able to get into position prior to their dying on the face. We recovered them yesterday by lowering troops or rescuers down about 600 feet down below the face and then hauling them back up to the top. And we flew them off.
O'BRIEN: I'm sure something that's very tough on all the rescuers who have been sent in. Thank you for talking with us. And again, thanks for putting up with our little audio glitches. We certainly appreciate it.
Keith Lober from -- a rescue coordinator.
LOBER: You bet.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: In a moment here, young voters this year may be the decisive vote in this year's election. And what's the buzz on campus? Jack goes back to school in a moment for that.
Also in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING, we continue right after this live in Chicago on a Friday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. We are back inside the Adler Planetarium. And we've asked Dr. Mark Hammergren, an astronomer here, to talk to us a little bit about -- a little bit about -- easy for me to say -- the Mars rover, the replica that you have here.
Good morning. Thanks for being with us.
DR. MARK HAMMERGREN, ASTRONOMER: Good morning.
O'BRIEN: This has got to be a hugely popular exhibit here, right?
HAMMERGREN: Absolutely. It's one of the focal pieces of the exhibits we have around here.
This is a full scale replica, as you said, of the Martian -- the Mars exploration rovers that are currently operating on the surface of Mars. They've been up there since January of this year.
O'BRIEN: They've been a huge success story. Supposed to go for 90 days, have gone three times that. So they've been up there about nine months already. Do you have lots of school groups coming through?
HAMMERGREN: We do. We do. And when kids come here, they'll just ring this and look at this thing.
And this is, you know, full scale. This is what these things -- how big they really are. A lot of people say they're bigger than they thought they were. Some people say they're smaller.
O'BRIEN: It's nice to be able to get an up-close look. Dr. Mark Hammergren joining us this morning with a look. And, of course, this is just one of many fantastic exhibits here at the Adler Planetarium.
So thank you. And thank you for having us, all of you this morning.
HAMMERGREN: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: Sure appreciate it -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Soledad. Soledad, thanks for that.
Back out here with Jack and his bomber jacket today.
Good morning. You're looking pretty stylish.
CAFFERTY: Well, you know, it works against the Chicago breezes.
HEMMER: That it does.
CAFFERTY: "The Cafferty File" cameras out all week talking to Chicagoans all over this fine town. DePaul University students brought us up to speed about the buzz on campus and the issues that have the college crowd fired up.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a lot of talk about the presidential election right now. And even though say it's really divided, half and half, it just seems like everyone's saying Kerry. And, I don't know, I'm kind of pro-Bush. And I'm not really sure why everyone thinks he's such a bad guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tuition is a big one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Financial aid.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Financial aid is -- yes, financial aid is a really big issue that a lot of students struggle with, because it's so expensive to go to school and just to get an education. And the littlest things add up.
So -- and paying the loans off, getting the loans, having the government grant you money. Even if your parents make a certain amount, the government won't grant you anything.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Politics are definitely big with the debates and everything. Everyone's talking about that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People wearing shirts that say things, one way or another, that wouldn't be appropriate otherwise.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need more scholarships. And probably (ph) financial aid through people -- the students that work hard aren't getting it. It's the people that don't have anything that are getting everything.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CAFFERTY: The lament of college students all over the country: money, money, money.
Later on, e-mails about "Desperate Housewives," or, as one Chicago paper dubbed them, "Lawn Tarts."
(LAUGHTER)
HEMMER: You know, we talk to students all the time in our job. They want to know questions about what we do.
CAFFERTY: Sure.
HEMMER: The youth vote really hasn't moved in terms of percentages. You'll remember about 12 years ago when MTV came out with a big "Rock the Vote" campaign.
CAFFERTY: "Rock the Vote," yes.
(CROSSTALK)
HEMMER: It moved a little bit, but really not in big degrees. So we'll see if it's different this year.
CAFFERTY: All right.
HEMMER: Thank you, jack.
In a moment here, health care, guns, soccer moms. The candidates trying to find the issue that will put them over the top.
Back in a moment in Chicago after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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