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American Morning
Iraq's Elections; Jury Now Being Picked for Michael Jackson Trial
Aired January 31, 2005 - 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
Iraq's elections not the end of a bloody struggle, but the beginning of a democratic state.
Michael Jackson has been on stage almost all his life. The jury now being picked starting today will be an audience with the power to send him on his way or send him to jail.
And the ice is slowly melting, but there's no harm feeling in many homes in Georgia. Tens of thousands waiting for the power to come back this morning on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
Welcome, everybody.
Some of the news that's making headlines this morning.
Iraq's representative to the U.N., Samir Sumaidaie, has been waiting 30 years for this moment in time. We're going to ask him some of the nuts and bolts about what happens now for the Iraqis and Americans.
HEMMER: Also, if you thought the cold war ended back in the late '80s with the fall of the Berlin Wall, you'd be surprised to know how many Russian spies may be in America and who they're spying on today. Former CIA Director James Woolsey is back with us today. He'll talk about that this morning.
O'BRIEN: And Mr. Cafferty is with us, as well -- good morning, again.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
Coming up in the "Cafferty File," we have some withdrawal pictures to show you of the pope as he tries unsuccessfully to launch a symbol of peace. A New York judge says men are getting the short end of the divorce deal. So what's new? And for those with absolutely no life at all, we have a special product just for you.
HEMMER: Cool.
CAFFERTY: Bill.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
O'BRIEN: That's ridiculous this morning.
HEMMER: I can't go anywhere. I have to stay around for this story so.
CAFFERTY: Absolutely.
HEMMER: I'll be right here for you.
CAFFERTY: OK, good.
HEMMER: And then I'll be -- yes, pushing you back out the door.
O'BRIEN: The headlines now and Carol Costello -- thanks.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: What is that evil laugh you gave Jack for? Do you know what the product is?
O'BRIEN: I have no idea what the product is, but I can tell he's stirring the pot.
CAFFERTY: That's just not -- that's just ridiculous. Wait until you see this thing, it's ridiculous.
COSTELLO: It's ridiculous.
CAFFERTY: It's ridiculous.
O'BRIEN: That's a tease, you know? You're going to stick around...
COSTELLO: OK.
CAFFERTY: Do you know who might buy this? Your weather guy, Chad, on that overnight show you have.
COSTELLO: Really?
CAFFERTY: Yes.
O'BRIEN: He'd be our weather guy, too, Chad, yes.
HEMMER: He might.
COSTELLO: Is it a can of beer?
CAFFERTY: No.
COSTELLO: OK. I can't wait for that.
Let's get to the headlines now, shall we?
Now in the news, pop singer Michael Jackson will soon be on his way to court. He will be there when his child molestation trial gets underway in Santa Maria, California. Jackson has released a video statement predicting he will be acquitted an vindicated when the truth is told. Jury selection is expected to last at least one month.
A massive 24 hour protest in the Middle East. Tens of thousands of Israeli settlers and their supporters are protesting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to withdraw from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. They want the issue to be put to a national vote and Israeli television channels said the demonstration was the largest ever held in Jerusalem.
The U.S. is getting closer to wiping out AIDS in newborns. According to the "New York Times," the number of infants born in the United States with AIDS or HIV has dropped to about 200 from nearly 2,000 in 1990. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will tell us more about this potential breakthrough in the next half hour.
And a boost for Donald Fowler, a hopeful for the Democratic National Committee chair. A group of some 15 state party leaders narrowly has endorsed Fowler. The nod will be submitted to all state Democratic chairs in about two hours. Fowler is considered to be the main rival to former Vermont governor, Howard Dean, who is also vying for the DNC position.
To the forecast center now and Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Carol.
COSTELLO: I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry.
MYERS: It's all right. Pay backs are heck. You know.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Five minutes now past the hour.
Let's go to Iraq again now.
This morning the votes are being counted in the first free election in more than 50 years in Iraq. Millions of Iraqis turned out. Some reports say as many as 60 percent went to the polls on Sunday. It may be days, though, before an exact number is known there. At least 29 were killed, 71 others wounded, in election related violence. And President Bush is calling the election a "resounding success." He made comments from the White House yesterday afternoon.
And even with the election over, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says there is no timetable to pull the 150,000 American troops out of Iraq.
Back to Baghdad to talk with a gentleman there by the name of John Burns with the "New York Times."
You can read his story on the front page again today.
John Burns has been in that country, by my calendar, almost two years, going back to the fall of Saddam Hussein.
If you look back yesterday, John, is there an image that hits you, that strikes you, that you will remember from these elections?
JOHN BURNS, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": You mentioned that I, like many reporters, have been here for some time. I actually covered the last election in Iraq, which was the referendum by which Saddam Hussein was reelected -- we can put that in quotes -- in October, 2002, by a 100 percent margin. Very striking yesterday was that most of the voters at those polls were people who had gone out to vote for Saddam then.
The image I have really is one of the extraordinary transformation between then and now. Then there was a kind of stolid march to the polls under duress. Yesterday, civic patron flowing through every polling station, a festive spirit. People absolutely delighted to be able to express themselves freely for the first time in 50 years.
HEMMER: Yes, let's now talk about the future and the steps that come next for the Iraqi people.
A couple of basic questions here. Who is the next target for the insurgents, do you believe, John?
BURNS: Well, of course, the regrettable fact is that not much that happened yesterday is likely to have much effect, at least any time soon, on the insurgents. The insurgents, I think, are immutable. I think, personally, that the core of the insurgency is probably beyond mitigation and negotiation. It has to be hoped that's not true, but I think the American forces here and their Iraqi allies have got a very long, hard road ahead of them.
But what was significant for the future in yesterday's vote is that the insurgents have now got a very clear message that the Iraqi people, in their millions, were willing to stand up for their own rights. That's going to make an enormous difference to every American pair of boots on the ground here, knowing that they are not alone, that the Iraqi people have now stood up for the rights that America has proclaimed to be theirs.
HEMMER: If that's the case then, John, what's the effect on recruiting more Iraqi security services?
BURNS: Well, we're told by American commanders that despite the quite horrific losses amongst Iraqi security forces, who have become the principal target of the bombings, the ambushes, the beheadings and so forth, that they still get five to 10 applicants for every position they have. That's not a problem. The problem is training. The problem is leadership. There's no doubt that they are better. There's also no doubt that they still have very serious problems.
But the American command has deployed here some very, very high caliber officers to take care of this problem. And we saw yesterday at the polls that there is a difference. The United States forces left the poll security at the polling stations themselves yesterday to Iraqis. Many of us felt that that could invite absolute mayhem.
Well, eight million people went to the polls. Many of them stayed home until they got word by mobile phones from others who preceded them that the situation was safe. Despite the eight or nine suicide bombings in Baghdad and elsewhere, yesterday there was more or less security in the vast majority of polling stations.
HEMMER: I just have a few seconds left here, John.
Yesterday to the side, did you wake up with a different feeling today in Iraq?
BURNS: Absolutely. There's a different feeling amongst the Iraqi people, and I have to say, there's a different feeling amongst reporters and others here who have come here to cover these elections. The risks are always still there, but it's an inspiriting thing, reporter or Iraqi, to see what happened yesterday. My memories went back to South Africa in 1994, to Poland, to what happened in Russia. We've seen this elsewhere in the last 10 to 20 years and now it's happened here and it's the best single thing that has happened here since April the 9th, 2003.
HEMMER: John Burns at the "New York Times."
Thank you, John.
Continue to be safe there in your reporting in Baghdad.
Now -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Samir Sumaidaie is Iraq's ambassador to the United Nations.
Ambassador Sumaidaie went to Washington, D.C. right after our show on Friday to go cast his vote.
Nice to see you.
SAMIR SUMAIDAIE, IRAQ'S AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: We heard John Burns talk a little bit about a different feeling. You have been in exile for 30 years.
How do you feel today?
SUMAIDAIE: Well, I feel uplifted, exhilarated and very happy. Yesterday something very remarkable happened. Millions of Iraqis looked the terrorists in the eye and got up and walked quietly toward their guns. Thirty-five people died on the way. But they went ahead and they cast their ballots. That says a lot.
O'BRIEN: There are concerns, of course -- the final numbers aren't in, of what percentage actually voted. We expect to get those relatively soon. But tell me about the concerns about the percentages. At what point, if you have 60 percent, let's say, in the Shiite communities, which is a much bigger majority, obviously, but the Sunni community, which had significantly fewer percentage wise votes, and only represented about 20 percent of the population, if their voice isn't heard in the elections over the weekend and their voice is not part of any kind of document that comes out, to what degree could this be a problem in creating a true democracy?
SUMAIDAIE: Well, there are realities and perceptions. I keep repeating in every interview that this is not about Sunnis fighting Shiites and Shiites fighting Sunnis. There are, of course, sectarian allegiances. But what we saw yesterday, I mean I telephoned a friend in Baghdad. They live in a neighborhood which is a majority Shiite. But they were Christians. And there were other Sunnis. They actually all walked together to the polls.
The feeling here is of inclusiveness, even on the part of the Shiite political leaders. They're saying that nothing will be done based on the exclusion of anybody.
The general spirit, the general attitude is very encouraging and very inclusive. And I think ways will be found to make sure that the concerns and wishes of all the communities in Iraq will be taken into account. I have no worries about it.
O'BRIEN: John Burns, we heard him talk about civic passion as people were marching off to the polls.
SUMAIDAIE: Yes, yes.
O'BRIEN: How long does that passion last if things don't improve in the short-term, like joblessness, like security overall?
SUMAIDAIE: Despite all the battering the Iraqis have been having, the civil passion has never died. Since Saddam was overthrown, Iraqis have consistently shown, A, that they are extremely resilient; B, that they are united and they have not indulged in civil war, civil strife, sectarian battles or anything like that; and, C, that they care about the future and they are determined to have a better future.
O'BRIEN: It was fun to watch for the first time in a long time.
SUMAIDAIE: Yes.
O'BRIEN: To see actual celebrating in the streets of Iraq. It was very unusual.
SUMAIDAIE: A very, very happy day for all Iraqis.
O'BRIEN: Samir Sumaidaie, the Iraq ambassador to the United Nations.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thanks for coming in, as always, to talk to us. We appreciate it.
SUMAIDAIE: Thank you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Bill?
HEMMER: Soledad, a break here.
In a moment, President Bush speaking yesterday at the White House says this vote was a success. But is the policy turning Iraq into a haven for terrorists instead of a beacon for democracy? Kamber and May look at that.
Also, a teen on trial accused of murdering his grandparents. Should a popular anti-depressant be on trial instead?
And what is Vladimir Putin looking for now? Russian spies reportedly fanning out across the U.S. Is there a threat there? Back in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: "Time" magazine has uncovered information that more than 100 Russian spies are working uncover inside the United States.
Just how big is this espionage threat?
Former CIA Director James Woolsey is vice president at Booz Allen & Hamilton for global strategic security.
He joins us from Washington.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thanks for being with us.
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Good to be with you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: How surprised are you by these numbers? Or is this something that everyone has sort of known?
WOOLSEY: Well, I don't know that everyone knows it because I think Russian spying did slack off some around the beginning of the '90s. But it's certainly back up. And Putin, after all, has about a 25 percent of his government composed of so-called salohiki (ph), alumni of the KGB and related organizations. So it's not surprising, I think, that some of these new spies have friends in high places.
O'BRIEN: So 100 Russian spies. What exactly are they looking for and where are they based?
WOOLSEY: Well, I don't know about the numbers. But some of the Russians would be operating out of their embassy under official cover, pretending to be foreign ministry officials, let's say. But the Russians historically have had a lot of what are nowadays called non- official cover officers, NOCs. We used to call them illegals. Colonel Abel, who was spying from Brooklyn years ago, was an illegal. And they are not under official cover. They would be pretending to be businesspeople or whatever.
And probably much of what they're after is technology, both military and civilian. The Russians have always done a very good job of basic research and basic mathematics, but they've been very weak on turning things into systems, particularly sophisticated ones. And that's a lot of what they were after during the cold war and I imagine it's a lot of what they're after now, American technology.
O'BRIEN: If we assume that there are sort of a finite number of resources, is the U.S. counterintelligence being distracted, so to speak, by the war on terror, would you say?
WOOLSEY: Well, I think the war on terror has to be a very high priority, and particularly movements such as the Islamists in the Middle East, some coming from the Wahabis in Saudi Arabia. It's a very serious matter that we have prison chaplains, for example, that are trying to recruit terrorists.
And the Russians -- but the Russian search for technology is a very important thing. We have to pay a lot of attention to it and the FBI has to follow it.
I would say I wouldn't put it quite as high as China on our list of counterintelligence targets, though, because over Taiwan, there is at least some chance that we might find ourselves involved in hostilities some day against China and against Russia, even though Putin has taken a very negative step back solidly toward dictatorship, I would say, in the last year or so, I think hostilities between the U.S. and Russia are pretty far down the list of probabilities.
O'BRIEN: So you think, in spite of this search, aggressive search for technology, that there's not a risk to, I guess, re- inflaming the cold war?
WOOLSEY: Well, no. The cold war was ideological and Russia doesn't really have an ideology now. It's sort of right on the edge of fascism, but it's not an ideological fascism, it's just keeping people in power and being a dictatorship.
So I don't think we're in a cold war with Russia. If so, they're not fighting it very well. They sure lost big in Ukraine recently. And I think the ideological side of this now is more or less missing. I would put a much higher priority on dealing with terrorists and the states that support them and dealing with China, frankly.
O'BRIEN: Former CIA Director James Woolsey joining us this morning.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thank you.
WOOLSEY: Good to be with you. O'BRIEN: Thank you -- Bill.
HEMMER: Twenty minutes past the hour now.
Jury selection begins today in the murder trial of Christopher Pittman. He's accused of shooting his grandparents when he was only 12 years old. The defense contends those shootings were triggered by the anti-depressant drug Zoloft.
Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen this morning is reporting in Charleston, South Carolina.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Christopher Pittman was 12 years old when, by his own admission, he shot his grandparents to death as they slept, then used candles and lighter fluid to burn down the house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This kid waved to his grandparents, went to bed, went to sleep, came in and shot them in the face, in the mouth, with a shotgun, as cold and brutal an act as I've witnessed in 25 years of prosecuting.
COHEN: After a troubled boyhood and a brief psychiatric stay near his home in Florida, Chris had gone to live with the grandparents in rural South Carolina. After a school fight, they talked about sending him back.
JOE PITTMAN, FATHER: The shotgun my son used was the first gun my dad had ever bought me when I was a boy. I let him bring it back with him and that's the one that he used.
COHEN: Chris' father was at a loss.
J. PITTMAN: Right now, I don't see my son. I don't see that light in his eyes. I see darkness.
COHEN: The family blames a popular anti-depressant he was taking, Zoloft. It's never been approved for children with depression, yet it is often prescribed.
This defense lawyer wants to put Zoloft on trial.
ANDY VICKERY, DEFENSE LAWYER: It drove him out of his mind. It put him out of touch with reality. It made him hear voices.
COHEN: Pfizer, which makes Zoloft, denies any connection to the deaths. It says: "There is no scientific evidence to suggest that Zoloft contributes to violent behavior in either adults or children."
Now 15, Chris Pittman goes on the latest as an adult facing 30 years to life for murder. He gave this account of the shootings in a letter his father read at a Food and Drug Administration hearing a year ago. J. PITTMAN: When I was lying in my bed that night, I couldn't sleep because my voice in my head kept echoing through my mind, telling me to kill them.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HEMMER: Again, Elizabeth Cohen reporting there in Charleston, South Carolina.
Prospective jurors in that case are expected to be asked what kinds of psychiatric drugs they are taking.
Much more on that as the trial continues -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: How do you lose track of almost $9 billion? The Pentagon defends itself against accusations of a costly oversight. That story is ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: A look now at some of the more popular stories on cnn.com this morning.
The U.S. is having trouble accounting for nearly $9 billion of Iraqi reconstruction funds. An inspector general's report says inefficiencies and bad management are to blame there. That money was supposed to be spent on things like salaries and operating expenses. Auditors could not verify that's where the money went. The Pentagon disputes the report's findings.
Cnn.com online for you now.
O'BRIEN: Jack's back with The Question of the Day.
CAFFERTY: You know, $9 billion they're looking for?
O'BRIEN: Oops!
CAFFERTY: A little here, a little there.
In the end, the Iraqi people delivered the message maybe better than any foreign army or government could. Millions of ordinary folks turned out to reject the insurgents, the fundamentalists and those who would rule Iraq by force. It was a powerful message, one that exceeded the most optimistic expectations. Were they listening, though, in places like Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia?
Well, you can bet they were.
Here's the question -- what message do the Iraqi elections send to the Middle East?
John in Naples, Florida: "I don't think the elections will have much effect on Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria. The Iraqis have been giving their neighbors the finger for years. The elections will only be another example." Jim says: "We say the election was a success, mission accomplished. I won't get too excited until our kids start coming home and it'd be nice if my gas and heating oil goes down to prewar prices, too."
Doug in New Jersey writes: "The message is clear. The people of Iraq want a democracy that helps their country and faith thrive instead of a theocracy, which helps tyrants and their cruelty thrive. God knows they've had enough of that."
And John in Wisconsin: "The message of the Iraqi elections for the people of the Middle East is that there is a future with freedom in it for each of you. It's hard to imagine a more powerful message than that. By the way, the Barbara Boxer thinks the Iraqi election was stolen from Al Gore."
HEMMER: Watching the wires here. A.P. is saying Jacques Chirac calls it a satisfied result.
CAFFERTY: Who cares what he says?
HEMMER: We're getting a report out of Geneva...
CAFFERTY: Jack who?
HEMMER: ... that says, out of Geneva that says 93 percent -- Soledad and I were just talking about this...
O'BRIEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HEMMER: Yes, and the absentee ballots, 93 percent participated.
CAFFERTY: You know, it wouldn't hurt for the people in this country to take a, borrow a page out of the Iraqis' book and maybe a few more of us go to the polls on election day.
HEMMER: Listen, if this 60 percent figure is right...
CAFFERTY: What did the president...
HEMMER: ... that shatters...
CAFFERTY: What did the president...
HEMMER: ... that matches what we did this past year, in 2004.
CAFFERTY: What did the guy in France say, Jack who?
HEMMER: Jacques Chirac is his name.
CAFFERTY: He found the what?
HEMMER: He told President Bush he was -- I'll get it right here. He tells U.S. President George Bush he was satisfied with the Iraq elections, the Associated Press.
CAFFERTY: Condescending twit.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: You're welcome.
HEMMER: More on Iraq in a moment.
The president says it's a resounding success. What now is the difficult task in that country and could the attempt at democracy end up doing more harm than good? We'll put that question to Kamber and May in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired January 31, 2005 - 08:00 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.
Iraq's elections not the end of a bloody struggle, but the beginning of a democratic state.
Michael Jackson has been on stage almost all his life. The jury now being picked starting today will be an audience with the power to send him on his way or send him to jail.
And the ice is slowly melting, but there's no harm feeling in many homes in Georgia. Tens of thousands waiting for the power to come back this morning on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
Welcome, everybody.
Some of the news that's making headlines this morning.
Iraq's representative to the U.N., Samir Sumaidaie, has been waiting 30 years for this moment in time. We're going to ask him some of the nuts and bolts about what happens now for the Iraqis and Americans.
HEMMER: Also, if you thought the cold war ended back in the late '80s with the fall of the Berlin Wall, you'd be surprised to know how many Russian spies may be in America and who they're spying on today. Former CIA Director James Woolsey is back with us today. He'll talk about that this morning.
O'BRIEN: And Mr. Cafferty is with us, as well -- good morning, again.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
Coming up in the "Cafferty File," we have some withdrawal pictures to show you of the pope as he tries unsuccessfully to launch a symbol of peace. A New York judge says men are getting the short end of the divorce deal. So what's new? And for those with absolutely no life at all, we have a special product just for you.
HEMMER: Cool.
CAFFERTY: Bill.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
O'BRIEN: That's ridiculous this morning.
HEMMER: I can't go anywhere. I have to stay around for this story so.
CAFFERTY: Absolutely.
HEMMER: I'll be right here for you.
CAFFERTY: OK, good.
HEMMER: And then I'll be -- yes, pushing you back out the door.
O'BRIEN: The headlines now and Carol Costello -- thanks.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: What is that evil laugh you gave Jack for? Do you know what the product is?
O'BRIEN: I have no idea what the product is, but I can tell he's stirring the pot.
CAFFERTY: That's just not -- that's just ridiculous. Wait until you see this thing, it's ridiculous.
COSTELLO: It's ridiculous.
CAFFERTY: It's ridiculous.
O'BRIEN: That's a tease, you know? You're going to stick around...
COSTELLO: OK.
CAFFERTY: Do you know who might buy this? Your weather guy, Chad, on that overnight show you have.
COSTELLO: Really?
CAFFERTY: Yes.
O'BRIEN: He'd be our weather guy, too, Chad, yes.
HEMMER: He might.
COSTELLO: Is it a can of beer?
CAFFERTY: No.
COSTELLO: OK. I can't wait for that.
Let's get to the headlines now, shall we?
Now in the news, pop singer Michael Jackson will soon be on his way to court. He will be there when his child molestation trial gets underway in Santa Maria, California. Jackson has released a video statement predicting he will be acquitted an vindicated when the truth is told. Jury selection is expected to last at least one month.
A massive 24 hour protest in the Middle East. Tens of thousands of Israeli settlers and their supporters are protesting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to withdraw from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. They want the issue to be put to a national vote and Israeli television channels said the demonstration was the largest ever held in Jerusalem.
The U.S. is getting closer to wiping out AIDS in newborns. According to the "New York Times," the number of infants born in the United States with AIDS or HIV has dropped to about 200 from nearly 2,000 in 1990. Dr. Sanjay Gupta will tell us more about this potential breakthrough in the next half hour.
And a boost for Donald Fowler, a hopeful for the Democratic National Committee chair. A group of some 15 state party leaders narrowly has endorsed Fowler. The nod will be submitted to all state Democratic chairs in about two hours. Fowler is considered to be the main rival to former Vermont governor, Howard Dean, who is also vying for the DNC position.
To the forecast center now and Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Carol.
COSTELLO: I couldn't help myself. I'm sorry.
MYERS: It's all right. Pay backs are heck. You know.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Five minutes now past the hour.
Let's go to Iraq again now.
This morning the votes are being counted in the first free election in more than 50 years in Iraq. Millions of Iraqis turned out. Some reports say as many as 60 percent went to the polls on Sunday. It may be days, though, before an exact number is known there. At least 29 were killed, 71 others wounded, in election related violence. And President Bush is calling the election a "resounding success." He made comments from the White House yesterday afternoon.
And even with the election over, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says there is no timetable to pull the 150,000 American troops out of Iraq.
Back to Baghdad to talk with a gentleman there by the name of John Burns with the "New York Times."
You can read his story on the front page again today.
John Burns has been in that country, by my calendar, almost two years, going back to the fall of Saddam Hussein.
If you look back yesterday, John, is there an image that hits you, that strikes you, that you will remember from these elections?
JOHN BURNS, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": You mentioned that I, like many reporters, have been here for some time. I actually covered the last election in Iraq, which was the referendum by which Saddam Hussein was reelected -- we can put that in quotes -- in October, 2002, by a 100 percent margin. Very striking yesterday was that most of the voters at those polls were people who had gone out to vote for Saddam then.
The image I have really is one of the extraordinary transformation between then and now. Then there was a kind of stolid march to the polls under duress. Yesterday, civic patron flowing through every polling station, a festive spirit. People absolutely delighted to be able to express themselves freely for the first time in 50 years.
HEMMER: Yes, let's now talk about the future and the steps that come next for the Iraqi people.
A couple of basic questions here. Who is the next target for the insurgents, do you believe, John?
BURNS: Well, of course, the regrettable fact is that not much that happened yesterday is likely to have much effect, at least any time soon, on the insurgents. The insurgents, I think, are immutable. I think, personally, that the core of the insurgency is probably beyond mitigation and negotiation. It has to be hoped that's not true, but I think the American forces here and their Iraqi allies have got a very long, hard road ahead of them.
But what was significant for the future in yesterday's vote is that the insurgents have now got a very clear message that the Iraqi people, in their millions, were willing to stand up for their own rights. That's going to make an enormous difference to every American pair of boots on the ground here, knowing that they are not alone, that the Iraqi people have now stood up for the rights that America has proclaimed to be theirs.
HEMMER: If that's the case then, John, what's the effect on recruiting more Iraqi security services?
BURNS: Well, we're told by American commanders that despite the quite horrific losses amongst Iraqi security forces, who have become the principal target of the bombings, the ambushes, the beheadings and so forth, that they still get five to 10 applicants for every position they have. That's not a problem. The problem is training. The problem is leadership. There's no doubt that they are better. There's also no doubt that they still have very serious problems.
But the American command has deployed here some very, very high caliber officers to take care of this problem. And we saw yesterday at the polls that there is a difference. The United States forces left the poll security at the polling stations themselves yesterday to Iraqis. Many of us felt that that could invite absolute mayhem.
Well, eight million people went to the polls. Many of them stayed home until they got word by mobile phones from others who preceded them that the situation was safe. Despite the eight or nine suicide bombings in Baghdad and elsewhere, yesterday there was more or less security in the vast majority of polling stations.
HEMMER: I just have a few seconds left here, John.
Yesterday to the side, did you wake up with a different feeling today in Iraq?
BURNS: Absolutely. There's a different feeling amongst the Iraqi people, and I have to say, there's a different feeling amongst reporters and others here who have come here to cover these elections. The risks are always still there, but it's an inspiriting thing, reporter or Iraqi, to see what happened yesterday. My memories went back to South Africa in 1994, to Poland, to what happened in Russia. We've seen this elsewhere in the last 10 to 20 years and now it's happened here and it's the best single thing that has happened here since April the 9th, 2003.
HEMMER: John Burns at the "New York Times."
Thank you, John.
Continue to be safe there in your reporting in Baghdad.
Now -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Samir Sumaidaie is Iraq's ambassador to the United Nations.
Ambassador Sumaidaie went to Washington, D.C. right after our show on Friday to go cast his vote.
Nice to see you.
SAMIR SUMAIDAIE, IRAQ'S AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: Thank you.
O'BRIEN: We heard John Burns talk a little bit about a different feeling. You have been in exile for 30 years.
How do you feel today?
SUMAIDAIE: Well, I feel uplifted, exhilarated and very happy. Yesterday something very remarkable happened. Millions of Iraqis looked the terrorists in the eye and got up and walked quietly toward their guns. Thirty-five people died on the way. But they went ahead and they cast their ballots. That says a lot.
O'BRIEN: There are concerns, of course -- the final numbers aren't in, of what percentage actually voted. We expect to get those relatively soon. But tell me about the concerns about the percentages. At what point, if you have 60 percent, let's say, in the Shiite communities, which is a much bigger majority, obviously, but the Sunni community, which had significantly fewer percentage wise votes, and only represented about 20 percent of the population, if their voice isn't heard in the elections over the weekend and their voice is not part of any kind of document that comes out, to what degree could this be a problem in creating a true democracy?
SUMAIDAIE: Well, there are realities and perceptions. I keep repeating in every interview that this is not about Sunnis fighting Shiites and Shiites fighting Sunnis. There are, of course, sectarian allegiances. But what we saw yesterday, I mean I telephoned a friend in Baghdad. They live in a neighborhood which is a majority Shiite. But they were Christians. And there were other Sunnis. They actually all walked together to the polls.
The feeling here is of inclusiveness, even on the part of the Shiite political leaders. They're saying that nothing will be done based on the exclusion of anybody.
The general spirit, the general attitude is very encouraging and very inclusive. And I think ways will be found to make sure that the concerns and wishes of all the communities in Iraq will be taken into account. I have no worries about it.
O'BRIEN: John Burns, we heard him talk about civic passion as people were marching off to the polls.
SUMAIDAIE: Yes, yes.
O'BRIEN: How long does that passion last if things don't improve in the short-term, like joblessness, like security overall?
SUMAIDAIE: Despite all the battering the Iraqis have been having, the civil passion has never died. Since Saddam was overthrown, Iraqis have consistently shown, A, that they are extremely resilient; B, that they are united and they have not indulged in civil war, civil strife, sectarian battles or anything like that; and, C, that they care about the future and they are determined to have a better future.
O'BRIEN: It was fun to watch for the first time in a long time.
SUMAIDAIE: Yes.
O'BRIEN: To see actual celebrating in the streets of Iraq. It was very unusual.
SUMAIDAIE: A very, very happy day for all Iraqis.
O'BRIEN: Samir Sumaidaie, the Iraq ambassador to the United Nations.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thanks for coming in, as always, to talk to us. We appreciate it.
SUMAIDAIE: Thank you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Bill?
HEMMER: Soledad, a break here.
In a moment, President Bush speaking yesterday at the White House says this vote was a success. But is the policy turning Iraq into a haven for terrorists instead of a beacon for democracy? Kamber and May look at that.
Also, a teen on trial accused of murdering his grandparents. Should a popular anti-depressant be on trial instead?
And what is Vladimir Putin looking for now? Russian spies reportedly fanning out across the U.S. Is there a threat there? Back in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: "Time" magazine has uncovered information that more than 100 Russian spies are working uncover inside the United States.
Just how big is this espionage threat?
Former CIA Director James Woolsey is vice president at Booz Allen & Hamilton for global strategic security.
He joins us from Washington.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thanks for being with us.
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Good to be with you, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: How surprised are you by these numbers? Or is this something that everyone has sort of known?
WOOLSEY: Well, I don't know that everyone knows it because I think Russian spying did slack off some around the beginning of the '90s. But it's certainly back up. And Putin, after all, has about a 25 percent of his government composed of so-called salohiki (ph), alumni of the KGB and related organizations. So it's not surprising, I think, that some of these new spies have friends in high places.
O'BRIEN: So 100 Russian spies. What exactly are they looking for and where are they based?
WOOLSEY: Well, I don't know about the numbers. But some of the Russians would be operating out of their embassy under official cover, pretending to be foreign ministry officials, let's say. But the Russians historically have had a lot of what are nowadays called non- official cover officers, NOCs. We used to call them illegals. Colonel Abel, who was spying from Brooklyn years ago, was an illegal. And they are not under official cover. They would be pretending to be businesspeople or whatever.
And probably much of what they're after is technology, both military and civilian. The Russians have always done a very good job of basic research and basic mathematics, but they've been very weak on turning things into systems, particularly sophisticated ones. And that's a lot of what they were after during the cold war and I imagine it's a lot of what they're after now, American technology.
O'BRIEN: If we assume that there are sort of a finite number of resources, is the U.S. counterintelligence being distracted, so to speak, by the war on terror, would you say?
WOOLSEY: Well, I think the war on terror has to be a very high priority, and particularly movements such as the Islamists in the Middle East, some coming from the Wahabis in Saudi Arabia. It's a very serious matter that we have prison chaplains, for example, that are trying to recruit terrorists.
And the Russians -- but the Russian search for technology is a very important thing. We have to pay a lot of attention to it and the FBI has to follow it.
I would say I wouldn't put it quite as high as China on our list of counterintelligence targets, though, because over Taiwan, there is at least some chance that we might find ourselves involved in hostilities some day against China and against Russia, even though Putin has taken a very negative step back solidly toward dictatorship, I would say, in the last year or so, I think hostilities between the U.S. and Russia are pretty far down the list of probabilities.
O'BRIEN: So you think, in spite of this search, aggressive search for technology, that there's not a risk to, I guess, re- inflaming the cold war?
WOOLSEY: Well, no. The cold war was ideological and Russia doesn't really have an ideology now. It's sort of right on the edge of fascism, but it's not an ideological fascism, it's just keeping people in power and being a dictatorship.
So I don't think we're in a cold war with Russia. If so, they're not fighting it very well. They sure lost big in Ukraine recently. And I think the ideological side of this now is more or less missing. I would put a much higher priority on dealing with terrorists and the states that support them and dealing with China, frankly.
O'BRIEN: Former CIA Director James Woolsey joining us this morning.
Nice to see you, sir.
Thank you.
WOOLSEY: Good to be with you. O'BRIEN: Thank you -- Bill.
HEMMER: Twenty minutes past the hour now.
Jury selection begins today in the murder trial of Christopher Pittman. He's accused of shooting his grandparents when he was only 12 years old. The defense contends those shootings were triggered by the anti-depressant drug Zoloft.
Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen this morning is reporting in Charleston, South Carolina.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Christopher Pittman was 12 years old when, by his own admission, he shot his grandparents to death as they slept, then used candles and lighter fluid to burn down the house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This kid waved to his grandparents, went to bed, went to sleep, came in and shot them in the face, in the mouth, with a shotgun, as cold and brutal an act as I've witnessed in 25 years of prosecuting.
COHEN: After a troubled boyhood and a brief psychiatric stay near his home in Florida, Chris had gone to live with the grandparents in rural South Carolina. After a school fight, they talked about sending him back.
JOE PITTMAN, FATHER: The shotgun my son used was the first gun my dad had ever bought me when I was a boy. I let him bring it back with him and that's the one that he used.
COHEN: Chris' father was at a loss.
J. PITTMAN: Right now, I don't see my son. I don't see that light in his eyes. I see darkness.
COHEN: The family blames a popular anti-depressant he was taking, Zoloft. It's never been approved for children with depression, yet it is often prescribed.
This defense lawyer wants to put Zoloft on trial.
ANDY VICKERY, DEFENSE LAWYER: It drove him out of his mind. It put him out of touch with reality. It made him hear voices.
COHEN: Pfizer, which makes Zoloft, denies any connection to the deaths. It says: "There is no scientific evidence to suggest that Zoloft contributes to violent behavior in either adults or children."
Now 15, Chris Pittman goes on the latest as an adult facing 30 years to life for murder. He gave this account of the shootings in a letter his father read at a Food and Drug Administration hearing a year ago. J. PITTMAN: When I was lying in my bed that night, I couldn't sleep because my voice in my head kept echoing through my mind, telling me to kill them.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HEMMER: Again, Elizabeth Cohen reporting there in Charleston, South Carolina.
Prospective jurors in that case are expected to be asked what kinds of psychiatric drugs they are taking.
Much more on that as the trial continues -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: How do you lose track of almost $9 billion? The Pentagon defends itself against accusations of a costly oversight. That story is ahead as we continue right here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: A look now at some of the more popular stories on cnn.com this morning.
The U.S. is having trouble accounting for nearly $9 billion of Iraqi reconstruction funds. An inspector general's report says inefficiencies and bad management are to blame there. That money was supposed to be spent on things like salaries and operating expenses. Auditors could not verify that's where the money went. The Pentagon disputes the report's findings.
Cnn.com online for you now.
O'BRIEN: Jack's back with The Question of the Day.
CAFFERTY: You know, $9 billion they're looking for?
O'BRIEN: Oops!
CAFFERTY: A little here, a little there.
In the end, the Iraqi people delivered the message maybe better than any foreign army or government could. Millions of ordinary folks turned out to reject the insurgents, the fundamentalists and those who would rule Iraq by force. It was a powerful message, one that exceeded the most optimistic expectations. Were they listening, though, in places like Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia?
Well, you can bet they were.
Here's the question -- what message do the Iraqi elections send to the Middle East?
John in Naples, Florida: "I don't think the elections will have much effect on Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria. The Iraqis have been giving their neighbors the finger for years. The elections will only be another example." Jim says: "We say the election was a success, mission accomplished. I won't get too excited until our kids start coming home and it'd be nice if my gas and heating oil goes down to prewar prices, too."
Doug in New Jersey writes: "The message is clear. The people of Iraq want a democracy that helps their country and faith thrive instead of a theocracy, which helps tyrants and their cruelty thrive. God knows they've had enough of that."
And John in Wisconsin: "The message of the Iraqi elections for the people of the Middle East is that there is a future with freedom in it for each of you. It's hard to imagine a more powerful message than that. By the way, the Barbara Boxer thinks the Iraqi election was stolen from Al Gore."
HEMMER: Watching the wires here. A.P. is saying Jacques Chirac calls it a satisfied result.
CAFFERTY: Who cares what he says?
HEMMER: We're getting a report out of Geneva...
CAFFERTY: Jack who?
HEMMER: ... that says, out of Geneva that says 93 percent -- Soledad and I were just talking about this...
O'BRIEN: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HEMMER: Yes, and the absentee ballots, 93 percent participated.
CAFFERTY: You know, it wouldn't hurt for the people in this country to take a, borrow a page out of the Iraqis' book and maybe a few more of us go to the polls on election day.
HEMMER: Listen, if this 60 percent figure is right...
CAFFERTY: What did the president...
HEMMER: ... that shatters...
CAFFERTY: What did the president...
HEMMER: ... that matches what we did this past year, in 2004.
CAFFERTY: What did the guy in France say, Jack who?
HEMMER: Jacques Chirac is his name.
CAFFERTY: He found the what?
HEMMER: He told President Bush he was -- I'll get it right here. He tells U.S. President George Bush he was satisfied with the Iraq elections, the Associated Press.
CAFFERTY: Condescending twit.
HEMMER: Thank you, Jack.
CAFFERTY: You're welcome.
HEMMER: More on Iraq in a moment.
The president says it's a resounding success. What now is the difficult task in that country and could the attempt at democracy end up doing more harm than good? We'll put that question to Kamber and May in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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