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American Morning

West Bank Evictions; Bridging Differences; Setback or Progress?

Aired August 23, 2005 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A developing story in the Mideast as Jewish settlers make a final stand in the West Bank. Intense resistance this morning to Israeli troops in riot gear, using water canon. We are live in the West Bank with more.
In Iraq, a rift over the constitution that could isolate Sunni Muslims and further destabilize the country. We're live in Baghdad.

And are big changes coming for SUVs, trucks and vans? The Bush administration planning an important announcement on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome back, everybody.

Also ahead this morning, some pretty staggering increases in the price of gasoline in recent weeks. Thirty cents a gallon -- up 30 cents a gallon in just the last month. Well, anybody that's filled up their car really knows that.

M. O'BRIEN: A penny a day will keep the SUV away, I think, ultimately. We're going to look at what drivers are doing about all this, how much worse it might get. We've got, of course, that administration announcement on the SUV mileage standards. Lots of things going on as it relates to oil and use of it.

But first, check the headlines. Carol Costello here with that.

Good morning, Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

Good morning to all of you.

"Now in the News," a Web site claimed from al Qaeda in Iraq that it was behind a rocket attack on two U.S. warships in Jordan. Friday's rockets missed the ships but killed one Jordanian soldier. The al Qaeda claim comes just hours after Jordanian authorities said they had arrested the prime suspect in the attack. Three other suspects apparently escaped into Iraq.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan is in famine-stricken Niger. That's in northwest Africa. The U.N. chief is getting a first-hand look at the devastation said to be caused by drought and locusts. Annan also wants to ensure that humanitarian aid is getting -- is getting to where it needs to go.

Parts of Switzerland are without power and drinking water after days of massive flooding. Hundreds of people were evacuated from their homes overnight. Heavy rainfall in the northern Alps causing rivers to flood. Mudslides have blocked roads and railway tracks, and the showers are expected to taper off this week.

So at least that's a bit of bright news.

And a freight train has derailed in New York this morning. These are pictures just in to us. The derailment happened about two hours ago, and apparently damaged some overhead power lines.

As you can see, it's pretty much of a mess. And it is now affecting Amtrak service for people leaving New York's Penn Station. So if you're heading there, expect some delays -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, that's going to be a real mess. All right. Carol, thanks.

Israeli troops are in the final stages of removing Jewish settlers from the West Bank. Thousands of troops are in the Sanur and Chomesh (ph) settlements at this hour. Israeli forces lifted two large cargo containers carrying police to the roof of a community center. Residents and protesters were then loaded in and then loaded -- lowered, rather, to the ground.

Back to Guy Raz. He's in Sanur for us this morning.

Guy, good morning to you. Are things now calm? It was quite tense for a while last we talked.

GUY RAZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, the last stand is really over here in the Sanur settlement. Just a short time ago, those containers that you were just describing were brought down. Those containers filled with demonstrators who are now being dragged out.

They've been taken out one by one over the past several minutes. Some of them kicking and screaming. Brought on to buses. Brought on to buses where they will then be brought out of this area.

You can see there are some struggles. Police struggling now with one man who's being brought out, one of those demonstrators on the roof. You can see it's taking at least five police officers to remove that man from that container which was brought down from the roof of this building.

But police are in the process of completing the evacuation here in Sanur. You can see others being removed by force. Four -- at least four; in some cases, five police officers trying to remove those remaining demonstrators, activists from this settlement in order to completely evacuate it. It's a process that they now expect will be over by the end of the day.

These buses that you see here, Soledad, are now packed with some of those demonstrators just a few moments ago we saw on the roof of the building here in Sanur. They will be taken out of here. They will be brought back into the recognized borders of Israel -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Guy Raz with an update for us.

Guy, thanks -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Iraqi negotiators have a lot of work left to do. They submitted a draft constitution last night, midnight deadline. But they still have some major issues to work out. And they only have 72 hours to do it.

Aneesh Raman live in Baghdad.

Aneesh, lots of outstanding issues.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are, Miles. Good morning.

And Iraqi leaders will now try to do what they could not do for months, find compromise on those big unresolved issues.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. HACHIM AL-HASANI, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SPOKESMAN (through translator): Today we received a draft copy of the constitution.

(APPLAUSE)

RAMAN (voice over): Well, they did and they didn't. Iraq leaders met the deadline and resolved one key issue, the role of religion. Wording that makes Iraq essentially an Islamic republic.

AL-HASANI: What we agreed upon is that Islam would be "a" main source of legislation. And also, anything that contradicts the principle and provisions of Islam would not be accepted.

RAMAN: Wording that could put the country on a path towards an Iran-style government, where clerics decide what can and cannot be law. Most concerned are groups advocating women's rights.

RAND RAHIM, FMR. IRAQI AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: We are building a society in which everybody must feel that they are a part of it. Saying Islam is the primary source of legislation is going to be -- is going to exclude.

RAMAN: The drafters claim they will also include the tenets of democracy and human rights. Unresolved, how powerful will the central government be and what that means for the individual provinces of Iraq. The Kurds are the main champions for federalism. They had everything but full independence in the north under Saddam, and it is non-negotiable for them now.

The Shia are essentially split. Some, such as these followers of cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, want a unified Iraq, a powerful central government. A government that they would undoubtedly control given their majority. Other Shia recognize they need a federal government to make the country work, including their own region in the south.

DR. MOWAFFAK AL-RUBAIE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Federal system is a part and parcel of our democracy. You cannot separate democracy in Iraq from federal system.

RAMAN: But it is the Sunnis who could derail the process on this issue, threatening the hope for security in Iraq. They fear having no power. And with the majority of Iraq's oil in the Kurdish and Shia areas, no revenue.

DR. SALEH MUTLAG, SUNNI NEGOTIATOR: This constitution does not include -- does not only include -- does not include the Sunni voice. It does not include other voices in Iraq. It will fail not only by three provinces. It will fail in all over Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN: Now, Miles, the Sunni voice is a pivotal one in the new Iraq. Government officials say Sunnis make up a majority of Iraq's domestic insurgents. So bringing them into the political fray is seen as essential to bringing stability and security to Iraq -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: All right, Aneesh. Three days now to settle an awful lot of things, things that have been built up really over the 30 years of dictatorship in Iraq. What happens if they can't do that?

RAMAN: If they can't do that, the draft constitution, which currently does have federalism, is the draft constitution. It will go forward as written now to the Iraqi people.

They are still voting -- deciding, rather, whether a vote could take place in three days' time. But this is the last three days for any compromise to be reached. The prime minister spokesman said it this morning, the end of the road is here. A draft document will be done by the end of the week, and then the people will decide -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Aneesh Raman in Baghdad.

Thanks -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Well, even though the Sunni minority says they are nowhere near an agreement, the White House is calling the draft constitution a sign of progress.

Bob Franken live at the White House for us this morning.

Bob, good morning to you. Any indication of concern on the part of the White House over negotiations that don't seem to have been a huge success?

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, basically, yes. The concerns are based on the fact that if there would be a collapse, the United States would be, in effect, stuck in a ruck with no rationale really for pulling out the troops. That is the concern.

But the huge differences is that is consistent in this document, from the White House point of view, there at least is a document. And to paraphrase the old baseball saying, White House communications Director Dan Bartlett in a conversation with Miles O'Brien this morning said, "You've got to believe."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN BARTLETT, COUNSELOR TO THE PRESIDENT: There is a quantum leap being made in Iraq. Is it going to be a perfect document? Absolutely not, Miles. Our own Constitution wasn't perfect when we passed it.

We're continuing making amendments to our own Constitution. It's a dynamic process, Miles, but it's a critical process that is recognizing the hopes and aspirations of the Iraqi people. And that's something the American people can be proud of.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRANKEN: And the critics will be expected to argue that the particular proposal in Iraq, with its strong involvement by Islam in it, is different from the U.S. Constitution, which has a first amendment -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: At the same time, Bob, the president continues to make his case for the war in Iraq. Where does he go next?

FRANKEN: He is going to be speaking at a variety of events now to very friendly audiences to make his point that the United States has to finish what it started. Obviously reacting, also, to the presence of the protesters outside his ranch in Crawford, Texas, who brought very, very stark attention to the fact that there is dwindling support, according to the polls, for the U.S. involvement in Iraq.

S. O'BRIEN: Bob Franken at the White House for us this morning. Bob, thanks -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Let's check the weather once again. Chad Myers at the weather center.

Good morning again, Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Miles.

(WEATHER REPORT)

S. O'BRIEN: Chad, thanks.

MYERS: You're welcome.

S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, it's been a summer of record-high gas prices, but will a major overhaul of fuel economy standards for SUVs bring some relief? We'll take a look at the government's new plan just ahead.

M. O'BRIEN: Plus, a sudden spike in near collisions on the runway at one major U.S. airport. We'll look at what's behind the close calls ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Drivers might really benefit from higher fuel economy standards as the price of oil reaches some new highs. On Monday, crude oil was selling at more than 65 bucks a barrel. That's up from around $40 a barrel a year ago.

Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff live from the New York Mercantile Exchange, where the price of oil is determined.

Allan, good morning to you. The trading there I know doesn't start until 10:00 a.m., but I guess there's business conducted even before the actual official start, right?

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: Well, Soledad, there's business conducted electronically. And in about 45 minutes, that very quiet pit you see behind me will be filled with traders, essentially going berserk, flailing their arms all over the place, yelling and screaming.

There's actually some sense to it all. When they do this, they're not waving hello or goodbye. They're actually saying, I want to sell, or I want to buy. And they're saying the number of contracts that they want to sell or buy.

It's called the open outcry system. And that's how the price of crude oil is determined here at the New York Mercantile Exchange.

As you know, the price has been soaring over the past few months. It's really all about fear, fear that there could be a disruption to supply.

Only yesterday, for example, there was concern about a power outage in Iraq, the ports where they ship the oil out. There's also been some concern about storms building up in the Gulf of Mexico. All these issues perhaps could cut the supply, and that's the big worry here at the New York Mercantile Exchange. That's one reason the price has been soaring so rapidly.

S. O'BRIEN: So Allan, it's fear about the supply. What's the reality of the supply then? I mean, should people be fearful?

CHERNOFF: You know, the fact is, the reality is not nearly so bad. Maybe we have nothing to fear but fear itself.

Supply of crude oil right now is actually about 11 percent higher than it was a year ago. So we're doing pretty well in terms of supply of crude oil. But, with increase in demand out there, not only within the United States, but especially from China, India, you've got growing demand. And we certainly do have a very tight marketplace.

Supply is OK right now, but if you have a terrorist attack, if you have a big storm in the Gulf, any of these factors could disrupt supply. And the people here are trading crude oil not for today, but it's a futures market. So the active contract they're going to be trading today will be for a delivery in October.

So they're worried about the delivery of crude oil in October. So that's one reason, again, that we see the price moving up and up: worry about the future.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, nervous investors is really what that number is all about, isn't it? Allan Chernoff, senior correspondent.

Thanks, Allan -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta is set to announce new fuel economy standards for sport utility vehicles, light trucks and minivans.

Gary Tuchman live in Atlanta, in a place they call the Downtown Connector. And as you can see, kind of a busy place. A fair number of SUVs and light trucks right behind him.

As I understand it, Gary, this is a relatively moderate change that is about to come out.

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems relatively moderate to some environmentalists. I can tell you that the Bush administration is portraying it as a major change. The secretary of Transportation, Norm Mineta, who, by the way, was the secretary of Commerce in the Clinton administration, has announced a plan today that if you drive an SUV, if you drive a minivan, a light truck, instead of the average 21 miles to the gallon you get now, it will be going up to 23.3 miles per gallon starting in the year 2008.

That will be the requirement for all American automakers. No exceptions. Right now some light trucks are under no fuel regulations. It will all change, no exceptions anymore.

Just a few minutes ago, the secretary of Transportation made the announcement, overlooking, as you said, Miles, this Downtown Connector.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NORMAN MINETA, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: That is why I'm here today to announce a new plan that will improve gas mileage for over half of the vehicles sold in America and save drivers as much as 10 billion gallons of gas once these regulations are implemented.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TUCHMAN: Now, we should make it clear, each driver won't be saving 10 billion gallons of gas. That's all the drivers in the United States. But that's the point the administration was trying to make, that because...

M. O'BRIEN: Although, sometimes when I'm drive that Yukon XL I feel like I could stand to save about 10 billion gallons.

Environmentalists are saying this is a few years late and a few gallons short, though. Tell us a little bit more about what they're saying, Gary.

TUCHMAN: Yes, environmentalists are very concerned. They say this should have been thought of years ago. Even in the Clinton administration it should have been thought of.

This program to give gas mileage regulations began 30 years ago, Miles, in the mid '70s, after the first Arab oil embargo. And not much has changed since 1985.

1985, the average gas mileage for cars went up to about 27 miles per gallon, and it hasn't been raised since then. And it still won't be raised for regular cars. Just the minivans and SUVs.

But one important point that was brought up by Secretary Mineta which was kind of interesting -- I hadn't really thought about it -- back in the mid '70s, when they had these regulations, no one drove minivans or SUVs. They were basically used on farms for work. Now 50 percent of all vehicles sold in the United States are the big vehicles, which are getting the new regulations today.

M. O'BRIEN: Right. And everybody then understood the exemption because there was that special use. But I guess what's important to remember now is this has become sort of a national security issue.

TUCHMAN: Well, there's no question about it. The fact is that there have been two oil embargoes in this country, in the mid 1970s and early 1980s.

As a matter of fact, gasoline, which was a little over a dollar a gallon in 1980, adjusted for inflation was over three bucks. So it was even more in your pocket book then than it is now.

No one wants to see a third oil embargo. Everyone wants to control it. Environmentalists have said for years that you have to increase the standards on gas mileage, and that's the action being taken by the Bush administration today. But they do point out they've been working on this, they say, for about a year to get to this day, where they made the announcement today.

But once again, it doesn't take effect until 2008. They say they've got to give the American auto manufacturers time to build new cars. And you can be sure when you buy a new SUV, when you buy a new minivan or light truck in 2008, you'll be paying a little more for the retrofitting that will have to take place to increase the gas mileage.

M. O'BRIEN: Gary Tuchman beside the connector, where I have loved many an hour. Thank you very much -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, the trial of a reputed mob boss and the radio show host who says John Gotti ordered a hit on his life. More on that's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: The conspiracy trial against John Gotti Jr. resumes today right here in New York City. An outspoken radio talk show host took the stand on Monday. Curtis Sliwa recounted being shot at point- blank range while he was sitting in the backseat of a taxi cab 13 years ago. Sliwa says the attack was in retaliation for denouncing Gotti's father on his radio show.

"New York Times" reporter Julia Preston was in the courtroom on Monday.

Good morning. Nice to have you.

JULIA PRESTON, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: Riveting I think is a very fair word to describe how Curtis Sliwa was on the stand.

PRESTON: High courtroom drama. He leaned over the jury box and put his hands together to describe how a gunman jumped up in the front seat and pointed a silver-plated pistol at him and started firing. And then how he -- a breeze alerted him to the fact that there was an open window in the front seat, and he lunged throughout that window, using, as he put it, the backseat as a trampoline.

S. O'BRIEN: And the fact that his life was saved truly was because his clothes kind of got caught on a passing car?

PRESTON: He said that the taxicab that he was in had bumped parked cars on the street on Avenue A. And his clothes caught on a bumper and yanked him the rest of the way out the window.

S. O'BRIEN: The whole thing sounds just like a fabrication, and yet it actually -- there is a description that was given by Joseph D'Angelo, who's a former Gambino soldier, a crime mob family soldier. And it was very similar. I mean, they're almost the same story, with some exceptions.

PRESTON: Well, this is a story that Curtis has been telling over again over the years. And frankly, very few people believed him. And now...

S. O'BRIEN: Nobody believed him.

PRESTON: Nobody believed him. And now he's telling it from the witness stand in a courtroom. And a few days after the man who's confessed to having been the driver told essentially the same story.

S. O'BRIEN: And the driver of the taxicab and the shooter of Curtis Sliwa. There are, though, some big exceptions to their story. I mean, there are areas where their stories don't jive. Are those critical areas?

PRESTON: Well, I'm not sure they're critical, but they obviously will be important for the defense. Mr. Sliwa said, for example, that he hailed the cab, whereas Joey D'Angelo, who is the driver, said that Curtis just jumped in and caught them both off guard. And that is going be very important detail.

The other thing is that Joey D'Angelo had said that the gunman pointed at Curtis and said, "Give me your wallet." And there was no mention of that by Curtis yesterday in the courtroom.

S. O'BRIEN: The original plan was to beat him up. I mean, if you listen to Joey D'Angelo's testimony, they had no intention of shooting him, did they?

PRESTON: Well...

S. O'BRIEN: I mean, he says.

PRESTON: ... that's what he -- that's what he says.

S. O'BRIEN: He's a mobster with a gun.

PRESTON: He says, yes, right.

S. O'BRIEN: And, of course, he's thinking about his future and how much prison time he's going to get at some point.

Curtis Sliwa, as you well know, this mythical figure here in New York City. And as you pointed out, he's told this story a lot. He's told other stories, too, about close calls, how he was targeted, how he was attacked, how he was nearly killed by mobsters every step of the way.

They're definitely going to use that against him, aren't they?

PRESTON: Well, the one point that Curtis makes is that he now has five holes in his body that he didn't have before June 19, 1992. And he described in quite vivid, painful detail yesterday the agony of his wounds and the suffering that he's gone through over the years since then. And so, in a certain way, it was struggle yesterday between the old Curtis Sliwa, the liar, the hype man, and a man who was trying to tell the one story that is actually true.

S. O'BRIEN: A true story, yes. It's pretty remarkable stuff. Julia Preston, your article is just amazing about this.

PRESTON: Thank you.

S. O'BRIEN: It was a great read. Thank you for joining us. We appreciate it.

M. O'BRIEN: Ahead on AMERICAN MORNING, an intimate look at the brilliant yet brief career of legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix. The author of a revealing new biography will join us ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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