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American Morning
New York City Transit Strike: Day Two; Saddam on Trial
Aired December 21, 2005 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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TRANSLATOR: So that he protects her. And she, where is she now? The woman that came to Abjallah (ph), (INAUDIBLE) and he will witness that. Because I don't think he will deny it.
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SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, everyone. I'm Soledad O'Brien.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: And I'm Rick Sanchez, filling in for Miles O'Brien.
O'BRIEN: Thank you for helping us once again.
First, the shock, now the reality, New Yorkers fighting the cold on day two of the transit strike. Now the city, and the union, paying a huge economic price and there is no end in sight. We've got a live report just ahead.
The Saddam Hussein trial on, once again. The former dictator in court this time. Five witnesses say they're prepared to testify against him. And prosecutors say they have a big surprise in store. We're live in Baghdad this morning.
SANCHEZ: Also, investigators are going to be returning to the ocean. They're looking for what caused that vintage seaplane to crash off of Florida. There is some of the video that we've had coming in. We're going to be sharing more of this with you, by the way, we're going to have a report for you.
O'BRIEN: And another terrifying scene to tell you about at one of the nation's biggest airports. We're going to tell you just what caused this emergency. Look at those sparks there.
SANCHEZ: And it's wedding day -- for Sir Elton John. Sir is very important in that phrase. He is ready to walk down the aisle, right about now. And we're going to be following this thing for you, as it happens.
O'BRIEN: Yep. We have a live report, much more to get to. Let's start with our big story of the day though, the New York City transit strike. Every single day the transit strike is on, the damage grows. Millions of commuters are struggling in the cold, stores losing up to $200 million each and every day, in these critical pre- Christmas sales. A crushing $1-million-a-day fine now, against the union. And the striking workers are losing two-days pay for every day that they're out.
Let's get right to Allan Chernoff this morning. He's live for us at the Brooklyn Bridge, which of course is the main artery right into Manhattan.
Hey, Allan. Good morning. How does it look so far?
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT, AMERICAN MORNING: Good morning, Soledad.
You know those people who are always at their desk by 7 o'clock in the morning. Those are the people who are now crossing the bridge, and not all that many. Every few moments we see a handful of people walking across the bridge. Certainly in about an hour or so the bridge will be quite crowded, when the mayor is crossing over.
Also, the cars coming across, they are packed, because the rule, now in effect is since 5 a.m., a car can cross this bridge and other bridges and tunnels into Manhattan have to have at least four occupants. So lot of car pools being organized, people getting over here.
Now, as we enter day two of the strike, here, there was lots of pressure on the transit union. First of all, a court yesterday fined the union $1 million a day, keep in mind this strike is illegal. There is a New York State law that prevents the transit workers from actually striking.
The parent of the union, the International Transit Worker's Union, has actually come out in opposition to this strike. And the mayor, yesterday, lashed out at the union and its leader.
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MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (R), NEW YORK CITY: Roger Toussaint and the TWU need to send their members back to work and stop hurting their fellow New Yorkers. Then, and only then, they should head back to the bargaining table and negotiate a new contract, like every other union does.
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CHERNOFF: Lawyers for both sides will be back in court today, the union is appealing that fine. And late yesterday a mediator met with both sides, but no talks are actually planned -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: All right. Doesn't look too good. Allan Chernoff for us this morning. Allan, thanks.
Estimates all over the place; they say, though, New York is going to lose lots of money during the strike. Let's get right to Andy Serwer to crunch the numbers.
Good morning.
ANDY SERWER, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad. The number the mayor has been throwing out, as we've heard about for the past couple of days, $400 million every single day this strike goes on. Of course, that would include sporting events, hotels, Broadway shows, Radio City, Christmas spectaculars on, the Nicks play the Spurs tonight. But the overwhelming majority of the money is going to be lost in retailing; $200 million a day, as you mentioned earlier.
New York stores set to miss about 5 to 6 percent of annual sales, one-third of all holiday sales. Some stores with a big New York City presence, like Tiffany, which gets 10 percent of all sales at its flagship store here in Manhattan, set to actually fare worse. Urban Outfitters, Gap, Anne Taylor, not going to be doing well. At Bloomingdale's yesterday, two locations in Manhattan, managers were out in full force.
As far as the overall national economy though, Soledad, probably not that big a hit, and here's why. Suburban shoppers will simply shop in the suburbs. They won't be coming into the city. So, in other words, we're not going to loose overall sales there. And actually, people are still able to shop online. There are still enough days to buy things online in the city.
So while, nationally, it's a big number it just gets moved to other sectors, the suburbs and online shopping. Still it is a lot of money and of course a huge amount of confusion and discomfort for people in Manhattan and the surrounding areas.
O'BRIEN: Yes. All right. Andy, thanks for the update on that.
SERWER: You're welcome.
O'BRIEN: Let's talk weather, frigid temperatures again in New York City.
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SANCHEZ: New developments in Iraq today. Saddam Hussein is back in court, first time that he's appeared since boycotting the last trial session two weeks ago. You might remember that.
Well, already this morning a witness has been delivering dramatic testimony about torture and execution by Saddam Hussein's regime.
Aneesh Raman is inside the courtroom. He's been following it, he's joining us now by phone.
Aneesh, get us up to speed, if you can, on what's happened so far today.
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Rick, good morning.
As you mentioned, Saddam Hussein, who boycotted the last session, subdued, but arriving in court today. He was the last of the defendants to show up in court. The rest of them visibly upbeat compared to how I saw them two weeks ago, Wednesday. They were saluting the court, they were saluting each other, as Saddam Hussein entered, as he always does, last, and wearing silver suit with a white shirt. They all stood up. They, of course, still see him as president of Iraq.
Now and interesting exchange took place. As we started to hear from the first witness, a man from Dujail, a man that I spoke with some weeks ago, in Dujail, about the aftermath of that failed assassination attempt. Saddam, the only moment that we've heard him speak, so far this session, said we need to stop this testimony, it is now time for afternoon prayers.
Muslim prayers take place around noon, local time. The judge saying no, we're going to go ahead with this trial and about 10 minutes later, Saddam, in his seat, turned. When you see the video you see him looking essentially at the camera. He's looking at the judge. He turned facing towards the prosecution. He back to the defense and he began praying for about five to 10 minutes, and then resumed his position and the trial just simply continued on.
Though, we haven't seen any diatribes, any outbursts from Saddam Hussein. Instead, we have heard this witness testify with specifics about torture and has linked Saddam's half-brother, Barazan Hassan Al- Tikriti (ph), to these alleged crimes -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: Aneesh Raman, following the story for us there. We're going to be monitoring the story, obviously, for you throughout the day here on CNN. And certainly, take you through it the rest of the way here on AMERICAN MORNING.
Coming up, in fact, in just a few minutes, we're going to talk to an American lawyer who helped train the Saddam Hussein trial judges and prosecutors, and is now advising in this tribunal -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: A new development now to tell you about in the controversy over the president's use of domestic wiretaps. A judge who sits on the secret court that oversees the government surveillance is quitting in protest.
The U.S. District Judge James Robertson, gave no official explanation for his resignation. But two of his colleagues are quoted in "The Washington Post" today saying that the judge, a Clinton appointee, thinks the wiretaps undermine the court and that he's wondering if they're legal.
The Patriot Act and Arctic drilling will take center stage today in the Senate. Political wrangling on both sides could mean no deal before the holiday break.
CNN's Congressional Correspondent Ed Henry has details for us.
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ED HENRY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The Senate is inching closer to finally getting home for the holidays, but several showdowns loom today. Vice President Cheney cut short his foreign trip in order to be in the capital later this morning to potentially cast tie-breaking votes in favor of the Republican budget deal, which is struggling because of controversial cuts to social programs.
There is also still a standoff over the Patriot Act, with 16 key provisions set to expire at the end of the month. President Bush has blamed Democrats for leading a filibuster of a four year extension, saying they could pay a price politically, even though four Republicans joined that filibuster.
The Democratic mantra is, extend it, don't end it. They want a temporary three-month extension so both sides can settle their differences. But for now, there is no deal in sight. Ed Henry, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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SANCHEZ: Let's take you to Florida, now, and that deadly crash of that vintage seaplane. Investigators are hoping to raise the fuselage sometime later today. Also t find the cockpit voice recorder to see what the pilots were talking about as the plane went down.
They're looking for reasons why it is that one of the plane's wings seemed to just break loose, which seemed to cause the plane to go down. Details now from CNN's Christopher King, in Miami.
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CHRISTOPHER KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Seventeen people have been identified.
(Voice over): The NTSB says among the dead is a standby passenger who had gotten a seat after a woman had given up her spot on the plane.
Now, as for the plane itself, the NTSB says the right wing had broken off the plane. They say that's what caused the plane to go down. And the NTSB says it could take up to a year to find out why that wing broke off.
MARK ROSENKER, ACTING CHAIRMAN, NTSB: This is a process that will take awhile. I wish, as I said to you earlier, that I could immediately come up with the answer from that -- come up with the recommendations that prevent this from happening again, but it takes a while when you do this kind of thing right.
Somewhere between nine and 12 months is what it is going to take to get this answer.
KING: So, as teams have pulled up other parts of the plane, the propeller, the engine, and of course, that wing we told you about, they're hoping to pull up the rest of the plane by this afternoon.
ROSENKER: We're going to begin the process of lifting the aircraft from the channel floor, putting it on the barge, and then moving it to a secure site.
KING (on camera): Investigators have received 35 calls from people who claimed to have witnessed the crash. They also have received more videotape, this time, from a New York tourist. Christopher King, CNN, Miami Beach.
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SANCHEZ: Wow. You know, they're talking about something called metal fatigue. Where you get little cracks in some of the metal, and that is what causes -- sometimes, it's not confirmed yet -- but sometimes causes this type of thing to happen where a wing would literally just break off a plane.
O'BRIEN: It's going to be a long investigation either way.
Still ahead, this morning, they were up before dawn, New Yorkers getting a very early start to another long and very cold commute. The city loosing as much as $400 million a day. We've got more on the impact, just ahead on this morning.
SANCHEZ: And then, carmaker, is poised to knock GM from the number one spot. So, how could that affect what you drive?
O'BRIEN: And it is being dubbed the show biz wedding of the year. At this hour, Sir Elton John, is saying I do. We're live in Windsor, England for the ceremony. That's ahead on AMERICNA MORNING.
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O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. That is what it looks like, right out of our window, where people are on their bikes this morning trying to get to work. Another cold day for commuters. Lot's to talk about, let's get right to Carol, she has an update for us.
Good morning.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN NEWS ANCHOR, AMERICAN MORNING: Oh, let's talk more about those commuters. Packed cars and packed sidewalks, it is day two of the big New York City transit strike. A state supreme court judge has ruled the subway and bus strike illegal. He's ordered a $1-million-day fine for the union, $1 million a day.
New York City's mayor is really mad. He says there won't be any negotiations until the union calls the strike off. In the meantime, hundreds of thousands are once again hitting the pavement for that long walk in.
Court back in session for former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, after a two-week break. Saddam is said to be sitting quietly and he's taking notes this time. And yes, as you can see, he did show up.
Also, says there will be a surprise when prosecutors make their case, but nobody is getting into details about this.
The last time court was in session, Saddam Hussein wasn't there -- I mentioned that. Court was delayed for hours because of his refusal to attend those proceedings.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says terrorist leader Osama bin Laden may be too busy hiding to control a worldwide terrorists operation. The Defense secretary on his way overseas was asked if he believed the Al Qaeda leader is still alive.
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DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I suspect that in any event, if he's alive, and functioning, that he's probably spending a major fraction of his time in trying to avoid being caught.
He -- I have trouble believing that he's able to operate sufficiently to be in a position of major command over a worldwide Al Qaeda operation. But I could be wrong, we just don't know.
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COSTELLO: Rumsfeld is in Afghanistan today meeting with that country's president.
Investigators say a wing broke off a vintage plane that crashed near Miami Beach, but it is not clear why. They're now going through maintenance and flight records to try and figure it out.
This amateur video captured the plane going down; 20 people on board were killed.
Some Christian conservatives taking it on the chin; a federal judge is barring the teaching of intelligent design as an alternative to evolution in a Pennsylvania school district. The judge says teaching intelligent design violates the separation of church and state. The ruling comes out of a decision by the Dover area school district to require science instructors to teach the concept that a higher power may have created life on earth.
Oh, it's cold in much of the country. Let's head to the forecast center to check in with Bonnie Schneider.
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SANCHEZ: A change in the pecking order may be coming in the car industry. And that could mean a new number one. CNN's Carrie Lee is here now with some of that financial news.
CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: And you might have an idea of who is taking the place of General Motors.
GM has been the world's number one carmaker for about 70 years. Well, now Toyota is giving its forecast for 2006. They're expecting to increase output by 10 percent, to just over 9 million vehicles. And if that happens, very good chance Toyota could become the world's largest carmaker.
Also, Nissan and Honda, like Toyota, out of Japan, are closing in on GM and Ford. So this is a trend we've been seeing for quite sometime. Obviously this news not good for GM.
The stock, in fact, yesterday plunged to an 18-year low. GM shares are down 50 percent so far this year. High healthcare costs, slagging sales of large SUVs, not a good situation for the Big Three, but especially for GM.
SANCHEZ: Wow.
O'BRIEN: Real struggle.
LEE: Certainly, is.
O'BRIEN: Real struggle for GM.
SANCHEZ: And layoffs. Thanks, Carrie.
LEE: Layoffs, as well, 30,000.
O'BRIEN: Thanks for the update.
LEE: OK.
O'BRIEN: Let's get right to Carol; she's got an update of what's coming up on "Morning Coffee" this morning.
COSTELLO: I have it right here. And evangelical preacher's wife is thrown off a plane. In fact, both of them were thrown off the plane. We're going to tell you why. It had to do with some liquid on her little tray. (INAUDIBLE) little sticky. You won't believe it. "Morning Coffee" is coming your way next.
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O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. It's a big day for Sir Elton John. That was him with Kiki Dee (ph).
The British pop star is tying the knot with his long-time partner, David Furnish (ph). The ceremony is going on right now. It comes on the first day of a new law in Great Britain, recognizing same-sex union.
Let's get right to CNN's Paula Newton; she's live in Windsor, England.
Hey, Paula, good morning.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Soledad.
I'd be willing to put money on the fact that they've been in there a half an hour and right now, they're hitched. They're probably just signing the registry, taking photos.
They really stuck close to the script. Sir Elton John, not in keeping with his normal style, said this would be low-key, and it was. They came in, no celebs, the paparazzi just got a shot of them in very demure looking black suits. They smiled, hammed it up a little bit for the crowd and went right inside.
You know, Elton John took the unusual step of saying in an editorial, here in a British newspaper, that this meant a lot to him. It meant a lot for gay rights all over the world -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Will you elaborate for us, exactly what does it mean under British law for a civil union?
NEWTON: You know, this has been a huge controversy here. This is gay marriage in all but name. And the British government was very careful to give a nod to the church groups here, that oppose this move, to not call it marriage. They wanted to leave that for the domain here of exclusively heterosexual couples.
What this really means, Soledad, is that it means that the partners have all the rights that heterosexuals ones do. And that really amounts to a lot of cold hard cash in their pockets.
Now, David Furnish can inherit Sir Elton John's fortune and he can inherit it tax free and do what he wants with hit -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Well, it will be interesting to see, because as much as you say the ceremony is going to be low-key, we know the after party is not with lots of celebrities on the list. Paula Newton for us with an update.
Thanks, Paula. We'll check back in.
We're going to get more details on the ceremony, coming up. And the reception, just ahead.
COSTELLO: I hope on the reception, because it's going to be something else!
O'BRIEN: Oh, absolutely!
SANCHEZ: They had a party last night that apparently was something else.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Whoo!
O'BRIEN: Let's get to "Morning Coffee" this morning.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, let's. Because, you know, there is a great quote out there. And here it is: "Raising political money takes money." That is from Congressman Tom DeLay's attorney.
The Associate Press took a look into the Texas Republican's lifestyle. And they found that over the past few years DeLay raised millions of dollars, but he also spent millions of dollars. Among the expenditures were trips to 48 luxury resorts and golf clubs; 200 stays at top hotels, and 500 meals at restaurants.
Now, some of these restaurants, the average meal costs about $100 per person!
SANCHEZ: Wow.
COSTELLO: Per person. I don't know if that's with the wine or not. That's according to the Associated Press. The money was raised through DeLay's campaign committees and children's charity. Now the rules say it is illegal for lawmakers to use political donations for personal travel. But it is legal if you're trying to raise more money, hence that quote, "Raising political money takes money."
Let's talk about Joel Osteen. He's the pastor of the country's largest. It is the Lakewood Church, in Houston; 30,000 parishioners. But his wife did not gain any friends there after an incident on an airplane. The Continental Airlines plane was forced to sit still for around two hours because of the Mrs.
A dispute with the flight attendant lead to Osteen being asked to leave the plane before take off. Neither the airline or the Osteen are talking about the specifics, but one person is talking. There's always one person.
"The Houston Chronicle" talked to a woman who says she was sitting behind Victoria Osteen. And here's a quote, this passenger said, "Osteen was just abusive. She was just like one of those divas." The fellow passenger says Osteen was mad about some liquid on her tray table and when she couldn't get someone to clean it up right away, she reportedly headed to the cockpit to complain to the pilot.
SANCHEZ: To the pilot? I interviewed them. I had gotten to know them pretty well. They seem like very nice people.
COSTELLO: They do. They've been on Larry King.
O'BRIEN: Liquid on the tray?
COSTELLO: They're very nice people and his sermons are very fascinating to listen to.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
COSTELLO: He's very energetic, but --
SANCHEZ: Self-help guy.
COSTELLO: Yes, well. She's in a little trouble. In the tabloids, at least, I guess.
Now, for some polls numbers on Christmas. Yes, we did a poll on Christmas, or the Holidays, if you prefer. Our CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup Poll finds that 96 percent of you celebrate Christmas in some way, shape or form. And during the season most of you use Merry Christmas as a greeting. Just 29 percent say Happy Holidays. Interestingly, that number has dropped significantly over the past two years, which means, in essence, more people are saying Merry Christmas.
O'BRIEN: Well, because there's all this pressure now to say Merry Christmas. I never thought twice about saying Happy Holidays. Now --
COSTELLO: You say Merry Christmas, Missy!
O'BRIEN: I say all of the above. I say Happy Kwanza, Happy Hanukah, Happy Ramadan. I do them all.
COSTELLO: That's good.
SANCHEZ: Thirty-three and a third.
COSTELLO: Yeah, OK. Let's take a look at the political splits of Merry Christmas, shall we? So, 60 percent of Democrats say it, that is compared with 83 percent of Republicans. And both of those numbers are up since 2004. Now, you know.
O'BRIEN: Interesting poll. Thanks, Carol.
SANCHEZ: It's a shame you have to think about something like that.
O'BRIEN: I do. I start to say ha -- ha -- it's a very big deal now. I mean, there are like rabid movements to stop people from saying Happy Holidays.
COSTELLO: Yes, they're removed from (INAUDIBLE).
O'BRIEN: All right.
SANCHEZ: And watch that little liquid thing.
O'BRIEN: Moving on.
(LAUGHTER)
O'BRIEN: The pilots are not going to clean that up. I'm not a pilot, but I know, they're not going to do that.
All right, still to come this morning. Some New Yorkers are enduring another bone-chilling commute. Buses and subways are still shut down. So when could things start rolling again? We've got an update on the strike, coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.
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