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American Morning

Cartoon Outrage; Funeral Politics; Minding Your Business; Ice Wars

Aired February 08, 2006 - 07:30   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Just a few moments ago, this was the scene at the Kennedy Space Center. There goes the GlobalFlyer. There goes Steve Fossett on his way, he hopes, into the record books.
Yesterday they didn't fly, bad winds and a fuel leak. And, believe me, when you're trying to fly around the world kind of one and a half times almost, you don't want to waste a single drop. He hopes it will be an 80-hour mission around the world once and then across the Atlantic a second time, landing in Kent, England, and taking five minute cat naps all the while. One pilot, one engine, a distance record is his quarry of some 27,000 miles. You do the kilometer's version if you prefer. In other words . . .

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: It's going to take him, what, three days?

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes, 80 plus hours, give or take. As he says, he's pushing the envelope to the very edge. Burt Rutan, the famous aviation designer of course, the man who designed the airplane, the previous record held by another Burt Rutan design back in 1986, Voyager, flown by his brother Dick and Jeana Yeager in that record- setting event then. So we'll see if he breaks that record, but we've got to wait about 80 hours before we'll know.

Let's check the headlines. Kelly Wallace is here with that.

Hello, Kelly.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello again to you.

And good morning, everyone.

Four more churches torched in Alabama and officials say they suspect arson is behind it all. The fires were reported early Tuesday in a rural part of Alabama near the Mississippi state line. Last week you'll recall five other churches were burned. The FBI now on the scene. So far no suspects, no clear motive. But authorities believe all of the fires are linked.

Philadelphia International Airport is back up and running this morning, but there are some delays to tell you about. The airport was shut down for nearly six hours overnight after a fire on a UPS cargo plane. Flames, you see them there, were shooting out of the plane's cargo area when it made an emergency landing. All three crew members are OK. Still no word on what caused the fire. And, of course, if you're traveling out of that airport, you might want to check to see about those delays.

Election workers in Haiti counting ballots from the first presidential election there in six years. Turnout was heavy. And despite reports of a few scuffles, remarkably peaceful. Two years ago a bloody revolt ousted then president Jean-Bertrand Aristide and plunged Haiti into political chaos. Early results are expected later today.

Thousands of Hurricane Katrina evacuees are on their own this morning. Tuesday was deadline day for occupants of some 4,500 government-paid hotel rooms nationwide. They were told to turn in their keys as FEMA began cutting of money to pay for their stays. In New York, dozens of protesters gathered at the steps of city hall to denounce the evictions. FEMA says thousands of families have been granted extensions until at least next week and possibly through March 1st.

And a gambling scandal in the NHL. Officials say the assistant coach for the Phoenix Coyotes may be bankrolling a gambling ring. Rick Tocchet is set to meet today with the NHL commissioner. He could be facing criminal charges. Meantime, Wayne Gretzky's wife, Janet Jones, has also been implicated in this. Gretzky, the legendary hockey star, is also the Coyotes head coach. Officials say there is no evidence Gretzky himself was involved. None of the bets seem to be hockey related.

Miles, I know we'll be following this story throughout the day.

Back to you and Zain.

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes, we will. We'll be following it just like we follow a hockey puck, all over the place, ricocheting across the rink.

Kelly Wallace, thank you very much.

Zain.

VERJEE: Miles, President Bush could have more to say about those offending cartoons and the angry Muslim reaction to them. At the very least, the controversy will be the backdrop to a meeting he's about to hold with Jordan's King Abdullah. Suzanne Malveaux is at the White House and she joins us now.

Good morning, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Zain.

Of course that's one of the issues they'll be talking about. A lot of concern over those protests and riots throughout the region. We're not only talking about Denmark, but also Afghanistan, as well as Pakistan. There has been a call really for moderate Muslim leadership to step up, to enter the fray here and to call for calm and that is exactly what King Abdullah, one of those moderates, is expected to do.

As well, another important issue, of course, the Palestinian elections. The election of Hamas, a group that is considered a terrorist organization by this government. The demand, essentially, to renounce violence, to recognize Israel. Something that Hamas has yet to do. Again, what is going to be the role of the moderate Muslim leadership? That is going to be a big question, of course. Two very important issues for both leaders to sit down and talk about this morning.

Zain.

VERJEE: And, Suzanne, President Bush is heading to New Hampshire later today. What's on his agenda there?

MALVEAUX: Well, he's going to go before a group of business leaders, a friendly group, and essentially he is selling his budget plan, his proposal. We're talking about $2.7 trillion, but big cuts when it comes to programs, domestic programs. Big increases when it comes to homeland security, as well as defense and that record- breaking deficit that's $423 billion. New Hampshire a perfect test case for this. It is Republican leading, fiercely independent. The slogan, live free or die. That is where the president is going to outlay and outline, of course, his economic plan.

VERJEE: At the White House, CNN's Suzanne Malveaux. Thanks, Suzanne.

Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN: So did you see the Coretta Scott King funeral yesterday? It really was an amazing scene. A 10,000-seat congregation in Lithonia, Georgia. Packed. And along with the soaring words of praise, some not so subtle political barbs. Bishop Eddie Long officiated yesterday at the New Birth Baptist Church. He joins us from Atlanta.

Bishop, good to have you with us.

BISHOP EDDIE LONG, NEW BIRTH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH: Good to be here. Good morning.

MILES O'BRIEN: Let's talk about the tone there for a moment. I want to share with you a few of the excerpts. I want to beginning with former President Jimmy Carter making a reference to wiretapping. Wiretapping of Martin Luther King and the current wiretapping story. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It was difficult for them personally with the civil liberties of both husband and wife violated as they became the targets of secret government wiretapping. Other surveillance (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN: You hear the applause there. There were quite a few lines like this and we'll share with you a few more. Did you cringe at all when the talk went toward politics? LONG: Somewhat. There was, as you know, a celebration of life, a celebration for Coretta Scott King, and it did kind of catch me off guard when we took a few detours on the road of some things, some thoughts that some of our presidents and speakers had.

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes, a few detours, to say the least. Let's listen to the Reverend Joseph Lowry, of course a contemporary Martin Luther King, with him founded the Southern Christian Leadership Congress, a legend in the civil rights movement. He making a link between weapons of mass destruction and Coretta Scott King's non- support for the war in Iraq. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REVEREND JOSEPH LOWRY: We know now there were no weapons of mass destruction over there. But Coretta knew and we knew that there are weapons of misdirection right down here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN: All right. At that point it fell like a political rally. What did you think?

LONG: Well, as you know, Coretta Scott King, a lot of things that she did was political. She had but a different kind of style and a different type of flavor in which she addressed those political issues. So we're saying giving a tribute towards someone who was very much political, but yet a mother, yet a loving person, yet someone who continued to push and move within the legacy, who had various challenges. But in all of that, personally I would have not used that moment to make any attacks and just would go along with making sure that we honor this young lady, we honor her life, we honored her legacy. So in that regard, that's what my personal approach would be.

As you know, after he made his remarks and he turned around, he embraced the president. The president embraced him. That kind of political thing that goes on between them. But again, personally, I would have not used that moment for those.

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes, it was an interesting mix of praise and emotion and the outpouring of love and then a little bit of tension, quite frankly. Let's listen to one more excerpt from President Carter as he brought up the whole specter of the administration response to Hurricane Katrina.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARTER: We only have to recall the color of the faces of those in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi. Those who are most devastated by Katrina to know that they are not yet equal opportunities for all Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MILES O'BRIEN: I don't know if you were looking at President Bush there during that. It seemed like he had a bit of a grimace there. Do these speakers need to go to eulogy school or something?

LONG: I think because of the passion they have, the things that they work with again, and the things that they consider to be very important at the moment, sometimes we're moved in those passions, in those veins. I'm sure that it caused the president to be somewhat uncomfortable at the moment. But at the same time, again, as you understand politics, there's when we express and express our opinions, et cetera.

Again, I would say that we tried to make sure that this was a home-going service to celebrate the life of Coretta Scott King and to just extend the legacy and just talk about how -- what a wonderful mother, what a wonderful person she was, what a wonderful partner and civil rights leader and moving in that vein.

MILES O'BRIEN: You know, and to be fair, it was a six-hour service which, wow, I bet you were a little surprised it went on that long. And we are showing just a few excerpts. It really, in many respects, was the funeral that Martin Luther King Jr. was denied. There was narry a president there in 1968. There were four, seated and former. There were two plane loads of members of Congress there. In many respects, do you think this was an attempt to sort of settle that injustice many years ago?

LONG: Well, I just think that, in this time, finally because of the work of Coretta Scott King with the nonviolence center, with the holiday, people have over the years have come to appreciate more and more each day the contribution to society, the contribution to this nation, the contribution to this world of her husband, Dr. Martin Luther King. So in all of that, there's a great recognition. Because a lot of things that Dr. King said was very controversial, again, about the war and those kind of things.

And so now, as we look and we reflect and we're allowed time to verify and vindicate, we see that Dr. King, in a much better light, and what a great role he's played in bettering the life for all people. So in all that, here's a woman who took that legacy, married that vision, extended the vision so everyone could understand it and both of them were actually being celebrated yesterday in that home going and the family for their sacrifice for us to live in the lifestyle and the quality that we live today.

MILES O'BRIEN: Hey, Bishop, before we get away, four more churches in Alabama burned. Now a total of nine arson fires there. White and black congregations. All Baptist, however. What's this like from your perspective as a Baptist minister, preacher and bishop?

LONG: Well, I don't understand why they're all Baptist. I do know they're very mixed congregations. It is a challenge when you assault what stands as a symbol of the moral dictate for the nations of the church where we go and we learn about our faith, that we produce good citizens that would walk and do the things that God ordained to bless others and to love others.

And so in all this you're looking at, what is happening with the character of our nation. As you know, we have challenges with prayer being out of school. And I remember a quote from a late president to say, they educate a man in mind and not morals is to educate a menace to society. So we really have to look back again and look at what are we doing to implement morals and character in our young people as they're coming up so we won't have this kind of violence, we won't have these kind of attacks. And if someone has a personal grudge, there are other ways that they can deal with that, other than to destroy property and ruin lives.

MILES O'BRIEN: Bishop Eddie Long, good words to end it. Thank you very much. He's with the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithuania, Georgia. Thanks for your time.

LONG: God bless you. Thank you.

MILES O'BRIEN: Thank you.

Zain.

VERJEE: Miles, let's check on the weather now. Bonnie Schneider's at the CNN Center with the latest.

Hi, Bonnie.

(WEATHER REPORT)

VERJEE: Well, Andy's "Minding Your Business," as he does every morning on our program.

ANDY SERWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I am, Zain.

Yes, drug stocks like Merck and Pfizer used to be an investor's best friend, but not lately. Now we'll tell you about one pharmaceutical giant that's looking to rectify that with radical surgery. Stay tuned to AMERICAN MORNING coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MILES O'BRIEN: You know our theme this morning in our business segments are big corporations potentially breaking up?

SERWER: Yes, I know.

MILES O'BRIEN: We talked about Time Warner.

SERWER: Right.

MILES O'BRIEN: And now we're talking Pfizer.

SERWER: GM's doing the same thing, maybe splitting of its finance business. And it's all about getting the stock price up. You see this when the market's kind of flat, companies resorting to almost anything to get their stock price moving.

Pfizer, the drug juggernaut, was a stock investor's best friend in all the '80s and '90s. But over the past five years, its stalled. Drugs like Viagra, Lipitor, Zoloft. It's the biggest drug company in the world. Celebrex has been a problem and some of these drugs are also coming off patent. Now we hear -- you can see there, that's over the past year. Sort of nowhere. Now we hear that the company is looking to spin off its consumer products division, that would be its over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, which including Listerine, Visine, a couple of the ines, as well as Benadryl and Sudafed. You know those are huge, huge products. And this, of course, could fetch $10 billion or something like that from another company such as Procter & Gamble looking to buy it.

Now talking about the markets yesterday just quickly. Stocks traded down. The Dow was down 48 points. Nasdaq up down 13. And the Nasdaq's up 1.8 percent for the year. The others are not up nearly as much and we are a far cry from Dow 11,000, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN: We had a brief fling there, didn't we?

SERWER: I like to call it a brief fling because it really was. Well put.

MILES O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes.

VERJEE: Some good analysis there, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN: Some cupcakes on the way when we get back, all right.

SERWER: I hope so.

MILES O'BRIEN: All right.

VERJEE: Coming up, we're going to have a Winter Olympics preview. This might be figure skater Michelle Kwan's last shot at gold. We're going to ask a former gold medalist, here he is, about her chances. Scott Hamilton joins us live next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: In just two days, the world comes to Torino, Italy, for the start of the 2006 Winter Olympics. Twenty-five hundred athletes will compete in the Torino games. And, as always, figure skating will be a premiere event. Scott Hamilton, a former Olympic gold medalist, now an NBC skating analyst, joins us from Torino with a preview.

Scott, yes, I'm making an effort with those pronunciations. It's good to have you.

Torino.

SCOTT HAMILTON, 1984 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Former Olympic gold medalist. When did that happen? I thought I got to keep it.

VERJEE: Good to have you on our program.

Let's talk about Michelle Kwan. What kind of expectations do we have of her? And is there just too much pressure on her? HAMILTON: Well, I think there will be a lot of pressure on her, but I think this is the first time she's coming into any Olympic games as somewhat of an underdog. It's a new scoring system. She was fourth place at the world championships last year under that scoring system. She hasn't competed really this year due to injury and several other things. But, you know, you've got to look at Irina Slutskaya and Sasha Cohen as a favorite in this event and that's kind of an odd thing for Michelle Kwan coming into an Olympic games.

VERJEE: Sasha Cohen, you mentioned. How do you think she'll place here? I mean is all the attention on Michelle, could it help her, hurt her? How do you see it?

HAMILTON: Well, she's four years older than Salt Lake. And in Salt Lake she make, I think, a couple of rookie mistakes. But she's coming in with a lot of momentum. She was second at the worlds last year. She's coming in as our U.S. national champion. So she's got momentum. She understands the scoring system. She's applied it to her skating. And I think she'll give Irina Slutskaya a run for her money for sure.

VERJEE: What about Irina Slutskaya? How much of a threat is she?

HAMILTON: Well, she's the favorite. I mean she's the world champion. She's 27 years old. She's very experienced. She embraces this new scoring system. She thrives under it. And she's got her health back. She was, you know, recovering from, you know, a heart condition and they're treating it now and she's come back stronger, faster, leaner, meaner than ever before. And she's a wonderful girl and a great representative of the sport. So I would put her in as the favorite right now. She's very popular and she's very accomplished and she's very skilled.

VERJEE: What about the men's team? They're already in Torino. Skater Johnny Weir won his third national title in January. What kind of chance does he stand, particularly against the Russians?

HAMILTON: Well, I think all three men from the United States, Johnny Weir, Matt Savoie and Evan Lysacek, will all compete equally probably from one medal. It's a very deep event. You've got a strong Russian skater, Yevgeny Plushenko, and you've got Stephane Lambiel, who's the world champion, and Brian Joubert, a former world champion who's coming in with an injury. But the international figure skating in the men's event is so deep that I think the men will be, you know, competing amongst themselves for a chance at one of the medals.

VERJEE: And before we let you go, Scott, you're here to talk about the Power Olympic Spirit Award. Tell us a little bit about that.

HAMILTON: Well, DHL has taken on sponsorship of the Olympic Spirit Award. I was one of the first recipients of this award and it's really a wonderful thing to be involved in. You're recognizing the spirit of the Olympic games and that's what separates it from all other athletic events. You can vote every day, once a day, throughout the Olympic games by going to dhl-usa.com and be a part of not only the Olympic spirit but crowning an Olympic Spirit Award winner. It's a wonderful program and it really recognizes what makes this event so special.

VERJEE: Scott Hamilton, a former Olympic gold medalist, joining us from Torino in Italy.

HAMILTON: I'm not a former. You never lose your Olympic gold medal.

VERJEE: Can you . . .

HAMILTON: You never lose it.

VERJEE: All right, can you still do a flip?

HAMILTON: No, I stopped skating to be a full-time dad. How's that?

VERJEE: All right. All right. Scott, all right, thanks, mate. You look great. Thank you.

HAMILTON: Thanks, Zain.

VERJEE: We get to take a short break. Our top stories when we come back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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