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American Morning
Port Deal Delayed; Iraq Curfew; Standoff Over; Coup Averted; Torino 2006
Aired February 24, 2006 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, I'm Miles O'Brien.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Soledad O'Brien.
Staying off the streets in Baghdad, a last-minute curfew to calm the tensions there. We've got a live report ahead for you this morning.
Also, massive protests after an attempted coup in the Philippines. This morning, we have a state of emergency there. We're live on this story as well.
M. O'BRIEN: That deal to take over six American ports runs aground, at least for now, but is it dead in the water?
A hostage standoff in Arizona ends overnight. We have a live report. We'll bring you up to date.
S. O'BRIEN: And did you see this last night? One fall after the other in women's figure skating takes out two of the top contenders. It gives the gold to Japan. We've got the full story just ahead this morning.
M. O'BRIEN: We begin with a CNN "Security Watch." A delay in that controversial ports deal, the company involved says it will wait to take control of six major American ports. Dubai Ports World is a state-run company in the United Arab Emirates.
White House correspondent Elaine Quijano joins us now on the phone.
Elaine, explain the turnaround.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, there was enormous pressure coming from Capitol Hill, not just from Democrats, but even members of the president's own party who came out hard against President Bush on this deal. They had argued the move could jeopardize national security, while the president insisted that the transaction had been properly vetted.
And it looked like both sides were basically headed for a showdown. Lawmakers saying they'd passed legislation to block the transaction and President Bush threatening to use his veto pen if that happened.
Then yesterday, the president's top political advisor, Karl Rove, signaled that the White House might accept a delay to give lawmakers what he called a comfort level on the deal. And then, Miles, by late last night, word came from the company, DP World, that it was going to hold off on the U.S. part of the deal.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, so big picture here, Elaine, what does this mean for the deal? This doesn't mean it's called off by any means?
QUIJANO: Well that's exactly right, the company has not said how long it plans to postpone the deal, how long it plans to hold off on it. In fact, a statement overnight from DP World said basically they want to give people more time to address the concerns that have been raised.
But as we heard President Bush say, the White House believes that the more people do learn about the deal, the more lawmakers learn about it, the more confident they'll be that the American ports in question will be secure -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Elaine Quijano on the line for us from Washington, thank you.
We'll talk more about the port deal with New York Congressman Peter King. King is the House Homeland Security Committee Chairman. That's coming up in the next hour of AMERICAN MORNING.
And remember stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: To Iraq now, authorities are attempting control the intensifying violence. They have extended a curfew for vehicles in Baghdad and two neighboring provinces as well. So far, more than a 130 people have been killed since that bombing at the Shiite mosque, the sacred mosque.
Let's get right to CNN's Aneesh Raman who is live for us in Baghdad this morning.
Hey, Aneesh, good morning. How is the curfew order going?
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, good morning.
So far there's been a pause in the sectarian strife that has consumed this country over the past few days. As you said, the government imposing an extraordinary daytime curfew in Baghdad and two neighboring provinces. It goes for about two more hours.
The streets of the capital today virtually empty. At first police were saying that no one would be allowed out of their homes, but noon prayers on Friday are the most important prayers of the week for Muslims, and so they have shown some flexibility. It is reminiscent, really, the lockdown in the capital of what we saw in and around election periods.
Out on the streets, Iraqis are walking, some of them, and they are speaking about the situation, some calling on the government to do more, others preparing for the worst.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We demand that the government and the religious authorities find a solution to this crisis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Sectarian strife and war will happen, and we're expecting that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RAMAN: Just a sampling of Iraqi opinions there.
As you mentioned, Soledad, since Wednesday morning's attack on the Shia mosque in the city of Samarra, at least 132 people have been killed in sectarian violence, that from Iraqi police officials. Eighty-seven bodies found in Baghdad alone.
The government was in a desperate situation going into today, calling this curfew late last night. Many people in Baghdad and the neighboring provinces finding out about the daytime curfew only as they tried to leave their homes this morning -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: And it's really left the Iraqi leadership scrambling, hasn't it -- Aneesh?
RAMAN: It is. This is an enormous test for the Iraqi leadership, as well as the Iraqi security forces. The leadership has long found it difficult to find compromise between the Shia, the Kurds and the Sunnis. The Sunnis politically, at least, have backed out of any talks, but the Shia-Kurd coalition, the backbone of the current government, are struggling to maintain order, cautioning calm to Iraqis on the streets.
And for the security forces, this is a major test as well, they have to maintain order as best they can. We understand they are surrounding and securing all the mosques in Baghdad proper. But if this situation gets out of hand, the leadership and the security forces are well aware that if it spirals out of control, they won't be able to handle it. So they're trying to preempt it. They're trying to stave off that worst case scenario. The curfew ends in two hours, we'll see if the demonstrations begin then -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, we'll see I think is kind of the operative words there.
Aneesh Raman for us this morning.
Aneesh, thanks for the update, appreciate it.
Peaceful ending to tell you about this morning to that seven-hour standoff in Phoenix, Arizona, an armed man took nine people hostage inside the offices of the National Labor Relations Board. Among them, a federal judge. The gunman, who is now in federal custody, is being identified as 42-year-old George Curran.
CNN's Kareen Wynter live for us in Phoenix this morning. She is joined, I know, by Sergeant Andy Hill of the Phoenix P.D. as well.
Good morning -- Kareen.
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, good morning to you.
That's right, the drama unfolded on the 18th floor of a high-rise building here in downtown Phoenix. Now before the alleged gunman here, 42-year-old George Curran, surrendered, police say he actually held a gun to a woman's head demanding, making demands from a team of negotiations to -- negotiators who were up on that 18th floor.
There were nine hostages in all, but one woman managed to escape. Earlier in the day, she requested to go to the bathroom, and she got out. Police say -- also say that Curran let another woman go not too long after that.
Joining me, as you mentioned, Sergeant Hill.
Sergeant, tell us, this man allegedly had two guns, a knife. How did your team of negotiators convince him to surrender?
SGT. ANDY HILL, PHOENIX POLICE: Well we have a great team of negotiators. We work together in an integrated manner with FBI negotiators and we took a lot of time. And you have to work through the process. And it's a slow process and you have to be flexible. And it's a fluid situation. And we were able just to maintain that communication.
WYNTER: He wanted to see his wife and sister as well. That was quite instrumental.
HILL: That was one of the demands he made. He made demands to have a civil attorney, for the FBI to be there, to see his wife. And then he would change that periodically. And he just added on and added on until we were able to come to a resolution.
WYNTER: Any motive here?
HILL: You know it's hard to say. He expressed a lot of frustration and anger during the process. He had a family situation going on, possibly with his wife, about a past federal employment situation. But why he picked that date and time and this location is not clear.
WYNTER: Sergeant Hill, thank you so much for joining us this morning.
And, Soledad, by the way, if it already has not happened, Curran, we're told, is expected to be turned over to the FBI since this standoff did happen on federal property. In terms of charges, he could face kidnapping, as well as gun possession -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: Interesting. Interesting development there. All right.
Kareen Wynter for us this morning.
Kareen, thanks for the update -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's get a first check of the forecast. Chad Myers is still off. Bonnie Schneider is with us this morning again.
Good morning -- Bonnie.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Miles.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: That is so unfair. What is it, 45 degrees and it's going to feel like it's in the 20s?
SCHNEIDER: It's going to be really, really windy, really brutal.
S. O'BRIEN: All right, hating that.
Thanks, Bonnie.
In our final hour of AMERICAN MORNING this morning, we've got a special series, a medical series we're calling "30 40 50." Our medical team, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and correspondent Elizabeth Cohen, are going to join us, taking a look at what you need to know, medically speaking, whether you're in your 30s or your 40s or your 50s. Also, they'll be answering your questions as well.
If you've got one, send us an e-mail right now. Go to the Web site, CNN.com/AM, because, of course, there are lots of tough questions I think at 30, 40, 50. It's really when your body starts just falling apart quickly.
M. O'BRIEN: I have some tough questions, but I keep forgetting them. So that's part of the problem, I think, isn't it?
S. O'BRIEN: Remember the memory issues should be your questions.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: A medical treatment, too, from the Middle Ages, can you believe, is finding a new use, leaches. Look at that. Nasty.
M. O'BRIEN: Let's ask Sanjay about that.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes. Offering hope for people who are suffering from arthritis. We'll show you how that's happening.
M. O'BRIEN: Also, a critical court hearing today, the future of the BlackBerry. Will the BlackBerry plug be pulled? We'll look at what it means for millions of people who rely on these devices -- Soledad.
S. O'BRIEN: And a little more trouble for disgraced author James Frey, if you can believe it. We're going to explain what's happening with him.
That's coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING. We're back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: A developing story in the Philippines this morning, a state of emergency in effect after an alleged coup attempt on President Gloria Arroyo. Meanwhile, riot police are clashing with protesters, demanding that she step down.
CNN's Hugh Riminton is at the site of the protests in Manila. He's on the line with us now.
Hugh, what are you seeing?
HUGH RIMINTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well there have been a series of protests across the city in the last few hours. Both of the major demonstrations were preexisting, they were already organized for today before the state of emergency.
The state of emergency conditions effectively banned rallies, but they went ahead anyway with a level of high emotion. They have ended the day without there being excess levels of violence. There was an attempt to stop one of the protests. There was a charge by riot police, but in the end, the police stood by and let a group of them travel into the center of the city without further incident. There are plainly high emotions after this state of emergency declaration.
M. O'BRIEN: Hugh, I noted that former President Corazon Aquino has called for President Arroyo to step down. She is losing a lot of support, isn't she?
RIMINTON: She has struggled with support. She has faced claims that she tried to steal the last election by indulging in electoral fraud. There was an attempt, and this is President Arroyo, an attempt to impeach her last year, which did not work.
But she has struggled to assert her political legitimacy. She probably remains there primarily because there is no obvious other unifying force that the people want more than her. In calling this state of emergency, she plainly wants to assert and affirm her position.
But on the streets there is still a very strong feeling that her time has come. And from former President Corazon Aquino and others, calls for her to stand down for the good of the nation and for the good of democracy.
M. O'BRIEN: Hugh Riminton in Manila, thank you very much.
We'll stay in touch with him as that story progresses. Let's get to some headlines now. Kelly Wallace in the newsroom. Carol Costello out again this morning.
Good morning -- Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles, and hello, everyone.
We're going to begin with that controversial U.S. port deal which is apparently off the fast track. A state-owned Arab company has agreed to delay taking over operations at six U.S. ports. This, after a firestorm from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers who argued that the arrangement would threaten America's security.
Turning to Iraq now where security forces are still on high alert. Major roads are blocked in Baghdad and the city and surrounding areas are still under a tight curfew. Iraqi leaders are trying to stop the violence and protests that started after a Shia holy shrine, one of the most sacred in Iraq, was heavily damaged. Authorities say at least 132 people have been killed since that attack on Wednesday. But so far today things are said to be pretty calm.
A pretrial hearing set to begin in Houston for Andrea Yates. She's facing a second trial in the drowning deaths of her children after her first conviction was overturned. Court documents show some disturbing details that could be mentioned, a fellow inmate claiming Yates advised her how to -- quote -- "beat her case" by pretending to be mentally ill. Yates has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Her lawyer is calling the inmate's story -- quote -- "ludicrous."
And another downturn for embattled author James Frey. According to Frey's spokeswoman, his publisher, Riverhead Books, is dropping him. Frey admitted last month making up parts of his best selling memoir, "A Million Little Pieces." Riverhead and Frey had a deal for two more books, but now that deal is in pieces. You can forgive us for the phrasing there.
Time to get another check of your Friday forecast. Bonnie is in Atlanta with that.
Good morning -- Bonnie.
SCHNEIDER: Good morning, Kelly.
(WEATHER REPORT)
S. O'BRIEN: I'm sorry, I feel no sympathy for the people in Miami where they're looking at 81 degrees...
SCHNEIDER: Yes, I understand.
S. O'BRIEN: ... even with a little cold air coming their direction.
M. O'BRIEN: With the wind chill it's 79.
S. O'BRIEN: I know.
All right, Bonnie, thanks.
The scales of justice.
M. O'BRIEN: You know this is like the geek trial of the century, you know?
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, it really is. I wish we had...
M. O'BRIEN: BlackBerry, will it continue?
S. O'BRIEN: We are all watching.
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But you guys have BlackBerrys, right, so it affects a lot of people.
M. O'BRIEN: We live on them, yes.
S. O'BRIEN: And love our BlackBerrys.
LEE: Exactly. Over three million people have BlackBerrys. Well today is a very big day, because the judge in the case, U.S. district judge in Richmond, Virginia, is going to hear arguments on this RIM, Research in Motion, patent case. And patent lawyers say there's a very good chance that BlackBerry is not going to win out. You know BlackBerrys' competitor, NTP, says that BlackBerry has infringed on its patent dispute. So the judge is going to decide today.
Now a ruling in favor of NTP could mean two things. Number one, RIM would settle and that way avoid shutting down BlackBerry service or RIM could ask for an appeal and basically delay a decision like this.
Now worst case scenario, RIM does have a workaround technology in place to allow service to continue. And they have asked for some exceptions, like government workers, Red Cross workers, AMERICAN MORNING anchors,...
S. O'BRIEN: TV morning anchors.
LEE: ... to be able to continue service. So it doesn't mean that the whole thing is all going to shut down.
S. O'BRIEN: So it's not going to end today?
LEE: Right, the world is not going to end today for BlackBerry users.
S. O'BRIEN: You know they are going to appeal at the very least.
LEE: But still, it's a very interesting case because so many people use it. And patent lawyers say, look, this is a cut-and-dry patent case. This is probably not going to be the end of this whole thing (ph).
M. O'BRIEN: This has been going on for four years.
LEE: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: They're going to write a check. I mean RIM will write a check.
(CROSSTALK)
LEE: That's what it's going to -- I mean they make so much money on this.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes.
LEE: The stock, though, shareholders get caught in the middle, the stock was down 5 percent yesterday, so.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, because they're going to write a check. So you know where that's coming out of, this right out of the stockholders' pockets.
LEE: Right. Wall Street likes certainty. They like things to be settled up. So we'll see what happens today.
M. O'BRIEN: Will the whole thing be announced on the BlackBerry, just out of curiosity...
(CROSSTALK)
M. O'BRIEN: Wouldn't that be appropriate?
LEE: You'll have to tell us, because I'm holding out, I don't have one, but I know both of you do.
M. O'BRIEN: We'll let you know.
S. O'BRIEN: One day you'll give in.
LEE: I know.
S. O'BRIEN: You'll join us. Welcome to the dark side.
LEE: Quickly want to get to Wal-Mart, a very interesting development here. The company responding to criticism that it has not supplied adequate health benefits and the company says it's going to build more than 50 health clinics in its stores. They have nine right now. I think this is a brilliant idea for Wal-Mart. You know there's a Wal-Mart on every corner. They have got to continue this growth rate. It's a great idea for people who have, you know, a...
(CROSSTALK)
S. O'BRIEN: ... clinics offer, though.
LEE: Well you know pretty basic medical care. But you know a lot of people don't have health coverage or they go to a hospital, they have these long waits. It can get cost -- not cost effective for hospitals. So it could be potentially a great solution for Wal-Mart's growth.
S. O'BRIEN: Interesting strategy, yes.
LEE: Yes, it gives people another alternative anyway.
(CROSSTALK)
LEE: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, kind of a doc in a box inside another box kind of thing.
LEE: Yes, basic services.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes.
LEE: We're not talking anything too major.
S. O'BRIEN: Doc in a box.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, you know, doc in a box.
S. O'BRIEN: Familiar...
M. O'BRIEN: You never heard that, doc in a box?
LEE: No.
M. O'BRIEN: That's it.
(CROSSTALK)
M. O'BRIEN: Sorry.
S. O'BRIEN: He made it up.
Carrie, thank you very much.
LEE: All right.
M. O'BRIEN: I'll BlackBerry you some citations on...
(LAUGHTER)
M. O'BRIEN: Sasha Cohen.
S. O'BRIEN: Man!
M. O'BRIEN: God, she fell and then (INAUDIBLE), anyway. Larry Smith has more on that.
LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, that's right. Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING, if you hear somebody say that Sasha Cohen's slip cost her her gold medal, I say bupkis (ph). We're going to talk about last night's incredible performance in the figure skating and the surprise winner in the end. That's coming up. S. O'BRIEN: And believe it or not, this, what you're looking at right here, is a disaster drill. No, I am not joking.
M. O'BRIEN: Don't shoot. Don't shoot.
S. O'BRIEN: Don't shoot that little man in the -- is that a panda suit? What is that thing?
M. O'BRIEN: He just shot the panda.
S. O'BRIEN: I think it's a drill. Anyway, we're going to explain this weirdness all ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
S. O'BRIEN: That's Japan's national anthem, and that means the top of the podium for Japan. Shizuka Arakawa beat the better known rivals to capture her country's first-ever figure skating gold medal. American Sasha Cohen, had a less than perfect program, held on for silver. There she is right there.
Let's get right to Larry Smith who is live in Torino this morning.
Larry, good morning. Sasha Cohen joined a lot of people in falling you know. Consistency has never been her strength, you've got to say it.
SMITH: No, it hasn't. You know this was really a chance for her to come out and shine, though. She made a point of saying when Michelle Kwan withdrew from these Games that she was tired of being in the nine-time U.S. champion's shadow and it was her chance now. She won U.S. Nationals last month, but couldn't get it done last night.
She did fall, and not once, but a second time, though that second fall didn't hurt her in points in terms of a deduction. But she was more than eight points behind Arakawa. So even if she had skated a flawless program, Arakawa still would have won this one hands down.
S. O'BRIEN: You know who I thought was just terrific, and I watched this last night with my daughters, Emily Hughes, even though she fell, too, because there was actually a number of people who fell.
SMITH: Yes. Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: You know just she recovered, she looked strong, she looked confident. She looked like a 17-year-old who is really enjoying her first opportunity at the Olympics, I thought.
SMITH: Yes, and I think the thing too to keep in mind with Emily Hughes, who finished seventh, and Kimmie Meissner, who finished sixth, that they are both teenagers and really their time to shine will be in Vancouver in 2010. This is a very nice precursor. It would have been nice to get a medal, but they didn't, they weren't expected to and so now what a bright future for U.S. figure skating as we look forward to the next Games in four years. S. O'BRIEN: And you know the silver is not so bad. Every time -- like -- it's like I'm on a downer because it's not gold. But hey, that's a silver medal. That's good. Good for her. And of course the Japanese skater, she was terrific. She was beautiful...
SMITH: Yes, she was.
S. O'BRIEN: ... and flawless and strong and graceful and everything great you could say about anybody's routine.
Larry, thank you very much.
SMITH: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: We'll check in with you again this morning, talk a little bit more about what's...
SMITH: OK.
S. O'BRIEN: ... coming up on the Olympics -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: I'd take the silver.
S. O'BRIEN: Yes, you know I realize that I was sort of like she got the silver.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: But she got the silver, good for her.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes. I've been working on my double Lutz and you know maybe...
S. O'BRIEN: Double klutz.
M. O'BRIEN: Double klutz. The double klutz, yes.
Still ahead...
S. O'BRIEN: I'm just teasing you.
M. O'BRIEN: This is a medical -- talk about back to the future medical ideas.
S. O'BRIEN: Nasty.
M. O'BRIEN: They're creepy, they're crawly, they're leaches and they just might be what you need if you have arthritis. We'll explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
S. O'BRIEN (on camera): We were among the first to get to St. Bernard Parish, and we could not believe what we saw at St. Bernard Parish. We could not believe it. I asked the sheriff, I said, so, you know give me an estimate of how much damage you think you have suffered here? He said 100 percent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just now starting to sink in a little bit. You know I'm sure as time goes on and you think about individual instances more than others, but nightmare, nightmare.
S. O'BRIEN: It's one of those stories where you could not say enough. The scope was impossible to really get a sense of I think on camera. We kept saying to our audience, it looks bad. It is so much worse in person.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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