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American Morning
Battling al-Qaeda; Hamdaniya Charges; Withdrawal Debate; President Bush In Hungary; Prison Shootout; Minding Your Business
Aired June 22, 2006 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hamid Karzai is calling Ayman al- Zawahiri an enemy of the Afghan people and says he must be brought to justice. Much more on the latest al Qaeda videotape comes from our National Security Correspondent David Ensor this morning.
Hey, David, good morning.
DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
This new videotape from Ayman al-Zawahiri, the number two man in al Qaeda, is a call to arms and it is addressed to the Afghan people. There have been disturbances in Afghanistan in the last few months and there is clearly an effort by the Taliban to try to grab some territory once again in the country it once controlled. This is, obviously, a conflict that Zawahiri is following closely. He and Osama bin Laden used to live in that country. They'd dearly love to see their fundamentalist brethren take the place over again. Here's a taste of what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI, (through translator): Our Muslim brothers in Kabul and Afghanistan, join with the Mujahidin forces in attacking the invaders and freeing Muslim Afghanistan and implementing Muslim Sharia Law, providing security and enforcing justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ENSOR: This is the first tape for some time from al Qaeda that has not included an English translation. It was clearly addressed to the Afghan people. And this time it wasn't meant for American consumption.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: And what do you make of that, then, David?
ENSOR: Well, they're trying to stay relevant to a conflict they clearly care about a great deal. The relevance of this tape to Americans, perhaps, is not all that great, frankly, although it certainly matters to American forces and NATO forces that are in Afghanistan. If Zawahiri succeeds in what he's trying to achieve here in causing major demonstrations or fighting against the NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan, then, obviously, that would be quite a blow to the western efforts to bring that country, to make it into a peaceful democracy under President Karzai. If he fails, though, perhaps we in the media should next time give a little less attention to Zawahiri's tapes, if he is ignored by the people in Afghanistan for the most part. It'd be hard to measure that, though, because there are disturbances underway now in Afghanistan.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Our National Security Correspondent David Ensor joining us this morning. David, thanks.
John.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. troops again countered deadly insurgents attacks in Iraq. Four Marines were killed in separate attacks in the dangerous Anbar Province. Three fell victim to a roadside bomb, the fourth was attacked while on patrol. The Pentagon says another soldier was killed by a roadside bomb south of Baghdad.
Seven U.S. Marines and a Navy corpsman now facing charges in connection with the death of an Iraqi civilian. Those charges include murder, kidnapping and conspiracy. CNN's Kareen Wynter is live this morning at Camp Pendleton in California where all eight men are being held.
Good morning, Kareen.
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, good morning to you.
The family of Corporal Trent Thomas says this Marine actually begged them from his jail cell here on base to share his story of how a decorated serviceman ended up an accused killer.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WYNTER, (voice over): Valencia Thomas can only imagine what's going through her brother's mind.
VALENCIA THOMAS, SISTER OF CPL. TRENT THOMAS: He's really scared.
WYNTER: Twenty-four-year-old Marine Corporal Trent Thomas is confined to a military cell at Camp Pendleton. He's one of eight charged with premeditated murder in the April shooting death of an Iraqi civilian in Hamdaniya.
THOMAS: He said, you have got to get me a civilian lawyer. That was his main focus. You have got to get me a civilian lawyer. I think that if I use their military lawyers, then I'm going to go to jail for something that was completely out of our control.
WYNTER: Charges in the criminal investigation include kidnapping, assault, and larceny. The marines are accused of dragging the Iraqi man from his house, shooting him, and placing an assault rifle in his hands to make him look like an insurgent. According to a charging document viewed by CNN from a defense attorney representing one of the accused, the Iraqi man was allegedly shot by five of the Marines. Thomas says her brother maintains his innocence.
THOMAS: You can't really go into details on the phone or -- and everything's tapped. But basically orders were given. He said they -- they're over there ordering Marines to do stuff all the time and he said that orders were given.
WYNTER: The seven Marines and one Sailor will face an Article 32 hearing, similar to a civilian grand jury, which could lead to a court's martial for some or all of the men. Thomas says the family was assigned a military attorney but also wants an outside legal team.
THOMAS: When I spoke to Trent three weeks ago, you know, his lawyer just admitted -- or his military lawyer admitted that, you know, he really didn't know much about the case.
LT. COL. DAREN MARGOLIN, USMC JUDGE ADVOCATE: Every one of these Marines and the Sailor are provided with experienced, detailed, military counsel. Their choice to retain a civilian counsel is up to them.
WYNTER: In the nearby town of Oceanside, which has close ties to the Marine base, reaction was subdued and sympathetic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kind of tough to judge from over here. I'm not in that type of situation, you know, when you can't tell who's on your side and who isn't.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It saddens me that that happened at all. And if it is -- if it was something that our men did do, then I feel that we've put them in that position.
WYNTER: Valencia Thomas says her brother just wants a fair trial, adding, if that's even possible in such a high-profile case.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WYNTER: Valencia Thomas has also set up a website honoring her brother's military career. It's called My Brother, My Hero. It talks about everything from this incident, that he was on his third tour of duty when it happened. That also just last year, John, he received a purple heart. The family's also looking for donations to help with all of the legal challenges they face right now. They say they're in for the fight of their lives.
John.
ROBERTS: Yes, so it would seem. And talking about the fight of their lives. If these eight servicemen are found guilty, what's the maximum penalty that they could face?
WYNTER: They could face the death penalty if convicted. But it's important to add that there's just a complex chain of legal proceedings to follow. For example, there's even an investigation into the charges that were filed yesterday, John, charges that could be changed or reduced. The military saying, of course, it's just too soon to speculate right now. ROBERTS: Yes, what they call an Article 32 hearing. Kareen Wynter in Camp Pendleton, thank very much.
More on this story ahead on this AMERICAN MORNING. Coming up next hour, we're going to talk live with Terry Pennington. His son is one of the Marines charged with murder in Hamdaniya.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: The Senate is getting back down to business today with votes on two Democratic proposals to withdraw troops from Iraq. Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash live for us on Capitol Hill this morning.
Hey, Dana, good morning.
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
And it is the differences inside the Democratic Party that will be on display with those votes this morning. Senator John Kerry is offering one measure. He says the only answer right now in Iraq is to have a date certain for U.S. troops to come home. But by pushing that, the Democratic's nominee from just two years ago is seen by some in his party as hurting them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. JOHN KERRY, (D) MASSACHUSETTS: And it is not an abandonment of Iraq, it is, in fact, a way of empowering Iraq to stand up on its two feet.
BASH, (voice over): Senator John Kerry's proposal would pull all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by July 1, 2007. Republicans looked on with delight as some Democrats labeled Kerry's plan a mistake.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN, (D) FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: And a plan to arbitrarily set a date, in my view, to leave, is not a plan.
BASH: Most Democrats back a competing proposal, urging the president to begin a phased troop withdrawal this year and submit a plan for further troop reductions.
SEN. JACK REED, (D) ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: This is not cut- and-run or cut-and-jog, or cut and anything else. It is an attempt to articulate a policy based upon the reality of Iraq.
BASH: Democrats hope the election-year debate taps voter anxiety about the rising U.S. death toll and financial cost. Republicans said both Democratic plans, any specific talk of withdrawal time lines, give hope to insurgents and terrorists.
SEN. JOHN WARNER, (R) ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: This is a timetable. A timetable that could well cripple, cripple the ability of this new government.
BASH: GOP senators didn't offer their own plan. Happy, they said, to stoke Democratic differences and paint them as weak on national security. SEN. JOHN CORNYN, (R) ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: A policy of retreat. A policy of appeasement. A policy of surrender.
BASH: Hillary Clinton was among the Democrats making the case voters won't be fooled by Republicans looking to escape political blame for a failed Bush Iraq policy.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, (D) ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: It is wrong, plain and simple, to turn this serious debate about our policies and national security into a partisan squabble designed to mislead voters. This is politics at its worst.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: But some Democrats remember all too well how easily the Bush White House beat them on national security in the last two elections. And though some Democrats, most of them actually, are reluctant to talk about it in public because it feeds into what the Republicans are saying, which is that they're a party divided. When you talk to Democrats who are focused on trying to retake control of Congress in November, Soledad, they say that this debate especially on the issue of troop withdrawal is playing right into Republican hands.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Well, I guess it's one of those things that's going to have to wait and see depending on what happens as people continue to stay on the ground in Iraq. All right, thanks, Dana. Nice to see you. Appreciate it.
BASH: Thank you. You too.
ROBERTS: President Bush is due to lay a wreath in Budapest this hour. He's commemorating 50 years since Hungary's blooding revolt against Soviet rule. That was October, 1956. Suzanne Malveaux is traveling with the president and joins us now live from Budapest.
Good morning, Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, John.
President Bush, of course, received very warmly here in Hungary. President Bush is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian uprising against Soviet rule. This morning he was greeted by the Hungarian president, he visited the parliament and then later this hour he'll lay a wreath at the eternal flame recognizing those who perished when the Soviets crushed that uprising. Some 50,000 Hungarians who were killed and many, of course, made refugees.
President Bush will address the Hungarian people later today. And in his speech, U.S. officials say that he will try to draw parallels between the Hungarians' struggle for freedom and that of the Iraqis' struggle for democracy. This coming at a time, as you know, John, when the president is trying to really drum up support from the international community, particularly Europeans, who are against the Iraq War, to come through with money and Iraqi reconstruction. The president wrapping up that one-day summit in Vienna, Austria, just yesterday. It also comes at a time when the president is visiting Hungary to send a clear signal to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who they see has really been backsliding when it comes to democratic reforms. Very disappointed in that government. And so President Bush will be visiting with Putin and others at the G8 Summit in St. Petersburg some time next month for that summit. And this is one of the reasons why he is here, certainly to send a signal to Putin that he's very serious about the commitment to democracy and that he should be as well.
John.
ROBERTS: And we should point out, Suzanne, that that struggle for democracy in Hungary went on for 35 years. Thanks very much. I'm jealous. I love Budapest. One of my favorite cities. We'll see you soon.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Deadly floods are sweeping across Indonesia. Take a look at what it looks like there this morning. There you go. Some major landslides, rising floodwaters killed 200 people so far. Rescue crews are still searching for another 130 people still missing in all the flooding.
Back in this country, in Port Charlotte, Florida, they're cleaning up from a tornado. It touched down last night. Eye witnesses say everything, including mobile homes, were just tossed around almost like toys. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was inside my garage and everything started flying around in my garage and, whoa.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It literally picked this up and slammed it into that car.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Oh my goodness. Fortunately, no deaths or even injuries have been reported.
Firefighters are desperately trying to stop a wildfire from consuming homes in Arizona. The giant fire's been burning since Sunday. It's only seven percent contained at this point. Helicopters and airplanes are dropping retardants in an attempt to try to douse the flames. Nearly 2,600 acres have burned. The fire is threatening 500 homes in the Oak Creek Canyon area. The homes have been evacuated. The governor has declared a state of emergency for the area.
Let's get right to the forecast and Chad, who's at the CNN Center this morning.
Hey, Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT) ROBERTS: Coming up on this AMERICAN MORNING, the fallout from all the investigations and charges against U.S. troops in Iraq. We'll ask former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright how it's affecting America's image overseas.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Also the popular website myspace.com sets up some new rules to keep kids safe. Are they going to work? We're going to talk to the chief security officer for Myspace just ahead.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sex, drugs, bribes, and a shoot-out at a federal prison in Tallahassee. I'm Susan Candiotti. I'll tell you what happened right here behind me whin AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: A formal investigation begins this morning into a deadly gun fight between FBI agents and a guard at a Florida prison. We brought you this story yesterday morning on AMERICAN MORNING. And when the shooting ended, the prison guard and a federal agent were dead. CNN's Susan Candiotti is live for us in Tallahassee on this story.
Susan, good morning.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.
That this kind of corruption case was being investigated at a federal prison is not all that unusual. What's taken everyone by surprise is how it ended, with federal law enforcement officers shooting at each other.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI, (voice over): It was designed to go down quietly inside a federal prison. The plan was to arrest unarmed guards suspected of trading drugs for sex with inmates. But something went very wrong.
MICHAEL FOLMAR, FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE: It just didn't go down exactly as planned.
CANDIOTTI: Not even close. As white-robed investigators combed the grounds for bullet casings, a federal agent was already dead, another federal investigator injured, and a prison guard, who allegedly shot at them, fatally gunned down. At the time, that guard was in the process of being arrested. It's unclear who shot whom and when.
FOLMAR: This arrest situation was done in a manner to be very controlled, in a situation where nobody would have any weapons, and we could take this down so there wouldn't be any violence.
CANDIOTTI: Authorities say five other guards were taken down without violence, but the sixth used his personal gun. A law enforcement official tells CNN the shootings started inside and ended outside near an exit. How the guard was able to get an unauthorized gun inside is not known. His lawyer claims guards are not screened at entrances like visitors. The FBI said it did not know whether guards go through metal detectors.
All six guards had just been indicted on charges of trading drugs for sex with female inmates, paying off others with money orders to keep their mouths shut, and intimidating still others by threatening to transfer them farther away from families. The accused guard who was killed knew he was under investigation. The FBI told him so last year. He even gave a saliva sample for a DNA test, but his lawyer says they heard nothing more.
TIMOTHY JANSEN, ATTORNEY: My understanding, he denied it from the very beginning and that he didn't give an interview. He denied it.
CANDIOTTI: And what did he deny?
JANSEN: He denied any inappropriate contact in the investigation.
CANDIOTTI: An FBI team will investigate the shooting. A law enforcement source says it's also looking into whether the guard who fired his gun was tipped off.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: That shooting review team will begin disconnecting what happened this morning. And the five accused guards whose take- downs did not explode in violence will ask a judge for a bond later today.
Soledad.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Susan, do we know any more information about the man who opened fire at this point?
CANDIOTTI: The guard who fired his weapon? Yes, we do know this. According to his lawyer, he had been working here for about a dozen years and before that was honorably discharged from the Air Force. His lawyer says he's had no history of violence, an unblemished record here at the prison, was married and apparently without any children.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Susan Candiotti for us this morning. Susan, thanks.
John.
ROBERTS: Americans working for a minimum wage may be a step closer to getting a raise. Andy explains in "Minding Your Business." It's coming up.
Also ahead, a billion-dollar warship rising from the ashes of 9/11.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the one ship I want to remember. It's the one ship I want to tell my grandchildren that I worked on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: A look at how the steel remains of the World Trade Center will soon lead the way in the fight against terrorism. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: It seems that you're not a real celebrity these days until you fight for a cause. Britney Spears husband, Kevin Federline, found his, saving the U.S. penny from annihilation.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: OH, thank God.
ROBERTS: As you may or may not know, it now costs more than a penny to make a penny. About 1 « cents. That is sparking proposals to eliminate the penny. K. Fed took part in the wireless company, Virgin Mobile's "Save the Penny" rally yesterday in New York's Times Square. It was all part of a promotion by Virgin Mobile to launch its penny charity drive and announce a new 1-cent text messaging service, which is 4 cents less than it normally costs on Virgin Mobile and almost 15 times less than it costs on some others as well. Because a text message, for all you parents out there who watch your kids doing it, can be as much as 15 cents apiece.
Support may be building to boost the minimum wage, in addition to saving the penny. Andy Serwer here "Minding Your Business."
ANDY SERWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John.
I like how Kevin takes on the big issues like that, especially when he's getting paid for it probably. Or maybe. We don't know.
Anyway, we're talking paychecks here this morning. Support seems to be building in Congress for an increase in the minimum wage and why not? Who knows better about increasing their pay than senators and congressmen? A preliminary vote . . .
ROBERTS: Ooh.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Ooh.
SERWER: True. We'll get to that more in a second.
A preliminary vote in the Senate came down like this. Yesterday, 52-46 in support of an increase in the minimum wage. Eight Republicans voted for the measure. Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska said, "it's time, it's time, there's no question about it." Senator Ted Kennedy said, "it's obscene that the Senate has seen fit to raise its pay by $30,000 over the last nine years, while not increasing the wages for average Americans." Minimum wage frozen at $5.15 since 1987. Inflation adjusted, the lowest it's been in 50 years. We will see some action on this in the House. There are some congressional Republicans who vow to block the measure. Interesting to see if this becomes a campaign issue.
And speaking of wages, Wal-Mart is facing some wage pressure in Chicago. A local ordinance is making headway there. It's called the Living Wage Ordinance that would require large stores in the city to pay $10 an hour to employees, plus $3 in fringe benefits. That's a lot more than Illinois state minimum wage of $6.50. And, of course, almost twice as much as the federal minimum wage. Wal-Mart says this is a disinformation campaign and the average worker in the Chicago area for the company makes $10.99 an hour. But, of course, that includes managers as well.
ROBERTS: What do you got coming up next hour?
SERWER: Coming up, we're going to talk about the battle between generic drugs and branded drugs. Some branded drugs now less than generics. We'll talk to you about that.
ROBERTS: Interesting.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Oh, that's interesting.
ROBERTS: Thanks, Andy.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Thank you.
SERWER: Yes, you're welcome.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, new approach to fight fat. We're going to tell you what they're trying to do in New York City to zone against fast food.
Also ahead this morning, new rules for myspace.com. Trying to help keep kids safe, but is it working? We're going to talk to the site's security chief about what they are doing. That's ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Happening this morning.
A court hearing in the Duke University lacrosse rape case. One of the lawyers is expected to ask for reduced bail for his client. He also wants the judge to unseal the accuser's cell phone records.
Also this morning, a meeting between Israel's prime minister and the Palestinian president. The prime minister apologizing for recent Israeli air strikes on Palestinian civilians. The two plan to meet again in the coming weeks.
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