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CNN Sunday Morning
California Freeway Closed After Fiery Tunnel Pile-Up; Rap Star Arrested on Federal Weapons Charges; Myanmar Citizens Forced to March in Support of Military Regime
Aired October 14, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are looking to get the southbound lanes of I-5 open by Tuesday morning.
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T.J. HOLMES, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Yeah, but there's a Monday commute you need to worry about. It's going to be a tough, tough Monday for thousands of people. The major highway is still shut down. We'll have the latest from southern California.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Also, an award-winning rapper is arrested just hours before he was supposed to pick up those awards. And it is not the first time he has been in trouble with the law.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: PKK is for us what al Qaeda is to you.
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HOLMES: Turkish officials say the U.S. Won't help with their antiterror efforts it could mean global -- it's a complicated story. We're going to straighten this out from you from the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia. We're bringing you the news from around the world. Good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes, good morning everybody, I'm Betty Nguyen. It is Sunday, October 14, so let's get you informed.
A traffic dilemma today in southern California. A major freeway is closed after a fiery tunnel pile-up left three people dead. Firefighters and other rescue personnel are right now searching for possibly more bodies. CNN's Peter Viles has more.
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PETER VILES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On a busy highway, slick with rain, a freak accident. Two big rigs collided and set in motion a chain reaction. Like explosive dominoes, five or six big rigs and several passenger cars smashed into each other and burned inside a short tunnel that cuts under Interstate 5. The fire burned so hot, parts of the concrete tunnel exploded. Fears of structural damage kept firefighters out of the tunnel.
DEP CHIEF JOHN TRIPP, LOS ANGELES CO FIRE DEPT: The challenge was to do a proper evaluation they had to go inside the tunnel. But, because of the conditions, it is not allowed us to do that as of yet from both sides of the tunnel.
VILES: By mid-afternoon Saturday, 14 hours after the fire started, small flames were still visible inside the tunnel, 18- wheelers were reduced to burned shells as crews tried to remove the wreckage.
TRIPP: We're going to go very methodically 10 feet at a time with firefighters and structural engineers to assess what exactly is the structural stability of that tunnel.
VILES: Above the tunnel, Interstate 5 was completely shut down, causing near gridlock north and south of the fire.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two and a half hours I've been less than 10 miles.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Almost three hours. My husband is a preacher, so he's going to preach late.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is there an exit here soon? We'll be out of gas in a minute.
VILES: Interstate 5 is the main north-south artery in California.
WILL KEMPTON, CA DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION: It carries about 225,000 vehicles a day. So, it's obviously very vital that we shoot to get this roadway opened as quickly as possible...
VILES: But highway officials say there is so much clean-up and repair work to be done, it is possible a section of the interstate will remain closed through Monday.
Peter Viles for CNN, Santa Clarita, California.
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HOLMES: Well, new this morning, perhaps the biggest rap star on the planet right now is back behind bars. T.I., prominent Atlanta rap star, is in jail and this time on federal weapons charges.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You see ATS jackets you pretty much understand what's going on.
HOLMES (voice-over): Agents searching T.I.'s suburban Atlanta home say they found six firearms in a walk-in safe in his bedroom closet. The 27-year-old rapper is barred from owning firearms after a felony drug conviction nine years ago. Authorities say, T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, was trying to add three machine guns and two silencers to his arsenal when they arrested him in a mid-town Atlanta parking lot.
RAQUEL WHITE, WITNESS: Police saw the ATF agents swarming out of their cars, Atlanta police cars were there. I was told there was a black gun that they pulled out of the Range Rover.
HOLMES: T.I.'s music is based largely on a culture of drugs and guns. He calls it "trap music," the trap being that underworld where drugs are sold. His music deals with that lifestyle. He made his big screen debut last year in "ATL" a film featuring hip-hop culture in his hometown.
His next movie "American Gangster," co-starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, releases next month. Real life violence entered T.I.'s life last year when a gunman riddled his van with bullets as he and his entourage drove down a Cincinnati highway. His personal assistant was killed and three people were wounded. No arrests were ever made. T.I.'s first court appearances on the gun the charges is set for Monday in Atlanta.
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Well, the arrest came just hours before what should have been a big night for T.I. He had been nominated for a number of awards at last night's BET Hip-Hop Honors Awards, including CD of the year. He did pick up two honoring including winning that big one, CD of the year.
We're going to be joined right now on the phone by Dwight Thomas, an attorney for T.I.
Sir, thank you for giving us some time this morning. Tell me, first of all, kind of a complicated story here, as far as how the authorities actually ended up with your client and arresting him -- but ended up searching his home and found weapons there. Is your client in the habit of keeping weapons?
DWIGHT THOMAS, T.I.'S ATTORNEY: Well, you know, first of all, I can tell you there's always two sides to every story. I've seen copies of the documents as a result of the search. I have not seen any evidence yet in terms of any physical evidence. They've made search warrant and all those matters will probably come out in court at some point in time.
HOLMES: Yeah, sir, but of course your client, of course, in his music and whatnot, and that's not always reality, but he had certainly in music he talked about the culture, the guns and weapons and drugs and whatnot. But now, he is a convicted felon. Do you know, I'm sure you advised him in the past not to keep weapons and to stay away from things and stay out of trouble. But are you aware of your client keeping weapons at his home?
THOMAS: First of all, I'm going to tell you, now I'm not aware of him being a convicted felon, first thing. And in terms of what he keeps in his home and what he does not keep in his home, and there are a number of people that live in his home, I cannot tell you that because I am his lawyer not his housekeeper. HOLMES: All right. And what you know so far, sir, what does it sound like to you, from the details that have come out so far? And like you've said, you've seen the court documents. As far as this individual, someone who worked for him possibly trying to get weapons for him, what do you know about this individual?
THOMAS: You know, I don't know much about this individual. This whole matter unfolded yesterday afternoon. It's still very fluid. We are in the process of evaluating all of the documents, we're preparing for court tomorrow, myself and attorney Steven Sadal (ph) will be representing Clifford Harris, also known as T.I. He sends his best to his music fans. We ask everybody to withhold judgment. There are always two sides to every story.
HOLMES: Ah, you said two sides to every story. Could you tell me, quickly...
THOMAS: Sometimes three.
HOLMES: Sometimes three. So, we'll go with the two for now. I assume there's one from federal officials and one from your client. Can you tell me, just kind of briefly here -- we know their side of the story. They say he was trying to get weapons, they say he kept weapons at his house. What is the other side of the story? You say there are two sides. What's his side?
THOMAS: As you know, we're not going to try the case in the press.
HOLMES: Yes sir.
THOMAS: Whatever his defense is will come out in a court of law to be judged by his peers beyond a reasonable doubt, we won't try it in the media.
HOLMES: All right, and just quickly can you tell us -- of course, a lot of folks had eyes on Atlanta last night, a big night for the hip-hop industry and he was going to be a very big part of it. How is he doing, I guess, this morning as he certainly embarrassed and remorseful for what should have been a big night for him and now a lot of folks waking up, disappointed fans last night and disappointed fans today hearing about it. How is he doing in that regards as far as maybe disappointment...
THOMAS: Well, the bottom line is, T.I. has done a lot of charitable things, he's worked with a lot of young kids and he has confidence in the legal system. He has confidence that it will work. And I have confidence that it will work. And it will work in his favor.
HOLMES: All right well Mr. Thomas, we do appreciate you giving us some time and giving us, like you said, kind of another side of the story. We certainly know the story from the officials right now, but Dwight Thomas an attorney representing T.I. Sir, we appreciate your time this morning. And folks, you can certainly stick with CNN, we're staying on top of this story. But really one of -- he may be on top of the music industry right now, maybe the biggest rap star out there, T.I. right now sitting in jail on federal weapons charges expected in court tomorrow.
NGUYEN: Also, new this morning, a noisy showdown over illegal immigration turned out peacefully in Texas.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: USA, USA.
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NGUYEN: Demonstrators on both sides of the debate took to the streets in the Dallas suburb of Irving. Opponents of illegal immigration called for a support of a controversial federal initiative called the Criminal Alien Program. It allows local police to turn suspected illegal immigrants over to federal authorities and speeds up the deportation process. Protesters who support immigration also rallied. Demonstrators on both sides waved American flags and called for justice.
HOLMES: Well, a demonstration of sorts in southeastern Mexico, that's where a Bronze statue of former Mexican President Fox was torn down just hours after it was put up. It was even supposed to be a dedication ceremony today in Boca del Rio on the Mexican Gulf Coast, but that had to be canceled. It's believed opposition party members led the assault on this statue.
NGUYEN: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wraps up a trip to Moscow. During her trip she warned a stronger centralized government could undermine Democracy in Russia. And just a short while ago, Rice arrived in the Mideast to begin a three-day diplomacy tour. She'll meet with both Israeli and Palestinian leader, but she says she is keeping expectations low and expects no breakthrough in the peace process.
I want to get you some quick hit around the world this morning. A deadly landslide in Columbia, at least 21 people are reported dead and another 26 injured. Look at this, authorities say the landslide was triggered by people digging for gold in an abandoned mine. The regional governor says the mayor of Suarez ordered that mine close, but people went in despite of being warned of the danger.
HOLMES: Demonstrators filled Myanmar's streets again but this time they're not calling for Democracy. According to political activists inside the country, people are being forced to march in support of the military regime. Officials reportedly demanded that local factories and house holds send marchers or they would have to pay heavy fines.
NGUYEN: Venezuelan prescient Hugo Chavez is in Cuba this weekend. He met for several hours with his friends and ally and ailing Cuban President Fidel Castro. Interestingly, state television in Cuba showed no pictures of that meeting.
HOLMES: Finding a political solution to end the war in Iraq rather than finding a military solution. Will separating Iraq make it safer? This morning, this plan getting a whole lot of attention. We'll explain.
NGUYEN: Guess how much money politicians will spend to get elected next year. Really, take a guess. Here's a hint. Think billions with a "B."
HOLMES: Also this happening right now. Got a live picture for you of students designing the most attractive, effective and energy- efficient solar powered house. We'll show you some of the designs live here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
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NGUYEN: Well, there's crippling situation effecting tens of thousands of school children, and to put it simply, they are not equipped to learn. That's the education gap. And it could be impacting your child. So parents you want to listen up because tonight at 10:00 p.m. Tony Harris digs deep into our nation's school to identify the problems and give you the solutions. A special report no parent can afford to miss. We are "Bridging Gap," that is tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
HOLMES: Well, a new development out of Iraq. A key Shiite leader says Iraqis should support a plan for a federalized Iraq. The plan would keep Iraq as one country but allow major ethnic groups to control different regions. And Said Amar al Hakim is a member of Iraq's Supreme Islamic Council. The federal plan was developed by two U.S. presidential hopefuls. Mary Snow looks at how it brought to opponents together.
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MARY SNOW, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: People are calling you the odd couple, is that...
SEN JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, we are an odd couple. But we like each other.
SNOW (voice-over): Presidential hopefuls, Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Sam Brownback admit they disagree on a lot and they say they can understand why their alliance is turning heads.
SEN SAM BROWNBACK (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You may want to check and make sure the sun comes up the next day and see if the world doesn't fall apart.
SNOW: Biden and Brownback, both U.S. senators are calling for a political solution, not a military one to end the war in Iraq. They say they chose Iowa to taut their plan to make a political point.
BIDEN: I think Americans are sick and tired of this red and blue, you know, liberal, conservative, the other guy if you disagree, it's not just that they're wrong, they're bad. This was a way to demonstrate that we can pull together.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The amount is agreed to.
SNOW: Biden and Brownback sponsored a resolution calling for a federalized Iraq that won 75 votes in the Senate. They're calling for a decentralized government that would allow Sunni, Shiites and Kurds to have their own states. The measure has brought attention to both who are long shots for the presidency in their respective parties.
BROWNBACK: We're trying to show hope in the country that we can come together on tough topics, even Iraq. And I think that can show and sow a big seed of hope for the country for us coming together on tough problems.
SNOW (on camera): While Senator Brownback is talking about hope, he's also talking about the reality of the race. He says he'll drop out if he places lower than fourth in the Iowa caucus. Mary Snow, CNN, Des Moines, Iowa.
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HOLMES: Well, is partition the only viable solution? Plus, Pakistan in crisis, intense fighting in the lawless tribal regions, host Tom Foreman examines both issues on THIS WEEK AT WAR, that's today at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.
NGUYEN: Well, from the most popular loser in 2000 to the big winner this year, Al Gore is racking up awards. But, is he heading to the White House? This, another political topic in our "Trail Mix," that's next.
HOLMES: Also riding 11,000 miles, sometimes in 105-degree heat. Why this woman is making such a long and difficult journey. Stay here.
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NGUYEN: Well, she's known as one of the hardest working women in show biz. Beyonce continues to evolve as an entertainer and a business woman. Here how she's been able upgrade her career on this week's "Tips from the Top".
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Beyonce, the superstar who knows that hard work pays off.
BEYONCE KNOWLES, SINGER AND ACTRESS: Are you ready to be entertained?
You can be whoever you want to be. Anything that's worth anything is going to take work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The R&B diva has risen from lead singer of Destiny's Child to an accomplished solo artist, writer, and record producer. She's also the first vocalist to grace the cover of "Sports Illustrated" magazine. And if you think that's all, then...
(SONG): You must not know about me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's also an actress and a fashion designer.
BEYONCE: I've met so many of my goals, and I just keep making new goals. In order to grow, you have to do that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Beyonce is also flourishing as a philanthropist. She fights AIDS in Africa with U2's Bono and provide housing for Hurricane Katrina victims through the Survivor Foundation.
BEYONCE: I have a lot to accomplish and I don't think I've seen the best of myself yet.
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NGUYEN: Well, as you know, it seems you have to be rich or have plenty of wealthy friends to run for office, right?
HOLMES: Yes. Some are rolling out the dough to put candidates in office. We'll tell you about the campaign cash of 2008.
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HOLMES: Well, you can certainly expect to be bombarded this campaign season with all those campaign political ads. You know, this time of year you're going to start seeing these things. You're seeing plenty already, actually. At least one analyst believes as much as $3 billion could be spent on advertising alone. Some of those ads will be from the candidates themselves while others will be what are called issue ads, aimed at getting political voters fired up over a single issue.
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EVAN TRACEY, TNS MEDIA INTELLIGENCE: What you have right now is a bunch of groups that are forming out there that are going to look to be the swift vote of the 2008 election. They're going to look for an issue they can exploit through advertising in some of these battleground states and I suspect that's going to be a big part of the campaign.
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HOLMES: Well, what else can we expect to see in the next few days? CNN political producer Sasha Johnson has been riding the campaign trail all over Iowa and New Hampshire. I wonder why, those are pretty popular places about now.
SASHA JOHNSON, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: Absolutely.
HOLMES: We were lucky enough get to you slow down for a few minutes, sit down and talk to us. She joins us from Washington. Good morning to you Sasha. JOHNSON: Good morning.
HOLMES: Well first of all, let's get this out of the way. Why in the world do I need to ask you about Al Gore? The man has given no indication he wants to run for president. Sure, he picked up a few awards here and there...
JOHNSON: Just a few.
HOLMES: A little Nobel Prize here or there, but why does is it this name keeps coming into the mix? The man said he's not running.
JOHNSON: He did, but I mean, let's be honest, he loves the fact that we're still talking about him. The more that we talk about Al Gore possibly running for president the more copies of "An Inconvenient Truth "sell, the more popular he is, the higher his speaking fees go. And you know, last week this group that's been trying to draft Al Gore to run for president, ran an ad in the New York Times basically begging him to get in.
But there's really, as you said, no indication that he's going to run for president, but he doesn't want us to stop talking about it. Honestly what we should now focus on is which Democrat, if any Democrat, he's going to endorse in the 2008 race.
HOLMES: OK, so this certainly gives -- makes him more important because he is out there so much, the Nobel Prize, we're talking about him here, so it makes his endorsement all that more important.
JOHNSON: Absolutely, remember though that in the 2004 cycle he endorsed Howard Dean and if I remember correctly, that didn't do so much for Howard Dean, he didn't really get much past Iowa. But someone said to me the other day, Al Gore is much more of a rock star this time around and his endorsement could help, especially with the Democratic base.
HOLMES: All right, let's move on to Senator Biden, the Democrat, and senator Brownback teaming up, these guys, neither one doing too well in the polls, pretty much at the bottom. You could call them those second-tier, as they say...
JOHNSON: Or third.
HOLMES: Or third, oh wow. Sasha, my goodness.
JOHNSON: Sorry.
HOLMES: Why in the world -- is this just a political stunt so we can talk about them a little bit? They're teaming up, talking about this issue of Iraq and partitioning that country off. Are they just getting here to try to drum up a little support and get their names out there a little bit?
JOHNSON: Well absolutely, and I mean, it's worked. We're talking about it, you know, other people are talking about it as well and some might call it a political stunt. But they do need a little juice, they need some help in the press. And so this was a good thing for them to do.
In all seriousness, if you go out with Senator Brownback or Senator Biden, they are very passionate and very serious about the issue of Iraq. And so, it's not just as though they started talking about this in order to get press. This is a major part of their stump speech and something they feel passionately about and something they really are working on in Washington.
HOLMES: All right, let's turn to Senator Clinton now. Nobody seems to be able to break this heir of inevitably, she stays ahead in the polls, solid, even growing in some numbers. Barack Obama has not been able to push through and dip into that at all. Will this issue of Iran, now, this foreign policy issue, will this be the thing that finally gets others to break through? They do not seem to be able to shake her at all.
JOHNSON: Well, John Edwards and Barack Obama are hoping that they can turn her vote over the Iranian revolutionary guard, the vote this past -- recently in the Senate -- they hope that they can turn that around and prove or at least show, use that as an example, that her judgment on on foreign policy isn't spot on.
And as they talk about Iran, they're also once again bringing up her vote on Iraq in 2002. So they're using Iran and Iraq votes as a way to show the left -- the left end of the Democratic base to say, hey, you know, she's a hawk, a little hawkish on foreign policy, something that Democrats don't want to hear. And, obviously, you know, the Clinton campaign disputes this. They say she hasn't contradicted her statement on Iran at all. But the more that they can try to keep Iran out there and even raise the possibility that she might want to go after Iran, that's not going to help her with Democrats or at least they hope so.
HOLMES: Yeah, suggesting that maybe this vote, as well, is giving the president what he needs, a possibility of giving him the OK to go ahead with war with Iran.
JOHNSON: Right.
HOLMES: Sasha Johnson, thank you for stopping -- taking a pit stop on your campaign trail, there. I know we'll see you plenty more as this campaign season, can't say gets going, it's well underway. But we will see you again. Thank you so much. Good to see you this Sunday.
JOHNSON: Thank you.
HOLMES: And remember, folks, you can get all your political news from the cnn.com political ticker, that's at cnn.com, that includes the latest updates as well as analysis.
NGUYEN: T.J. check this out, reaching her destination a month late, not deterring one woman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm going to continue my movement to work for peace and justice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Why she's traveling 11,000 miles. That's just minutes away.
And a major highway will be closed for the Monday commute. We're going to give you a live update on the tunnel inferno in southern California. That's next.
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HOLMES: Hello again, everybody, and welcome back. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes, good morning everybody, I'm Betty Nguyen. A big music star is behind bars this morning on weapons charges. Rapper T.I. was supposed to go to BET Awards, instead, he's in jail. Police say he tried to pick up machine guns and even some silencers, a violation of his parole.
HOLMES: Also a fugitive caught in Mexico. Authorities there arrested Donald Lynch, he's wanted in Tennessee on child rape charges.
NGUYEN: I want you to take a look at this right now. A major southern California freeway is closed after a fiery crash in a tunnel that left three people dead. Traffic was stuck for hours yesterday, here's a look at that backup. Drivers are being told to take alternate routes.
And joining us now with the latest is Inspector Jason Hurd with the L.A. County Fire Department.
Tells us the situation when it comes to getting these roads back open and all of this wreckage cleaned up. What do you know?
INSPECTOR JASON HURD, L.A. CO FIRE DEPT: It's very labor intensive effort that crews have been working through the night, working -- compiling upon the efforts that the crews worked yesterday and just continuing in its effort to go through this systematic, tedious process of getting all that wreckage moved out of there.
NGUYEN: So, the charred vehicles, the big rigs, they're still in the tunnel?
HURD: That is correct. Crews have made some progress, but there's a lot of work to go and we'll continue to do so until, you know -- our ultimate goal is to get all that wreckage moved out of there in a safe, timely manner and get that turned over to Caltran so they can do whatever they need to do to get that road back in service.
NGUYEN: At this point, do you think you found all of the victims from that big accident?
HURD: You know, it's still real early. There's still a lot of work to be done. And you know, it's still early to say if there's still anything left in there, but we will continue our methodical system of going through and searching all that wreckage in the event there are any more victims.
NGUYEN: Interstate 5 is a major thoroughfare fare there, and we're talking about the possibilities of backups on Monday and it may not even be open until Tuesday. What do you know as far as when this tunnel will be reopened?
HURD: Once we get everything removed, it will be up to Caltran engineers to go through and do a final inspection and deem whatever they need to do.
NGUYEN: What are you being told?
HURD: You know, it's real early and until we can get that debris out of there and actually get their teams in there and actually take a physical look, but, you know, yesterday they did mention that they're looking at possibly Tuesday. So that's, you know, real optimistic as far as, you know, getting that back in due to the nature of the accident. I think if it happen Tuesday, we're looking real good.
NGUYEN: Yeah, I know a lot of work still to be done. Jason Hurd with the L.A. County Fire Department. Thanks so much for your time today, we do appreciate it.
HURD: You're very welcome.
HOLMES: Senator Ted Kennedy back with his family this morning after a brief hospital stay. The 75-year-old Massachusetts Democrat was released from a Boston hospital yesterday. He had surgery on Friday to remove a blockage of a carotid artery in his neck. A spokes woman says Kennedy is expected to return to the Senate after a few days of rest at home.
From a former commander's harsh comments to a woman who really went the distance to map her dissatisfaction. The grumbling growing over the war in Iraq. And CNN's Ed Henry keeping track for us in Crawford, Texas?
Good Sunday morning to you, sir.
ED HENRY, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning T.J. How are you?
HOLMES: Doing well man, everything all right in Crawford this morning?
HENRY: That's right. Pretty quiet. But as you noted, General Sanchez's comments certainly, you know, getting the White House a bit on the defensive. This is a blow to them. You know that retired General Sanchez a couple days ago gave a blistering speech in which he basically called the war in Iraq a nightmare. He said the Bush administration's handling of it was incompetent, that the civilian leadership was derailed and maybe even should have been court- martialed.
Obviously extremely strong words. He also says of the current surge strategy that it's a desperate move that really will not work in the long term. Now, the White House reaction has been very calm, trying to be muted and not really pour gasoline on the fire, saying they respect retired General Sanchez's service and they're looking forward not backward.
But privately you're also hearing from Bush administration officials, reminding reporters that General Sanchez took some of the blame for the Abu Ghraib scandal, that prison scandal in Iraq, and that's ironic, though, because obviously the White House spent so much time downplaying the Abu Ghraib scandal. Now, maybe when it's in their interest to push back a bit, they're reminding people that General Sanchez played a role in that and certainly took some of the blame.
The other big question for General Sanchez, of course, is why now? Why is he speaking out? He said in his speech on Friday that he knew very early on in his tenure as the top U.S. commander on the ground in Iraq that things were not working as well as everyone thought, as well as the public image. And that certainly raises the question, why did he wait so long? Why didn't he speak out much sooner? And it certainly raises the question about whether there are other generals currently or recently retired who have some of those same doubts -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right, what can you tell us -- there's the peace activist, I guess, drawing some attention for the efforts she's undertaking. Tell us what she has gone through and tell us is the White House paying attention to this as well?
HENRY: Well, it's interesting, you know, the White House paid a lot of attention in years past to Cindy Sheehan the anti-war activist who had some larger rallies, certainly was demanding a meeting with the president for so long. Cindy Sheehan has moved on, but a new woman, Alex Brian showed up yesterday. She's 33 years old and her issue is that she basically wanted to promote peace. She said she literally wanted to put peace on the map.
So what she did was she took a motor scooter from the White House to Crawford here, 11,000 miles, and to put peace on the map, she basically took a securities route that put a peace symbol, essentially, an imaginary one, on the U.S. map, if you look at the way she traveled -- 11,000 miles on a motor scooter. She's not going to stick around like Cindy Sheehan, though. She's just trying to make a little bit of point about peace -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. You're not taking a scooter back to D.C., are you?
HENRY: No, absolutely not.
HOLMES: All right, a more direct flight.
HENRY: Take too long.
HOLMES: All right, Ed Henry from Crawford for us, thanks so much this morning. HENRY: Thanks T.J.
NGUYEN: And with the price of gas, there's no way he's taking a scooter. Hey, "Fortune" magazine's, "50's Most Powerful Women List" is out and here is a woman whose business is breakfast. But, before we tell you who she is, you have a chance to guess.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): At age 16 this woman worked as a waitress. Now, more than 30 years later she's the CEO of that same restaurant with over 1,300 restaurant locations nationwide her California-based country raked in $45 million in profits last year alone. So, who was the woman who went from server to CEO? Find out after the break.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN (voice-over): Ranked 49th this year on "Fortune" magazines "Most Powerful Women in Business" list, Julia Stewart, chairman and CEO of IHOP, the International House of Pancakes.
Since Steward took over in 2002, IHOP stock prices have doubled. In July she announced the $2.3 billion acquisition of Applebee's forming the largest sit-down restaurant chain in the U.S. Her secret interviewing tip? Stewart takes potential employees out to eat because she says you can tell a lot from how a person treats a server.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right, you hear these words, even use them, you know, solar, energy efficient, they're definitely buzz words. And today college students from around the country are putting those words to action. We'll show you their work coming up next.
NGUYEN: Also, going to take a look at this: Broken glass everywhere. Why you should keep an eye on your car even at the gas station.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Hey, it is a great day to have a solar home if you're in the nation's capitol it is sunny in Washington where the third Solar Decathlon is under way on the Capitol Mall. And it's a competition among college students to build the most energy efficient solar powered home. Our Gary Nurenberg is out on the mall this morning, and he joins us live.
And it's more than just, you know, an energy efficient home. These things have to pretty look good, too, right, Gary?
GARY NURENBERG, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, that's part of the competition. But the question Betty is this, when you're dealing with solar energy and solar heat, is it cool to say it's cool?
This house was built by Cornell on the National Mall in Washington. These tubes heat water, water heating up to 200 degrees. One of the things that will judged -- there are 20 contestants here, from schools all over the world. Energy Department provided $100,000 to each of the teams to build the houses which cost anywhere between $500,000 and a million dollars in this demonstration project. No larger than 700 square feet with very tight controls on what can be done and what can be judged in terms of making this a success. It has to be pretty, it has to be livable and it has to be energy efficient. We talked to some kids from Texas A&M who are excited about the prospect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH CANEZ, TEXAS A&M, UNIVERSITY: It's something other than the typical house. And a good house will really incorporate the environment and technology into this new form of architecture that blends the two and is more responsible and lighter on the land and you're actually less impactful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NURENBERG: Less impact maybe on the environment, but more impact on your pocketbook. Richard King is the grandfather of this idea, occurred to him in 1988.
Mr. King, what are the criterion on which the students here are judged?
RICHARD KING, DIR SOLAR DECATHLON: Well they're judged in 10 ways from architecture, engineering, innovation, and livability to performance of the house from heating and cooling, refrigeration, lighting, things of that nature.
NURENBERG: As a typical homeowner who doesn't have solar, what's this going to mean to me?
KING: Well, sunlight is free, so if you buy the equipment and amortize it over 30 years, it can be cost effective.
NURENBERG: Mr. King, thank you very, very much.
We'll learn who won later in the weekend, but for now the decathlon is on the National Mall in Washington, 20 teams from around the world. And, Betty, it's cool.
NGUYEN: Yes, it is. Thank you, Gary.
We wanted to find out where else folks are feeling a cool front in their area. Maybe a little heat because this weather has been completely off so far, Reynolds.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Not in D.C. Where they have to are have it for the solar competition. I mean, that's impressive. Did you guys do anything like that when you were in college? NGUYEN: I was in a science fair project.
WOLF: There you go.
NGUYEN: I did OK.
WOLF: T.J., I think you're like me, though. Betty you're the smart one. I don't think T.J. and I built anything. I mean, I destroyed things, namely my GPA. In terms of building things like a solar house...
NGUYEN: You were on scholastic probation (INAUDIBLE)?
WOLF: That's story for another time.
(WEATHER REPORT)
NGUYEN: All right, Reynolds, we appreciate it.
WOLF: Any time.
NGUYEN: And it is your world, of course, so we are going to bring you the story behind the stats. You want to tune in for CNN's worldwide investigation "Planet in Peril" with our Anderson Cooper, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Jeff Corwin. It airs Tuesday October 23 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern and then Wednesday October 24. You can get a preview of "Planet in Peril" online, all you have to do is go to cnn.com/planetinperil.
Well, it's not just a border battle anymore, we're talking about the impact of illegal immigrants that they're making in cities and towns all across America.
HOLMES: Yeah, Kiran Chetry has a preview of what's coming up on American MORNING, next week.
KIRAN CHETRY, AMERICAN MORNING: Hey, Betty and T.J. here's a look at what's coming up this week on AMERICAN MORNING. We're going to be taking a look at the immigration debate in America. The border war now making its way to the heartland and a lot of cities are cracking down on illegal immigrants. And that's meant that those immigrants are on the move yet again, hundreds of miles away from the border to cities like Kansas City, Tulsa, Little Rock. So what's that doing to jobs and resources in Middle America? We're going to take a look at that.
And we're also working on the drastic recall of cold medicines for infants. As the cold season hits, an urgent warning now for parents with young children after pharmacies across the country pulled infant cold medicines off of the shelves.
We're going to meet with one family whose 4-month-old baby died after taking some over-the-counter cold medicine. His grandmother has become a passionate advocate to help other families and warn them about the risks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This product is a danger to our children and we're willfully spooning this into our infants' mouths and we're killing them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Well, an FDA panel will meet next week to talk about not just infant medicines, but also for kids under the age of six. We're going to have all of that for you next week.
And also, do you remember on "Friends" when Joey got ordained so that he could marry Monica and Chandler? Well, it seems that a lot of people in real life are having their friends get ordained for the day so they can do it, too. So, are those marriages legal? We're going to get into that next week on AMERICAN MORNING, as well. Betty and T.J. back to you.
NGUYEN: All fright, so when my big day comes, T.J.
HOLMES: I will do that for you.
NGUYEN: All right.
HOLMES: How soon do I need to get on that?
NGUYEN: We've got a little time. Just a little time.
HOLMES: OK. Oh my goodness.
NGUYEN: OK, there are charity galas, fund-raisers, walk-a-thons but there's nothing like getting down and dirty in the mud for a good cause, of course.
HOLMES: Also, if it's sunny where you are, why not go out for a Sunday drive? You might see that little guy. Stick around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Yes, folks in Boston need to take it easy just a bit. This is an update on a story we first brought to you yesterday. Boston's Tobin Bridge, it has reopened, all lanes, despite structural cracks in a support beam. Earlier the upper deck had been closed to commercial traffic while engineers assess that situation. Repairs will now take one to two weeks.
NGUYEN: Get you some "Quick Hits" now. And the American Indian Movement is morning one of its leaders today, Vernon Bellecourt died of complications from pneumonia yesterday at a Minneapolis hospital. Bellecourt was a spokesman for the American Indian Movement base in Minneapolis. For years he fought against using Indian nicknames for sports teams.
HOLMES: Well in Florida police are investigating $1 million jewelry heist at a gas station. Well, the jewels weren't being kept at the station or anything. The victims actually stopped for gas after picking up the jewels in Miami. And apparently they left $1 million...
NGUYEN: In the car.
HOLMES: Betty, worth of jewels in the car while they got Slurpees.
NGUYEN: That was one expensive slurpee.
HOLMES: They were heading home to New York. Yes, $1 million Slurpee.
NGUYEN: All right, well, look at this in California, in California, a marine-style run for charity. Participants really had to get down and dirty in the annual event. It's all to raise money for the Marine's Toys for Tots program.
HOLMES: All right, well now it's time for us to check in with Howard Kurt in Washington to see what's ahead for CNN RELIABLE SOURCES.
Good morning to you, sir.
HOWARD KURTZ, RELIABLE SOURCES: Good morning, T.J. Coming up, is there a television show on the planet that hasn't speculated about Al Gore using his Nobel as a springboard into the White House. Look at why it's so much hot air.
A 12-year-old by gets attacked in the debate over expanding children's health insurance. Is he fair game for pendants and bloggers. Plus, we'll talk to the author of a new book on the network news war, that would be me, but I'll be answering questions, not asking them. That and the latest Ann Coulter outrage, ahead on RELIABLE SOURCES.
HOLMES: Oh, you get to answer questions for a change there, Howard.
KURTZ: I'm in the hot seat.
HOLMES: All right, well, we'll stick around for that one. Thanks so much. We'll see you soon.
NGUYEN: Well, that is some good stuff.
Some dogs stay in the yard, others remain in the house, but take a look at this.
HOLMES: Look at this guy. Now the goggles, that's a bit much, Betty. You can't keep the little guy off the road. Nothing like being on the open road. Now, I'm not an expert in dogs, but I'm pretty sure it's not a hound dog. But, you know, it's a dog.
NGUYEN: But he's an easy rider, isn't he. We'll have much more on that when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NGUYEN: Dogs and hogs. Yeah, some things just go together. This is Sinbad and he is bad to the bone with his dog goggles perched atop of that motorcycle.
HOLMES: Always love any excuse to get a little Elvis into the show. Now, nobody's sure why this little dog started riding the bike. I guess because his owner decided to put him on it, is my guess. But, the little guy's name is Sinbad and you might do a double take if you see that rolling down the street. Where do we find these pictures?
NGUYEN: I don't know, where do you find dog goggles?
HOLMES: That's a better question.
NGUYEN: Hey look at this, a shiny red Mustang and a young driver. Right?
HOLMES: Yeah, adds up to a little dangerous situation for a late night joy ride. Glori Moroni (ph) of affiliate WISN has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLORI MORONI, WISN REPORTER (voice-over): Jordan Will has a sharp ride, a candy apple red Mustang G.T. with all the extras, a rear spoiler, a premium sound system and chrome wheels.
DOUG WILL, FATHER: That's all he takes about when he comes here is he wants his car and go for a ride.
MORONI: And that's just what Jordan is a buddy did without permission early in the morning while his dad, Doug, was still sleeping.
WILL: Nothing bad happened, you know, so it was kind of cute now when you look at it, but at the time it wasn't cute at all. It was scary and I was really upset.
MORONI: The boys drove through the neighborhood.
JASON BAUER, NEIGHBOR: And you wake up on Sunday morning you don't expect to see a 2-year-old and a 3-year-old shooting down the street in a car.
MORONI: They pulled right up to a busy intersection.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they obeyed the sign. So, I mean, that was good. He stopped at the red light and got on the crosswalk.
MORONI: Jordan crossed over Highway 21 onto the sidewalk and drove over the bridge. Neighbors panicked, called 911, chased them and cops pulled the car over.
BAUER: By the time they stopped them they probably made it is it five to six blocks from home before anyone noticed that they were wandering around town.
MORONI: Doug had been searching for the boys the whole time when he got the call to get the car and Jordan tried to get out of it.
WILL: He just said, "We went for a ride, daddy." You know, I'm like, "You were naughty." He goes, "No, daddy, we just went for a ride." And I'm like, "Well, you were naught, you left the yard."
MORONI: For right now all Jordan can do is sit in his ride because dad took away his keys.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: That's true, I mean, you give the guy a car he's going to take off in it.
HOLMES: That's cool. They did smell, going to let you know, they smelled milk on his breath, but he passed the field sobriety test. So, it's all good.
NGUYEN: Everything is all good, within the legal limits.
Hey, this just into it a Boy Scout is being treated for cuts and bruises after being attacked by a bear while camping in Pennsylvania.
HOLMES: First the bear shredded the scout's tent then came after him, the boy did the only thing he could, curl up in a fetal position. Scout master finally managed to scare that bear off. But my goodness, what a scary...
NGUYEN: Well, he survived, though. That's the good news.
HOLMES: Yeah, and we've got something, of course, coming up next here, RELIABLE SOURCES, as always, Al Gore, have you heard, he won a Nobel Peace Prize. What can we expect next from the former vice president?
NGUYEN: Then on LATE EDITION with Wolf Blitzer the latest fallout in the Blackwater investigation. But first a check of this morning's top developments
Three bodies have been recovered so far from the scene of that freeway inferno in southern California. The tunnel where several trucks collided will remain closed until at least Tuesday. Experts are still trying to determine whether it's safe.
Rapper T.I. has been arrested on weapons charges. Authorities say he was picked up in Atlanta while taking delivery of three machine guns and two silencers. As a convicted felon, T.I. is not allowed to possess firearms. The arrest caused the rapper to miss the taping of the BET awards where he won two awards and was scheduled to perform.
Well, Condoleezza Rice says don't get your hopes up for any quick break-through in the Middle East. The secretary of state has arrived in Jerusalem for a new round of diplomacy. She's working on an agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.
We're going to have more top stories in just 30 minutes. RELIABLE SOURCES begins right now. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
