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CNN Live Sunday

Washington Issues Cautionary Message for Independence Day

Aired June 30, 2002 - 17:07   ET

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

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Washington has a cautionary message for you this July 4 -- have a wonderful time but, by the way, keep an eye out for suspicious people.

CNN's Patty Davis is in Washington with the latest on the security preparations for the upcoming Independence Day celebrations -- hi there, Patty.

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello.

Across the country, beefed up security is figuring prominently into the upcoming July Fourth celebrations. In Washington, D.C., miles of double fences are being put up. There will be just 24 access points to the Washington Mall for the fireworks. Police will be using hand held wands to search some people.

In Seattle, where a terrorist millennium plot was foiled, that city is also on guard.

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MAYOR GREG NICKLES, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON: Seattle is ready. We have taken the steps that we need to take and we're getting better every day. We're getting better with our communication from the federal government. We're getting better in terms of our preparedness and that of our citizens.

MAYOR ANTHONY WILLIAMS, WASHINGTON, D.C.: The best way to be safe is all of us to move in in the middle of the desert and live in some kind of subterranean cavern. But we can't do that. We have to live our lives and show that these terrorists aren't going to be successful. And that we will do on July 4th.

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DAVIS: The FBI has issued an alert to local and state law enforcement about the possibility of a terrorist attack on the Fourth, but there are no specifics, so that alerts has not gone out to the public.

Now, today the Bush administration trying to reassure a jittery public about the upcoming holiday. For now, the color coded threat alerts remains a yellow for elevated significant risk of terrorist attacks. The Bush administration appealing to Americans to remain vigilant over the holiday, but go about your business. And Secretary of State Colin Powell saying the message we ought to give back to terrorists this Independence Day is we are not afraid of them -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Patty Davis, thank you very much.

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