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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Congress Looks Into the Ford-Firestone Tire Controversy; Bush Justice Department Wants to Settle Tobacco Lawsuit
Aired June 19, 2001 - 20:00 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.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight: Auto workers circle their wagons as the Ford Explorer comes under more attack. Congress looks into the Ford-Firestone tire controversy and creates more controversy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. BILLY TAUZIN (R-LA), CHAIRMAN, ENERGY & COMMERCE COMMITTEE: Are we going to be replacing worse tires for the tires that come off these cars?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: I'll have the inside story and I'll speak live with the man heading the hearings, Congressman Bill Tauzin.
In a shift from the Clinton administration, the Bush Justice Department wants a settlement instead of a court battle in this multi- billion dollar suit against the tobacco industry. We'll find out why.
She campaigned for the vice presidency. Now she has another fight on her hands. Geraldine Ferraro is armed with a controversial drug in her battle against cancer.
And a convicted murderer and drug trafficker follows Timothy McVeigh into a federal death chamber.
Good evening. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting tonight from Washington.
The chairman of a powerful House committee today dropped a bombshell. Congressman Billy Tauzin said some of those 13 million replacement tires that Ford has been putting on its Explorers may actually be more dangerous than the Firestone originals.
Well-placed sources tell me Tauzin wants four separate tire manufacturers, using seven different brand names, to be investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and that's our top story.
At today's congressional hearing, executives from Ford and Firestone blamed each other for the Explorer rollovers and tire tread separations that have resulted in 203 deaths and hundreds of injuries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN LAMPE, CEO, FIRESTONE: Mr. Chairman, I must say, and this is not easy for me to say, as well, but there is something wrong with the Ford Explorer. The testing and accident data we have submitted prove it. When I was here last year, I said to all of you that you could take all our tires off the Ford Explorer, and the Ford Explorer would continue to roll over. And unfortunately, that's exactly what's happening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACQUES NASSER, CEO, FORD: The Ford Explorer is and always has been a safe vehicle. The criticism from Firestone challenging the Explorer's safety is not based on fact. Real world data that is compiled by the Department of Transportation shows that the Explorer is among the safest SUVs on the market.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Tauzin says his investigators have spent five months looking at the evidence. He's now asked federal investigators to review those replacement tires and report back to Congress in 30 days.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TAUZIN: We need some answers soon, and the public should not have to suffer through additional weeks or months of dueling charts, flying accusations and more hearings.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Congressional sources tell CNN two of the suspect tires include some models of General Tire's Grabber and the Goodyear Wrangler HT. According to the sources, both have a tread separation rate higher than the five per million considered the limit by Ford.
Still, months after the Ford-Firestone controversy erupted, the fundamental question remains unanswered: What's responsible for the deaths? The tire, the vehicle, or both?
Thousands of autoworkers, meanwhile, today showed up and expressed their support for the embattled automaker by piling into almost 2,000 Ford Explorers and driving into Washington. Police let about half of them cruise around the capitol. While the autoworkers have their concerns, how will the tire trouble impact consumers?
CNN's Patty Davis has that part of the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): John Kane of Stoughton, Massachusetts just replaced the Firestone tires on his family's Ford Explorer. But now, word his new Goodyear tires may not be safe either has made him uneasy. JOHN KANE, CONSUMER: I wish I didn't have to deal with this. It's a pain in the neck.
DAVIS: Kane and his wife, Linda, are especially concerned because they're traveling 600 miles to vacation in Virginia. Consumer advocates say Explorer owners need more information about exactly which tires may be unsafe, and they need to know it now.
CLARENCE DITLOW, CENTER FOR AUTO SAFETY: If the consumer has this information, they can make a judgment for themselves as to whether they want to go out and buy another set of tires for their vehicle.
DAVIS: Experts say consumers worried about tread separation should watch for these signs.
STEVE ROBAIR, MANAGER. D&D TIRES: Look for a ride that's not as smooth. If you're getting some trouble in your ride, you're getting a vibration, you're getting a shaking, those are the things to be concerned about. Get them checked out.
DAVIS: For their part, the Kanes say they've lost confidence in the safety of their Explorer.
LINDA KANE, CONSUMER: I trusted Ford's judgment that they're going to put on safe tires for me, and now I'm not so sure.
DAVIS (on camera): But tires may not be the only concern of Explorer owners. Federal safety regulators are considering requests by Firestone and Chairman Tauzin to investigate whether the Ford Explorer itself is safe.
Patti Davis, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And later in our program we'll get some answers from the chairman investigating all of this business, Billy Tauzin.
And in other news tonight, the Bush administration is prepared to step back from the massive civil lawsuit launched by the Clinton administration against the tobacco industry. Let's go live to CNN justice correspondent Kelli Arena for details -- Kelli.
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the attorney general has ordered a special team of lawyers to seek a possible settlement, even as other Justice Department lawyers continue the government's multibillion dollar lawsuit against big tobacco.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARENA (voice-over): Rather than risk losing in court, one justice official tells CNN -- quote -- "It's better to negotiate from a position of strength."
Some Congressional Democrats are steaming. SEN. DICK DURBIN (D), ILLINOIS: To ask for a settlement is to guarantee that you're going to get the lowest dollar amount the tobacco companies can put on the table.
ARENA: But several legal experts argue a settlement may make sense, because last year, a federal judge dismissed half the government's case. What's more, the industry has deep pockets to fund its legal fight.
MARY ARONSON, TOBACCO LITIGATION ANALYST: The tobacco industry has a corner on the market. They have the best and the brightest attorneys in the business, and if anybody can win a case, I think -- of this sort, I think it would be the tobacco industry.
ARENA: Anti-tobacco groups suggest the Bush administration is proposing a sweetheart deal for an industry that contributed more than $8 million in the last election cycle, most of it to Republicans.
MATTHEW MYERS, CAMPAIGN FOR TOBACCO FREE KIDS: We're afraid that the administration is putting aside both the views of the American public and the merits of this case. And instead, are simply repaying a campaign debt.
ARENA: Reaction from tobacco companies was swift and terse. An RJR Reynolds spokesman told CNN -- quote -- "We are not settling this case for any amount of money."
Philip Morris said: "We continue to believe the case is without merit."
Brown and Williamson said talk of a settlement is, "news to us."
But industry watchers suggest the time for a deal is ripe.
MARTIN FELDMAN, TOBACCO INDUSTRY ANALYST: I wouldn't be surprised if the tobacco industry concedes Food and Drug Administration regulation of the tobacco industry in return for the Department of Justice withdrawing the lawsuit.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ARENA: The suit was filed in 1999 during the Clinton administration. The Justice Department said then that federal health plans spend more than $20 billion a year treating smoking-relating illnesses -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Kelli, shifting gears, I take it there's been some movement on a potential new director of the FBI. What are you hearing?
ARENA: Well, administration sources tell us, Wolf, that the sort list is now down to one. On that list is Robert Muller. He is currently the U.S. attorney from the northern district of California. We are told by sources that he has indeed been interviewed by the president, but that the president has not given his final OK. An announcement is imminent and could come as soon as next week, Wolf. BLITZER: OK, Kelli Arena, Louis Freeh is stepping down, presumably this week, so we should get that announcement fairly soon. Thank you very much. Kelli Arena in Washington.
Back in 1984, Geraldine Ferraro was involved in a tough political battle. Now she's battling again, for herself and others, against cancer.
CNN national correspondent Eileen O'Connor has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GERALDINE FERRARO, FORMER VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are going to win.
EILEEN O'CONNOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When she accepted the Democratic nomination as the first woman vice presidential candidate, Geraldine Ferraro reflected on the gift of life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, 1984)
FERRARO: If it is preserved jealously and selfishly, it impoverishes and saddens. But if it is spent for others, it enriches and beautifies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'CONNOR: The daughter of Italian immigrants, Ferraro became a public school teacher, attending law school at night, becoming a mother and a prosecutor who fought for victims of violent crime, and ultimately her Congressional constituents.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: She's someone who inspires you. Not just women, but everyone who cares about improving life for people.
SEN. OLYMPIA SNOWE (R), MAINE: Her diagnosis of her illness, she certainly has been graced with a lot of strength and dignity in confronting it as well.
ARENA: Diagnosed in 1998 with multiple myeloma, an incurable type of blood cancer that suppresses the immune system, Ferraro will be testifying before Congress, seeking money for a cure.
DR. KEN ANDERSON, FERRARO'S DOCTOR: We can't cure this disease today, I'm very sad to say. The overall survival is about three to four years.
ARENA: Doctors say Ferraro's cancer is being treated with thalidomide, a once-controversial drug linked to birth defects, recently found effective in stemming the growth of certain cancers. Ferraro's friends say she's never shied away from a fight or a controversy -- standing by her husband accused of financial wrongdoing, or supporting federal funding for abortion despite her Catholic upbringing. PATRICIA IRELAND, PRESIDENT, NOW: She has fought for other women's rights and other women's lives, and in any way she can draw strength to fight for her own life, more power to her.
O'CONNOR (on camera): Ferraro says she doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for her, and while acknowledging this is a race she may not win, she says she is still going to go on and "do the things that I do."
Eileen O'Connor, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And is your SUV safe? Ford is changing millions of tires, but is it replacing one problem with another? I'll ask a powerful congressman leading the investigation, Billy Tauzin.
Also, a weekend blaze killed three firefighters and injured dozens more. Investigators want to know why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. After numerous accidents and more than 200 fatalities, Ford has been replacing the Firestone tires on its Explorer SUVs: the automaker still trading charges with tire-maker Bridgestone/Firestone over who is responsible for the problem. But as Ford bounced millions of new tires, an influential congressman has let some of the air out of the replacement campaign.
Joining me, Representative Billy Tauzin, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Congressman, thanks for joining us.
First of all, you drive a Ford Explorer, so you have a personal stake in this investigation.
REP. BILLY TAUZIN (R-LA), CHAIRMAN, ENERGY AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE: Well, many people do. I mean, this is a matter of life or death for many families, and getting to the bottom of it, finding out whether this is purely a tire problem, as Ford says, or whether it's a mix of problems, as Lampe and Firestone are alleging, is very important.
BLITZER: Tell us why today you revealed -- and it was a bombshell -- that some of these replacement tires -- 13 million replacement tires have been ordered -- some of them may even be more dangerous than the original tires that apparently were so faulty.
TAUZIN: Well, in the course of our investigation, once we heard about this 13 million Firestone tire recall by ford, we began checking with other tire manufacturers, particularly these replacement tires, to see what kind of safety record they had.
Some of them had claims against them for -- far in excess of the 5 per million that Ford told us they use as a benchmark to decide whether to recall a Firestone tire. One of them, for example, had 124 claims per million tires, far in excess of the 5 per million that Ford said should be the test.
BLITZER: Which company was that?
TAUZIN: Well, that company and the other companies we discovered all giving -- we're giving all that information to NHTSA tonight, today.
BLITZER: NHTSA is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
TAUZIN: Right, so they can examine this data, verify it, and let us know as early as tomorrow which of these companies are in fact producing tires which could be -- and you said it correctly -- could be a serious problem, perhaps even more serious than the Firestone tires that are coming off.
Until NHTSA does that review, our committee felt it was probably wrong for us to put that information out until it was verified and we understood the significance of it.
BLITZER: But you know that a lot of people driving Ford Explorers right now with those replacement tires are nervous as a result of what they heard today.
TAUZIN: And they should be. I mean, the information we have right now, preliminary information we have, is that some of these tires may be no more safe than the tires that are being taken off. But the other question that ought to get asked, Wolf, is whether Ford has recalled too many tires or the tires they're recalling are safer than they are claiming.
For example, there were four varieties of Firestone tires that Ford recalled in this 13 million tire recall which Ford never even tested for safety. So there's a lot of unanswered questions here. And what we're trying to find out is what tires are in fact subject to claims of unsafety, which ones our own National Highway Safety Administration will verify as being suitable for replacement before this thing goes much further.
BLITZER: Some of your committee colleagues, mostly Democrats, were complaining, as you well know, that if you release a bombshell like this, you can't just give out half the story, you have to tell the consumer the whole story with the seven brands, the four manufacturers. Don't keep them guessing, because that would be irresponsible.
TAUZIN: We don't know the whole story. See, all we have is the claims data submitted to us by the tire manufacturers. NHTSA has the information on accidents, injuries, on the seriousness of the claims. They have information as to whether are not these claims were the result of tire separation or other damage, problems with the tire. We don't know.
All we know that some of these tires have more claims against them than the tires that are being replaced. That evidence alone tells us to study it, to make sure NHTSA gives us the answer. But we're incapable right now of saying those tires are safer or less safe than the tires they're replacing.
BLITZER: You and your congressional investigators have been looking into this problem for five months.
TAUZIN: Yes.
BLITZER: At this point, would you say the problem is more with the tire, the original Firestone tire, the vehicle itself, the Ford Explorer, or a combination of both?
TAUZIN: I think it's primarily a tire problem. The evidence we've seen is that there was something wrong with most of these Firestone tires that have been produced over the years that are now on Explorers that are causing them to lose their treads in the middle of traffic, and that as a result, they're causing rollovers of these vehicles.
I think Mr. Nasser of Ford is correct when he says that other SUVs had been driving around with these tires, we've been seeing a lot of those vehicles rolling over as well. I think it's primarily a tire problem.
But there have been serious allegations about the automobile itself, the truck, the Explorer.
BLITZER: And that's why you want an investigation of the Explorer itself?
TAUZIN: Well, let me ask you, if Ford is saying, we've tested it and it's fine, and Firestone is saying, we've had our engineers test this vehicle and it's defective, how do we know who's telling us the truth?
BLITZER: So NHTSA, the National Highway Traffic Safety administration, should be the objective third party to come up with the answers, according to you?
TAUZIN: Exactly. Not only on the tires, but on this allegation that Firestone has made that there's something wrong with the steering in the Ford. If there's nothing wrong, we ought to know that. I mean, I'm an Explorer driver: I'd like to know what I believe, that my Explorer is safe. I'd like to continue driving it with the confidence that it's safe. I've got Goodyear tires on it now, replaced those Firestone tires, and I love my vehicle. I'd like to continue driving it. I think it's a safe vehicle. I want NHTSA to tell me it really is.
BLITZER: Billy Tauzin, thanks for joining us.
And up next, he's one of the most durable Major League ballplayers ever. Today, a baseball record-setter says it's time to leave the field. And Rosy the Riveter wouldn't recognize the way they're making this high-tech executive jet. That story is ahead in our "Leading Edge." Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. In other news tonight, convicted murderer and drug trafficker Juan Raul Garza was put to death this morning in Terre Haute, Indiana. He received a lethal injection in same federal execution chamber and on the same gurney that Timothy McVeigh met his end just eight days earlier. Garza's lawyers have argued that the federal death penalty is biased against minorities, but the Supreme Court rejected two appeals, and President Bush denied a petition for clemency.
Authorities in New York are questioning two teenage boys in connection with a fire that killed three firefighters on Father's Day. The officials say the boys may have accidentally knocked over a can of gasoline, sparking fire at a Queens hardware store. Fifty-seven people were injured in the fire.
After 21 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, baseball great Cal Ripken is calling it a career. Baseball's ironman announced his retirement today, effective at the end of the season. Ripken, an 18- time all star, holds the record for the most consecutive games played. Once he hangs up his jersey, Ripken says he plans to spend more time with his family.
Tonight on the "Leading Edge": a new jet design could revolutionize aircraft industry. Instead of rivets, the plane is made of composite materials, like those found in golf clubs. With a look, here is CNN technology correspondent Rick Lockridge.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK LOCKRIDGE, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You won't find Rosie the Riveter on this assembly line. Raytheon aircraft's new business jet, the Premier, has a molded carbon-fiber fuselage, 30 percent lighter than aluminum, and 100 percent rivet- free.
RICHARD DANFORTH, RAYTHEON AIRCRAFT: A similar structure made of an aluminum manufacturing process would literally be thousands of part numbers. Lots of parts, lots of manpower, lots of variability. There is no variability in this fuselage.
LOCKRIDGE: Composite airframes were first developed for fighters. They absorb radar, making jets like the F-22 stealthy. Raytheon likes composites for a different reason -- they save weight, add strength and don't weaken over time.
DANFORTH: The characteristics of this composite are far more stable than an aluminum structure.
LOCKRIDGE: So far, the marketplace seems to approve. Customers have ordered 300 Premieres and $1 billion worth of the larger horizons, enough work to keep this plant humming through 2006.
Rick Lockridge, CNN, Wichita, Kansas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Up next, I'll open our mailbag. Our discussion last night on accused FBI spy Robert Hanssen is generating lots of reaction. Many of you say no to a plea agreement, and yes to the death penalty. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back. Time now to open our mailbag. Many of you reacted to our segment last night on whether prosecutors should seek the death penalty against accused FBI spy Robert Hanssen.
Rich writes from Hong Kong: "After 27 years in the intelligence business, I believe we need to set the example for future traitors and seek the death penalty."
Julie writes from Chattsworth, Georgia: "There should not be any plea agreement. Give him an honest trial and live with a verdict, including the death penalty."
Jonathan from Blacksburg, Virginia writes: "I think the plea bargain is a bad option for the U.S. to take. It tells other internal spies that the worst thing that can happen is they will face a prison term."
But Vikram from Los Angeles disagrees: "It is surprising that we tout ourselves as the most advanced society around, and yet the only fitting punishment we find for heinous crimes is the death penalty."
Remember, I want to hear from you. Please e-mail me at wolf@cnn.com. And you can read my daily online column and sign up for my e-mail previewing our nightly programs by going to my Web site, cnn.com/wolf.
Please stay with CNN throughout the night. Comedy Centrals' Jon Stewart is Larry King's guest at the top of the hour. Up next: Greta Van Susteren. She's standing by to tell us what she has -- Greta.
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, HOST, CNN'S "THE POINT": What I have is "Supreme Injustice," a new book by professor Alan Dershowitz, and it's a sizzler. As usual, Alan takes no prisoners. Congressman Foley from the state of Florida disagrees with him. We'll talk about that.
Plus, the Giuliani divorce. It's still going on -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Thanks, Greta. Sounds very good.
Tomorrow night, I'll talk with Ken Starr and Senator Charles Grassley about the FBI and its recent series of blunders. Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer on Capitol Hill. "THE POINT WITH GRETA VAN SUSTEREN" begins right now.
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