Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Military to Assist Firefighters as Wildfires Rage Across the West

Aired August 17, 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, as wildfires rage across the West, firefighters get help from the military, but no help from the weather.

On the anniversary of a World War II battle, 13 Marines are finally laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. We'll tell you why it's taken so long.

A day before memorial services for Maureen Reagan, I'll speak with Michael Reagan about his sister's battle against cancer, his father's battle with Alzheimer's, and Ronald Reagan's legacy, 20 years to the week after his tax cut began the Reagan Revolution.

They may be happy to pay the taxes, if that's the price for winning the Power Ball lottery. The jackpot, more than $120 million.

Good evening. I'm Wolf Blitzer, reporting tonight from Washington.

There's a war going on out West, and the weary troops are seeking reinforcements. The war is against 33 major wildfires. Twenty-two thousand firefighters already have been deployed to the front lines, but that's not enough. So the authorities are mobilizing the military, and that's our top story.

Thousands of Marines, soldiers, and National Guard volunteers will soon be joining the men and women battling Western wildfires for what promises to be a long, hot weekend. More than 584,000 acres have been burned in several Western states and Texas. The Pacific Northwest is suffering the worst of the flames. Washington Governor Gary Locke, says, quote, "We're throwing anybody and everybody that we can at these fires."

One hundred Oregon National Guard troops are already fighting the flames. More soldiers were training today for deployment to the front lines tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS ROBERTS: And like, an excellent thing to do to help out the people who were in strife and to help the brave souls who had been out there for three and a half months already fighting the fires to maybe get a chance to get out there and get them some relief. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Weather, of course, is one of the biggest factors in fighting wildfires. Let's check in with Karen Maginnis at the CNN Weather Center in Atlanta to see if this weekend's forecast is going to help or hinder fire crews.

Karen?

KAREN MAGINNIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it looks like it is going to be a hindrance. We will see some cooler weather conditions. As a matter of fact, our long-range weather picture indicates it's going to be substantially cooler. But until then, we've got a weak weather disturbance moving across this region, a few clouds. The winds have shifted primarily in the Western portion of the state.

Take a look at the bigger picture. An area of low pressure here, frontal system right to the south, but you can see it really drops off right across Washington and Oregon. We saw a few showers earlier, as I've mentioned, in the western edge of the state, but to the south we are watching a lot of that hot air blowing farther to the north.

And that is what has kept those temperatures exceptionally hot at this hour. It looks like, Wolf, the temperature in Boise, 100 degrees, could be in the '70s, though, by Sunday. So that is the double-edged sword.

BLITZER: And Karen, I know you're also keeping an eye on another totally -- a different weather story, namely tropical storm Chantal out in the Caribbean. What's the latest on that front?

MAGINNIS: Well, it looks like Chantal, we're waiting for our latest update, it comes at 8:00 p.m. from the National Hurricane Center. It is sitting out here in the open waters of the Caribbean. Looks very impressive on our satellite imagery.

Here's kind of a different view. I checked the radar conditions out of Puerto Rico. We're already picking up some of the bands coming in from this weather system. We take it on a trek towards the west, eventually towards the northwest, and perhaps, it looks like by the start of the work week, we might anticipate this to move through the Yucatan Peninsula.

Here's a closeup view of what happens across the Caribbean. And I'll be here throughout the Weather Center, throughout, it looks like, the next several days, monitoring this weather system.

Wolf?

BLITZER: OK, Karen Maginnis. And of course we'll be monitoring that weather system as well as the latest on the fires throughout the weekend.

Turning now to the disappearance of Chandra Levy, as the investigation stalls, the family of the missing intern is working to keep the case in the spotlight. Let's go live to CNN national correspondent Bob Franken. He joins us tonight from Modesto, California.

Bob, tell us what's happening.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, Chandra Levy has been missing now for more than three months, and in an era where there's a shorter and shorter attention span for news, this story has been continuing and won't go away.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(voice-over): The investigation into the disappearance of Chandra Levy has bogged down, and every time it seems to be slipping from public view, the Levy family and its spokesman hammer relentlessly at Congressman Gary Condit, the man police say again and again is not a suspect.

BILLY MARTIN, LEVY FAMILY ATTORNEY: He's hiding something. His -- he's acting very suspiciously.

FRANKEN: Appearing on CNN's "BURDEN OF PROOF," Levy family attorney Billy Martin demanded yet again that Condit allow Martin's private detectives to interrogate him.

MARTIN: As a criminal suspect, he's under no responsibility. As a congressman, as a human being who was having a relationship with a woman who's now missing, he does have a responsibility.

FRANKEN: There was no reaction this time from the California congressman or his advisers. But on Wednesday, Condit's attorney told CNN he knew of no one in Washington who had been more cooperative.

ABBE LOWELL, CONDIT'S ATTORNEY: He's had four occasions to talk to the police and the FBI. He allowed people into his house for three hours to search everything they could possibly find. He submitted to a private polygraph by the FBI's most experienced polygraph examiner.

FRANKEN: The Levys' attorney denied published reports that the family would return $10,000 Condit contributed to a more than $200,000 reward fund, despite their belief he is partly to blame for the former Washington intern's disappearance.

MARTIN: If that money or that reward will help to bring Chandra back or to obtain information on her whereabouts, they'll keep the money in there.

FRANKEN: And there is some evidence that the family's attempt to keep the story in front of the public has worked. Thousands of letters addressed only to "The Levys" have streamed into the main post office in Modesto, California.

DAN DE MIGLIO, U.S. POSTAL SERVICE: Yesterday we had a big day. We had about 50 pieces yesterday, but we're average about 25 to 30 pieces a day.

(END VIDEOTAPE) FRANKEN: Well, that was the day after the Levys had appeared on "LARRY KING LIVE" on CNN. The Levys are doing everything they can, Wolf, to keep this story in the spotlight, in controversy, at the very same time that Congressman Condit and his advisers are getting closer to figuring out exactly how he will address publicly this controversy.

BLITZER: Bob Franken in Modesto, thank you very much.

And in other news tonight, the nation's number two auto maker is cutting jobs. Ford announced today it's slashing 4,000 to 5,000 jobs, most through early retirement. Ford says declining sales and market share is forcing this cost-cutting step. That bleak news contributed to a tumble on Wall Street. The Dow dropped 151 points, the Nasdaq fell 63 points to its lowest point in four months. And the S&P 500 slipped 19 points.

They fell on a daring raid against the Japanese in the bleak period that followed Pearl Harbor. Their remains were left on Makon (ph) Island when the Marine raiders pulled out. Now, a final homecoming.

On the 59th anniversary of the battle, 13 of the Marines were laid to rest today at Arlington National Cemetery. Six other bodies have been returned to families. One of the surviving raiders, retired colonel Joe Griffith, looks back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RET. COL. JOE GRIFFITH, UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS: Although I'm convinced that the Japanese knew we were coming, they just didn't know when. Course, we never really knew how many were there. But from the best intelligence estimates, I think we were told there were between 80 and 100, and there were 200 of us. So we had a two-for-one advantage, plus the fact we thought we'd have a total surprise.

And it turned out we didn't. We all sort of landed together, and unfortunately, our security was breached by an accidental firing of a Browning automatic rifle, which indicated we were on shore.

My worst memory is -- is -- well, Bill Gallagher. I was right next to Gallagher when he was killed. We came under fire and hit the deck, and I heard a noise and turned, and there was Bill.

And as in Colonel Carlson's after-action report, as he said, that it's an axiom of warfare that no matter how bad your situation is, the enemy's may be worse. And theirs was much worse than ours. Evans (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Carlson was absolutely the biggest man I've ever seen. Sometimes we felt he was sort of brave to the point of foolhardiness. But he set an example for all of us.

KAREN CARLSON, GRANDDAUGHTER: There were 18 men who had been killed in action, 12 men reported missing in action. One of the last things that my grandfather did was pay a local native $50 to bury his men. He promised to bring them home someday. And unfortunately he was wounded in Saipan and eventually died and was unable to fulfill that promise. GRIFFITH: When they finally found them and brought them first to Pearl Harbor and then back here, and I can't tell you how pleased we all are that they're home. Thank God they're home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: And a federal judge has dismissed a suit to block construction of a World War II memorial here in Washington's National Mall. That allows officials to go ahead with a planned groundbreaking in less than two weeks. Opponents say the memorial would block sightlines and reduce green space on the mall.

On the eve of a memorial service for Maureen Reagan, I'll discuss the Reagan legacy with the son of former president Ronald Reagan, Michael Reagan.

And the odds may be 80 million to one, but they're snapping up tickets for the big Power Ball jackpot. We'll go live to the ticket line.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

A memorial service will be held tomorrow for Maureen Reagan, who died last week of skin cancer. She fought a long campaign against that disease and against Alzheimer's, which has afflicted the former president.

A short while ago, I discussed the Reagan legacy with her brother, Michael Reagan.

Michael Reagan, thank you so much for joining us. And first of all, our deepest condolences to you and to your entire family on the loss of your sister, Maureen.

Briefly, how is the family holding up?

MICHAEL REAGAN, SON OF RONALD REAGAN: Well, I mean, tomorrow's not going to be a good day. I think everybody knows that. Wolf, I mean, we're all holding up. It's something I think we all knew that was coming. But when it gets here, it's very hard to be able to handle. We're just glad that we were able to say goodbye two her a couple of weeks ago before she passed away.

BLITZER: Is -- do you have any sense that your dad comprehends his loss?

REAGAN: Oh, I don't know, Wolf. I know that Nancy told my father what had happened to Maureen. I don't know really any more than that, and how much his mind's able to understand.

BLITZER: What do you believe will be Maureen Reagan's lasting legacy?

REAGAN: Helping others, always being there at the forefront to help other people, whether it was politics in the very beginning of her life, and Equal Rights Amendment, or whether it was later on, where she worked on behalf of people with arthritis. The Alzheimer's Foundation, she got very much involved with because of our father. Also, those people who have skin cancer, melanoma, that took my sister's life, she was always there to really try and help other people.

When you wanted someone to be out front, someone who could go out and carry your message, you picked up the phone and you called 1-800- MAUREEN, and she was there for you. And that's going to be truly the legacy that she's going to leave behind, other than really being the one, probably in the last few years, who's done the most to try and really keep our family together, to be there for my mother, to be there for my dad, and really be there for all of us.

BLITZER: You know, people tend to belittle the significance of skin cancer. She had the most serious form, melanoma, and she eventually became a crusader and tried to get people to understand the dangers of all skin cancer, but especially melanoma, didn't she?

REAGAN: Absolutely right. You know, my father had it on his nose, I think when he was president of the United States, he had some taken off. But she became quite a crusader for them. I was talking to my dermatologist the other day and said, "What's the number one reason to keep people away from you?" Because people are afraid of what the doctor's going to tell them. They don't come in for their yearly checkup.

And just like you get a checkup for your other health needs, it's important to see a dermatologist and make sure that all the moles on your body are being looked at by your dermatologist, and be there when you're supposed to go in for your checkups. I mean, that's so, so very important. And in the world that we live in today, so often we get so busy doing other things that sometimes we forget about our own health.

And I think that's another legacy that Maureen would like to leave, how important your own health is, and to go to the doctor, get the checkups that you need, and make sure, make sure that you take care of yourself so that you can go out and maybe take care of others.

BLITZER: And of course she was a crusader in the battle against Alzheimer's, the disease that's ravishing your own father. Is there someone who's going to fill that void that she now will leave in the battle against Alzheimer's?

REAGAN: I don't know who could fill Maureen's void. I mean, she was a big voice there. But there's so many other people that are out there each and every day that are speaking. But of course Maureen had a huge voice because of her dad. The fact that this was something that, you know, he is fighting, and every day takes a little bit more of his life. And so she was so very close to it, and my father being a former president, got a lot of media, and she was able to bring a lot of attention.

I mean, just to show you Maureen, here she is tomorrow laid to rest, and what does she want? She didn't want flowers, she wants people to give to Alzheimer's. She wants people to be able to give to help someone else, someone who's maybe dying of the disease that her father is, Alzheimer's.

Maureen was somebody who was always thinking of other people.

BLITZER: And on that specific point, Michael, I want to alert our viewers that the Reagan family does say in lieu of flowers, that those of our viewers who do want to do something for Maureen, they can make a contribution, and we'll put it up on the screen, either to the Maureen Reagan Tribute Fund of the Alzheimer's Association, Eureka College, which was the alma mater of President Reagan, and the President -- Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation as well.

While I have you, Michael, this week you probably know, marks the 20th anniversary of the Reagan tax cut, the -- what many people believe was the Reagan revolution, the major signature achievement that Reagan tax cut, is that the legacy of your own dad's presidency?

REAGAN: Well, I think that, and of course helping bring down that wall, "Bring down that wall, Mr. Gorbachev," the end of the cold war.

But Wolf, to be honest with you, if he doesn't get the tax cut passed, if that does not happen, then the wall never comes down. He's never able to do what he needs to do to bring Gorbachev back to the table there in Geneva back in 1986. So that tax cut really became the standard by which everything else happened in Washington, D.C., where he proved he could go over the heads of Congress, and he could get even a Tip O'Neill to come on board and say, Yes, I believe the Democrats in the Senate should be voting for this tax cut.

I mean, that was a major, major thing that he was able to accomplish. And I think it -- today we're seeing it happen again, where George W. Bush, number 43, is following the Ronald Reagan standard of the 1980s in giving us a tax cut, and that's so very important.

BLITZER: And let's hear from your father during that first year of his presidency in 1981, 20 years ago, when he laid out that agenda. Let's listen to President Reagan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, February 18, 1981)

RONALD WILSON REAGAN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This plan is aimed at reducing the growth in government spending and taxing, reforming and eliminating regulations which are unnecessary and unproductive or counterproductive, and encouraging a consistent monetary policy aimed at maintaining the value of the currency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: As you remember that, Michael, there were large deficits as during those years as well. Could President Bush be falling into that deficit spending trap? Because even this week, as you know, the headlines are that the budget surpluses are not going to be as robust as a lot of people thought.

REAGAN: But the key there, Wolf, is, there's still going to be budget surpluses. There's not going to be deficits. There's still going to be budget surpluses, maybe not $275 billion, maybe $160 billion. But that's still a budget surplus.

And when Dad took over, remember, there were already deficits going on there. When he left in 1989, he had in fact lowered the deficits down to $152 billion. As far as percentage of GDP, when he went in it was 2.8 percent, when he left it was 2.9 percent. So the process was working.

But we need to remember (UNINTELLIGIBLE) of 1982, with a Democrat Congress of the United States, promised Ronald Reagan $2 in spending cuts for every dollar in new taxes to save Social Security, my father today in Bel-Air, California, is still waiting for the $2 in spending cuts. Had he gotten it, we might have balanced the budget in the 1980s.

BLITZER: All right, Michael Reagan, our thoughts are with you and your entire family this weekend. CNN, of course, will have extensive coverage of your sister's funeral during the course of tomorrow.

Thank you so much for joining us once again.

REAGAN: Wolf, thank you.

BLITZER: And up next, this weekend's Power Ball is proving to be a powerful draw for millions of would-be millionaires. The giant jackpot, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

Feeling lucky? Pick a number and get in line. The Power Ball lottery frenzy is spreading fast in the 21 participating states and the District of Columbia, seen here in blue.

CNN's Jason Carroll joins us now from an area convenience store in Washington, where ticket sales are brisk. Jason?

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we are here. This is a place for dreamers, people who dream about paying off their mortgage or paying all their bills, or in my case, at least, paying off your student loans.

This is all about Power Ball. The jackpot is up to $128 million. And a lot of folks come out to the Tenley minimart, and they look for this machine, because a lot of people think this is a lucky machine, Wolf. They've never had a jackpot winner here, but they've had 20 second-place finishers. So that's why a lot of people have been coming out here throughout the day to try to cash in on their dreams.

Now, let me do a little bit of math for you here. Again, the jackpot is $128 million. If you decide to take the lump sum, you're talking about about $71 million. If you decide to go for the annuity plan, for 28 years you get about $5 million. Not bad.

The -- this Power Ball is played in 21 states and the District of Columbia. The drawing is tomorrow. So if you're feeling lucky -- and Wolf, I assume that you are -- you still have time to get out and get your ticket.

Wolf?

BLITZER: Jason Carroll, I'm heading over to Tenley Square right after this program. Thank you very much.

Up next, I'll open our mail bag. Pharmacists around the country are up in arms because of our program last night. I'll tell you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back.

Time now to open our mail bag. Many of you reacted angrily to the case of the Kansas City pharmacist who allegedly diluted prescriptions.

Ellen from Giddings, Texas, writes this. "I really think you should give equal air time, or at least a sentence or two, to the thousands of hard-working, honest, compassionate, smart pharmacists who are not only there day after day to take -- to care for blood pressure, colds, and rashes, but pay attention to potentially serious and life-threatening things like drug-drug interactions, drug-food interactions, drug allergies, serious side effects, and the like."

Good point, Ellen.

And Ed, also from Texas, adds this. "Wolf, before you go blasting my profession of pharmacy, let me tell you that very few of us ever compound those medications or do any compounding at all. We are the most regulated profession there is."

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 preview on your nightly programs by going to my Web site, cnn.com/wolf.

That's all the time we have tonight. Thanks very much for watching.

I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.

"THE POINT WITH GRETA VAN SUSTEREN" 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.fdch.com