Return to Transcripts main page

Your World Today

President Bush Holds Press Conference; Iran Nuclear Program Defies U.N. Demands; Brazil Responds to Energy Crisis With Sweet Alternative

Aired April 28, 2006 - 12:20   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The president wrapping up his comments, making reference to the White House Correspondents Dinner, an annual big fest, kind of like the -- the big dinner for White House correspondents there in Washington, D.C.
Let's talk about what the president has been talking about for the last half-hour or so. He came out to tout positive economic numbers, but also answered questions on gas prices, Iran, immigration, among another -- a number of topics as well.

Our John King listening in with us -- John.

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, it was hard to remember that the reason the president came out was to brag that the economy grew by nearly 5 percent in the last quarter. That's good economic news the president obviously wants to get out to the American people, and he obviously would like to get at this very difficult time in his presidency some credit for it. But the questions did take the president off on a number of subjects.

From a foreign policy perspective, the most significant is this diplomatic showdown with Iran over its nuclear program. There, the president choosing his words very carefully. Note the very measured tone from the president saying diplomacy is just beginning.

He has a tough fight trying to win a consensus in the United Nations Security Council on a tough resolution, perhaps threatening sanctions against Iran. So the president doesn't want to use any language now that would suggest he's trying to get ahead, if you will, of what is a very delicate diplomatic process.

Here at home, the president significantly saying he does not agree with those in Congress who believe there should be a new tax on the record profits you're seeing some of the big oil companies getting at this time of high gas prices. The president says that's the wrong way to go. Instead, the oil companies should be pressured to reinvest that money in alternative technologies, in new refineries and new pipelines.

And the president saying he doesn't think -- he said he'll take a look at it, but he doesn't think it is right to abolish FEMA. He says his attitude is, let's fix it, especially with the hurricane season so approaching.

A number of interesting cultural issues. The president saying he opposes that boycott planned by some immigrant groups on May 1st, their way of protesting what they believe is a debate in Washington that is not heading in their direction in terms of what they want in terms of immigration reform. And the president saying he opposes this new Spanish language national anthem.

So, while the president is one of those who shares most of the views of those protesting for a new guest worker program, more liberal immigration policies, he's disagreeing with two of their tactics in that debate -- Daryn.

KAGAN: John, thank you.

Let's look at some of the latest poll numbers, and do that with Bill Schneider.

Bill, you heard John and the president mention Iran. A question. U.S. military action against Iran, what do the people who are asked say about that?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Americans are divided over what should happen in Iran. Only 13 percent say they would like to see immediate military action against Iran. Another 30 percent would be willing to support military action if diplomatic efforts fail. You heard the president talk about diplomatic efforts coming first.

Almost half the public, 46 percent, do not support military action under any circumstances. And that, of course, is a direct consequence of our involvement in Iraq. You find that that number reaches about 60 percent among the majority of Americans who is say the Iraq engagement has been a mistake.

KAGAN: The president came out to tout these positive economic numbers, but the big economic number that a lot of people are looking at are gas prices. The president did talk about that as well.

SCHNEIDER: And gas prices are creating a very big hardship for lots of Americans. Over two-thirds of Americans now say that the rise, the recent increase in gas prices -- you see the number on the left, 69 percent -- that's much higher than a year ago -- are saying that rising gas prices are causing a hardship for themselves and their family.

It's one of the reasons why it's so difficult for the president to get traction on this issue. There is a lot of good economic news, the economy is growing, but a lot of the benefits seem to be accruing to those at the upper end of the income spectrum.

Middle-income Americans, middle class Americans are still finding it tough. Wages have stagnated, and, of course, gas prices are putting a big squeeze on vast numbers of Americans.

KAGAN: Bill, thank you for that.

Another comment from the president had to do with Iran. This on the day when we saw the IAEA deliver its report on Iran and its nuclear program to the Security Council of the United Nations.

Our Aneesh Raman standing by in Tehran with more on that and reaction to what President Bush might have had to say here, and other developments from the U.N. -- Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning.

President Bush saying he wants to see this matter resolved diplomatically. The big question essentially now is, where, whether it be at the U.N., or within the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the IAEA? That's important, because Iran sees those as two different tracks.

We heard today from Iran's president, who all week reminded the world that the country would not suspend its civilian nuclear program, that it is Iran's right to have a program, and they have denied all along it's a weapons program. But we've heard from him say that Iran is willing to work with the IAEA to resolve unanswered questions. But the country is warned that if the matter goes to the U.N. Security Council, and if the U.N. takes action against Iran, it will cease cooperating with the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog and essentially continue its program in secret -- Daryn.

KAGAN: But that deadline for those answers was today, was it not, Aneesh?

RAMAN: It was. And we heard sort of leading up today the defiance about suspending the enrichment program. That is now separate.

The second issue is whether or not Tehran is being up-front with those in the IAEA. And so, they have said they're willing to be more transparent. It will now be incumbent upon Iranian officials to do that with the IAEA, or risk this matter going to the U.N., which they see as something that is beyond anything they can deal with.

But, very defiant terms coming from the Iranian officials, specifically towards the U.S. They have warned against an American strike here. There is a small sense of concern. That could be where this is headed. And they have said if they are attacked, they will respond in kind at American interests around the world.

Iran has maintained it has a civilian nuclear program, but now it will be incumbent upon the leaders here to convince the IAEA of that -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Aneesh Raman, live from Tehran.

Thank you for that.

Now I want to go to some breaking news taking place here in the states, Little Rock, Arkansas. A deputy sheriff taken hostage at a courthouse.

Tony Harris is following that for us -- Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: That's right, Daryn. We are able now to report the peaceful end to this hostage standoff at the Pulaksi County Courthouse in Little Rock, Arkansas, as you mentioned. A lot of activity earlier -- we'll show you some of the pictures -- when a suspect reported as 29-year-old Alonzo Gillam (ph) took a deputy sheriff hostage as he was being transported from a basement holding area to court for a pretrial hearing.

Gillam (ph) was able to take the deputy sheriff hostage with some kind of improvised weapon he was able to fashion. The county courthouse was evacuated. A tactical team was called in. But in the last few minutes, Daryn, the standoff has ended peacefully.

KAGAN: Good news there. Tony, thank you.

HARRIS: Sure thing.

KAGAN: And that's going to wrap up our look at news here in the U.S.

I'm Daryn Kagan. More international news after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Hala Gorani.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy. Welcome to our viewers in the United States, as well. We want to go through some of the headlines now around the world.

The United Nations World Food Program reports it's being forced to cut in half supplies to Sudan because of a lack of funds from donor countries. The food agency has received only $238 million of the $746 million requested this year. The World Food Program supports more than three million people in Darfur.

GORANI: The U.N.'s nuclear watch dog agency confirms that Iran ignoring demands to freeze uranium enrichment. The IAEA delivered a long-awaited report to the U.N. Security Council today, Friday. It says inspectors haven't uncovered any improper activity in Iran's nuclear program, but can't rule it out either. The Security Council is expected to meet next week to consider a response.

CLANCY: The report came just hours after Iran's president warned no amount of threats or sanctions could force his country to abandon its nuclear program. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his country has what he calls an inalienable right to pursue nuclear energy. He rejects accusations from the West that Iran is trying to use civilian nuclear power and that program as a cover to build nuclear weapons.

Let's get reaction from the White House. Ed Henry is standing by. Reaction to that IAEA report from the White House, Ed?

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. In fact, President Bush today, once again, reiterated its his desire to solve Iran's problems both diplomatically and peacefully. He first made that declaration at the tail end of a meeting of the president of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. And he was here today meeting the president in the Oval Office. Azerbaijan, of course, an oil-rich nation, a neighbor of Iran. They have indicated that they would not let their nation be used as a base of operations if there was going to be a military conflict.

But after that meeting, the president went into the Rose Garden, talked about some good numbers that came out today about the U.S. economy, and then basically held a full-scale press conference of over a half hour with the White House press corps. And once again, reiterated his aim to solve this problem diplomatically. The president also reacted to the news of this IAEA report, defying the U.N. demand suspended -- to suspend its nuclear enrichment program.

The president insisted he wants to solve this diplomatically. Take a listen to what he had to say in the Rose Garden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: The IAEA statement is an important statement. It reminds the nations of the world that there is an ongoing diplomatic effort to convince the Iranians to give up their nuclear weapons ambitions. It reminds -- should remind the Iranians that the world is united and concerned about their desire to have not only a nuclear weapon, but the capacity to make a nuclear weapon or the knowledge to make a nuclear weapon, all of which we're working hard to convince them not to try to achieve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: You're going to hear the president trying to walk a fine line there, trying to push back against Iran, make it clear that the world is united against them pursuing this nuclear enrichment program. But also, the president does not want to escalate the rhetoric. As you can tell there -- you remember a few weeks back, there were reports here in the United States that the Bush administration was considering a nuclear strike against Iran to deal with this whole situation. When the president was pressed by a reporter today after that statement, whether or not he thinks a diplomatic options are now dwindling, whether or not war could be coming up, the president insisted diplomacy is only just beginning -- Hala.

GORANI: Ed, the president speaks of a diplomatic and peaceful approach, but there's going to come a time when the U.N. Security Council meets when some measures, some response, is going to have to be decided. What is the White House's position on what response or perhaps what sanctions might be applied in this situation?

HENRY: Well, they've stopped short of actually enumerating which sanctions the U.N. may take and whether or not they want the U.N. to take those sanctions. But, certainly, the White House has left sanctions on the table as an option.

And what the president is also trying to make clear, in his estimation, Iran is not Iraq. In fact, he addressed that head-on in this Rose Garden press conference. There's obviously been a lot of speculation in the United States and around the world that maybe this administration is headed towards war with Iran, that this is a very similar situation to Iraq in the fact that it's now believed, of course, that Iran is pursuing weapons of mass destruction.

The president insisted he does not believe that Iran is Iraq. And he specifically cited that the fact that Iraq had the 16 U.N. resolutions they kept defying. He pointed out that there has not been a U.N. resolution yet. Certainly leaving the door open to pursuing that option, but also trying to make clear to the world that he will pursue diplomacy -- Hala.

GORANI: All right, the president certainly making efforts to underline that distinction. Thank you very much, Ed Henry at the White House -- Jim.

CLANCY: Arrests and deaths have weakened the power structure of al Qaeda, but the network remains the biggest terror threat for the United States and its allies. That according to the State Department's counterterrorism coordinator. He presented this year's terrorism report just a short while ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY CRUMPTON, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT: Our collective international efforts have harmed al Qaeda. Its core leadership no longer has effective global command and control of its networks. The few enemy leaders that have avoided death or capture find themselves isolated and on the run. Thus al Qaeda increasingly emphasizes its ideological and propaganda activity to help advance its cause.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: The report concludes that, overall, the world is in just the first phase of a very long war on terror. It also singles out Iran as the most active state sponsor of terrorism, adding that the country's military and intelligence agencies are directly involved in the planning and support of terrorist acts, mostly with Hezbollah or Hamas. The U.S. counts 11,000 terror attacks around the world last year. That is a three-fold increase.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Now Iraqi forces say they've killed a local al Qaeda leader and two insurgents in a raid north of Baghdad. Bit by bit, Iraqi forces are taking a larger role in securing the country. In the town of Fallujah, the site of some of the most intensive fighting, Iraqi security forces are working to gain the trust of their residents. But for the people who call Fallujah home, it is far, very far, from an ideal situation.

Arwa Damon has this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a sweltering 100 degrees. Haifam (ph) and his family have been crammed in their car for four hours. This is one of six entry control points around Fallujah. But even when Haifam finally gets through the the wait and makes it home...

"Where is the power, the water?" he says, "Didn't you just go to Fallujah and see the destruction?"

Allah (ph), a 23-year-old police officer, is listening to our conversation. "I try to calm them down," he says. "I try to tell them things to make them feel better."

Fallujans, mainly Sunni, are close to their fledgling police force, some 1,000 strong, recruited from the city and led by a no- nonsense former Iraqi army colonel.

Police chief Sala Halemi (ph): "We will build according to solid principles and training," he bellows at the opening of the city's new police headquarters.

But behind barbed wire, Iraqis waiting in line for the Fallujah badges, which allow them entry into the city, had harsh words about the Iraqi army, mainly Shia and seen as outsiders here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't treat the civilian a good treatment. They sometimes hit the civilians inside Fallujah. They don't respect the civilians. They look to us as a tourist, all of us.

DAMON: The U.S. military training Iraqi troops recognizes this as being a very real problem, and is recruiting local Sunnis to gain the trust of the people. But everyone is trying to work together, and security is much better.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you told me last year you're going to the Fallujah, sitting with the mayor and the sheikhs, I'd say you're out of your mind. I'm not doing that without, you know, 400 marines backing me up.

DAMON (on camera): Despite security measures at entry control points like these, insurgents have still found ways to enter Fallujah, not in large numbers, but enough to cause trouble.

(voice-over): This is an area where marines have been getting shot at regularly. And the challenge is finding out who is attacking them, a frustrating and elusive enemy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I said, well, do you know where the insurgents are? Can you help us find them? And they're like, no, no, we don't know anything. So it becomes -- the situation's bad, but then it turns into we don't know where they are. So that's a common theme around here.

DAMON: The hope is that as Iraq's government comes together, the common theme here will change from one of anxiety to one of hope.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Fallujah, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GORANI: All right, we're going to take a short break. When we come back, we all know sugar boosts your body's energy.

CLANCY: Yes, but the real question is, could it do the same thing for our cars, Hala? One country, Brazil, is very sweet on that idea.

We're going to tell you about its success story on the road to being energy efficient when we come back. This is CNN International.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GORANI: Welcome back.

CLANCY: That's right. You're watching YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International.

GORANI: All right. With the price of oil holding above $70 a barrel for crude, the rush for alternative oil is on.

CLANCY: That's right. And Brazil could show one way the world could move forward to try to solve its energy crunch. The answer lies in the country's sugarcane fields.

Helena Cavandish de Moura reports from Sao Paulo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HELENA CAVANDISH DE MOURA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): San Paulo, population, 10.8 million, one of the world's largest cities, crowded, polluted. It is the commercial engine of Brazil's surging economy, a metropolis to match any in the world, but with a difference: With every passing day, San Paulo the city is less and less reliant on imported oil. The city's increasingly powered by what's harvested in the emerald fields that spread across the hillsides less 100 kilometers away, sugarcane.

Less than half of the cane that's grown in this area is converted into sugar. The rest ends up at distilleries, such as this one, Viewzina Zonswon (ph), where it's converted into ethanol, the fuel that helps power Brazil's new industrial revolution.

Over the past two decades, Brazil has pioneered the use of ethanol in the process of becoming the largest producer and exporter in the world. Its forecast that a further 20 million hectares of Brazil's land will be planted with sugarcane in the next five years. Much of the additional ethanol produced will end up back in San Paulo and other Brazilian cities, in motorists' gas tanks in place of gasoline. Every time the price of oil rises above $37 a barrel, it becomes cheaper for Brazilians to fill up with ethanol than gasoline.

Many new cars sold here offer flex-fuel technology. They'll run on any combination of gasoline and ethanol.

Once cool toward ethanol, the major car manufacturers in Brazil are now converts, and are promising a new generation of flex-fuel vehicles. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've never seen in any market anywhere in the world an automotive technology that was so quickly adopted in the marketplace. We believe what we're doing here in Brazil with flex technology is a model that we can use in any market in the world that is interested in flex-fuel. We have an expertise here. We've mastered the technology.

DE MOURA: This year, for the first time, the number of flex-fuel cars out numbered the sales of conventional gasoline vehicles.

(on camera) With oil prices at a record high, several countries are looking to Brazil's ethanol program as a model.

However, a growing need for sugarcane fields also raises both environmental and economic challenges.

(voice-over): Ethanol may be less polluting than oil, but it doesn't come with an altogether clean bill of health.

Dr. Paulo Alfonso is internationally known for his role as an environmental attorney in Brazil. In the past, he's taken sugar and ethanol refineries to court for poisoning rivers with toxic waste.

PAULO ALFONSO, ATTORNEY (through translator): The great problem I see in the expansion of sugar fields is that the authorities are not doing comprehensive surveys on how these plantations will affect the biodiversity, local indigenous tribes and the water quality. I don't think farmers have paid attention to these adjacent areas we call areas of permanent preservation, the ones responsible for keeping our rivers clean.

DE MOURA: Scientists in Brazil are working to perfect the art of ethanol production, while looking for new ways to use this versatile crop.

DR. EDGAR BEAUCLAIR, SAO PAULO UNIVERSITY (through translator): Sugarcane also has the most highly recyclable organic matter of most crops. It's waste can be reused for several purposes, including as fertilizer, natural pesticides and for fuel.

Recycling is good business for producers because you don't pollute the environment and produce more sugarcane at lower cost.

DE MOURA: And for Brazil's labor force, recycling means more jobs in a country where opportunity is limited, while resources are abundant.

Helena Cavandish de Moura for "GLOBAL CHALLENGES," Sao Paulo, Brazil.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Once again, we're going to take a short break. But coming up here on YOUR WORLD TODAY, two California men sharing a troubled past.

GORANI: The victim and the perpetrator come together in an unlikely place, in the name of tolerance.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: Welcome back.

In the U.S. state of Texas, a civil rights group is demanding that a hate crime charge be added to those against two white teens accused of brutally attacking a Hispanic boy. One of the teens appeared in court on Thursday, both defendants facing aggravated sexual assault charges which carry a maximum of five years to life in prison. The 16-year-old victim is in critical condition. The defendants allegedly shouted racial slurs as a boy was beaten into submission behind this house. Police say the attack occurred after the victim tried to kiss a 12-year-old white girl at a party.

GORANI: Seriously makes you ill.

Now, to the west in the state of California, another story of an attacker and a victim.

CLANCY: But this is a different story, a tale of a remarkable turn-around.

GORANI: Dan Simon follows one man's journey from hating to helping am.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hail victory!

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cross burnings and swastikas, symbols of hate that had once defined Tim Zaal.

TIM ZAAL, FORMER WHITE SUPREMACIST: In my mind, I was saving my race. I was saving my country from destruction.

SIMON: Tim is a former neo-Nazi skinhead who served time in prison for committing a hate crime, beating an Iranian couple he had mistaken for Jews. His enemy list was long.

(on camera): You were targeting African-Americans.

ZAAL: Enemy.

SIMON: Jews?

ZAAL: The perceived enemy, whoever that enemy was.

SIMON (voice-over): Matthew Boger would have made that list. As a 14-year-old gay runway, he would not have wanted to cross paths with Tim.

MATTHEW BOGER, VICTIM OF HATE CRIME: The hardcore part of it is that I would be going through trash cans, just as any other homeless person or a kid living on the streets, trying to survive and not end up statistic, not end up dead on the streets. SIMON: That they are now sitting together is one thing. That they're now good friends is something more.

(on camera): This story begins in 1981, Matthew says he used to hang out with some friends at an old fast-food place in West Hollywood. One night, he saw a group of teens clearly looking for trouble. Matthew says the next thing he knew, he was laying in his own blood after being beaten, kicked and knocked unconscious.

BOGER: This is where it -- the actual incident took place.

I just remember a few of them yelling the words, "Get the faggots. Let's just get the faggots."

SIMON: There is no official record of the incident. Matthew feared a call to the police or hospital would land him in foster care, but apparently there was a witness.

ZAAL: I remember maybe looks of fear.

SIMON: Tim Zaal says that was the area where he used to troll, attacking people like Matthew just for being gay.

ZAAL: It's like being intoxicated with rage.

SIMON: He says there were so many attacks, so many victims, his doesn't remember faces. But does believe he took part in beating up Matthew.

Matthew remembers Tim being there.

SIMON (on camera): Is there any doubt whatsoever that Tim is the guy who beat you?

BOGER: There's no doubt. On either side of us, there's no doubt, absolutely.

SIMON (voice-over): Matthew says the beating left him traumatized for years, afraid of being in public places, afraid even of going to the movies.

Tim Zaal eventually became a leading member of the National White Aryan Resistance Group, and a disciple of Tom Metzger, a former wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are reached Aryan Update, a production of war.

SIMON: But then, about 10 years ago, Tim says an incident in a grocery store with his then 2-1/2-year-old son made him start questioning his racist beliefs.

ZAAL: He actually pointed out an African-American gentleman and said the "N" word, expecting a cookie, expecting some sort of positive reinforcement. SIMON: As people looked on with scorn and disbelief, Tim felt embarrassed and ashamed. Over time, he says, he became remorseful -- so much so, he decided a couple years later to dedicate his life to abolishing hate. And that's what led Tim and Matthew to meet again.

(on camera): It was here at Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. Matthew was organizing a high school talk on hate about a year ago, and heard about a former skinhead named Tim who connected well with audiences. Then, over lunch, while talking about their life experiences, Matthew realized he knew Tim's face.

What went through your mind when you realized that this was the guy who caused you so much pain?

BOGER: Well, interestingly enough, we're sitting in the Museum of Tolerance. So I was like, OK, what do I do with this? I mean, I was in shock.

ZAAL: I think we both kind of reflected on it for maybe a couple weeks.

SIMON (voice-over): Matthew realized he didn't feel angry; instead, he felt inspired. He and Tim realized their connection could have an impact on others.

BOGER: When you look at a person, it is a human being you are looking at.

SIMON: On this day to students at the museum...

ZAAL: I did have a lot of anger towards society in general.

SIMON: ... Tim and Matthew now speak to audiences together. They're a powerful combination.

BOGER: You have the perpetrator, you have the victim. It's unusual. It's a rare story.

SIMON: A story of how one bad night ended up showing the way towards something good.

Dan Simon, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: That's a good story that you like to see. That's our report for now.

GORANI: Right. And we're going to have a lot more on Iran, Jim, of course, and that confrontation between Tehran and some Western countries after that IAEA report was delivered to the U.N.

CLANCY: Really, we've been waiting for this for a long time, building up to when the report is delivered. Now, that doesn't mean there's going to be any immediate action. But what you can look at is could this report influence the minds of other people on the Security Council? China and Russia still holding back, saying show us a smoking gun. I've read parts of that report, and I didn't see a smoking gun.

GORANI: And it's a question of how now Iran will react, now that the report is highlighting the fact that there are still questions that need to be answered.

CLANCY: All right. LIVE FROM is up next for our viewers in the United States.

GORANI: For viewers elsewhere, another hour of YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Hala Gorani.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy, and this is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com