Shots for Terror Suspects - Part 2
| By Wolf Blitzer, Jack Cafferty, Fredricka Whitfield, Barbar |
|---|
xfdhe THE-SITUATION-ROOM-02
<Show: THE SITUATION ROOM>
<Date: November 4, 2009>
<Time: 16:00>
<Tran: 110402CN.V16>
<Type: SHOW>
<Head: Iranian Outrage Boiling Over; Election Aftermath; Swine
Flu Shots for Terror Suspects - Part 2>
<Sect: News; International>
<Time: 17:00>
BLITZER: Just clarify that one little nugget because there's been a lot of concern about the detainees at Guantanamo Bay, that they are going to get the vaccine before people here in the United States who really need it. What's the situation on that?FRIEDEN: It's really a Department of Defense issue but I believe that not to be the case. What we have done at the federal government level provided for the uniformed armed services, provided an allocation of vaccine just for the people serving in the military, and what happens with detainees and others is a different issue.
BLITZER: Is this H1N1, this crisis right now, and it is formally called a pandemic, worse than you thought it would be, about what you thought it would be or not as bad?
FRIEDEN: Influenza is the late predictable of all infectious diseases. We've had good news and bad news. Two pieces of good news. First, it's not more severe than seasonal influenza so we were afraid that not only would it spread widely but that it would be very deadly. It's a serious illness. It's a moderate illness for many people who get it, but it's not that increased deadliness we were worried about and the second piece of good news we got is only a single dose of vaccine is needed.
BLITZER: Even for little kids.
FRIEDEN: Except for kids under ten. Everyone else is well protected by just a single dose.
BLITZER: There are a lot of women out there who are pregnant and they are in the high-risk category. They need to get this vaccine, who are worried about the effect it could have on their baby. I want you to look into the camera and tell them that they have nothing to worry about if that's what you believe.
FRIEDEN: I understand the concern of anyone who is pregnant not to have any medication or shot or other thing that would increase their risk of having a problem or their baby having a problem. What you have to recognize is that there's a risk to not being vaccinated. Not being vaccinated puts you and your pregnancy at risk. We've seen rates of hospitalization and death among pregnant women much higher than the general population. So in everything there's a balance between risk and benefit. Not getting vaccinated also has a significant risk, and this vaccine is made in the same way the vaccine -- the flu vaccine is made every year. Same factories, same companies, same safeguards, same mechanisms and it has an excellent safety record.
BLITZER: The seasonal flu, that kills how many people in the United States every year? I've heard a number of 30,000. I don't know if that's accurate.
FRIEDEN: We estimate that about 36,000 people are killed by seasonal flu every year. The big difference is that 90 percent of people killed by seasonal flu are over the age of 65. With H1N1, 90 percent of the deaths have been in people under the age of 65.
BLITZER: Is it possible that 36,000 people will die in the United States from the H1N1 this year?
FRIEDEN: Only time will tell how many people become ill. Right now the impact looks to be larger than most flu seasons on younger people and less than most flu seasons on older people, but the rest of the season, flu season lasts till May. We have a long time yet.
BLITZER: Is there enough regular seasonal flu vaccine available for the American public?
FRIEDEN: There have been nearly 90 million doses sent out and the seasonal flu vaccine is strictly between the manufacturers and the market. Nearly 90 million doses sent out and another 25 million on the way, but unprecedented demand so we are seeing shortages of seasonal flu vaccine because there's so much awareness and concern about influenza
BLITZER: I received the seasonal flu vaccine as I do every year, but at some point down the road when it's available and all the priority people have received their H1N1 vaccine, do I still need to get the H1N1, do you believe?
FRIEDEN: We hope that there will be enough for everyone who wants to get vaccinated to get vaccinated, and we don't know what the rest of the flu season will hold, so even if H1N1 begins to wane throughout the country, we don't know that it won't come back come flu season which traditionally peaks in December, January and February.
BLITZER: So the answer is yes, if it's available.
FRIEDEN: Yes.
BLITZER: And you'll get it, too.
FRIEDEN: Absolutely.
BLITZER: Have you received it already?
FRIEDEN: No.
BLITZER: Even though you're among first responders right there.
FRIEDEN: We're looking at health workers who are working in hospitals, emergency departments full time as being the highest risk for health care workers.
BLITZER: Well, we're counting on you Dr. Frieden. Thanks very much for helping us better appreciate what's going on.
FRIEDEN: Thank you very much.
BLITZER: A cell phone rivalry turns into a lawsuit. Verizon Wireless takes a jab at AT T and even mocking a well-known tag line. Now the battle is heating up.
Plus, President Barack Obama revealing that even the first family isn't immune to school struggles.
PRES. BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES: She started internalizing that so she came and she was depressed.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: $20 million a point, that's how much the New York City mayor paid for his lead in a race that sent political tongues wagging with its relatively thin victory margin. Let's go to CNN's Mary Snow in New York watching all of this.
Mary, why was this as close as it turned out to be?
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, it seems the polls predicting a clear victory missed brewing anger over the fact that the mayor was actually seeking a third term where two had been the limit until the mayor actually sought to change that. It was also a race for only one in four New York voters actually cast a ballot.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: Even for those who live and breathe New York politics, Mike Bloomberg's mayoral race was a stunner.
DOUG MUZZIO, BARUCH COLLEGE: I was speechless. I -- I couldn't get the words out of my mouth to express my surprise.
SNOW: Surprise at this moment.
BLITZER: This is looking a lot closer than a lot of people thought would be the case.
SNOW: Democratic challenger Bill Thompson who was outspent roughly 14-1 came within striking distance of beating Bloomberg who is expected to be a shoe in. In the end, Bloomberg won by five points.
MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), NEW YORK: Thank you, gracias.
SNOW: The slim margin came after Bloomberg is believed to have spent $100 million of his personal fortune to get re-elected. Why does he think it was so tough? The New York City mayor compared himself to other incumbents.
BLOOMBERG: A tough economy, says political science professor Doug Muzzio, was a factor, but he says New York voters were mostly angered by Bloomberg's move to change the law and run for a third term.
MUZZIO: They were ticked off about term limits. They were inundated with TV ads and flyers and you saw more of Michael Bloomberg than Derek Jeter during the World Series and the playoffs and you got 15 mailers from Mike Bloomberg and it reminded people that this guy was an out-of-touch rich guy who is trying to buy their vote.
SNOW: Bloomberg says pollsters have high favorability ratings and the question is will his influence be diminished now that voters have shown their anger? Lee Miringoff is director of polls at Marist College.
LEE MIRINGOFF, DIRECTOR, MARIST POLL: He's almost in a lame duck role at this point so he'll really have to rev it up and be very clear about what the agenda is. It wasn't what the campaign was about. It was about running. Governing will be a very different picture coming down the next four years.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And while this tough race might embolden Bloomberg's critics, political watchers also say a third term will also embolden Bloomberg since he now does not face re-election. Wolf?
BLITZER: Mary Snow in New York watching the story, thank you.
Verizon has been mocking AT T, and now AT T is firing right back with a lawsuit. They are accusing Verizon, there's a map for that ad, that takes cues from Apple and there's an app for that iPhone campaign of being misleading. Let's bring in Abbi Tatton who will clarify all of this for us.
Why are they suing over these ads, Abbi?
ABBI TATTON, CNN INTEREST REPORTER: You've probably seen these commercials they have run during Monday Night Football and they have plastered all over the Verizon website. Now AT T wants them gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you want to know why your 3G coverage works so great on Verizon Wireless, there's a map for that, and if you want to know why your friend's 3G coverage keeps her out of touch, there's a map for that, too.
TATTON: It's those maps that are now at the center of the lawsuit that was filed yesterday by AT T wanting those Verizon ads pulled off the air, offline as well. They allege that these ads are misleading, misleading people to think that if you're in the white section of the AT T 3G coverage map you're getting no coverage at all, and AT T is saying that's not the case. You are getting coverage in the white section, just not the 3G coverage that makes accessing data so much faster. Now this is a touchy subject for AT T who has been bashed online, especially by iPhone users about complaints about spotty coverage, hence the ad from Verizon in the first place.
BLITZER: What's Verizon going to do about it?
TATTON: Well, Verizon is pointing out that there's a line in their ad that says service is available outside the 3G coverage area. Beyond that they are standing firm. A spokesman for Verizon Wireless e-mailing today to call the law suits and I quote, dumb.
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Abbi, for that.
President Barack Obama shares a disappointing academic performance by one of his daughters.
OBAMA: Malia came home the other day. She had gotten a 73 on her science test.
You're going to hear how the president and his wife reacted and hour their daughter rose to the challenge.
Stand by. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Speaking at a middle school in Madison, Wisconsin, today, President Obama shared a personal story about how one of his daughters is doing in school.
OBAMA: These aren't my prepared remarks but I think it's important to note that Malia and Sasha are just wonderful kids, and Michelle is a wonderful mother, but in our own household, with all the privileges and opportunities that we have there are times -- look, there are times when kids slack off. There are times when they would rather be watching TV or playing a computer game than hitting the books, and part of our job as parents, Michelle and my job, is not just to tell our kids what to do but to start instilling in them a sense that they want to do it for themselves.
So Malia came home the other day. She had gotten a 73 on her science test. Now she's a sixth grader. Now there was a time a couple years ago when she came home with like an 80 something and she said I did pretty well, and I said no, no, no. That's -- I said -- I said our goal -- our goal is 90 percent and up, so she -- but -- here's the interesting thing. She started internalizing that and I said, well, what happened? Well, you know, the teacher, the study guide didn't match up with what was on the test. So what's your idea here? I'm going to start, I'm going to study harder, I'm going to change how I approach it. So she came home yesterday, she got a 95, and she was high-fiving. But here's the point, she said, I just like having knowledge. That's what she said. And what was happening was she had started wanting it more than us. Now once you get to that point, our kids are on our way. But the only way they get to that point is if we're helping them get to that point. So it's going to take that kind of effort from parents to set a high bar in the household. Don't just expect teachers to set a high bar. You got a set a high bar in the household, all across America.
BLITZER: President of the United States sharing some candid comments about his daughter Malia. Do you think that's smart to tell everybody in the world how Malia is doing in school, 73, she worked hard and then she got a 95? Do you think Malia is happy about that?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I don't know. It doesn't matter. She's a child and she has no voting stock. The point is it's an object lesson from a very high profile parent on how you reach kids and get them focused in the right direction. I have got four daughters, I used to tell them, look, you don't have anything else to do in this life. You don't have a job, you don't have to buy the groceries, your job is to go to school and learn something. So do your job. You go to school and I'll go out to work and at night we'll sit down and have a conversation. If I'm not going to work and you're not going to school, it's not going to be happy times around here. It was an important story.
The question this hour, what happens to the chances of health care reform if it doesn't pass this year?
Jay in Flemingsburg, Kentucky, If health care is delayed into next year, it is dead in my opinion. I'm a life long Democrat. I want to add if the Democrats do not this done with a public option, they're dead.
David in Oregon, Reid and Pelosi are the reason nothing is getting accomplished. They will be the reason Democrats lose in the next election. Both of them need to be replaced. It isn't that the Democrats have poor ideas, they simply have poor leadership.
Judy in Arizona writes, I sincerely doubt health care reform will ever pass. The Republicans are sticking to their, 'Don't get sick and if you do, die quickly,' health care plan and the Democrats couldn't work with each other to put out a fire.
Zack writes, Health care reform is doomed and the insurance companies will be the big winners, soon nobody will have health care unless they're very rich.
Lauren in Chicago, If we're lucky, it's dead in the water. President Obama committed a fatal error in not putting his name on any of the proposals in congress leaving it up to the special interest groups to float their own bills and to congress to sort through the mess.
Morris in New Jersey says, Not very likely, while many Democrats insist yesterday's vote was on the local issues, their heads are in the sand. People like me voted Republican because we don't trust the Democratic leadership. A health care plan with 2,000 pages and not a soul knows what's inside? Who in there right mind would vote for a politician who votes for something he or she has not even read.
Ben in New Mexico says, They played this one off so well, I thought for a while they were serious about health care reform. Now I'm laughing with them.
And Tommy says, A delay would be President Obama's second worst nightmare, his first is the health care bill itself. See you in November of 2010.
If you didn't see your e-mail here, we got lots of them, they're on the blog at CNN.com/Caffertyfile. You had little meetings with your daughter while she was growing up.
BLITZER: But I didn't tell the whole world how she was doing in school.
CAFFERTY: Let's talk about it.
BLITZER: Jack Cafferty, thank you very much.
The body county is climbing in a growing case of serial killings. Details of a gruesome new find in a house of horrors. We're live with some new developments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We have received word of an 11th victim discovered at what's become a house of horrors in Cleveland where a registered sex offender is now suspected of being a serial killer. Let's go to our national correspondent, Susan Candiotti. She's on the scene for us.
What's the latest, Susan?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we learn more disturbing details with each passing day. As you said the coroner now says that that skull that was discovered yesterday in a bucket in the basement of the house that you see over my shoulder does belong to an 11th victim. He has described all of the victims as African-American women, nearly all of them strangled. But several questions remain, including how could one person have pulled this off, especially one with a pace maker.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: The shockwaves are hitting even veteran judges.
JUDGE RONALD ADRINE, CLEVELAND MUNICIPAL COURT: In 208 years of being on this bench, this is without question the most serious set of allegations that I have ever faced.
CANDIOTTI: But how in the world could suspect Anthony Sowell or anyone allegedly murder so many victims hiding at least 11 bodies in the middle of a busy neighborhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was nobody know it because everybody sees him around here walking, strapping, picking up cans like a normal person.
CANDIOTTI: Could a normal person invite women in only to have them vanish without anyone noticing? All but one of the women dug up a backyard and found inside the house are nameless. And until there's a DNA match, no one yet knows who they are or where they came from. The one identified victim is 52 years old from a town outside Cleveland reported by her family a year ago. Sowell is an ex-Marine, a registered sex offender who spent 15 years in jail and landed in his family's home living alone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For him to have went to these extremes is just messed up because people don't deserve to have to die like that.
CANDIOTTI: It's not that neighbors didn't smell something awful, a city councilman says even he got a call about it in 2007.
ZACH REED, CITY COUNCILMAN: We received a phone call from a resident that said councilman, there's a foul odor that's coming from across the street and it smells like a dead person. Not dead meat, not dead animal, dead person.
CANDIOTTI: The house is next door to a sausage plant, a smelly sausage plant. A criminal profiler says that killer got lucky.
PAT BROWN, CRIMINAL PROFILER: They should have gone knocking and they should have gone into that home to see if something was amiss there.
CANDIOTTI: Police say they only investigated two calls at that house, one two years ago and the one that lead to the discovery of the first bodies. They deny they dropped the ball.
DEPUTY CHIEF EDWARD TOMBA, CLEVELAND POLICE: We're starting from the point where we got to that house on October 30th and we are working backwards, we're going the keep -- from the time he was in prison, before that, it's going to be a slow process.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
