How the White House Will Handle July Fourth Fears; Will the WoldCom Scandal Affect Voting?; J.C. Watts Will Quit After Fourth Term
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Judy Woodruff in Washington. Americans are gearing up for a holiday of fireworks and perhaps fears. What are officials doing to keep us safe from terror on the Fourth of July?</s>JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I'm John King at the White House. I'll tell you whether the Bush administration is likely to place the nation on an even higher level of alert.</s>WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I'm Bill Schneider in Los Angeles. Politicians are talking a lot about corporate responsibility. But is the WorldCom scandal making a big impression on voters?</s>KATE SNOW, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kate Snow on Capitol Hill. The only African-American Republican in the U.S. Congress calls it quits. I'll look at J.C. Watts' decision and the hole it leaves in the Republican leadership.</s>WOODRUFF: Thank you for joining us. On this July 1, the possibility of a terror attack on Independence Day is on the minds of many Americans as they begin vacations or as they start to seriously consider their plans for the fourth. For its part, the Bush administration is urging people to go ahead and celebrate the nation's birthday, but also to keep their guards up.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In Washington, D.C. we've got a lot of good folks who are spending a lot of time chasing down any hint or any lead, any idea that somebody might have to hurt us. We're on it. The president's national security team met today but decided not to raise the official threat level. But the FBI is asking law enforcement agencies to be extra vigilant. On Wednesday the Bureau sent a private alert to some 18,000 state and local agencies. The FBI itself plans to monitor major events and parades. Here in Washington, as the fireworks are being prepared for another spectacular display, the mayor is promising extra security. And in New York, Mayor Michael Bloomberg urged people to plan for the fourth without fear.</s>MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (R), NEW YORK CITY: The overriding message that we have concerning security in New York on the fourth is, relax and let our law enforcement professionals do the worrying for you. It will be the best way to stick it to the terrorists. It will show them that we are not afraid and that they have not succeeded.</s>WOODRUFF: Our senior White House correspondent, John King, is here now. John, we reported the national security staff council advising not to raise the terror, the threat level. Why not?</s>KING: They say, Judy, here at the White House there's simply not enough credible specific evidence to do so. The homeland security council, Governor Tom Ridge, hosting that meeting. The attorney general was here today, other law enforcement officials across the administration. Yes, as you pointed out, there is a concern that July Fourth could be an intriguing and perhaps irresistible target to the terrorists. But sources here tell us there is no specific or credible information at all suggesting there would be an attack on any specific site here in the United States. Because of that, it simply does not meet the guidelines for raising the threat level, which is now at yellow, which says elevated -- there's an elevated risk, in the view of the government -- of a terrorist strike. To go up to the next level, orange, would be a high risk. U.S. officials say the intelligence data they look at, while troubling sometimes, simply doesn't meet that test.</s>WOODRUFF: John, is there some concern that people might not take these threats seriously and then let their guard down after the Fourth?</s>KING: After the Fourth is a deep concern to many folks here at the White House, especially in the homeland security apparatus. They would argue not that the government shouldn't prepare for July Fourth, but if you look at the M.O. of al Qaeda and other terrorist groups, that they are unlikely to attack what are called hardened targets, meaning when security is at its peak. Why would they attack then? The greater concern here in the White House is that the American people will once again hear all this talk of warnings, all this talk of potential threats of attacks. And if the holiday weekend passes, as we hope it does, with no terrorist attacks, that after that people might get complacent and let down their guard. The administration says that's one of the reasons they don't want to jump up the threat level, just to bring it down after the holiday. They want people to view this as credible when they do adjust that threat level.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, John King at the White House. And now we want to go to one of the places where security is being tightened for July Fourth, and that is the national mall here in Washington. CNN's Jeanne Meserve is there. Jeanne, is there a concern that all of this talk about the terror threat, about increased security measures, is going to keep people away?</s>JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is some concern. I spoke to at least one official today who expressed the opinion that perhaps people would be nervous. But we've talked to many tourists down here this afternoon. Not one of them has indicated they plan to stay away from the festivities. They plan to come. The security preparations here have been extensive. Miles and miles of snow fencing are being put up. That's going to create a double perimeter around the entire mall. Two-thousand federal and local police officers from 16 different agencies will be here. They're going to be not only screening people, but looking in coolers and in backpacks. There are going to be dozens of bomb- sniffing dogs and other sorts of detection technology that's a little less obvious. They're closing the D.C. bank of the Potomac River. The Memorial bridge, which as you know, is a major route between Virginia and D.C., will be shut down. A subway stop which has an entrance and exit on the mall will also be shut down that day. It is a huge effort. The hope is that it will be big enough to deter terrorists, but not so big that it will deter tourists. They want people to come down and show the colors, particularly this July Fourth -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Jeanne Meserve on the mall near the Washington Monument. Thanks, Jeanne. And now we turn to the WorldCom scandal. The embattled company told the Securities and Exchange Commission today that its accounting problems may go back as far as 1999. As new details surface, our new poll shows 20 percent of Americans think misconduct by large corporations is at a crisis level. Fifty-seven percent say it is a major problem. Seventeen percent say a minor problem. Only 3 percent say it is not a problem. Our senior political analyst Bill Schneider is with us now from Los Angeles. Bill, did Democrats have some advantage here on this issue of corporate responsibility?</s>SCHNEIDER: Well, Judy, on the surface you would say people are pretty cynical about this issue. Over 60 percent say big business has too much influence over Democrats, too much influence over Republicans and too much influence over President Bush. In fact, in our latest poll, President Bush's job rating has been unaffected, stands at 76 percent. And 63 percent approve the way he's handling the economy. That has not changed. But do you see evidence on one issue. We asked people, do you think that President Bush is more interested in protecting the interests of ordinary Americans, or the interests of large corporations? As you can see here, people, a majority, say that President Bush and the Democrats are more interested in protecting ordinary Americans. But only 30 percent say that about the Republicans. So, if the Democrats want to make it an issue, they have to make it an issue against the congressional Republicans, their opponents in the midterm election this year. They won't make much headway in running against President Bush, who has just as much credibility on this issue as the Democrats do.</s>WOODRUFF: So, Bill, given all this, I know we're months away from midterm elections, but at this point, what role do you think all this is going to play in the elections?</s>SCHNEIDER: Well, we're not finding that the issue of corporate responsibility weighs very heavily in the voters' decisions. In fact, it weighs much below the economy, the war on terrorism, education, Social Security, prescription drugs. But we also know something else. We know that corporate responsibility is an issue that affects the stock market. And our poll shows that the stock market has a very big impact on people's view of the economy and their view of their own financial situation -- much larger than in the past because 2/3 of Americans are now invested in the stock market. Two-thirds tell us that the stock market, the current condition of the stock market, makes them less confident about the economy. Sixty-four percent say they're less likely now to invest in the market. A majority say they're less confident about their own retirement because of the stock market. And people are evenly split over whether the market makes them less confident about their own financial situation. So what we're seeing, Judy, is a new relationship, that corporate responsibility affects the market and the market affects the way people see the economy and see their own financial well-being. The critical link here is the condition of the stock market -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Bill Schneider, fascinating, piecing it all together. Thanks very much. The fourth-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, charged with honing the party's political message, delivered his swan song today. Congressman J.C. Watts of Oklahoma announced that he will not seek a fifth term this year. As our Kate Snow reports, Watts' decision leaves a void in the GOP leadership and within the ranks of African-Americans on the Hill.</s>REP. J.C. WATTS (R), OKLAHOMA: You've honored me greatly by giving me the privilege of representing you in the halls of Congress.</s>SNOW (voice-over): Struggling for the words, Watts announced he would not seek another term.</s>WATTS: I know this will shock and amaze many, but Frankie and I have five kids. Three are still at home, ages 11, 12 and 17. And, friends, there are four reasons that I chose to retire at the end of this session: Frankie, Jennifer, Julia and Trey.</s>SNOW: Elected in 1994, Watts says it was never his intention to make a career out of Congress. But the former star quarterback did get his share of the political spotlight. At the 1996 convention, he was one of the first to articulate a Republican definition of compassion.</s>WATTS: You see, Republicans don't define compassion by how many people are on AFDC and public housing and on food stamps. You see, we define compassion by how few people are on food stamps and AFDC and public help.</s>SNOW: One year later, a prime time response to President Clinton's state of the union.</s>WATTS: I got my values growing up in a poor black neighborhood on the east side of the railroad tracks, where money was scarce. But dreams were plentiful.</s>SNOW: Watts was a logical choice for the leadership when they were looking to be more diverse back in 1998. And, Judy, the person running for his job now is Deborah Pryce. She's probably the front runner. If she got the job, she'd be the highest ranking woman ever to ascend to that kind of rank within the Republican leadership. I talked to Pryce today. She tells me that she wants to include even more people in the Republican message. She said she talked with both the speaker and Watts last week. But unclear, Judy, who they'll end up supporting. She's the front runner, but there are at least two others who will be in the race to succeed Watts -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Kate Snow, thanks very much. President Bush has issued a statement saying that J.C. Watts will leave behind a political legacy of compassion and commitment to public service. But Democrats already are taking jabs at Watts' decision and the fact that it comes on the heels of House Majority Leader Dick Armey's decision to require. A statement today from the Democratic Congressional campaign committee says, quote, "Entering the fourth quarter with the score tied this cycle, two Republican leaders, including their only quarterback, have walked off the field." Well, is J.C. Watts leaving his party in the lurch? Next I'll ask the congressman about his decision to call it quits and the political pressures he's been facing. Also ahead, what was Al Gore thinking when he took aim over the weekend at the Bush administration's war on terror? We'll find out if a stylist to the political stars has any hair- raising stories to share. And...</s>BRUCE MORTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They've done it again. The rates on first class mail go up. If they've done anything mean to the junk mailers, that's the story I missed.</s>WOODRUFF: Our Bruce Morton puts his stamp on the new price of mailing a letter.