[John Roberts, Cnn Anchor:] Breaking news. A plane crashes and burns on a recently repaired runway. Hundreds killed. Was enough done to keep people safe? A former military sniper accused of killing his wife found dead with a note. Were there clues he left behind? On this AMERICAN MORNING.
[Roberts:] And welcome back and thanks for joining us on this Wednesday, the 18th of July. I'm John Roberts.
[Kiran Chetry, Cnn Anchor:] And I'm Kiran Chetry. We begin this hour with a look at your security and money that may be coming to your city. The announcement today coming from the government about security grants. Joining us with more details now, Kelli Arena from Washington. Hi, Kelli.
[Kelli Arena, Cnn Justice Correspondent:] Hi there, Kiran. You know, each year the Department of Homeland Security doles out grant money to cities to help them deal with the terror threat. The nation's two top targets, New York and Washington, are getting more money than last year, but leaders in both those places say it's just not enough, especially in light of the new information about the terror threat. I spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff about those complaints.
[Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security Secretary:] But it is not an annuity. It's not an entitlement. It doesn't mean that having once received an amount of money, let's say, to build a camera system or to build a certain ring of defenses, that you're now entitled to get the same amount of money every single year.
[Arena:] You know, this grant money and the whole program has been very much a work in progress, and Homeland continues to fine-tune the application process, the rules on how this money can be spent. And since it started, Homeland has doled out $18 billion in grant money Kiran.
[Chetry:] You know, it's a lot of money. And then you hear the criticisms from some states. I know we've heard it from our lawmakers here in New York City, who are saying, hold on a minute, how are we deciding who gets the money and where? And is it a political move in some ways, as opposed to where the need is greatest? So there of course is still a lot of debate even though we are talking about a huge amount of money.
[Arena:] That's right. That's right. And, I mean, this is every year we see the same thing, and it doesn't matter because, of course, a lot of critics point out and they say, hey, wait a minute, before 911, the place that suffered the worst terror attack was Oklahoma City. So, you know, how do you make those decisions about where the terrorists will strike, you know, who is vulnerable and what needs to be done?
[Chetry:] Very true. Kelli Arena in Washington for us. Thanks.
[Arena:] You're welcome.
[Roberts:] New this morning, U.S. forces announcing that they have arrested the most senior Iraqi member of Al Qaeda in Iraq. Khalid al- Mashadani, also known as Abu Shahed, was arrested on July the 4th in Mosul. U.S. forces say Mashadani was a go-between for Al Qaeda in Iraq and Osama bin Laden. From Iraq to the Iraq debate in the Senate right now, the all- night marathon session still going on. Some of the cots that were brought in apparently slept in overnight. Senators will finally hold a vote this morning at 11:00 to see if the Democrats have enough votes to move ahead with the plan to withdraw troops from Iraq, but it's certainly not looking like they do. A shift in the polls in the fight for the White House. Here is the latest CNN-WMUR-University of New Hampshire primary poll. For the first time, there are no white males among the top three Democrats. Hillary Clinton has got a solid lead, followed by Barack Obama, and then Bill Richardson. Richardson moving ahead of John Edwards since the last poll. We're going to be talking with former Senator Edwards coming up in this half hour. On the Republican side, John McCain has slipped from second to fourth place in New Hampshire. Mitt Romney leads the pack there. Rudy Giuliani second, and Fred Thompson now running third. A tragedy of catastrophic proportions is still unfolding in Sao Paulo, Brazil, right now. These are the latest pictures of the crash of a TAM Airlines jet carrying 176 people. It slammed into a building at the end of the runway at Sao Paulo's airport. Families of those on board the plane and on the ground have gathered, desperate for any information on their loved ones. Fire crews say as many as 200 people may be dead.
[Chetry:] Well, it's time now to get a check from our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents about what's new this morning. One thing, the toxicology results are in on wrestler Chris Benoit. Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us from Atlanta on Chris Benoit, as well as his wife and his young son.
[Elizabeth Cohen, Cnn Medical Correspondent:] Oh, these results, Kiran, they are just heartbreaking. Let's first look at Chris Benoit. He had extremely high levels of testosterone. Testosterone is usually expressed as a ratio between testosterone and epitestosterone. A man his age and size, it would be about 6 to 1. He was 59 to 1. That is an extremely high number. He also had in his body Xanax, the prescription drug, and hydrocondone, the prescription painkiller. His son, also Xanax in his body. His wife, also hydrocodone, hydromorphone, another prescription drug, and Xanax. All of these I think everyone knew to some extent that they were going to find something like this, but these numbers were just higher than so many people expected Kiran.
[Chetry:] Yes, and raising a lot of questions about whether or not they're going to find out what really happened. Elizabeth Cohen, thank you. Well, now to Chad Myers. Well, the Dow keeps going with its record run, four straight sessions now.
[Roberts:] The hunt for an ex-Army sniper suspected of shooting and killing his wife is now over. It ended as police moved in to capture 36-year-old David Munis and he shot himself in the chest. Still a lot of questions in this case now. Joining us to help answer some of them is Sheriff Jim Pond of Albany County, Wyoming. He is now live in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and joins us. Sheriff Pond, we understand that there was a note that was left behind, perhaps written on cardboard. What can you tell us about that?
[Sheriff Jim Pond, Albany County, Wyoming:] Good morning. Basically, our investigators discovered it at the shooting scene last night. He had scribbled a note on a cardboard box that basically was his last will and testament and how he wanted his personal property and his remains taken care of.
[Roberts:] Was there a confession in that note? Did he did he admit to killing his wife?
[Pond:] No, not indicated in the writings that we found last night.
[Roberts:] Is there anything more to indicate why he took that shot early on Sunday morning?
[Pond:] No. There's nothing there that we can determine at this time.
[Roberts:] You haven't heard anything more about the history and troubles between them? I mean, we know that she had received a harassing phone call from him about six hours before the incident took place.
[Pond:] Yes. That's being taken care of by investigators and the Cheyenne Police Department.
[Roberts:] Right.
[Pond:] We're here in Laramie and Albany County, which are separate jurisdictions.
[Roberts:] Right. Well, can you tell us then can you tell us then about the end of David Munis' life?
[Pond:] Basically, a ranch hand had discovered him in a real small trailer house in a remote area of a ranch north of Laramie, called the sheriff's office. Officers responding to meet with him and arrest him, to get to him. Before they could get to him, he had shot himself.
[Roberts:] Right. And he was in a camper somewhere?
[Pond:] That is correct. He was about eight miles from where his vehicle was last located within our search area.
[Roberts:] All right. Sheriff Jim Pond from Albany County in Wyoming. Sheriff, thanks very much. Appreciate you coming on this morning.
[Pond:] Absolutely.