Plane Crashes Into Italy's Tallest Building; Crash Evokes Images of September 11
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Judy Woodruff in Washington. We're following today's big story: the small plane that crashed into the tallest building in Italy.</s>WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: I'm Bill Schneider in Washington. That crash appears to have been an accident, but it is evoking images and fears from September 11th.</s>DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Deborah Feyerick in New York, where an explosive charge linked to September 11th has shaken up the governor's race.</s>JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jonathan Karl on Capitol Hill, where a bipartisan team of senators wants to punish Yasser Arafat for supporting terrorism.</s>ANNOUNCER: Live from Washington, this is</s>INSIDE POLITICS WITH JUDY WOODRUFF. WOODRUFF: Thank you for joining us. Italian and U.S. officials now say they do not believe that that deadly plane crash into a Milan skyscraper was an act of terrorism. But the pictures were eerily familiar. At least four people were killed and dozens injured when the small plane slammed into the top floors of the building, causing a massive explosion. There are reports the plane was on fire before the crash and the pilot issued an SOS. The Italian interior minister says it appears to have been an accident. Italian radio reports that 300 people were inside the building in downtown Milan when the plane hit just before 6:00 p.m. local time. John Defterios of international "Herald Tribune" TV is on the phone with us now from Rome. John, why are they now so convinced that this was not an act of terrorism?</s>JOHN DEFTERIOS, IHT-TV: Basically, Judy, because of the latest reports that have come out. In fact, in the last 15 minutes, in terms of monitoring the story, there is a report that the pilot could have had gear problems because the cabin filled with smoke, which would probably account for the fact why he lost control and smashed into the building. But we have some conflicting reports when the accident happened. In fact, the president of the Senate was saying that it could have been an act of terrorism. And then about 20 minutes later the interior minister came out and said it was almost certainly an accident. And he has stuck to that. But, as you note at the top of the program, witnesses say it was eerily similar to September 11th. One witness said that his head and his heart went to September 11th immediately. But apparently the evacuation was quite smooth. It was a smooth one. All were evacuated by 8:05 local time or 2:05 Washington time, which is just two and a quarter hours after the incident.</s>WOODRUFF: John, is it believed that Italy has pretty good measures in place to prevent terrorist acts? What's the sense there?</s>DEFTERIOS: Well, Judy, it's been a place of very high alert since September 11th. You should remember that this is the first week that we've had labor strikes in 20 years. So there was very high security surrounding that. The former king of Afghanistan, as you know, left Rome yesterday for Kabul. And the last two months we've on and off threats to the U.S. embassy, which is nearby where I live. There were threats to the water supply and bomb threats. So it's uncharacteristic for Italy to have very high security, as you know, because of the culture and the country. But that has changed dramatically since September 11th. And the country has been on high alert and security has been a top priority.</s>WOODRUFF: And, John, what is the latest that you have on the number of dead and injured?</s>DEFTERIOS: OK, in the last 15 minutes, ANSA, which is the national news agency, has reported that in fact perhaps five have been killed in this accident. That conflicts with reports of four confirmed dead. Apparently the pilot, two passers-by and two in the building. That again, according to ANSA, which came out in the last quarter-hours. As we know, the plane struck between the 24th and 25th floors. There was apparently, Judy, damage to eight floors. But fire authorities in Milan have said that the building is indeed secure. It is the highest building in north of the country. It houses the regional offices of Lombardia in the north. So that's the latest account, in terms of the official death toll of five right now. At least 56 injured is what they are saying.</s>WOODRUFF: All right. John Defterios of International Harold Tribune TV. Thank you, John, very much. Well, some witnesses to the Milan crash have noted that the sky was clear blue, just as it was on September the 11th, when suddenly a plane appeared. A building was sliced apart, along with many people's sense of security. Our Bill Schneider has also been thinking about the similarities -- Bill.</s>SCHNEIDER: "Not again." That was the first thing people said when they heard the news from Milan today.</s>WOODRUFF: Coincidence. All right, Bill Schneider, thanks very much. Even before the Milan crash there were echoes of September 11th in New York today. At issue, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Cuomo's stunning comments about Governor George Pataki's leadership after the attacks. CNN's Deborah Feyerick has more from New York -- Deborah.</s>FEYERICK: Judy, it was a comment made on a bus in upstate New York. Andrew Cuomo, hoping to become the Democrat's choice for governor, telling reporters George Pataki didn't deserve credit for leading New York during the 9-11 tragedy. Saying there was only one leader, Rudy Giuliani, and that Pataki was only riding his coattails.</s>GOV. GEORGE PATAKI (R), NEW YORK: I'm just so proud of the way New Yorkers came together and stood together in a time of unbelievable crisis. And there was no city, no state, no Democrats, no Republicans. We were all New Yorkers. And we were all just committed to working together, and providing the type of response this horrible emergency called for.</s>FEYERICK (voice-over): Two days after officially saying he's running for governor, Democrat Andrew Cuomo doing some major spin control.</s>ANDREW CUOMO, DEMOCRAT CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR: George Pataki is not a bad man. That's not what this is about. I don't think campaigns have to demonize. I'm not saying he's a bad man. Just that he's not a good governor. Look at the results. Look at the leadership.</s>FEYERICK: The leadership Cuomo had been criticizing, Pataki's handling of September 11th. Cuomo telling reporters there was only one leader, New York City's mayor, who summed up Cuomo's remarks. (on camera): You say you think this is a political mistake. Do you think this is going to backfire on Mr. Cuomo in a way he did not anticipate?</s>RUDY GIULIANI, FMR. MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: Yes, I do. The reason is because it's not true. And everybody knows that it isn't. Had we not broken down all of the different barriers that sometimes exist between different officials and their bureaucracies, I think neither the city nor the state would have emerged as strong as it has.</s>FEYERICK (voice-over): Cuomo ahead of his Democratic opponent, 51-34, striking a nerve he likely hadn't planned on. (on camera): All of a sudden he's in somewhat of a freefall. What's your reaction?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, this is not the argument he wanted to make. You want to bring Pataki into this. he's a popular governor. But to politicize the World Trade Center issue is probably not the way to go. And I suspect if he had it to do over he would take it back.</s>FEYERICK (voice-over): New Yorkers surprised Cuomo would try to score political points off 9-11. (on camera): Did you ever get the feeling that Governor Pataki was just there for a press op?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, no, I never got that impression at all. I felt that he lent an appropriate level of support to the guy whose political role in the crisis was more significant than his.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's such a sensitive issue for the country. I mean, you know, if you want to run for election, fine. But that's such a touchy thing, why dis someone on that?</s>FEYERICK: So basically, Cuomo took a gamble by saying something like this...</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.</s>FEYERICK: And it backfired.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, yes.</s>FEYERICK: So you think Giuliani did what he had to do and the governor did what he had to do?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they both did what they had to do.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Deborah, thanks. Certainly it's brought some attention to that New York governor's race. Thank you very much. And now we turn to the search for peace in the Middle East. The commander of Israeli troops in and around Jenin says his forces will complete their withdrawal from the area tonight. Here in Washington today, Secretary of State Colin Powell briefed President Bush on his mission to the region. Mr. Bush told reporters that he was satisfied with the pace of Israel withdrawal from Palestinian areas.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Israel started withdrawing quickly after our call, from smaller cities on the West Bank. History will show that they have responded. And as the prime minister said, told me, he gave me a timetable. And he's met the timetable.</s>WOODRUFF: The president says that progress is being made toward the U.S. vision for peace in the Middle East, even though Secretary Powell was not able to secure a cease-fire. Let's bring in now our White House correspondent, Major Garrett. So, Major, what's the next step for the Bush administration over there?</s>MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Judy, there are a lot of options on the table. And as yet, no firm decisions. What are some of the options? Well, the president is going to sit down tomorrow with his national security team and Secretary of State Powell, and they're going to go over a long list of things that they might choose to do. One of them, of course, is sending the CIA director George Tenet back to the region. That's under very active consideration. He's the author of a security plan that the Israelis and Palestinians have committed to in word, but fallen far short of enacting indeed. A couple of other things also on the table. There is some debate within the White House of moving beyond Tenet and Mitchell, which is a security arrangement and then a political framework, in pursuit of a complete compromise. There is some talk -- I won't say it's at the highest levels or very active. But going beyond that, there have been calls in the Arab world and some in European capitals for the Bush administration to do something much more bold. Maybe offer its own particular package of dealing with the facts on the ground and a peace proposal for both sides to sort of look at. Put it on the table and say the U.S. endorses this, we want you to do so as well. That will be under consideration. Also a good deal of talk about maybe putting some U.S. dollars on the ground to assist the Palestinians in the aftermath of Israeli incursions. Tremendous damage in many of these West Bank cities. The administration actively thinking about ways to address those concerns, both with U.S. dollars, international dollars. But again ,all these are options right now, Judy. No hard decisions yet.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Major Garrett reporting from the White House. Thanks, Major. Meantime in the Senate today, Democrat Dianne Feinstein and Republican Mitch McConnell introduced a measure to harshly criticism Yasser Arafat and to impose sanctions on the Palestinian Authority. Let's bring in our congressional correspondent, Jonathan Karl. Jonathan, I understand there's some discomfort among Republicans who support this measure, about taking on the administration in this regard.</s>KARL: Well, yes, and for good reason. The White House is adamantly opposed to this resolution and other resolutions of the kind. They simply do not believe that it will be helpful, as Colin Powell and the administration tries to pursue the peace process. They don't want Congress weighing in on this. As a result, when Mitch McConnell, the Republican, came out and announced this today, he said very clearly he's sending a message to Yasser Arafat, not sending a message to the president, not sending a message to the White House. And making it sure -- making it clear that while they are introducing this bill now, they will not push for any passage immediately or any time soon. They're going to let the administration work through this process. You have a similar thing going on over in the House of Representatives, where Tom DeLay is working -- Republican Tom DeLay is working with Democrat Tom Lantos on a resolution that would also be harshly critical of Yasser Arafat and the PLO, and express very strong support for Israel. But that resolution also includes, interestingly, Judy, language commending the president, praising the president's leadership for his handling of this crisis. Because here you have Republicans on the Hill, conservative Republicans, who quite frankly, would like to see the administration take a harder line against Yasser Arafat. But they don't want to come out and appear to be second-guessing the administration. So you have a very delicate dance here. Standing up for what they believe in, but not trying to undercut the president on this. And in the meantime, in a third development up here, Dick Armey, the majority leader, Republican leader in the House, is pursuing a sanctions bill against Syria. So you see a very strongly pro-Israel and anti-Israel's enemies up here on Capitol Hill.</s>WOODRUFF: All right. Well, Jon, on another topic -- and this is a priority of the president's -- drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. This went down in defeat today in the Senate. But before the vote, we got some indication about just how strongly Senator Daschle feels about the issue. Let's listen.</s>SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MAJORITY LEADER: I think it's fair to say that as long as the Democrats are in control of the Senate, it won't happen. We believe that this is a dividing line between Republicans and Democrats. And we're willing to take it anywhere in the country.</s>WOODRUFF: Jon, I think it's fair to say the Republicans thought they were going to do better than this 54-46 vote. What was their reaction?</s>KARL: This was really a stunning defeat. The Republicans on this really thought they were going to get more than 50 votes for drilling in ANWR. They knew they weren't going to get the 60 they needed to actually prevail here. But getting only 46 votes was a serious defeat. As a result, Republicans agree with Tom Daschle on that, which is that they're not going to get drilling in ANWR until there is a Republican Senate. So you see the movement now going towards the campaign. They held out some hope that when they got to the situation -- the House, of course, passed ANWR. They thought they would be able to get something out of conference with the House. Now that looks extremely unlikely. But it was very interesting, Judy. You had the Teamsters representatives up here saying today that they will remember the Democrats that voted against this. The Teamsters, of course, were very much with the Republicans on this. And they're saying that this will be an issue that they won't forget. The Democrats that voted against them on this are not their friends. That was an exact quote from Teamsters representative up here.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, and, Jon, just to clarify again, the Republicans got 46 votes for drilling. But it went down to defeat 46 to 54.</s>KARL: That's exactly right. So, four votes shy of 50. Just a couple days ago, Judy, some Republicans working on this predicted they would get as many as 55 votes going their way. So they clearly did not get the support they thought they had for it.</s>WOODRUFF: And they would have needed 60 to beat a filibuster, but of course they didn't get close to that. All right, Jon Karl, thanks very much.</s>KARL: Thank you.</s>WOODRUFF: Still ahead on INSIDE POLITICS, we'll discuss that Senate proposal to sanction Yasser Arafat with a sponsor of the measure, Senator Mitch McConnell and a Palestinian representative to the United States. Is John McCain thinking of quitting the GOP? Our Jeff Greenfield will take on the subject of party switches. And later, we'll consider the wisdom of the new political push to promote marriage.