Spain in Wake of Terrorist Attacks
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. Happy Friday. It is March 12. From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello. Thank you for joining us this morning. We want to bring you up to date now, investigators in those deadly Spanish train bombings are following up on the discovery of a van. The van contained detonators and an Arabic tape of Koranic teachings. On Capitol Hill, the Senate approves a leaner budget than President Bush wanted. The $2.36 trillion plan would allow smaller tax cuts and reduce the deficit more quickly. Massachusetts lawmakers move closer to a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages but legalizing civil unions. A final vote is scheduled for later this month. And dramatic scenes from the floor of South Korea's national assembly. The demonstrators proceeded lawmakers impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun. We update the top stories every 15 minutes. The next news update comes your way at 5:15 Eastern. Amtrak is not taking any chances. It is increasing patrols of its police force and canine units after the deadly Madrid train bombings. Let's see what Spain is doing in the wake of the terrorist attacks. Al Goodman joins us now live from Madrid -- brings us up to date, Al.</s>AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, I'm out here in front of the Atocha train station, which was where half of these 200 people, nearly 200 people who died in these attacks on the commuter trains on Thursday morning, more than 24 hours ago. About half of them died in a couple of trains at this station here. There are several things happening this day. They're looking at some major marches this evening to show the Spanish...</s>COSTELLO: And we apologize that we're having technical difficulties. It's difficult to get any transmission out of Spain these days because the phone lines are clogged there. We're going to get back to Al Goodman as soon as possible. But we do have this bit of new information coming out of Spain. There has been a claim of responsibility for those attacks, but by a group with a questionable record. The Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigade faxed a letter to the Al-Arabiyah newspaper, based in London. The letter claims credit for the attacks on behalf of al Qaeda and says the terror group is 90 percent ready to attack the United States. However, intelligence sources have consistently told us that that group does not speak for al Qaeda. While it has claimed previous attacks on al Qaeda, it has also claimed responsibility for the U.S. power blackout last summer, a claim dismissed by terror experts and those who investigated the blackout. Europeans travel by train far more frequently than we do here in the United States, but how safe is this common mode of transportation? Robyn Curnow joins us live from London with a look at the European train safety -- has security been increased in light of what happened in Spain?</s>ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think security across Europe has not essentially been increased, but I think there's a definite awareness by police across Europe that something that theyve known for many years, that policing or protecting the miles and miles and kilometers and kilometers of rail track across Europe is very difficult to do. We do know that you can cross borders in Europe, you can go from London to Brussels to Paris, you can go, you can really travel with ease and flexibility across Europe without having to be body searched, without actually having guards on the play -- on the trains, unlike planes. So it's this sort of sense of easy flexibility within railways that I think people are really looking now and saying what more can we do to protect rail commuters across Europe? But I think there's still also that underlying point that there's not much, because it spans such a wide area and obviously so many people rely in Europe on traveling by rail.</s>COSTELLO: Robyn Curnow reporting live from London this morning. And with these bombings in Madrid, it seems terrorism continues to spread across the globe. At the half hour, our Maria Ressa will join us live from Manila with exclusive details on a new strategy -- franchising the U.S. military around the world. Back here in the States, there are new developments in the same- sex marriage issue. The California Supreme Court has ordered San Francisco to stop issuing same-sex marriage licenses until the issue is settled. This is the last same-sex marriage license given to city hall before that order came down. You see it there. On the other side of the country, Massachusetts state lawmakers moved toward a constitutional amendment. CNN's Gary Tuchman is in Boston.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The joint session will come to order.</s>GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two hundred Massachusetts state representatives and senators considering whether to amend their state constitution to ban same-sex marriages.</s>SHIRLEY OWENS HICKS (D), MASSACHUSETTS STATE REPRESENTATIVE: I believe the Bible and I also believe the American Heritage Dictionary. And each of these books defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.</s>TUCHMAN: That is not the view of the state's highest court, which ruled in November that same-sex marriages in Massachusetts can occur as early as May 17. And that decision proved to be the impetus for this constitutional convention, which gay marriage supporters did not want to see happen.</s>THEODORE SPELIOTIS (D), MASSACHUSETTS STATE REPRESENTATIVE: I worked too hard to get this job and to stay in this job to vote in a fashion that tells an entire segment of my population that they're different and they're not accepted.</s>TUCHMAN: Thousands of demonstrators on both side of the issue gathered inside and outside the state Capitol. The demonstrators included parochial school students on field trips.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They know that they need a mom and a dad at home, not a dad and a dad.</s>TUCHMAN: Families also turned out.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There wouldn't be a vote to take away any other kind of civil right and there shouldn't be a vote to take away gay and lesbian rights.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: One man, one woman. Let the people vote it out. It's all about America!</s>TUCHMAN: The measure the politicians are considering would ban gay marriage, but allow so-called civil unions. But under Massachusetts law, if it passes, it has to be approved by the legislature again next year and then would have to come up for a statewide referendum in November 2006.</s>COSTELLO: All right, back to our top story now, the terror blast at that train station, or I should say train stations, in Madrid. Al Goodman joins us live and his audio is much better this time -- brings us up to date, Al.</s>GOODMAN: Hello, Carol. Well, nothing of this scale of a terrorist attack has ever happened in Spain. There hasn't been one like this in Europe since the 1988 Lockerbie PanAm plane bombing, which killed even more people than the nearly 200 dead here. So, as you can imagine, Spaniards woke up today with a heavy dose of shock and grief. They were very somber, coming out into the streets early this day. We have been out talking to many people, grabbing newspapers, looking in disbelief at the headlines and the pictures. The Spanish flag was draped with a black sash and there were vigils around town in Madrid. Outside a regional government building, candle. Here at the Atocha train station, which took the brunt of the attack -- about half of the nearly 200 killed were killed in trains right at this station behind me. So, as we look ahead to later this day, there are major protest marches planned and the investigation continues -- Carol.</s>COSTELLO: You know, I was going to ask you about the investigation, because so many conflicting bits of information is coming out of Spain. Can you just brings us up to date on what the government thinks right now?</s>GOODMAN: The government, late on Thursday, after saying all day that they thought it was the Basque separatist group ETA, which is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, that was the line all day on Thursday, until late in the day. Then they found this suspicious van that had a tape in it in Arabic with Koranic versus. No threats on it, but they said there were detonators in the van, as well.</s>COSTELLO: Well, Al, your audio messed up there at the end, and we apologize to our audience before there, because that was an important bit of information he was passing along to you. Supposedly this group linked to al Qaeda has claimed responsibility, but American officials, well, sort of are -- actually they suspect that group is not very credible. So we really don't know what's going on right now. Bits of information still coming in and, of course, we'll continue to bring you up to date. In news across America now, a Salt Lake City woman faces a murder charge in the death of one of her twins. The baby was stillborn after the mother rejected doctors' advice to have a cesarean section. An autopsy concluded the baby would have survived if delivered by C- section. Also in Salt Lake City, it was a year ago today that teenager Elizabeth Smart was found on a street with two people accused of abducting her nine months earlier. The Smart family and the Girl Scouts are sponsoring a child safety campaign in Utah in observance of the anniversary. Jack Whittaker, arguably the luckiest man in Winfield, West Virginia, has had a run of bad luck this week. Whittaker's business and his vehicle were burglarized and a race track employee filed suit, claiming he assaulted her in 2002. Whittaker won the biggest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, $314 million. Money just doesn't buy you happiness. Sometimes it just buys you trouble -- Chad.</s>CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Or so it seems for old Jack.</s>COSTELLO: Oh, you're not kidding.</s>MYERS: Remember old Jack?</s>COSTELLO: I do.</s>MYERS: He's like the most down home guy you ever met, you know?</s>COSTELLO: He's given a lot of money to charity...</s>MYERS: He has.</s>COSTELLO: But then he seems to be getting in all this weird trouble.</s>MYERS: Yes, well, he left his briefcase in a club.</s>COSTELLO: Yes, yes.</s>MYERS: Never mind. That's how far that I'll go with that one.</s>COSTELLO: A gentleman's club.</s>MYERS: Yes, with a couple of hundred thousand dollars in it or something? I don't know. I just don't have that kind of money to put in my pocket and leave around.</s>COSTELLO: You know, Chad, we didn't get to Stump the Weatherman yesterday because of the breaking news.</s>MYERS: Right. Correct.</s>COSTELLO: So today, you know, viewers are clamoring for it, Stump the Weatherman. In fact, a viewer, Mike from Houston, wrote in...</s>MYERS: Yes?</s>COSTELLO: "I was just wondering, if anyone does come up with a question that does stump Chad, can we refer to that as a hanging chad?"</s>MYERS: Sure.</s>COSTELLO: That was pretty clever, wasn't it?</s>MYERS: That would be good.</s>COSTELLO: So if you have weather questions for Chad, daybreak@cnn.com.</s>MYERS: All right, send 'em up.</s>COSTELLO: OK. Cutting through the water at breakneck speed, a suit designed by an aerospace engineer. We'll show you the slick swimming suit that could make you the envy of everyone this summer. Also, the skydiving trip that took more time than expected to reach terra firma, an ending you have just got to see. Plus, a CNN exclusive, a look at how the U.S. is fighting terrorism worldwide. And was this Maryland woman a paid Iraqi agent? She was in Baghdad before the war in Iraq and now federal investigators want to know why. It is Friday, March 12. You're watching DAYBREAK.</s>COSTELLO:  5: 16 Eastern time. Time to take a quick look at the top stories now. Spain begins three days of mourning for the nearly 200 people killed in the Madrid train bombings. The California Supreme Court has ordered a stop to same-sex marriages in San Francisco, while Massachusetts law makers move closer to a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages. And a deal may be in the works for the Muslim Army chaplain charged with mishandling classified information at Guantanamo Bay. Captain James Yee has agreed to resign if the military ends its effort to prosecute him. We update the top stories every 15 minutes. The next update comes your way at 5:30 Eastern. Well, let's see if that terrorist attack in Madrid is still impacting the overseas futures markets. For that, we head live to London and Todd Benjamin -- good morning, Todd.</s>TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. There still is an impact, although I've got to tell you, these markets are off their lows of the day. Right now, the FTSE is off about a third of one percent here in London. The DAX in Frankfurt is off about 3/4 of one percent. Paris is off about a half percent. And the Euro Top 300, this is an index of the 300 largest companies in Europe, is off about a 1/2 percent. Yesterday, that index fell 2 1/2 percent. And the ibex in Spain still suffering. It is off 1 1/2 percent. In terms of the futures market, it's pointing to a rebound on Wall Street at this point, a small rebound. But, nevertheless, it is pointing up. We'll be getting new consumer confidence figures out of the U.S. today, the Michigan Sentiment Survey. That's expected to rise just slightly. It's been a very tough week, as you're well aware, for the U.S. markets. The Dow this week is down about 4 1/2 percent, the NASDAQ five percent. And since the NASDAQ hit its high in January, it's off nearly 10 percent. Now the Dow is off better than 5 1/2 percent since its high in February. A lot of people, as you're well aware, have been calling for a correction and we're in the midst of one now. But there's still a lot of bulls out there who say this is not the end of the bull market, but just a correction -- Carol, back to you.</s>COSTELLO: Well, hopefully they're right. Todd Benjamin live from London this morning. A little piece, actually, a great big piece of Chicago history on the block. New York-based Met Life announced it is selling the Sears Tower to an unspecified buyer. Take a look at that baby. It won't reveal the exact price tag for the 14,050 foot tower, but Met Life is expected to make about, oh, $90 million off the sale. The demand for high profile office space has slumped since the September 11 attacks, so they feel lucky they found a prospective buyer. Up ahead, they are the latest rage, but you won't see people at the beach in these bathing suits. We'll explain why. But first, we always knew he was a star for kids and parents near and far, but now there's a gold star with his name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.</s>COSTELLO: Time for our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener at 5:22 Eastern. Starting off just west of Atlanta, where Nicki Sims' first solo sky dive was not supposed to end quite like this. Look at her hanging in the threes. Sims said the wind blew her into those trees. Rescuers finally got her out, got her down, but it took them four hours. But Senator Kerry dangling won't keep Sims from skydiving again. She says she'll be jumping out of a plane real soon. In Los Angeles, lots of kids in trademark striped hats turned Hollywood into Seussville for a day. Dr. Seuss was honored posthumously with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Various month long celebrations are honoring the late Dr. Seuss, who would have turned 100 this month. Now what could be slicker than wet skin? A shark skin suit, apparently, is Fastskin 2, the improved version of the suit that debuted in the 2000 Olympic Games. Aerospace engineers studied shark skin to design a swimsuit they say reduces drag by four percent over the previous Fastskin. That's pretty amazing, isn't it?</s>MYERS: I have no opinion.</s>COSTELLO: You don't find that amazing?</s>MYERS: Not really, because the only thing that would stop some drag on me would be to lose this belly, because then there'd be a lot less surface area. So, anyway.</s>COSTELLO: That's your problem, too much surface area.</s>MYERS: I wonder if guys are going to wear the same thing? I mean it looked like that was made for a guy, too, right?</s>COSTELLO: Yes. Yes.</s>MYERS: I mean so -- now they won't have to shave all their hair off.</s>COSTELLO: I bet they still will because, you know, every little bit helps.</s>MYERS: Yes, you know what? It's kind of a, it's a fraternity thing, you know. They shave -- they take it off just because it makes them feel good, it makes them feel like</s>COSTELLO: No, I think it really, they feel it really affects their swimming so they shave so they're like smooth sharks in the water. Now they have those suits, too.</s>MYERS: Right.</s>COSTELLO: Hi.</s>MYERS: Hi.</s>COSTELLO: It is eight days until spring. And just a reminder to our viewers, it is, indeed, Stump the Weatherman day, a day late.</s>MYERS: It is.</s>COSTELLO: Because we had to put it off yesterday, so Stump the Weatherman, DAYBREAK...</s>MYERS: Look at that, a new graphic and everything.</s>COSTELLO: Isn't that nice?</s>MYERS: Yes.</s>COSTELLO: See, we're thoughtful. We like you. Daybreak@cnn.com. Daybreak@cnn.com, weather questions for Chad. He's ready.</s>MYERS: Just got one that said what's the difference between partly cloudy and partly sunny? We'll answer that in 10 minutes.</s>COSTELLO: Interesting. Thank you, Chad.</s>MYERS: You're welcome.</s>COSTELLO: The day after, how Spain is coping and how the worldwide fight against terror is changing. We're going to take you live to Madrid and to Manila. And here in the States, a former Capitol Hill staffer accused of working for the former Iraqi regime. We'll tell you what's next up for her.</s>GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Quick, what's PepsiCo's biggest selling brand? If your first response is the well known cola, think again. Gatorade, Propel fitness water and Aquafina water brands were the keys to a flush first quarter earnings report for PepsiCo. The soft drink maker posted profits 30 percent ahead of the same period last year. Despite that, Pepsi still remains number two to Coke in market share for soft drinks.</s>COSTELLO: Good morning to you. Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK. It's Friday, March 12. From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello. Thank you for joining us. Here's what's happening now. The death toll climbs in the commuter train bombings in Madrid, reaching 198 this morning. More than 1,400 people injured. The Basque separatist group ETA is still getting official blame for the bombings, but al Qaeda involvement is considered a possibility. Senate Republicans push through a $2.3 trillion budget this morning. It calls for less spending than what President Bush wants and Republicans say it will cut the federal deficit by half in 2007. In Massachusetts, law makers stopped just short of finding TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com