Morning Show Wrap, by ABC News Political Unit

N E W Y O R K, August 2, 2004 &#151;<br> -- A product of Noted Now and The Note

Evening Newscasts Wrap

News Wrap Archives

Opening Headlines

The new terror threat led the morning shows. Terror coverage was handled by ABC's Pierre Thomas, NBC's Peter Williams and CBS' Bob Orr.

Kerry Interview Still to Come

Sen. John Kerry is scheduled to be interviewed on CNN's "American Morning" at 9:30 am.

Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge

Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge was everywhere this morning—appearing on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox and CNBC.

ABC's Diane Sawyer asked Ridge about Howard Dean's comments questioning the validity of the latest terror threat on CNN over the weekend. Ridge responded with a loud sigh. "If he were sitting in my shoes," said Ridge "… and seen the complexity… he would not have made that comment, period."

CNN's "American Morning" replayed tape of Sen. Joe Lieberman sharply disagreeing with fellow Democrat Howard Dean. "I don't think anyone in their right mind would think the president and the homeland security director would raise the threat level for political reasons," Lieberman said. CNN also included the paper statement from a Kerry spokesman that "no matter what threats we mace face, the terrorists will not divide us."

"Fox & Friends" reported on Dean's comments by putting, "Dean In Denial" on its screen. Seeking to link Dean to Kerry, E.D. Hill said, "Isn't it interesting that Kerry is choosing to spend more time with Howard Dean than with Joe Lieberman, someone with all that experience?"

On "Today," Ridge completely dodged a question about whether he opposes—as he has previously said—the creation of a National Director of Intelligence. Asked about whether the new terror warning was reliable, Ridge said, "… it's as reliable as any source we've ever heard …"

On CBS, Ridge emphasized the "explicit nature," "the detail," and "the thoroughness" of the latest threat.

Ridge's advice on Fox News was "… go to work …"