JEANNE MESERVE, CNN ANCHOR: Now to the Elian Gonzalez case: With the boy in seclusion in rural Maryland with his immediate family, all eyes are on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. Juan Miguel Gonzalez has asked the court to reject the Miami Relatives' demand for an asylum hearing, saying, as the boy's father, only he can speak for Elian. After a number of fruitless attempts to see Elian, those relatives left Washington last night and returned to Miami. It was five months ago today that Elian was rescued at sea, setting off the international custody battle. Attorney General Janet Reno today offered more details about the operation to remove Elian from the Miami relatives' home. CNN Justice correspondent Pierre Thomas joins us with more on that. Pierre, what did she have to say?</s>PIERRE THOMAS, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Jeanne, the attorney general continued to defend her decision. In the end, she said the family continued to stall and, in the end, she had no choice but to act. She said despite the pictures she knew would be negative, she decided to take the action she took. Now, the American public seems to be supporting the reunification of Elian Gonzalez with his father. Today, the attorney general offered some reasons as to why.</s>JANET RENO, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: He had a chance to see it and to understand that, in a law enforcement situation like that, it may not be the prettiest thing in the world, but it is effective and it proved to be effective here. And I think the reason they are supporting the actions of an awful lot of people is that they have watched a father and a son come together again.</s>THOMAS: But there are still more questions, and next week there will be congressional hearings. I'm Pierre Thomas, reporting live from the Justice Department.
Elian Gonzalez Case: Boy's Father Asks Appeals Court to Reject Asylum Hearing Request