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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Huge Explosions Heard in Central Baghdad; Tuna Found Harmful to Pregnant Women
Aired December 11, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: You're listening to the sounds of sirens wailing in Baghdad. Only within the past few moments huge explosions have been heard in central Baghdad right around the area housing the U.S.-led coalition headquarters. We'll go there live.
Also, happening right now mounting anger over the president's decision to snub France, Germany, Russia and other countries which have refused to support the U.S.-led war in Iraq. They want a piece of the financial action. The president says no way.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Standing his ground, who's in and who's out in Iraq?
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's very simple. Our people risk their lives. The coalition, a friendly coalition "risk their lives" and therefore the contracting is going to reflect it.
BLITZER: The spread of the flu now striking all 50 states, widespread in almost half.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a serious disease and we're in the process of what looks like going to be a bad year.
BLITZER: A house of horrors, bodies in the basement encased in concrete. Investigators give new details.
And, a warning about a staple of the American diet who should be concerned and why?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, December 11, 2003.
BLITZER: Central Baghdad rocked by as many as four explosions only within the past several moments. It happened around the so- called Green Zone, the home of the main headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition forces. Our Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson is in the Iraqi capital. He's joining us now live with the latest. Nic, what do you know? What's happening right now?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, what we know is that there were those three or four loud explosions about 40 minutes ago. The siren in the Green Zone went off. We could see smoke rising from the Green Zone itself.
What we have just been told in the last few minutes by coalition officials is that they can confirm there were at least two explosions. One of those explosions, they say, actually happened within the Green Zone itself. They say it could have been an attack by rockets.
Independent security analysts we've talked to have said that they could have been mortars that were fired but we've also talked to people who were inside the Green Zone, inside coalition chief Paul Bremer's headquarters, the main Republican Palace there who say that when they heard these explosions they literally dived under the tables seeking cover.
We've heard from the coalition as well that there is no structural damage there and that so far they have been able to find no injuries but according to the coalition at least one of those missiles, a mortar maybe or a missile landing within the Green Zone in the center of Baghdad, the heart of the coalition's provisional assembly here in Iraq.
A little earlier in the day there was a suicide bomb to the west of Baghdad in the town of Ramadi. Three suicide attackers in a vehicle detonated their car killing one soldier outside the base of the 82nd Airborne. Fourteen other soldiers were injured, 11 of them we understand treated by released back to duty, the three other more seriously wounded.
Also overnight two journalists from "TIME" magazine, Michael Weisskopf and James Nachtwey, the photographer, injured when a grenade was tossed into the vehicle belonging to the 1st Armored division in which they were patrolling the city of Baghdad. They sustained injuries and are now being treated for those injuries - Wolf.
BLITZER: Nic, when we hear the words the Green Zone in Baghdad to our viewers who are not pretty familiar with what that means explain that area. How secure is it? What goes on within that so- called Green Zone?
ROBERTSON: Wolf, it is one of the most if not the most secure area in the center of Baghdad. It's about two miles long. It sits right on the Tigris River. It is about a mile and a half across. There is high security, troops on all the gates into this area.
It is the place where the coalition has its headquarters where the main civil administrator's work through the day, Paul Bremer, all his deputies. It is where much of the work in rebuilding Iraq is done. This is the headquarters. This is where the Governing Council members come for meetings. It is also a place where many of these people sleep and live overnight. They eat there. They sleep there. They sleep in buildings outside. They sleep within the main presidential building itself. It is the heart of the coalition's operation in Iraq and it is right in the center of Baghdad.
BLITZER: Nic Robertson on the scene for us in Baghdad. Nic, to you and to all our colleagues in Iraq please be very, very careful.
More on Iraq now, President Bush is sticking to his guns over the controversial decision to shut out certain allies from almost $20 billion in Iraqi rebuilding projects. The president minced no words in defending the policy earlier today.
Our Senior White House Correspondent John King is joining us now live with the latest - John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf, a strong defense of the policy from the president today. He says it is simply common sense, in his view the right thing to do but this decision by the president has caused considerable outrage overseas and some criticism from political opponents here at home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KING (voice-over): The president says he doesn't understand all the fuss.
BUSH: It's very simple. Our people risk their lives. Coalition, a friendly coalition "risk their lives" and therefore the contracting is going to reflect it and that's what the U.S. taxpayers expect.
KING: But the decision to steer nearly $20 billion in Iraq reconstruction money to companies from the United States and key war allies reopened the diplomatic divide between Washington and major war opponents like France, Russia, and Germany.
KOFI ANNAN, UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL: I would not characterize the decision taken yesterday as unifying.
KING: The president's political opponents call it more failed diplomacy.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it borders on the stupid. It is counterproductive. It is the exact opposite of what we should be doing in order to bring other countries into the table.
KING: But at this year-end cabinet meeting Mr. Bush not only defended the policy but scoffed when asked about French and German suggestions his approach violates international law.
BUSH: International law, I better call my lawyer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: So the defense of the policy there from the president, Wolf, but certainly the timing of this is quite awkward. Mr. Bush is sending his personal envoy former Secretary of State James Baker to Russia, to Germany, to France beginning next week.
His mission is to try to get those countries to forgive or reduce huge Iraqi debts racked up during the days of Saddam Hussein. Considerable anger again though at the Bush White House, a tough mission now for Secretary Baker.
BLITZER: Tough indeed. Thanks very much John King at the White House.
And to our viewers, here's your turn to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this. "Do you agree with President Bush that only 'countries that risk lives' in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts"?
You can vote right now. Go to cnn.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast. While you're there, I'd love to hear directly from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.
There's a new serious problem in the U.S. effort to rebuild Iraq. Almost half of the recruits of the new Iraqi Army have quit. American officials say about 300 soldiers resigned over complaints of bad pay and bad work conditions.
The United States abolished Saddam Hussein's 400,000 member Army in May and recently accelerated plans to build a new force eventually hoping to reach about 40,000 soldiers.
The mass resignation of Iraqi soldiers is just the latest blow to the Bush administration's attempt to stop deadly attacks against U.S. forces by Saddam loyalists.
But award-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in an article, an important article in the latest issue of "The New Yorker" magazine says the administration has given the green light to a major covert operation aimed at neutralizing the insurgents by capturing or killing them. The key question will this operation backfire like a similar project during Vietnam called the Phoenix Program?
Seymour Hersh is joining us now live. Sy, thanks very much for joining us. To our viewers who are not familiar with the thrust of your article what's going on in terms of this new, more aggressive effort to deal with the insurgents?
SEYMOUR HERSH, CONTRIBUTOR, "THE NEW YORKER": We're going to bring in our commandos, Special Forces, Delta Force, the SEALS, paramilitary people from the CIA. We're going to try and get intelligence on where these guys who are hurting us live, their cells, how they operate and we're going to go and wipe them out. That's the plan. It's a Rumsfeld plan. He's been trying to do this for two years. He calls it manhunts and he's got his way now. He's going to send them in and the next step it's probably going to start if it's not started now certainly by next month, a major escalation of the covert war.
BLITZER: Some of our viewers probably will ask a fair question what's taking so long? Why haven't they been doing this for a while?
HERSH: The problem is you have to know who you're hitting. You have to know who they are and what kind of intelligence can you get and the trick they've done, it's something interesting, they've been working for months since the end of the war to put together teams of former Iraqi intelligence people and they have put together teams that are going to work with our people and also the Israelis are involved. They're going to help train us and advise us on how to do it and they think that may be the ticket to getting the right people. There's nothing...
BLITZER: This is one of the more fascinating parts of the article, the role of Israel in training U.S. commandos. I thought U.S. Special Operations Forces, the Delta Force, these others, the SEALS as you point out are already among the best in the world. What do they need from Israel for?
HERSH: Israel has been an insurgency, the Hamas. They've been going after them and killing people in the West Bank and Gaza and destroying the people that are sending suicide bombers.
We're now in a phase where we have suicide bombers. Maybe it wasn't there when we began the war with Saddam, this kind of terror, but it's there now and so the idea, look, it's (unintelligible) as somebody in the Israel Embassy said to me the idea of Israelis working with Americans in an Arab country to kill other Arabs.
BLITZER: But are Israelis actually in Iraq with U.S. forces because I didn't get that from your article?
HERSH: No. No. The training has been done in North Carolina and also we've gone to Israel and obviously, look, I didn't write this but clearly Israelis are making contact inside Baghdad under cover, of course they are.
BLITZER: You think there are Israelis there?
HERSH: I don't think they're doing operations but they're certainly there in some way.
BLITZER: But you thinking they're working hand-in-glove with U.S. commandos in Iraq?
HERSH: They will be. They will be advising them. Now whether that means they'll be advising on the ground, there will be Israeli advisers attached to our units as is being programmed right now along with Iraqi intelligence officials. That's the idea. That's the game plan and, as you suggested, the only thing wrong with it is if you don't get the right information and you start killing the wrong people, you're making more insurgents.
BLITZER: So there's a possibility and you raised this possibility in the article that this new aggressive phase could backfire?
HERSH: Oh, my God a very strong possibility. Why do you think people are talking to me about it? There's a great deal of nervousness about the quality of intelligence. This only works if you can get the right people at the right time.
Israel has a record of doing that, which is one reason we go to them in terms of looking into an Arab society like they have in the West Bank and, as I said, in the Hamas. So, the idea is maybe we can learn something from them and get more sophisticated than we seem to be in our intelligence collection in Iraq.
BLITZER: In the past few moments or within the past hour or so we heard sirens wailing in Baghdad in the so-called Green Zone supposedly the most secure area where thousands of U.S. troops are headquartered and it looks like there were these loud explosions.
We're showing our viewers what we heard. Let's just listen to these sirens wailing within the past hour.
All right, you covered Vietnam. You know what happened then. You won a Pulitzer Prize for the Me Lei Massacre, the coverage of that. What exactly is the similarity, the difference, between what happened to U.S. forces in Vietnam in the '60s and early '70s and what is happening now from your perspective?
HERSH: The most critical thing is they know more about us than we know about them. We fought the guerrillas in the jungle. It was their jungle. They controlled the night. They controlled the pace.
It's the same analogy. Of course it's a different war but what's really nerve-racking is that they seem to know where we are and what we're doing and their intelligence, their infiltration of us is much greater and that's got to have everybody on edge.
That's one reason there's such a high priority being put by Rumsfeld and others on the Special Forces operation. We've got to get at the core of the Ba'ath leadership or we're going to be facing a really long, long hot year, an election year. Nobody wants that.
BLITZER: Seymour Hersh of "The New Yorker" magazine thanks for your reporting.
HERSH: Thank you.
BLITZER: Grisly discoveries the search for three missing teenagers leads authorities to a real life horror house. We'll have details.
Plus this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNINTELLIGIBLE FEMALE: Getting a flu shot now is worth it because we've heard the effects are really bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Flu fears, long lines, and high anxiety as the number of states affected by the outbreak doubles.
And new concerns over tuna, yes tuna fish. New health warnings issued today about the popular fish, information you, especially if you're a woman, information you need to know. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Unlikely victim, the flu virus claims the life of another otherwise healthy college student, investigators now working to identify the deadly strain. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Police searching the basement of a home in northwest Indiana made a shocking discovery, human remains beneath freshly- poured concrete.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim has the latest now from Hammond, Indiana. Keith, this is a shocking story. Tell our viewers what happened.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is a very rough and gruesome story, Wolf.
We're here at the Hammond Police Department and we are waiting for a news conference to take place here in about an hour. At that news conference they may say that the suspect who is in custody has been charged and, at that point, we would release his name but because of the evidence that's been collected so far it's very possible that suspect could be charged in the killings of at least three young men.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM (voice-over): Hammond, Indiana Police have called in an anthropologist to help them in a careful search for remains. So far, three bodies have been removed from layers of concrete.
Investigators are trying to verify if the three victims uncovered are teenagers who have been missing for months. Families of two teens missing since September said they feared their loved ones were among the victims because the young men had become friends with the suspect.
That suspect, a resident of the home, has been taken into custody. Published reports say he had a long history of violence against teenage boys and that he spent 17 years in prison for the 1981 murder in Illinois of a 15-year-old boy. Prior to the discovery of dead bodies on Tuesday, police had the place under surveillance and neighbors said the house was the sight of strange and suspicious activity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I seen them one time they tore up the concrete and took concrete out there and then like a week later they grabbed like 30 bags and relayed it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Recently?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, like you know not even like three weeks ago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM: And, Wolf, later this afternoon police confirmed that after using ground penetrating radar and the help of an anthropologist and other technical equipment that they confirmed that there were only three bodies found in the basement of the suspect's home.
But they haven't ruled out the possibility that there could be other victims in this case but, again, only three so far and we are awaiting confirmation on the identities of those three young men - back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Keith, we'll be checking back for more information, Keith Oppenheim with the latest from Indiana.
Deadly flu, as the outbreak worsens fears clearly growing. We'll have the latest information you need to know.
In trouble again, authorities investigating singer Bobby Brown and wait until you see what his wife Whitney Houston does when the cameras are rolling.
Food warnings, new concerns over eating certain fish, information you need to know before opening your next can of tuna fish, first though today's News Quiz.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER (voice-over): What is the most consumed seafood in the United States, tuna, shrimp, salmon, crab," the answer coming up?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta says the flu is now reported in all, repeat all 50 states and widespread in almost half of them.
CNN's Sean Callebs is at the CNN Center in Atlanta with the latest information - Sean. SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the early and intense outbreak of the flu has simply dried up vaccine supplies around the nation. Now we knew the U.S. was facing a serious outbreak but until today we didn't know just how widespread.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS (voice-over): The flu season in the U.S. is hitting early and hitting hard. In Boston, authorities are trying to determine if the flu strain blamed for killing an 18-year-old college student is related to the so-called Fujian (ph) strain linked to the deaths of 11 children out west. The flu is bad but the CDC says it isn't an epidemic.
JULIE GERBERDING, CDC DIRECTOR: We don't have scientific evidence or epidemiologic evidence to suggest that this year's influenza outbreak is worse than it has been in the past or that the strain is more virulent than strains that we've dealt with before.
OPPENHEIM: This map speaks volumes, red indicating states with widespread flu cases and the flu has now touched all 50 states. Some 83 million doses of flu vaccine have been distributed but health officials are scrambling trying to locate more and quickly. Meanwhile, CDC officials are urging a dose of common sense to fight the flu.
GERBERDING: One of those is to be sure that we stay home when we're sick because this will help reduce transmission of any respiratory illness that we might have to others.
OPPENHEIM: Around the nation we are coughing and hacking. The flu typically starts with the very young and then spreads to the elderly. Influenza claims about 36,000 lives a year.
Historically 90 percent are older Americans. It often kills by weakening patients, making them susceptible to other infections but best advice the CDC can offer if you are at risk and haven't been vaccinated keep looking for a shot and if in the high risk group and you do come down with symptoms see a physician early.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM: Now the U.S. has just purchased 250,000 more doses of the influenza vaccine and it will be administered as quickly as possible to the very young and the elderly those considered at the greatest risk.
And, Wolf, here is one more sobering item to consider, as bad as the situation sounds the CDC is making it clear we are very early in the flu season and it's yet to peak.
BLITZER: Sean Callebs with very disturbing information but important information our viewers need to know. Sean, thank you very much.
Let's take a closer look now at how the flu outbreak is affecting individual communities around the United States. We have a series of reports starting with Larry Davis from CNN affiliate WKRC in Cincinnati.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY DAVIS, WKRC CORRESPONDENT: Here in the Cincinnati area the flu bug is starting to hit local school districts. The hallways here at Madison Junior/Senior High are empty. Classes were canceled today and tomorrow after nearly a third of the student body called in sick.
(voice-over): School maintenance workers spent the day sanitizing the building, thoroughly cleaning desks, computers and counters. The Cincinnati area is also running short on flu vaccine. In fact, some health clinics and hospitals are temporarily out of it.
(on camera): The director of one county health department tells us that they hope to get a new supply in sometime next week.
I'm Larry Davis for CNN, Cincinnati.
KAREN CHURCH, WBRC CORRESPONDENT: I'm Karen Church in Birmingham, Alabama where doctors here are loosely referring to this year's flu season as an epidemic. Of course the CDC has yet to determine whether Birmingham is truly at an epidemic stage.
But doctors here are saying that emergency rooms are packed with people who were waiting for hours before being seen and at least three hospitals locally don't have enough beds so they're turning people away and patients are being forced to search for hospitals with enough beds.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has about 1,000 flu shots available but doctors here at UAB expect those flue shots will be gone in the next two or three days.
I'm Karen Church in Birmingham, Alabama reporting for CNN.
JIM ALTMAN, WSYX CORRESPONDENT: And here in Columbus, Ohio, the flu is taking its toll. Entire schools have been shut down but here at New Albany Elementary when the flu bug bites they're biting back. These third-graders are getting an education in inoculation by learning to properly wash their hands.
Here in Columbus, Ohio, I'm Jim Altman for CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks to all of our affiliate reporters for that update.
Within the past hour explosions, loud explosions have been heard in central Baghdad in the so-called Green Zone also sirens wailing. We're going to get an update. Our Nic Robertson is on the scene. He'll tell us what's going on in Baghdad right now.
Also, too much tuna, is this fish a food that's dangerous for women in America? A new warning out today, information you need to know.
The Dean machine, he's the Democratic frontrunner with momentum and money but is it enough to battle President Bush? Bill Schneider will join us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Tuna concerns why federal officials are issuing new warnings right now about the popular fish. Your nutrition just what should we all be eating? I'll ask a registered dietitian and nutritionist.
First the answer to today's News Quiz.
Earlier we asked, "What is the most consume seafood in the United States," the answer shrimp. Shrimp consumption in the U.S. has doubled in the last decade to one billion pounds a year.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. A warning to women. Why a common fish may be harmful to your health. We'll get details. First though, a quick check of the latest headlines.
The Dow Jones' industrial average closed above 10,000 today for the first time in a year and a half. The surge was helped by better than expected retail sales data and indications of stable interest rates.
Also in the last hour, in central Baghdad, rocked by as many as four explosions. It happened around the so-called green zone, the home of the main headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition and the forces there. Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is in Baghdad joining us once again with the latest. Nic, tell our viewers who may be just tuning in what exactly is happening in Iraq right now.
ROBERTSON: Wolf, the green zone, this is the coalition's main and most secure base in Iraq, right in the center of Baghdad, an area about two miles long, a mile and a half across, a highly secure area right on the Tigris River. About an hour or so ago, four loud explosions were heard coming from that -- coming from the green zone, smoke was seen to be rising up.
Coalition officials we've talked to now say that at least what they describe as one missile -- at least one missile landed in the green zone. They say, according to one source, that two missiles may have -- they were able to hear two missiles landing in that area. We've heard reports of people diving under desks in the coalition headquarters to take cover. Also we've heard from another source within the compound as well who says that he thought he heard six different missiles. He believed them to have been fired possibly from along the riverside close to the compound. That would be normal to have these differing accounts at this early stage as the investigation goes on but no injuries -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Nic, we're going to ask you stand by and get some more information for our viewers. Clearly, lots of developments unfolding in Baghdad right now. We'll go back there live.
In the meantime, other important news we're following. Today, an important health warning for women of childbearing age. The Food and Drug Administration is advising them to limit the amount of tuna they eat because of concerns involving mercury poisoning. CNN's Jennifer Coggiola is here in Washington. She's joining us now live with details. Jennifer, tell our viewers what's going on.
JENNIFER COGGIOLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: These are some updated recommendations regarding fish consumption for particularly some high- risk groups. Today's advisory is from the -- excuse me. The FSF -- I apologize. The FDA and the Environmental Protection Agency and what it's really done is reiterate some crucial guidelines particularly for mothers- to-be and for women in their reproductive years.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COGGIOLA, (voice-over): Obesity, anemia, moms-to-be have their hands full with things to worry about and what you eat can be one of the most crucial.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Diet plays, in my opinion, an important role during pregnancy.
CAGGIOLA: A draft advisory from the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency warns pregnant women, women who may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children to limit the intake of certain fish because of their high levels of mercury.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Avoid shark, swordfish, tile fish, and king mackerel.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is one of -- not the most important aspect of prenatal care but in the dietary realm of prenatal care, probably one of the more important ones.
COGGIOLA: Scientists have learned that fish with high levels of mercury can cause adverse effects on the developing nervous system of the fetus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In utero, high levels of mercury exposure can decrease cognition, can be associated with cerebral palsy, can be associated sometimes with mild mental retardation.
COGGIOLA: That list also includes the second most highly consumed seafood in the U.S. -- tuna. The FDA recommends about two six-ounce portions of tuna or other low-mercury fish like catfish, salmon, halibut, and crab per week. Lastly, the preparation and kind of fish can play a role. For example, tuna steaks and canned tuna generally contain higher levels of mercury than canned light tuna. Also in the new advisory, the FDA recommends mixing up the kind of fish that you eat in an average week.
Health experts add that women should heed caution with all seafood and shellfish but with tuna, packing a protein punch, it can still be part of a healthy diet. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COGGIOLA: But how does the mercury get into our system? Well, mercury is considered what's called bio-accumulative. What that means is it builds up and it tends to concentrate in fatty tissues. So for fish and other what are called big fish, they're considered higher order. They eat smaller fish and they eat smaller fish, and plants, so the mercury tends to build up in their muscles and their fat through time. So the real danger essentially is what the fish has eaten, you have eaten and that mercury build-up is what's dangerous -- Wolf?
BLITZER: All right. CNN's Jennifer Coggiola with that important information. Jennifer, thank you very much.
Let's get a little bit more perspective now on what all this means in very practical terms. Lisa Drayer is the registered dietitian and nutritionist with Dietwatch.com. She's joining us now live from New York. Lisa, should women generally, especially pregnant women but women in general, should they stop eating tuna?
LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST, DIETITIAN: I don't think anyone has to stop eating tuna but it is important to know which tuna contains higher levels of mercury. For example, the albacore tuna, that's also known as white tuna, that has almost three times as much mercury as compared to light canned tuna.
So that's just something to keep in mind. Now remember, this advisory is not specific to tuna, but rather, the recommendation is to limit all fish, including tuna, to no more than six ounces per week, for sensitive populations, specifically pregnant women and women of childbearing age. As for the rest of us, including men, and women who are not of childbearing age, you just want to mix up your fish, get a large variety of fish that can include tuna, and lots of other types of fish that are also high in omega-3 fatty acids which are protective for the heart, such as salmon, for example.
BLITZER: So women who are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, how much tuna or these other kinds of fish should they be eating at all?
DRAYER: We're talking about a limit of 12 ounces per week. Now you might say, what does 12 ounces look like? But if you can picture what a deck of cards looks like, this is a visual that I often use, that's about three ounces. It looks something like this. This is a piece of salmon. This is three ounces. If you multiply this by four, that's the quantity that you're talking about to limit per week.
BLIZTER: Lisa Drayer with some important perspective on this story. Tuna, who would have thought? Thanks very much for that information.
DRAYER: Thank you.
BLITZER: What effect will the warning have on the giant tuna industry? CNN's Kathleen Hayes is in New York with that part of the story -- Kathleen?
KATHLEEN HAYES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf. Well, think about it. Tuna sandwiches, tuna salad, tuna noodle casserole. We're not just talking about comfort foods, we're talking about something that means big bucks to a big industry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAYES, (voice-over): Tuna is a major catch for American consumers. 84 percent of U.S. households eat it, buying $1.4 billion worth every year. Mostly in cans from household names like Starkist, Bumblebee, and Chicken Of The Sea, that makes it not only one of the most popular items on grocery store shelves, along with staples like coffee and sugar, but also the most eaten fish in the country. Critics say that also makes tuna a big business with undue influence over government regulators.
RICHARD WILES, ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP: They clearly have significant clout at Food and Drug Administration and they've been able to override recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences on several occasions. They've used their influence in the past, and we've documented this through FDA's own internal documents, to have tuna taken off health advisories.
HAYES: The tuna industry doesn't deny some mercury risk, especially for pregnant women, but it says cutting back on tuna would deprive U.S. consumers of a good, cheap source of protein that is both low in fat and carbohydrates, while rich in special nutrients found in fish oil known as omega-3s.
To suggest that women and children not eat tuna could be detrimental to a child's brain development and health. The U.S. Tuna Foundation said in a statement today, "we should be encouraging women and children to eat more fish because of the nutritional benefits." To the 25,000 people who fish it, can it, and label it, the outcome of the tuna debate is critical.
If Americans eat less tuna, it could cost some people their jobs.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAYES: The Environmental Working Group says this is -- this tuna question is actually part of a bigger debate. They say the Bush administration has rolled back standards on mercury contamination and that doesn't just benefit the tuna industry but the larger energy- producing companies as well -- Wolf?
BLITZER: CNN's Kathleen Hays with that part of the story. Kathleen, thank you very much.
The Dean factor. Lots of talk about this candidate. But is Howard Dean electable?
Man about Manhattan. The candidate Wesley Clark picking up a new endorsement. We're on the trail.
And in the spotlight but for the wrong reasons. The latest legal troubles for singer Bobby Brown. All of that coming up.
First though, a quick look at some other news making "Headlines Around the World."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Israeli explosion. A blast in Tel Aviv has killed three people, but it appears to have been the work of gangsters, not terrorists. Police say the attack was aimed as an Israeli crime boss who was injured in the blast.
Raid on Rafah. Israeli forces raided the Rafah Refugee Camp in Gaza. They say they came under attack while trying to make an arrest and returned fire. Six Palestinians died. Israel says three of the dead were militants. Palestinians say most of those killed were bystanders.
Disturbing image. A series of ads for a British charity has been withdrawn following hundreds of complaints. Designed to call attention to child poverty, the ads feature digital images of babies with cockroaches and drug paraphernalia.
Wall mart. Fourteen years after most of it came down, here is your chance to buy the last remaining section of the Berlin Wall. The 96-foot Cold War remnant is part of some real estate going on the auction block. One drawback, the new owner can't move the wall because it's a protected historical monument.
Eyeful Eiffel. How do you say "merry Christmas" in French? By decorating the Eiffel tower. The Paris landmark is a glitter for the holidays helping to make the City of Light even brighter than usual.
And that's our look "Around the World."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: For presidential hopefuls out on the campaign trail, December means three things: dollars, endorsements and face time.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Freshly infused with cash from last night's million dollar fund raiser, Wesley Clark was a man about Manhattan today as he picked up the anticipated and official backing of Congressman Charlie Rangel of New York.
REP. CHARLIE RANGEL (D), NEW YORK: But in times of war, we need a warrior.
BLITZER: On an endorsement row, Clark is getting the backing of Andrew Young, the former Congressman, former Atlanta mayor and former aid to the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. They'll appear together in South Carolina December 21. Clark will finish his day with an appearance on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart." The glass is half full according to the Joe Lieberman campaign. His campaign says that since former running mate Vice President Al Gore endorsed Democratic rival Howard Dean, online contributions to the Connecticut senator are up 13-fold. The senator was in the crucial primary state of New Hampshire discussing health care issues today.
Massachusetts Senator John Kerry also has some number news of his own. Turning the big 6-0 today. He's spending his birthday with 400 of his closest friends and donors in Boston. Kerry also paid a visit to "The Boston Globe" for an editorial board meeting.
Not to be left out, President Bush held his own dinning for dollars event today, this one in suburban Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. One of many to surely come this campaign season.
BUSH: I'm getting ready for the campaign. I'm loosening up.
BLITZER: And that's our look at the 2004 presidential candidates on the trail.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: With Al Gore's surprise endorsement under his belt, Howard Dean seems to be on a roll. But the key question remains. If Dean wins the democratic nomination, can he beat -- can he beat President Bush? For that, we turn as we always do to our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider. What's the answer, Bill?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, there's one issue driving the Democratic race, Wolf. And it is not Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): The Democratic race has come down to one issue, the one raised at the beginning of Tuesday night's debate.
TED KOPPEL, ABC NEWS ANCHOR: So I would like all of you up here, including you, Governor Dean, to raise your hand if you believe that Governor Dean can beat George W. Bush.
SCHNEIDER: Only one hand went up. Dean believes he can win by leading a movement of new voters. Barry Goldwater was a movement politician. So was George McGovern. Uh-oh.
The White House claims to be worried. But privately, Republican analysts say Karl Rove could not have designed a better opponent for Bush to run against.
DAVID BROOKS, COLUMNIST, "NEW YORK TIMES": I have spent a lot of time talking to republican pollsters privately and on a background basis, and saying, Is there any of the major Democratic candidates who would be easier to beat than Howard Dean? They all say, no, Dean is the easiest to beat. SCHNEIDER: Dean's Democratic rivals have started to raise the electability issue, carefully. Dean has no international experience and no military record.
WESLEY CLARK (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have to be the party that can stand toe to toe with George W. Bush on national security.
SCHNEIDER: Joe Lieberman says he could pull the Democratic Party back to the left on many issues.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D-CT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This campaign for the Democratic nomination is fundamentally a referendum within our party about whether we're going to build on the Clinton transformation in our party in 1992.
SCHNEIDER: He is the only governor to have signed a gay civil union bill. Al Gore urged Democrats to nominate Dean in order to, among other things, make an anti-war statement.
AL GORE, FRM. VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He was the only major candidate who made the correct judgment about the Iraq war.
SCHNEIDER: But it may be hard to unify the Democratic Party around the idea that the war was a mistake.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Ronald Reagan was a movement candidate and he won. How? Well, he ran against the discredited incumbent which is exactly what Howard Dean needs.
BLITZER: Interesting. Let's talk a little bit about a new poll that's out in New Hampshire. And it doesn't necessarily focus in on the primary.
SCHNEIDER: That's right. New Hampshire voters know Howard Dean. He was the governor of a neighboring state. And he's been campaigning in New Hampshire for months. And he has a wide lead among New Hampshire Democrats.
But look at what happens when you ask all New Hampshire voters, not just Democrats, all New Hampshire voters how they would vote between George W. Bush and Howard Dean. It's Bush, by nearly 2 to 1. These are voters who know Howard Dean quite well. It's not a good sign for Dean.
BLITZER: Bush carried New Hampshire, albeit very, very narrowly, in 2000.
SCHNEIDER: It was one of the closest states in the country. And of course Ralph Nader got more than enough votes to deny the state to Al Gore. It's one of the closely contested states.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider, as usual, thanks very much. We have lots more news coming up, including Kobe Bryant's defense. Lawyers for the basketball superstar subpoena a close relative of the accuser.
Freedom flight or illegal act? A jury rules on six Cubans accused of hijacking a plane to Florida.
And no monkey business. Another animal death at the National Zoo here in the nation's capital. An update on the story we brought you earlier in the week. All that and much more. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: The mother of Kobe Bryant's accuser subpoenaed by the defense. That story tops our "Justice Report." She's among the witnesses Bryant's lawyers plan to call at a hearing next Friday. They also have sent a subpoena to lead investigator Doug Winters. Bryant is charged with raping a 19-year-old employee at a hotel near Vail over the summer.
A Florida jury has convicted six Cubans of hijacking. In March, the group commandeered a domestic flight forcing the crew to fly instead to Florida. Their lawyers argue the crew cooperated in what they called a freedom flight. The hijacking charges carry a mandatory 20-year sentence.
(MUSIC)
Entertainer Whitney Houston was singing -- yes, she was singing as she and her husband Bobby Brown left a meeting with prosecutors in Atlanta. Brown is charged with battering Houston over the weekend at the couple's suburban home. But Houston told reporters -- and I'm quoting now -- "We're still together." Brown is scheduled to appear in court January 7.
More troubles at the National Zoo. The Washington, D.C. tourist attraction famed for its pandas has been under fire following a series of animal deaths. Zoo officials now have confirmed that a bacterial disease spread by rats caused a monkey to die last month. The same disease has infected a cheetah. Earlier this year the zoo lost two red pandas.
Not your ordinary evening. In the nation's capital, we'll explain. That's coming up.
And our "Hot Web Question of the Day" is this. Do you agree with President Bush that only countries who risked lives in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts? You can vote right now. cnn.com/wolf. The results when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WOODRUFF: And now the latest sign Christmas is coming.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. DENNIS HASTERT (R-IL), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: When we count to three, we'll make this tree light up. All right? One -- can you help me. Two. Three! All right! Great job. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The House Speaker Dennis Hastert turned on the lights of the holiday tree at the U.S. Capitol just a few moments ago, The 65-foot Engleman Spruce is from Idaho. It's covered with 10,000, yes, 10,00 lights and obviously that's our "Picture of the Day."
Here's how you're weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember, we've been asking you this. Do you agree with President Bush that only countries that risk lives in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts? Look at this, 67 percent of you say yes, 33 percent of you say no. As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.
Let's get to some of your e-mail. William writes this: "I agree wit the policy of not giving contract to countries that did nothing but let our young people die. Now they want to profit from it."
George writes this: "How much more contempt can the U.S. show towards it's allies? We expect them to forgive Iraqi debt, but won't allow them to bid on contracts."
A reminder, important reminder. We're on every weekday, 5 p.m. Eastern. Also, every weekday noon Eastern. I'll see you tomorrow. Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Harmful to Pregnant Women>
Aired December 11, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: You're listening to the sounds of sirens wailing in Baghdad. Only within the past few moments huge explosions have been heard in central Baghdad right around the area housing the U.S.-led coalition headquarters. We'll go there live.
Also, happening right now mounting anger over the president's decision to snub France, Germany, Russia and other countries which have refused to support the U.S.-led war in Iraq. They want a piece of the financial action. The president says no way.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Standing his ground, who's in and who's out in Iraq?
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's very simple. Our people risk their lives. The coalition, a friendly coalition "risk their lives" and therefore the contracting is going to reflect it.
BLITZER: The spread of the flu now striking all 50 states, widespread in almost half.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a serious disease and we're in the process of what looks like going to be a bad year.
BLITZER: A house of horrors, bodies in the basement encased in concrete. Investigators give new details.
And, a warning about a staple of the American diet who should be concerned and why?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, December 11, 2003.
BLITZER: Central Baghdad rocked by as many as four explosions only within the past several moments. It happened around the so- called Green Zone, the home of the main headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition forces. Our Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson is in the Iraqi capital. He's joining us now live with the latest. Nic, what do you know? What's happening right now?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, what we know is that there were those three or four loud explosions about 40 minutes ago. The siren in the Green Zone went off. We could see smoke rising from the Green Zone itself.
What we have just been told in the last few minutes by coalition officials is that they can confirm there were at least two explosions. One of those explosions, they say, actually happened within the Green Zone itself. They say it could have been an attack by rockets.
Independent security analysts we've talked to have said that they could have been mortars that were fired but we've also talked to people who were inside the Green Zone, inside coalition chief Paul Bremer's headquarters, the main Republican Palace there who say that when they heard these explosions they literally dived under the tables seeking cover.
We've heard from the coalition as well that there is no structural damage there and that so far they have been able to find no injuries but according to the coalition at least one of those missiles, a mortar maybe or a missile landing within the Green Zone in the center of Baghdad, the heart of the coalition's provisional assembly here in Iraq.
A little earlier in the day there was a suicide bomb to the west of Baghdad in the town of Ramadi. Three suicide attackers in a vehicle detonated their car killing one soldier outside the base of the 82nd Airborne. Fourteen other soldiers were injured, 11 of them we understand treated by released back to duty, the three other more seriously wounded.
Also overnight two journalists from "TIME" magazine, Michael Weisskopf and James Nachtwey, the photographer, injured when a grenade was tossed into the vehicle belonging to the 1st Armored division in which they were patrolling the city of Baghdad. They sustained injuries and are now being treated for those injuries - Wolf.
BLITZER: Nic, when we hear the words the Green Zone in Baghdad to our viewers who are not pretty familiar with what that means explain that area. How secure is it? What goes on within that so- called Green Zone?
ROBERTSON: Wolf, it is one of the most if not the most secure area in the center of Baghdad. It's about two miles long. It sits right on the Tigris River. It is about a mile and a half across. There is high security, troops on all the gates into this area.
It is the place where the coalition has its headquarters where the main civil administrator's work through the day, Paul Bremer, all his deputies. It is where much of the work in rebuilding Iraq is done. This is the headquarters. This is where the Governing Council members come for meetings. It is also a place where many of these people sleep and live overnight. They eat there. They sleep there. They sleep in buildings outside. They sleep within the main presidential building itself. It is the heart of the coalition's operation in Iraq and it is right in the center of Baghdad.
BLITZER: Nic Robertson on the scene for us in Baghdad. Nic, to you and to all our colleagues in Iraq please be very, very careful.
More on Iraq now, President Bush is sticking to his guns over the controversial decision to shut out certain allies from almost $20 billion in Iraqi rebuilding projects. The president minced no words in defending the policy earlier today.
Our Senior White House Correspondent John King is joining us now live with the latest - John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf, a strong defense of the policy from the president today. He says it is simply common sense, in his view the right thing to do but this decision by the president has caused considerable outrage overseas and some criticism from political opponents here at home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KING (voice-over): The president says he doesn't understand all the fuss.
BUSH: It's very simple. Our people risk their lives. Coalition, a friendly coalition "risk their lives" and therefore the contracting is going to reflect it and that's what the U.S. taxpayers expect.
KING: But the decision to steer nearly $20 billion in Iraq reconstruction money to companies from the United States and key war allies reopened the diplomatic divide between Washington and major war opponents like France, Russia, and Germany.
KOFI ANNAN, UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL: I would not characterize the decision taken yesterday as unifying.
KING: The president's political opponents call it more failed diplomacy.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it borders on the stupid. It is counterproductive. It is the exact opposite of what we should be doing in order to bring other countries into the table.
KING: But at this year-end cabinet meeting Mr. Bush not only defended the policy but scoffed when asked about French and German suggestions his approach violates international law.
BUSH: International law, I better call my lawyer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: So the defense of the policy there from the president, Wolf, but certainly the timing of this is quite awkward. Mr. Bush is sending his personal envoy former Secretary of State James Baker to Russia, to Germany, to France beginning next week.
His mission is to try to get those countries to forgive or reduce huge Iraqi debts racked up during the days of Saddam Hussein. Considerable anger again though at the Bush White House, a tough mission now for Secretary Baker.
BLITZER: Tough indeed. Thanks very much John King at the White House.
And to our viewers, here's your turn to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this. "Do you agree with President Bush that only 'countries that risk lives' in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts"?
You can vote right now. Go to cnn.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast. While you're there, I'd love to hear directly from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.
There's a new serious problem in the U.S. effort to rebuild Iraq. Almost half of the recruits of the new Iraqi Army have quit. American officials say about 300 soldiers resigned over complaints of bad pay and bad work conditions.
The United States abolished Saddam Hussein's 400,000 member Army in May and recently accelerated plans to build a new force eventually hoping to reach about 40,000 soldiers.
The mass resignation of Iraqi soldiers is just the latest blow to the Bush administration's attempt to stop deadly attacks against U.S. forces by Saddam loyalists.
But award-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in an article, an important article in the latest issue of "The New Yorker" magazine says the administration has given the green light to a major covert operation aimed at neutralizing the insurgents by capturing or killing them. The key question will this operation backfire like a similar project during Vietnam called the Phoenix Program?
Seymour Hersh is joining us now live. Sy, thanks very much for joining us. To our viewers who are not familiar with the thrust of your article what's going on in terms of this new, more aggressive effort to deal with the insurgents?
SEYMOUR HERSH, CONTRIBUTOR, "THE NEW YORKER": We're going to bring in our commandos, Special Forces, Delta Force, the SEALS, paramilitary people from the CIA. We're going to try and get intelligence on where these guys who are hurting us live, their cells, how they operate and we're going to go and wipe them out. That's the plan. It's a Rumsfeld plan. He's been trying to do this for two years. He calls it manhunts and he's got his way now. He's going to send them in and the next step it's probably going to start if it's not started now certainly by next month, a major escalation of the covert war.
BLITZER: Some of our viewers probably will ask a fair question what's taking so long? Why haven't they been doing this for a while?
HERSH: The problem is you have to know who you're hitting. You have to know who they are and what kind of intelligence can you get and the trick they've done, it's something interesting, they've been working for months since the end of the war to put together teams of former Iraqi intelligence people and they have put together teams that are going to work with our people and also the Israelis are involved. They're going to help train us and advise us on how to do it and they think that may be the ticket to getting the right people. There's nothing...
BLITZER: This is one of the more fascinating parts of the article, the role of Israel in training U.S. commandos. I thought U.S. Special Operations Forces, the Delta Force, these others, the SEALS as you point out are already among the best in the world. What do they need from Israel for?
HERSH: Israel has been an insurgency, the Hamas. They've been going after them and killing people in the West Bank and Gaza and destroying the people that are sending suicide bombers.
We're now in a phase where we have suicide bombers. Maybe it wasn't there when we began the war with Saddam, this kind of terror, but it's there now and so the idea, look, it's (unintelligible) as somebody in the Israel Embassy said to me the idea of Israelis working with Americans in an Arab country to kill other Arabs.
BLITZER: But are Israelis actually in Iraq with U.S. forces because I didn't get that from your article?
HERSH: No. No. The training has been done in North Carolina and also we've gone to Israel and obviously, look, I didn't write this but clearly Israelis are making contact inside Baghdad under cover, of course they are.
BLITZER: You think there are Israelis there?
HERSH: I don't think they're doing operations but they're certainly there in some way.
BLITZER: But you thinking they're working hand-in-glove with U.S. commandos in Iraq?
HERSH: They will be. They will be advising them. Now whether that means they'll be advising on the ground, there will be Israeli advisers attached to our units as is being programmed right now along with Iraqi intelligence officials. That's the idea. That's the game plan and, as you suggested, the only thing wrong with it is if you don't get the right information and you start killing the wrong people, you're making more insurgents.
BLITZER: So there's a possibility and you raised this possibility in the article that this new aggressive phase could backfire?
HERSH: Oh, my God a very strong possibility. Why do you think people are talking to me about it? There's a great deal of nervousness about the quality of intelligence. This only works if you can get the right people at the right time.
Israel has a record of doing that, which is one reason we go to them in terms of looking into an Arab society like they have in the West Bank and, as I said, in the Hamas. So, the idea is maybe we can learn something from them and get more sophisticated than we seem to be in our intelligence collection in Iraq.
BLITZER: In the past few moments or within the past hour or so we heard sirens wailing in Baghdad in the so-called Green Zone supposedly the most secure area where thousands of U.S. troops are headquartered and it looks like there were these loud explosions.
We're showing our viewers what we heard. Let's just listen to these sirens wailing within the past hour.
All right, you covered Vietnam. You know what happened then. You won a Pulitzer Prize for the Me Lei Massacre, the coverage of that. What exactly is the similarity, the difference, between what happened to U.S. forces in Vietnam in the '60s and early '70s and what is happening now from your perspective?
HERSH: The most critical thing is they know more about us than we know about them. We fought the guerrillas in the jungle. It was their jungle. They controlled the night. They controlled the pace.
It's the same analogy. Of course it's a different war but what's really nerve-racking is that they seem to know where we are and what we're doing and their intelligence, their infiltration of us is much greater and that's got to have everybody on edge.
That's one reason there's such a high priority being put by Rumsfeld and others on the Special Forces operation. We've got to get at the core of the Ba'ath leadership or we're going to be facing a really long, long hot year, an election year. Nobody wants that.
BLITZER: Seymour Hersh of "The New Yorker" magazine thanks for your reporting.
HERSH: Thank you.
BLITZER: Grisly discoveries the search for three missing teenagers leads authorities to a real life horror house. We'll have details.
Plus this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNINTELLIGIBLE FEMALE: Getting a flu shot now is worth it because we've heard the effects are really bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Flu fears, long lines, and high anxiety as the number of states affected by the outbreak doubles.
And new concerns over tuna, yes tuna fish. New health warnings issued today about the popular fish, information you, especially if you're a woman, information you need to know. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Unlikely victim, the flu virus claims the life of another otherwise healthy college student, investigators now working to identify the deadly strain. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Police searching the basement of a home in northwest Indiana made a shocking discovery, human remains beneath freshly- poured concrete.
CNN's Keith Oppenheim has the latest now from Hammond, Indiana. Keith, this is a shocking story. Tell our viewers what happened.
KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is a very rough and gruesome story, Wolf.
We're here at the Hammond Police Department and we are waiting for a news conference to take place here in about an hour. At that news conference they may say that the suspect who is in custody has been charged and, at that point, we would release his name but because of the evidence that's been collected so far it's very possible that suspect could be charged in the killings of at least three young men.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM (voice-over): Hammond, Indiana Police have called in an anthropologist to help them in a careful search for remains. So far, three bodies have been removed from layers of concrete.
Investigators are trying to verify if the three victims uncovered are teenagers who have been missing for months. Families of two teens missing since September said they feared their loved ones were among the victims because the young men had become friends with the suspect.
That suspect, a resident of the home, has been taken into custody. Published reports say he had a long history of violence against teenage boys and that he spent 17 years in prison for the 1981 murder in Illinois of a 15-year-old boy. Prior to the discovery of dead bodies on Tuesday, police had the place under surveillance and neighbors said the house was the sight of strange and suspicious activity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I seen them one time they tore up the concrete and took concrete out there and then like a week later they grabbed like 30 bags and relayed it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Recently?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, like you know not even like three weeks ago.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM: And, Wolf, later this afternoon police confirmed that after using ground penetrating radar and the help of an anthropologist and other technical equipment that they confirmed that there were only three bodies found in the basement of the suspect's home.
But they haven't ruled out the possibility that there could be other victims in this case but, again, only three so far and we are awaiting confirmation on the identities of those three young men - back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Keith, we'll be checking back for more information, Keith Oppenheim with the latest from Indiana.
Deadly flu, as the outbreak worsens fears clearly growing. We'll have the latest information you need to know.
In trouble again, authorities investigating singer Bobby Brown and wait until you see what his wife Whitney Houston does when the cameras are rolling.
Food warnings, new concerns over eating certain fish, information you need to know before opening your next can of tuna fish, first though today's News Quiz.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER (voice-over): What is the most consumed seafood in the United States, tuna, shrimp, salmon, crab," the answer coming up?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta says the flu is now reported in all, repeat all 50 states and widespread in almost half of them.
CNN's Sean Callebs is at the CNN Center in Atlanta with the latest information - Sean. SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the early and intense outbreak of the flu has simply dried up vaccine supplies around the nation. Now we knew the U.S. was facing a serious outbreak but until today we didn't know just how widespread.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CALLEBS (voice-over): The flu season in the U.S. is hitting early and hitting hard. In Boston, authorities are trying to determine if the flu strain blamed for killing an 18-year-old college student is related to the so-called Fujian (ph) strain linked to the deaths of 11 children out west. The flu is bad but the CDC says it isn't an epidemic.
JULIE GERBERDING, CDC DIRECTOR: We don't have scientific evidence or epidemiologic evidence to suggest that this year's influenza outbreak is worse than it has been in the past or that the strain is more virulent than strains that we've dealt with before.
OPPENHEIM: This map speaks volumes, red indicating states with widespread flu cases and the flu has now touched all 50 states. Some 83 million doses of flu vaccine have been distributed but health officials are scrambling trying to locate more and quickly. Meanwhile, CDC officials are urging a dose of common sense to fight the flu.
GERBERDING: One of those is to be sure that we stay home when we're sick because this will help reduce transmission of any respiratory illness that we might have to others.
OPPENHEIM: Around the nation we are coughing and hacking. The flu typically starts with the very young and then spreads to the elderly. Influenza claims about 36,000 lives a year.
Historically 90 percent are older Americans. It often kills by weakening patients, making them susceptible to other infections but best advice the CDC can offer if you are at risk and haven't been vaccinated keep looking for a shot and if in the high risk group and you do come down with symptoms see a physician early.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OPPENHEIM: Now the U.S. has just purchased 250,000 more doses of the influenza vaccine and it will be administered as quickly as possible to the very young and the elderly those considered at the greatest risk.
And, Wolf, here is one more sobering item to consider, as bad as the situation sounds the CDC is making it clear we are very early in the flu season and it's yet to peak.
BLITZER: Sean Callebs with very disturbing information but important information our viewers need to know. Sean, thank you very much.
Let's take a closer look now at how the flu outbreak is affecting individual communities around the United States. We have a series of reports starting with Larry Davis from CNN affiliate WKRC in Cincinnati.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY DAVIS, WKRC CORRESPONDENT: Here in the Cincinnati area the flu bug is starting to hit local school districts. The hallways here at Madison Junior/Senior High are empty. Classes were canceled today and tomorrow after nearly a third of the student body called in sick.
(voice-over): School maintenance workers spent the day sanitizing the building, thoroughly cleaning desks, computers and counters. The Cincinnati area is also running short on flu vaccine. In fact, some health clinics and hospitals are temporarily out of it.
(on camera): The director of one county health department tells us that they hope to get a new supply in sometime next week.
I'm Larry Davis for CNN, Cincinnati.
KAREN CHURCH, WBRC CORRESPONDENT: I'm Karen Church in Birmingham, Alabama where doctors here are loosely referring to this year's flu season as an epidemic. Of course the CDC has yet to determine whether Birmingham is truly at an epidemic stage.
But doctors here are saying that emergency rooms are packed with people who were waiting for hours before being seen and at least three hospitals locally don't have enough beds so they're turning people away and patients are being forced to search for hospitals with enough beds.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has about 1,000 flu shots available but doctors here at UAB expect those flue shots will be gone in the next two or three days.
I'm Karen Church in Birmingham, Alabama reporting for CNN.
JIM ALTMAN, WSYX CORRESPONDENT: And here in Columbus, Ohio, the flu is taking its toll. Entire schools have been shut down but here at New Albany Elementary when the flu bug bites they're biting back. These third-graders are getting an education in inoculation by learning to properly wash their hands.
Here in Columbus, Ohio, I'm Jim Altman for CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks to all of our affiliate reporters for that update.
Within the past hour explosions, loud explosions have been heard in central Baghdad in the so-called Green Zone also sirens wailing. We're going to get an update. Our Nic Robertson is on the scene. He'll tell us what's going on in Baghdad right now.
Also, too much tuna, is this fish a food that's dangerous for women in America? A new warning out today, information you need to know.
The Dean machine, he's the Democratic frontrunner with momentum and money but is it enough to battle President Bush? Bill Schneider will join us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Tuna concerns why federal officials are issuing new warnings right now about the popular fish. Your nutrition just what should we all be eating? I'll ask a registered dietitian and nutritionist.
First the answer to today's News Quiz.
Earlier we asked, "What is the most consume seafood in the United States," the answer shrimp. Shrimp consumption in the U.S. has doubled in the last decade to one billion pounds a year.
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BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. A warning to women. Why a common fish may be harmful to your health. We'll get details. First though, a quick check of the latest headlines.
The Dow Jones' industrial average closed above 10,000 today for the first time in a year and a half. The surge was helped by better than expected retail sales data and indications of stable interest rates.
Also in the last hour, in central Baghdad, rocked by as many as four explosions. It happened around the so-called green zone, the home of the main headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition and the forces there. Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is in Baghdad joining us once again with the latest. Nic, tell our viewers who may be just tuning in what exactly is happening in Iraq right now.
ROBERTSON: Wolf, the green zone, this is the coalition's main and most secure base in Iraq, right in the center of Baghdad, an area about two miles long, a mile and a half across, a highly secure area right on the Tigris River. About an hour or so ago, four loud explosions were heard coming from that -- coming from the green zone, smoke was seen to be rising up.
Coalition officials we've talked to now say that at least what they describe as one missile -- at least one missile landed in the green zone. They say, according to one source, that two missiles may have -- they were able to hear two missiles landing in that area. We've heard reports of people diving under desks in the coalition headquarters to take cover. Also we've heard from another source within the compound as well who says that he thought he heard six different missiles. He believed them to have been fired possibly from along the riverside close to the compound. That would be normal to have these differing accounts at this early stage as the investigation goes on but no injuries -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Nic, we're going to ask you stand by and get some more information for our viewers. Clearly, lots of developments unfolding in Baghdad right now. We'll go back there live.
In the meantime, other important news we're following. Today, an important health warning for women of childbearing age. The Food and Drug Administration is advising them to limit the amount of tuna they eat because of concerns involving mercury poisoning. CNN's Jennifer Coggiola is here in Washington. She's joining us now live with details. Jennifer, tell our viewers what's going on.
JENNIFER COGGIOLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: These are some updated recommendations regarding fish consumption for particularly some high- risk groups. Today's advisory is from the -- excuse me. The FSF -- I apologize. The FDA and the Environmental Protection Agency and what it's really done is reiterate some crucial guidelines particularly for mothers- to-be and for women in their reproductive years.
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COGGIOLA, (voice-over): Obesity, anemia, moms-to-be have their hands full with things to worry about and what you eat can be one of the most crucial.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Diet plays, in my opinion, an important role during pregnancy.
CAGGIOLA: A draft advisory from the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency warns pregnant women, women who may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and young children to limit the intake of certain fish because of their high levels of mercury.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Avoid shark, swordfish, tile fish, and king mackerel.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is one of -- not the most important aspect of prenatal care but in the dietary realm of prenatal care, probably one of the more important ones.
COGGIOLA: Scientists have learned that fish with high levels of mercury can cause adverse effects on the developing nervous system of the fetus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In utero, high levels of mercury exposure can decrease cognition, can be associated with cerebral palsy, can be associated sometimes with mild mental retardation.
COGGIOLA: That list also includes the second most highly consumed seafood in the U.S. -- tuna. The FDA recommends about two six-ounce portions of tuna or other low-mercury fish like catfish, salmon, halibut, and crab per week. Lastly, the preparation and kind of fish can play a role. For example, tuna steaks and canned tuna generally contain higher levels of mercury than canned light tuna. Also in the new advisory, the FDA recommends mixing up the kind of fish that you eat in an average week.
Health experts add that women should heed caution with all seafood and shellfish but with tuna, packing a protein punch, it can still be part of a healthy diet. (END VIDEOTAPE)
COGGIOLA: But how does the mercury get into our system? Well, mercury is considered what's called bio-accumulative. What that means is it builds up and it tends to concentrate in fatty tissues. So for fish and other what are called big fish, they're considered higher order. They eat smaller fish and they eat smaller fish, and plants, so the mercury tends to build up in their muscles and their fat through time. So the real danger essentially is what the fish has eaten, you have eaten and that mercury build-up is what's dangerous -- Wolf?
BLITZER: All right. CNN's Jennifer Coggiola with that important information. Jennifer, thank you very much.
Let's get a little bit more perspective now on what all this means in very practical terms. Lisa Drayer is the registered dietitian and nutritionist with Dietwatch.com. She's joining us now live from New York. Lisa, should women generally, especially pregnant women but women in general, should they stop eating tuna?
LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST, DIETITIAN: I don't think anyone has to stop eating tuna but it is important to know which tuna contains higher levels of mercury. For example, the albacore tuna, that's also known as white tuna, that has almost three times as much mercury as compared to light canned tuna.
So that's just something to keep in mind. Now remember, this advisory is not specific to tuna, but rather, the recommendation is to limit all fish, including tuna, to no more than six ounces per week, for sensitive populations, specifically pregnant women and women of childbearing age. As for the rest of us, including men, and women who are not of childbearing age, you just want to mix up your fish, get a large variety of fish that can include tuna, and lots of other types of fish that are also high in omega-3 fatty acids which are protective for the heart, such as salmon, for example.
BLITZER: So women who are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, how much tuna or these other kinds of fish should they be eating at all?
DRAYER: We're talking about a limit of 12 ounces per week. Now you might say, what does 12 ounces look like? But if you can picture what a deck of cards looks like, this is a visual that I often use, that's about three ounces. It looks something like this. This is a piece of salmon. This is three ounces. If you multiply this by four, that's the quantity that you're talking about to limit per week.
BLIZTER: Lisa Drayer with some important perspective on this story. Tuna, who would have thought? Thanks very much for that information.
DRAYER: Thank you.
BLITZER: What effect will the warning have on the giant tuna industry? CNN's Kathleen Hayes is in New York with that part of the story -- Kathleen?
KATHLEEN HAYES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf. Well, think about it. Tuna sandwiches, tuna salad, tuna noodle casserole. We're not just talking about comfort foods, we're talking about something that means big bucks to a big industry.
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HAYES, (voice-over): Tuna is a major catch for American consumers. 84 percent of U.S. households eat it, buying $1.4 billion worth every year. Mostly in cans from household names like Starkist, Bumblebee, and Chicken Of The Sea, that makes it not only one of the most popular items on grocery store shelves, along with staples like coffee and sugar, but also the most eaten fish in the country. Critics say that also makes tuna a big business with undue influence over government regulators.
RICHARD WILES, ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP: They clearly have significant clout at Food and Drug Administration and they've been able to override recommendations from the National Academy of Sciences on several occasions. They've used their influence in the past, and we've documented this through FDA's own internal documents, to have tuna taken off health advisories.
HAYES: The tuna industry doesn't deny some mercury risk, especially for pregnant women, but it says cutting back on tuna would deprive U.S. consumers of a good, cheap source of protein that is both low in fat and carbohydrates, while rich in special nutrients found in fish oil known as omega-3s.
To suggest that women and children not eat tuna could be detrimental to a child's brain development and health. The U.S. Tuna Foundation said in a statement today, "we should be encouraging women and children to eat more fish because of the nutritional benefits." To the 25,000 people who fish it, can it, and label it, the outcome of the tuna debate is critical.
If Americans eat less tuna, it could cost some people their jobs.
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HAYES: The Environmental Working Group says this is -- this tuna question is actually part of a bigger debate. They say the Bush administration has rolled back standards on mercury contamination and that doesn't just benefit the tuna industry but the larger energy- producing companies as well -- Wolf?
BLITZER: CNN's Kathleen Hays with that part of the story. Kathleen, thank you very much.
The Dean factor. Lots of talk about this candidate. But is Howard Dean electable?
Man about Manhattan. The candidate Wesley Clark picking up a new endorsement. We're on the trail.
And in the spotlight but for the wrong reasons. The latest legal troubles for singer Bobby Brown. All of that coming up.
First though, a quick look at some other news making "Headlines Around the World."
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BLITZER (voice-over): Israeli explosion. A blast in Tel Aviv has killed three people, but it appears to have been the work of gangsters, not terrorists. Police say the attack was aimed as an Israeli crime boss who was injured in the blast.
Raid on Rafah. Israeli forces raided the Rafah Refugee Camp in Gaza. They say they came under attack while trying to make an arrest and returned fire. Six Palestinians died. Israel says three of the dead were militants. Palestinians say most of those killed were bystanders.
Disturbing image. A series of ads for a British charity has been withdrawn following hundreds of complaints. Designed to call attention to child poverty, the ads feature digital images of babies with cockroaches and drug paraphernalia.
Wall mart. Fourteen years after most of it came down, here is your chance to buy the last remaining section of the Berlin Wall. The 96-foot Cold War remnant is part of some real estate going on the auction block. One drawback, the new owner can't move the wall because it's a protected historical monument.
Eyeful Eiffel. How do you say "merry Christmas" in French? By decorating the Eiffel tower. The Paris landmark is a glitter for the holidays helping to make the City of Light even brighter than usual.
And that's our look "Around the World."
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BLITZER: For presidential hopefuls out on the campaign trail, December means three things: dollars, endorsements and face time.
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BLITZER (voice-over): Freshly infused with cash from last night's million dollar fund raiser, Wesley Clark was a man about Manhattan today as he picked up the anticipated and official backing of Congressman Charlie Rangel of New York.
REP. CHARLIE RANGEL (D), NEW YORK: But in times of war, we need a warrior.
BLITZER: On an endorsement row, Clark is getting the backing of Andrew Young, the former Congressman, former Atlanta mayor and former aid to the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. They'll appear together in South Carolina December 21. Clark will finish his day with an appearance on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart." The glass is half full according to the Joe Lieberman campaign. His campaign says that since former running mate Vice President Al Gore endorsed Democratic rival Howard Dean, online contributions to the Connecticut senator are up 13-fold. The senator was in the crucial primary state of New Hampshire discussing health care issues today.
Massachusetts Senator John Kerry also has some number news of his own. Turning the big 6-0 today. He's spending his birthday with 400 of his closest friends and donors in Boston. Kerry also paid a visit to "The Boston Globe" for an editorial board meeting.
Not to be left out, President Bush held his own dinning for dollars event today, this one in suburban Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. One of many to surely come this campaign season.
BUSH: I'm getting ready for the campaign. I'm loosening up.
BLITZER: And that's our look at the 2004 presidential candidates on the trail.
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BLITZER: With Al Gore's surprise endorsement under his belt, Howard Dean seems to be on a roll. But the key question remains. If Dean wins the democratic nomination, can he beat -- can he beat President Bush? For that, we turn as we always do to our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider. What's the answer, Bill?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, there's one issue driving the Democratic race, Wolf. And it is not Iraq.
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SCHNEIDER (voice-over): The Democratic race has come down to one issue, the one raised at the beginning of Tuesday night's debate.
TED KOPPEL, ABC NEWS ANCHOR: So I would like all of you up here, including you, Governor Dean, to raise your hand if you believe that Governor Dean can beat George W. Bush.
SCHNEIDER: Only one hand went up. Dean believes he can win by leading a movement of new voters. Barry Goldwater was a movement politician. So was George McGovern. Uh-oh.
The White House claims to be worried. But privately, Republican analysts say Karl Rove could not have designed a better opponent for Bush to run against.
DAVID BROOKS, COLUMNIST, "NEW YORK TIMES": I have spent a lot of time talking to republican pollsters privately and on a background basis, and saying, Is there any of the major Democratic candidates who would be easier to beat than Howard Dean? They all say, no, Dean is the easiest to beat. SCHNEIDER: Dean's Democratic rivals have started to raise the electability issue, carefully. Dean has no international experience and no military record.
WESLEY CLARK (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have to be the party that can stand toe to toe with George W. Bush on national security.
SCHNEIDER: Joe Lieberman says he could pull the Democratic Party back to the left on many issues.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D-CT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This campaign for the Democratic nomination is fundamentally a referendum within our party about whether we're going to build on the Clinton transformation in our party in 1992.
SCHNEIDER: He is the only governor to have signed a gay civil union bill. Al Gore urged Democrats to nominate Dean in order to, among other things, make an anti-war statement.
AL GORE, FRM. VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He was the only major candidate who made the correct judgment about the Iraq war.
SCHNEIDER: But it may be hard to unify the Democratic Party around the idea that the war was a mistake.
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SCHNEIDER: Ronald Reagan was a movement candidate and he won. How? Well, he ran against the discredited incumbent which is exactly what Howard Dean needs.
BLITZER: Interesting. Let's talk a little bit about a new poll that's out in New Hampshire. And it doesn't necessarily focus in on the primary.
SCHNEIDER: That's right. New Hampshire voters know Howard Dean. He was the governor of a neighboring state. And he's been campaigning in New Hampshire for months. And he has a wide lead among New Hampshire Democrats.
But look at what happens when you ask all New Hampshire voters, not just Democrats, all New Hampshire voters how they would vote between George W. Bush and Howard Dean. It's Bush, by nearly 2 to 1. These are voters who know Howard Dean quite well. It's not a good sign for Dean.
BLITZER: Bush carried New Hampshire, albeit very, very narrowly, in 2000.
SCHNEIDER: It was one of the closest states in the country. And of course Ralph Nader got more than enough votes to deny the state to Al Gore. It's one of the closely contested states.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider, as usual, thanks very much. We have lots more news coming up, including Kobe Bryant's defense. Lawyers for the basketball superstar subpoena a close relative of the accuser.
Freedom flight or illegal act? A jury rules on six Cubans accused of hijacking a plane to Florida.
And no monkey business. Another animal death at the National Zoo here in the nation's capital. An update on the story we brought you earlier in the week. All that and much more. Stay with us.
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BLITZER: The mother of Kobe Bryant's accuser subpoenaed by the defense. That story tops our "Justice Report." She's among the witnesses Bryant's lawyers plan to call at a hearing next Friday. They also have sent a subpoena to lead investigator Doug Winters. Bryant is charged with raping a 19-year-old employee at a hotel near Vail over the summer.
A Florida jury has convicted six Cubans of hijacking. In March, the group commandeered a domestic flight forcing the crew to fly instead to Florida. Their lawyers argue the crew cooperated in what they called a freedom flight. The hijacking charges carry a mandatory 20-year sentence.
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Entertainer Whitney Houston was singing -- yes, she was singing as she and her husband Bobby Brown left a meeting with prosecutors in Atlanta. Brown is charged with battering Houston over the weekend at the couple's suburban home. But Houston told reporters -- and I'm quoting now -- "We're still together." Brown is scheduled to appear in court January 7.
More troubles at the National Zoo. The Washington, D.C. tourist attraction famed for its pandas has been under fire following a series of animal deaths. Zoo officials now have confirmed that a bacterial disease spread by rats caused a monkey to die last month. The same disease has infected a cheetah. Earlier this year the zoo lost two red pandas.
Not your ordinary evening. In the nation's capital, we'll explain. That's coming up.
And our "Hot Web Question of the Day" is this. Do you agree with President Bush that only countries who risked lives in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts? You can vote right now. cnn.com/wolf. The results when we come back.
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WOODRUFF: And now the latest sign Christmas is coming.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. DENNIS HASTERT (R-IL), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: When we count to three, we'll make this tree light up. All right? One -- can you help me. Two. Three! All right! Great job. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The House Speaker Dennis Hastert turned on the lights of the holiday tree at the U.S. Capitol just a few moments ago, The 65-foot Engleman Spruce is from Idaho. It's covered with 10,000, yes, 10,00 lights and obviously that's our "Picture of the Day."
Here's how you're weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember, we've been asking you this. Do you agree with President Bush that only countries that risk lives in Iraq should get to bid on reconstruction contracts? Look at this, 67 percent of you say yes, 33 percent of you say no. As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.
Let's get to some of your e-mail. William writes this: "I agree wit the policy of not giving contract to countries that did nothing but let our young people die. Now they want to profit from it."
George writes this: "How much more contempt can the U.S. show towards it's allies? We expect them to forgive Iraqi debt, but won't allow them to bid on contracts."
A reminder, important reminder. We're on every weekday, 5 p.m. Eastern. Also, every weekday noon Eastern. I'll see you tomorrow. Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.
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Harmful to Pregnant Women>
